[PRP] Past Friendships (Ifrit/Toothless)

[KasaiLoki]

Ifrit stretched out as he found a comfortable spot near one of his favorite water holes. He was surprised it was still here, after how long he had been gone. The crimson lion was not quite ready to head out on another raid, although he knew a few groups of reavers were antsy to go.

His falcon perched on a tree limb above, preening her feathers as her master rested. She paused, hearing a shuffle heading towards the duo. She lowered her wing, clicking her beak to alert Ifrit of the incoming company. The Captain seemed to already be aware, as he was rising to his feet, eyes narrowing as he watched and waited for the other to show them self.  

[MangoMeow]

He wished that Toothless would be more forthcoming when it came to information. Usually, it was fine, they were seeing new things together and it was rare that the lion ever really kept things secret... unless it had to do with his past. That was always a no go topic, and no amount of prying from Hiccup would dislodge any info. He had since given up on the subject, deciding that if Toothless really didn’t want to talk about it, then it wasn’t his place to dig into, but now he was wishing he had.

Haddock, or “Hiccup” as he had since become used to being called, normally charted their adventure of the day, so he had no way of knowing that his current route took them right into an area that Toothless was uncomfortable with, and really, the lion should have been paying better attention to where they were if he had a problem with it!

Regardless, here they were. Toothless was bounding through the grass to make it back to the border, and Hiccup was left clinging to the back of his mane, confused and concerned over the reaction he gotten when the black male finally realized where they were.

By the gods, he was an idiot, and Hiccup as a moron.

They were in the Stormborn lands.

Nott had gotten too lax, too comfortable with their surroundings, and he’d failed to notice just where they were until it was too late. To be fair, it had been quite a long time since the lion had stepped anywhere near the Stormborn, and they weren’t that far in yet, but he should have noticed when things had begun to look familiar. How had they gotten into it in the first place? Were the guards so bad at their job nowadays?!

Whatever! The problem now lay in getting out. He had to leave, he wasn’t sure he was ready to face this part of him yet... and he didn’t want to expose Hiccup to this kind of life. Not yet, at least.

Unfortunately, fate wasn’t on his side today.

He came crashing through some brush and nearly fell into the watering hole in front of them. Instead he skidded to a stop just before it, and stood there for a moment, panting, before he winced at the sight of a lion nearby. He didn’t recognize him immediately, as Hiccup chose that moment to start chittering in his ear about “going too fast” and “almost sent me flying, you overgrown cat!”.

KasaiLoki

 

[KasaiLoki]

MangoMeow

Anozira took flight as Nott'Modr and the rabbit companion skidded to a halt near Ifrit. She did not recognize the male, and could only assume he was a part of the pride. After all, what lion could just stumble into the pridelands, especially one that would duel at the borders to prevent strangers from entering (and thralls from leaving).

The dark pelt, the wing-like markings, all familiar to the crimson male. Could it be? The male he hadn't seen in years, both off on their own viking missions, and both seemingly returned home.

"Nott?" Ifrit asked, his tone gruff as he gazed at his once friend. "And here I thought I would never see you again." A frown as he stared at the familiar, chattering in his ear. "Lunch? Is this to make up for all the lost time we've been away from each other?" He snorted, a smirk on his maw as Anozira's eyes flashed above, talons extended as she circled the lion pair and the hare.

The Captain looked over the male, before up to the sky. "Stand down." He said to the falcon, before returning his gaze to the darker lion.  

[MangoMeow]

Hiccup went quiet as the new voice chimed in, ears flicking up curiously before the hare ducked down low behind Nott's mane as he finally noticed the falcon above them. He was intrigued though, despite the danger. This was the first time anyone had ever called out Nott's name, let alone identified them as a friend.

Though he was starting to question the "friend" part when he felt the low rumble coming from Toothless. It was almost noiseless though, and he was sure that the stranger wouldn't have heard the growl.

The hare tried to peek out from behind Toothless' head, but the lion straightened up then, obscuring Hiccup from view.

"He's not to be harmed," he muttered with a gruff tone.

Toothless frowned back at the familiar red form, mind whirling as he tried to figure out what to do. Here was someone from his past, someone he hadn't thought he'd run into out of everyone in his old pride.... and it left him nervous. Did the other know of what happened to him? Surely his old band had declared him dead upon returning.

Narrowed green eyes watched the falcon for a moment before turning back to the lion in front of him, "Ifrit..." How did he handle this situation? He still felt the need to run, to get away, but he also knew better than to flee from him. It would only end in Ifrit following him.

Instead, he grunted, "It's been a long time." Because honestly, he had no idea what else to say. What could he say?

KasaiLoki

 

[KasaiLoki]

MangoMeow

Anozira glared, but otherwise listened to what her master spoke and found herself gliding to a low hanging branch. Her beak clicked towards the hare, talons digging into the branch as her wings remained slightly spread, as if waiting to swoop down and send the creature to his death.

She wouldn't though, unless Ifrit instructed her too.

"Not to be harmed?" Ifrit tilted his head, his gaze flipping from the hare back to the lion. "Don't tell me you have gone soft boy?" The captain shook his head.

"Too long, perhaps that wasn't for the best." The male commented, green gaze back towards the hare under Nott's feet. "Where have you been?" Like he was one to talk, Ifrit too had been away from the pride for years from a failed viking, and a recovering injury that still continue to plague his hip with the limp he held.  

[MangoMeow]

Narrowed green eyes flickered to the falcon once more to make known that he was watching and more than willing to swipe it out of the sky if it tried anything, but he otherwise tried to continue the conversation. He wouldn't say he'd gone soft but.... he was fairly sure that his old pride mate wouldn't agree to the more carefree lifestyle he'd chosen.

There was one way to ensure Hiccup wasn't harmed though. No lion would lay a claw to another's property. Not unless they overstepped their bounds, which he was hoping to the gods Hiccup would be smart enough not to do.

"How I choose to have my Thrall treated is my own business."

The word was a foreign one. It was lucky that Haddock's face was obscured by Toothless' mane right then, otherwise the confusion would have been obvious. What was a Thrall?

This didn't seem like the time to ask.

Instead, the hare decided to shelve the question for later and lifted his head up slightly to watch the rest of the conversation. Oh, the black lion below him was going to be in for it later - he had so many questions now! He was practically burning to ask them.

... but he also didn't want to be eaten. And that survival instinct won out in the end.

Nott raised an eyebrow at Ifrit's next question. "You don't know?" He scoffed, "I would have thought my old band would have announced it to the heavens the second they got back."

His crooked tail curled around to show both it and his scarred right leg, evidence that he, too, had been injured while out on a viking.

"My band tried to kill me. I felt little reason to return after that."

KasaiLoki