686Chapter 6: Under Hill
Under Hill
A loud clip-clop sound echoed through the night, breaking the quiet and peace. Toothless lifted his head in surprise, blinked away the sleepiness, and looked toward the road where a shadowed figure was approaching on horseback.
Who would... that looks like the Wizard...
He barked loudly enough to be heard. His suspicion was confirmed when the man stopped his mount, hopped down, and started toward them.
He bent down under his wing and nudged Hiccup awake with his nose.
"Hiccup, wake up."
"Hrmnnnn... Toooothelless... why'd ya wake me up?" Hiccup yawned widely and batted at the offending nose.
"Get up. Gandalf wants to see us."
Hiccup seemed to better wake up at that. They both got to their feet and stretched. All the while Gandalf strode toward them quite quickly, his robes swaying about him in the gentle breeze.
"There you two are! I hoped I would find you here," Gandalf muttered as he came to stand beside them.
"We didn't think we'd see you out here," Hiccup yawned.
"My apologies for waking you, but... there is something..." Gandalf muttered and went silent.
He seemed very disturbed by something as he stared back across the fields toward the party tree and the tent. Most of the Hobbits that had been down in the party had left, and most of the lights had faded.
The silence stretched out between them.
"So, Gandalf, how did the party go?" Hiccup eventually asked while leaning against Toothless's side.
Gandalf merely stared at them for a long moment. Then he seemed to remember who he was with.
"The party... gracious me, yes, the party was more eventful than I thought it would be. Bilbo's speech was... let's just say that it was not so clear what he was trying to say at times... and he was quite transparent... at other times."
The Wizard chuckled to himself, sighed heavily, and leaned on his staff.
"They will be talking about that one for generations, I am sure. But I wanted to talk to you both before I leave."
"You are leaving, but you only just got here today!" Hiccup objected in surprise.
"Yes, and I must leave now. There are... questions that need answering."
"I... don't understand..."
Gandalf chuckled at that.
"Frodo said the same thing. Actually, if you would both be willing, would you stay here for now and... keep an eye on Frodo for me?"
"Frodo? The Hobbit I have not met?" Toothless wondered.
"Yes, you don't need to worry about him either. I told him a bit about you, Master Haddock, and that you have a friend whom he might want to meet. That this friend has wings and a tail will be a surprise to him, but you should have no problem with Frodo. He is a bit different for a Hobbit, as you may have noticed. Somewhat of a dreamer at heart."
"Is there any reason why you want us to keep an eye on him?" Hiccup asked.
"Yes, there is," Gandalf gruffly answered.
The Wizard then stared at him without saying anything else.
"Alright then, so... uh, I guess we will be sticking around here for a while. In secret, probably."
"That would be for the best, yes," Gandalf agreed.
"When will you be back?" Toothless then asked.
"That I do not know. It will be several weeks at least. Just stay here, both of you, try not to draw attention to yourselves, unless it is good attention, and keep an eye on Frodo for me. Bilbo has already left to stay with the Elves. Frodo can explain more. And Toothless, I do want to speak more to you in the future."
"Me too. I have many questions for you, Wizard!" he answered with his tail tapping impatiently.
Gandalf then spun away from them and strode with haste back to his horse. He jumped with surprising grace up onto the horse, which then sped away through the darkness and was gone.
"What was that about?" Toothless hummed in confusion.
"No idea. Wizard things?"
Toothless shrugged.
"What do we do now?" he asked.
Hiccup started pacing, now fully awake despite how late it was.
"I think I should go talk to Frodo. Maybe he will tell me a bit more about what is going on."
Toothless then crouched down and expectantly looked at him.
"I will fly you there."
"Uh, we don't want you getting seen, bud."
Toothless gave him a withering glare and then laughed.
"Hiccup, what am I?"
"Hungry for fish?"
"Yes, but not that..." Toothless blinked.
"Sleepy?"
"Hiccup, I am a Night Fury... a Night... Fury..."
Dark wings spread wide and seemed to meld into the surrounding darkness.
"Oh, right, how could I forget?" Hiccup sheepishly grinned.
Toothless huffed in amusement.
"I know how to never show myself and to not be seen in the dark. You just tell me where to go. Actually..." he grumbled as Hiccup climbed on his back.
"How did you see me when you shot me down?"
Hiccup winced at yet another reminder of that.
"I, uh, it was more that I heard you making that shriek you make on an attack..."
Snort.
"Most humans run away screaming when they hear that," Toothless grumbled.
"Yeah, yay for me. Anyway, I was waiting for the gods to give me something to shoot at, heard your attack coming, saw the tower you were going to hit, and then I saw your shadow in the sky. I guess it was just luck that I hit you."
"Good luck, I say!" Toothless huffed.
They took to the dark sky a moment later. The few lights of Hobbiton still burned brightly in the darkness, likely from the little continued merriment following the party or maybe from the cleanup. Many fields of green plants and grazing or dozing animals passed underwing.
"There, that one," Hiccup pointed toward Bag-End after a short, peaceful flight.
Toothless took a moment to inspect the underground den while circling above. It was dug somewhat under a hill slightly away from any other columns of smoke or faint lights. Isolated. That was good. There was also a tree that cast dark shadows on the ground above the den. The tree had thick branches. That was also good.
"I can hide near it while you go in the den," Toothless rumbled back.
"Alright, remember that Gandalf said I should bring Frodo to meet you? He is the same Hobbit who was on the wagon."
Toothless's ears lifted in eagerness.
"That would be good. I have not met a Hobbit."
Toothless tucked his wings and dove toward the hill. He threw wide his wings and touched down almost silently on the darker side of the hill away from the front door. Then he crouched down low and went still as Hiccup hopped off.
"Alright, stay here. I'll bring him to see you soon."
Toothless nodded and purred softly as he leaned into Hiccup's hand. Then he spun away and trotted up the slope toward the large tree. Hiccup then went around Bag-End to the front door, savoring the quiet and peace of night as he did so.
Alright, time to see what all the fuss was about...
He knocked on the green, circular door a couple times and then waited. There were lights within, so it seemed that Frodo was still awake. The door swung open inwards a moment later to reveal Frodo himself, looking quite confused at something but also pleased to see him.
"Mister Haddock, there you are. I was wondering when you might show up. Gandalf said he was going to go looking for you before he left. Please come in."
He did so and joined Frodo in the living room by taking a spare chair in front of the crackling fireplace. Frodo strolled over and took the chair nearest the chest in the foyer.
"I did not see you are the party, Mister Haddock."
"Yeah, I had something else to do this evening. How was the party?" Hiccup tried to deflect the question.
"Very eventful. Plenty of dancing, drinking, eating, and one... special speech. I... don't know how he did that or if it was a trick of the light. Anyway, I hope you did not come here to see my Uncle Bilbo. He has left to go to Rivendell to stay with the Elves. Bag-End and everything in it," Frodo paused and frowned with a glance toward a chest, "is mine now."
"That is very good of him. Yeah, I did know. I ran into Gandalf on the road as he was leaving."
Frodo nodded, got up, and brought back a couple cups of warm tea, one of which he handed over. Then the Hobbit addressed him.
"It is a pity that Gandalf needed to leave so soon. I have heard it said 'Never meddle in the affairs of Wizards', but something that Gandalf said to me was most odd. He said that you have a friend whom I would especially want to meet."
"What did he say?" Hiccup was curious to hear exactly what Frodo knew.
"He told me that I can trust you and any traveling friend of yours. He also said that I should give you accommodations as long as you stay here in the Shire, which I am more than pleased to do. He specifically said that you have a secret companion who is, and I quote, 'not as toothless as he seems'.
Hiccup burst out in laughter and clutched his sides in mirth.
He really said that? Gods, he has a sense of humor.
He eventually got himself under control, though Frodo was looking at him in clearly amused confusion.
"Is that all he said?"
"The only other thing he told me is that I should not be afraid and I should trust you both. What is going on, Mister Haddock."
Hiccup took a long drink of the tea while considering what to do and say. Frodo was a kind soul, seemingly older and far more mature than his thirty-three years implied, and definitely would enjoy meeting Toothless. He settled on the simplest and most direct answer: the truth.
"Alright, fine. I am traveling with my best friend. Yes, he is a dragon. No, he is not like Smaug or any of the other dragons that are... bad."
Frodo's eyes seemed to grow quite wide at that answer. The Hobbit mouthed wordlessly for a moment.
"Truly? You have a dragon for a friend?"
Hiccup wryly chuckled and grinned.
"Well, I could call him a winged salamander, except he probably would not like that. Though, calling him that instead of a dragon might have helped the Vikings trust him more. My people were not the smartest in the world. Let me see: he can fly, and he has fire-breath, big wings, a tail, and a hide like soft scales. Pretty sure that makes him a dragon."
"How big is he?" Frodo eagerly asked.
"He's actually not that big for a dragon, but he's big enough that I can fly with him. You should come meet him."
Frodo seemed to pale at the suggestion.
"I don't know about that..."
"He is sitting in your backyard right now."
The teacup in Frodo's hand shook before being set down.
"There is a real dragon... here in Hobbiton? Right now? And it is a good one?"
"Yep, that pretty much sums it up. Are you ready to go meet him?" Hiccup cheerfully answered.
Frodo immediately got up from his chair and started toward the door. He was clearly very eager.
"Absolutely! You have no idea how many times Bilbo has told me the stories about his meeting with Smaug. Even if your friend is very different..."
"Oh, yeah. Toothless is nothing like that one. This is a bit strange for me too. Back where I am from everyone would try to kill my friend rather than give him a chance."
"Why would they do that?" Frodo seemed aghast as he shut the front door behind them.
"Well, things are not very peaceful back there. Trust me, you are better not knowing how bad it was there. Let's go meet my friend."
They started on the path that led around back toward the hill. The warm darkness was filled with the chirps and calls of the creatures of the night. The moon was visible high above and cast its pale blessing all around.
"Does this dragon have a name?" Frodo asked.
Hiccup was glad it was so dark that his slight blush was not visible.
"Yeah, I named him Toothless. To be fair though he has retractable teeth, so it does make sense."
"You named a dragon 'Toothless'?" Frodo huffed and crossed his arms.
"I know! I know! Not my proudest moment, but he has taken to the name. I would not give him another, as if he would accept one."
Frodo only shook his head in exasperation. Then they started up the hill toward the tree. The night was very dark, which was good because it helped Toothless stay hidden.
They walked out under the tree and looked around. There was apparently nothing there.
Toothless could hide very well when he wanted to.
"Alright, bud. Where are you?" Hiccup implored.
Again, there was nothing visible around them. Several seconds of silence passed with nothing happening. Hiccup then spun around in confusion and faced Frodo.
"He is here somewhere. I know it. He does like to tease me."
Toothless dropped out of the tree and fell to the ground without making a sound. He only did so after Hiccup had turned around to talk to the new Hobbit.
"He is here somewhere. I know it. He does like to tease me."
You know me well, Hiccup.
"I swear, he must be here somewhere. It's not like him to just wander off..." Hiccup muttered.
He continued on through the grass, sneaking up behind Hiccup through the shadows. Then he was able to see Frodo's face over Hiccup's shoulders and head. The Hobbit's eyes went very wide as they apparently fixed on him.
"Frodo, what is the matter?" Hiccup asked.
It was a perfect opportunity with Hiccup unaware of him being there. He stretched his neck out and opened his maw, only a paw's length away from Hiccup's head. Then he paused, ready to strike and quite amused by Frodo's confused expression.
"He's right behind me, isn't he?" Hiccup groaned.
Frodo worriedly nodded.
Hiccup turned around.
He licked Hiccup across the face, getting as much drool on him as possible. Then he sat back on his rear and purred with satisfaction.
"Why... did you... do that?" Hiccup exclaimed.
"To make a good first impression," he huffed.
"By licking me?"
"It also amuses me," Toothless grinned.
"Really, bud?"
"Really..."
"Hopeless..."
"Yes, you are..."
"You could just talk like a person..."
"Boring..." Toothless waved a paw.
Hiccup waved a paw his direction and turned back to Frodo, all while wiping the drool from his face.
"Don't mind him. He is the craziest, silliest dragon I know."
He huffed indignantly, lifted a paw, and gently beat at Hiccup's head for his saying that.
"I am the only dragon that you know..."
"That too," Hiccup groaned and rolled his eyes.
Frodo erupted in laughter, a light and hearty laughter of one feeling deep amusement. Toothless could not help himself and let out a purr of his own at the sight and sound of this Hobbit's warmth.
"My apologies, good dragon," Frodo gasped once he recovered himself, "this is still quite a surprise to me."
Toothless stepped forward and crouched down to be on Frodo's level. Hobbits were very small creatures.
"And to me. Most people greet me with a sword or a roar for my death."
"Why would they do that? You are not a monster at all," Frodo frowned.
Toothless gave a wide half-grin while warbling softly.
"Well, life was not good before..." he began.
Frodo eagerly interrupted him. The Hobbit had a twisted or devious grin.
"Wait a moment, you must have a name! What is your name, Master Dragon?"
Toothless's eyes widened, and he slowly turned to stare at Hiccup.
"Hiccup, you never called me 'Master Dragon'."
"Uh, no Toothless, that sounds like something in a game that Fishlegs would play. Do not let it go to your big, scaly head!"
Toothless huffed into Hiccup's face, and that made Hiccup cough.
"I like 'Master Toothless'," he grinned.
"Not happening, bud!"
"Toothless?" Frodo exclaimed, "That is a crazy name for a dragon! Who would name a dragon that?"
Toothless huffed in agreement and pointed a paw at Hiccup.
This Frodo Hobbit has good thinking!
"His fault."
Frodo crossed his arms and frowned.
"His fault? What were you thinking, Mister Haddock?"
Hiccup held up both palms against the dual attack.
"In my defense, he can smile without showing any teeth, so it does work as I already said, thank you very much!"
Toothless demonstrated such a smile, much to Frodo's amusement.
"You didn't have a name before he gave you one?" Frodo wondered.
Toothless's lifted ears fell slightly at that.
"No, I never knew any other dragons like me."
"Not even your parents?"
"No," Toothless sadly hummed.
Frodo nodded at that with a strangely distant but also sympathetic look in his eyes.
"That is terrible. My parents both died long ago when I was only twelve. Drowning accident."
Frodo, perhaps encouraged by seeing Hiccup standing at Toothless's shoulder, stepped closer to him and then held out a hand toward the dragon's nose.
"Well, Master Toothless, it is my honor to meet you, a friendly dragon."
Toothless looked down at the extended paw and considered what to do with it.
A nose-touching of trust? No. That is only something between me and Hiccup.
"What should I do?" he turned to Hiccup and asked.
"That is a handshake. It is a way that humans and Hobbits too greet each other."
A hand-paw shake? I should shake the hand-paw? Probably.
So he bent down, closed his gummy jaws around the hand-paw, and gently shook it. Then he let go and gave a satisfied nod while wondering at the ceremony.
"Toothless, you are so special..." Hiccup groaned while holding a palm to his forehead.
He curled his tail around and batted Hiccup in the head in revenge.
"Yes, Hiccup. I am special."
"What is this thing you have with physically attacking me?"
Toothless deeply chuckled, walked around, and rested his chin on Hiccup's shoulder.
"What did you say about us playing that way, Hiccup?"
Hiccup's frustration melted at that reminder, and he put a hand on Toothless's neck.
"True."
"You really are best friends," Frodo warmly observed.
"Yes, and more," Toothless answered.
"More?"
Hiccup nodded.
"Brothers. At least I think that is what we are. Neither of us ever had a brother by blood," Hiccup explained.
Frodo nodded.
"Sometimes I wish I knew what that was like. Though, Samwise and I are very good friends too. We have dreamed of taking adventures all over together and seeing the wide world someday," Frodo whispered.
A warm moment of quiet followed that.
"Frodo, Gandalf seemed spooked by something as he was leaving. What was it?" Hiccup wondered.
Frodo grimaced and frowned at that question.
"I'm not sure about that. He wanted... something kept secret and safe."
Hiccup nodded in understanding. Everything that had happened made a lot more sense.
Yeah, he would want me and Toothless to stay hidden for now.
Frodo continued.
"Gandalf has always been a bit odd like that. Suddenly disappearing for a long time, doing... Wizard things. All he said was that he had questions that needed answering. I have learned, as I said before, that one does not meddle in the affairs of Wizards. Oh, Hiccup, you are indeed welcome in my guest room for as long as you need," Frodo added.
Hiccup was stunned and quite surprised at this generosity.
"Thanks, Frodo. That is very kind of you. What about Toothless?"
Frodo again regarded Toothless while deep in thought.
"I would not have a problem with you staying here outside Bag-end. You don't really fit inside. Other Hobbits might not be so pleased if they find out you are here."
"Let me guess, I should stay hidden to not scare anyone?" Toothless groaned, his tail going still at his side.
Frodo stepped closer to him without any hesitation.
"We Hobbits generally like the quiet life. Anything outside the normal we don't do well with. Especially big things that can eat Hobbits," he wryly grinned.
Toothless snorted at that and gave a weary sigh.
"Is there nowhere I can go because of what I am?"
"They wouldn't hurt him. Would they?" Hiccup worried.
"No, I don't think they could if they tried. He could just fly away."
Hiccup and Toothless winced at that.
"Actually," Toothless lifted his tail and curled it around to display it, "I cannot fly on my own."
"No, why not?" Frodo sadly exclaimed.
Toothless spoke up before Hiccup could say anything.
"Because I was hurt in fighting long ago. I lost a tailfin to a human trap. I cannot fly well at all now since I am missing a tailfin. Hiccup made me a new one."
"Oh, that is a new tailfin?" Frodo stared at the prosthetic.
Hiccup warily smiled.
"Yep, I made it myself for him."
"And that is why he flies with me. He controls the not-real tailfin, and we fly together," Toothless purred.
"That is amazing! May I touch it?" Frodo nodded toward the real tailfin on the ground before him.
Toothless lifted the tailfin for him to see and feel. Frodo gently ran his fingers across the thin, leathery skin.
"I had no idea that dragons feel so... soft and warm. Not at all scaly and cold."
Toothless laughed freely at that, a deep and throaty laughter.
"Not all dragons are like me."
Hiccup added a chuckle of his own.
"Yeah, that is true. The Gronkles are like rough, living rocks. The Monstrous Nightmares are somewhat slimy, which we think might be why they can set themselves on fire. Deadly Nadders are like overgrown, playful birds. Zipplebacks have two heads and can make lots of fire with their gas."
Something he said made Frodo very excited.
"Do you have fire, Toothless?" Frodo eagerly asked.
Toothless smirked and purred very smugly.
"Do I have fire? Yes, but I do not think I should show you now," he glanced around at the lights of other Hobbit dens.
"True, that would probably be seen. Toothless, what do you eat?" Frodo asked.
"Fish," was the immediate response.
"And deer," Hiccup added.
Toothless then sheepishly grinned with a faint warble.
"Basically, if it is on four legs, I will eat it if I must. Not other dragons or two legs though..."
Frodo nodded with slight reassurance at that.
"Well, Hiccup, I will give you coin to get fish for him in the market, if you would like."
"That would help a lot, thank you, Frodo. You are very generous."
"Of course, any friend of Gandalf's is a friend of mine. Especially a friendly dragon."
Toothless inclined his head toward the Hobbit and purred softly.
"And Toothless," Frodo continued, "I will even make some bacon and sausage for you."
Toothless's eyeridges lifted in an unspoken question.
"You've never had bacon and sausage?" Frodo asked in disbelief.
"No, are those a kind of fish?" Toothless warbled.
"That does it! I will make you my famous Hobbit-made bacon and sausage! A proper breakfast or second breakfast if you would like!"
Toothless nodded and licked his lips.
"That sounds good. Uh, what should we do now?" Hiccup wondered.
Frodo again looked somewhat wary at that question which reminded them of the problem facing them all right now. It would not be good for a dragon to be found in the Shire.
"Where have you been staying, Toothless?"
"The forest by the road."
"You might want to stay hidden there for now. In the meantime, I will think about what we might do to get you into the Shire openly."
Both Hiccup and Toothless blinked and gasped at that.
"What?" "Really?"
Frodo nodded.
"Yes, there must be a way to do this without scaring everyone too much. Let me think about it. Mister Haddock, are you ready to turn in for the night?"
Hiccup turned back to Toothless.
"Bud, do you think you can find the way on your own?"
"Yes, I can. It is dark enough that no one will see me."
Toothless then rested a paw on Hiccup's shoulder, purred softly, spun around, and jumped with a sweep of his wings as he glided into the night. They both watched as a dark blur darted and dashed through the night's shadows, making its way into the distance toward the forest. Then the blur completely melded into the darkness.
"He is amazing," Frodo whispered.
"Yes, he is."
"And he truly cannot fly on his own?"
Hiccup shrugged slightly.
"He can glide somewhat as you just saw. The wings give him lift, but the tailfins keep flight stable and let him control turns."
Frodo remained staring out into the night in evident awe for a full minute.
"It is amazing that you built something to help him fly again at all. You must tell me more about your home and the other dragons where you are from, if you do not mind. May I show you to your room, Mister Haddock?"
Toothless lay down in the shade by the edge of the forest and stared up into the sky. The dark night sky in which he had once glided and soared in darkness for simple pleasure. Whenever he could find the strength of will to resist the Monster's control enough to leave the nest, at least.
This land is very different. It does not seem like there are many dragons at all here.
He lay his head on his paws and stared up at the bright moon.
At least it is much warmer here.
Sigh.
That Frodo seems like a kind little human Hobbit thing. It is good of him to let Hiccup stay in his den. I wonder what he will do to introduce me to his pack.
He remained awake much later into the night, looking to the sky all the while in the hope that he might hear the beat of wings or see a shadow darting across the sky. A single sign that he was not alone in this world would so greatly warm his soul-fire. To see wings passing through the sky against the bright moon would prove that he was not alone in this world.
But neither happened.
Then he sighed with resignation and vanished under a dark wing.
Standing in the warm, cozy, and somewhat small guest room, though it was built with Hobbits in mind, Hiccup looked around and gave a weary sigh. He inspected the simple and small bed, the chest for clothing, the wooden rocking chair, the various paintings hung on the walls, and the crackling fireplace.
One by one he snuffed out the lit candles.
What a place. I wonder why no one on Berk ever thought to build underground. It would be almost completely fireproof as well as warmer in the winter.
His thoughts turned to the peacefulness of life here in the Shire.
It is so simple here. I really hope that Frodo can think of something to help Toothless live here freely. Though, I will need to figure something out also. There has to some type of work I could do.
Brief reflection on his own abilities gave him one clear occupation he could easily pursue.
Maybe I can help out with blacksmithing. Every people needs someone to repair weapons... or farm equipment here, I guess. Toothless could help with farming or heavy work.
He yawned widely and stretched his limbs, suddenly feeling the exhaustion of a very long day filled with encounters. He met a Wizard on the road, introduced said Wizard to Toothless under very tense circumstances, met his first Hobbits, introduced Frodo to Toothless, and was now staring in exhaustion at the warm, inviting bed.
Then he fell facefirst into the bed and snuggled under the soft, warm covers.
Silence followed except for the crackle of the fireplace and the occasional noise from Frodo out in the living room or kitchen.
There was no sound of soft purring or breath like large bellows near him. There was no wing protectively draped over him.
Even though he was in a bed of his own, it still felt different, this being his first time truly away from his best friend in a few weeks.
Toothless, we will find a way to get you accepted here. It shouldn't be hard since Hobbits are a peaceful people. It's not like we will need to fight anything.