Chapter Seven: Dragons, Cats, and Nights
Much love for the fish custard in the last chapter; and I have to admit as a Doctor Who fan myself, it was fun to write.
Also, if you still can't get enough of the Dragonstone stories, Rouge Deity Master is writing his own story. There are some similarities, but it is clear that he plans on making it a story of his own, and I recommend that you check it out.
Astrid settled into the quarters that Queen Celeste assigned her, Hiccup, and Anora. Their dragons would join them eventually, but Stormfly was hunting and exploring still, Toothless was with Hiccup, and Sapphire was waiting for them to return before entering the room.
It didn't keep Midnightfire from entering the room alongside Anora. They began to wrestle with each other as Astrid sat down on the bed to watch them, but she didn't notice what was on the bed. She sat down and heard a shriek out of something small, but with quite the set of lungs. Everyone paused for a moment, as they turned around to see where and what the noise came from. It was a small creature covered in long black fur, with erect ears, long tail, claws, pointed teeth, and it had beautiful green eyes.
"Momma, what is that?" Anora asked.
"I'm not too sure myself, I've never seen one of these creatures before." Astrid replied. Anora got up from the floor and took a closer look at the creature.
"It reminds me of Uncle Toothless!" Anora declared.
"My father does not look like that fuzzy thing!" Midnightfire snapped. The two of them broke out in another fight and Astrid reached out to touch the critter on the bed. It seemed to enjoy being scratched right at the base of the tail. Astrid bore down on it more, and the critter made a sound like: 'MEROW'.
It certainly is quite the change from petting a dragon. Astrid thought as the creature started purring.
"OAF!" Anora sounded, and Astrid noticed that Midnightfire had pinned the girl to the ground and was holding her down by lying on top of the girl. Astrid didn't mind them playing rough like that as she had often seen Hiccup play like that with Toothless.
"I could easily pin you if I was a Stormcutter!" Anora snapped.
"Your father has told you to stay human. He might make an exception once the sun goes down though." Astrid stated.
"No fair." Anora said when Midnightfire let her up.
"We could explore this place with my Momma." Midnightfire suggested.
"Can we do that, Momma? It will be more fun than wrestling." Anora asked.
"Can you wait a few minutes? I want to meet Hiccup here before we do anything else, and he should be here pretty soon." Astrid replied.
"Will you tell us one of your stories, Aunt Astrid? Anora's not much of a good sport when wrestling as a human." Midnightfire said. Astrid told them a great number of stories before, and so had Hiccup; but this time, the story was about how she and Snotlout were forced to trade dragons and learn how to work together. The story took about a half hour to tell, counting the time it took to answer Anora's questions, before they heard the knock on the door followed by the voices of Sapphire and Toothless. Astrid didn't bother getting up or answering the knock, she just allowed Hiccup to step inside. To her surprise, Claudette and Fishlegs followed in after him and the Night Furies.
"So, care to tell me what's been going on? You were gone longer than I expected… and Anora, if you must hug your father's leg, hug the other one or you might accidentally pull his prosthetic off." Astrid said.
"It appears that my kingdom is being terrorized by monsters we've dismissed as legends." Claudette replied as Anora switched legs and Midnightfire perched on her father's back.
"What sort of monsters are we talking about?" Astrid asked.
"The legends say that a person with even the purest heart, can become a beast after sunset." Fishlegs replied. At hearing this, Astrid cast a worried look to Hiccup, he was scratching furiously at his scales through his clothes at the moment.
"I know, Astrid, it's not going to look good for me if someone in this Kingdom sees me going through one of my changes; and it certainly doesn't help that tonight is going to be one of my Dragon Nights." Hiccup told her.
"Normally, Astrid, the creatures of these legends assume a more lupine form… However there are few that speak of the fact that these creatures could be anything from some form of top predator, to something as low as a worm. Still, that does mean that the possibility of someone assuming a draconic form isn't out of the question; but according to legend, these monsters lose their humanity, and we all know that Hiccup doesn't lose his humanity and becomes a mindless monster like these creatures at night." Claudette spoke.
"Also, I still have dibs on tonight's Dragon Night." Fishlegs stated with a hint of worry in his voice.
"If you want to back out of it, Fishlegs, I will understand." Hiccup replied.
"No, I don't want to back out. I've been waiting for this night, and I don't want to pass it up… even if my inner dragon is something like a Terrible Terror, or a pink and yellow Deadly Nadder." He said with courage and affirmation.
"Fishlegs, have a little faith in yourself, you are going to be more than a Terrible Terror, and you are not nearly vain enough to be a Deadly Nadder. Now, if you're sure of this, then we'll tell King Hubert that we'll go out tonight and scout the forest to see if we can prevent the creature from attacking again tonight." Hiccup said.
"I'll be there." Fishlegs told him.
"I'm going too. I'm not leaving my husband out there when there could be a rampaging monster out there." Claudette put in.
"Alright, but in that case, don't forget your bow and your Skrills." Hiccup replied. He looked over the bed, and noticed the fuzzy creature that Astrid was petting. Toothless got curious and sniffed it, but the creature arched its back, swiped, and hissed at him.
"Wow, what is that?" Hiccup asked noticing that Toothless backed away from it.
"You've never seen a cat before?" Claudette asked. She picked the critter up and held it in front of Hiccup.
"It looks a little like Toothless." Fishlegs stated, earning a snarl from the Night Fury.
Anora and Midnightfire were given just enough time to explore the palace before dinner, and by then, the irritation of Hiccup's scales was almost too unbearable to keep concealed. The minute dinner was over he announced that he, Fishlegs, Claudette, and their dragons would go out to scout the forest. The King, Queen, and Prince were the only ones who didn't have the faintest idea as to what was really going on.
By the time they reached the forest, the sun had as little as a few minutes before it fully set. Hiccup's vision was beginning to blur in and out of focus. Claudette took his hand and gave it to Fishlegs; at his touch Hiccup discharged the power into him.
That was a close call for me. Hiccup thought as he shielded his eyes from the bright light that had been created.
"Hiccup, what did you turn my husband into?" Claudette asked, pointing to the sky. He looked up…
"Wow, I didn't quite expect that." He stated. He looked to the sky with a hand shielding his eyes. It was needed because…
Fishlegs was a glowing Flightmare.
"What is that dragon?" Claudette demanded.
"He's a Flightmare. They are a Strike class dragon, like Skrills and Night Furies, and they can spray you with a paralyzing mist. The paralysis doesn't last very long, but it is long enough for to make an attack." Hiccup replied. A moment later, Fishlegs landed before them, earning a smile from Hiccup.
"I honestly thought that I was a Gronkle or a Hotburple." He admitted.
"You were meant to fly faster than those dragons." Hiccup replied. Meatlug grunted at him before checking Fishlegs out.
"It also beats being a pink and yellow Deadly Nadder." Claudette stated. Hiccup and the dragons nodded.
"I agree, but I'm worried about the light. We're supposed to be looking for a monster, and with this glow, the monster is more likely to find us before we find it." Hiccup replied.
"Then let it come. I could paralyze it." Fishlegs told him. Hiccup translated for Claudette and they set out to find a monster. For once, Whoshadow's hatchlings were behaving themselves. They barely chattered and they were staying close to their mother.
"You three are behaving well tonight. Thank you." Whoshadow told them.
They continued through the forest for a couple hours, looking for anything out of the ordinary, but all they got was more and more forest.
"Maybe we should start heading back to the palace." Claudette suggested. She spoke too soon. A bush began to rustle from behind them, and out stepped a monster! It was hideous and magnificent at the same time. It was a perfect blend of human and wolf coming together into one horrifying creature. The repulsive thing approached them snarling, with drool hanging from its jowls.
"Fishlegs, now's your moment!" Hiccup exclaimed. Without a moment to lose, Fishlegs paralyzed the beast.
"We shouldn't kill it though, there is a human within that beast." Claudette spoke.
After some careful planning, and another blast of mist, they took the werewolf to a storeroom in a tower of the palace and locked the creature in there for the night. Leaving them free of responsibilities for the remainder of the night.
"It turns out that Fishlegs's inner dragon is a Flightmare." Hiccup told his friends. They looked over to Fishlegs in awe.
"Oh, c'mon, how can he be a Flightmare?" Snotlout asked in fuming jealousy.
"For one thing, Snotlout, the type of dragon you become is the one that suits your personality the most. Just because you're a Deadly Nadder now, doesn't mean that you'll always be one. If you change, so will the dragon." Hiccup replied.
"We also caught a werewolf last night… and we should probably check on it right now." Claudette put in. The gang saddled up their dragons and flew to the tower they stored the Werewolf in. They opened the door, and found a man inside it.
"Sir Dillard, is that you?" Claudette asked. The man was nude and in tears, but he nodded. Claudette explained to them that during the day, Sir Dillard was a peaceful man who wouldn't hurt anyone, not even with words.
"Sir Dillard, I am Chief Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III of Berk. I would like to know how you got your… condition."
Sir Dillard was shivering in the corner of the storeroom, and could barely speak, his only answer was this: "The Vessel of Fear."
Here's where we end. Ok, so how did I come up with a Flightmare for Fishlegs? I wanted something that would fit these characters, but wasn't obvious (Stormcutter Astrid for example) so I ignored the Boulder class dragons. The Flightmare is smart, as it is a Strike class dragon, and you have to admit that it has a sort of 'fishy' appearance.
Also, Best OC Maker, you sure called the werewolf.