Just a quick little scene I wanted to write out. Because I thought it was cute.
I could work it out into a story. But I dunno. Maaaaaaaaaaybe.
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The voices had died what felt like an eternity ago, but the night fury had yet to see his rider- or anyone else for that matter.
The dragon rumbled in annoyance and circled the fire a few more times before settling down at the bottom of the stairs and fixing his gaze on the rooms he could not see above. He had been forbidden from going up the stairs and, while not too keen on taking orders under normal circumstances, the sense of urgency in his rider's voice had compelled him to obey.
He knew what was happening- how could he not? It was the fuss everyone was making that confused him. Living creatures had been doing this since the beginning of time. Where was all of this panic coming from?
His ears pricked as a familiar sound reached him; of his rider's uneven footsteps as he made his way close. But there was something unusual about his gait, as if he were moving slower than the norm, more carefully.
Toothless chirped excitedly as he spotted his rider making his way down the steps and hopped to his feet excitedly.
"Hey there, bud," Hiccup greeted softly, kneeling on the bottom step in front of the dragon. "Bet you were wondering what all the noise was about, huh?"
The onyx dragon knew fully well what all the ruckus had been about, but with no voice to convey this message, he could only grurrr in response.
Movement out of the corner of his eye dragged Toothless's attention down to the squirming bundle in his rider's arms. Tilting his head curiously, the night fury's nostrils flared as he sniffed tentatively at the blankets. He jerked back in surprise as Hiccup, tensed, placed a firm hand on his nose and held him back.
"Hold on a sec, Toothless," he said quickly. He gestured to the bundle in his arms, "This is not food. Completely off limits, alright?"
Surprised by Hiccup's tone of voice, Toothless blinked and backed down.
Hiccup tapped the dragon's nose meaningfully with his index finger. "I wanna see teeth retracted when you two interact, got that?"
The night fury rumbled softly, almost passively, as if he felt he were being berated when he had done nothing wrong.
Satisfied, Hiccup moved the blanket aside and presented to his dragon the freckled, squished face that had been hidden away behind it. With a curious mrrur? Toothless nudged the tiny human with his nose, earning a disgruntled sound from it.
"Careful," Hiccup said quickly, "He's only a little guy. He breaks easily." He added, feeling a jolt of fear at the thought. Maybe he should have waited to introduce the infant to his dragon, he wondered silently. Maybe waited for him to be a little less breakable?
Toothless seemed to get the message, however, and began sniffing from a safer distance. The newborn opened his eyes slowly, widening them fully at the sight of the black dragon. He didn't cry out, as Hiccup had expected him too, but rather seemed to soak in the sight of the large reptile.
Hiccup grinned. He hadn't seen his son open his eyes once yet. "Hey there," he greeted quietly, "Decided to wake up, huh?"
The infant, at the sound of his father's voice, shifted his attention to him and, gurgling unhappy, began to squirm about. Hiccup, worried he had done something wrong, froze up. "Uhhm... oh-oh! You're probably hungry again, huh?" He twisted around and gazed upstairs. "I should probably go wake up Astrid-"
Toothless had chosen that moment then to reach out and, grasping the blanket the infant was swaddled in between his teethless gums, lifted him carefully from Hiccup's grasp. The rider tensed, but decided to see what the dragon was up to.
The night fury set the bundle in the crook of his foreleg, seeming to mimic the way Hiccup had been carrying him. The dragon "smiled" and produced a sound strangely akin to laughter.
Miraculously, the infant's fussy cries quieted and his squirming ceased.
Hiccup, brow quirked, cracked a grin. "Toothless? What're you doing?"
The night fury, secretly ecstatic that his rider's attention was on him once more, wriggled excitedly. My dragon's a better parent than me, Hiccup thought sarcastically.
"C'mon, give him back," he chuckled, holding out his hands expectantly.
Toothless shifted his forelegs to pull the newborn closer to his chest. He rumbled, producing a sound that strangely resembled nooooo.
Hiccup shook his head and laughed, more than glad that the introduction of his newborn to his dragon had gone off without a hitch.