castleinthemist | 01 | Arrival

01 | Arrival | Open

Toothless wasn't even aware he'd dozed off until he was waking up.

He was waking up cramped... cramped and uncomfortable in a small, dark box. When his initial struggles did little to dislodge him, he began thrashing wings, feet, head, tail- anything he had enough room to move.

Eventually, the dragon gained enough momentum and energy to burst through the lid and send it crashing against the floor. The noise startled him but not as much as the scenery when he finally got a good look around. His respirations came quickly, his pupils dilating and body cringing in on himself to be as small as possible.

Where was he? What is this place? Where's Hiccup? Astrid? Stoik, even?!

Toothless took in a sharp breath and released it in a loud, echoing roar that seemed to ooze loneliness, confusion, fear, and worry. When he neither heard nor saw the Vikings responding, he quickly leaped into the nearest dark corner and shrunk against the wall, curling his tail and wings around himself.

Ugh, his head hurt. The cool stone wall helped as he pressed the top of his head against it but it didn't help for long. He was worried about his humans... and their absence. Disoriented as he was, he stayed in his hiding spot to try and get his bearings straight before seeking Hiccup.

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Toothless, luckily for Duo, was sleeping. While he wasn't snoring, his deep breathing could be heard whooshing in and out of his large nostrils, steady and equal.

He looked physically relaxed, but his posturing suggested he knew how alone and away from home he was. He was curled up in a position that likely wasn't comfortable at all, but he slept through it anyway. He'd probably fallen asleep that way- trying anything to comfort himself before mental exhaustion claimed him.

Duo didn't really have much he could do with Toothless just then, so instead he just went to fill a bowl of water for Toothless to drink from later before taking off to relax in the courtyard. He settled in under the big apple tree he liked so much.

The sounds of Duo stirring began to rile the dragon. By the time he heard the bowl being set on the ground, he was full conscious but not entirely convinced to move. When he managed to garner the energy to open an eye, he watched Duo retreat down the hall.

Toothless lay there longer still until he finally gained enough umption to get up and follow the human, slow, long, lanky steps that did more to stretch his muscles and joins than it did to move him along the hall.

He moved stealthily, taking great caution to stay in the shadows as much as possible. It was a bit of a challenge once his feet hit grass, but by that time he didn't think it mattered.

The sun was bright and caught him off guard. His pupils constricted, giving him a look that was less than friendly as usual, but still not betraying of his inner beast of death.

He stopped walking when he found Duo relaxed. He stuck his head out farther to sniff at him and then decided it was safe enough to close the distance and sit on his haunches beside him.

Duo was acutely aware of the dragon even while he sunbathed in the morning sun. Dragon sat next to him, he cracked an eye open and smirked.

"You're just some lost puppy, aren't you?" He had his arms crossed behind him, watching him with that one eye before turning his entire face to look at him. His fear wasn't there anymore, a bit of apprehension, but no fear.

He didn't understand what Duo said, but he understood the tone, and he responded with a high pitched groan that tapered off into a low, soft rumble in his chest. It was an agreeing noise that was accompanied with a paw tapping at Duo's elbow until the attached hand was free enough to rub a great big scaly head against.

Lost puppy? ... maybe a little, but probably more like a lost kitten that- WAS THAT A FISH?!

Toothless' eyes constricted and he shot from the tree to the pond, coming short just enough that the fish couldn't see him from the bank. He crouched down and inched forward bit by bit until he could look into the water and watch, tail sweeping back and forth behind him like a metronome.

Erk! "Okay!" Jeesh. Have a nice little rub. Be happy he's such a nice guy, Toothless. Duo looked him over briefly and gave him a nice pat above his head.

Course then the monster decided he was hungry. Duo just let him at it, tucking his hand back behind his head.

The dragon stomped back, head low as he tamped the ground down beside Duo and lay. The fish were too small for his liking, and hardly worth the effort of trying to catch one. He was used to the bigger fish native to the cold waters of his home. These smaller, warm water fish were... ... well, smaller. Much smaller.

Even an entire basket wouldn't feed a dragon.

Well, drat.

"Hey big guy." He patted Toothless on the tail before settling back in.

"Don't lose hope. You're stuck in the same boat as all of us. No good food, separated from friends and family." He also noticed just then the attachment the end of his tail. The fin. That was artificial.

So he did have an owner. Hm.

Toothless let out a huff through his nose and closed his eyes just long enough to relax.

When he opened them, he let his gaze drift to the sky above them.

Huh. Well, that was an easy escape, wasn't it?

But what was behind those walls? That was the question. Was it an open field? Was it a mob of angry monsters? Was this castle the only safe place in a rough environment?

Toothless' tail and back end twitched when Duo touched it. He looked down at the human before looking back to the walls. He'd have to try getting over them some time. Probably after nightfall, when he truly blended in with it all.

"What happened to your tail?" Duo wondered, sitting up to look at the fin, examining the craftsmanship and lightly touching his artificial one.

"You do belong to someone, huh?" He looked up a the dragon. "Try not to break it, I don't think I can make a new one."

Toothless was patient while Duo examined the fin. It was a common occurrence that someone would ask Hiccup how the fin worked or how he made it, and he'd call the dragon over to explain.

At least with the old one, it was common. This new one, well... he hadn't had it long enough to really gain that much attention. When Duo was done, Toothless flexed his fin and pulled the entire tail around.

He half moaned, half roared ever so slightly and jutted his nose towards the rim of the walls. Did Duo know what was up there?

There was no doubt about the fact that this animal was intelligent. There was even a question, in Duo's mind, whether he was sentient and unable to speak or just a very intelligent animal.

"Would you even know if I told you? It's another world. Home is far away. Far, far away." And he didn't know if Toothless would understand, but he offered a hand to him. To comfort him. His own eyes were sad, regretful. Homesick. Maybe the thing will understand feeling instead. "Sorry."

Yes. Very intelligent. So much so, that he even had the mind to mimic things, trying to learn and communicate. He listened to the tone of Duo's voice- forlorn and almost sad. He watched the slow movements of the human. He caught the look in his eyes and the posture of his position.

Whatever was over that wall, he wasn't excited about it at all.

But the words... "home," "far away." He only wondered how far. Could he fly there? Three days back? ... some how, he doubted it. Somewhere in his big soft heart, he knew it was impossible.

He gave Duo a look that for a human might be begging for good news in a hopeless situation.

"Sorry." He said, reaching a hand out for Toothlesss if he wanted some comfort.

"I don't know what you want, pal, but at least you got some good company, I guess." He'd hang out with the dragon, even if nobody else would. Course he hoped someone could come by to manage this thing. A dragon was just a bit harder than a dog.

Was he even house trained?

Toothless rumbled lowly and rolled back against Duo's hand so that his shoulder was being touched while he pulled his tail forward and secured it to his chest with his paws. He let out a soft whine and closed his eyes.

Oh, Hiccup...

He patted Toothless's shoulder. Poor guy. Lonely as he was, he supposed. Would have to do something about that later. He just couldn't think of anything to say to him though.

"You'll be alright, big guy."

Yeah. He knew he'd be alright. He had to be alright. He had to get back to Berk, find Hiccup's lost helmet, and get home.

His human needed him, almost as much as Toothless needed his human.

"Wonder what I'm supposed to call you." Duo mused as he bathed in the sun.

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01 | Arrival | Open

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