Next chapter! This time, the Deadly Nadder. Before starting, I'd like to give a special thank you to Enchantable, who has given me permission to use elements of her story in this one (I describe which specific elements at the end of the chapter). I'd highly recommend you read her stories, as they are already definitive of this young fanfic section! ;-)

Once again, I don't own the characters, human or dragon.

Deadly Nadder

Fast and agile, the Deadly Nadder hunts in packs. Its bright blue and yellow hide may have given it the reputation of being among the most visually stunning of dragons, but don't let its beauty fool you--it has its name for a reason. Its fire is the hottest of all the dragon species, able to melt steal into lava and turning a Viking to ash in a matter of seconds. It is also able to fire spikes from its tail, impaling whatever prey is unable to get away in time. Extremely dangerous; kill on sight.

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"Could you wrap it up already!? We've got to go; we've got way too much to do today for you to waste time grooming yourself!" The bright blue Nadder turned her head and appeared to scowl at the skinny blonde in front of her. Didn't the girl realize that its color was half of its defense? Much like the colorful-yet-deadly poisonous frogs of the rainforest, the Nadder's bright colors warned other dragons not to get too close, lest they earn themselves a face-full of deadly spikes. Without its dangerously blue hide, many more dragons would dare to steal its catch, or even try and bring it down.

Plus, the colors were just nice to look at in the water.

No, the Nadder had no intention of stopping until she was certain she was fully clean from head to toe. Astrid Hofferson stood nearby, watching her newly inherited dragon wash itself in the small pond with impatience etched across her face. Why couldn't she just save it for later, Astrid wondered? The Nadder looked sparkling clean as it was; from her viewpoint, Astrid could see not a speck of dust on its hide. It refused to quit, however, until it was certain it was absolutely clean.

'Hiccup is going to kill me', thought Astrid, though she knew he probably wouldn't even be mad about her being late. Still, they had a very important job to do--those eggs that survived the destruction of the Dragon's Nest were not going to fly themselves to Berk--and precious daylight was burning away as her beast continued to preen itself.

Astrid's thoughts turned to the boy in question, as she found they always did whenever she had a bit of down time to herself. She wondered what he was doing at that moment; probably shooting through the air upon Toothless, or perhaps making some new contraption with Gobber, or maybe even thinking...she blushed slightly...maybe even thinking about her at that very moment. Astrid shook her head; now wasn't the time for daydreaming about the Viking teen that had permeated her mind and heart....

"Aurgh!" She growled under her breath. The poor girl wouldn't admit it, but she was slowly-but-surely becoming quite smitten with the young man who only last week was absolutely the most useless excuse for a Viking ever born, yet now was the revered savior of their entire tribe. She hadn't quite figured out how deep her feelings for him went, but she took comfort in the fact that they had started to develop before he became the big hero, back when her admiration of him was simply due to his insistence of doing what he believed was right, even if that meant turning his back on the world and potentially losing everything he had ever known. To Astrid, Hiccup was a hero even back then.

She looked around at the scenery, determined not to focus at her splashing reptilian friend, and something caught her eye. She walked over to what was perhaps the greenest patch of grass around the pond; there, in the middle of the grass, was a single blooming flower. Astrid gazed upon it in wonder, its bright blue petals matching the girl's eyes almost perfectly. She swiftly plucked the flower from the ground and held it in front of her, staring in awe.

She was certain that no one knew, and she would never, ever admit it to anyone else, but the bluebell was Astrid's favorite flower. They were extraordinarily rare on Berk; the harsh winters and near-equally-harsh other seasons made certain that any plants not sturdy enough to handle them were in short supply. Grass was scarce enough this time of year, most of it having died until next season except around watering holes like the nearby pond. Flowers of any kind were even more uncommon, but bluebells especially. Only towards the end of the longest of springs would one hope to find a bunch blooming; Astrid herself had only seen 2 in her 16 year lifetime. To see one now, at the cusp of winter, had to be a sign, especially considering where her mind was just moments before....

The blonde teenager hadn't even noticed the large body that had settled next to her until its breath swayed the plant in her hand. Astrid turned and stared at the Nadder, who seemed mesmerized by the flower. Astrid turned back to the flower, then once again to the dragon. She moved her hand to the left, the dragon's head followed; she moved it to the right, the Nadder's head moved right. Hand up, head up; hand down, head down. Astrid couldn't believe it; she had never seen her dragon so engrossed in staring at anything except itself.

"You like the flower?" Astrid asked the Nadder. She simply continued to stare, hypnotized by the blue plant. Astrid brought it closer to the Nadder's nose, and allowed it to sniff. The dragon closed its eyes and purred as it breathed in deeply; Astrid spoke again, this time in a low whisper, lest anyone overhear what she was about to say.

"Don't tell anyone, but this is my favorite flower in the entire world. It's called a bluebell." The Deadly Nadder opened her eyes and looked at Astrid, nuzzling up to her as they shared what was now the favorite plant of both girls.

"Bluebell...you like that name?" The dragon purred in response. "All right...it's yours." Astrid said with a smile. The blue reptile opened its wings and let out an ecstatic roar. Astrid couldn't help but beam brightly; she and her dragon had had their first real bonding moment, though hopefully it wouldn't be the last. They basked in the glory of the moment for a bit longer, bluebell in hand, before Astrid realized they had business to attend to. She gently scratched Bluebell the Deadly Nadder on her neck before speaking once again.

"All right, Bluebell, ready to go?" She asked the Nadder. Bluebell got down low enough to allow Astrid to attach her (sparkling clean) saddle, and then mount her. Tucking the flower safely into her headband, she grabbed the reigns and gave the signal. Bluebell spread her wings, and with a majestic swoop, the pair took off into the bright blue sky, the dragon's skin blending in perfectly with the sky above it and the ocean beneath.

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Down below, near the pond, the seeds of the plucked bluebell begin to find root in the soft soil, next to the older plants. More Bluebells have already begun to sprout, their seeds having been planted months earlier. Apparently, someone knows their daughter much better than their daughter thinks, and while they've thought of passing on the knowledge to others, they figured that it might be best if "others" found out for themselves....

That it! The part about the bluebell flower being Astrid's favorite, as well as the inspiration for her dragon's name, is credited fully to Enchantable and her story "Of Hills and Bluebells" (as mentioned in the first A.N.). I just made up the story of how Bluebell the dragon got her name; it's not in any way a part of Enchantable's official fanon, so if she ever writes a backstory about it, it will probably contrast with this one.

And I really have no knowledge of the bluebell's growth pattern, so don't try and negate any of that; I'm not a botanist and I don't claim to be one.

Next up is the Terrible Terror. Hope you guys enjoy this; reviews of any kind are welcome! :-)