So I was bored today and browsing my movie collection when my eye lands on (lo and behold) a HD copy of HTTYD that my very caring boyfriend got me after he read my fics. And then I felt terrible, because, not only haven't I watched this copy, but also… when last did I add to the Sögur?

I scratched around in my FF folder and dug up the list of prompts I made from the reviewers. And put it on my desktop. So you'll be glad to hear that you'll be seeing a lot more of the peacock feather!

I'm sorry about the long wait. I think it's been more than a year? A lot more? I am ashamed. But then again, I'm not exactly known for my consistency… so please, if I spell things differently than before, please forgive me. We've already had the unfortunate Stoic/Stoik incident… sorry.

Disclaimer: see profile.

Prompt: Swim

The Tree in the Pond

Landing was still painful. For both him and the boy. Even now, as he crash-landed in as straight a line as he could, he could see the boy lose his grip from the jolt and go flying through the air.

The dragon came to a stop before he hit the rock face, but the boy was not so lucky, making a quite elegant flip in the air before smacking the rock face above the Night Fury. The boy fell into a crumpled heap before the dragon's feet. Face first in the only muddy spot found in the entire cove.

Hiccup groaned and came to his feet. His shoulder ached where it had hit the cliffside. It was one of the better landings he'd had, but if he wanted to continue hiding the bruises and other injuries, he'd have to find a better way. He'd almost sprained his wrist yesterday and had to be very careful around his father. Last night he had to keep his face very straight as he raised his food to his mouth. Outside, he was listening intently to what his father had to say about the last time the dragons attacked, but inside, he was doing a sort of groan-sob every time he took a bite.

He was covered in mud. He had pieces of soil in his hair and it was all down the front of his shirt. He tried to wipe at it with his hand, but it was no use. He was a gross brown streak from head to toe. He sighed, kicked off his boots, shrugged off his fur and waded into the icy waters of the cove.

Toothless regarded this act with great interest. The boy splashed his face with water and then suddenly disappeared. He could see the hatchling's shape as it moved beneath the water. The dragon put his front feet into the water, but didn't go further. Dragons, in principal, didn't get along with water.

When Hiccup surfaced, he caught Toothless' curious gaze. He laughed at the bewildered look in the dragon's eyes and splashed water at the two paws in the water.

"What, can't you swim?" he teased. Toothless narrowed his eyes in suspicion and stepped out of the water. He wasn't going to get wet.

"Aw come on," Hiccup called. "Haven't you ever taken a bath?"

Toothless made himself comfortable by the water's edge and kept his steely gaze on the boy.

"Fine," Hiccup shrugged and dived again. The water was so cold it felt like icy needles pricking his skin, but then again, it didn't ever get warmer than this. At the sight of him, fish dispersed and gathered on the farther end of the pond. There was a submerged tree in the pond, and even though the water was as clear as the sky, there was a murky depth behind it. The pond was ringed with rocks and boulders; maybe there was a cave down there? Hiccup swam up to grab a breath, then went to explore.

The tree itself wasn't large, but it was difficult to get around it. He tried three ways before finding a viable path behind it. There was definitely something back there. His imagination sprang to life, and a billion ideas came to him. What if this was at one time a pirate's cove, and this was where they stashed their treasure? Or maybe this linked with the sea. It wasn't far from here. He swam deeper into the mouth of the cave. If only he could see-

Something cracked behind him. He whirled around. He could feel his heart beat faster. Somehow he must have brushed past a fragile part of the tree, because a branch was suddenly blocking his way out. He swam closer, tried lifting it out, but it was stuck. Panic flooded his veins. He tried again, pushing hard, but suspended in water, he had nothing to push against. He tried anchoring himself in the tree itself and pushing, but that was a big mistake. Part of it collapsed and only made it worse. He tried the softer areas of the wood, but the more he touched, the more he fiddled, the more the tree caged him in. His heart was bouncing in his throat and fear was pulsing through him. He was going to die. He was going to drown in this pond and they would never find his body. He'd go down in history as Hiccup the Lost.

His fingers became dumb and his brain started to fog. As his vision dimmed, he saw a black shape behind the tree, but by then he had opened his mouth, and the last thing he remembered thinking was – this isn't salt water. The cave doesn't link to the sea.

HTHTHTHTHTHTHTHTHT

The dragon lay at the edge of the water. The boy had been gone for a while. While he didn't know that much about humans, he was certain they were not amphibian. They breathed air, and if they stopped, they would die.

He raised his head and scanned the pond for any sight of the boy. Standing up, he padded around the edges, sniffing at the water. He couldn't see the boy from any angle, so eventually he stuck his head in to see.

There was no sign of him. Where could he have gone?

The dragon sat back on its haunches. If the boy was dead, he wouldn't help him fly. And if the dragon didn't have help, he would never fly again. He would have to fetch the boy.

He readied himself to leap into the water, hesitated, but then he took the plunge.

There he is, behind the tree. How did he get in there? It didn't matter. With a few swipes of his paws, he could scoop the boy out. He did notice the boy's eyes were closed and he wasn't moving. Three quick strokes and he was out of the pond, laying the hatchling on a smooth rock by the water. He still wasn't moving. The dragon nudged at the human. It didn't move. The Night Fury peered into the hatchling's face, and whined loudly and piteously. He nudged again, this time a little harder.

The hatchling fell off the rock onto the ground. The dragon whipped down, rolled the human back onto its back, and roared in frustration.

Hiccup opened his eyes and coughed. His chest hurt. Water stung his throat and choked him, and he felt blind for a few seconds until he blinked a couple of times and realised the sun was blocked by the black mass above him. His chest ached. He took a couple of painful breaths.

Toothless sat back, looking satisfied with himself. He nudged his hatchling back to its feet and retreated a few paces to admire his work.

Hiccup leaned heavily against the boulder, his chest still heaving.

"Did I just drown?" he croaked. "And you saved me? You… saved my life?"

Toothless crept closer. Hiccup raised a hand to thank him, then winced. He ached everywhere, especially his shoulder. He could barely move it. The pain stretched across his chest and to his arm.

"How am I going to explain this to my dad?" Hiccup asked the dragon. "I guess 'I fell over' isn't going to cut it this time."

HTHTHTHTHTHTHTHT

"What did you do?" Gobber turned suspicious eyes to Hiccup's face. "You've dislocated your shoulder!"

Hiccup still hadn't a good answer to that question.

"I was practising with an axe… and I couldn't get it out of a tree, and I guess I just… wrenched my arm." Please please please just take it. Gobber narrowed his eyes, then went to call Tuffnut and Snotlout.

"Hold him down," he said to them. "This is going to hurt."

There. Hope I fulfilled a couple wishes in this fic. I know I only used one prompt, but there's lots more to come. Soon, hopefully.

I really tried to make this about Toothless, but I couldn't for the life of me think of a reason he would have to go in the water. This seemed like the only viable option. I mean, it's not like Hiccup can make him... I rewrote this story about three times before I finally settled on this one. But hey, if anyone has other reasons for why Toothless would willingly go in the water, review and let me know! Maybe I could use this prompt again.

Once again, this hasn't been beta'ed (it was written and immediately uploaded) so please, if you see mistakes, tell me, and I'll fix them.