New story! It's just the first chapter but I'm already in love with it. A lot of what happens in this story was inspired by a good friend of mine (her name shall be known as Pockets) and she is absolutely thrilled that I'm finally writing this. Do note that I'm going to take my time with this story because I want to do a REALLY good job with this. I can try to keep the updates at, maybe, once a week but I can't promise anything. With that all being said, enjoy the first chapter!

Chapter #1: Legends

There's a legend here in Scotland, nearly as old as the land itself. It tells the story of a blacksmith, a stableman, a maid, and a princess. It's a story of love, hatred, fate, duty, life, and death. Not many know this legend and those few who do know don't know how it really went, but I do. I do know how it really went and that's the legend I'll be telling.

Once, there was a kingdom called DunBroch. After a decade of war, the Kingdom was, at last, peaceful once again. It held on to the peace for 3 years but, sadly, it was not to last. For the past few weeks, a neighbouring clan had threatened DunBroch with war. The young Lord MacInroy had an army much larger than the combined strength of DunBroch, MacIntosh, MacGuffin, and Dingwall. The only way to avoid another war and a massacre was for the beautiful princess of DunBroch to marry the lord. Reluctantly, the 23-year-old princess had accepted the proposal but she only did it for the sake of her people.

Enter a young man named Hiccup. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, that's his full name. But in Scotland, that isn't his name. Whenever a Viking enters enemy lands for any reason, they change their names and hide their true origins. One might ask why they change their names. Little over 13 years ago, the Vikings lived peacefully among the Scots on the mainland but that all changed when war was declared between them. The Scots were victorious in the end and anyone left on the mainland that was a Viking or had Viking blood were slaughtered mercilessly. To this day, Vikings were still hunted down on the mainland. His name is now Hendry Gallach. No one on the mainland knows who he really is or what he experienced when he was a 14-year-old, not even the family that took him in when he was found at sea.

Hiccup-I mean Hendry was 25 now. He had changed greatly over the years. He was once a talking fishbone that no one took seriously but as he grew older he had become taller and stronger. Many girls of his village could him very handsome and many would often giggle when he walked past them. What made him handsome was not just his height or muscle. He possessed auburn hair and mesmerizing forest-green eyes but there was one flaw in his otherwise perfect complexion. Hendry was a cripple; he was missing the lower part of his left leg, just below the knee. One would often see him walking long distances with his crutch; strangers making fun of him but a stranger would always underestimate the young man. Hendry may have been a cripple but he was a skilled cripple. He worked as an apprentice blacksmith in his village; his skill was rivalled to none, his work was flawless. He had made himself several prosthetics to replace his missing leg but he usually only wore them when he was working. When asked why, he simply says, "Because they hurt more than the time I lost my leg"

Over the years, his work had become widely famous. So famous in fact, that the young man was summoned by King Fergus to come and work at the smithy in the castle of DunBroch. This was a rare opportunity to be given to anyone, so Hendry accepted. He left for DunBroch shortly afterwards with his blacksmithing tools and his prosthetics safely in a bag and his crutch under his arm.

This is where the story begins.

And that was chapter #1. I tried to create this wise, old lady tone for this chapter but I probably failed doing that. I actually wrote this chapter when I was suffering a minor writer's block with Cursed, so it's been sitting in my documents for quite some time. And speaking of Cursed, the sequel will be posted soon; I promise. Review, follow, favourite.