Chapter 1: Leaving!

"LEAVING! We're leaving. Let's pack up. Looks like you and me are taking a little vacation...forever." Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III declared when he entered the cove while carrying a basket full of necessities: tools from the forge, clothes, boots, fur vests, sticks of coal for his journals, and drawings of Toothless and blue prints of his tail. He put his basket down near a boulder and opened it to make sure that he had everything for his trip. The elder of his village, Berk, had announced that he would be the one to kill a dragon known as the Monstrous Nightmare. It was considered an honor to anyone in his dragon training class to kill this dragon. However, Hiccup didn't want to kill the dragon. Ever since he befriended Toothless, a dragon known as the night fury, he knew that dragons weren't evil mindless creatures that needed to be killed. They were kind, intelligent, and as loyal as any other animal. He couldn't find himself to kill a creature that had the right to live as much as he did. Suddenly he heard a twig snapped and turned around to see a black winged reptile tackle him and began licking him.

"Toothless, knock it off! You know that doesn't wash out!" Hiccup chuckled as he tried to push Toothless off of him. Toothless sat up as Hiccup got up from the ground and flicking the remaining slobber from his clothes. "Bud, how would you like to get out of here?"

Toothless tilted his head at the question. He knew that this was Hiccup's home and it's where the two had met. He couldn't understand why he would want to leave his home.

"I'm tired of living here, Toothless. No one really cares about me! They only respect me because I was getting so good in training!" Hiccup ranted, "I want to travel, see new places, meet new people, and discover new dragons! Maybe we'll find more night furies!"

Toothless gurgled and wagged his tail with excitement. He always wanted to find more night furies. But more importantly, to travel with his best friend, Hiccup.

"So you in?" Hiccup asked, smiled. Toothless's answer was his gummy smile which earned his name "Toothless". "Alright then, let's get going."

Hiccup picked up his basket and tied it to the back of Toothless's saddle. Then he got settled onto the saddle and the two went up into the sky and flew away from Berk. He was excited for this journey. He wondered what kinds of lands are out there. Not to mention the many cultures as well. But he also wanted to find new dragons. He hoped that he'll be able to find more of Toothless's kind. The only thing he hoped that he wouldn't get into any trouble wherever he went. Well, they'll just see. As long as he had Toothless with him, they would be fine. He looked over his shoulder and gazed back at the island he once thought was 'home'.

"So long, Berk." Hiccup said. The hateful and cold stares of the villagers, his father's disappointed scowl, and his hopeless crush with Astrid would all be left behind him now. They would no longer matter to him. They would just be part of his past that he wanted to forget. But the one thing he would never forget would be Gobber's kindness and guidance. The one legged and one armed blacksmith in Berk. The only one who ever paid any attention to him. To Hiccup's point of view, Gobber was more of a father to him than his own father was. He made sure to leave a letter for Gobber before he left. Gobber should at least know that Hiccup viewed him as a father figure. Once the island was out of sight, Hiccup turned around and looked towards the horizon. His journey of discovery had just begun.


Meanwhile, Astrid Hofferson was trying to find Hiccup. She was infuriated at Hiccup who got the honor to kill the Monstrous Nightmare. She should have gotten the honor. But no...the useless runt of the village gets it! His rising level in dragon training made her very suspicious of him. She knew that someone couldn't get good overnight. She suspected that he was hiding something and she was going to find out!

After finally finding a trail of Hiccup's footsteps, it lead her to a cove. She had to admit that it was a beautiful cove. But she wondered what Hiccup was doing in this place. She climbed down the rocks and saw a shield wedged between two rocks.

"What's that doing there?" Astrid asked, brow arched. So she went underneath the shield and entered the cove. Then she found more of Hiccup's footsteps, but then she noticed another pair of footsteps. They were bigger than Hiccup's. Way bigger. She spotted a few black scales next to the big footprint. It was then she recognized the footprints and the scales: a dragon! She wondered what Hiccup was doing down in the cove with a dragon. She also saw a few scorch marks as well. A glimmer of light caught her attention and looked towards the source and saw a shiny object in the lake. She went to the lake and pulled out the object: a dagger with Hiccup's initials on it!

'Was he fighting a dragon?' Astrid thought with dread. She knew that Hiccup didn't stand a chance with a dragon without a weapon of some sort. Then she realized that Hiccup was nowhere in sight and there were scales, scorches, and footprints of a dragon all over the place. That could only mean one thing: Hiccup was taken by the dragon!

Astrid turned and ran out of the cove and sprinted towards the village as fast as her feet could take her.


"I'm amazed that he was able to defeat that gronckle, Gobber." Stoick said before he took a gulp of his mead.

"Me too. The first time he went against it, he was terrified of it." Gobber commented.

"Indeed." Stoick agreed. He remember his days as a recruit for dragon training. Some of them were scared of encountering a dragon for the first time. But Stoick and Gobber weren't. In fact, they were excited to go against the evil minded reptiles.

'Ah, the good old days.' Stoick thought with nostalgia. At that moment, someone burst through the doors, which caught everyone's attention. Vikings were moving to the side while someone was trying to pass by them. The person soon arrived in front of the crowd: Astrid. She was panting as she bent down at the waist and placed her hands on her thighs as she was catching her breath.

"Astrid, what's wrong?" Stoick asked. Astrid stood up straight when she was able to breathe.

"Hiccup...he's...gone." Astrid breathed out.

"What?" Stoick questioned with wide eyes.

"He was taken...by a dragon." Astrid answered.

"Are you sure, Astrid?" Stoick asked. Astrid nodded as she pulled out Hiccup's dagger and the black dragon scales she found. Stoick's blood froze at the sight of the scales. He hadn't seen those kind of scales before, but he knew one thing: they weren't from any other of the dragons they have seen so far. He quickly stood up and stared at all of the vikings in the room. "Search the island! We won't rest until we've found my son!"


After hours of searching, it was declared that Hiccup was indeed taken by a dragon. But Stoick wanted to know what the dragon was. He never thought that his son would be captured by a dragon. It felt like another one of his family was taken from him. Just like his beloved wife, Valka, who was captured by a large four winged dragon when his son was an infant. She hadn't been found which lead to the conclusion that the dragon had eaten her. The sound of approaching footsteps brought him out of his thoughts. He looked over his shoulders and saw Fishlegs running up to him. He stepped up to him and bent down at his waist as he placed his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

"Fishlegs, what is it?" Stoick asked, turning to the young lad.

"Chief, I have some information about the dragon." Fishlegs said, once he was able to control his breathing.

"What kind of dragon is it?" Stoick questioned.

"I checked through the entire Dragon Manual and there wasn't any dragon that matched the scale." Fishlegs explained.

That got Stoick's attention. They had no information about the owner to the black scales. That confused him. He was sure that they had all of the information about the dragons they've ever encountered. He wondered what kind of dragon wouldn't be found in the Dragon Manual.

"But I have a good guess what kind of dragon it is." Fishlegs continued.

"What kind?" Stoick asked.

"Night fury." Fishlegs concluded.

Stoick breathing hitched at that moment. A night fury was known as the offspring of lightning and death itself. 'Never engage this dragon. Hide and pray that it does not find you' was the warning that was written in the Dragon Manual. His ultimate guess was that Hiccup must have encountered the dragon and it flew off with him in his claws. He could easily imagine how helpless Hiccup was probably feeling when he was taken. Stoick clenched his fists until they turned white. He knew what he had to do when he would find that night fury: slay it.


Gobber walked into the forge and sat down in a chair near the fire. It had nearly been a day since Hiccup had vanished into thin air. He didn't know why he would though. The boy was finally getting the honor that he deserved. Even though Astrid wanted to kill him right then and there if there was no one around. He was pretty sure that the girl will hold that against him. He sighed as he pinched his nose. Then he stood up and walked into Hiccup's work room. Gobber provided this room for Hiccup whenever he wanted to be alone. When he entered, he was shocked to see that all of Hiccup's drawings were gone. But he noticed a letter on Hiccup's desk, he went over to it and saw his name on it. So he sat down in his chair and opened the letter.

Dear Gobber,

If you're reading this, then that probably means that I already left Berk. I don't think I can bare living on this island anymore. True it may have been my home for fourteen years, but it never really felt like a real home. I have no mother, my father was always disappointed in me, and the villagers hated me. However, you were the only one who ever treated me like family. To me, you were like a father. One that I wished I had.

When it came to dragon training, I wasn't really killing them. I learned how to subdue them because of my friend who I had been hiding for some time now. I know you probably won't believe me, but I really did take down a night fury and did the most craziest thing you didn't expect. I befriended the dragon. Let's just say that the both of us became good friends. Whatever I learned from him, I used it on the dragons in the ring. To be most precise, I can't kill the Monstrous Nightmare. I don't really have the guts to even kill a dragon. Perhaps, I'm not meant to. But I really don't mind it at all. So please give the honor to Astrid. I can tell that she wanted to be the one to have it.

I know you're wondering why I'm doing this, but I can't risk my dragon's safety. If he's ever exposed, then my father won't hesitate to kill him and I don't want that to happen. So this is my goodbye.

Sign,

Hiccup

Gobber was shocked at this. He couldn't believe that Hiccup had befriended a night fury. That kind of dragon is known to be the most fiercest and most dangerous dragon out of all dragons. But… if Hiccup was able to befriend this dragon, … perhaps it will keep him safe. Gobber sighed and looked up at the morning sky. He had a good feeling that Hiccup will be okay. Maybe, just maybe, he might seem him again… one day.


"The person who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The person who walks alone is likely to find himself in places no one has ever seen before."

– Albert Einstein