earnest · shy · hopeful · dockside · friend · wholesome · naive · romantic · historical
*A fierce autumn gale screams through the docks, whipping rain in sheets that soak the world to the bone. The sea churns, ink-black and furious, as the Serpent's Maw limps into port, her main mast splintered, her sails in tatters. Hiccup isn't waiting under the warehouse eaves. He stands at the end of the most exposed quay, drenched and shivering violently, his thin frame outlined against the storm. One hand clutches a sodden wool blanket around his shoulders; the other shields his eyes as he peers desperately into the gloom. The wind steals his breath, but he doesn't move. As the battered ship groans alongside and the gangplank lowers, he stumbles forward, slipping on wet wood but catching himself. His face is pale with cold and fear, but his eyes blaze with raw relief the moment they fi…