Chapter 4

The Downed Dragon

POV: Hiccup Haddock

"I really did hit one," I told Gobber as we walked up the hill. "Sure, Hiccup," he replied, pretending to believe me. "He never listens," I continued.

"Well, it runs in the family."

"And when he does it's with this disappointed scowl," I said, reaching the door and turning to face Gobber, "like someone skimped on the meat in his sandwich. 'Excuse me, barmaid? I'm afraid you've brought me the wrong offspring! I ordered an extra large boy with beefy arms! Extra guts and glory on the side! This here, this is a talking fishbone!' I complained, doing my best impression of Stoick.

"You're thinking about this all wrong. It's not so much what you look like, it's what's inside that he can't stand," said Gobber, trying to cheer me up.

I stood there, slack-jawed momentarily at Gobber's cluelessness. "Thank you, for summing that up," I replied and began to turn towards the door.

"Look, the point is: Stop trying to be something you're not."

"I just want to be one of you guys," I said, feeling left out and discouraged, and closed the door behind me.

As soon as I did, however, I quietly opened the back door and headed out. 'It's time to find the Night Fury,' I thought determinedly.

POV: Gobber the Belch

I sat in the back of the great hall, sipping mead from my mug, as I dimly listened to Stoick's speech.

"Either we finish them, or they'll finish us! It's the only way we'll be rid of them! If we find the nest and destroy it, the dragons will leave. They'll find another home." He stabbed a map with a dagger, in the area that the dragons' nest should be. "One more search," continued Stoick, "Before the ice sets in."

"Those ships never come back." somebody objected.

"We're Vikings," Stoick pointed out, "It's an occupational hazard. Now who's with me?"

Among the mumbles of disagreement, someone said, "Today's not good for me. I've gotta do my axe returns."

"Fine. Whoever stays behind can look after Hiccup."

"To the ships!" shouted Phlegma.

"I'm with you, Stoick!" shouted Spitelout, Stoick's second-in-command.

"Yeah, that's more like it," Stoick muttered.

As everyone cleared out, Stoick marched over to me. "I'll pack my undies," I said, gulping down most of my mead. "No," ordered Stoick, "I need you to stay here and train some new recruits."

"Oh, perfect. And while I'm busy, Hiccup can cover the stall," I complained, "Molten steel, razor sharp blades, plenty of time to himself; what could possibly go wrong?"

Seeing my point, he sat down beside me. "What am I going to do with him, Gobber?" he asked.

"Put him in training with the others."

"No I'm serious!"

"So am I."

"He's be killed before you let the first dragon out of its cage!" he argued.

"Oh, ye don't know that."

"I do know that, actually."

"No, ye don't"

"No, actually, I do."

"No, ye don't!"

"Listen!" shot Stoick, "You know what he's like. From the time he could crawl he's been… different. He doesn't listen; he has the attention span of a sparrow. I take him fishing and he goes hunting for… for trolls!"

"Trolls exist!" I pointed out, "They steal your socks! But only the left ones. What's with tha'?

"When I was a boy, ("Oh, here we go," I grumbled) my father told me to hit my head against a rock, and I did. I thought it was crazy, but I didn't question it. And you know what happened?"

"You got a headache," I said sarcastically.

"That rock split in two. It taught me what a Viking could do, Gobber. He could crush mountains, level forests, tame seas! Even as a boy, I knew what I was, what I had to become. Hiccup is not that boy."

"You can't stop him, Stiock. You can only prepare him," I pointed out, "Look, I know it seems hopeless, but the truth is you won't always be around to protect him. He's going to get out again. He's probably out there right now." My words made Stoick realize something. Keeping Hiccup out of harm's way would eventually backfire. Hiccup would need to start dragon training if he was to survive.

POV: Hiccup Haddock

"Ugh, the gods hate me," I moaned, slamming my notebook shut after searching most of the island. It wasn't even midday yet, and the Night Fury was nowhere to be found. "Some people lose their knife, or their mug. No, not me. I manage to lose an entire dragon!" I smacked a branch; only to have it hit me back, putting a period to my sentence. As I opened my eyes, however, I found what I had been searching for.

There was a trench in the ground. Normally I would dismiss it a dried up gully, but this was mere like a tear. The soil in and around it had been churned up; only hours ago, by the look of it. As I followed the trench, I noticed a tree root had been scratched by something. As I reached the opposite end, the ground rose a few feet. I peered over, gasped in a mixture of surprise and fear, and ducked back down. As I peered over again I saw what I had shot down earlier. A jet black dragon, wrapped up in my bola. It appeared to be dead or unconscious.

As I slid down the embankment, I pulled out my dagger. It was almost a toothpick by normal standards, but it would have to do. The dragon didn't as much as twitch. "Oh wow, I- I did it. Yes! I did it! This fixes everything!" I said, relieved. "I have brought down this mighty beast!" I said, putting my boot on the creature's foreleg, only to have it push me off.

I looked over to the face of the now breathing dragon. It was staring at me with a curious eye. There was something familiar about the way it looked at me, I just couldn't place it. "I'm going to kill you, dragon," I said under my breath, "I'm gonna cut out your heart and bring it to my father. I am a Viking." Trying to instill confidence in myself I repeated the words, "I am a Viking!"I raised my dagger above my head, ready to strike. I opened one eye and looked at the dragon. 'Why do I know that gaze?'

I closed my eyes, steeled myself and… I couldn't do it. It looked so pitiful, wrapped up and immobile. "I did this," I said, turning to leave. Before I took a step, I turned back, looked at the dragon, and then at my dagger. 'I have to finish this.'

I began cutting the rope. Not a second after cutting the last thread, I found myself on my back, pinned by the dragon's large foot. I stared into the dragon's eyes, only this time they were filled with anger and hatred. The dragon took a deep intake of breath, and I braced for the inevitable fireball… which never came. The dragon creamed at me, turned around, and was gone. I picked up my knife and began to walk towards the village, only to faint dead on my second step.

Finally, we get some Toothless. Anyways, no notes today. Review at will.