Taken Care Of

For dawnsyndulla345

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Brother- sister one shot

Hiccup is 17. You are 16

Warning: has self- harm and bulling. Do not read if this will affect you negatively

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"Useless!" Bertha, a buff young female your age, cursed. "You're even more pathetic than your brother was before he made peace with the dragons!"

You gasped as she kicked you in the side. Already on the ground, you curled into ball as others joined.

"Pig!"

"Yak dung!"

"Pile of rotten dragon eggs!"

"(Y/N) the Useless!"

You got up, ignoring the pain in your back, shins, and arms. "I'm. Not. Useless!" You pushed Derek back, not pushing him an inch, though he swayed in surprise.

"Ha!" he laughed, pushing you into an empty barrel, knocking it over. "Weak and useless."

"(Y/N) the Useless! (Y/N) the Useless! (Y/N) the Useless!" the kids cheered.

"Chief's coming!" a girl warned, and they scurried like rats, leaving you bruised and struggling to get up.

After a long minute, Stoick was finally in hearing range and you leaned uneasily against the side of a house.

"Hey, daughter!" Stoick greeted, pulling you into a hug.

You rasped, "Hey, Dad." He crushed you harder, popping your back. "Dad, breathe."

He set you down. "Sorry, dear. Have you seen your brother?"

"Hic? No. Why, you need him for something?" you asked. "I can do it."

"Nah, it can wait. Thanks anyways, dear."

"No problem, Dad," you murmured, eyeing a snickering Bertha hiding a few houses down. You curved your shoulders in, your fresh bruises still aching from the recent beating and the bear hug.

"But if you see your brother, send him my way."

"You got it, Dad."

"See at home, dear."

"See you, Dad."

You watched him walk off, wishing he thought you were as useful as your brother. But now you were the disappointment of the family. The skinny twig with no accomplishments. You sighed, jumping as a hand clamped around your shoulders.

"Awe, does daddy hate you? Think you're useless!"

Another set of hands shoved you to the ground.

"That's because she is useless!"

"Yak dung!"

You didn't cry, though you wanted to. You never cried in front of them. It was something you learned from your brother when he was considered useless.

You pushed yourself up only to be kicked back down.

"Where does Useless think she's going?" Bertha asked. You glared up at her, letting her see your tear- filled eyes. "Awe, is the baby about to cry?" she asked in a baby voice. Her limp quivered in a mock. "Waa waa waa! I'm weak and useless! I'm not fit to be a Viking! I should just- Go. Die." She mimicked you in a high pitched voice then said the last two words with a threat laced in it.

You pushed yourself back to your feet, darting through a gap and sprinting off.

"Get her!"

**********************

Finally, you panted silently. I lost them. You froze as you heard thundering footsteps slow.

"Think she's in here?"

"Nah, the cave's too small. Only goes a few feet."

"You're right. Let's keep moving!"

Hurled in a ball in the corner of the small cave, you slowly released a breath, trying not to give yourself away. Tears slipped down your face as sobs threatened to take over. You waited several minutes before daring to sneak out of the cave and run to the only place you felt safe: the cove.

Finally arriving at the cove, you sat by the water, looking at your pathetic reflection. Your lip was busted and cheek was bruised. A small cut stung your hairline as sweat mixed with it. More bruises and cuts littered your body, but your long sleeve tunic and leggings under your skirt covered them.

"I'll swim and sail

On savage seas

With ne'er fear of drownin'," you sang softly, recalling your dad's sparkling eyes whenever he sung that song to you. Your mom use to sing it with him before she died.

"And gladly ride the waves of life

If you will marry me.

And love me for eternity.

My dearest one, my darling dear

Your mighty words astound me,

But I've no need of mighty deeds

When I feel your arms around me."

"But I would buy you rings of gold," a new voice joined, making you jump and look behind you. You relaxed, seeing your brother.

"I'd even sing you poetry!"

"Oh, would you now?" you teased, smiling as he sat down beside you.

"And I would save you from all harm,

If you would stay beside me!"

You finished the song together, then let a comfortable silence settle around you. Then you remembered-

"Oh, Dad is looking for you."

"I know, Gobber told me. I already went to see him."

"What did he want?"

"Nothing important," he dismissed, but your shoulders sagged. Not even your brother trusted you enough to tell you.

"Okay." You hoped he would hear your sorrow in your voice, but he made no hint of hearing anything out of ordinary. Then again, he only paid attention to dragons and Astrid, so it wasn't a surprise to you.

"So what are you doing here?" he asked.

"Nothing important."

He scoffed, "Yeah, just singing the song you only sing when you're having a bad day. Come on, (Y/ N), tell me what's wrong?"

You shrugged, "Nothing, brother. I'm just not- I don't know- very happy today." Though unhappy days seemed to be increasingly more common for you.

"Anything I can do?"

Yes, be there for me. "Doubt it." Keep asking. Please, show you still care.

"Okay. Tell me if you need anything," he said, standing up. "I'm going for a quick flight around the island. See you at dinner."

"See you," you murmured, noting how he no longer invited you to come along. Once he flew away, you pulled out your small dagger and pulled up your sleeve, sighing at the hundreds of scars covering it. You winced as you made a fresh cut. "Just another bad day."

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The following week, you had been unusually successful in avoiding your bullies. It made you happy but also stressed and worried, constantly wondering when you're luck would come it an end.

"Hey, Useless!" a snobbish voice pulled you out of your thoughts.

Eyes widened, you quickly slipped your notebook into your bag and sprinted away.

"Stop her!"

The sound of thundering feet quickly grew closer, but you pressed on. Suddenly, you were yanked back and swung to the side, being thrown in a small alley between two houses.

"Hi, Bertha," you shyly greeted, giving her a nervous smile. "It's been a while."

Her glare silenced you as she marched forward and roughly pinned you to the wall, easily lifting you off your feet. You mildly kicked around, hoping to find the ground, but a punch to your stomach ended all rebellion.

"How long did you think you could hide from us, Useless?" she sneered, spitting in your face.

You grimaced, unable to wipe it off, but kept silent.

She pulled you forward then slammed you back into the wall. "Answer me!"

"To the edge of Milgard," you muttered, gripping tightly at her wrists so she wouldn't drop you, not like it would stop her if she tried.

She pulled you back and slammed you into the wall again. "Wanna say that again?"

You sarcastically repeated yourself, adding, "Have you made yourself deaf by your own annoying voice?"

She growled, "You're dead."

"Oh yeah? You and what-" before you could finish your remark, she slammed you onto the ground, knocking the air out of you. You let out a cry of pain and shock before scurrying to your feet. You made an escape attempt only to be tripped and kicked until you couldn't even dream of every getting up again.

"(Y/ N!)" a familiar voice called. A heavy thud of a dragon landing nearby sounded as the kids cursed and ran off. A strange but familiar combination of a footsteps and metal against the ground ran closer, but you couldn't move. "(Y/ N)? What happened? Are you okay?"

Did he not see what happened, you wondered?

"I'm fine. Just tripped," you lied.

He frowned, helping you sit up. "Don't lie to me, (Y/ N). I saw what happened."

"Then why did you ask?"

"Force of habit," he murmured, picking you up. "Let's get you to Gothi.

"No!" you panicked, squirming in his arms. He struggled not to drop you. "We can't go to Gothi!"

"Why not?"

"Look, I can take care of myself. Just give me a lift home, okay?"

He sighed but agreed, "Fine. Home it is."

With care, he placed you on Toothless, climbing on in front of you and took off. The trip was quiet and quick, and a deafening silence removed any possibility of starting a conversation.

Upon landing, you quietly slithered off and made your way into the house. You trudged up the stairs, turning to get to your room. A hand swung up, stopping the door from closing behind you.

You turned around. "What are you doing?"

"Making sure you're taken care of," your brother answered, determinedly. You recognized the look in his eyes- as stubborn as your father- and waved him in.

"I can take care of myself," you said, pulling out a first aid kit.

He rolled his eyes and scoffed, "Cause you've done such a good job."

"It's not my choice to get beat up."

"Why didn't you tell me? Or dad?" he questioned, his eyes softening.

You shrugged. "Didn't want to, I guess."

"(Y/ N)," he said in a warning tone.

"Like you ever told dad what Dagur did to us! Or what Snotlout and the twins would do!" you shot back. "You never complained about anything, so don't even start scolding me about it!"

He blinked, surprised at your outburst. He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess I had that coming. I haven't been the best example, but you should've at least told me."

"I'm fine, Hiccup."

"No, you're not. Come on, let's get those wounds treated." He reached for your sleeve, wanting to help, but you pulled away.

"I can take care of myself."

He huffed, "Let me help you."

"No!"

"(Y/ N)!"

"Hiccup!" you mocked.

He growled, wanting to shout Fine! and march off, but then he realized: that was your plan. He took a calming breath and reopened his green eyes. "Please," he asked, "let me help you."

Shocked by the sincerity, you sagged your shoulders and gave him your arm. He tenderly pulled up the sleeve, gasping at the hundreds of self- made scars.

"(Y/ N)," he breathed, looking at you. You refused to make eye contact, keeping your gaze shamefully to the floor.

"Sorry," you whispered, so softly he almost didn't hear it. Immediately, he pulled you into a tight hug. "Hiccup?"

"I'm so sorry," he apologized, hugging you tightly. "I should've been there for you. I should've paid more attention. I should've protected you."

You pulled back, keeping his hands on your shoulders and shaking your head with a kind smile. "You were the best big brother I could ask for. None of this is your fault. It was my choice to keep it in, and my choice to deal with it this way."

He did his best to smile. "Let's get these taken care of, okay, little sister?"

"Yes, big brother."

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But please check out my new one shot 'My Human'. You can find it on my profile.