swallowed by the dark | open

[no_eels]

Who: Toothless and you.
Where: The woods/grounds.
When: Today.
Rating: PG. Mentions of character death.
Summary: Death is a big thing if you... don't really know what it is.
The Story:

He remembers teeth sinking into his flesh, snarls, claws on the floor by his head, and fire. A voice — and then nothing. Every organism struggles to keep on, to keep going, to keep existing. Aside from the end, and trying to prevent it in himself and others, the Night Fury has never really thought about death. Death is natural, though as a dragon he knows not to go lightly. When he closes his eyes, it's so very dark.

But then he hears wind through the trees, and smells the ocean. That's not right. He remembers the Vikings talking about deaths — something about five of them, and coming back — but it had never really processed that he, too, would return. That's not natural. Why would he come back at all?

Now that he's lived it firsthand, Toothless doesn't know what to do with the information.

The dragon bolts upright, eyes as wide as saucers, and then runs. He doesn't stop until he's tired, and by then he can't see or smell the mansion anymore. He lays there, panting, until he surrenders to sleep again, hoping things make more sense when he awakens. Is this where dragons go when they die? He isn't sure where he is anymore.

For the entire day after Toothless' death, he wanders. Parched, hungry, and upset. He can't smell the invisible beasts anymore, but he startles at every rustle of leaves. Are they going to come find him? Mob him again? His plaintive cries are lost to the trees, and at the end of the night Toothless curls up under a fallen log and falls into a restless slumber.

When he awakens, he's lying on the grounds near the maze. It's a familiar sight, but it brings back memories of sulfur and snarling. Toothless is immediately in motion, again, the second he awakens, and runs to the corner of the foundation that leads to the caves. He doesn't go all the way inside, instead going just inside the entrance and then staring out. All that's visible is the vague shape of his head and his bright green eyes, due to his dark coloration.

There, he waits. Unwilling to move. On edge.

Still very much confused.

Comments

I write awkward initial tags I am sorry

[seekingsanity]

Somewhat surprisingly (for someone who knows about as much about self-defense and survival as a guy from a Japanese suburb can), Fuminori made it through the event unscathed. He didn't even have to run away from anything.

Because of a few things that happened during the event, he renewed his tonic with a syringe of EVE early on; with his vision is as normal as it's going to get, he's wandering outside, enjoying the fact that he can see things as they are and that there isn't anything there that he can't see anymore.

Wandering around the parts of the ground where he's certain he won't encounter many people, he's startled at the green gleam coming from the entrance to the caves.

He pauses, peering into the shadows, and slowly makes out Toothless's shape.

"...Are you hiding?"

<3

[no_eels]

Staring out at Fuminori uncertainly, the Night Fury makes an uncertain noise in the back of his throat — more akin to a high whine than his usual sounds. He doesn't move from his place in the mouth of the caves, almost pressed against the closest wall. This all looks like the mansion, but any number of terrible things could be going on. It's enough to make a dragon's head spin.

[seekingsanity]

Fuminori's expression softens and after a moment's consideration, he shifts his weight and comes closer.

"Did something happen?"

[no_eels]

Toothless hesitates another moment and then nods, chin on the ground. It's a mild way of putting things, but it's accurate, after all. He doesn't yet feel comfortable coming any further out of the cave entrance. Hiding inside of a cave is a familiar feeling from when he was younger, hiding in his mother's nest, and he regards Fuminori with wide eyes.

[seekingsanity]

Worried of making Toothless even shyer by getting too close, Fuminori stays well out of the cave. He crouches in the grass, balancing with his forearms resting on his knees and his hands dangling.

"Are you hurt?"

[no_eels]

He blinks for a long moment before shaking his head. At least, he doesn't feel hurt. All of his deep wounds from the hellhounds are gone, the ones that had made him feel itchy and sleepy, though there are a few scars on his side from where their teeth had raked him before.

[seekingsanity]

That narrows down the possibilities, at least. Fuminori wonders if he should ask, but after a moment, he goes ahead.

"Did you die?"

[no_eels]

There's a long, rather telling pause from the Night Fury.

He knows that that's what happened. Logically, that's the only thing that makes sense (which is another scary aspect of it all). But it's still hard to think about, and to accept. For now, Toothless just nods. Baby steps.

[seekingsanity]

Fuminori nods too.

"I did once, too. It's scary."

He may be an adult, but he thinks only idiots are unfazed by dying and then waking up again. Anyone who can manage that without being freaked out or at least needing some time to process it has been in Wonderland way too long and needs to stop getting killed.

[no_eels]

Toothless snorts softly, loathe to admit to being frightened. Night Furies weren't frightened of anything. (He could dream.) But he's here, hiding in the caves, and the gambit is up. So he nods again, lifting his head up from the floor and looking at Fuminori in a new light. He makes a soft, questioning noise, cocking his head to the side. When had he died?

[seekingsanity]

Fuminori isn't sure if Toothless is worried or not, but just in case, he assures him, "It was a while ago. Sometime in the winter, I think."

He gives Toothless an appraising look, and can't help a small smile. "I bet you gave those things more trouble than I gave what killed me, though."

[no_eels]

Seemingly satisfied with the answer, Toothless trills softly. It's not good, of course, but he's glad that the invisible creatures hadn't fatally injured Fuminori. It wasn't exactly fun, being torn up so badly that he couldn't think anymore. But he'd managed to take them with him, of course, and he nods in a pleased manner before, slowly, taking a careful step outside of the cave mouth.

[seekingsanity]

Fuminori's smile widens.

"Everything's back to normal again. For now, anyway."

Hi, hello, hope you don't mind me here.

[bottlearum]

Jack's only just arrived in Wonderland.

He's been here just long enough to know he's trapped. That he arrived here by means of magic and that leaving is an 'if', not a 'when'. And so, since he has the very real possibility of being trapped here for years, he figured he might as well explore to see what all there is in this so-called not so wondrous 'Wonderland'.

His exploration leads him to the caves where he catches sight of a pair of eyes. A pair of eyes attached to a face. A face that wasn't like any face he'd seen before.

Instead of fleeing, Jack moves a step closer to the caves, calling out, "Alright there, mate?"

Not in the slightest!

[no_eels]

Toothless looks curiously at the Viking he hasn't seen before. He appears to have a sword, at least, which makes him a slightly more proper Viking than some around here. But this also makes him a potential threat. The fact that he calls to Toothless, rather than moving straight to threatening (or attacking), is promising, however.

He trills in the back of his throat, a high sound almost like a cat's purr, blinking his green eyes at Jack and then cocking his head to the side.

It was too good of an opportunity for me to pass up.

[bottlearum]

Well, that's... not a sound Jack had heard before. And he's heard a lot of interesting sounds over the years.

He's been told that that there was a dragon here, and he wonders now if this is it. He's never seen a dragon before, with them being mythological creatures and all. There's a possibility this might not be the dragon, but well. Curiosity killed the cat, right?

He moves closer, trying to get a better look. "Whatchu doin' in here for, eh?"

[no_eels]

It's hard to see Toothless, as he's the same color as the shadows around him. He's too unnerved, still, to come out and investigate this colorful-looking Viking, but he snorts softly and makes an uncertain whining sort of noise under his breath. Wonderland has always been strange, but today it's frightening and he isn't sure what to make of it.

[bottlearum]

Seeing as it's almost literally impossible to catch sight of a black dragon in the shadows, Jack has to make do with the sounds he can hear instead of his sight. As such, when Jack hears the noises coming from the so-called dragon he freezes. Literally, freezes, feet spread apart as he went to take a step forward.

He raises his hands, not moving more than that. Dragon. "Right, right. Sorry."

[no_eels]

Those two big eyes look in either direction, warily. Nothing seems to be happening or approaching from elsewhere, and he can't smell the hellhounds anymore. This Viking seems friendly. He hesitates for a long moment before, slowly, taking a few steps out of the shadows and then looking at Jack curiously.

[bottlearum]

Jack continues to stand where he is, arms raised. He doesn't want to do anything that would get himself eaten or killed by an actual dragon. Standing still and quiet isn't exactly Jack's forte, but, well. He's got preservation instincts. Dying was unpleasant enough the first time around.

But then the dragon finally moves out of the shadow and Jack slowly lowers his arms, looking at Toothless just as curiously as Toothless is looking at him. After a second, all Jack can thing to say is, "...Dragon."

[no_eels]

Jack is one of the quicker Vikings, to deduce what he is (not that he minds being called a lizard, but it's inaccurate — and do any lizards even fly?). Toothless makes a satisfied-sounding trill in the back of his throat and then takes a few more steps closer to him, nodding. That's what he is, all right.

He sniffs at the colorful Viking, taking in all of the bangles on his strange armor, looking at Jack's sword with a wary glint to his large green eyes.

[bottlearum]

Jack had been told there was a dragon in Wonderland. And while Toothless wasn't exactly what Jack had pictured in his head when he thinks dragon, there wasn't any denying the fact that it is, in fact, a dragon.

He notes that the dragon actually nods to Jack's announcement. A dragon that can understand words. That's interesting. Which is why, when Jack notices Toothless staring at his sword, he raises his hands in a placating gesture.

"No worries, mate. I ain't plannin' on usin' it."

[no_eels]

At the comment, Toothless' eyes lift to Jack's face and the Night Fury studies him for a moment. Not in a way that most animals do, with a narrowing of his gaze and a calculation as to whether Jack is being truthful or not. He has no way of knowing Jack's record with the truth, but he does seem to be genuine about the sword at least. So Toothless nods again, sitting down. His ears are forward as he does so, a low and curious rumble coming from him.

[bottlearum]

If Jack was going to use his sword, he would have used it already. But despite his rocky relationship with most animals, Jack doesn't like to hurt them. It's not like they really know any better.

He moves a step closer when Toothless sits down, but he makes no motion to touch him. He happens to likes both of his hands right where they are, thanks. Instead, he motions to the cave that he had been hiding in. "Is this where you live?" Then, he frowns. "Do dragons live in caves?"

[no_eels]

To the first, he shakes his head. To the second, he nods. Although the mansion's room for him has taken the shape of a cave, now that Hiccup is gone, the caves under it aren't all that terrific. A little too damp for Toothless' taste. He prefers being near the kitchen that can supply him with whatever food he's craving on that particular day.

Toothless nods at the mansion, trilling again.