Plot Summary- After the Green Death has been defeated the dragons begin to discover the full potential of their powers that had been kept in check by their prehistoric leader for centuries. Toothless, being one of the most powerful and experimental of the dragons pushes his limits and realizes that he can shape change at will. Meanwhile, toothless and Hiccup's relationship has become strained as Hiccup continues to treat Toothless like a pet. In an effort to grow closer and prove his friendship status to Hiccup, Toothless transforms into a human to communicate with Hiccup as an equal. However, neither of them are expecting the intensity of their reactions towards one another once they face of as human boys. HiccupxHumanToothless If you don't like Yaoi boyxboy pairings then be forewarned, that's very much what this story is.
Rating- T for now. It will most likely go up in the near future due to later chapters.
Disclaimer- I do not own HHTYD or any of it's characters or ideas. Also, yes, the title comes from the track name on the soundtrack from the scene where Hiccup and Toothless first meet.
AN: In most common legends Dragons have the ability to change their shape at will. For the sake of story integrity, we'll say that the ancient dragon was keeping the dragons under it's control from transforming as a rule. Once it died there's nothing to stop them from changing form anymore, except maybe forgetting how or misuse.
The fire was hot on hiccup's face as he pounded at the heated metal. The warmth was a welcome change from the damp coolness of the weather outside the blacksmith's workshop. He could feel the steal giving ever so slightly to the weight of his heavy smithing hammer. Slowly but surely the metal began to take shape under his skilled hands. The fire flared, the hammer smashed, the wind howled outside, the metal glowed. A high pitched mewling growl resounded outside the window and Hiccup almost dropped the hammer and the blazing hot steel into the dirt.
"AGHHH! Toothless! Don't do that!" He laughed, using tongs to drip the hot metal into the waiting bucket of ice water creating a little cloud of steam, and then placed it on the table to dry. He looked over to the window, surprised to find that the sun seemed to have set long ago. He'd been there since just after lunch. No wonder the dragon was annoyed, he must have missed dinner. Not that anyone in the rest of the village, wouldn't have fed Toothless, but the dragon seemed to have an almost possessive need to have Hiccup be the one to bring him food.
"You aren't fooling me. I know you've already snatched more than two dragon's worth of fish from some unsuspecting villagers haul." Hiccup pulled off his bulky metal working gloves and tossed them on the table next to his tools and the cooling project. He walked over to the window and scratched under toothless' jaw just in the right place making him purr like an over grown kitten.
"Okay, I'll call it done for tonight." He patted the top of the blue-black dragon's head and then turned to finish cleaning up the rest of the tools. He brought the rod he'd been working on back into his little work room annex and placed it with the rest of the spare tail fin parts then ran out of the shop and over to his eagerly awaiting Nightfury who was crouched in front of the door rolling his shoulders like an impatient house cat.
"Come on!" He called out to Toothless as he ran by.
A challenge! The Nightfury's blood boiled at the challenge. My Hiccup has been ignoring me all day to hit metal, and now he says I am keeping him waiting! I'll show him! The dragon's thick wiry muscles bunched and he leapt gracefully off the ground soaring over the teenage Viking's head to land gracefully on the ground a good ten feet ahead of him. He might not be able to fly, but he was still faster than a human boy. He bounded ahead glancing back to make sure Hiccup was following then rounded a corner far ahead and confident he would win the race.
Hiccup paused to watch the dragon's leap with the sort of casual appreciative awe that comes with familiarity. He slowed to a casual jog, knowing that Toothless would be back at his father's house long before he got there even if he decided to full out sprint the rest of the way.
Life after the battle with the Green Death had gone on with much of the casual tendencies as life before the whole let's find the dragon's nest fiasco. The people here don't really change much. They are born strong and grow up to be strong, and the addition of dragons to the village just makes them stronger, so really no surprises there that they'd adapt quickly. Hiccup's leg didn't hurt anymore, and after his adjustments to the prosthetic piece it no longer squeaked or gave him much trouble, except when it was about to rain, which was most of the time.
The hill leading up to his house loomed up in front of him as he ran, and he caught sight of Toothless pacing back and forth impatiently in front of the door. The dragon looked up as Hiccup came into view and bounded down the slick grassy slope, no longer willing to wait for his human to catch up. The boy laughed and caught onto a back spine leaping up onto his usual perch and the two of them quickly ascended the distance between them and the dinner waiting for them inside.
The large oak door boomed shut behind them as they entered the dim antechamber of the tall ceilinged house and ran into the kitchen to scavenge for what ever edible things might be around.
After they had fed themselves a decent meal of fish and bread it became apparent that neither boy nor dragon felt any inclination towards retiring for the night. Hiccup's father hadn't yet returned from whatever chiefly duty had called him away from the house and anyway Hiccup had been given much more freedom after his recent victory over the terrible dragon that no other viking had stood a chance against. After the food had been safely ingested into their ravenous teenage stomaches, the boy and dragon came to a unanimous decision that it was time to fly. Hiccup discarded his plate for cleaning later and ran after the scaly black flapping wings and tail to the doors and outside into the night.
Adrenaline pumped through their veins as they confronted the sky stretched before them, the stars spinning around in a never-ending abyss. Hiccup ran his hand over the Nightfury's side, feeling the dragon's hum of appreciation and tense muscles in anticipation of flight. Hiccup gave Toothless' muscled hide an affectionate pat then ran inside to grab his saddle and false tail fin. Toothless paced, full of impatient energy and he could barely stay still as he was strapped into the saddle and fin. His noises of happy anticipation echoed around the hilltop.
"All right boy! We're ready!" Hiccup laughed, grabbing hold of the saddle and vaulting himself in. Toothless howled in delight and sprang into movement even before Hiccup was fully ready in place. "Woah there!" Hiccup grabbed hold, shoving his false foot into the stirrup and clutching at the dragon's neck. He didn't mind so much though. The freedom of the flight was taking hold and he was forgetting all else except the sky around them and the creature, his friend, that aired them both.
"Hiccup, hey Hiccup!" The shout came from below, calling for attention in a commanding but friendly way. Hiccup looked down, snapped out of the adrenaline trance.
"Astrid!" He called out and waved. "Hey Toothless, let's go back and get Astrid." Eyes narrowed and hackles raised in aggravation, Toothless kept flying. He didn't want to stop for the girl. He wanted to fly, just him, the sky, and his Hiccup who made his flight possible, no one else.
"Toothless!" Hiccup complained, looking back as Astrid shrank into a small, dejected spot behind them in the distance. He sighed and turned back to face the dragon, mood ruined. He expected he'd get punched later for leaving her behind. They flew in silence for awhile, the initial glory having been stripped away leaving an uncomfortable tension in it's wake.
They landed in the familiar enclosed valley near the shore of the pond, neither of them in any mood for exploration. As soon as they touched the earth Hiccup jumped from the saddle and strode to face Toothless with an angry set to his usually less than threatening jaw.
"What is wrong with you? I thought you liked Astrid now?" He seemed exasperated. Toothless harrumphed and turned his back on the boy. It wasn't his fault. She had come along and ruined everything.
"Aw, come on Toothless, I know you just wanted to fly, but couldn't Astrid have come too?"
Toothless lowered his head to look at Hiccup, his eyes beseeching. You don't understand. His expression tried to say for him. I wish I could make you understand.