(no subject)
The good weather still threw him off sometimes, but Hiccup was starting to really learn to like it, especially when it meant sprawling across a sun-warmed rock by the ocean. There was really nothing bad about that. The little things threw him off more, like the thin cotton t-shirt he'd gotten out of the clothes box-all neatly sewn and lighter than any wool he'd ever known-and the Compound itself, with its too-neat corners and smooth edges. But those things were a million miles away as he let the back of his neck and arms burn and freckle in the sun, Toothless napping and batting at the water next to him.
His boot was too warm, lined with fur, suited to the Island of Berk, but Hiccup wasn't quite ready to take it off and stare at his one naked human foot next to the odd metal one. Walking was getting easier, mostly because it was learn to walk or end up with Toothless as a seeing-eye dragon, but looking at it and admitting that things didn't quite match up anymore? That was a little harder. Besides, maybe if one foot was too hot, then the heat would psychosomatically transfer over and things would balance out and-
The splash of cold water that Toothless flicked at him with his tail shocked him out of his brooding. Hiccup laughed and patted his big, scaly head. "All right, bud, I get it. No more brooding."
Less brooding, more fixing. He needed to figure out the forge and see about getting leather and metal, maybe some wood. Something sturdy enough that he could put weight on it, but not so heavy that he'd sink down on anything softer than permafrost. Wood reinforced with metal, maybe. And broader in shape, more like an actual foot. Gobber's design was no good for that.
If it was Gobber's at all...The more Hiccup looked at it, the more he had to wonder. Gobber didn't really go for the mechanical. Design a peg-leg you could walk on and that was all, or a hand that could be swapped for weapons and a tankard but that was just him being a viking at heart. This particular foot was rigged with a spring, which made taking steps a little more natural but didn't explain the weird hook design. Had Gobber been trying to emulate a foot? Why didn't it extend more, if that was the case? There had to be a reason Gobber would go out of his way to design this, but what was it?
Grabbing a stick, Hiccup jumped (and almost fell off) down to a lower rock, closer to the damp sand. He scribbled a quick approximation of his foot and began noting to himself what the possible uses might be.
Toothless peered over his shoulder with interest for a few minutes before getting bored and deciding to have a go at swimming.
[[Tags of all kinds welcome forever and always. He's on the beach, of course, with Toothless taking a swim. Oh and Hiccup can only write in Younger Futhark.]]
His boot was too warm, lined with fur, suited to the Island of Berk, but Hiccup wasn't quite ready to take it off and stare at his one naked human foot next to the odd metal one. Walking was getting easier, mostly because it was learn to walk or end up with Toothless as a seeing-eye dragon, but looking at it and admitting that things didn't quite match up anymore? That was a little harder. Besides, maybe if one foot was too hot, then the heat would psychosomatically transfer over and things would balance out and-
The splash of cold water that Toothless flicked at him with his tail shocked him out of his brooding. Hiccup laughed and patted his big, scaly head. "All right, bud, I get it. No more brooding."
Less brooding, more fixing. He needed to figure out the forge and see about getting leather and metal, maybe some wood. Something sturdy enough that he could put weight on it, but not so heavy that he'd sink down on anything softer than permafrost. Wood reinforced with metal, maybe. And broader in shape, more like an actual foot. Gobber's design was no good for that.
If it was Gobber's at all...The more Hiccup looked at it, the more he had to wonder. Gobber didn't really go for the mechanical. Design a peg-leg you could walk on and that was all, or a hand that could be swapped for weapons and a tankard but that was just him being a viking at heart. This particular foot was rigged with a spring, which made taking steps a little more natural but didn't explain the weird hook design. Had Gobber been trying to emulate a foot? Why didn't it extend more, if that was the case? There had to be a reason Gobber would go out of his way to design this, but what was it?
Grabbing a stick, Hiccup jumped (and almost fell off) down to a lower rock, closer to the damp sand. He scribbled a quick approximation of his foot and began noting to himself what the possible uses might be.
Toothless peered over his shoulder with interest for a few minutes before getting bored and deciding to have a go at swimming.
[[Tags of all kinds welcome forever and always. He's on the beach, of course, with Toothless taking a swim. Oh and Hiccup can only write in Younger Futhark.]]