The day had been cloudy from the moment he’d stirred in his den, but thankfully nothing had actually happened. There’d been no downpour, no sudden thunderstorm — only a murky sky and a nippy breeze. Even the beach seemed exceptionally chilly as Hiccup made his way down the sandy stretch in search of a snack. Usually, he settled on the little crabs that lived there, but he was looking for something new that day, and he had had an idea of where he could find it: in the tidepools.

Slowly, the sand turned to rock beneath his paws as he neared his destination. The tide had retreated back into the ocean, leaving behind shallow basins filled with seawater — and fish! He had never actually tried fish before, but he remembered when he and Asteria had met. They’d munched on bugs together, and she’d said they tasted fishy. He’d not liked them, yet he wanted to try a REAL fish. Maybe genuine fish were yummy … ?

Approaching a pool, Hiccup peered into the water where several fish swam. A determined smile spread across his face as he brought a paw high into the air and waited for the perfect moment to strike.

A fish soon slid along the edge of the pool where the aspiring hunter lay crouched. As it came within distance, he brought his paw down with a loud splash, trying to scoop it up and launch it onto the nearby rocks, so he could pounce on it and bite down. The fish must’ve seen him coming because his paw came down on … nothing! Hiccup succeeded only in slapping a wave of water across the pool and soaking his paw. And scaring the fish, of course.

“Hmph,” he huffed a little and flicked his paw, sitting back on his behind. This was proving harder than he had anticipated.

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i'll never let you go
if you promise not to fade away

Nero couldn't understand the magnetic draw to the blackened sands. He was so utterly fascinated by them that he seemed to visit daily, though whenever he arrived he knew the real reason was Jewel. The teenager was hoping to bump into her, tell her everything that had happened, and ask her something that he was confident she would agree to do. The albino hadn't told anyone of his desire -- not even Saga, who would inevitably be the most impacted by the result. Nero didn't seem to mind, though. He saw no reason why he couldn't have his cake and eat it, too.

A muted splash in the distance brought his rosy gaze to the tide pools. Oh! It was @Hiccup!.. looking particularly frustrated. Nero couldn't remember a time when he had ever seen the boy anything but giddy, so he turned direction and approached casually. "What's wrong? Everything good?" the boy looked into the pool and spotted the few fish swimming around, but he had yet to make the connection.

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Hiccup’s chocolate-dipped tail tapped on the sand in a slow, frustrated manner while he peered down onto the fish as they speedily swam around the basin in a circle, probably panicked by his lingering presence. Seriously? There was no way catching a trapped fish could be THIS hard …

Had he been more intune with his environment, he may have noticed Nero heading his way. He was much more focused on the task though, so he only realized someone was approaching when it was too late for him to hide his frustration. Hiccup looked over, his mercury-colored eyes landing on Nero. Immediately, his ears slammed back on his head and beneath his creamy cheeks, his skin burned with embarrassment. Had he noticed? Ah. Yep, he had. His question confirmed it.

With a small, awkward laugh, Hiccup lifted his dry paw and rubbed at his damp wrist, flustered that he’d been caught in a bad mood. Nobody was happy all the time, but he usually was. And he didn’t want Nero to see him sulky over something as dumb as FISH.

As his ears relaxed on his head, he nodded at the fish that Nero had already taken note of. “Just trying to catch a fish,” he revealed. “They’re stuck, so you’d think it’d be easy. But … ” But all he’d managed to do was soak his paw.

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i'll never let you go
if you promise not to fade away

Nero deposited his rump on the ground alongside his cherry red friend, following his gaze to the tide pool and aforementioned fish. He could certainly see why it should have been easier to get them out, but the one thing he had learned from Gawain was that fishing was difficult. The teenager certainly didn't think any less of @Hiccup for struggling and nodded understandingly, investigating the shallow pool with a squint.

"So two options," the albino boy began, tapping his toes along his chin thoughtfully. "I could try to teach you what basic stuff I learned from Gawain, or.. we could splash around until we get all the water out and then we'd have ALL the fish." They weren't going anywhere regardless, so Nero hopped into the pool with a broad grin. "I say we try option two first!"

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The boy looked down and watched while he wondered how he was supposed to get them out without completely soaking himself. Nero had an idea though — actually, he had two ideas! Naturally, Hiccup gave him his complete attention and smiled eagerly while he listened. Nero had learned some basic fishing techniques — somebody named Gawain had taught him, he revealed — and Hiccup nodded, liking that option. He wondered what the second choice was though …

He’d really had no idea, but he never would’ve imagined it involved them jumping in and splashing around like hippos. Hiccup blinked in his surprise and stared at his friend for a second before he giggled, sudden and bubbly. “You’re gonna freeze doing that!” he warned him, not yet making the plunge. It may not have been frosty, but there was a cool breeze that Hiccup knew would leech the warmth from their bones when they climbed out — or rather, when Nero climbed out, because he wasn’t about to get in!

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i'll never let you go
if you promise not to fade away

Did the fish appreciate the splashing? No. Did @Hiccup? Also no. Unfortunately, that didn't mean he was going to heed his friend as he cautioned against freezing. Nero would have rather froze than melt from the sun, so he saw no issues with the child water as he splashed around in it like a toddler. To be honest, he was surprised at Hiccup's lack of enthusiasm.. and it had to be fixed!

"So then we can eat while we dry off!" he protested, sauntering over to his friend. Nero attempted to wrap a leg around the boy and pull him in, laughing all the while. "C'mon, the fish aren't gonna catch themselves and there's a den nearby we can dry off in. Let's fish!"

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To Hiccup’s amusement, Nero persisted. The older boy said they could eat when they dried off, making the younger one snort, a playful brow arching over his half-lidded eyes. ‘We?’ Oh, no no no — as fun as that totally sounded, he had to pass. It was cold and he preferred to keep his fur dry, but he appreciated the invitation!

Because he trusted Nero not to do anything horrible like try and drag him into the tidepool, Hiccup didn’t back away from his friend when he moved in. He even considered leaning in closer so he could bring his paw down on his head and dunk him. Before he could follow through with is own mischievous little plot, an arm wrapped around his own and—

The splash of Hiccup’s body hitting the water drowned the sudden gasp that was punched from his chest as he was drawn down. He sank into the chilly pool and wheezed in surprise when the water swallowed him to his chin, his eyes widening while his ears slammed back. “Cc- COLD!” he stammered and looked at Nero. “You— !” Bringing his paw up, Hiccup slapped it down on the water to splash him back.

“It’s FREEZING in here!” he hiccuped, even as a smile cracked the tension in his expression. The boy’s mouth opened to say something else, but the only noise he made was a startled yelp as something — a fish — wiggled between his limbs. “FF- FISH!” Hiccup finally gasped out and, rather than try to catch the creature as it squeezed by, he pushed himself away from his side of the pool and closer to Nero’s to get away from it, whining, “They’re so SLIMY!”

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i'll never let you go
if you promise not to fade away

Nero burst out laughing as he successfully lassoed his friend into the arctic alongside of him. Maybe it was a bit mean, but @Hiccup would come out of it with all of his toes and his tail and his nose, so he didn't see the harm. After all, he had wanted some fish, right? What better way than to become one with them?

"Me? Me what?" he said innocently, splashing around a bit more and very nearly slipping on one of the fish he was trying so hard to catch. Sorta. If he managed to catch one by flailing around like an imbecile, he'd be impressed. Nero glanced over to Hiccup as he declared fish were slimy, resulting in a confused: "Have you never touched one before?" How hadn't he known they were slimy? "You gotta smack it onto the land with your paw, Hic! C'mon, you can doooo it!" Ra-ra, pompoms and all!

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