Thanks to P-Artsypants for being my beta reader and for her support in writing this story and a few scenes from this chapter. Also thank you guys for the reviews and for your suggestions so far.
Astrid slowly woke up. She had slept near Hiccup, she remembered them talking most of the night and changing small kisses from time to time. She was happy with their new relation. She was overjoyed by being his girlfriend. They were officially together only for a day, but that didn't changed all the feelings she built up in time. She noticed that Hiccup wasn't near her anymore. He woke up before her and left the cave. Again. She really wished that he would wake her up when he did, that way they could spend more time together. Even before their relation started, she liked to spend time with him. He had proven himself to be a growing challenge to her training. He always used to talk in terms that she didn't fully understood, but she always learned new things from him. He was an excellent strategist, even if he didn't know it, he actually helped her improve her tactics in combat, but she wasn't going to tell him that. She didn't want him to become a selfish, overconfident boy like Snotlout.
"Hiccup?" She said slowly getting in sitting position. She looked around in the cave, but didn't see him. Only Toothless in here, and he was near the fire, sleeping. "Good morning Toothless!" Astrid said, trying to wake the dragon. She knew that he wasn't a morning dragon and that he most probably would get annoyed at her, but she needed to find Hiccup. Toothless slowly opened one eye and looked at the girl with a sleepy look.
'Please don't tell me you want to go to Hiccup...' Toothless said with a sleepy tone.
"Can you please help me find Hiccup?" Astrid said with a small smile looking at Toothless.
'Go find him yourself!' Toothless said, turning his head to away from her, as a sign that he wanted to be left alone.
"Please don't be like that..." Astrid said with a sad voice.
'You can handle yourself, woman! Let me sleep!' Toothless shot back getting annoyed.
"Pretty please? I can't walk on my own..." Astrid said noticing that the dragon wasn't turning.
'Why do you like to torture me?' Toothless responded raising his head and looking at the girl with an annoyed expression.
"I just really like Hiccup and I want to spend time with him and I'm sorry that he doesn't wake me up when he does..." Astrid said trying to reason with the dragon. She was getting excited to see Hiccup again, she really wanted to see how he would react to their new relationship. Before he used to be so clumsy and distracted, now she wanted to see how he would react with a boosted confidence. From how much she knew him, probably he would still be the same. And that was more than fine with her. Toothless slowly raised up and started to stretch, to get the sleep out of his body. He then approached the girl with an annoyed expression.
'What are you waiting for?' He said lying near the girl so that she can get on him.
"Thank you, Toothless. I appreciate this." She said smiling while trying to get on the dragon. It took her a few minutes with a lot of breaks because of the pain. It was hard to get up and on his back while trying to use only one leg and to take care of the other at the same time.
The dragon slowly walked out of the cave, trying not to move to fast to accidentally hurt the girl. She was annoying at times, but he liked her. Toothless considered her as part of the family now. He was going to protect her if she needed it, but Hiccup was still his number one priority. They slowly walked to the beach, where Hiccup said he would go training. Now that he thinks about it, Hiccup actually told him to take care of Astrid and bring her to the beach once she woke up. Once they were close enough, Astrid noticed Hiccup panting while holding his two swords. She had no idea how was he training. Just before she could say 'hello', a number of spikes flew at Hiccup. She almost yelled at the sight. But the boy managed to parry and dodge all of the spikes. She then noticed Stormfly launching the spikes at him.
"What in Hel's name are you two doing?" She yelled at them.
"Hey, good morning." Hiccup said getting in a more relaxed position and starting to approach her.
"Don't you 'good morning' me! Why is Stormfly shooting spikes at you?" Astrid asked, still yelling at him.
"She helps me train." Hiccup responded, trying to help Astrid dismount Toothless.
"By shooting fucking spikes at you? What in Thor's name is wrong with you? Did I hit you too hard in the head or did you just lost your mind?" She was still yelling at him, but she accepted his help. They slowly walked to a tree and Astrid sat down at its base.
"Maybe it's by the fact that you kissed me." Hiccup said trying to make a joke.
"That's not funny! She could accidentally injure you. And by the wound on your hand I figure she already did. Why are you so damned reckless?" She said pointing to his right arm. He was an intelligent viking, which is a very rare combination. But if by kissing him a few times he lost his mind, she was going to stop. Even if that meant that they wouldn't be together, he would at least be uninjured and alive.
"Actually," Hiccup said while sitting near her "you caused this wound." he finished by pointing out at his right arm.
"Me?!"
"When we were on Berk, and you were hit by that cursed arrow, I had to break the arrowhead and the tail." Hiccup began to explain
"Yes. I remember."
"Well, I gave you a small branch to bit on it. And you broke it. When you broke it, I noticed that you were going to yell, so I quickly gave you my arm to bite." He said slowly, rubbing the injured area on his arm.
"Seriously?" Astrid asked, not fully believing his story.
"Well, yes." Hiccup rubbed the back of his neck. This wasn't the reaction he was expecting. She didn't believe his story, again.
"Hiccup, I am sorry, but you will have to come with a better excuse than that. I mean, really. I know you hate pain and injuries, and I am pretty sure that you wouldn't injure yourself by doing something that stupid." Astrid said trying to explain this in the best way so that he wouldn't feel insulted by her doubt.
"I wanted to give you something to distract you from the pain. And my arm has the closest thing to a stick that you could bite. And maybe by this actions we are both alive." Hiccup said, trying not to feel insulted by her disbelief.
"I kind of understand your point." he slowly said, getting closer to him. "But I doubt that you would do something so drastic."
"I would gladly do it again if you wouldn't had to go through all that pain." Hiccup placed a small kiss on her lips. She slowly smiled at his action.
"I don't want to believe that I did that to you." Astrid said slowly, resting her head on his shoulder.
"If you look carefully, you can see that this is actually a bite mark." Hiccup said, showing Astrid his injury.
"It's not big enough to be Stormfly." Astrid pointed out.
"Exactly."
"And it doesn't look like a Terrible Terror bite. Did I really did that to you?" Astrid asked surprised, and also a little sad.
"Yup. And let me tell you this, you really have a strong bite."
"I'm sorry..." Astrid apologized, hugging his arm.
"Hey, I was teasing you. It's alright, it doesn't hurt anymore and we are both here now. So it was worth it."
She punched him. "That's for teasing me."
"Am I not allowed to tease my..."
Astrid interrupted him with a kiss. "And that's for saving my life."
"I...I can live like that." Hiccup said, making Astrid laugh. "And also, I don't know if it's correct to say that I saved your life when I was the one that put it in danger in the first place. Your injury is my fault." Hiccup continued slowly hugging her. In the last month they really got to understand each other's thinking and logic and he was really happy that they got that close. He still couldn't fully believe that Astrid was finally his girlfriend.
"Please don't blame yourself. We didn't knew that there was a wedding or a holiday. And it was all Snotlout's fault. I am happy that you defeated him." Astrid said, trying to comfort Hiccup.
"First. I should have noticed that no one was on the street and make the connection, I was an idiot. And second. Snotlout was defeating me, I only managed to win because of Ild. He saved my life. I'm still a screw-up. I managed to get you hurt and almost killed." Hiccup said looking sad at the sky. Their trip to Berk only reminded him that he was still a problem. That he couldn't protect the ones he loved and that he would always need someone's help to do something. Maybe he didn't evolve so much as he initially though.
"NO! You are not a screw-up!" Astrid yelled at him. "And stop saying that you are! You are maybe one of the greatest men born in the Barbaric Archipelago. You were the first one to understand that dragons aren't a threat. You managed to befriend four dragons. You managed to convince me that dragons are friendly. For Thor's sake. You managed to make me open up to you. You are the first person that I really liked and maybe my only real friend I ever had. So please. PLEASE! Stop being so harsh on yourself." Her voice was harsh and sad. She hated to see him like this. He was not a screw-up. He saved her life. He had the guts to leave Berk and start a new life, even if he was the son of the chief. He was a very powerful person. He just needed to realize that.
"You really mean it?" He said looking at her.
"Of course I..." Astrid began to say, but she was quickly interrupted by Hiccup's kiss. It was a sweet, tender kiss. He got Astrid a little by surprise, but she quickly joined him. The kiss quickly turned heated as Hiccup pulled her to sit in his lap. She smiled into his lips and buried her fingers in his hair. Their noses knocked against each other as their limbs curled and tightened around each other like snakes.
Toothless and Stormfly were sitting near the trees looking bored at them.
'I don't understand human mating rituals.' Stormfly said looking confused at the young couple.
'Well...' Toothless began 'The male is trying to impress the female by different actions. Most of the time they try to impress the female by bringing trophies to prove his power. But I also saw males trying to try and manipulate the females with sweet words and stuff like poetry.'
'But how did Hiccup manage to impress Astrid? He doesn't have any trophies and I am pretty sure that she is not easily impressed by sweet words.' Stormfly said still confused.
'Well, Hiccup was the first one to befriend us. So he has a lot more power of will than the usual viking. And you also said that he managed to defeat the annoying kid back on Berk.' Toothless pointed out.
'They are just so easily distracted. We were training a few minutes before you two arrived. I just hope they would finally mate and get over with.' Stormfly said slightly annoyed at their humans attention spawn.
'I don't think they will ever get over it. Most humans pick their mate and live with it until they die. Officially at least. A lot of them also try to steal other humans mate and that almost always leads to problems.' Toothless said trying to explain the weird human mating ritual.
'I hope that they won't betray each other and cause any conflict.' Stormfly said before approaching them.
The young couple didn't even noticed the Nadder slowly approaching them, until she nudged them. Then they quickly opened their eyes and awkwardly separated.
"Uhm...Thanks for...Reassuring me that I am not a screw-up." Hiccup said awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.
"Yeah. No problem." Astrid said with a sweet smile, slightly blushing.
"That reminds me. Can I borrow Stormfly for the rest of the day?" Hiccup asked slowly recovering from their moment.
"Why?" Astrid asked. She hoped that they wouldn't train like that again. She couldn't bear to see Hiccup hurt by Stormfly. She loved them both. She didn't wanted to be mad at any of them.
"I want to go to a nearby village and give them a few furs so I can use their forge. I want to make a new rod for Toothless's flying gear." Hiccup explained.
"Of course then. Just be careful." Astrid said while placing a small kiss on his cheek.
"I could really get used to this." Hiccup said, slowly touching his cheek where Astrid just kissed him.
"Don't get so overconfident. I don't want you to become like Snotlout." She said looking at the boy slowly getting up.
"I could never become something like that asshole." Hiccup said slightly insulted by that comparison. "I will go to the cave to get a few hides. I will be right back." Hiccup said before starting to jog to the cave to gather the supplies for his trip. He took eight boar pelts and a flask that he put in his bag, he also grabbed one of the rods he brought from Berk, so that they could let him work in their forge with his own materials. He just needed a few tools from a forge and a constant burning furnace. He then slowly carried the pelts to Stormfly. She was on the beach with Astrid and Toothless.
"I hope you will take your swords with you." Astrid said looking at Hiccup trying to tie the hides with some leather stripes, so that the materials wouldn't be so difficult to transport.
"Don't you worry about me." Hiccup said, slightly happy about Astrid's concern.
"You are going on your own to an unknown village with eight boar pelts, hoping to let you work in their forge. How can I not be concerned?" Astrid quickly shot back.
"It's a small village. There are like twenty people in it. At first, I was surprised that they even had a forge. So I am not too worried about it. I will leave Stormfly in the forest, so that if something happens, she could come and help me." Hiccup explained his plan.
"I just hope you will be alright." Astrid said stretching her arms, trying to suggest him to come and hug her. After a few seconds of confusion, he took the hint and hugged his girlfriend. He really liked the sound of that. Astrid Hofferson was his girlfriend. And it only took him three months after being marked for high treason. If he knew that was all it took he would have done it a long time ago.
Hiccup then mounted Stormfly after placing the pelts on her back. He was holding the pelts with his right hand while he was trying to steer Stormfly with his left one. When they took off, he almost dropped the pelts, but he quickly managed to recover and have a strong grip on ones of Stormfly's spikes. They were flying for about thirty minutes. The island he was going at wasn't even that far. He could have got there in ten minutes with Toothless, but his flying gear was almost destroyed. That was the reason he was going at this island.
They landed on the opposite side of the village. He wanted to walk to the village with Stormfly a little behind him, so that the villagers wouldn't notice the dragon, but the Nadder could intervene if something bad was going to happen. In almost ten minutes he reached the village, he made a sign to Stormfly to wait for him here. Then he slowly entered the settlement.
There was nobody outside. He slowly started to go to the building that looked like a forge while looking around for the villagers. He was in the middle of what looked like the main road.
"Is somebody here?" Hiccup yelled looking around. He remembered seeing vikings in this village the last time he was here. The place didn't looked like it had been attacked by dragons, so there was no apparent reason for the lack of people in the small settlement.
"I am Audun. I am the chief of this village. What business do you have here?" A tall and bearded man said while existing a small house and approaching him. He looked old. He was as big as Stoick, but he was a pale blond. He had some scars on his arms, but he didn't looked like he liked to fight. He looked calm and peaceful, but also prudent and protective.
"I want to trade a few boar furs for the possibility of using your forge. I have all the supplies I need, but I lack the tools that can only be found in a forge. I was a blacksmith apprentice, so I know what I have to do. It will take an hour at most and then I will leave." Hiccup said bringing the furs a little closer to the chief, but not close enough for him to consider him a threat.
"What do you want to make in our forge, young one?" The chief asked, slowly approaching the furs to examine them.
"My business is mine and mine alone." Hiccup said, trying to look like he knew what he was doing. This was actually the first time he spoke alone with the chief of another tribe. He needed to be charismatic and trustworthy.
"I hope that you will pardon me, but you are armed. And we have no certainty that you won't try to steal from us or try to hurt us." Audun said trying to read the boy. "You look like a skilled fighter. You carry two swords. Not many persons know how to fight with two swords."
"I'm...Not such a skilled fighter...I just got used of using two swords to fight and I prefer this style of combat over others." Hiccup said, hoping that he doesn't look like a threat or something. For Thor's sake, how could they see him as a threat? He was a teen that came alone in their village with only two blades.
"How do we know that you are not trying to lure us in a trap?" Audun said with an untrusting expression, as if he read Hiccup's mind. The teen just looked at him dumbfounded.
"I...Just...Uhmm...I have no idea how to convince you. I came here noticing that you have a forge and I am in need of one. So I tried to trade the few furs I managed to get on my journey for the possibility of using your forge. I know it sound kind of deceitful, but I promise you, I am an honest man." Hiccup said slowly rising both hands in a sign of mercy. The chief was slowly reading the boy. He was looking at him, weighing the decisions he was going to make.
"You can use our forge. But, I will personally watch over you. And, you will surrender your swords now, and I will personally return them to you when you finish. Deal?" Audun asked extending his right arm to Hiccup, as a sign of sealing their deal. Hiccup slowly extended his right arm, shaking hands with the chief. He then slowly started to untie his scabbards and giving them to the chief.
"Shall we go to the forge then?" Hiccup asked him while slowly starting to walk to the building that looked like a forge. Audun picked up the furs and started to follow Hiccup to the forge. He was a honest man. But he was going to kill the boy if he tried anything stupid.
When they reached the forge, he stood in the door while Hiccup entered and started to look around to find what he need for making the rod for Toothless.
"You still hadn't told me what you want to make." Audun said, letting Hiccup now that he still wasn't fully trusting him.
"Let's just say I need to make something to help a friend." Hiccup said while getting the rod out of his bag and starting to ignite the furnace. He got his journal from his bag with all the measurements and indications he wrote when he made the first rod. After the forge was finally heated, he started to melt the rod and to mold it to the right dimensions. He started to hammer the hot steel, trying to follow the indications in his journal. In less than half a hour he finished the rod for Toothless's flying gear. He then put it in cold water to harden the steel. After he finished, he stood and admired his work. He would finally fly with Toothless again. He missed to fly with his Night Fury and he was sure that the dragon wasn't so happy about it either. He still had to remake his tail fin, but that was something he could do from home. He then took the flask from his bag and slowly drank some water from it.
"That is all I needed. Thank you." Hiccup said turning to face the chief.
"How did you get here?" Audun quickly answered him. This took Hiccup by surprise. He forgot to create a plausible excuse for his arrival here.
Shit.
"I got here with my boat. On the other side of the island. I explored it and I found your village. I noticed you had a forge so I thought about a trade." Hiccup quickly said. Trying not to panic. He was now unarmed, facing a viking three times bigger than him, and with at least another ten warriors at his disposal. He needed to buy his story. He really hoped that he will.
"Then you won't have a problem if I will escort you to your boat. Those forests are full of dangerous animals." Audun slowly said, trying to read Hiccup's reaction.
"I...I think I will...go to my boat by myself. But thank you for your intentions." Hiccup stuttered trying to get out of the forge with his rod and run in the forest to Stormfly.
"But I insist. We wouldn't want your 'friend' to not receive what you made." He said stopping the boy. Hiccup slowly turned to face him. At first Audun looked so nice and friendly, now he looked intimidating. How did he changed like that? He did nothing wrong. He traded boar hides to work at their forge. What the heck did he wanted more from him?
"Can you please let me go?" Hiccup said starting to tremble at the sight of the chief. Audun slowly placed his right arm on Hiccup's shoulder. The boy was starting to turn pale. This is how he would die. Why was he so foolish to surrender his swords so easily? He could yell for Stormfly, but the viking seemed experienced enough in fighting with dragons, so a Nadder wouldn't be a problem.
"Why are you afraid?" the chief asked. He was trying to find out the real reason why Hiccup came here. He was torturing the boy psychologically. Audun didn't really enjoy looking at him panic like this, but he needed to protect his people.
"I...I am not...I ju...just wanted to make a fair trade and then leave. Please." Hiccup stuttered. He still tried to calm himself, but he wasn't succeeding. Think about nice stuff! Stuff that doesn't want to kill you! Think Hiccup! Think! He was yelling at himself. He didn't want to look weak now. Maybe if he somehow manages to hold his ground the chief would leave him. Maybe.
"What are you hiding?!" Audun yelled at him. This made Hiccup flinch. Shit. Just, shit. Where was Astrid when he needed her? She would have took care of this. She wasn't as easily intimidated like he was. She was stronger than he was. If she was here, this conversation would have never happened. She would've protected him.
"What the heck is wrong with you?!" Hiccup yelled back at him. He somehow managed to find the strength he lacked a few minutes before. "When we made the deal you agreed that it was okay if I didn't state my business with the tool I made. And now you are trying to extract information from me. That was not our deal!" Hiccup finished. Where did he found the guts to say that to a man that could break him in two with only one hand? Audun face started to get calm again.
"You are right. I was afraid for my people. I am sure you understand. After all, you are also a chief." Audun slowly said while giving Hiccup back his swords.
"I...I am not a chief." Hiccup said accepting his weapons and slowly attaching the scabbards to his belt.
"You are the chief of something. No one manages to find that strength if they are not born to lead." Audun said before patting Hiccup on his back. "Now go back to your boat. And don't hesitate to come and trade with us again. We are a small village, but we are friendly to honest persons." Hiccup slowly smiled at Audun's declaration. Before he could say something, a villager yelled. "DRAGON ATTACK!" Hiccup quickly turned around and noticed two Gronckles.
Oh no.
"Men, grab your weapons." Audun yelled trying to organize his warriors to defeat the two dragons.
"I can help." Hiccup quickly said, running and trying to distract a Gronckle. The dragon started to charge at Hiccup, when the boy slowly drew his swords and dropped them on the ground, the Gronckle slowed down until it was a few feet away from the boy. He noticed that this dragon was slightly red, while the other one was a little yellower.
"It's okay. I am not going to hurt you." Hiccup said slowly approaching the confused dragon. No one ever tried to not kill them. Why was this boy different?
'He is not going to hurt you. Trust him.' Stormfly quickly jumped from the forest in the village when she noticed the Gronckles charging. The other Gronckle slowly stopped and approached Hiccup.
"Don't attack them!" Hiccup yelled at Audun and his warriors. The chief slowly made a sign and his vikings started to back away and get in a more relaxed stance. "Stormfly, can you help me talk to them?" Hiccup said slightly turning to face Astrid's dragon. The Nadder quickly nodded and approached the teen and the two Gronckles.
'He is a friend with dragons. I know him. He healed my wing and he lives with another human and with a Night Fury on his island.' Stormfly said trying to calm the Gronckles.
'How do we know it's not just a trick?' the first Gronckle said, the one that was slightly redder.
'Yes, how do we know that?' the second Gronckle finished, the one that was slightly yellower.
Hiccup slowly got between the two Gronckles and placed his hands on their snouts.
'What is he doing?' the first Gronckle asked.
'No other human tried to be friendly with us before.' the second Gronckle finished.
"I can feel your distrust. But I will not hurt you. And no one will hurt you from this village. Right?" Hiccup said slowly turning his head to look at Audun.
"Yes. We won't hurt you as long as you won't hurt us," the chief said slowly lowering his axe. The rest of the vikings followed their chief and within a few seconds, none of the vikings were armed anymore.
'Maybe we should kill him to be sure this is not a cunning trap.' the second Gronckle said.
"I promise you this is not a trap." Hiccup said turning his head to face the yellower Gronckle.
Everyone one was staring at him. No one from the village had any idea what was he doing. He was talking to the dragons. He managed to calm two Gronckles that wanted to raid them in just a minute. Even the dragons looked surprised at him when he assured the Gronckles that this was not a trap.
'Can you understand us?' Stormfly said slowly approaching Hiccup and the two dragons. Hiccup turned to look at Stormfly, like he knew that she said something, but not really managing to understand her. 'Can. You. Understand. Us?' Stormfly asked again, a little more slowly.
"I...I think so." Hiccup answered releasing a small laugh.
'Can he understand us?' the first Gronckle answered.
'Yes, he slightly can.' Stormfly answered with a proud voice.
'We can't kill him then. He would know that we want to kill him and he will kill us.' the second Gronckle said.
'Let's try not to kill him for now. He seems like a nice person.' the first Gronckle said
"I won't try to kill you." Hiccup said trying to hold his excitement about him understanding dragons. This was a glorious day. He didn't die. He made the rod for Toothless's flying gear. He made an alliance with a small village. And now he could finally talk with Toothless. He couldn't wait to get home.
'What did he say?' the first Gronckle asked looking at Stormfly.
'He is not going to kill you. He wants to be friends with you. He is not like the other humans, he befriended a Night Fury before me and two other Terrible Terrors.' Stormfly answered.
'When you say a Nigh Fury, you mean Waelise?' the second Gronckle asked.
'He hates to be called like that, but yes. He befriended Waelise.' Stormfly said a little sad that she had to call Toothless by that name.
"Who is Waelise?" Hiccup asked slowly turning to face Stormfly. He was still holding his hands on the two Gronckles snouts.
'Hiccup, we will talk when we get home.' Stormfly slowly said, making sure that Hiccup understood her. He quietly nodded and turned his attention back at the Gronckles.
"What do you say Stormfly, should we bring them home?" Hiccup asked the Nadder with a small smile. He managed to befriend another two dragons.
'Where does he want to take us?' the first Gronckle asked.
'Yes, what does he plan to do?' the second Gronckle finished.
'He wants you two to join us on his island. There is plenty of food and there are three other dragons there. We could even try to hunt animals from other islands with you guys. We could really use your help.' Stormfly said trying to convince them. If they managed to make the two Gronckles join them, they could actually try and raid a small village or a small ship. They could finally start to make a name for themselves.
'Sure, we will join you.' the first Gronckle said.
'Are you sure?' the second one asked.
'This boy could change the entire archipelago. And I will be damned if I won't try to help him.' the first one said playfully nudging Hiccup's hand.
'Then I will also join you.' the second one said.
Hiccup released a small laugh. He managed to bring two other dragons to help his cause. Now they were slowly becoming a force. He slowly removed his hands from the two dragon's snouts and approached Audun.
"So, can we form an alliance?" Hiccup asked extending his hand.
"You surely are something." Audun said while heartily shacking his hand. "But I must ask, what is your name?"
"Fáfnir." Hiccup said. He was going to use his new name. He was 'Hiccup' only to his closest friends. Well, friend. From now on, he would be Fáfnir in any other contest. People will learn to respect this name. His enemies will learn to fear his name. He was going to tell Audun about his real name, but later, after he was sure he won't betray him.
He then slowly grabbed his swords from the ground and mounted Stormfly. They left the island and starting to head home. In more than half a hour they reached his island. The Gronckles were slightly slowing them down. They had a very slow and heavy way of flying. He knew that they could be powerful cannons and battering rams, but they were just so slow.
He was pretty sure that he didn't take more than three hours for his little trip. When they reached the cave, he quickly dismounted and ran inside hoping to find Astrid.
She was sitting near the fire, leaning on Toothless's side, skinning a boar. When she noticed him she started to smile. Hiccup quickly approached her and kissed her heartily. Before things could get out of hand again, he quickly backed a little and said.
"I want you to meet somebody."
"Who?" Astrid asked a little confused, but also excited by his return.
"Come let's go to meet them." Hiccup said before picking her up in his arms and quickly getting her outside. There she noticed two Gronckles.
"They are not going to hurt us right?" Astrid asked a little worried, looking at their new friends.
"I hope not." Hiccup said before placing a small kiss on her cheek.
"What are their names?" Astrid asked. The two Gronckles also noticed the girl and slowly approached her.
"I didn't name them yet." He let her down near a tree. Astrid noticed that the redder dragon was a little smaller than the other one, but he also looked a little more intelligent. She slowly placed her hand on his snout. The dragon was a little surprised that the girl didn't seemed aggressive at all. She looked content with them being here. She was going to protect them. A human they just met was going to defend them against other of her own kind. Those two humans could change the entire archipelago.
"Skuller. You like that name?" Astrid asked the redder dragon. He was shocked to be given a name. He playfully nudged her hand. Astrid smiled at his gestured and started to scratch him on his head.
"Then you will be Nubs." Hiccup said while approaching the other Gronckle. He then started to pet him.
Toothless slowly got outside with Ild and Blad to meet the new family members. In just a few hours, the two Gronckles turned from raiding a village, to becoming family members with two humans and four other dragons. When they noticed the Night Fury they slowly backed away and looked at him.
'So it's true. Waelise is really here.' Nubs said starring at Toothless. The Nigh Fury looked insulted at the two of them. He hated to be called like that. He hated that he was one of the most powerful dragons and that he was humiliated and exiled by his kind. He hated that he had to join an incompetent Dragon Queen and that no one liked him there.
'I will kill both of you if you ever call me by that name again.' Toothless calmly said looking at them. He hadn't been called by that name in a very long time. He almost forgot his painful past. He really hoped that the other dragons forgot about him.
'I am sorry for my friend. He is not very clever.' Skuller said carefully approaching Toothless, trying not to leave a bad first impression.
'Now, let me make myself clear. You will have to follow a few rules if you want to live here.' Toothless said looking at them. He quickly glared at Skuller and the Gronckle stopped in his tracks.
'Yes. Of course. We are listening.' Skuller quickly said.
'Hiccup is the leader and you will follow his orders. Astrid is the second in charge and you will follow her orders. And I am third in charge, and guess what?' Toothless said trying to look calm, but also intimidating. He usually didn't care about this kind of stuff. Stormfly always commanded Ild and Blad, because he let her. He made her his 'lieutenant', so that he wouldn't have to deal with this kind of stuff.
'We will follow your orders.' Nubs completed his sentence.
'Exactly. But most of the time I let Stormfly deal with this kind of stuff, since I trust her. So you will also have to listen to her.' Toothless said slowly looking at Stormfly. The dragon was trying not to laugh at Toothless's attitude. He was just trying to look tough in front of the 'new recruits'. It was true that she commanded Ild and Blad, but only because they liked her. But this whole rank stuff will pay off in the future, when they would have tens of dragons, or even more.
'I hope that everything is clear.' Stormfly joined Toothless, trying to intimidate the new dragons.
'Yes. Of course. Say that everything is clear Nubs.' Skuller quickly responded.
'Everything is clear.' the other Gronckle quickly said.
'And the most important thing. I don't know you. I don't know what are you capable of. I don't know and I don't care about your intentions here. But if any of you will hurt or injure Hiccup or Astrid. I will become your worst nightmare. Hope that I make myself clear.' Toothless said finally approaching the two Gronckles and glaring at them.
"What are they doing?" Astrid asked.
"Toothless is just making sure that they will follow the rules." Hiccup said slightly amused by Toothless's actions.
"And what rules would those be?" She asked a little confused.
"Well, the first one would be that I am first in command and you are second in command after me." Hiccup started to say.
"Like I would ever listen to you." Astrid said laughing, playfully hitting Hiccup in the shoulder.
"Don't hurt me or Toothless will become your nightmare." Hiccup said laughing at Toothless's little speech.
'What the heck is his problem? I am just trying to make some order here.' Toothless said noticing Hiccup making fun of him.
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