Chapter Text
Hiccup curled up in his bed, huddling under his fur in an attempt to get warm. As he lay there and did his best to ignore the gnawing hunger in his belly, he tried to figure out why it was that everyone hated him so much. Well, maybe not everyone, he corrected himself…just most everyone.
It all started at home. He didn’t have a mom and his dad was always busy. The only time his father even spared him a glance was when he pulled him out of bed every morning and dragged him to his Uncle Spitelout’s, where he left him for the day. Hiccup would rather stay home, but when he tried to ask his dad if he could, he was quickly shut down.
Things weren’t any better at his uncle’s house, though it hadn’t been so bad when his Aunt Solvig had been alive. She always included him in her chores and made sure he had food to eat, even if his uncle insisted his portions were smaller than his cousin’s. Something to do with the fact that he was a hiccup, so he didn’t need as much, whatever that meant. But his aunt had died in a raid a month ago, and poor little Hiccup’s life had gotten much worse.
His dad still dropped Hiccup off at his uncle’s every day, but Uncle Spitelout wouldn’t feed him, as ‘he could eat at home.’ When he tried to protest, it hadn’t ended well, his uncle backhanding him so hard he flew across the room. Even worse, his Uncle Spitelout declared that since he was six years old now, he needed to get out and train with the other kids. So, every morning, he was dropped off at his uncle’s, only to be booted outside once his father left, and his uncle was not normally gentle about it either.
Hiccup’s dad never gave him a chance to eat before shuffling him out the door in the morning, so every day he was left hungry and standing in the cold. Sometimes, he could manage to sneak into the Great Hall and grab a bite to eat, but most of the time, he wouldn’t make it far before some villager or another shooed him back outside, into the lovely subarctic Berk weather.
He would have just headed back home, but it wouldn’t have made much difference as there was never a lot of food there, seeing as his dad generally ate at the Great Hall, and what little food was there, he needed to save for his ‘dinner,’ if you could even call it that.
So, he spent most of his days with an empty stomach, creeping around the village and trying to stay out of the way of the much larger Vikings, as well as the other youths his age who would all too happily knock him to the ground, taking delight in showing their superiority over him. Of course, not all the other children were mean. It was mostly Snotlout and Tuffnut who did the bulk of the damage. Fishlegs tended to follow them but didn’t normally participate in Hiccup’s humiliation and Astrid kept to herself, already focused on her training at such a young age. Ruffnut, though… Ruffnut confused him. She did whatever her twin did, but not with the same ill intent. And whenever she was part of the group to corner him, she would egg them on, but never personally got involved. Plus, as they were leaving, she always managed to sneakily drop something in his lap, whether it was a crust of bread or a tiny tin of salve or some bandages. While Hiccup never looked forward to these encounters as a whole, he was always curious to see what Ruff would manage to leave him and it made his day not so miserable.
Maybe tomorrow wouldn’t be so bad, he thought hopefully. Perhaps he could finally work up the courage to approach the forge and see if Gobber would let him stay there for the day. The blacksmith had always been nice to him and at least this way he would be warm. With that thought in mind, little Hiccup drifted off to sleep.
-o0o-
Gobber was hard at work when he caught sight of a small mop of auburn hair peeking over the counter of the forge. “Why ‘ello there, Hiccup,” he called out as he made his way over. Leaning over the counter and smiling at the little boy, he asked, “What can I help ye with, lad?”
Hiccup fiddled with his fingers his gaze darting every which way as he mumbled, “I- I was wondering if- if…maybe…I could spend the day with you?”
By the time the lad finished speaking, his voice was so quiet that Gobber barely heard him. He didn’t mind the boy keeping him company, but there was one thing he needed to find out first. “Aren’t ye supposed to be at yer uncle’s?”
“He doesn’t let me stay long,” Hiccup revealed, eyes down as he pushed some snow about with his boot. “Just until Dad leaves.”
That did not sound right and Gobber wondered if Stoick was aware that this was going on. It didn’t matter right now, though, as Hiccup needed a place to spend the day and Gobber wasn’t about to turn the lad away. Hoping to lift the little boy’s spirits, he grinned and cheerfully said, “Well, that’s his loss, then. Come on in.” He waved Hiccup over, glad to see a slight smile appear on the lad’s face. “Let’s see…if I move this here, and that there…” One day he would get things organized, but for now, this would do. “Here we go. Now you have a place to sit,” he proclaimed, scooping the lad up and setting him on a cleared portion of the counter.
“Thanks, Gobber,” Hiccup smiled up at him. “It’s so nice and warm in here.”
At that comment, Gobber realized something. “Where’s yer coat, lad? Ye shouldn’t be out in this weather without it.” Hiccup mumbled something, but it was too quiet for him to make it out. “What was that?”
“It got torn,” Hiccup confessed, speaking a little louder this time, but clearly embarrassed.
“Did ye tell yer dad,” he inquired. “I’m sure he’d get ye a new one”
“No, it’s fine, Gobber,” the boy protested, a hint of fear lingering in the back of his eyes. “I’m tough. I can handle it.”
He eyed the lad suspiciously, but he decided to drop the subject for now. “Alright, Hiccup. If ye say so.” Didn’t mean he wouldn’t be talking with Stoick about this later, but the lad didn’t need to know that. Gobber picked up the sword he had been working on but before he got far, Hiccup spoke up.
“What are you doing?”
He could see the curiosity on the boy’s face and held up the sword. “This?”
Hiccup nodded eagerly.
“This here is Ack’s sword,” the blacksmith shared. “He made a mess of it, dinna he?”
Hiccup’s eyes widened as he nodded again. “Are you gonna fix it?”
“That I am,” Gobber answered.
“How?”
“Well, ye, see…” Gobber went on to explain each step as he worked, noting that Hiccup was absolutely fascinated by everything that he said. Perhaps he could teach the boy a thing or two about smithing, though he would need to run that idea by Stoick first. Just one more thing to add to that growing list.
Gobber was about to reach for the next weapon when he heard Hiccup’s stomach growl. “I wonder what that coulda been,” he remarked lightly, turning to see that Hiccup was avoiding his gaze.
“Nothing,” the little boy said quietly.
Gobber couldn’t understand why Hiccup was so embarrassed. “It is getting about time for lunch, isn’t it? How about the two of us head up to the Great Hall and-” He broke off though when Hiccup started shaking his head frantically.
“No, that’s okay,” he replied, jumping off the counter. “I- I better get going. Thanks for letting me stay here for a bit.”
Gobber watched in confusion as the lad scampered off. Something was not right here and he was determined to find out what it was.