Ch15: Mr. Inferno and the Boat Ride

"So, Mr. Haddock, what do you want to do now, since it's your decision." Rapunzel reminded. "I'll give you some time to think." She added.

"Thanks, but maybe we should go find a bench first, because my brain works better if I'm sitting down somewhere." Hiccup replied.

Rapunzel nodded before the two of them, along with their reptile friends, walked for a while until they saw a nice and comfortable bench. The princess, black dragon, and green chameleon all stayed quiet as Hiccup carefully thought of what the next activity should be for them. As he did that, Hiccup drowned out the sounds around him, from the people playing their instruments to the ones selling food and clothing. Hiccup usually does this when he's designing something new, either for the benefit of him, Toothless, or the Vikings and dragons in Berk.

First, he decided to go over each of the activities that he and Rapunzel have already done, and exclude the things they've talked about. They read a fairy tale at a book store, then she brought four young girls for Toothless to meet personally, and later, they had lunch at a nice restaurant, and finally, they made a chalk drawing, which was more like a portrait foreshadowing what would happen on Rapunzel's next birthday. Unfortunately, Hiccup wasn't able to come up with a new activity other than flying, which he and Toothless would be doing tonight at sunset. Even though he didn't want to have Rapunzel disappointed, Hiccup knew that Rapunzel deserved to know the truth instead of be lied to.

"I'm sorry, Rapunzel, but I can't really think of anything new for us to do, and trust me, that's a very rare thing for me to say." Hiccup said.

A frown had begun to appear on Rapunzel's face from what she just heard, but a few seconds passed before it was gone when curiosity took over.

"Hiccup, what's that thing you have on your leg?" Rapunzel inquired, while using a finger to point at what she wanted to know more about.

The Viking looked down to see that Rapunzel was pointing at his dragon blade, which was attached to his right pant leg like it always was.

"Oh, this?" Hiccup asked, as he put a hand over the holster that the blade was in. "This is my Dragon Blade, and it's nicknamed 'Inferno'."

"So, how does it work and why do you use it?" Rapunzel inquired, while feeling glad that she and Hiccup had something new to discuss.

"For the past five years, me and Toothless have been charting unmapped territories, and during our travels, we sometimes come across wild and aggressive new dragons, so to command their respect and show them that I am one of their own, I invented this device to mimic dragon fire." Hiccup explained.

He carefully took the blade out of its holster to give Rapunzel a better look and he pointed to parts of the blade while describing how it worked.

"One end coats the blade in Monstrous Nightmare saliva, the other sprays Hideous Zippleback gas, all it takes is a spark and. . .boom!" Hiccup shouted.

Rapunzel and Pascal both jolted from Hiccup's imitation of a loud explosion, then they laughed a little before they let Hiccup continue talking.

"A built-in lighter ignites both ends, forcing testy dragons to keep their distance, and I can train any dragon and defend myself if necessary." Hiccup finished.

"Wow, Hiccup, that sounds really fun, so aren't you going to give us a show of you using your sword, because I'd really like to see that." Rapunzel said.

"Rapunzel, I don't really think this is the best place, considering there's a lot of people around, and I don't want someone to get hurt." Hiccup replied.

"I'm the princess, Hiccup, and with my voice, I can get everyone to stay at a far distance so that no one will be harmed at all." Rapunzel assured.

Although he didn't believe Corona had any enemies with dragons of their own, Hiccup wanted to save the Dragon Blade for more important occasions. Inferno was a sword that was made for lighting the darkness, not for stabbing enemies. Hiccup was fond of it; he'd gotten inspired after collecting a little bit of saliva from baby Monstrous Nightmares, which acted like kerosene, and observing that Hideous Zippleback gas could also be stored indefinitely, so he collected the gas, concentrated it and stored it in pellets, and set up a circuit through which the flammable gel could circulate and be ignited by a single click of a mechanism. Hiccup never preferred to use his Dragon Blade as entertainment for people, but he was willing to make an exception for today, and use it just once.

"Okay, Rapunzel, I'll do it," Hiccup said, as he got up from the bench. "You might need to stand on top of this bench to get everyone's attention."

Rapunzel made a wide mouthed smile, then she quickly rose from the bench and took Hiccup's hand to help get her bare feet on the wooden seat.

"Excuse me, everyone, but can I please have your attention?" Rapunzel asked, and she was surprised to see none of the villagers stop to look at her.

Rapunzel figured that she hadn't been loud enough, so instead of repeating what she just said, Rapunzel had chosen to give a loud and clear whistle. The princess raised her left and right index finger, which she put together to make an upside-down "v" shape before bringing them up to her mouth. She placed the tip of the "v" shape just under her tongue, behind her back teeth, and then closed her lips, making a small hole between her fingers. Finally, Rapunzel blew through the hole, producing a loud and shrill sound that managed to get a lot of villagers to stop walking and turn to face her. Only a few people had gotten her attention, but Rapunzel didn't think it was enough, so she kept on whistling until there was a very large crowd.

"Thank you all for bringing your undivided attention to your princess, but it's not me who I'd like for you to focus on right now, but a certain guest who came from the island of Berk, his name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, and he'd like to show you something that's very incredible." Rapunzel announced.

Hiccup had to admit that he was impressed with not only how Rapunzel whistled but how she introduced him to the crowd of villagers gathered in front of them. All of a sudden, Hiccup realized that everyone was now looking at him, so he took a few deep breaths to relax his body before addressing his audience. He decided to repeat everything that he explained about Inferno to Rapunzel earlier to the villagers, and he could tell they were already impressed from the looks on their faces, even though Hiccup was just getting started, as he quickly thought of how to make this an interesting show for Corona's citizens. Luckily, it didn't take Hiccup that long to come up with an idea, but he wanted to make sure Rapunzel was away so that she wouldn't get hurt.

There wasn't any need for Hiccup to worry, since she was already standing with the rest of the spectators and waiting for Hiccup to start his show. First, Hiccup pressed a button to extend the telescoping and retractable blade, and placed his thumb on top of the thumb lighter's metal grinders. He pushed down with his thumb, which caused the blade to ignite in flames and everyone's eyes lit up in astonishment at the sight of the blade. Hiccup carefully swung the flaming sword over his head for about a few times, and he gave a small smile of seeing the reactions from his onlookers.

He knew that the people watching him would eventually get bored if he didn't do something different, so he pressed a button to retract the blade. The Viking pressed another button, which released the green and flammable gas, and Hiccup spun around once, so the gas was in a circle surrounding him. Fortunately for Hiccup, the gas wasn't too close to him, and it wasn't too far that it could reach any of the witnesses who were watching his performance. Once again, Hiccup used his thumb to push down on the lighter to make a spark, which caused the circle of gas to light on fire before dissipating instantly.

By this time, there was a look of amazement on every person's face, and Hiccup could even hear most, if not all of them make cheers and whoops of praise. He decided to make things a little more exciting, so Hiccup sprayed the gas in a few other shapes and motions, from a square and triangle to a squiggly line. Each of these techniques Hiccup did only made the cheering from his audience to become louder, but sadly for them, he couldn't go on with this forever. Hiccup put his fire sword back into its' holster, and then he held up both of his hands to quiet down the crowd, since he wanted to give his gratitude.

"Thank you all for taking the time to watch the display of Inferno, my Dragon Blade, and I hope that you enjoyed it very much." Hiccup declared.

After saying that verbal form of thankfulness, the villagers gave Hiccup a round of applause by clapping their hands and shouting out "bravo!". Hearing all of this loud and enthusiastic approval caused Hiccup to feel very proud of himself, which had been a feeling that was unsurprisingly familiar. It was like every time that the village cheered him on during the exams of dragon training ever since the day that he and Toothless became friends. Hiccup never sought fame or glory out of transferring his knowledge of Toothless' behavior to the other dragons, he simply used those techniques to keep himself safe, and to ensure that he could live to see another day and continue to help Toothless, because if it wasn't for Hiccup, the dragon could have been dead already.

The twenty-year old gave a bow before bringing his head up to catch sight of Rapunzel from the crowd, and he kept his eyes on just her and nobody else. If it hadn't been for the princess, then none of this would've happened at all, and he probably would've spent hours over thinking on what activity to do. Although he thought it wasn't such a good idea in the beginning, Hiccup now felt regret for being so hesitant about going through with showing Inferno. Once again, Hiccup managed to drown out the cheers coming from the audience as he continued to gaze at Rapunzel, while she did the exact same thing.

What neither of them had noticed happening was that the group of villagers Rapunzel had gathered for Hiccup's show began to part into smaller numbers. Just a single minute had passed until the villagers were all gone, but not without having a smile on their face, and also talking about the spectacle they saw. Both Toothless and Pascal kept quiet as they watched their human friends slowly walk toward one another while wondering what was going to occur next.

It wasn't until Hiccup and Rapunzel were practically inches apart when they threw their arms around each other's torso while commencing to laugh together. The chameleon and dragon simply looked on with raised eyebrows of confusion at the behavior they watched take place not so far away in front of them. After what had felt like forever, but was really just a few minutes, the bachelor and maiden pulled back and took a deep breath to calm themselves down.

"Now that wasn't so bad, right, Hiccup? I mean, nobody got hurt and the people all seemed to really enjoy watching you use your sword." Rapunzel said.

"Yeah, Rapunzel, it did feel great to hear them cheering, but that will have to be the last time too, since I don't use Inferno for entertainment." Hiccup replied.

Although she was a little disappointed to hear Hiccup say that, Rapunzel remembered that he didn't create the sword just so he could show it off for people.

"I understand, Hiccup, and I'm sure they'll keep replaying your show in their heads, considering nobody's ever seen that done before." Rapunzel mentioned.

Hiccup instantly began to think if maybe he should give a show of Inferno to the villagers more often, and not for every day, but every few weeks or month.

"You know, Rapunzel, I guess it wouldn't be so bad to show my fire sword more than once, but it can't happen all the time, just occasionally." Hiccup requested.

Rapunzel's face suddenly lit up with joy while she jumped up and down before she thought of a way for Hiccup to show Inferno a lot more often.

"I know, Hiccup, you could show Inferno once for every month of the year, so will you be able to use it eleven more times?" Rapunzel asked.

Even though it didn't seem like a big number, Hiccup did feel relieved that he wouldn't have to show his fire sword for every single day or week. Hiccup looked down to see that he had four Hideous Zippleback gas cartridges, and he thought about whether or not he should use all of them. In the end, Hiccup decided to save at least two of the cartridges and he'll use the other ones later on, so all in all, he agreed with Rapunzel's idea.

"Yeah, Rapunzel, I can use Inferno that many times, and it would be good to make use of the sword during the time I'm here in Corona." Hiccup said.

The princess' smile grew even bigger and she felt very happy inside from knowing that Hiccup didn't have a problem with what she suggested to him. Rapunzel started to believe Hiccup was feeling exhausted from swinging around Inferno, so she now wanted them to do an activity that was relaxing. Not only did it have to be something that wouldn't require Hiccup to use his hands, it also had to be an activity that's completely new for both of them. Just when she was about to feel like giving up, Rapunzel came up with an idea, and they didn't have to rely on Hiccup to use his hands for the activity. They could go on a gondola ride through or around the kingdom, and since a gondola does seat six, Toothless could be able to join them on the ride.

"Hiccup, how you would like to go on a gondola ride through the village canal?" Rapunzel asked. "Just so you know, a gondola is a boat." She added.

"Sure, Rapunzel, but do you know where the gondolas are?" Hiccup asked, and Rapunzel nodded before motioning for him and Toothless to follow her.

"I have a question, are these rides fun?" Hiccup inquired, as he wanted to know more about them before he actually went through with going on one.

"Trust me, Hiccup, a gondola ride is always a relaxing and entertaining experience, so I'm sure that you won't be left disappointed." Rapunzel assured.

"If you've taken a gondola ride many times, then you definitely know what it's like, so Rapunzel, can you please tell me what happens?" Hiccup asked.

"Each ride lasts about forty minutes, and you'll get to see breathtaking close views of all the houses that line up on the streets." Rapunzel explained.

To her delight, a smile had made its way onto Hiccup's face, and that's how Rapunzel knew he liked the sound of it, but she wanted to tell him more.

"That's not all, Hiccup, during the whole ride, you'll be serenaded with music by a singer and a musician who are both quite talented." Rapunzel said.

The only times that Hiccup ever got to hear songs in Berk was when he was a baby and his mother would sing lullabies to comfort him during a storm. Vikings had been known to break into song after drinking contests held in the Great Hall, but Hiccup preferred not to participate in those kind of activities.

"It sounds great so far, Rapunzel, but I have just one more question for you, will Toothless be able to fit in the gondola with us?" Hiccup asked curiously.

"Well, it depends on the gondola's size, because if it's small, then Toothless' weight will probably cause the gondola to sink completely." Rapunzel answered.

Toothless instantly looked at Rapunzel as if he was genuinely offended by what she just said, so the princess felt it was necessary to clear things up.

"I don't mean you're heavy, Toothless, it's very important for a boat not to have too much weight, or else, it won't float on the water." Rapunzel explained.

She came towards Toothless and stoked the dragon's face, with her soft touch causing the Night Fury's green eyes to widen and also his black tail to wag. The Viking only stared in awe of the princess and his best friend bonding right before his very eyes, and it literally warmed Hiccup's heart as he saw it occur. Hiccup stepped back and watched as Rapunzel began to scratch under his friend's chin, and it was at that moment when he realized the direction of her hand.

Before he could even raise his hand in warning, Rapunzel's fingernails reached that special spot under the dragon's neck, causing Toothless to fall over. Rapunzel made a terrified squeak as she quickly yanked her hand back and horror filled her eyes as she kept them on just her hand and nothing else. Hiccup chuckled as he walked closer to Rapunzel and gently grabbed the girl's trembling hand in his own before leading it to the dragon's strong pulse.

"It's okay, Rapunzel, dragons have a spot just under their jaw that they love to have scratched, and if pressed just right, it sends them straight to sleep." Hiccup explained, as he saw Rapunzel relax a lot more from what he just told her.

Rapunzel turned to him with a smile so relieved and so wide that Hiccup couldn't help but burst into a round of laughter, which only grew when she joined in with him‚ and for a moment‚ they let themselves enjoy the sound of their musical giggles in unison. All of a sudden, Hiccup stopped laughing when he looked down to find that he still had his fingers intertwined with hers, but Hiccup didn't bother pulling them away.

Her hand felt warm to his own, petal like, so incredibly soft, like silk that had been washed a million times, and it was a touch Hiccup could get used to more often. Suddenly, Hiccup's brain made its big debut and he froze, sucking in a gasp through his teeth, before yanking his hand back like he'd been burned while every cell in his body careened to a stop, and Rapunzel stopped giggling to look at Hiccup in confusion.

"Hiccup, is everything okay?" Rapunzel asked, while starting to wonder if there was something she missed that would cause Hiccup to change his expression.

"Oh, yes, Rapunzel, everything's fine, I was just thinking if we don't take a gondola ride very soon, then it's going to get pretty dark out." Hiccup answered.

The princess' eyes suddenly widened from realizing that she and Hiccup haven't been spending the past few minutes to reach the kingdom's gondola dock. Even though it was possible for Hiccup and Rapunzel to have a gondola ride at night, neither of them wanted to wait until the evening to share the experience.

"You're right, Hiccup, it's going to be dinnertime later, and my parents don't approve of me being out so late, even if I have a guard with me." Rapunzel replied.

She was about to start walking toward the dock when Rapunzel felt a hand come on her shoulder, and she turned around to see that Toothless was still asleep.

"Maybe it's a good idea to wake up Toothless first, because we wouldn't want him to be worried sick about where the two of us went." Hiccup suggested.

"I agree, but I think that you should do it, Hiccup, you two have been best friends for years, so you know more about him than I do." Rapunzel responded.

Although he wondered if Rapunzel had only said that because she was still shaken up from unintentionally causing Toothless to fall asleep, Hiccup thought it was nice to hear, so he didn't bother asking with her. Hiccup took a few steps away from Toothless, then Rapunzel did the same thing, and she quickly covered her ears as Hiccup cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Icelandic Cod!" Hiccup shouted, and it was those two words that got the dragon to stand up on his four legs and face the boy with wide eyes and a gummy smile.

"Sorry, bud, I only said that to wake you up." Hiccup said, and Toothless' expression changed to a frown and he swatted the side of Hiccup's head with his tail fin.

"Hey!" Hiccup exclaimed as he rubbed his head to try and ease the pain, while Rapunzel couldn't help but giggle and she covered her mouth to hide her giggling.

"Nice try, Rapunzel, but I know you're laughing," Hiccup said, as he turned to see Rapunzel was tight-lipped, pretending as if she hadn't been laughing at all.

"Hiccup, I know this might be a silly question to ask you, but does your head hurt?" Rapunzel asked, and she saw Hiccup wince in agony as he nodded his head.

"If you don't mind, Hiccup, can you show me where it hurts the most?" Rapunzel inquired, as she thought of a way to help take the pain away from Hiccup's injury.

With one of his hands, Hiccup pointed to the spot where Toothless hit him and not long after he brought his hand down, Rapunzel stood up on the balls of her feet. By doing this, Rapunzel's face was now at the same level of Hiccup's own face, and she closed her lips before softly pressing them against Hiccup's cheek. Hiccup's eyes widened instantly as he felt Rapunzel's lips make contact with his skin, and his face simultaneously became flushed from the feeling it gave him. A few seconds had went by before Hiccup realized that Rapunzel only kissed his cheek to ease his pain, not because she liked him as more than a friend.

The boy quickly started to feel foolish for actually thinking that was the case, considering he had a fianceé, even though it wasn't made public in Berk yet. Not to mention that Rapunzel also had a boyfriend, who she was sure would become a fiancé too when he returned from visiting the neighboring kingdoms. Just because the princess wasn't engaged at the moment, it didn't mean that Hiccup could ever think she was available, especially since he wasn't either. Every time that Rapunzel would give him a smile, a hug, or even a kiss, Hiccup would remind himself that they were done out of feelings that were platonic.

"Does your head feel better now, Hiccup?" Rapunzel asked, but not before taking a few steps back to give Hiccup space and making sure to be facing him first.

"Yes, Rapunzel, it's much better, thanks." Hiccup replied, while trying hard not to blush. "Perhaps we should make our way to the gondola dock now?" He asked.

Rapunzel nodded her head before she and Hiccup went back to heading for the gondola dock, but not before Hiccup made sure Toothless was following them. The two human beings stayed quiet throughout the rest of the walk there, since they've already talked about what to expect when they took a gondola ride. Once they arrived, Hiccup could see that the dock was lined up with flat-bottomed rowing boats, which were much smaller than the ships they had on Berk.

However, none of these boats had enough space for Toothless, so he'd have to stay at the dock and wait for Hiccup and Rapunzel to come back on their gondola. Even though it'd take forty minutes, the Night Fury has been separated from Hiccup longer than that, so he was sure the dragon could deal with their time apart. The gondoliers and musicians had been in a conversation with each other, but when they saw the princess approaching, every one of them bowed their head.

"Your Highness, what a pleasant surprise!" One of the gondoliers exclaimed, while stepping forward. "I'm sure that you've come here to take a gondola ride?"

"Yes, that's right, but I won't be going alone," Rapunzel replied, as she turned to face Hiccup. "My friend here, Hiccup Haddock, plans to join me." She added.

All of the musicians and gondoliers took a long look at Hiccup from head to toe, which caused Hiccup to believe that these men didn't like what he was wearing. That didn't seem to be the case anymore when a smile appeared on their faces, and a few of the men came towards Hiccup since they had something to say.

"Oh, we remember you!" One of the gondoliers exclaimed. "You're the same boy who did that fire show in the village square, now that was truly a spectacle!"

Hiccup soon became pleased to know that most of these men, if not all of them, had seen his display of Inferno or at least heard about it from other people.

"Thanks, I'm glad you liked it, so as you already know, we want to go on a gondola, but we'd also want someone to play music for us." Hiccup requested.

"Don't worry, Mr. Haddock, that won't be a problem," The gondolier replied, before stepping to the side. "All you have to do is choose a gondola." He added.

Hiccup took a moment to look at the boats, but he realized it didn't really make any difference, especially because all of them have the same size and color.

"Well, I guess I'll choose. . .that one." Hiccup said, while pointing to a gondola, and he turned his head to face the Princess. "What do you think, Rapunzel?"

"I like it, Hiccup," Rapunzel answered, and she gave him a smile before turning back to the gondolier because there was a question she wanted to ask him.

"I want to ask you a question, sir, and even though I probably know what your answer will be, I'm still going to ask you anyway." Rapunzel announced.

The gondolier simply nodded his head, as he mentally prepared himself for whatever question the princess would be asking him in the next few seconds.

"Would it be possible for Hiccup's best friend, Toothless, to come onto the gondola too?" Rapunzel asked, while looking over to where the Night Fury sat.

Rapunzel waited patiently as the gondolier glanced at the black dragon, but when a frown come onto the man's face, Rapunzel knew it meant bad news.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, I don't think your gondola, or any other gondola here is strong enough to carry Mr. Haddock's dragon." The gondolier responded.

Although he felt disappointed to hear that, Hiccup wasn't all too surprised because already believed it was unlikely Toothless could be able to join them. Hiccup appreciated the fact Rapunzel still asked the gondolier if it was possible, and he found it necessary to let Toothless know they'll be gone for a while.

"Hey, bud," Hiccup said, as he approached his best friend, who quickly gave the boy his attention. "There's something I have to tell you, and it's not good."

Toothless quickly made a moaning sound, as if he already knew what Hiccup was about to tell him, but he didn't try to stop his human from saying more.

"You can't come with me and Rapunzel on the gondola because there isn't enough room, but the ride won't take long, just forty minutes." Hiccup explained.

Hiccup stepped back in surprise as the Night Fury walked away and made himself comfortable as possible by laying down on the cobblestone street.

"Sorry, Rapunzel, but I need to talk to Toothless for a minute." Hiccup said, hoping she wasn't upset their gondola ride would be delayed for a moment.

To Hiccup's relief, Rapunzel smiled and also gave a nod of her head, which meant she understood, so Hiccup made his way to his friend on the street. He could already tell from Toothless' face that the dragon was sad that he couldn't go on the gondola ride, so Hiccup thought of what he could say to make Toothless feel better.

"C'mon, bud, look at me," Hiccup begged as he got down on his good leg and waited for Toothless to face him, which happened in less than a minute.

"I won't be gone forever," Hiccup said while he put his hands under the dragon's chin. "The ride will only take less than an hour, and I'll be right back!"

Despite what Hiccup just told him, Toothless made a whining sound, so Hiccup pondered of how to make it up to him later, and luckily, he had the perfect idea.

"How about this, bud, we'll go for a flight around the kingdom at sunset, just like we used to do back on Berk, so what do you say?" Hiccup asked earnestly.

Only a few seconds passed before Toothless had a wide grin on his face and his tongue lolling out at the same time, and Hiccup knew what that look meant. Toothless was happy because he now had something to look forward to, and better yet, it was an activity that he could get to do with Hiccup and no one else.

"Atta boy! That's it!" Hiccup exclaimed, as he hugged the dragon's muzzle and petted his snout, and he let Toothless lick his face for a bit before walking away.

"Just you and me, a flight around Corona tonight, I promise!" Hiccup shouted, and he could see that Toothless wasn't moping around on the street anymore.

Since the Night Fury was now in a good mood, Hiccup could be able to enjoy his gondola ride with Rapunzel without having to worry about his best friend.

"So, I'm guessing Toothless is okay now?" Rapunzel asked, even though she didn't think it was necessary to ask Hiccup that from seeing the smile on his face.

"Oh, he's better than okay, Rapunzel, he's great." Hiccup answered, before his smile was replaced with a frown. "I'm sorry for making you wait." He added.

"Hiccup, you don't have to apologize," Rapunzel said quietly as she put a hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "I wouldn't have gotten on the ride if Pascal was upset."

It made Hiccup feel good to know that Rapunzel could relate to him when it came to his friendship with Toothless, but then something else came to his mind. The image of Pascal being the size of Toothless caused Hiccup to chuckle at first, and soon enough, he was laughing hysterically while being close to tears. He didn't bother to notice Rapunzel taking her hand off his shoulder and she could only imagine what it was exactly that got Hiccup to laugh all of a sudden.

Rapunzel didn't think it could be what she just said to him because she hadn't meant to be funny, she wanted Hiccup to know she could empathize with him. She would never find out if she didn't ask him, so Rapunzel lightly shook Hiccup's shoulder, but when that didn't work, she brought up a hand to his cheek. Feeling the princess' hand make contact with his skin once again caused Hiccup to open his eyes and take a few deep breaths which put an end to his laughter. Even as this happened in front of her, Rapunzel didn't say a word because she was actually waiting until Hiccup was completely quiet so she could ask what she wanted to know from him.

"Now that you can hear me, Hiccup, could you please tell me what were you laughing about?" Rapunzel asked as she took her hand off from his freckled cheek.

Instead of saying his answer out loud, Hiccup moved a little closer so that he could whisper it into Rapunzel's ear, and Hiccup stepped back to give her space. A couple of seconds went by until Rapunzel looked at Pascal first, and she moved her head to glimpse at Toothless before starting to giggle. Hiccup went ahead in joining Rapunzel while all the gondoliers and musicians kept quiet and wondered why the teenagers were laughing so much. In the end, they decided it wasn't any of their business, but one of them did clear his throat so that Rapunzel and Hiccup could give their attention.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but do you two still want to go on a gondola ride, because we understand if you've changed your mind." The gondolier said.

"No, we didn't change our mind," Hiccup replied while shaking his head. "We're sorry to keep you waiting, but my dragon was upset. . ." He added.

"There's no need for you to explain, Mr. Haddock," The gondolier responded as he held his hands up. "What matters right now is your gondola ride."

Hiccup gave a nod of his head in agreement before him and Rapunzel walked over to one of the gondolas, with a gondolier and musician following.

"After you, Your Highness." Hiccup said, as he smiled to Rapunzel and helped her get into the small boat first, then he took a seat right next to her.

"Thank you, Hiccup." Rapunzel answered while turning her head to smile back at him, but then felt her cheeks flush from the close proximity with Hiccup.

Their faces were practically inches away from each other's, and both of them looked away as the musician got on the boat, along with the gondolier. As the gondolier used an oar to pull the boat further away from the dock, the musician had begun to play the accordion strapped to his shoulders. The musician also started to sing a serenade to the music from his accordion, which caused Hiccup and Rapunzel to become less anxious and relax. Both of them sat back in their seats before exhaling at the same time as the gondolier rowed the boat into the kingdom's tranquil canal.

With music filling the air, Rapunzel and Hiccup turned their heads to gaze up at all the buildings which reflected in the shimmering water. Since his shoulders were covered up with leather, Hiccup didn't even notice that Rapunzel had comfortably rested her head on one of them. When he finally became aware of what Rapunzel just did, Hiccup felt his cheeks begin to flush and he wondered of what he should do now. He believed Rapunzel wanted to feel comfortable, so Hiccup thought it would've been rude of him to ask her to take her head off his shoulder.

It was a little embarrassing for Hiccup, considering they weren't the only people on the boat, but it's not like this was supposed to be a date. Even though they were sitting right next to each other, and there was music playing and beautiful sights around them, it would stay platonic. Once again, Hiccup reminded himself that neither of them were single, and Rapunzel was only helping him see what a gondola ride had to offer. With this ride obviously being his first, Hiccup was enjoying it so far, and he wouldn't really mind taking more of them during his time in Corona.

Although none of these future gondola rides would be able to include Toothless, if Hiccup had Rapunzel's company, then they won't be so bad. Suddenly, Hiccup started to think if whether or not it would be okay for him to put his arm around her shoulder, but only as a friendly gesture. Hiccup was worried that Rapunzel wouldn't think of it that way and she would get the wrong message and believe Hiccup had feelings for her. Nevertheless, Hiccup would never get to find out if he didn't go through with it at all, so he let out a yawn while bringing his hand up to stifle it.

As he did this, the Viking quickly raised his left arm just to pretend he was stretching for a moment before resting his arm on Rapunzel's shoulder. Hiccup had expected Rapunzel to take her head off his shoulder or try to pull away from him, but to his surprise, she didn't do either of those things. This seemed to confirm that Rapunzel trusted Hiccup enough to give her this kind of affection because she knew that he was giving it as her friend. Neither Hiccup nor Rapunzel said a word as they continued to enjoy the serenade being sung and they stayed like this for the remainder of the ride.

Even as the gondola headed back to the dock and the musician had stopped singing, the two young adults didn't bother getting up from their seats. It wasn't until the gondolier had cleared his throat when they snapped out of their peaceful state, and also instantly moved away from each other. Since both the musician and gondolier were out of the boat already, Hiccup was the next person to get off, but he didn't fail to remember Rapunzel. Hiccup thoughtfully lent out a hand for Rapunzel to take so that she could carefully step onto the dock without falling and getting herself hurt badly. Instead of saying thanks to Hiccup for helping her, Rapunzel stared at his face, and Hiccup stared at hers until someone else had broken the silence.

"So, guys, what did you think of the gondola ride?" The gondolier asked, as he found the silence rather awkward and thought it was better to talk.

"I really enjoyed it, sir, both the scenery and music were great, and I'd have no problem with having more boat rides in the future." Hiccup answered.

Rapunzel couldn't help but find it adorable how Hiccup gushed about the gondola ride just now, but she didn't find it necessary to tell him that.

"I'm glad to hear that, Hiccup," Rapunzel said before turning to face the gondolier. "The ride was very relaxing, sir, just like every one before it."

"It makes me happy to know this gondola ride has managed to satisfy not only the princess, but her friend here as well." The gondolier replied.

After saying that, the gondolier bowed his head to Hiccup and Rapunzel, along with the musician who performed for them during the boat ride. The green-eyed brunettes nodded simultaneously before making their way to the cobblestone street, where Toothless was waiting for them.

"Hey, bud, we're back!" Hiccup announced, and the dragon rushed to give his friend copious licking. "C'mon, Toothless, I wasn't gone that long."

Rapunzel giggled as she thought the Night Fury's affection toward Hiccup was so cute, and it was quite obvious that Toothless missed him a lot.

"Okay, that's enough, bud, we both know your drool doesn't wash out." Hiccup reminded, as he flicked off as much of the dragon spit as he could.

To Hiccup's relief, Rapunzel had already made sure to stay back as far as possible so she wouldn't get any of Toothless' saliva on her pink dress.

"Sorry you had to see that, Rapunzel, but Toothless never likes being away from me, even if it's only for about forty minutes." Hiccup explained.

"No need to apologize, Hiccup, but I don't think my parents would be too happy about Toothless' drool not washing off my clothes." Rapunzel responded.

"Well, in that case, Rapunzel, it's a good thing you stayed back," Hiccup said, as he scratched Toothless' head. "So, where should we go now?" He asked.

"To be honest with you, Hiccup, I'd like to go home. We've done a lot today, and I can't think of another activity we can do next." Rapunzel answered.

"Yeah, I can't think of one either," Hiccup fibbed, even though he did have an activity in mind, but Hiccup wanted to do it with just Toothless.

Rapunzel and Hiccup started to walk back to the castle by each other's side, and it didn't take long for them to have another conversation.

"Hey, Rapunzel, I hope you didn't mind it when I put my arm around your shoulder during the boat ride." Hiccup said, avoiding eye contact.

"I didn't mind it at all, Hiccup, but I really hope you didn't have a problem with me resting my head on your shoulder." Rapunzel replied.

"Don't worry, Rapunzel, I know that you just wanted to be as comfortable as possible, since it was a long boat ride." Hiccup responded.

The princess heaved a quiet sigh of relief from knowing that her and Hiccup didn't dislike the expressions of affection they did on the boat.

"So, Hiccup, would you mind if I rested my head on your shoulder for every gondola ride that we'll have in the future?" Rapunzel asked.

"Just as long as you don't mind it if I put my arm around your shoulder too, which I swear to do only as your friend." Hiccup promised.

"Deal," Rapunzel said, as she walked ahead to come in front of Hiccup, and brought one of her hands out. "Let's shake on it." She added.

Hiccup grinned to Rapunzel as they shook hands, but Hiccup made sure that his grip wasn't too firm so Rapunzel's hand wouldn't get hurt. After being done with their handshake, Rapunzel returned to Hiccup's left side, since Toothless was already beside him on his right side. They kept quiet for the remainder of the walk through the kingdom, since neither could really come up with anything new to talk about. In spite of that, Hiccup would often be greeted by a group of citizens either smiling or giving him a short round of applause, or doing both. It wasn't so hard for Hiccup to figure out the reason he's getting all of this attention was because of his display of Inferno earlier today.

"Looks like people really loved the show of my Dragon Blade, but it's too bad they'll have to wait a month for another show." Hiccup said.

"You could make an announcement that you're going to do more shows, but maybe it should be a surprise instead." Rapunzel suggested.

'If I make an announcement, they'll be waiting for a show, but I if don't, then they'll be waiting and asking for a show.' Hiccup thought.

"No, Rapunzel, I'll make an announcement, but I'll wait until tomorrow afternoon, so that way, everybody will know." Hiccup declared.

"Great! Do you want my parents to get everyone's attention for your announcement, or do you just want my help?" Rapunzel asked.

"I'd like help from you alone, and even if we tell a small group of people, I'm sure they'll be able to spread the world." Hiccup answered.

"Okay, Hiccup, that sounds good to me." Rapunzel replied, before they went up a staircase that led them to the front doors of her home.

Neither Rapunzel nor Hiccup had to open the doors all on their own, since there was a guard already posted on each side of the entrance.

"Welcome home, Your Highness." The guards said, greeting the princess in unison, then both of them turned to look in Hiccup's direction.

"Welcome back, Mr. Haddock." The guards added, saying this at the exact same time, and Hiccup smiled from their kind recognition of him.

"Uh, thanks, guys." Hiccup responded, expressing his gratitude for them acknowledging his presence and opening the doors for him too.

The guards waited until Rapunzel and Pascal went inside the castle, along with Hiccup and Toothless before closing the front doors shut.

"I can't wait to tell my parents about all the things we did today!" Rapunzel exclaimed, and it seemed like her parents had read her mind.

As soon as King Frederic and Queen Arianna were in sight, their daughter ran to embrace them while Hiccup and Toothless looked on.