Legend of the Knight Fury (**NEW** CH. 7))

[Yabanko]

Summary: It's two years since Hiccup killed the Red Death and life has been good. But, when the village goes to war and more Viking Clan come to help, Hiccup and Toothless will embark on an adventure that will reshape their lives forever.

A/N: How to Train Your Dragon © Dreamworks Animation

Okay! My first story in a while! And I PLAN on finishing this one! I hope you guys like the way I wrote it! Trust me, it's gonna get WAY better and It's gonna be LONG so you're gonna have some nice reading ahead of you!

Now this ISN'T a Toothcup fanfic but it MIGHT have slight Toothcup tendencies.

I really like the way this chapter came out. I think I captured the essence of the movie. I'm still in the process of reading the books but I have to admit, I like the movie version better than the books. Anyway, if I made any mistakes or typos, please tell me!

Read, Review and Enjoy!

"Normal Speech"

'Thoughts'

'Voice Over'

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Legend of the Knight Fury
"Prologue"
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'This is Berk. It snows nine months out of the year, and hails the other three. What little food grows here is tough and tasteless. The people that grow here, even more so. The only upsides are the pets. While other places have ponies, or parrots...we have dragons.

Of course, it wasn't always like this. My name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III. Nice name, I know. But that wasn't the worse part.

About two years back..I was considered the worst Viking to ever be born into the Hairy Hooligans Tribe. I was small, weak and clumsy. I couldn't swing an axe, I couldn't lift a sword...and, most important (or at least when this used to be important back then), I couldn't kill a Dragon. I tried my best though! Even though...every time I tried my best, my "best" seemed to backfire...which would make everyone hate me even more.

That is until I hit a Dragon right out of the sky one day. When no one believed me, I went to look for the dragon myself...and that's when couldn't kill a dragon..turned into wouldn't kill a dragon. Because despite all the hatred between our species, one look into his eyes.. and I realized that he was just as scared as I was of him...I looked at him and I saw myself...

Well, months passed passed and me and my dragon slowly but surely became the best of the friends. I helped him out when he was in trouble and in exchange, he did the same. I thought I could keep him a secret forever. But being a Viking back then, being friends with a Dragon was considered taboo. So, when one thing led to another, my dragon got captured and that when we realized that the dragons we've been fighting this whole time...were nothing compared to the Red Death.

The Red Death. The biggest, most feared dragon you will EVER see. It was a towering, ferocious mass of walking death. It was unstoppable. So believe it or not, me and my dragon managed to defeat it, freeing all of the other dragons from it's control.

I may have lost my left foot that day, but I gained something even better in return: I have friends, fans, my father's love and attention, a new best friend...and even a girlfriend! Yeah, who knew right?

So yeah, life's been pretty good on the Isle of Berk. Well...good for me I suppose. There's still some issues we've had to deal with in the past few years. While Dragons are no longer our enemies..there's another pest another pest we have to deal with on a regular basis...'

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

"We're under attack!" A loud viking voice called over all the commotion. Everywhere, Viking were running with axes, hammers and swords in hand, fighting off the oncoming invasion coming from the docks. The clashing of metal rang through the air along with loud yells, cursing and growls coming from the Viking warriors. Running and fighting their way up the docks were foreign Vikings; just as big and strong as the Vikings of Berk. They were clad in armor color black and grey.

"To the docks! They're coming from the East Side!" Another loud voice boomed as he kicked an enemy off the upper levels of the dock bridge, sending him plummeting to the waters below. With his strong arms, he lifted a hammer, beating back Viking after Viking, breaking bones, bruising skin, taking down anyone in his path.

'That guy knocking skulls there? That's Stoick the Vast. The Chief of our Tribe. And my dad. He's strong as he is commanding. They say when he was a boy, he shattered a rock in half by just smashing it with his skull. And don't ask if it's true or not because knowing my dad...it most likely is.'

Stoick and his second and command beat back any and all in their path as they made their way down the docks. Looking out into the sea, he saw 3 large boats with more Viking pouring their way out. From this distance, he could just see two catapults on each of the boats, setting their aim back and sitting their ammo on fire, ready to launch on at the village. Punching another Viking in the face, Stoick turned to his second in command, Spitelout.

"Spitelout! Tell the men to concentrate on taking out those catapults! Use the Nightmares to do the best damage!" He yelled his command, the man running off to do just that. He turned to another man as he lifting a Viking clean off his feet and chucked him into the ice cold waters below.

"Bargly! Tell the rest to keep them from getting into the Village and any who have gotten in, kick them out! Use the Gronckles! The rest of you, counter attack with the catapults and Nadders!" He yelled out before charging in to attack again. The battle grew fierce, both sides giving their all to defeat the other.

'Those Viking in Black and Grey are known as the Outcast Tribe. They don't like us and well...we don't like them either. We each kept to our own because we use to have an enemy in common: dragons. But when I showed everyone otherwise...apparently, they didn't like that idea all too well.. And, like with most problems, Viking solved it by...well...beating each other up.

Although, the Outcast have sworn to run us out of our Island and kill all the dragons, I really doubt that's gonna happen anytime soon.'

The Outcast Viking had just broken through a line of men and made it to the Village up top, where the fighting was just as bad. They spread in all direction, like a swarm of rats, setting fire to whatever they saw fit. But before they could even get close enough, the roars of dragons rang through the are, counter attacking with their own fires toward the invaders.

Landing on her Nadder, a blue clad, blonde viking teen ran full force toward the men, her newly sharpened axe deflecting their swords and cutting through their armor with ease. Driver a few men to their knees with her Nadder, she looked to 4 others behind her. "Snotlout! You and Fireworm take out the one coming up the docks!"

"No problem, babe!"

Lifting her fist, she cracked one right int he nose before kicking him down the hill side. "Fishlegs put out the fires they set! Ruff, Tuff! Help me take out the rest!"

"You got it, Astrid!" Fishlegs responded as they all did as she told them. Fishlegs, riding his Gronckle with three others following them, got buckets of water from the reservoir and began splashing them on the few homes that were set ablaze. The twins, along side Astrid, got up their weapons, slashing and cutting their way through. With the help of their dragons by their side, they were able to hold off the Outcast onslaught.

'Those 5 Vikings there are my friends and team mates: Fishlegs, the twins Tuffnut and Ruffnut, my cousin Snotlout...and the girl there...is Astrid. My girlfriend..and to think, two years ago I would've kicked myself for even thinking a girl like her would go for a guy like me. I mean, look at her.. so pretty and tough at the same time...amazing, isn't she?

They're all got dragons like me, by the way. That's pretty much the new norm, around here. The old norm was what kind of dragon you killed..'

The loud crack of wood sounded off in the sounds of battle as Astrid just smashed her shield to pieces over some guys head. Her axe lifted, she chased after a few, driving them down the docks back toward their boats. Looking up, Astrid and the twins could it wasn't just the Berk Viking fighting, but all of the Dragons were helping to put a stop to the attack. Even the small little Garden Dragons helped best they could (mainly by setting fire to the Outcast's shoes and biting whatever was in reach).

The Viking riding Nightmares were packing the most punches. The Gronckles were mainly used as battering rams for their tough skin and strong jaws. And the Nadder were able to easily weave through the crowds, getting to the enemies.

'The new norm is based on what kind of Dragon you tamed. Nadders are quick and light on their feet. A lot of girls and woman tame this one cause of their brightly colored skin.'

"Alright! We got em on the run!" Ruffnut said, picking up her spear as he brother, Tuffnut, shoved her slightly to watch the Outcast Vikings run off. "Heheheh, yeah! You know, we're doing so good, we outta raid their ship for something good!"

Astrid shook her head as she ran back toward the village, the twins following her. "Don't get too cocky, we haven't won this yet!"

'Gronckles are tough and darn near impossible to knock down. But they're also...as dumb as the rocks they eat so taming one of these really isn't all that hard..

'Zipplebacks are exotic and harder to ride since it's better to have two people instead of one.

And Nightmares are REALLY aggressive. Only the BEST vikings try to tame them. But once they do, they're especially loyal.'

The three of them ran further into the village, beating and attacking any other Outcast's that were running around. Just as Ruffnut was stomping a guy into the ground, Snotlout and Fishlegs landed next to them. "I got the fires out!"

"Yeah, and Stoick told me to come back and help you guys instead!" Snotlout said, getting his sword and shield out.

"Okay, looks like they climbing around the houses to try and ambush us! Everyone keep your eyes peeled! I just wish I knew where-"

"Watch out!" Snotlout yelled as he tackled Astrid to the ground to avoid a ball of fire that shot toward their way. The fireball had forced some of their dragons back, startling them for a moment. But before they could get back to their riders, the battle cries of the Outcasts rang out from behind the houses as metal nets landed atop of the grounds, ensnaring them in a trap.

Surrounded, the teens stood back to back, brandishing their weapons as the Outcast's got closer. "Damn...they got us!" Astrid cursed under her breath as a few of them smirked.

"Heheheh...easy picking! They're just a bunch of kids!" One of the spoke only to get a hammer thrown to his face by Tuffnut. "I'd shut that ugly face of yours if you know what's good for you!" Snotlout threatened as he dodged an attack from another.

Another Outcast chuckled at Snotlout's threat as they got closer and closer to the cornered teens. "Oh yeah? You gonna shut it for me, pig nose?" He threatened..

Their threats and chuckles soon went silent as they heard a sound cut through the air above them. It was a high pitched sound that grew closer and closer with each second. A sound that they've all heard before in previous attacks that sent an ill feeling to the pit of their stomach..

'...oh yeah...there's one more dragon you need to know about...remember that best friend I told you about earlier...?'

The Viking teens, upon hearing this sound, couldn't help the grins that spread across their faces...especially Astrid. "Oh don't worry...he might not...but we know someone who is..." She commented as Ruff and Tuff started chuckling.

The Outcast's growled at them but once again stopped when they heard the sound again...even louder than before.

'...my dad and Gobber call us a "Secret Weapon" during these attacks...that and the Outcast are kinda scared of us...and there's a good reason for that. Because my dragon...is a..'

"NIGHT FURY!"

"GET DOWN!"

The Outcast Vikings took cover as a winged black figured dive bombed toward one of the ships. The scream that once filled the air suddenly went silent, only to be followed by what only be described as a loud thunder clap of lightning and fire hitting the boat at full force.

With the distraction and chaos caused by the blast (that just obliterated the boat hit), the Viking were able to make one more push against the Outcast's with their Dragon's following suit. Slashing and bashing, the enemy was soon driven back to the beaches and docks to their remaining two boats.

The commander of the Outcast's sneered in anger as he found his men being pushed back toward the water. Cornered on the beach by the Berk Viking, he grinned as he raised his hands and a line of Outcast's appeared behind him, crossbows ready to fire.

"Ready! Aim! Fire-!" Another scream rang through the air as the same black figure dive bombed toward the Outcast. A blast of fire shot from the black dragon, cause the crossbows to miss their marks, some catching fire and other falling flat on their buts in shock was what just happened.

Looking up from behind his shield, the commander poised to charge an attack. Of course, he never even got close to the Hooligans Vikings. As soon as he took one step, a black figure landed before him the light of the moon behind him casting an ominous shadow over them as smoke rose from the smoldering sand beneath. The Outcasts could only stand and stare at the figure at his bare it white sharp teeth, growling. A moment of silence had passed by before a smaller figure on his back lifted it's head up, starring them down and only said one word...

"...Boo..."

On cue, his dragon took a breath and let out an ear splitting roar in their direction, the Berk Viking following the cue and charging forward. They didn't have to be warned twice as they all turned tail, yelling in fear of the Black Dragon, their commander calling a full retreat as they made a bee line for their boats.

In a matter of moments, the Outcasts were back on their boats, defeated and dejected by the cheers of victory from the Hooligan Viking Tribe. "And good riddance to ya!" Gobber yelled out the rest of them surrounded the figure that put so much fear into the Outcasts hearts.

Turning to face the crowd, Hiccup and Toothless could only smile as Hiccup climbed off of Toothless back. The first to reach him was Astrid with a "congratulations" kiss, his friends patting him on the back and finally, his father Stoick, hoisting Hiccup up on his shoulder with ease, spouting none-stop about how proud he is of his son and how they should celebrate their victory in the morning. And Toothless was excited as well! Because the words "celebration" and "good job" usually meant two baskets full of his favorite fish ready for him the nest day!

'So yeah, this is Berk: We have Dragons as pets, horrible weather 12 months out of the year...and are constantly getting attacked by the Outcast Vikings. It's probably not the best place to live if you plan on living a long life. But you know what? Despite all that...life has never been sweeter..'

[Yabanko]

Ch. 1
“Damaged Day”
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The rays of light from the sun rise washed over Berk as the Vikings were repairing the damage done by the previous attack that early morning. There were houses that needed rebuilding, things that needed repair and wounds that needed healing. This had become a normal thing for the past two years, ever since the Outcast decided they didn’t want the Hooligans around anymore. Seems while some people took quickly to the idea of Dragon beings friends, some die hard Vikings, like the Outcast’s, wanting nothing more than to splatter all their blood on the ground.

A group of Viking passed by Stoick and Gobber, hauling wood and tools with them to repair the damage to the houses. Looking around, you could even see their dragons helping their Viking fix their home by doing things like hauling twice the amount of wood one man could carry, removing hold burnt and broken wood and even holding up pails of nails and tools for them to get to easily.

While this wasn’t the worst of the previous attacks, it had hit them just as hard. And Stoick knew it. A thick hand took of his helm to allow his other to rub a spot on his head where a headache was soon growing. “Ha...this is a mess....they actually burned some of our crops....and a lot of the sheep are missing...” Speaking as he walk, Goober walking next to him in toe as they looked at all that needed repairing.

“Well, at least they didn’t kill anyone this time...maiming yes, but not killed...but look at it this way. We’re not the only ones that want to defend this Island. This isn’t just our home now, right?” Nodding, Stoick silently agreed with Gobber as he looked both the Viking and Dragons that were walking around, fixing and resting up from the Night battle. He was right, it wasn’t just their home. When his son had defeated the Queen, the Dragons came to live with them, side by side as allies and friends. This was their home too and that meant they wanted to defend just as much as the Vikings did.

But still, looking around the damage was evident. They had burned some crops that were reserved for Winter Rations, killed some Sheep and even a lot of the fish, the main diet for their dragons. Stoick knew exactly what they were trying to do. They were trying to starve them out. And it looks like it was working.

“Ha...at this rate, we won’t have enough food to last the Winter....especially if they attack again...” Stoick huffed, hoisting his hammer back onto his shoulder to head toward the Village main meeting/eating hall. Gobber knew that look in Stoick face. A look of frustration and despair. That look usually follow a rash plan that would, although mostly work, would spread their forces even thinner. Scratching some dirt off of the hammer that stood in place of his hand, he patted Stoick on the back with his real one as they got to the top of the steps leading to the Great Hall.

“Ah, look on the bright side: if it weren’t for Hiccup and Toothless, things could’ve gotten a lot worse, eh?”

Stoick face from being contorted in concern, to relaxed and agreeable as he nodded at Gobber’s comment. “Aye...that boy and his dragon are indeed a blessing during these hard times...hahahahaha..to think he used to be a public nuisance, eh? Hahahahaha!” Stoick and Gobber laughed as they walked to a table, sitting down and getting each a Stein of Mead for themselves.

“Haa..hahahah...I have to admit, seeing the look in those Outcast’s faces when they heard Toothless’ attack scream was a sight to behold! To think my son could strike such fear in peoples hearts...and he can barely lift an axe....hmm...by the way, where is he? He ran off a little while after the attack..”

Having switched his Hammer hand for his Mug hand, Gobber put the cup down as he smeared the remaining liquid away from his lip. “Eh...I think he went back up to the house...guess he and Toothless wanted to go back to sleep after all the commotion.”

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

The inside of the Horrendous home was quiet and peaceful. Swords and shields decorated the home, a large table stood to one side with three chairs around it. The fire pit in the middle had long been extinguished, a few wisps of smoke still coming off the charred wood. There were even some books and a couple of simple paintings here and there, mostly of Hiccup and his family.

In Hiccup’s room, the decor was a bit different. Yes, there were still shields and knives here and there. But there were more books and paper with notes. Most of which had to due with his new inventions and ideas for the Village. However, the most worked in book in his room was the new “Dragon Manual” he had just finished writing for the Dragon Taming Classes. Hiccup had started writing it half a year ago, taking the time before to really study the different types of Dragons. The old Dragon Manual sat next to his own version. While the old one had more violent writings in it, pertaining to when killing dragons was a right of passage, there was still important information in there that Hiccup felt needed to be added to the new book.

On the other side of the room, Hiccup and Toothless had crashed as soon as they got up to his room, wanting nothing more then to pick up where they started: sleeping. A deep and content breath of air left Toothless as he scooted closer to the smaller source of body heat that was Hiccup. They hadn’t bothered to climb into bed, rather they just sat on the floor and just fell asleep that way. Hiccup was resting on his side, using one of Toothless’ arms as a pillow.

Hiccup had discovered some time ago, much to his amusement, that his dragon friend was a cuddler. As such, Toothless had one arm draped around Hiccup’s smaller form, pulling him into a makeshift hug as the top of Hiccup’s head was resting against the nape of Toothless’ neck. While Hiccup had pulled one of his covers off of his bed to stave off the cold, Toothless had one of his black wings wrapped around the both of them.

They had fallen asleep like this before in the past, whenever they were out in the forest late at night and wanted to camp outside. At first, it felt a bit suffocating to Hiccup, but when the temperature started to drop, he learned to appreciate the times that Toothless wanted to sleep with him. Being a dragon, Toothless naturally had a bit more body heat then Hiccup. So together with his covers, Toothless’ arm and his wing curled around them, he was feeling rather cozy at the moment.

If it were up to the both of them, they’d rather just sleep all day after a night like last night. They had run full speed from the other side of the Island. They were doing some late night patrolling when they decided to stop and rest their eyes for a moment. They had managed to get an hour or two of sleep..until the Outcast’s attack interrupted their rest. Even so, once Toothless heard the attack, they wasted no time running through the forest and taking to the skies to put an end to the night attack.

Hiccup, for the life of him, didn’t understand what the Outcast’s problem was. He had tried reasoning with them at one point, to bring about a peaceful resolution. And after getting punched in the face by the Outcast’ chief, Stoick decided the time for words were over. But he was grateful he and Toothless were able to end these attacks as quick as they start.

A ray of light slowly made it’s way across Hiccup’s room before hitting his face with it. Groaning, he turned in his sleep to face Toothless and pulled the covers over his head to shield himself from what woke him up. Laying like that for a while longer, the ray of light shinned on Toothless’ face next; imitating Hiccup by then putting his face further under his own wings.

The two companions managed to get another hour of sleep...before something else demanded they wake up from their slumber. A loud knock on the door woke Toothless up first, just barely, though. Lifting his head, he listened to the sound continue before it turned into the sound of the door opening. Footsteps came next, following by more light knocking and a voice he recognized very well.

“Hiccup? Toothless? Are you two still sleeping?” Astrid’s voice asked from beyond the door. She got her answer when she heard Toothless yawn/purr from the other side of the door. Chuckling, she slowly opened the door just in time to see Toothless shaking the sleep from his head and uncurl his wing so she could see Hiccup for herself. “Heheheh...morning Toothless.” She said as he walked over, giving Toothless a gentle scratch behind his ear before looking down at her boyfriend. “Hiccup? Hiccup, get up, it’s morning!” Astrid nudged the boy with her foot, trying to get him to stir from his sleep. Finally, Toothless decided it was time for him to awake now and started to nudge and lick his face and neck.

“Hrrm...hn, Toothless cut it out....it’s too early....” Hiccup mumbling sleepily as he tried to turn his head away from the flying reptiles licking onslaught. Defeated, Hiccup gave into one last nudge of Toothless’ nose that had forced him to sit up somewhat. Wiping away the Dragon saliva from his face, Hiccup yawned as he rubbed the sleep away from his eyes. Looking around, he finally noticed looking down at him with an amused smirk. “Oh...morning Astrid...hmm, how’s it going?”

Astrid chuckled, setting her axe down on her should as Hiccup stretched his arms out. “Hiccup, you have to be the only Viking I know on this island that cuddles with their dragon at night! Hahahahah!”

Hiccup blushed, reaching over and grabbing his metal foot and clasping it back around his leg. “I...w-we weren’t cuddling! I-It was cold last night after the battle and me and Toothless just..sorta...fell asleep here!” Checking that his metal food was on securely, Hiccup stood up and put his fur vest back on. Shaking her head, Astrid nodded her head toward the door. “Come on. Go eat some breakfast then we can go...” She said, as she walked down the stairs with Hiccup and Toothless. Sitting on a spit over a fire were two large mackerels, cooked and ready to be eaten. By the door was a big basket of fish for Toothless to enjoy by himself. Hiccup took one of the fishes along with Astrid and began to eat it as Toothless rush over to his breakfast. “Mmm...where are we going?”

Taking a bite of hers, Astrid sat by the fire to keep warm. “Stoick’s calling a town meeting and he wants us there. I didn’t get the full details but it was along the lines of trying to fix our food situation. The Outcast’s burned some of our crops last night and took out some of the fishing boats..so unless we do something, food is gonna be a major issue this winter..”

Hiccup nodding, agreeing with that statement. This was the first time the Outcast had messed with their food supply and it caught Hiccup a little off guard to hear that. Before they would just try to set fire to the home. However, they probably knew that Houses could easily be replaced and repaired. So they were gonna try to starve them out now.

“Yeah...that was actually one of the reasons why me and Toothless were late getting to the battle. We were hoping to do some light night hunting while we were on patrol last night. We were almost on the other side of the island when Toothless heard the attack happening.”

The three of them finished off their breakfast before heading out of the door. A shiver ran up Hiccup’s spine for a second, readjusting to the change in temperature. He was still feeling warm from being wrapped up in Toothless’ body heat and from being near the fire in his home.

Hiccup adjusted the straps and buckles of Toothless’ saddle and harness before he deemed it fit to climb on top. Having done the same for her Nadder, “Stormfly”, Astrid climb on top of her Dragon and the both of them rode their dragons through the pathways of Berk.

Through the entire ride, Hiccup could see the damage that was done to their home village. Some of the houses, although well under the way to being repairs, were charred and broken in some places. But the most damage, like Astrid had told him, was down to their fields and crops; a lot of which was burned to the ground. What a mess. Whatever his father had planned, Hiccup already decided he would help if it meant keeping food from getting scarce around here.

“Here come your fan boys, heheheh..” Astrid’s voice broke through Hiccup’s concentration as he looked ahead, seeing Fishlegs, Tuffnut and Ruffnut and Snotlout walking up to them with their dragons.

“Yo, Hiccup! You finally awake? ‘Bout time, half the days gone!” Snotlout said as Tuffnut starting snickering. “I bet he and Astrid were making out, ooh-la-la! Heheheheh--OW!” Tuffnut was quickly shut up by a punch to the gut by Astrid. The rest of them chuckled at how Astrid got him to shut his mouth before riding toward the Grand Hall again.

On the way, they talked about the attack. Snotlout bragging about how many Viking’s he punched in the face and teasing Fishlegs about how “lame” he was. But in the end of it all, it all came down to Hiccup and Toothless’ fight. If you could call it that.

“Guys, me and Toothless didn’t really do all that much fighting. We were half way across the island when we heard it, that’s why we were late...” He said as they arrived to the hall and dismounted their dragons.

“Yeah but the way you made your big entrance was way cool, man! Hahahahaha! You should’ve seen the look on those guys’ faces when they heard you and Toothless dive bombing onto the seen!” Tuffnut said before being pushed out of the way by Snotlout. “You were awesome...I think you made one guy crap his pants though, that was hilarious, hahahahaha!”

“And I think I saw one guys face go white, it was awesome!” Fishlegs complimented. “Yeah, no wonder everyone loves you...heheheh!” Ruffnut said, making googily eyes at Hiccup (still having that slight crush on him since forever). Walking up the stairs, Hiccup’s cheeks were slightly red as all they did was brag about him and Toothless. “Guys, guys! Really, it’s no big deal...”

Opening the doors to the Hall, they saw half the village was there. And as soon as they saw Hiccup, they all cheered and smiled at him. Hiccup could only smile bashfully at all the cheers he was getting. Sometimes he startled Hiccup at how much attention he got on a regular basis now. It was both a funny and welcoming feeling at the same time.

“Ah, there he is, the man of the hour! Finally awake I see!” Stoick’s voice sounded over the crowd as he made his way to his son. Patting him the back, the force of which made Hiccup lurch forward slightly, Stoick led his son back to the head of the Meeting circle to stand by his side. “Hahaha, Hiccup, you and that dragon sure know how to make an entrance. But you sent those Outcast’s running, eh? Hahahah!” Smiling, Hiccup sat down next to his father as he grabbed a near by cup of water.

“Thanks dad, sorry we got there so late. Me and Toothless were a little too far away on our patrol last night. If we were closer we might’ve been to save some of the crops..” Stoick waved off the apology, before grabbing his own cup.

“Ah, don’t fret, son. I know you can’t be in two places at once. Besides, I was the one who told you to go patrolling last night, remember? Ha...but, in any case, I think I might have a solution to our food problem..I just hope it doesn’t backfire like last time..”

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

Soon, all of the tables began to fill up, save for a few gaps here and there. At the head table in the front of the hall, Stoick stood in the center, with his son at his right hand; Astrid and Snotlout (and his father) sitting beside him. Gobber sitting on his left hand followed by The twins and Fishlegs.

“Everyones here...good...now, as we all know, things have been rough. The Outcast’s are getting boulder and fiercer with each attack. While we have the upper hand thanks to our dragons and patrols...I’m afraid they’re now targeting out crops; they are trying to starve us out. And Odin knows we are NOT giving up our Island without a fight!”

Cheers echoed through the hall for a moment as Stoick raised his hand to continue his speech. “Yes...but...we cannot ignore the fact that if I don’t do something soon, we won’t have enough food to last the winter..so, here is my proposition: We’re going to send out boats to the other neighboring Viking Villages...to begin trade relations..”

There were no cheers this time but merely talk and mumbles of concern. The last time they tried reaching out to other Vikings, it was with the Outcast’s who caused this whole situation in the first place.

“How do we know they won’t attack us too?” A voice spoke up as other agreed.
“We can’t have two enemies to deal with if food and resources are scarce already!”
“It’d be a death wish!”

More voice spoke up in concern as Stoick raised his hands to calm them all down. “N-Now I know it sounds bad but we have a good reason to try and contact the others...for all we know, the other Viking Villages may have already learned that Dragon’s aren’t dangerous. The Meathead Vikings in the Southern Islands will probably respond as well...a year ago, we sent a message to them using a Terror and they responded; the Terror was unharmed! That probably means they know about Dragons..”

Hit with that fact, the talking died down into conversations as Stoick continued. “We’re going to start up trade relations with the Meatheads and any others that will help us...look, I’d rather we help ourselves like we’ve always done in the past. And if you still believe the same, then by all means, walk out the door...however, if you’re in favor for bring our village more food for the oncoming winter, say ‘aye’..”

There was a silence for a moment, the look on their faces meaning their were still mulling it over on their heads. They were considering the dangers, the loose they’ve endured and resources they’ve lost. Thought some less then others, knowing it would probably come to this eventually. They all lived by the code of the occupational hazards of being vikings.

Finally, a few of the men raised their hands, followed in succession by the rest of the Vikings present in the hall; Hiccup and his team included. Although Hiccup had the same concerns of others. He knew his father meant well and this plan could go two ways: either very right...or horribly wrong. But even with the new confidence he gained over two years, he wasn’t going to go against his father any time soon.

The people began to disperse to prepare for the plan ahead. They had to fix the homes, salvage what food was left...and possibly prepare for another attack. A sigh left Hiccup’s lips as he walked up to his father, getting his attention for a moment. “Dad, I hope this is a good idea...I mean, I know being a Viking is an occupational hazard and all--”

“Hiccup, I know you’re concerned but we don’t have much of a choice right now...you and Toothless can’t always be there to chase off the enemy...we need allies...I just hope this doesn’t backfire like last time....” With that, Stoick patted his son on the shoulder before heading off to plan the travel and requests for trade.

Hiccup watched his father for a moment, a concerned look on his face as Astrid and his friends joined to watch the other adults talk and plan. “..You think this is a good idea?” Astrid asked, leaning her elbow on Hiccup’s shoulder. Scratching his head he shrugged his shoulders. “Sure, why not...I mean, the last time we contacted another Viking Village it just started a whole ‘nother war but I’m sure everyone else will fall in love with us the moment they get here..” His dry sense of humor showing it’s face, Astrid just gave him a look before giving him a slight elbow to the side. “Come on....maybe some lunch will make you feel better...” She said, swinging her axe onto her shoulder as they walked out of the door.

Toothless was waiting outside for them, laying in a nice sunny spot. However, when he saw Hiccup exit, he got right up to his feet and walked over, sniffing his friends face. He could sense Hiccup was upset about something, and gave him a slightly nudge to his cheek, receiving a stroke on his head and ears. Even though Toothless couldn’t speak, Hiccup could tell what he was asking just by the look on his face.

“I’m alright, buddy. But things are probably gonna get a lot more stressful around here...” He warned as he moved to climb onto Toothless’ saddle. He watched Astrid for a moment as she smiled at Toothless, greeting him by scratching that spot on the back of his neck he just loved being scratched in. She must’ve hit a good nerve this time though because all of a sudden Toothless let out a content purr and shook his whole body from his head to his tail, forcing Hiccup to hold on even tighter.

They both laughed Astrid continued to scratched Toothless for a moment more before finally climbing on his back behind Hiccup. “Heheheh! Alright, where to?” He asked, feeling Astrid wrapped her arms around his waist. “Hmm...I’m feeling kinda Deer-ish today!”

“The forest it is then!” Clicking the gears on Toothless’ harness into the right position, Toothless launched himself into the air, heading toward the denser forest areas of the Island. This was a regular routine for the three of them. Whenever they weren’t busy with Viking affairs, they would take some time for themselves to just relax, hang out or just go hunting for a good meal. At times, Hiccup would feel a bit jealous on their hunting trips. Sure, he was a great fisherman, but when it came to taking down “red meat” animals like Deer, Oxen and Boars, he always fell short to both Astrid and Toothless. Well, he couldn’t really count Toothless. Being a full grown Dragon, all he had to do was land on a deer and his weight would crush the poor thing, killing it instantly. Astrid, however, had the muscles and skill to throw her axe and hit a boar right between the eyes. It was gruesome, yes, but effective.

It took them no time at all to find some food in the forest. While Astrid wanted her deer meat, Hiccup and Toothless were more in the mood for fish.

Sitting around the camp fire, Hiccup took a bit of his salmon lost in some thoughts as Toothless was relaxing behind him, his head resting on his paws. Astrid was spit roasting her meal and left the rest to Cure on the sides. She spun the meat a few more times before taking a leg and munching on it. Astrid looked over to Hiccup and saw the look on his face. It was a kind of look she had seen before, the kind where he would stare at the ground whenever he was day dreaming. “What are you thinking about?” She asked out of the blue, bringing Hiccup from his thought process.

“Oh...it’s nothing....well actually...I was thinking about my mom....” This came as a surprise to Astrid. Everyone knew Hiccup’s mother to be one of the best Female Vikings Berk had ever seen. And also one of the smartest. Truth be told, when Astrid was a young child, she looked up to her in a way. However, she had disappeared when Hiccup and her were much younger...

The memory of the day she left was all too present in Hiccup’s mind though. Although he had moved on and was happy with his life now, he did think about her on occasion. He thought about her face so he wouldn’t forget it and also never forgot about the day she left either. She and a few other Vikings had decided to try and bring reinforcements from other Viking Villages to help with the dragon problem. It was supposed to just be a 1 month trip between the islands. But after a year had passed...it was assumed that she had either lost her way...or the more likely belief among their people was that she fell victim to a Dragon attack.

A sigh left Hiccup’s mouth before he took another bite out of his fish as Astrid moved to sit next to him. “You miss her...?”

Hiccup shrugged his shoulders as he place his fish over the fire for a moment more. “I guess.....but....you know I miss most about her? Her cooking...”

That earned a chuckle from Astrid. “Her cooking?”

“Yeah..I know ‘food is food’ to most vikings here but...the things my mom could do with it was just...art. There was this one dish she made where she got some herbs and plants from the forest and cooked it with the chicken...ooh....it was amazing, Astrid...” Gushing over his taste-buds memories, Astrid laughed at Hiccup’s antics as she took a bite out of her deer meat. “Hahahahah! So good food is the best way to win you over, huh? Guess I’ll have to brush up on my cooking skills now!”

Hiccup laughed along with her for a moment before looking up to the sky. The sun was high in the sky and the clouds were sparse, allowing the sun’s rays to warm them up a bit. Hiccup enjoyed this time of day before the winter set in. During the winter, the clouds gather and block out the sun, which meant it got a lot colder around there. Especially at night.

Hiccup leaned back, resting his back and head on Toothless’ warm body, Astrid doing the same, and they both looked up at the sky. They just watched the clouds roll by in silence and content, the three of them relaxed and mellow.

“....you know....I remember your mom.....she was always so nice to me and the others.....your mom was the one to teach me how to throw an axe....”

Hiccup smiled and nodded at the memory. “Yeah, I remember that....she tried to teach me too but.....well....you know....back then I was the worst viking to ever set foot here....but....she didn’t care....she always told me “try again”....and whenever I got frustrated....she’d just make me my favorite dinner....made me feel better just like that.....”

A large cloud rolled past the edge of the sun, casting a shadow over the three of them before allowing the light to shine on them again. “...I wonder.....I wonder what she’d think if she saw me now....” Hiccup thought she would get the shock of her life, seeing her son relaxing by the fire using a deadly and mysterious Night Fury as a back rest.

The whole time, Astrid was watching Hiccup’s face and saw the melancholy look on his face. He didn’t have a look of sadness to any of his facial features...but she could see in his eyes that was feeling what she assumed was sadness. Not exactly sadness. But the kind of feeling that comes with acceptance of loosing a love one yet you can’t get them out of your mind.

She scooted closer until her side was against his and she was close enough to place her arm around his and her head on his slender shoulder. “....you know what I think she would think? And stop me if this sounds corny....but....I think she would be happy....cause your turned out to be the best viking Berk has ever seen....Hiccup the Dragon Rider....”

Smiles cracked over each of their faces as they lied there, watching the clouds go by...

[Yabanko]

Ch. 2
“Reunion”
__________________________________________________________________

A grunt sounded from Hiccup’s mouth as he pulled a large basket of meat onto his back. After their mid-day lunch, he, Astrid and Toothless decided to get some more hunting done to add to the village rations. Hiccup wore one basket on his back while Astrid took another on hers. There were two more basket with hand weaved over the top for Toothless to hold onto. After making sure they were all secure and sturdy enough to make the trip back, Hiccup climb onto Toothless with Astrid following. “Alright...everyone ready?” He asked and after getting his answer, Toothless took the to air, hovering low enough to grab the packs of meat on the ground before flying off back to Berk.

Toothless ascended higher and higher until they would see the whole island below them. Usually, when it was just Toothless and Hiccup, they always just took the direct route. But since Astrid with them, Hiccup always took the scenic route. One of her favorite parts about flying was the incredible view that came with it. She loved looking down at the village, looking down at the large island and even out at the endless sea that touched the horizon. It always reminded them both of their first flight together when she had caught Hiccup sneaking off to see Toothless. Of course, thanks to a certain midnight color dragon, the experience was at first terrifying...but now she couldn’t get enough of the wind blowing through her hair.

Even Toothless had fun on these flights. He loved twisting and turning, he and Hiccup always in great sync. Of course, he would have his own little joke to play where he’d sometimes make steep dives out of no where, or do spins in the air. Just to keep them on their toes.

Laughing, they made one more circle around the forest before deciding to head back to the Village. “Heheheheh! Astrid, I think you enjoy flying more than Toothless and I!” Hiccup commented as they began to pass the forest and around the mountain said. “Well what can I say? Flying is great, but you and Toothless make it so much more fun...especially this little trickster!” She reached down, scratching the back of Toothless’ head before putting her hands back on Hiccup’s shoulders.

A big smile spread across Hiccup’s face as he leaned the left with Toothless, heading around the mountain face. However, his smile soon faded when he saw something approaching on the water. “...what the....Toothless, hold up a second, bud!”

Glancing back, Toothless stopped his flight path, hovering in the air for a moment. He looked down as well and growled at what all three of them were looking at: a boat.

Seeing the boat, Toothless was wary, thinking that this was another outcast attack, the two teens on his back already having the same thoughts. “A boat..is it an Outcast ship?” Astrid ask, caution in her voice. Hiccup shook his head as he changed the gears on Toothless’ tail fin, making them lower to a near by ledge on the mountain side. Hiccup was thankful there was a bit of a fog today. On a clear day, Toothless stuck out like a sore thumb against the snow covered rocks.

Hiccup focused his eyes, looking around the sea for any signs of an attack. But he saw none...there was just the one ship. “....I don’t think that’s an Outcast ship....they always attack at night and try to hide around the cliff sides....plus it’s just the one....hold on a sec....” Hiccup leaned forward, while at the same time gently stroking Toothless neck to try and calm him, and tried to focus better on the boat. It was a viking ship, that was for sure. But the sails...they were familiar. Those were Hooligan colors on the sails. But the designs were old, before they became friends with the dragons.

“That’s....that’s one of our ships....but why would someones still hold our old “Dragon Killer” designs?” Astrid mentioned. Hiccup was quiet for a moment as he continue to watch the ship getting closer to Berk. Where had he seen those designs before...?

“...Let’s head back...Dad’s probably seen the ship coming already; he probably knows something.” Nodding, Astrid held on tight, knowing their flight was about to get a lot faster.

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

As Hiccup said, Stoick and some of the other Viking’s near the docks had spotted the ship from a distance. Making his way half way down the Dock’s wooden paths, he had a hammer in hand, ready for anything. He didn’t know what kind of trick this was, but he wasn’t going to fall for it. “Stand by, men...!” He warned as the ship got closer and closer until finally it was right at the docks.

The ship was large, large enough that a full grown viking would have to lift his hand over his hand to just touch the rim. It was an old boat but upon closer inspection, Stoick realized it was one of their old explorer boats. The kinds they used to go back and forth between islands and haul heavy items.

Suddenly, the creaking of wood sounded as a figure climb over the edge of the boat and landed on the docks. Much to the surprise of the Vikings, it was a woman who jumped of the boat.

She was definitely a viking, evident by her thick but very curvy figure. She her skin was slightly tanned, and she had long, flowing dark red hair that reached to her fit waist. She wore a dark violet leather vest with a silver scale plate kilt around her waist. Under that were dark brown leggings tucked into a pair of white fur boots. Atop her head was a standard Viking helmet with horns and she wore an iron breast plate that looked like it was just made. On her back was a snow leopard pelt to keep her warm against the cold of the north island. And lastly, over that was her wooden shield and in her hand was a large iron spear. She only took two steps down the docks when she saw the group of vikings looking at her.

A look of astonishment and happiness befell Stoick’s face as both their eyes met for a brief moment. A smile spread across her face, as she stepped closer.

“...V...Valhallarama.....you’re alive....?” Stoick asked in shock as the woman broke into a run. “Stoick!!”

“Valhalla!!” He dropped his hammer, both of them meeting halfway into an embrace of pure love and happiness. The other vikings behind him couldn’t believe what they were seeing! Valhallarama the Sturdy, is what they all called her, the wife of Chief Stoick, who was said to be long dead for the past 5 years...alive before their very eyes!

“Oh, Stoick! It’s so good to see you!!” She spoke before pulling back to give her husband a kiss. Stoick couldn’t begin to explain how much joy he hand in his heart. He never felt this happy before since he saw Toothless had saved Hiccup’s life after their great battle. “Valhalla!! My angel...I..we all thought you were dead!! Where have you been all these years?!” He asked, taking his wife’s waist into his strong grip and lifting her into the air with ease.

“Stoick, you won’t believe where I’ve been! I got lost in a storm a-and wound up in a far country and....ha...it’s a long story, believe me!”

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

Landing on the ground with Astrid and Toothless, Hiccup set down the pack of meat down and ran toward the docks with Astrid and Toothless behind him. Moving down the pathways, he saw a large group of Vikings making their way up toward the village...all wearing happy faces?

“Uhh....did we miss something?” Astrid asked as Hiccup looked for his father in the crowd. “Dad? What’s going on?” At the sound of his question, the crowd parted...revealing Stoick and Valhalla talking in toe with them. Valhalla looked up the path and a bright smile appeared on her face at the sight of son. “Hiccup! Is that you?!”

That voice...that wonderful voice, that beautiful smile, that long red hair...he knew who this woman was. The sight of her brought tears to Hiccup’s eyes as he ran full sprint toward her. “MOM!?! Mom you’re alive!!”

Valhallarama also felt the sting of tears behind her eyes as she ran to her son, pulling him clear off the ground as soon as she embraced him. “Hiccup! My boy!! My gorgeous boy!!” Tears of joy rolled down their face as she loosened her grip just enough to plant kisses all over his face. “Oh, Hiccup!! Look at you! You’re all grown up!! And...you’re so small...!”

Chuckles and laughs sounded off as Hiccup wiped away his tears, a smile still plastered over his face. “Gee, mom, I don’t see you for 5 years and that’s the first thing you say? Heheh...” Valhalla laughed along with Hiccup as she set him down to look at him. “Oh Hiccup...you’re just as handsome as your father! You even sound like him when he was your age and what happened to your LEG!?!” Her sights falling onto Hiccup’s left leg, she was instantly filled with shock and concern. “Oh..yeah...that’s...kinda of a long story, Mom. A REALLY long story...b-but don’t worry, it doesn’t even hurt anymore!” He said, balancing on the fake metal leg as proof to her.

Stoick smiled as Valhalla still looked worried, putting his arm around her shoulders as all three of them made their way back up the pier. “Well...I guess it does makes you look more Vikingish, eh? Hahahahah! So lemme guess, you got that killing your first dragon, didn’t you?” A smile on her face, Hiccup and Stoick got nervous as they realized...she didn’t know. Of course she wouldn’t she had been away for several years!

“Oh....ah...a-about that Valhalla, see....ALOT has changed since you’ve been back home and--” A shocked gasp from Valhalla left her lips as they made their way to the top of the pier..and she laid her eyes on Toothless. “DRAGON!! Hiccup get back!!” She said, pulling her son behind her and charging for Toothless.

“NO, MOM WAIT!!!”
“VALHALLARAMA, STOP!!”

Stoick and Hiccup ran after her as she continued her charge, spear and shield in hand ready to cut the Night Fury’s heart out. Hearing the battle cry, Toothless turned to see someone charging for him. Just by look and smell, he knew he didn’t know this person. In his mind, he instantly thought: Enemy!

Baring his teeth, he roar right back and charged for her as well! They were both about to collide in a fight but luckily for both, Stoick made it to Valhallarama in time to put his arms around her waist and pulled her out of the way of Toothless’ charge, the dragon instead wound up tackling Hiccup in stead.

“Stoick, let me go, he’s going to kill Hiccup!!!” Still raring for a fight, Stoick had a firm grasp on her as Hiccup got up and in front of Toothless, wanting to be rid of this aggressive stranger near his human. Thankfully, between Stoick holding Valhalla and Hiccup staying in front of Toothless, they couldn’t get near each other.

“Valhalla, calm down!! Calm down, he’s not dangerous!! He was just protecting him!” Stoick wouldn’t let go of his wife until she listened to him, Hiccup doing the same with Toothless, who was still snarling at the woman. “Wh-What?! What are you talking about?! That beast nearly attack me!!” She said, breaking loose of Stoick’s hold and demanding an explanation from him; not taking her eyes off Toothless however. But Stoick just shook his head, stepping in front of her. “Valhalla, listen to me! The war is OVER. The dragon’s aren’t our enemy, they’re our friends and allies now! And they live here, on Berk, with US now!”

Confusion was all over her face as she glared at Toothless, the Dragon growling right back her. Hearing what Stoick said, she shook her head and looked at her husband. “What on earth are you talking...about...?”

Stepping aside, Stoick let her see the numerous dragons that were walking about the village. And the vikings were walking with them! Acting as if this were an everyday thing?! She even saw a few kids hugging Gronckles, people riding their Nadders and Monstrous Nightmares. She stop in mid step however, as a group of Terrible Terrors ran past her, one of them with a boot in ones mouth, with a Viking man running behind them, trying to get his foot wear back.

Valhallarama could only stare in shock as Stoick put his hand on her shoulder. “See? They’re our friends now.....so..what do you think?” He asked, as she continue to stand there, frozen like a statue. Finally snapping out of her shocked state, she turned toward her son and husband.

“I think someone needs to explain to me what in Odin’s name is going on!”

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

With the bad “meeting” over with, and the initial shock dwindling, Stoick and Hiccup got Valhallarama back to their home to explain what had transpired two years ago. Toothless, of course, was waiting outside, still brooding over the strange woman that tried to attack him. Although Toothless was acting on instinct, he was smart enough to know that this woman was probably not a threat, seeing as she was in his humans home.

Valhallarama sat at the dinner table, listening to Stoick and Hiccup’s story. The night he shot down a Night Fury and became friends instead of killing him. How he fixed his tail fin, learned more about dragons and how they weren’t as evil as they thought they were. Of course, the most shocking part of this story was the part where Hiccup and Toothless destroyed the Dragon Queen, which led to the union of the Dragons and Vikings on Berk. Hiccup had even told her about the Bone Knapper incident with Gobber and his friends and even about that years Snoggletog where all the Dragons flew off to have their eggs. And lastly, Stoick explained to her himself about the war between the Outcast’s and Berk.

Once again, a look of shock was plastered on Valhalla’s face. Stoick and Hiccup were a bit nervous about how she would take all of this information. Last time she was home, killing Dragons was the norm. Now it was all about flying with dragons.

Shaking her head slightly, Valhallarama took her helmet off to rub her head. “I...I-I don’t know how to....take all of this....so...you’re saying that these beasts--....dragons...aren’t dangerous? Regardless of the hundreds of us they’ve killed?”

Hiccup, sitting next to his mother, took her hand into his and shook his head. “Mom, it wasn’t that easy. That huge dragon we fought, the Red Death...it was controlling all of the other dragons. If they didn’t raid us, it would’ve eaten them all one by one. It had some kind of...evil...hold on them or something. Now that it’s dead, they live with us! We’re friends now!”

Valhallarama shook her head, still unsure as Stoick now came to sit by her. “It’s true, Valhalla. Almost every Viking in Berk has a dragon of their own that they befriended and ride, all thanks to Hiccup! Even I have one of my own: a Monstrous Nightmare!”

Her eyes grew as wide as saucers when she heard the kind of Dragon her husband was riding. “A Nightmare?! You’re kidding me, right?” Seeing that he wasn’t kidding, she looked over to Hiccup then glanced outside, catching the sight of Toothless peering into the house through the window. “And what about that Black devil of yours? He tried to kill me at the docks!”

“He was just acting on instinct, Mom. He’s never met you before so he when you charged at him, he thought you were attacking us like the Outcast Vikings. He did the same thing to Astrid and dad when they first met him. They charge and Toothless was just trying to protect me. He’s really not that bad mom! He’s nice and he’s really smart! You wanna meet him?” Hiccup asked, optimism in his voice. Valhalla had her doubts. She didn’t like the notion of her son “being friends” with something roughly 5 times his size and 20 times his weight. Especially something that would kill him with a single bite!

However, seeing that it meant a lot to Hiccup, she sighed giving him a curt nod. “Okay...stay right there...I’ll go get him!” Hiccup made his way to the door and was instantly met with Toothless’ tongue on his face. “Aw! Eww!! Toothless...ugh..” Wiping the dragon drool from his face, he patted Toothless’ neck as he led him into the house. Even though she agreed to this, Valhalla was still wary about the large beast so close to her only child, her hand resting on a large knife that was on the table.

Seeing her hand going for the knife, Toothless bared his teeth again, growling at him. When he noticed this, Hiccup looked at his mom while keeping his hand on Toothless’ head. “I thought you said he was friendly...he looks ready to kill me!” She said, picking up the knife, making Toothless growl louder.

“That’s because he can sense you wanna kill him, mom. Just...put down the knife and come here....trust me, he won’t hurt you!” He explained before turning to Toothless as she slowly put the knife down. The dragon still didn’t like this woman and Hiccup knew it was because of earlier. That and because he didn’t know her. Toothless already met everyone else on Berk so strangers were not a good thing to him. Hiccup put his hands on Toothless’ neck, rubbing his black scales gently as he spoke to him. “Toothless...Toothless....this is Valhallarama...this is my MOM....my Mother....understand?”

Hearing the words “mother”, Toothless stopped his growling, his gaze growing slightly softer. He looked at Hiccup, then at Stoick then finally at Valhalla. Taking a carefully step closer, but staying out of her arms length, Toothless sniffed the air around the woman. It was feint but Toothless could smell it. Her scent was just like Hiccup’s to an extent. It was unique, but it definitely reminded him of Hiccup. Or rather, Hiccup’s scent had stemmed from hers. He looked at the woman, his green eyes studying her features and finally her face. She looked just like Hiccup..

Putting the pieces together in his head, Toothless back up again, this time his head down low and his ears flat against his head as made his way behind Hiccup, still looking at Valhallarama. Hiccup gave Toothless a sympathetic smile, rubbing his head as the dragon made sounds that sounded like a cross between purrs and whines.

Stoick chuckled at Toothless’ behavior as he stood up and put his hand on his wife’s shoulder. “Hahahah! You see that, Valhalla? He’s sorry about attacking you. He was just doing what you were doing: trying to protect Hiccup! Right son?”

Hiccup, still rubbing and scratching Toothless, smiled and nodded. “Yeah, he’s sorry.....here....” Hiccup walked up to his mother, gently taking her hand and pulling her toward Toothless. Toothless made sure to be nice this time, not growling or showing his teeth, merely sitting there; ears up and eyes wide. Seeing him sit there like that, and if it weren’t for the fact that she was still nervous about a dragon being there in her house...she might’ve thought he looked a bit...cute.

“Here mom...I’m gonna show you that Toothless is just one big pushover when you get to know him..” Maneuvering his mother over to Toothless’ left side. “Now...put your hands right there....” Valhalla didn’t like this too much, evident by the apprehensive look on her face, but she swallowed her dislike and let her son move her hands to a spot on Toothless’ back.

“Good...” Hiccup, making sure her hands stayed there, he backed up and smiled. “..Now start scratching!”

“....what?” A great deal of confusion playing across her face. But Hiccup kept his smile on. “Just what I said; scratch him!”

Valhallarama gave her son another looked before looking at the dragon. His green eyes were focused intently on her, as if he were waiting for something. A deep sigh leaving her lungs, she curled her fingers and started scratching that spot on his back. Almost instantly, Toothless started purring, nudging toward Valhalla. With surprise and interest, he scratches got more a bit more vigorous as Toothless purred more, arching his back into her hand and toward her body, wanting more and more scratches.

Hiccup and Stoick watched in amusement as Valhallarama really got into the scratching, moving up and down the dragons spine at high speed. Toothless groaned and purred at every stroke, his head starting to lean toward her. A paw lifting from the ground, his eyes closed and his tongue hung out of his mouth as he just basked in hod good this felt! The sight of Toothless like this, all of Valhalla’s aggression toward the Night Fury seemed to dissipate, even laughing at the dragon’s antics at just being scratched. “Hahahahah! Unbelievable! All this over a little scratching!” She said, getting a bit more daring and moving to scratch around his neck...and there it was. Toothless’ “sweet spot”...just one scratch there and Toothless became limp as a noodle collapsing onto the ground before making a huff of pleasure and enjoyment.

All three of them stood there laughing and smiling as Valhallarama shook her head in amusement and disbelief. “Hahaha...wow....a-alright...I’ll admit, that WAS pretty funny!” She said as Hiccup walked over to his dragon, that had rolled onto his side ready for the next part. Hiccup found that Toothless liked a good belly rub after being scratched like that, so that what got to doing just now. “See, I told you mom! He’s just a giant teddy bear once you get to know him! Isn’t that right, bud?” Hiccup smiled, rubbing Toothless’ belly and receiving groans and purrs of gratitude.

Valhalla’s smile shrank slightly as she watched Hiccup and Toothless together, going over to sit next to her husband. “Alright...granted, Hiccup’s dragon is...alright....but what about the others...? How do you know they’re not dangerous as well? How much do you really know about these things?”

Stoick and Hiccup’s smiles disappeared as Valhalla still seemed to be struggling with the whole “dragons being nice” notion. And Hiccup couldn’t blame her. A lot of the other vikings back then felt the same thing (not including the Outcast’s that is). Their whole lives revolved around killing the beasts that had killed many a viking before them. Even after learning about the Red Death situation, they were still wary of all the dragons around them. There were mishaps, accidents and fights. But eventually, they came over their fear and anger toward them. Some faster...or slower than others.

Stoick took his wife’s hands into his, a smile on his face. “Don’t worry...I’m sure you’ll get used to the idea...a lot of peoples struggled with it at first but they got used to it too. I was skeptical at first. A few years ago, I would’ve done the same and wanted nothing more than to kill the beasts but Hiccup showed me and everyone else otherwise...”

As Valhalla and Stoick talked, Hiccup sat on the floor, slowly rubbing Toothless’ tummy and chest. The black dragon rolled over to lay on his stomach, Hiccup’s hand going to gently scratch his back again. Hiccup could see his mother wasn’t going to warm up to the dragon anytime soon. And it worried him; he didn’t want his mother to make a wrong move with a dragon and get hurt, making her hate them even more. He looked at Toothless, hoping to find some answer in his dragons eyes. And Toothless seemed to know it as he lowered his head to nudge under Hiccup’s chin. With a huff, he motioned his head over to a book on another near by table. It was a copy of the new “Dragon Manual” that Hiccup had written.

Hiccup smiled at the book before giving Toothless a look as if to say ‘you’re a genius’.

“Well, mom if you’re still worried, you can come to the Dragon Training classes with me tomorrow!” He spoke up, getting their attention.

Valhalla looked at her son as he stood up and grabbed the book from the other table, a big smile on his face. “You...you’re teaching Dragon Training classes?” Of course this would come to a surprise to Valhalla, knowing how small and physically weak Hiccup was.

“Well, it’s not just me teaching the classes. Astrid, Gobber and the guys also train other parts of the class. Ah, but the point is, I think after coming to my class tomorrow, you’ll think differently about the dragons!”

Valhallarama sighed, shaking her head as she looked at the book. “I-I don’t know about this--”

“Come on...it’ll be fun! I promise!”
“You might even get a dragon of your own!” Stoick added, helping his son to convince his wife. Looking between her sons hopeful face and her husbands confident one, she sighed and shrugged her shoulders. “Alright...”

“Hahahahah! Excellent! Now, in the mean time...we’ve got a party to get to, eh? The whole village is going to celebrate you’re safe return!” Stoick and Valhala stood up from their seat, making their way outside as Hiccup smiled at them. Hiccup couldn’t begin to describe how happy he felt that his mother was back home, alive and well! Toothless, sensing how happy his human was, gave him a nudge and happy lick to his face, making Hiccup laugh. “Hahahah! Thanks Toothless! Come on, let’s get to that party, huh?”

[Yabanko]

Ch. 3
“Homecoming”
__________________________________________________________________

The great hall was alit with laughter and joyous cheers as the whole village was celebrating Valhallarama’s return! The meat that Hiccup and Astrid had hunted was used to feed the happy vikings along with the mugs of mead and lagers that were being passed around! Food may have been in short supply, but not short enough not to have a little party for her safe return to Berk. Peoples were laughing, joking and giving Stoick their well wishes in the return of his wife. And to Hiccup as well!

The whole party, Hiccup was glued to his mother, a huge grin on his face at all times. Stoick couldn’t remember the last time Hiccup had such a big smile on his face! And he could say the same about himself. It was so good to have such a happy moment in these times of strife and war.

Finally, Valhallarama was able to tell people of her story, sitting down as a few Vikings men came back with the crates she had on her ship.

Valhallarama has always been known to be the kind of woman that would gladly go off on some new adventure. Just like Hiccup, she loved reading about different places and peoples, learning about customs and traditions, while still keeping her ways close to her heart. But with the war going on, she could never leave her son and husband and all of her Berk allies to fend for themselves against the dragons. So she restrained herself from sailing off. However, when the opportunity presented itself, she took her love of traveling and her desire to stop the dragons together to help her people.

5 years ago, just three years before Hiccup’s great battle with the Red Death, Valhallarama had taken a ship and set out shout in hopes of reaching other Viking clansmen's islands. According to her story, she was nearly there when she was caught in a terrible storm that thrashed and damaged her ship. She had washed up on the shores of a strange land where the native nursed her wounds. Unfortunately, she was so far south, and without the aid of a ship, she was unable to make her way back home. She had to travel north through the different lands, fight strange creatures and meet and barter with new people until she had just enough supplies to make her way back home.

Through her journeys, she had collected a good amount of knowledge from the places she had visited. Things like maps, traditions, different mythologies and of course, Hiccup’s favorite part, food recipes.

“....and the Natives call this a “Pomegranate”. It’s a fruit that you eat...it’s REAL juicy and it’s supposed to be good for your health!” Giving the strange red fruit to Hiccup, she pulled out map from her crate of foreign goods, unrolling it on the table.

“After that, I they gave me a boat and I sailed toward the Northeast until I found my way to the edge of a vast expanse of land. I found a village there and that when I found out I was in a place named the “Eastern Kingdoms”...” This earned some interesting looks from the Vikings as well as Hiccup who was sitting next to her.

“Eastern Kingdoms? I’ve read about them in a book. Is it true they have hug cities all over their country?” He asked as Valhalla smiled and nodded. “HUGE cities! 4 times the size of our island! But I learned real quick that some of them don’t take too kindly to us Norsemen. They think we’re too “brutish and stupid”...hahahahahah! But, I have to admit, they did have some good books there...and great food! After making me way through their land, I finally found some of our kin there! Vikings of the south islands, they said! They gave me a boat, and helped me remake my sail and I was on my way home!”

She gulped down some of her mead as the Vikings had more questions for her. Like what other places she visited, weather they had dragons there or not, or if there were more lands beyond that. As much as she wanted to relax, the wanted to know more and more. Thankfully, Stoick came to her rescue. “Alright, alright everyone, that’s enough! I’m sure once my wife has had her fill of meat and drink she’ll be happy to tell you more stories!”

Hiccup smiled, looking around the room. Two-thirds of their Vikings were in the room, celebrating Valahallarama’s return. The rest of the Vikings, along with the dragons, were outside on patrol, less they come under attack again. On a normal night, Hiccup would be right out there on patrol around the Island until the moon was at it’s highest in the sky. Being the chiefs son, the next one to take over for his dad, Hiccup made an effort to keep this island safe. An effort that greatly impressed his father, making him swell with pride by how seriously Hiccup would take his new responsibilities.

Hiccup, looked outside of the window. It was visibly cloudy, and looked like a storm was probably going to hit tomorrow. On a night like this, Hiccup would’ve been patrolling the waters, to make sure the Outcast wouldn’t get a drop on them. But tonight was different. This was his mother’s homecoming party and he wanted to be here with her! He had missed her so much and couldn’t begin to explain how elated he was to see her alive before his very eyes. Back when he was “Hiccup the Useless”, he could always come to her when eyes of ridicule and disappointment bore through him. She was always there to make him feel better.

The great doors to the hall opened and in walked Astrid, her axe by her side. Her night shift with Stormfly had just ended, allowing her to trade places with another shield maiden. She had heeded Hiccup’s warning about his mother, seeing as she was still jumpy and wary around the dragons. So instead, her Nadder had gotten a head start on her sleep in the Dragon Stables. Scanning the crowd, her eyes focused on Hiccup’s red head passing through the droves of burly men.

Grabbing two Lagers, she walked up to Hiccup, a happy smile on her face. “Here you go, Hiccup!” She said, seeing that he had no drink like the others. Hiccup naturally wasn’t one to drink alcohol very often (despite his father’s constant encouragement at being old enough to do so), but he decided that today would be an exception for his mother’s party.

“Thank you, milady!” Making a short toast with her, bumping the cups together, Hiccup took a swig of the lager as Astrid put her arm around his waist, Hiccup putting his free arm around hers. When he put his mug down, he saw his mother had walked up to them with a smile. “Oh Astrid, look how tall and pretty you’ve gotten!”

“Heheh, thank you, Valhallarama! I’m glad to see you’re in one piece...and alive! I don’t think I’ve ever seen Hiccup smile so much! Not since our first real date, that is...”

Hiccup nearly choked on his lager as Valhalla and Astrid started laughing. Valhalla had already heard from Stoick about Hiccup and Astrid relationship. She felt a great joy in her heart that her son was growing into such a fine Viking, already finding himself a girlfriend and all. “Heheheh, so I’ve seen! Oh...to think I’ve been gone for so long. Already got a lady on your arm! Pretty soon you’ll be all grown up, chief of the village with a little viking young of your own!”

Astrid put her hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh, even though a blush had grown across her cheeks. And Hiccup was no different. His whole face had lit up redder than a Nightmare’s fire. “Mom, uh, d-don’t you think it’s a little EARLY to be thinking about stuff like that?!”

Stoick walked up, putting his arm on Valhallarama’s shoulders as he watched Hiccup’s face flush and go red at the same time. “Oh nonsense! I was only a year older than you when your father asked me to marry and have children with him!”

“Hahahahah! Aint that the truth! We didn’t waste any time getting hitched and having as many children as we could--!”

“AH!! Okay!! I...think heard enough! Thank you for giving me that disturbing image in my head!” Hiccup rubbed his head as Valhalla went off with Stoick for more drinks, laughing at their sons distress.

Off on the other side of the hall, Hiccup’s other friends were busy enjoying some of the foreign food that Valhallarama had brought. At the start of the party, she had made a few sample dishes for them to try out and they wasted no time, diving in “mouth first”.

Snotlout was busy devouring a “Meat Pie”, as she called it, and couldn’t get enough of the stuff. The twins were fighting over who would get to drink the last bottle of Red Wine, and Fishlegs was busy wolfing down a huge slab of “Glazed Ham”.

“Oh, man! This is GOOD!” Snotlout took another big fork full of Meat Pie into his mouth.
“Hey, hands of my bottle! I called that one! Besides your girl, you can’t hold liquid like guys! You need a break!”
“How about I break it over your big HEAD then?!” Tuffnut and Ruffnut yelled in their usual bickering.
“Mmm! Yum! I bet Meatlug would LOVE this!” Fishlegs said.

“Hey guys!” Getting their attention, Snotlout scooted over, making room for Hiccup and Astrid to sit down. “Hey Hiccup! Mmm! You gotta try this stuff!” Fishleg’s said with a mouth full of meat. “Yeah...she got anymore of this wine stuff--? Hey, hands off!” Ruffnut, getting distracted, reach over to give her brother a good punch for trying to take the wind bottle from in front of her.

Snotlout moving next to his cousin to get away from the Twin’s fighting, ate more of his meat pie. “Mmm! Who knew you could eat dessert for dinner! Aunt Valhalla knows her way around food!”

Hiccup smiled and laughed at his friends before he got their attention. “Hahah, that’s actually what I came over here to talk to you guys about. Since my mom’s been away for so long, she doesn’t know that dragons are friendly and...she’s made it pretty clear she doesn’t like them..”

“Even Toothless?” Fishlegs asked. But Hiccup shook his head, scratching his neck a bit. “Well, I introduced them today but I still don’t think she’s all that convinced...” Hiccup remembered earlier how Spitlelout, Snotlout’s father, had come to visit with his Terrible Terror riding on his back as usual. At the moment they passed Valhalla, too distracted with a conversation with other Berk women, the little Terror decided he wanted to meet this new person. Unfortunately for the little guy, Valhalla didn’t appreciate having a Terrible Terror jump on her back so suddenly. If it weren’t for Hiccup stepping in, the poor thing would’ve been skewered by her spear.

“That’s why tomorrow I invited my mom to our dragon training classes tomorrow so I need everything to be in top shape in tomorrows classes. Snotlout you got tomorrows basics down. Tuff and Ruff you got all the training tips you need? And Fishlegs...watch where you step please...”

“Yeah...sorry about that....” Hiccup had to mention that because last time they had classes, Fishlegs had accidentally stepped on a Nightmare’s tail...and he hadn’t appreciated that one bit. The end result was Fishleg’s walking home without eyebrows..

Astrid looked back at the room, Hiccup’s parents both smiling brightly and surrounded by all their friends and Viking allies. Turning back, Astrid smiled at Hiccup. “Don’t worry...everything will go great tomorrow...”

The young viking took another swig of his lager before looking outside, seeing his Dragon once again watching him from a window. Hiccup didn’t have to worry about Toothless being too lonely out there. The night colored dragon was quite popular with some of the younger children of the island. They would always stop Hiccup and ask him questions about the Night Fury, or ask to pet him. Some even found it fun to feed Toothless.

As usually, a group of kids where giving all of their attention to the Night Fury who had his head stuck through the window. They were giving him scratches, playing with his ears and feeding him the fish they had snuck away from the Hall Cook. Hiccup didn’t know how or what Toothless was doing to these people, but every time he would see Toothless walking around on his own, he always had some form of food item in his mouth. Whatever it was about the Night Fury that people were reacting to, they always felt compelled to feed and spoil him.

Toothless groaned in pleasure, arching his back as one of the children vigorously scratched that spot behind his ear while another feed him some steamed fish. He looked up and saw Hiccup looking at him, his ears perking up, and started crooning and barking for Hiccup to come over to him. Toothless didn’t like not being in the same room as Hiccup during the night time. With all these attacks going on, he didn’t want his human too far away that he couldn’t protect him at any given notice. Having his head through the window helped calm his worries some but now he was getting a little antsy.

Smiling, Hiccup finished off the last of his lager, before getting up to let the other talk amongst themselves. “I’ll be back in a bit, guys...”

The children dispersed as Hiccup made his way over to the window. “Hey bud. You know, you’re gonna get fat you keep eating all those treats...” Stroking Toothless’ head, the Night Fury just gave Hiccup a gentle nuzzle to his cheek, glad the boy was close to him now. Of course, he gave Hiccup a nice big blast of bad breath for that little comment, but he was happy none-the-less.

From across the room, Valhallarama watched as he son got close to the once feared dragon, stroking him as if he were just a common dog. It was unnerving seeing her son near a beast that could easily kill with just a snap of his jaws. But the black beast seemed to care for her son. More doubt crept into her mind. She was just as opened minded as her son, but being raised the same way as Stoick, it was hard for her to just...let go of all of her beliefs, just like that. She herself had killed her fair share of dragons, as was the norm back in the days of her youth. But seeing her son talk and stroke that dragon, and the dragon being just as gentle...maybe she should give these devils a chance like her son and husband wanted...

[Yabanko]

Ch. 4
“Dragon Basics”

__________________________________________________________________

“Welcome to Dragon Training!!”

The sound of metal slamming against stone echoed through the carved atrium that sat upon the elevated cliff at the edge of the Berk Island. The ground slightly damp from last night rain, it let off a damp yet soothing smell as several younger Vikings walked into the circular alcove.

The Kill Ring...or rather, what was formally known as The Kill Ring, was where Snotlout’s “Dragon Basics” class had met for their first lesson. There were seven of them, all of them them between the ages of 13 and 15. All of them took their time to walk to the center of the arena, looking at the changed ring. What used to be a place to practice the art of killing dragons in the best way possible, was now a place to learn how to bond with them and to learn a dragons ways. The reinforced doors and locks had long been removed, as had the chain netting that used to cover the top, giving the whole area an open air feel, instead of looking like a cage. With the doors removed, each of the alcoved acted as resting areas for each of the basic dragon types the students would soon be learning about.

Nadders, Gronckles, Zipplebacks, Nightmares and a group of Terrors were resting in the separate compartments; the ground of each one covered in a thick pile of hay and dirt, a combination of both of the turfs the dragons seemed to enjoy laying on and each of the doors that had been removed were replaced by either a sheet of vines, leather or cloth, hiding the dragons from sight.

A few of the students lagged behind the group, too busy starring at the dragons to pay much attention before realizing the group left them behind. Each of the boys and girls had three things with them; a small basket of fresh fish, a book under their arms and a shield. Before the classes started, they made sure to get Hiccup’s new Edition of the Dragon Manual. Some of them read it cover to back, like a good little student should. While other were a bit more confident than some, knowing they could train a Dragon on their first day to class. However, they all remembered the first line written in the book about training a dragon:

‘If you wanna befriend a dragon, start by feeding it.’

Moving to the center, alll of the students circle around Snotlout, setting the baskets on the ground by their feet. Snotlout looked at all of the kids before them. Of the seven kids there, there were 3 girls: Thyra, Inga and Runa, and 4 boys: Ragi, Clueless, Edgar, and Dogsbreath. Thyra, Snotlout knew. She was a young girl with red hair that she kept in two short, low braids. Inga and Runa were both twin sisters with blonde hair, both in pony tails. They both dressed alike and the only way to tell them apart was from the color of their hair ties: one white and one black.

The boys were a bit different. Ragi was a somewhat...blank. He didn’t really smile, or laugh or get upset about anything. In a way, he reminded him of Hiccup by the way he always had a sarcastic or snide remark coming out of his mouth. Clueless was...well...Clueless. Always misheard things, forgot things and had this dull look on his face that made it hard to figure out if he was listening or not. Edgar was one of the older boys there, around 15. He had black hair and brown eyes, and was the reading type. Even know he was giving the Dragon manual a quite read through before class started. And finally, a boy that Snotlout knew well, was Dogsbreath. His attitude seemed to reflect his appearance, having a “I already know I’m gonna be the best” mind set. He was also an old friend of Snotlout, making him the oldest member of the class.

Grinning, Snotlout rubbed his hands together as he began his introductions. “Okay guys, let’s get going! Welcome to Dragon Basics! In this class, you’ll learn the Basic’s of Dragon which means: you’ll learn the types of dragons, their classifications, and all that stuff! Now then, the first thing--”

“Hey Snotlout!”

Turning toward the new, a big smile grew across some of the students face when they saw the “famous” Hiccup Haddock walking toward the group. Following close behind him was his mother, a basket of fish and book in hand like the rest of the students. A look of concern was constantly plastered on her face as she eyed all of the dragons in their stone alcoves. It was obvious she wasn’t comfortable there. She knew she had agreed to this, but Valhallarama was still unsure about this. Hiccup had told her to leave all weapons at home so she wouldn’t seem as threatening toward the dragons. Even though she was allowed a shield, it was still unsettling.

Toothless wasn’t following behind Hiccup, but instead choose to watch the class from the edge of the upper ring, looking down on the group. The Night Fury was sulking a bit, laying his head down on his forepaws. All of them had baskets full of fish with them and the smell was so strong it was making Toothless’ mouth water with hunger. But Hiccup had told him ahead of time that those fishes weren’t for him, but for the dragons that were part of the training program. Lucky bastards....

The the girls all smiled at Hiccup, as did Edgar, as Hiccup walked up to Snotlout. “Dude, you ruined my cool intro...” His cousin complained, although he didn’t sound as convincing with that smirk on his face. “Heheh, sorry Snotlout...hey....weren’t Ruff and Tuff supposed to be helping you with classes today?”

Snotlout waved his hand. “Nah, they got caught up in hunting duty so it’s just me today....”

“Oh...anyway, I was wondering if you’d let me take over your class today? I just wanna make sure everything goes really smooth....if you know what I mean....” He glanced at his mother before focusing on Snotlout. Catching the sign, Snotlout smiled, holding his hands up as he backed up. “By all means, dude...go for it!”

Hiccup smiled at his cousin, turning to face the class and look at the students. This group of students were small, but it was normal this time of year. A lot of the younger vikings got training done before the winter months, during the summer when it was a bit warmer. No one wanted to be out when it really started to get frigid. Hiccup’s main focus wasn’t on the quantity of the students, but rather making sure this class went smoothly. He really wanted his mother to warm up to the dragons like everyone else did...and he figured this class was the way to do it.

“...uh...hi, everyone. You guys probably already know me but incase you don’t, my name is Hiccup, and I’m going to be teaching you today!” Receiving stares from the boys (and go-go eyes from Thyra), Hiccup sighed and walked toward the alcoves. “Okay, so...first things first. Everyone grab your baskets and get ready to get a work out!”

Confusion spread across their faces as Hiccup and Snotlout walked over to the first alcove. The boys both grabbed shields of their own, prompting the rest of them to get theirs ready. “Wh-Whao, wait a minute, I thought dragon you said these dragons were friendly!” Dogsbreath called out.

Hiccup had grabbed a grass and vine curtain before looking toward the others. “Oh, don’t worry, they won’t hurt you. But if you’ve read the manual, you’ll know that dragons won’t just warm up to you instantly... you have to show them that you aren’t a threat first....so that’s why we’re gonna start....with the Nadder.”

Pulling the curtain back, Hiccup knocked on the rock with his shield, making a loud clanking noise. That was her cue.

At that sound, the Nadder popped out of the alcove and rushed toward the group, forcing them to scatter out of her way. It was a full grown Nadder, mainly a light purple color with gold and orange accents on its scales. Her spikes were erect as she whipped around, her eyes and head twitching toward each of the 8 people there.

Acting on instinct, Valhallarama rushed toward the Nadder and got right into her blind spot; directly in front of her face here her eyes couldn’t see.

‘As long as I stay here, she can’t see me..’

The Nadder couldn't see anyone infront of her; looked at the rest of them, frozen in place before turning off to look for something else to do. Once she did that Valhallarama sighed in relief, her attention turning away from the dragon to her son that had walked up.

“Very good mom! That’s exactly what you’re suppose to do if you catch a Nadder by surprise! If you get into her blind spot, it’ll give her a moment to calm down and will give you a moment to slowly make your presence known to her! Glad to see someone read the book..”

“Oh...uh...s-sure son, of course...ha...” To be perfectly honest with herself, Valhallarama just did that out of instinct from her old Dragon Training days. If she had her axe with her, she probably would hacked the Nadder right across it’s neck.

Hearing the voices, the wild Nadder turned tail, facing all of them down. They didn’t dare to move though as Hiccup stood with the group. “Okay....do exactly what I do!” The dragon’s golden yellow eyes saw all of them in a battle stance, shield up, hearts racing. Chirping lowly, she rushed toward them; seeing their shields and they way they stood, she assumed they were challenging her.

“....hold....” Hiccup warned them as she got closer and closer. And just as she was upon them....Hiccup dropped his shield to the ground and brought both his hands up as eye level. The rest of them did the same...and the Nadder stopped in it’s tracks. Instead, she opted to examining each of them with her keen eyes, her movement careful but calm. Hiccup stood in place, smiling as he watched the Nadder.

“Ok....who can tell me what I just did?”

Valhallarama, watched the dragon carefully, reflecting on the whole scene. She couldn’t believe the Nadder just...stopped...just like that! Just by dropping their weapons? It was unheard of to her, to drop your weapon while a dragon rushed at you...but there it was...

“Oh, I know! She thought were challenging her, but when we dropped our shields, we’re not threatening anymore!” Young Thyra spoke, receiving a nod from Hiccup. “Very good...that’s exactly right....Dragons won’t attack you if you approach them slowly and show them that you aren’t a threat...if you catch a dragon by surprise, you have to stand your ground but also show them that you won’t hurt them...” Slowly kneeling down, Hiccup opened his basket and pulled out a fish. The scent of the fish reaching her nostril, the Nadder suddenly got really interested in Hiccup and started to sniff and gently nip at him, wanting that fish in her mouth.

“Heheheh! And once you show her you’re not a threat...always feed them right after! That’s the first step of training them. By feeding them...you’re telling them that you equal good things...here ya go, girl! Good job...” He tossed the fish up, letting the Nadder catch it in her mouth. She gave Hiccup an appreciative purr, nudging him gently before waltzing back to her alcove, laying down on the hay and laying out so that her head stuck out of the grass and vine curtain.

With a smile, Hiccup threw in another fish for her to snack on and gave her quick pat before moving onto the next alcove. “Alright, ready for the next batch?”

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

The group of vikings were sitting on the ground, slightly out of breath from the activities of the course. The class had gone as a brisk pace with Hiccup and Snotlout introducing the dragons in quick recession. Each dragon had a different method to greet them in the wild. Terrible Terror’s required using something shining to make a small light to lead them away from their packs. Once they got close enough, you gave them a fish.

Gronckles where a bit...dim witted and didn’t take to their naps being disturbed. But feeding them some dragon nip made them quick to forgive and forget.

Zipplebacks were difficult. If they released their gas, you had to make sure to get out of the miasma and show them you have food. After feeding both of the heads, it was good to play a game with them. A simple of game of catch between the heads would suffice.

Finally, with Nightmares, it was all about be calm and collected. The Nightmares could sense peoples stress levels. If you seemed to fearful, they wouldn’t bother with you. If you seemed apprehensive or aggressive toward them, they would be defensive. But, if you stay calm, cool and collected, and showed them the proper respect, they would allow you to gently touch their snouts in greeting.

The newbie group was sitting on the ground, some in good condition and others worse for ware...mostly Clueless and Dogsbreath. They had gotten a few things wrong, like not feeding a Zipplebacks heads at the same time, and moving too fast to greet a Monstrous Nightmare. As a result, their fish baskets were destroyed by the Zippleback and they were slightly burnt from startling the Nightmare. That ended with their hair and clothes singed and Dogsbreath missing an eyebrow.

Aside from that, the class had gone...relatively well. And much to Hiccup’s surprise, Valhallarama had picked up on the class quite well. She even managed to get close to the Zippleback without incident. And her “show no fear” attitude helped some with the Nightmare. But still, it was surprising to him.

Hiccup walked up to the group, smiling at all of them. “Nice job, guys. That’s all for today. Go on and get some rest...and make sure you’re at the dragon stables first thing tomorrow morning for the next class! Great job today.” With the class dismissed, the young vikings gathered their things, ready to head home for the day.

“Umm....Mr. Hiccup....?” Hiccup turned toward Edgar, hearing his voice call out to him. “Yeah?”

“Aren’t we, gonna learn how to approach a Night Fury also?” He asked, his eyes flickering up to Toothless as he spoke. The black dragon jumped down besides Hiccup, ready to “demand” his human give him some yummy fish this time. Hiccup looked at his dragon, rubbing his neck, and looked back at the group of Viking that had turned back to hear the answer to that question. “Well....to be honest with you, I...can’t really teach you fully about Night Furies....see, Toothless is the only Night Fury I’ve seen around these parts and I can’t just speak for his whole race with out studying others of his kind...so, sorry to disappoint you but I don’t think you guys are gonna ride one anytime soon...”

The vikings groaned in disappointment before finally gathering their things, leaving Hiccup to chuckle at their reactions. He was used to this, by now. Toothless was, of course, the fastest, strongest and most mysterious of all the dragons they had learned about. The Night Fury was very popular around the Island and everyone wanted to learn more about Night Furies. But just as Hiccup said, since Toothless was the only one around, he couldn’t write or tell much information about them with out seeing more.

Once all of them were out of sight, Hiccup walked up to his mother along with Snotlout and Toothless. “So...what’d you think, mom? Did I change your mind yet?”

Valhalla looked around the giant pen at all the alcoves, the dragons all retreated inside and resting from the day. Sighing, she shrugged her shoulders. “M’not sure yet.....I’ll can see they’re smarter than we first thought....but......” Looking back to her sons face, she could see the slight disappointment on his features. Her heart went out to him. She knew how much this meant to her son. But the prejudice she was raised with was clouding that desire to make her son happy. Smiling, Valhalla put her hands on Hiccup’s shoulders. “....but I think I need to take the full course.....just to be sure.....” Hiccup looked up to his mother, smiling as he nodded.

Hiccup wasn’t blind however. He knew his mother was probably just saying that to make him feel better. But he didn’t want his mother to just say she liked dragons just to patronize him. he knew his mother would love dragons if she just gave them a chance, just like his father and everyone else. So Hiccup felt it was his duty to change her mind for real.

“Thanks mom...come on....let’s get home and get something to eat. I’m getting kinda hungry...”
“Hehehehe, me too. Maybe I’ll cook us up some meat pies just for you and me!”
“That sounds great...”

With Toothless and Snotlout in toe, Valhalla and hiccup made their way back up the stone path out of the stone ring..

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

All four of them walking out of the pen, something was left abandoned at the center of the wet floor. It was small and white with a silver clasp in the back...and it was in the shape of a skull. An earring to be exact, dropped by Valhallarama during the Dragon Training class. It was sure to be lost for a great deal of time, it it’s owner hadn’t realized that it was lost...but someone--something had found it. His round yellow eyes watching the big woman leaving the ring, his head tilted cutely. He knew who this lady was. Just a few moments ago, she gave him some really yummy fish! But she only gave him one...he wanted another! And she was so nice..

Maybe if he did something nice for her, he’d get more fish! And that strange earring on the ground smelt like her. She must’ve lost it. He wanted more fish from the nice lady and she was sure to miss this. So it was his duty, in the name of all the yummy fish, to bring this white round thingy back to the lady to get another treat. Picking the skull earring up into his mouth, he scuttled his way toward the entrance of the large stone ring, following the scent left behind...

[Yabanko]

Ch. 5
“Dragon Care”

__________________________________________________________________[/b]

The sun was already low in the sky, indicating it was time for dinner for everyone. As usual, a lot of the vikings of Berk opted to eat in the Mead Hall while other would rather eat peacefully at home. Hiccup’s family had opted for the latter, as Toothless could see from his spot near the door. The Night Fury licked his lips as he watched Valhallarama turn six huge cods over the fire pit. One hand turning the handle, the other reached into a near by herb pouch, taking a good handful and sprinkling it on the fish.

Toothless couldn’t understand why humans insisted on ruining good food by cooking all the natural flavors out like that. Then rubbing and sprinkling ground up plants they find in the forest onto it. To him, they had a strange smell that always made him sneeze. Huffing, Toothless let out a bored yawn as he stretched his body out, laying across the floor next to the door. While his eyes were closed, his ears were still up, alert to all the sounds around them. With all the attacks, Toothless had become increasingly paranoid in his concern for Hiccup’s safety. Instead of sleeping on the roof like he used to, he insisted on sleeping in Hiccup’s room at night. When the Night Fury made this clear, Hiccup and Stoick had to resize Hiccup’s bedroom door and windows to accommodate Toothless’ size.

That wasn’t the only habit he developed. He always watched over Hiccup when he went about his daily chores, he always stuck close by when Hiccup went hunting or to study the other dragons. And of course, like he was doing now, when Hiccup was home to eat dinner or whatever it was that he was doing, Toothless always sat across the front door. He’s always the first one to know if someone was outside, giving him advanced awareness if there’s danger or not; he had made himself a front line defender incase of home invaders.

Of course, the Outcasts knew better than to do that anymore. Earlier in the year, one had tried to take out Berk’s “secret weapon” in the middle of the night. An assassin had snuck into Hiccup’s room while he slept...and he never left that room again...that is, he never left that room alive again.

It was a night of terror and shock on both ends. The terror was felt by Toothless by how close that Outcast had come to killing his friend. The shock was felt by Hiccup...because that was the first time he had ever seen Toothless kill someone. Of course, considering the circumstances, Hiccup completely understood why his Night Fury did what he did...but the sight of a dead body and blood stains on his floor and wool rug was what really gave him a shock. The next night, Toothless had made it a point to begin his constant watch over Hiccup.

Huffing, Toothless looked over, watching the family of three for a moment. Hiccup and Stoick were sitting at the table, waiting for dinner to be done. Hiccup was concerned about his mother going right into a “motherly routine”. She had just gotten back home the day before yesterday and he felt she deserved to relax a while. But Valhallarama wouldn’t hear anything of it, insisting that as a mother, wife and shield maiden, it were her responsibility to take care of her family. Besides, she was making Hiccup’s favorite dinner tonight, so she heard no more complaints for the rest of the night.

On the table in front of the two men was a map of Berk and the neighboring islands. They were making preparations for the arrival the arrival of the other Viking clans and another possible attack. They hadn’t gotten any responses yet but they still wanted to be ready.

“...now we’ve already got Zippleback Riders stationed on the outer islands to alert us of any on coming attacks and we’ve got Gronckles mostly on the coasts, cliffs and the docks...” Stoick motioned around the map, circling the aforementioned spots of patrols; his son adding in a point every now then.

A half eaten apple in his hand, Hiccup slowly bit into it as he listened to the plans and patrols that his father planned. “With this recent attack, a lot of people are still healing up so our patrols are going to be thinned out some. But as long as we keep up with the stations on the outer islands, we should be fine...”

Hiccup absent mindedly scratched his chin and neck before setting down his apple. “Yeah but they’re getting smarter, dad...last time, they painted their whole hull and sails black. With them attacking at night only, it’s getting harder to see them, even with the Zipplebacks and Gronckles patrolling....but...I had an idea...”

Taking another quick bite of his apple, Hiccup reached into his pack and pulled out the new dragon manual. “Last week, me and Fishlegs were out fishing and we found a Scauldron nest in a near by deep water cove. If I can managed to train a few of them, we can use them as deep sea patrols. Maybe they can even take out a few of the ships before they even reach the shore. If I can manage that, we can have them patrol around...this area...just outside of the rim of the Outer Islands...”

“Hmm...that could work....then maybe...we can get a few to cover the back of the islands near the mountains and forest coasts as well...good idea, son!” With a pat on Hiccup’s shoulder, he took a swig on his mead as Hiccup began writing down more notes. Valhalla smile, placing the cods on a large platter before putting the plate at the center. “Sometimes I still can’t believe how much things have changed here. Dragons and Vikings as friends, Outcast are the new enemy and now here you two are working together on something!”

Hiccup chuckled as he took his share of the fish, cutting into it with his knife and fork. “Yeah, I think I’ve grown out of being “Hiccup the Useless”, mom. I mean, all I had to was befriend a Night Fury and kill one of the biggest dragons alive but at least that’s something, right?”

His mother smiled, ruffling her sons head as they all began to eat their dinner. Meanwhile, another huff left Toothless’ nose. He had already eaten before them but the smell of that fish was starting to make his gullet rumble. Even if they had those nasty plants and dirt rubbed in them. Resting his head on his fore paws, Toothless took another deep whiff of his surroundings, smelling what he usually smelled on a regular basis; his Hiccup, Stoick, Valhallarama, wood, metal, embers from the fire, and the cold air outside--what was that?

Toothless lifted his head up, sniffing the ground around him. Getting a few good whiffs, he grumbled in annoyance. He knew what he was smelling now and he wanted it no where near the house. A Terror Terrible. More like a “Terrible Nuisance” to the Night Fury. Those little lap-rat dragons were always causing trouble around the village and trying to sneak off with food that didn’t belong to them. And of course, being the kind soul that he was, Hiccup only made it worse by feeding and petting them all the time. Not that he could judge, he was rather spoiled by his human to begin with.

The Night Fury got up from his spot and started sniffing around for the tiny Dragon, intending on kicking it out. Hiccup, looking up from his plate, noticed his friend walking around, looking for something. “Toothless? Everything okay, bud?” Hiccup started to feel a bit worried but he knew he wasn’t in danger at the moment. Whenever Toothless smelled something dangerous, he always went to Hiccup first then started baring his teeth and growling. Toothless wasn’t doing that now, so Hiccup was calm.

Sniffing, the scent led him to the window, sniffing the air outside as the family of three watched him. He sniffed at it for a moment longer then brought his head back inside, sitting back down. Hmm...maybe it was nothing. Probably smelling some terror that managed to sneak in earlier or probably a group passing by the window just now. However, when he turned to go back to his spot...he spotted a dark green and red Terror ever so slowly trying to bite at one of the extra fish near the fire pit!

Damn Terrors, they were so annoying! Toothless growled before rushing over to the pit, alerting the small dragon he was caught. The Hiccup and his parents got up as well as the terror ran across the table and onto the floor on the other side. Toothless scrambled around the furniture, his tail knocking over a few pots and pans as he chased the Terror up and down shelves and around the floor.

“What’s a Terror doing in here!?” Valhalla’s instincts kicked in again, grabbing a knife from the table to be ready for an attack. The terror continued to run from the Night Fury; his squealing and snarling somewhat muffled by the thing he was holding in his mouth.

Eventually, Toothless had cornered the poor thing near in a corner near by the door. Toothless could tolerate these things acting all cute and innocent for the humans, and he could tolerate them stealing food from other dragons and humans, but NOT when they try to steal right from under his nose...in his own humans HOUSE!

“He probably snuck in looking for food. I mean, we feed the Terrors like we do with the other dragons, but they tend to get a little greedy and try to sneak into peoples houses looking for more.”

“Tch...at least that part hasn’t changed about the little beasts...” Valhallarama, Stoick and Hiccup watched as Toothless and the little terror barked and snarled at each other. The little terror decided to let that Night Fury know that he was just as big and bad as he was and wouldn’t be bullied! He set down the thing he was holding in his mouth and reared back, letting out his trade mark pre-fire-hiss. Of course, this only succeeded in amusing Toothless. These little terrors never learned, did they?

The terror never stood a chance as Toothless dealt with him the same way he dealt with the rest of the little terror; spitting a stream of fire into his maw before he had to chance to ignite and release his gas. The poor thing blew up like a balloon before collapsing on the ground, smoke lifting from it’s nose. Toothless always found this funny for some reason. Sure it was mean, but it had it coming.

“Toothless...why are you always so mean to the Terrors?” Hiccup asked, walking over to the Terror and picking him up from the ground. However, before he stood up all the way, he noticed the small thing he had spit out earlier laying near by. He picked it up in his hand, a smirk spreading across his face. “Heheheh...mom, look!” Holding the stunned terror in his hand, he walked back over to the table, so his mother could see...

“My earring..!” She exclaimed as he lifted a hand to touch her empty lobe that she didn’t even know was empty. “I must’ve lost it earlier today during that class of yours!” During their conversation, the little Terror came back to life and starred up at Valhallarama as she took the earring, putting it back in its place.

“Awww...he must’ve come to bring it back to you.” Hiccup scratched the Terror on the chin before setting him down on the table for a moment, letting him move freely. Calming down, Valhalla set the knife down as the little Terror carefully made his way toward her. Stoick and Hiccup watching, she was a bit apprehensive around being so close to it...but then she looked at him, seeing how small he was. He was no larger than the cod she had cooked. He had dark green body with even darker markings and a dark red spine and tail. The terror looked up at her with big yellow-green eyes, sitting down and tilting his head to the left.

Even Valhalla couldn’t deny that he was cute despite Toothless’ irritation at one being in his home. Her hand lifted from the table, carefully reaching over to the dragon. But he met her half way, taking that as an invitation and curling his back in a way that would make her pet him. After a moment, she took her hand back. “Well....thank you...little..Terror. Um...shoo now. Go on, shoo! Go back to your owner.”

The little Terror didn’t move however, just sat there and starred at Valhalla. “Why is it starring at me?”

“He must like you. That’s probably why he brought your earring back. Terror’s are like little dogs and if you treat them right, they won’t leave you alone! You must’ve done something good for it to bother you so much, hahahahah!” Stoick joked, the little Terror attempting to get close to Valhalla again. “Well...I appreciate the gesture but make it go away, now. It’s dinner time..”

The little Terror continued to try and get closer to her, only to have Hiccup pick him up and put him outside. Toothless huffed and laid in front of the door again, glad to be rid of the pest. Although he could still smell it hanging around outside. The little Terror sat outside the door, watching it for a moment before scuttling off somewhere..

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

Morning came the next day with clear skies, letting the sun light shine through, adding some warmth to the already cold day. Hiccup always hated the mornings. Toothless kept him so warm at night, being forced to get up and greet the frigid cold was never pleasant for him. But he was used to it. Being almost frozen to death was the way of life here on the Island of Berk. Walking down the pathways with his mother and Toothless next to him, he was escorting her to the next Dragon class. He already spotted a few of the students from yesterday heading toward the stables where the class would be held.

“Mr. Haddock!” Hearing his last name called, Hiccup turned to see the boy from before, Edgar, running up to him with the Dragon Manual under his arm. “Mr. Haddock, are you going to be teaching todays class again today?” He asked, an eager smile on his face.

“No, I’m just gonna observe with my mom today. You excited about the class though?”

“O-Oh yeah! Defiantly! I-I mean, I used to be scared of Dragons when I was younger but now I think they’re cool! Personally, my favorite dragon is the Changewing! They way they can blend into their surroundings like chameleons is so useful! And they can even hypnotize people if you get too close! They’re the coolest! W-Well that is to say that they’re the second coolest, I mean nothing more cool than Toothless! The Night Fury is like the master dragon, the way they blend into the dark and...”

As Edgar blathered on and on about how cool Toothless and Hiccup were, the young viking and his Night Fury just gave each other an amused look. Edgar was actually just a year younger than Hiccup but Edgar was taller than him. In the past, they were somewhat friends, both being insecure about their dragon fighting abilities. Hiccup had more confidence than him though so he was always the one to venture out, the result being to destroy the village, while Edgar stay near his home like he was told to. To be honest, Edgar was terrified of the day he would start dragon training. But thanks to Hiccup changing everything, he couldn’t begin to explain how grateful he was about that tradition changing. Killing a dragon, he couldn’t do, but riding a dragon? That was something definitely he could get into doing.

As Hiccup and his “biggest fan” walked toward the stables, Valhalla stopped for a moment to tighten the ties on her boots. Finishing with one, she moved to start the other one...when she heard something. Behind her was the same terror from last night. He must’ve stayed close to the house and followed her all morning without her knowing.

This little terror just wouldn’t leave her alone. She couldn’t figure out why or how this little dragon had gotten so attached to her but it was starting to annoy her. Valhallarama decided to just ignore the little beast and be on her way, catching up with Hiccup and Toothless...and following soon after her was the little Terror...

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

“Okay guys, gather round okay?” Astrid’s voice sounded over the group of students that had arrived for the class. They were standing in the back of the stables; straw and grass lightly covering the floor. Behind Astrid were large beds made of hay and stone and in the center of the room was a giant food bowl that was halfway filled with fish at the moment. There were leather dragon saddles hanging from roofs here and there, some of the hooks empty already. In another part of the stable were brushes, wool bandages and healing herbs meant only for Dragon use.

While Hiccup was an expert on training Dragons, Astrid had found she had her own dragon-related talent as well; learning about their health and how they heal. Which is what this class was all about.

“Welcome guys to the How to Care for Dragons class. Today you’ll learn about how to keep your dragon happy, healthy and flying!” Leading them through the stables, they came past a hay bed that was occupied by a group of baby Nightmares and their mother. Astrid didn’t have a chance to speak or explain as they all rushed over to the group; cooing and awing at how cute they were. The mother Nightmare, knowing full well she could trust Astrid, paid her no mind...but were wary about the rest of them coming near her babies. Clueless got to close and the Nightmare suddenly gave off a warning growl, even going as far to snap at the boy, making all of them back up. Astrid and Hiccup walked in front of the group; Hiccup going to gently pet the Nightmare and Astrid talking with the class.

“Whao, whao, easy guys! First Lesson: NEVER approached a Dragon’s baby with out their permission! Dragons are extremely parental with their dragons when they’re still in their baby stages. But we’ll come back to that subject later! Let’s keep moving!”

She managed to pry their attention away from the dragon group long enough to get to where she originally wanted to show them. Going down the line, they came up to a bright violet Nadder that was laying on it’s side. It’s breathing was slightly uneven and it look uncomfortable, and for good reason. Visible to all it observers, there were shallow cuts on it’s right leg and chest. Hiccup walked up to him, rubbing him on his snot to try and sooth him of his trouble. “Oh no....what happened to him?” Thyra asked as they all kneeled down to get a bitter look.

“It’s an injury from the last Outcast raid. He got it from protecting his rider..” Astrid mentioned, also going to gently rub his neck. Hiccup felt so bad for the Nadder and all the other dragons having to be put through things like this because of this war. Dragon, when they get attached to a human, are very loyal and would protect them like a mother would their child. Hiccup saw first hand how much they were willing to protect their friends from these raids and attacks. And even from Toothless’ own behavior. While Hiccup was happy to see how much the Dragons cared, he hated that he had to witness through post-battle injuries like these.

Giving him another gently stroke, Astrid stood up and looked to the group. “So this’ll be your next lesson: How to care for a Dragon’s injuries. While his gashes aren’t deep they can still get infected with out proper care--”

“Wait, I thought Dragon’s heal better than humans already. Why do we need to waste bandages and herbs on them?” Dogsbreath’s question only succeeded in making Hiccup roll his eyes as he walked over to a box of jars herbs and healing salves.

“Just because they’re strong than us doesn’t mean they don’t need to be taken care of. Yes Dragon heal faster but they can get sick just like everyone else. And for Dragon wounds we don’t use bandages...we just mix Herbs into a paste to use as a healing salve for his cuts...” Hiccup directed them all to gather around a near by table, Astrid getting up to take his place so he could keep scratching the Nadder, keeping him calm.

“Since his wounds are shallow, we’re going to be using Calendua, Aloe and Gotu Kola and mix them into a paste. After you make the paste, add just a little bit of water to it loosen it up. When we make enough, we’re going to spread it over his wounds....”

Valhalla looked over all of the children, observing Astrid for a moment. Everyday had a new surprise for her; Astrid being a new one now. She remembered Astrid as a girl, this girl wanted nothing more than to kill a dragon, to use her axe to “chop of it’s head” and “skin it hide into a rug” as she used to her from her as a child. Looking at the girl before her, she looked plenty tough with her iron shoulder plates and spiked kilt....all the while she was making a slave to HEAL a dragons wounds. It just astounded the woman how much came happen in just 5 years.

Sighing, Valhallarama turned away from the group and watched Hiccup for a moment. The Nadder was in obvious pain, laying on it’s side and breathing carefully, as if trying not to move as much as he could. Her sight, however, veered over to her son. The Nadder had his head resting on Hiccup’s lap as he boy gently stroked his head and neck in a soothing way. Just to the side of the two was Toothless. The two dragons seemed to be talking to each other, with Toothless making quiet groans and whines with the nadder responding with a few of their own.

The dragon, even though he was in pain, seemed to feel better just by Hiccup being near him. And rightly so. All of the dragons looked to Hiccup as a sort of savior, the human that destroyed the Red Death.

Getting up from his position, Hiccup dragged over a large wooden bail of water and grabbed a few fish from the food bowls. “Here you go, big guy...you just relax and let Astrid take care of you...” Hiccup pushed the bucket close enough for the Nadder to lift his head and take a drink, then gratefully took the fish from Hiccup’s fingers, being careful not to nip the boys fingers.

Still stroking the dragons neck, the Nadder lifted his head to nudge Hiccup’s gently. Valhalla couldn’t help but smile as she walked over and kneeled down next to her son. “...is he going to be alright?” She asked out of the blue while Hiccup inspected the Nadder’s wounds. “...I’m not sure....usually regular attacks don’t bother them as much....but he took a direct attack to the leg...ha....I just....feel so bad....we get out of one war only to start another....and we’re all hurting because of it. Ha...at least me and Toothless are able to fend them off somewhat...”

Valhalla’s smile faded, seeing the concerned and worried look on her sons face. He really did care for these beast and they all seemed to trust and care for him as well..

Hiccup went from stroking to scratching the Nadder’s neck. And much to his shock..he saw his mother lift her hand and gently place on the Nadder’s snout, receiving a content purr in return. He smiled, watching his mother just look at the Nadder and he hand slowly began to move in a gentle stroking motion..

Toothless crooned as he sat close to Hiccup, watching the little scene. Hiccup looked back and saw that Astrid was still preoccupied with teaching the other kids how to mix certain herbs. At the same time, Astrid turned to check on Hiccup and the Nadder, giving the young viking a smile. Hiccup could feel his cheeks heating up in a blush, his smile getting a bit wider. Sometimes he couldn’t believe how lucky he was. He may of lost his foot but he got a girlfriend, a best friend, brought peace between the two species, and now he had his mother back, safe and sound. The gods must like him for some reason..

“.......not all that bad...” Valhalla’s voice jarred Hiccup out of his thoughts for a moment, turning back to her.

“Uh, huh? What’d you say mom?”

“I said that....these dragons aren’t all that bad....you say this one got hurt protecting one of us?”

“Yeah...during one of the Outcast attacks...he took an axe attack for Grassgrunt, pretty much saved his life...”

Valhalla looked down at the Nadder again, his eyes had closed a few moments ago. All of the stroking and scratching must’ve been very soothing to him as it looked like he was starting to fall asleep.

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

It didn’t take much time at all for Astrid to finish the healing salve and apply it to the Nadder’s wound. While it didn’t heal it right away, they could tell that the aloe in the salve was helping with the pain. After drinking plenty of water and eating some fish, he perked right up. “There we go? Feeling better?” Astrid asked the Nadder as she finished wipping away the excess from the dragon’s skin. The Nadder purred, nudging and licking Astrid face and shoulder, the watching students laughing a bit. “Heheheh, I’ll take that as yes. So guys, it’s actually pretty simple to care for your dragons injuries should you ever be out by yourselves. Now we’re gonna learn a bit more about other injuries, mostly relating to cuts and abrasions but later on in our classes we’re gonna learn how to handle illnesses...”

The students paid attention to Astrid’s words as she lead them to another area of the stables where all of the dragon herbs were kept. While they knew how to mix them, they still needed to learn how to identify the basic ones for healing minor injuries. If a dragon had worse injuries, they would be brought to the village healer instead. A dragon had yet to be injured to an extent where their flight was hindered. With the way this war was going, though, Hiccup wouldn’t be surprised if it happened to one.

But the inventive young viking was already prepared for such an event. He had already come up with designs and ideas much similar to Toothless’ prosthetic tail fin should it ever happen to another dragon. He didn’t stop there, however. Today he had planned on going to his back room in the shop to continue working.

Sighing, Hiccup looked around for a moment at all the dragons nests. A good handful of them had hurt dragons resting inside, sleeping off their injuries. A beside them were shield maidens, mixing salves and oils to help with the healing. There weren’t a lot of men in the healing area of the stables. The dragon seemed more keen to female hands then the males; they favored the softer touch of the females then the men. Even so, Hiccup felt stressed and tensed and just...felt so bad..

Now he knew how his father felt those years ago. Every time a dragon raid would come and more and more people would get hurt. Being involved in this war, Hiccup understood his father a little more and the position that he was in. He wanted this war to stop, he wanted to Outcast’s to just leave them alone. Why were they so adamant about destroying them and the dragons? But even that wasn’t accurate anymore. In the beginning, yes they just tried to kill the dragons...but now they were killing Vikings and trying to capture the dragons. What the hell was going on?

“Hiccup...Hiccup! Help please!”

The boy was jarred out of his thoughts when he heard his mother’s voice. Thinking sometimes was wrong, Hiccup whipped around to look at her. On her shoulder was that Terror again, purring and warbling at her.

“Hiccup what do I do? Does he want something?” She asked, not moving a muscle. He laughed at his mother’s reaction, walking toward her and picking up a fish on his way there. “He likes you, mom! Here, I bet if you train him, he’ll stick with you!” He tossed her the fish and she caught. The little terror began to wiggle and bounce happily at the sight of the fish. The little terror opened his maw, trying to nip and catch the fish.

“U-Uh, no...no!” Valhallarama kept the fish out of his reach. “Um...get down...”

The terror tilted his head, not understanding so Valhalla took her hand and pointed down to the floor. “Down I said...” To her surprise and delight...the Terror listened, climbing down to the floor and sitting in front of her. “Hehehe....aren’t you a smart one? Here you go...”

It was a cute sight, that was for sure. The little terror gobbled down the fish then looked up at Valhallarama, wagging his tail and purring happily. She watched him, chuckling at his antics before grabbing another fish and throwing it up in the air..and the terror caught it just like that! An easy feat for a dragon but just as amusing for Valhalla.

“Hahaha! Nice catch! Bet you can’t do it again!”

Of course he could do it again. If there was fish involved he was gladly do it again! Like before, he caught the fish right in his mouth, jumping with out the use of his wings. “Hahaha, oh! He remind me of you when you were a little baby! So tiny but so energetic!”

“I know I’m small but I don’t I was THAT small!”

“Oh yes you were, you just don’t remember, you were a baby after all! Awww..hehehe...he’s so cute...” Valhallarama gave the terror a little scratch down his spine, making him arch it in the air, his tail wagging.

Toothless grumble and scoffed at the Terror. Sure he looks cute now, but leave him alone near your food and you won’t be having dinner that night. Greedy little bastards...

[Yabanko]

“Vision”
__________________________________________________________________

--2 Years Ago--

-Gothi’s POV-

It was over. The war was over. Everyone could hardly believe it. Generations of Vikings killing dragons in fierce, epic battles and all it took was one boy-- one curious, out-of-the-box mind-set boy-- to put an end to it all in the most unlikely of ways.

He trained a Dragon. Not just any dragon; the PRINCE of all Dragons, a Night Fury. With that Night Fury, they defeated the Red Death. A horrible dragon--no--a horrible demon that enslaved all the other dragons to slate her endless hunger lest they be eaten themselves. The defeat would be told to future generations, becoming a legendary battle. But every battle and every war had a price that must be paid. And Hiccup was no exception..

I wish I could’ve done more to help him. Because I saw this coming...

Years ago, I helped give birth to him as I do with all of the new borns in our clan. I see things. Nothing of the mortal world but of the next, the in between and what’s to come...

As was tradition, I looked into this boys future...I saw disappointment, loneliness, eagerness, pain...then compassion, joy, love and strength....this boy would have a full life. Fuller then most hope to see. But in the end, he would find happiness....wouldn’t he?

Yes the war is over, but Hiccup would forever bare the visible scar of ending it; the loss of his left leg. Here I sit by his bed side and across from me his friend...the Night Fury.

Toothless, I believe, is what Hiccup called him. A curious and somewhat humorous name but I saw for myself why Hiccup chose it when Stoick came to give the tired thing some dinner.

After they all arrived back form the battle, the Dragons had moved in right away, wanting to be rid of the memories and stench of their old island, the place where they were enslaved. The Night Fury did not once leave Hiccup’s side in the journey back. He was worried about his friend. I could see it in those green eyes of his.

But now he was morose..

We had no choice. The boy would’ve been forever crippled if his leg left uncheck. It was broken beyond repair and would’ve healed incorrectly; deforming in the years. The only choice was the amputate and give him a prosthetic. Though Gobber seemed be rather enthusiastic about making Hiccup’s fake limb himself. “He’s on his way!” Is what Gobber said.

I should be happy too. The village was safe, the people were safe, the dragon our allies...things were finally at peace.

So why aren’t I? Why do I have this feeling in my gut that things would not be at peace for long? Why do I have this...ill will...that only seems to show itself when I watched over this boy?

Had I not seen far enough into his future when he was born? What more lies in this boys future that my sight had not seen?

I looked up and around the room. It’s gone quiet for the moment. Stoick was discussing affairs regarding the dragons relocation into our village and how we could make way of making room for them. Hiccup’s Night Fury--Toothless--had closed his eyes to sleep, his black scaled head resting gently on top of Hiccup’s stomach.

I feel sorry for the dragon. We had to send him away while we operated on the boy. Had we not, he most likely would’ve attacked me and the Healer for forcing Hiccup’s blood to shed. But, this dragon was smart. Very smart. Yes, he was angry upon his return...but he understood why. And now he was content, knowing that the boy would survive.

I gently patted the dragons head before standing up to stretch these old legs of mine. I still have this feeling. A feeling that something else will happen...but what? And when?

Near by, in a bucket with barely any water left in it, were the rags used to treat and dress Hiccup’s wounds. Still soaked red with Hiccup’s blood.

Hiccup’s blood.

At his birthing, I just used simple strand of hair to foresee his future, as I do with all of the children born on this island. But his blood...blood is more potent than hair; it is his life force in liquid form that runs through his veins. Surely that would yield my sight to go farther..

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O

Long after the sun had set, I was awake in my hut after gathering what I needed for my vision. Over my fire and in my small cauldron was the water from the sea, finally coming to a boil. I sat away from the cooking fire, grinding up herbs and plants into a fine powder. With the herbs ready, I sit in front of my bubbling cauldron and pour the content of my stone bowl inside. The reaction was instant; a light vapor rising from the water, colored a blueish-white.

I whisper norse chants into the night, stirring the water around, mixing it until the vapor turned completely blue. Now for the final ingredient: the rags soaked with Hiccup’s blood. It took some elbow grease and patience, but I managed to squeeze out a few droplets of blood from the fabric.......

The water came to a dead stillness; no longer bubbling as blood drop after drop fell in, the water rippling at the contact...until I could squeeze nothing more from the rags. The last drop hit the water....

The water began to move again. But not in a boil, no. The ripples came back, in reverse, traveling to the center for each drop that it received...

The vapor returned, now the color of a deep blue coloring. I gently lean over the cauldron....and inhale....

My sight leave my mortal mind and many vision flash before my eyes..

A new war will begin and Hiccup will be forced to endure more hardship. He will feel more despair and difficult times...but then I saw happiness....and love...a love of a parent...his mother? His mother would return alive from her quest? He would find happiness through his difficult time, a happiness that no would could expect to happen..

I was happy...the boy would find peace after all...but my visions did not end there.

Again, I saw strife, stress, conflict...

The mist of my vision grows darker with each passing vision...I see a dark figure standing over Hiccup...the figure was black and was looming over the boy who would not...or rather could not move...

The mist grows darker again....pain. Intense pain would befall the boy...and then intense illness....but why? Why are the gods testing him in his such a way? Did he not suffer enough?

Hiccup is laying in bed...his illness grows worse and worse...until finally...

All was black...

The darkness....the darkness...of death? The boy would die....Hiccup would die? In the midst of war...after being reunited with his mother...the gods would have him die?

No...how can this be? Hiccup...his life would be taken from him...he would be called to Valhalla...

I feel a great sadness grow in my heart as I believe I have seen the boys fate...but my sight had not ended yet...

Fire...a great flame cut through the darkness like a razor hot blade. It spread everywhere until the ground I stood on was ablaze...with blue fire...and in the middle of the blaze I saw him...Hiccup...he was standing there alive and well! But...there was something different about him...the boy had an air of intimidation around him...and air to be feared....and yet respected....

He looked out into the blaze as he rose his hands...there were was something in his hand reaching out to the darkness. A blast of wind hit him full force and knocked me back a bit, but he stood firm; reaching out as if to catch the wind in his hand...

There was silence...and then...there was a roar. A deafening that would’ve been heard for miles. It echoed through the darkness and as the last of it sound began to dissipate , I heard wings flapping ahead. I could see nothing....only two sharp glowing orbs coming closer toward the boy...

O.O.O.O.O

A gasp leaves my lips as I quickly lift my head away from the vapors of the cauldrons. That vision was no ordinary vision....for I could not decipher it all. The beginning, I understood. I understood that another war would befall out island, Hiccup would be reunited with his mother....I understood..that Hiccup would be injured yet again...and that it would cause an illness that would eventually take his life...

But after the darkness of death had befallen him...something else would happen? But what is it? It was something I could not define. Perhaps I am getting along in my old age...but then again....maybe I alone could not define what was to come....

I lift myself from my seated position and walked over to a table where I kept all of my written supplies and writing charcoals. Getting comfortable in my seat, I begin my letter to a very dear friend of mine. I may not know of the sort of vision I saw...but I know she can help decipher it...and make the vision clear...

[EllBora]

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