So, it's been a while since I've updated this, and I actually did this on a whim. I'm not sure if anyone would still be interested, since I took so long to update. That's why I will point out that the chapter isn't very long for that reason.

I actually stopped writing for two reasons: (1) I really didn't have a solid idea of how to form the plot and (2) I'm trying to finish my Naruto fanfic. But, I've thought about this story and I actually have the means to write it! Hopefully I can update this at least once every month. Thanks for tuning in and enjoy.

Chapter 3: The Hero's Calling

"You weren't kidding. There is a missing page, or a few actually," Hiccup spoke, trailing his emerald eyes from the open book on his lap towards Minnow. "It's a little strange. People don't just rip out pages for no reason, unless they were trying to hide something."

"I know; I've been trying to wrap my head around it." Minnow replied, lowering her eyes in contemplation. She quietly bit her bottom lip, "And about the other things this book mentioned…do you think I could be…you know."

"Dragon Born?" her company responded, and the young Viking girl merely nodded. Hiccup cleared his throat, adjusting himself on the mossy boulder they sat on. "Well, it seems possible. Especially since you clearly showed me and Toothless that you speak another language besides Human."

"But then if it's possible, what does it all mean?" Minnow raised her head, attention fixed on Hiccup. "This whole Dragon Born, missing pages, forsaken title – everything."

Hiccup blew a puff of air from his lips, shrugging his shoulders lightly, "I'm not sure either. I've never heard anything about this legend until now."

"Maybe we could ask Stoick. Since he's the chief of the village, he might know something about it," said Minnow.

"My Dad? No, no, no." Hiccup laughed nervously, shaking his head vigorously at the notion. "Mention anything dragon related to him, and he'll start sharpening his war axe. If we're going to do this, we're going to have to investigate on our own."

"Oh, right. I should have guessed." Minnow pinched her lips together, resting her elbows on her knees.

For a moment, the young girl allowed her sights to be captured by the pristine pond. Unlike the ponds still surface, her thoughts were rippling, one over lapping the other. The idea of entertaining the pursuit of her curiosity seemed a little farfetched. The luck of actually finding the missing pages from the book was very slim. Her attention then wondered to the black-scaled dragon, tempting the waters edge with its lips.

"I'm gonna get you, fish. Prepare for your worst Nightfurry."

Minnow lifted her chin, able to faintly hear Toothless' private speech.

"Toothless," she whispered the name thoughtfully, causing Hiccup to raise a speculating eyebrow. The Viking girl snapped her head towards Hiccup, "Maybe Toothless will know something about it. Can you call him over?"

"Oh, sure. Hey bud," Hiccup cupped a hand next to his mouth and projected his voice. Toothless, upon hearing his name, perked his head up. "Mind coming over here for a bit?" It was not long till the dragon came bounding in the direction of the two adolescents. With a thud, it sat itself comfortably in front of them.

"Toothless, I have a question for you. Have you ever heard of the word Dragon Born before?" Minnow asked, gesturing the open book to the scaly creature.

Toothless narrowed his green slits, bringing his head closer to the pages and sniffing at the printed words.

With a huff he shook his head, "Nope, never heard of it."

"Okay, thank you Toothless." Minnow sighed, dismissing the dragon. The young girl then looked to her side, noticing Hiccup's interested expression. She sent him a disappointed frown, "Toothless said he'd never heard of the word before."

"Hm. That's probably bad if even a dragon doesn't know about it," said Hiccup. "Look's like we're going to have our work cut out for us."

Minnow's eyes widened at his words, "Us? Hiccup, are you saying you're still going to help me find those pages?"

"Well, sure, as long as you can help me keep Toothless a secret from the rest of the village…just until I figure something out," said Hiccup with an up-wards curl of his lips.

"Looks like we have a deal, Sir Haddock." With a warming smile, Minnow extended her hand for a promising shake. Hiccup revealed a gaped smile of his own, enlacing his hand with hers. "Now, we need to make an oath. I'll go first. I, Minnow Igvard, solemnly swear to uphold the secrets of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III in sworn secrecy. Or may every troll on Berk snatch each and every left sock that I own."

"And I, Hiccup Horendous Haddock III, swear to keep my word and help Minnow Igvard solve the mystery of the missing pages. Or Thor as my witness, may a horde of goblins raid my underwear drawer and spear holes through all of my pants."

With a light squeeze, the binding handshake was initiated. The two teens went their separate ways that afternoon, and promised to reunite the following day.

During the still night, hours after the sun had dipped below the blanket of ocean, Minnow tossed and turned in her bed sack. The lids of her eyes twitched and fingers opened and closed on their own. A peculiar sequence of images were stringing together in her mind, rendering her restless. She heard whispers from the darkest cracks in the walls, and goose bumps surfaced upon her cold skin. The voice was inaudible, and spoke in a tongue that seemed neither human nor dragon. It felt like a manifestation of both. Like candlelight, the voice waned, growing lighter then heavier in degree, until the language had molded into an understandable utterance.

"Ish rah…seek…a hem…me."

Involuntarily, her body ripped itself from her straw mattress. Her back lurched forward and she clutched the material of her comforters, seeking some way to control her unsteady breathing. Her widened eyes darted over to her brother sleeping in his cot next to her own. He began to stir and Minnow gasped, forcing herself back against her bed.

"Hey, Minnow. You alright?" The older boy sat up slowly, rubbing his heavy eyelids.

"I'm fine, Dovan." Minnow responded faintly, turning her back to him. She pressed her face deep into her pillow, taming any struggled breathing. "I just…thought about something that I forgot to do yesterday. Sorry for waking you."

"Uh-huh, no problem, " her brother yawned, flopping back down onto his bunk. "We've got about another hour before the sun comes up. So try not to freak out again till after we're awake."

"Mm," she croaked, forcing her eyes to close.

The last hour before sunrise brought no sleep to Minnow, and she remained silent throughout the morning. She did not dare bring up any strange conversation to Dovan, settling on the assumption that he would make light of her telling's. She was aware how bazar she would sound, and positive she would be assured by her brother that it all was just a figment of her imaginings. The sureness of her claims would not persuade him otherwise, and therefore, there was no point of mentioning it. For what could he do? She realized at that moment, there were certain circumstances where family would not help in the slightest. The only person she could confide in at the moment was Hiccup, and even she was timid to do so. Nevertheless, she believed he would take her a little bit more seriously than anyone else.

The day had passed into the late afternoon, and Minnow flipped the closed sign of the bakery shop. Dovan would not be finished with closing at the carpenters for another two hours, and Minnow took the opportunity to escape to see Hiccup. Arriving at the secluded hideout, she spotted the familiar Viking hoisting an unknown contraption onto Toothless's back. As she neared the pair, the black reptile greeted her first with a gummy smile, prancing away from his trainer and pushing his nose and mouth against her work apron.

"Oh, Toothless. I don't have any bread on me," she said reluctantly, stroking his scaly head with hesitation. Minnow knew she would eventually become more comfortable around the dragon, but years of conditioning would be difficult to break.

"Toothless, seriously bud? I just fed you two minutes ago," Hiccup sighed, taking a spot beside the dragon. He sent a weak grin towards Minnow, "Hey, Minnow. How's it going?"

"Hiccup, is everything okay? You look kind of worn out," she questioned the boy, concern reflecting in her light eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just stayed up pretty late making this baby," Hiccup answered, patting the leather piece of work mounted on Toothless. "It's a saddle I've made from scratch. For…well, you know."

"Hiccup," Minnow drew her voice low, almost deafly quiet. Her eyes trembled against the dragon, then fixed upon the lanky teenager in front of her. "You shouldn't ride him. It could be dangerous. What if someone sees you? Then how will explain anything to the whole village?"

"Relax, Minnow. I have it all under control," and as if by irony, the belt secured around the reptile's ribs broke off and flung a piece of metal at Hiccups arm. He winched and rubbed the irritated spot, sucking on his lips from the unexpected pain. He then straightened up, noticing Minnows eyebrows furrowing. He cleared the embarrassment from his throat, "That was just a minor technicality. I can fix that easily."

"Too bad you can't fix your brain that easily," Toothless snickered and huffed.

"See, that is exactly what I mean! You can't just get the idea that you can start riding a dragon, Hiccup. You don't know if-" Minnow swayed listlessly on her feet, inspiring a quick reaction from Hiccup to steady her. Even Toothless stepped forward to balance the young girl.

"W-Woah, Minnow. I think you need to calm down, you're stressing yourself out," Hiccup suggested, keeping a firm hold on her shoulder.

"Sorry…" she whispered with a tangible shame, placing a hand over her warmed forehead. "I didn't get a lot of sleep either. I had a nightmare, I think."

Hiccup raised a inquiring eyebrow "A nightmare? What was it about?"

Minnow felt sheepish to speak, but did so nonetheless and explained her experience during the previous night. Hiccup listened, nodding his head every so often in interest and thought. Reaching the last of her sentence she sighed, "…and that's why I was being rather negative just now. I'm sorry for that, your saddle is really amazing Hiccup. And I'm sure riding Toothless would be such an incredible experience. But I'm just…scared."

"Don't worry, I understand," came Hiccup's voice with a cultivated understanding. "It's my fault, mostly. I've put a lot of pressure on you to keep Toothless a secret. Maybe that's why you had that nightmare. And I know it's selfish of me to keep acting the way I am so if you don't want to be around me anymore, I won't blame you."

"No, Hiccup. That's not it," Minnow shook her head defiantly, regarding him with a pressing stare. "I…really do admire you. Doing what you're doing is, albeit a little insane, but it's beyond anything I've ever known. The nightmare wasn't your fault, it had to do with those missing pages. I know it does, and I want to find the answers."

"Then you're saying that the nightmare you had, it was a calling?" asked Hiccup, and Minnow bit her lip and nodded. "And I hope you don't mind me asking, but do you have any idea of where to start?"

"No," Minnow stated confidently, even though uncertainty dwelled inside her. "But something tells me I need to prepare before I even start searching. I need to become stronger, I need to learn how to fight."

"Sounds logical," stated Hiccup approvingly. "But who exactly is going to teach you?"

Minnow simply smiled, "You are."

To be continued...