A/N: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON OR ITS FRANCHISE! THE ONLY THING I OWN ARE MY OCS!
Chapter 1: A Not-So-Simple Raid
Jayla's POV
Hiccup and I were sitting at the table. I was drawing a dragon that was pure white and was shaped in a way that no Viking had ever seen before. Beside it was a girl. She had a black colored leather skirt with brown pants underneath it. She wore a blue shirt with a white fur coat from a snow fox. Her hair was brown with white tips at the ends. The girl was sitting against the dragon staring out at the sun.
"Hey, Jayla," Hiccup called.
"What?" I answered still working on my drawing.
"What are you drawing?" he asked.
"Nothing at all," I answered.
Hiccup looked and went wide eyed. "Jayla, what in the name…?! Jayla, Dad would banish you from Berk if he saw this!"
"No, he wouldn't. He would be infuriated to the realm of the gods, but he wouldn't banish me," I responded blandly. "Besides, I'll hide it with the others."
"Others?" he questioned.
"Others," I replied by repeating.
"Why are you even drawing that? What is that dragon?" Hiccup asked.
"Just a dragon I made up," I lied. "And why I'm drawing it? I don't really know, it feels right."
Well, yeah, it felt right! Don't give me any weird looks. Hiccup didn't know something about me that was bigger than he would ever believe. I could never own up the courage to tell him the truth about me. But that was the only one of the rare secrets I had kept from him as we told each other pretty much everything. I discovered the truth about myself when I was only a baby. I was lucky I wasn't in the village when I did. I would've been slaughtered by my very own father.
I had come back to Berk at the urging of my mother - well, adoptive mother - when I was eight. Just like me, she believed peace was possible. I only hoped we were right and this attempt we started seven years ago wouldn't end in my death. That wouldn't be good.
"Okay, but why not draw a bird or something? Something more - I don't know - not getting your head chopped off worthy," Hiccup asked.
"Reasons," I answered.
Hiccup sighed. 'I'm never going to get anything out of her,' he thought.
The only reason I knew that was because I was a telepath thanks to my big secret. I could also feel what dragons feel. Their pain, their happiness, everything. So I didn't really like dragon attacks and battles.
Especially since… No, no, no! You'll find out later!
Anyway… I felt so bad feeling the pain my fellow Vikings gave to the dragons. I've only kept my secret from Hiccup for both mine and his safety. Why? Because I don't want him telling the entire village.
But only those around and I knew of what happened that day. And I knew because she sent me back when I was eight. Not even Hiccup knew. I wanted to tell Hiccup; but every time I tried, words wouldn't come out and I would walk away just as quickly as I called to talk to him. I knew he had to learn soon, though.
A huge explosion was heard from outside and we rushed to the door. Both of us thinking one thing, 'Dragons.' Hiccup yanked it open only to slam it closed before a dragon called a Monstrous Nightmare burned us. Instead, it burned the outside of the door.
"Next time, Hiccup, slow down. We don't want to fry," I scolded him.
"Just chill, Jayla. You always get so uptight during dragon attacks. Why again?" Hiccup answered.
"Not now. We have to go help Gobber in the forge," I responded.
He gave me a quick look before nodding and we took off. We ran from the house, both of us heading in the direction of the forge. As we ran, people yelled at us to get inside.
An explosion forced me to stumble, as Hiccup fell on his back. I smiled at him being his clumsy self. Of course, when another Viking fell on top of him and yelled a battle cry before cheerfully saying, "Morning!" I couldn't hold back a few fits of laughter.
Hiccup got back on his feet, grumbling as he brushed dirt off himself. "It's not funny," he mumbled.
"You're right, it's hilarious," I responded. He looked at me with a slight glare.
I smiled at him as we ran through the streets again. I saw a dragon blowing fire at the path we're about to cross, and I barely had time to slow myself down. "Hiccup!" I screamed. I reached out and pulled him back.
A man followed me in grabbing him and then pulled both me and Hiccup by the shirt. That's when I realized, the Viking that saved my brother's life is the chief of the tribe.
"What are they doing-? What are you doing out again? Get back inside!" he yelled at us shoving my brother towards the blacksmith.
The chief's name is Stoick the Vast, by the way, and he is the best dragon slayer around. They say when he was a baby, he popped a dragon's head clean off its shoulders. Do I believe it? Of course, I do. Which was another reason why I kept my secret a secret.
I followed Hiccup through the town, dodging the huge torches being hoisted. We arrived at the blacksmith, both of us putting on our aprons.
"Good to see you! Thought you two had been carried off," the blacksmith said, hammering a sword against the anvil. His blond, braided mustache whipped around as he turned to grin at us. That's Gobber, by the way.
"Us? No. We're way too Viking-like for the dragons," Hiccup rolled his eyes as he picked up a heavy hammer and put it on the wall.
"Well, they need a few toothpicks, don't they?" Gobber responded.
I rolled my eyes, getting the forge started. Gobber's got interchangeable hands because he had lost one of his hands to a dragon, so he switches out from various tools and attitude. We've both been apprentices since we were little kids, Hiccup being younger than me. And in fact, we had our own room for our own projects in the back of the forge.
I ran over to the counter as the fighters dropped broken weapons on it.
"Snotlout! Fishlegs! Get that fire over there!" a young female voice called through the sounds of battle.
Five teenagers run to the well, carting buckets. A large, blond kid, named Fishlegs, ran first. He was sort of a cross between a Viking and a toddler. He was the expert on dragons; you needed information on a dragon, you went to him. Rumor had it he had read the Book of Dragons 127 times in his life. Most Vikings only read it two or three times in theirs.
Snotlout, a dark haired boy, probably the closest to being a Viking, ran after him. He was a sexist pig who was rude to everyone, hit on his friend Astrid all the time, and was unfortunately my cousin. He was a bully to me and my brother despite our relations. Of course, Snotlout always wanted to prove that he deserved to become chief instead of me or Hiccup so that made it worse. Not that I wanted to be anywhere near chief. I had my own leading duties.
The twins came next. They were honestly nothing like us. Mainly because they liked to hurt each other instead of protect each other. However, if anyone else hurt the other twin, just take my advice and leave the area. Tuffnut was the male half, as sexist as Snotlout, as blond as his twin, but a little bit more cowardly under pressure, unlike his twin. Ruffnut was the female half, usually there to knock her brother right back to his senses, and was braver under pressure.
Last but not least was Astrid. To me, she was a huge jerk, conceited, and self-centered; but to my brother, she was perfect. Well, almost. She was the best fighter, best speaker, best strategist, and best looking. She was the prodigy of Berk, everyone's favorite teen. I was not under her spell though. But sometimes I had to wonder if I was missing something.
Hiccup came to my side. He looked around, not seeing Gobber, and got ready to jump over the counter. I didn't want him to get into trouble and just as I was about to pull him back, Gobber's hook pulled on the back of his shirt.
"Oh, c'mon! I'll go out there for two minutes, I'll kill a dragon, and our lives will get infinitely better!" Hiccup complained and complained, being carried by Gobber to where Hiccup was adjusting a shield. He set it down, knowing we were about to get a lecture from Gobber. "And why were you about to pull me back?" he asked me.
"Unlike you, Jayla knows when to try things and when not to. Hiccup, you can't lift a hammer, you can't swing an axe, you can't even throw one of these!" He picked up a bola, which was instantly snatched by a nearby Viking and thrown at a dragon.
"Okay... but this will throw it for us!" Hiccup ran to the bola launcher we had invented. He patted it, causing it to go off. I dodge out of the way, which lead to another Viking being knocked in the head with it. "Minor calibration issue."
"Listen, both of you. If you want to go out there, you have to stop all of… this," he said. He moves his hands up and down, gesturing to us as a whole.
"But you just gestured to all of us," I say, raising an eyebrow. I was actually slightly offended.
"Exactly!" Gobber said. "Stop being all of you."
"Oh," my brother said giving slight nods and acting as if he understood.
"Oh." Gobber nodded, mimicking Hiccup.
"You, sir, are playing a very dangerous game! To keep this much raw Vikingness contained?" Hiccup flexes, or attempts too due to his lack of muscles. I rolled my eyes. "There will be consequences!"
"I'll take my chances," Gobber says in a flat voice. "Sword. Sharpen. Now." He tossed Hiccup a sword before turning to me. "And you, fix these shields."
Hiccup went to the grindstone to sharpen the sword he was given, while I went to the counter to fix the shield.
Someday, we'll get out there. Because on the island of Berk, killing a dragon is everything. But I can't tell you how much I wished that would change.
A Deadly Nadder head is sure to at least get us noticed and give us some much needed practice. Gronkles are tough. Taking down one of those is sure to make us popular. Hideous Zipplebacks? Two heads. Twice the status.
Then there's the Monstrous Nightmare. Only the best Vikings go for those. They have this nasty habit of lighting themselves on fire. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one flame up and a hammer smashing its head. Probably Stoick's.
But then, there's the dragon that no one has ever seen. A whistle sound pierced the night air and alerted everybody of its presence.
"Night Fury!" a voice rang.
"Get down!" another called.
Everyone hit the deck as the tower the Monstrous Nightmare was on explodes with blue flame. The man who fought the Nightmare leapt down from the now-ruined tower.
That's the one we were going to kill. Well… the one Hiccup was going to kill. I would not, by no means, kill it. I had a job with dragons. I wasn't going to kill them for being controlled by a horrible queen.
Gobber's movement caught my eye. He was switching out his hand again… this time for a battle-axe. "Sorry, kids, but they need me out there." He grinned. "Stay. Put. There." He then ran off, roaring a battle-cry.
It took one glance between me and Hiccup, and we were off. Hiccup was pushing the launcher and I was making sure the way is clear. We shut to the sounds off as people asked, "Where are you going?", "What are you doing?", and yelled, "Get back inside!"
We ignored them, heading for a clear hill with the best shot of the sky. As we passed the last house, I told Hiccup, "Hiccup, keep going. I have something I need to do."
"Uh, what?" he questioned. "I mean, we're going to-"
"Just go, Hiccup!" I ordered again before taking off in another direction. He gave an uncertain look at me but continued.
Once I was well out of any Viking's range of sight, I stopped and looked around before focusing. I felt my body change completely. I fell onto all fours as I grew in size, white wings sprouted from my back, my feet became like a dragons with four talons on each foot, and, well, my entire body changed. It pained every vein in my body to do this, but I was so used to it at this point I didn't feel a thing or make a sound.
I opened my eyes and looked to see my complete, new body covered in pure white scales. Yes, the dragon I was drawing in my picture was really me. There, fine, you know my secret. Do not tell anyone!
I quickly took to the air and went as high as possible to avoid any detection until needed. I watched as Hiccup reached the hill, quickly assembling the machine for firing. He got up to the scope while swiveling it around to see the Night Fury.
I heard Hiccup mutter, "C'mon, give me something to shoot at, give me something to shoot at." He then thought, 'We need this to change our lives. I hope Jayla will be here soon.'
That was when the whistling noise signaled that the Night Fury was about to fire once again. The tower was finally taken to the ground as the Night Fury's shot hit the base. Hiccup swung the launcher around, aimed, and fired.
'Please, let us hit it. I want to make our lives better, I just want to make a difference,' Hiccup silently begged the gods. I felt hard pain and fear pierce my heart as the dragon went down. It actually brought my mood down even more than before.
"YES! WE DID IT! Did anyone see that?" Hiccup cheers, a smiling lighting up his face. Me, well, I was worried. Hiccup heard the growl from behind him and knew he was in trouble. He looked behind him to see the Monstrous Nightmare staring right at him. "Except you." He then screamed, running away while the dragon went after him.
'Oh great…' I thought. 'This is going to get me killed. But I can't let Hiccup get killed when I could've saved him. Even if it dooms the Child of the Ancients.'
It wasn't firing at Hiccup as he ran. But as Hiccup got into the village, it began to spew its fire. Hiccup ran behind a pillar and it shot its fiery breath at it, barely avoiding him. When he stopped, he turned to look around the corner.
But it came around his other side and Dad began to run up readying to attack. But I zipped down, having already started, and grabbed the Monstrous Nightmare by the neck, flipping it onto its back a few yards away from Hiccup.
Vikings had gathered around initially but everyone froze when they saw me save Hiccup, even Dad. The Monstrous Nightmare got onto its legs again, shaking its bleeding neck. But even with it injured like that, it still tried to get to Hiccup.
"Back off!" I roared in his mind. I could tell all the other Vikings heard it too. I focused and sent out a sound that made the Monstrous Nightmare and every dragon in the area go into a half-trance. The Monstrous Nightmare began to back up slowly as I stepped towards it. "I know the queen is forcing you to attack. To all dragons that can hear me: leave this place and head to the nest a day's flight northeast, listen for the alpha's call, and take refuge in his nest. He will care for you instead of enslaving you. Do you understand me?"
Almost all the dragons' minds answered as one, "Yes, Child of the Ancients." Nadders broke free of their nets in a hurry and the free dragons immediately started flying away as fast as they could. I watched carefully to ensure they were heading in the right direction and was pleased to say they were.
Stoick immediately tried to pounce on me and hold me down, but I was quick and moved out of the way. I called to him, "Don't touch me, Stoick!"
Other Vikings began to try to get closer, to get ready to lock me down. I glared at them, readying to fly off. Stoick then asked, "How do you know my name, dragon? And how are you talking to us through our minds? Or even controlling your other dragons?"
"Every dragon knows of you, Stoick the Vast. The baby who killed a dragon by taking its head clean off its shoulders. You think every dragon is an incompetent beast, don't you?" I replied and he glared accusingly. "You know nothing about dragons. Every dragon is intelligent and do not wish for this war. Every dragon but the queen that the dragons that have been attacking you come from. She controls them and forces them to attack to bring food to her. I am the Child of the Ancients, Stoick. There is only one of me in every lifetime. It is true that not all dragons can talk to a human telepathically, though those are more rare than you would think. But the reason those that can't aren't able to is because their minds aren't strong enough to stretch to humans. My mind is strong enough. My mother's mind is strong enough. Every dragon is an intelligent creature. We don't wish to harm humans, Stoick. I am uncontrolled by the queen because I am the Child of the Ancients. I could actually take control of the queen if I wished."
"Then why don't you?" Stoick asked and I noticed the men closing in.
"Because an alpha protects their own," I replied and Stoick seemed shocked. He had always said something similar: "A chief protects his own." With him in shock, I smacked my wings down and took to the air.
"Get her back down here!" Stoick ordered snapping out of his shock.
I noticed some Vikings preparing to launch some bolas. I quickly called to Hiccup making sure Dad could hear as well, "Hiccup, cover your eyes. Right now!" He didn't hesitate and Dad covered his as I quickly opened my mouth and let out a light brighter than the sun. Some Vikings were quick and were able to be spared. But other Vikings cried out. I let down the light and shot away from the scene towards my nest that was hidden on the island.
I did hear the unlucky Vikings call, "I- I can't see!" or "I'm blind!" or "Why can't I see anymore?!"
Dad's voice then called, "I will find you! And I will kill you for this!"
"You can thank me for saving your son's life when you do," I responded amused and I could feel his anger boiling from his mind. I then cut him off.
Though, I did hear Hiccup's thought, 'Was that Jayla?'