AN: Hello there fellow readers. I am sorry for the delay. I was supposed to post this chapter last weekend but I had to go do my medical exams and vote. Anyway I would also like to thanks for the new followers and favs this story i have received; I also would like to tell you that reviews are much appreciated. I don't really look up to how many reviews this story has, but I appreciate each one that is written because I want to know your opinions about the story, what you guys expected, and what you all think I could improve, either grammatically speaking or in a particular sub-plot of the story. That said don't hesitate to leave a review even if you think you're sounding a bit harsh.
Without further ado:
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"What happened between you two?"
The question surprised her more than she showed. Of all the things she expected to hear Heather ask, heck she even expected to be asked why she had been so harsh with Hiccup back then at the Arena, she didn't expected that the young healer would ask of her past with Hiccup. Astrid didn't even think that anyone remembered that she and the chief's son had been great friends a long time ago…
"I mean… you both seemed to be very close friends when younger, and sometimes he lets that out while sleeping, though I don't think he knows that…" a part of her wasn't surprised with this. After all it's been only a few days since Hiccup was bold enough to ask the same.
But, this time it was a different situation. She knew Heather wouldn't buy her stupid answer, and that she couldn't escape the question. A million thoughts rushed through her mind of how she would answer that without speaking too much. Even she didn't quite know what happened…
Heather observed Astrid's face that looked like as if she was in deep thoughts because of her question. She knew it would be both pointless and painful to ask Hiccup about that. He would blame himself for 'not being good friend enough' and that cute smile he always had when with Heather would vanish. Then he would subtly steer away from her question without truly answering it. Her only hope was that Astrid would be honest and straightforward with her…
"I won't tell anyone, not even him, that we had this conversation, if that's what you're worried about…" Astrid looked at her, indicating that she indeed listened to what she said, but remained silent. A thought came to Heather's mind. She knew how to get people curious, but also knew that was a dangerous game to play…"Well… let's do this way: you answer my question, and I'll tell you something you don't know."
Astrid beamed at the idea 'what could possibly she know that I don't know?' it was a dangerous game to play, and Heather was quite known to play those. She somehow always managed to know something people would often try to hide, and it was because of this that the older Vikings both respected her and, to a certain extent, feared her. Besides Stoick Heather was the person that knew the most what happened in Berk.
There was also the risk that Heather could not be honest entirely with her. She could also lie to her, but she was only believed in being honest. "Okay then, I'll tell you, but you'll have to tell me something I don't know. It won't count if I already know it" she waited until Heather nodded. When the girl nodded, she sighed heavily before speaking.
There was also the risk that Heather could not be honest entirely with her. She could also lie to her, but she was only believed in being honest. "Okay then, I'll tell you, but you'll have to tell me something I don't know. It won't count if I already know it" she waited until Heather nodded. When the girl nodded, she sighed heavily before speaking.
"I don't quite know what happened. We begun to grow up and have responsibilities. Everyone started having training the basics. I trained the hardest since I wanted to be a shield-maiden and I knew only the fiercest warriors would become one. He, on the other hand, never succeeded at the training. Instead he became Gobber's apprentice, though that was ok with me. I think we begun to drift away when he begun doing his inventions. At first most of us went along with him, but soon it was clear that it always ended in trouble and someone getting injured."
"When he lost his mother at that raid…" she briefly saw Heather gaze's move away. She paused for a second as Heather looked back, nodding, indicating she was still listening. "He and his father got distant after that. Everyone could see that. And this only made him more obsessive with killing a dragon, therefore making he build more dangerous inventions. We definitely parted away when those begun to cause damage to the village each time he tested, since no one wanted to be associated with that. Since then everyone knows that whatever he builds will end up destroying something" she left the part that he and her had gotten close ever since, she didn't want to spoil her chance of knowing something she didn't know, but Heather did.
Astrid didn't mention that she trained harder than all the others or that her harsh training was so she could top the Dragon Training to restore honor to her family. Not to mention she wanted to avenge the death of her Uncle Finn, and Hiccup was a painful reminder to when she let her guard down and looked pitifully weak when sobbing on his arms.
Heather listened to the entire speech, and couldn't help but agree with Astrid, even if just in a little. Hiccup took hard the loss of his mother, much as Heather did. But when the chief began to get distant from his son, Hiccup became obsessive with proving his father that he was worthy of his attention. She suspected he'd be even more reckless if she hadn't befriended him when he lost their friendship, but now it was practically confirmed to her that.
She sighed again before speaking up. To Heather it seemed that this was a subject Astrid didn't like to venture into… "Well, you kept your end of the deal. I guess it's fair I do my part of it" Astrid's suspicious glare softened at the statement, but she still eyed Heather carefully, as if she looked away the girl would vanish. She wouldn't risk letting her guard down, after all, she told her something only Ruffnut knew.
"Do you remember when you got your axe?" Astrid was confused with the question. 'What kind of game is she playing?' was the first thought that came. She was going to protest against the question, but decided that she would play along, for now.
"Yes, I do, what's with it?" her tone was slightly suspicious, but she was hopeful Heather didn't notice it. "Do you remember who built it?" now she was getting frustrated. Heather was supposed to tell her something she didn't know, not interrogate her, and the young healer's calm posture only increased Astrid's frustration. "Yeah… My mom had asked Gobber to build an axe for me when I almost broke the one she gave. He took longer than usual, but I guess he wanted it good since he and mom are friends"
Heather was smirking, and that got Astrid's frustration out of her. "Why with all the questions about my axe? You were supposed to tell me something I didn't know!" she threw her hands in the air, no longer worried about keeping hidden her frustration. Heather gave a small laugh at the scene; not everyone could make Astrid Hofferson get frustrated. Eventually the girl calmed down, allowing her to speak.
"Gobber did not make your axe Astrid… Hiccup did" she said softly, and almost laughed when she saw Astrid's shocked and puzzled face looking to her. It took the blonde a couple of minutes to wrap around the idea so she could say anything. "Wha… how is that possible. Gobber gave me the axe himself and told me he did it." She was already getting angry. If Heather was lying, she would skin the girl alive.
"I know he did, I was nearby when he gave you. But, you see, he did this because Hiccup asked so. Gobber was going to test him to see if he had reached the end of his blacksmithing apprenticeship, and when your mother asked Gobber to make your axe, she gave him the perfect opportunity to test Hiccup's skills. He was pouncing of enthusiasm when he told me that Gobber asked him to make his first axe. I barely saw him for the following days; Gobber told me Hiccup was working day and night on the axe, and the only moments I saw him were when he came here because he had injured himself at the forge."
"But the moment I finished patching him up he would returned there. You were right, it did take longer than usual to make one because Hiccup was, and sort of still is, a scrawny boy. So he couldn't pounder the hammer as strongly as Gobber, but he sure does it as precisely as his former master does. When he finished it and gave to Gobber, he was astonished at Hiccup's craftsmanship. I was with Hiccup at the moment, and he was smiling so much at Gobber's compliment that I thought his face would crack in two."
"But when Gobber told him to whom the axe was for, he made Gobber promise him to keep secrecy that he made the axe. He was puzzled at the request, not understanding why Hiccup would keep secret something that would make Stoick proud of him, but complied anyway. I, on the other hand, saw his enthusiasm leave him, and given I knew somewhat that you and him had been friends when younger, I understood his reasons; though I didn't say anything at the moment. He didn't want you to reject the axe just because it was him that built it."
Astrid was the entire conversation frozen with shock. Only after Heather finished talking she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Of course, she knew Hiccup never gave up on their friendship; that was her doing like she just told Heather. She also knew Hiccup still liked her, his questioning on the Great Hall was pretty much proof of that, but she never thought he'd do something like that. Even if at the beginning the axe was for a stranger, he restlessly worked on it. Not just that, but she also knew how desperate he was to get his father's approval, and yet he gave up having the merit of doing something rightly so she wouldn't reject the axe.
She looked back at the sleeping boy, bare-chested as Heather probably had changed his bandages before he slept. Though he was skinny as Heather said, she could see faint outlining of muscles around his arms and shoulders, probably from years of blacksmithing. She blushed a little at the thought that she was looking a half-naked Hiccup and she turned to look away.
She saw Heather also gazing him, but unlike her, the healer's apprentice did not even slightly blushed. 'Probably this isn't the first time she sees him, or a bare-chested man at all' she thought, then because of that thought, something that was bothering her came back.
When Heather saw her blush and smirked at it, Astrid tried even harder to hide it, and worked even quicker to ask the girl what was bothering her since the Nadder training. "Heather, do you like Hiccup?" she asked somewhat hurriedly, desperately trying to sway away the Heather's gaze. It worked. As soon as she asked it, Heather looked away and this time she was the one blushing.
"O-of course I do, he's my best friend after all" the blush fainted, but Astrid's smirk did not. She knew Heather knew what she meant, but was trying to avoid it. "Not like this. Heather, do you have a crush on him?" this time she did not blush, even if the question was more direct than the last one.
She sighed, and shrugged: "I don't know, honestly…" Astrid didn't wait for that, and was a bit shocked. 'How does she doesn't know, either you have or don't have.' She didn't press on, the girl sounded like she would continue speaking. "He's been also my only family all those years. Yes it do pain me each time he gets hurt, I do feel happy when I am with him, but I never stopped to think about that. I don't really know if I see him like that, and honestly I don't think he does either." And then, for the first time since Astrid entered the hut, silence fell over it.
"I do think he likes you though…" she added in a whisper, but Astrid heard it clearly. "The way he looks at you sometimes, I don't think it's how you would look at a lost childhood friend" Astrid was surprised at the idea, but didn't show it. 'Could it be true? That he didn't see her only as a lost friend, but as a crush as well?' she played a little with the idea inside her mind.
Of course, boys had been hit on her since when she became a teen, just like they did with Heather. But even though she was pretty, they wouldn't hit on her if she wasn't, she was fierce, and that eventually got them away from her. Well, Snotlout aside. But no, she served all her relations with him, and even though she wanted to thank him for the axe because of her new found respect at him, she didn't like the idea that Heather could tell him the fierce Hofferson had blushed looking at him bare-chested.
"This conversation dies here, not a word about it to anyone, including him" she said strongly to Heather, making clear her point. The girls eyed each other, before Heather nodded. "I guess it's fair. I trust you won't say anything either, hmm?" Astrid nodded, relieved that one of the few girl's talk she ever had would stay hidden.
Heather, meanwhile, wanted to be alone a while. This would be the last day she could be sure the boy wasn't putting himself in danger and she also wanted to think about the whole conversation. Honestly she expected that Astrid would at least say she'd thank him later for the axe, but then again, nobody in the village wants to be associated with the village's nuisance. Well, almost nobody…
"So, I guess I can go already? Or is there something else you need to check on me?" Heather was kicked out of her thoughts by the sudden question. She absently nodded the girl, and felt a huge wave of relief when said girl closed the door after leaving.
What neither knew was that their conversation had awakened Hiccup, and he had listened to all of it. He felt a wave of emotions pounce at him. Hurt; Anger; Sorrow; Guilty; Betrayal; Fear. Too many feelings to be listed that moment. Hurt that Astrid wouldn't even say something now that she knew he made the axe; Betrayal that Heather had told her this, even though he said neither her or Gobber ever should; Guilty that his desire to please his father drifted away all his friends; Sorrow of all the time ago when he and Astrid were friends; Fear that Heather had a crush on him; of course, she was astoundingly beautiful, but he saw her more of a sister, even a motherly figure sometimes. His heart, on the other hand, belonged only to Astrid.
Of all this, one thought stuck, determinate above all the other: 'I will see the Night Fury again'
The next day…
Hiccup was beyond happy. He'd finally be able to leave the hut today. Heather had cleared him out, stating that his wound has almost closed. Heather strongly recommended he wouldn't do anything that could reopen it. Because of that, dragon training would only start the next day. Hiccup left the hut, telling Heather he would be at the forge writing some new ideas of equipment to use at Training.
He wasn't lying, though. He would do that if he came out alive from his encounter with the imprisoned dragon. He took his shield, and a pair of fishes to bring the dragon. It has been a week since Hiccup last saw him and if what he had seen the last time was reoccurring, then the dragon didn't leave it nor had much to eat.
He strolled through the forest, passing by the familiar broken trees, and the location where he first met him. The blood he lost was dried, slowly being consumed by the forest, and his cut ropes were untouched, a constant reminder of the day his he faced death and survived, and the same day his views about dragons begun to be questioned.
I neared the small entrance to the cove. Normally a Viking would be too big to go through the rocks standing in it, but luckily, that wasn't my case. I held the shield in front of me; after all I was still unsure if the dragon would attack. He might have a grudge against me, considering I kind of stabbed him when we first met so it's better safe than sorry I guess.
But, by some joke of the Gods, the shield stuck between the boulders, and there it remained. I tried unsuccessfully to remove it before stepping under it while holding the pair of salted fish. They were my only shield against him now. I hope his hunger would be greater than his desire to maul the Viking that downed him.
.
.
.
I was hidden. The sudden noise at the cove's small opening indicated someone would be coming. I couldn't fly, and had eaten little since I first felt here. The few fish that lived in the pond were gone, and they were far from the big ocean fishes I usually ate. I was at the top of a boulder, lying low, so this way I could see the intruder and remain unseen. My nose immediately caught the scent of fish, as I heard a splash on the ground. Everyone knows fishes don't fly, so I concluded it could only be a trap. Despite the growing in my stomach, urging to desperately eat that fish, I remained at my current position.
Hiccup had thrown one of the fish while holding the other. But the dragon didn't appear. 'Perhaps it managed to leave' he thought, but quickly denied it. He wanted to know more about him; understand him and understand why the dragon didn't kill him the two times they had met. He slowly crept toward the fish and picked it up before looking around the cove. Unfortunately Hiccup didn't see the dragon. The same, though, couldn't be said about said dragon.
'It was that hatchling again! Why is he so insistent?' was my first thought. 'I should give him some credit; he sure is different from the others. After all who would meet their enemy and feed them?' I leapt away from the boulder and cautiously stalked toward him. He jumped a bit, startled at my presence. I could smell fear coming from him. The scent was faint, but was there. Curiously I could also smell curiosity coming from him, curiosity about me. I sniffed at the fish, pleased that it didn't hold any poison. I jumped back, growling, when I smelt blood, my blood, and iron.
The young Viking was startled at the sudden growl. One second he was searching for him and the next the Night Fury nearing him to eat the fish. Then all of a sudden he backed away with slit eyes and in a combat posture. Hiccup shrunk his extended arm to hold both fishes, and with his free hand he brushed it against the fur coat to show a dagger to him. 'Of course, he must have seen it or smelt the blood in it.' He thought, knowing that he hadn't had the chance to wash it since that day. The Night Fury growled when he saw it, confirming his suspicious. Slowly Hiccup made a move to grab it and toss away, and then…
I saw the hatchling going for it. A part of me knew he wasn't in a battle stance, nor they way he grabbed it was to attack. But I am a Dragon, and this moment my instincts got the best of me. I leapt on him, and pinned him down to the ground hard. His weapon flew into the lake and he dropped the pair of fishes. The way the weapon flew confirmed he wasn't holding it strongly enough to attack me. As soon as I heard a 'blop' I felt ashamed I acted without thinking.
.
.
.
I was suddenly on the ground. I was almost dropping the dagger on the ground when he pinned me down, and now I felt a huge pain in the chest. I had closed my eyes in fear, but now that I could open it, I saw the look in his eyes. He probably did that out of instinct, so I couldn't exactly blame him. 300 years of war, and suddenly you enemy tries to feed you would make anyone suspicious. Not to mention he must have smelled his blood on the blade, making he be on edge.
.
.
I looked at him, hoping he would at least forgive my irrational act. He didn't make any aggressive action after all and it was dishonoring to attack someone outside of combat (unless when hunting). I removed my paw from his chest, only to find it with blood. I smelled it. It wasn't my blood, it was his…
The pain Hiccup felt lowered a little after the dragon removed his paw from his chest, but then he saw him sniffing at it. His vision was suddenly getting blurry, and, worried, Hiccup looked to his chest. Despite not being able to see it clearly he lifted his shirt only to find the wound Astrid's axe had caused opened up. 'I guess it was getting used to have a wound opened every time I see him.' He mused, not bothering straightening his shirt when he looked back at the apologetic dragon before passing out (again).
I saw the hatchling pass out. Though, unlike last time, I actually felt guilty for making that. He came here, probably to share his food with me. Yes, he was armed, but he hadn't shown any signals of aggression when he saw me, only curiosity. And I'm sure that, if he wanted to attack me, he wouldn't have come alone. I made sure that on our last encounter I made clear that I was not to be underestimated. So I did what I had done last time, I licked his wound until the bleeding stopped. I leapt to the boulder I watched him come, and stood there, waiting for him to wake up and see his reaction.
After a couple of hours passed, the dragon thought he had killed the human. Though he didn't know, he suspected it happened because of blood loss. Every dragon knew that, if one would lose too much blood from a wound, he would be beyond help. So, when he saw Hiccup move lightly, he was glad that he didn't kill him. Though, he was still wary of the little Viking, even if he was unarmed.
Hiccup woke up dizzily, putting his hand at his head. He felt a huge headache, and the world was a bit blurry to him just like it had been before he passed out. After his vision cleared out, he saw that it had passed some time since he first entered the cove, and that he wasn't bleeding anymore. That could be explained by the thick coat of saliva that was on him. He slowly sat, his head spinning momentarily, but this time he didn't pass out. He looked around and found the elusive dragon watching him at the boulder he was earlier.
Afraid of what the dragon would do; after all, it's not like its every day a 300-year old enemy comes to feed you, he made slow movements. Taking the fish, and getting up, he extended one of his arms to offer the fish, eyes never leaving the dragon.
The dragon hesitantly leapt down, moving toward Hiccup and the fish. He noticed the dragon's eyes were not slit, but rather dilated. He held the other fish closer to him, as if it would protect him in case the dragon wanted to crisp him to death. The dragon paced slowly, eyes focused on the fish as if he hadn't eaten for days. If he failed at fishing, like the first time Hiccup had seen him when he found the Night Fury at the cove, this was probably true.
The dragon opened his mouth and froze for a second, briefly looking to Hiccup then at the fish again, as if he was hesitant to eat the fish. Hiccup meanwhile took the opportunity to look at its mouth. "You're toothless? I could have sworn you had…" and then retractable teeth appeared out of nowhere on the dragon's mouth and in a second the fish was gone from Hiccup's mouth.
He jumped back a little at the sudden action, examining his hand to find any missing fingers. "…teeth" he finished in a whisper. When he saw that all 5 were there he sighed gladly. He turned to look at the dragon eyeing him, no, eyeing the fish he held on his other hand. Just like last time he slowly extended his arm to offer the fish. But, unlike last time, the dragon took the fish in a smoother way, with no abrupt moves. Hiccup felt a little easier by that, but his uneasiness soon came back as the dragon started sniffing his hands.
Out of fear, he retracted his arm and slowly crept away from the sniffing dragon. He tripped in a rock, but kept creping anyway until his back. He shrank his arms and legs to himself, as if he could hide in them from the approaching dragon. Seeing him at point blank he whispered: "Please, I don't have any more. And I'm sure I'm not succulent." His sarcasm showing he never failed to appear at dire situations.
I stopped in my tracks, completely surprised by what I just heard. The hatchling didn't just come to feed me; he gave up of his own food to quiet my hunger, like a mother would do to her offspring. I felt like I should returned the favor, so I backed away slightly and begun regurgitating a piece of one of the fishes to give to the hatchling.
Hiccup eyed the dragon as it backed away and did some weird sounds, before a splat sound announced the head of a half-digested, saliva-coated cod in his lap. He made a disgusting noise as he heard a thud. He then looked toward the Night Fury to find it sitting before him like a human, and with an expectant look in his eyes.
He stood there, sitting and looking at the hatchling. 'Why won't he eat it?' he asked himself, confused as Hiccup stood frozen as a rock. 'Perhaps he doesn't know what to do' he reasoned, and then proceeded to alternate his gaze between Hiccup's eyes and the fish.
Hiccup stood there, unsure of what to do. After a couple of seconds thinking what course of action would be the best, or at least get him out of this situation alive, he was brought back to reality as he saw the Night Fury's eyes alternate between. He blinked, and then it clicked inside his head. 'He wants me to eat the fish' he thought disgusted at the idea of eating raw, saliva-coated fish.
"Seriously…?" he asked in a whisper, afraid that he would insult the dragon. He was both relieved and sick that the dragon nodded, as if it understood the meaning of the question. He groaned before slowly raising the fish toward his mouth. He had a bit of trouble biting the fish, since it wasn't cooked. He made an approving sound and motioned the fish to the dragon, hoping to fool him so he didn't need to swallow the fish.
I eyed him, annoyed that he didn't swallow it. 'Either human hatchlings are dumb or he doesn't want it.' I decided to swallow visibly, indicating what I was expecting the human to do. To be honest I was quiet pleased that he did understand me by giving a somewhat desperate look before complying. Curiously I saw his face inflate as he tried to swallow it and he capped his hand at his mouth before trying to swallow again. 'Was this how Vikings normally eat?' I wondered. They surely are a weird kind of creature.
He swallowed again, this time hoping the food would go down. He shrugged when he succeeded at it, and saw the dragon do a smacking noise with his mouth, as if asking if it was good. Hiccup gave a toothy grin at the dragon, hoping it would be a satisfactory response to him. He was totally surprised when the dragon tried to mimic his action, pretty much like when it tilted his head when he did a week ago.
He suddenly felt an urge to touch the dragon, to show him he wasn't a threat. And now it looked like the best chance he would have. The dragon hadn't moved, nor was he in a defensive position. His ears were high and his pupils dilated, showing he was comfortable at the moment. Hiccup slowly stood and leaned toward the dragon, arm extended and hand moving for his face.
But the idea failed. The dragon's eyes constricted. They weren't slit like, but neither were they the puppy look he just had. With a motion he barred his teeth and growled, before retreating to the other side of the pond. Finding a location to nap, he shot a continuous stream of fire at the ground, scorching it, before lying down and curling. Hiccup, feeling he would not have another chance to show the dragon he could be trusted, made his way toward the dragon.
As he approached him, the dragon looked at him with annoyance, before covering his face with his tail. Hiccup, seeing the dragon was not watch him, tried once again to touch him, only to be caught in act. He lowered his hand slowly while speaking "I won't hurt you, you can trust me." But the only response he got from the charcoal dragon was a scoff before he laid his head at the ground.
Groaning in frustration and defeat, he passed his hand at his hair. Not knowing what to do, but refusing to leave without gaining the dragon's trust, he retreated and sat on a boulder near the lake. He saw through the corner of his eye the dragon hang himself upside down by its tail at the branch of the tree, much like an oversized bat. Adding his jet-black color and its name, the description was almost perfect for it.
Hours passed as both living creatures stood away from one another. The dragon was sleeping, hanging by the tree branch, and Hiccup was mindlessly drawing at the ground with a stick, every 10 minutes or so scratching his drawing before he start doing another one. He was trying to think of anything to convince the dragon that he could be trusted, but no ideas came to him. He thought drawing would trigger an idea, but so far he was proven wrong.
The dragon woke up and, as he laid sight at the same human that fed him, he was quite surprised to find him at the cove. The sun was already in the horizon, the sky a beautiful mix of orange and blue. 'He is quite the stubborn one' he thought to himself, after all, it was been quite a while since he went to take a nap. Curious at the movements of the hatchling's arm, he slowly crept to see what he was doing.
Hiccup was still mindlessly drawing, but this time it was the Night Fury's face. It was the only thing he could think that he hadn't drawn yet. When he saw a shadow move at his left, he tensed, knowing the dragon was observing him, but did not look back. Instead he finished his drawing, quite pleased at the results.
The Night Fury, meanwhile, was observing the stick's movements that made a series of lines. He instantly recognized it as a drawing of himself. He retreated to grab a tree branch to mimic the boy's behavior, pretty much like he did with the fish and the head tilt. He began drawing lines, and in the middle of the process he accidentally hit the hatchling's head with the branch.
Hiccup barely noticed the shove the dragon gave him with the branch because he was too dumb folded, looking at what he was doing. He stood once the dragon finished, observing the apparently nonsense bunch of lines drawn in the dirt. Soon he remembered the dragon was displaying a mimicking behavior just like before. Perhaps it recognized himself at Hiccup's drawing and tried to draw Hiccup. He chuckled, seeing that the dragon failed at it, but nonetheless he was still impressed that the dragon did try in the first place.
He proceeded to move away from the drawing when he suddenly heard a growl. He looked at the dragon, which was in an attack stance, and stepped back. He was confused when the dragon stopped growling at him and looked down. He saw a line of the drawing in front of him and stepped in. As soon as the dragon began growling he removed his foot from the line. Suspecting that the dragon thought he was offending his drawing he stepped once more. When the dragon growled at him and scrapped at the ground, he confirmed his suspicious and removed his foot, noticing the dragon was losing its patience with him and was ready to pounce at him.
The dragon was at the brink of tackling the hatchling, damn it if it was going to destroy his drawing or wound the hatchling. He was extremely offended that the human was stepping in his masterpiece that he so proudly did. When he saw the human step over the line, the dragon did a sound that could be mistaken as a draconic sigh. But soon the dragon was mesmerized at the sight before him: the human was bouncing around, almost dancing, while avoiding the lines of his drawing. He was so focused on that the he didn't notice that, when he stopped, he was inches away from him.
Hiccup was too focused avoiding the dragon's drawing. And was also having fun avoiding then. He only noticed where he and the dragon were when he felt a hot breeze at his neck. He slowly turned to see the dragon looking at him. His breath was caught in his throat as he realized how easily he could be killed. But somehow Hiccup saw no malice behind the dragon's eyes, only curiosity. With his own curiosity peeking up he slowly lifted his arm to touch him, but was welcomed with a small snarl. Although this time it wasn't aggressive, but more heedful, as if this should happen at the dragon's pace, not his.
Hiccup stopped to think for a second, before extending his arm and lowering his gaze. He was taking a leap of faith with letting the dragon decide whether he would accept his offer or hurt him. He closed his eyes, waiting for any action. One side of him was worried he would feel excruciating pain from having his hand eaten like Gobber's, while another side was hopeful to feel the touch of those smooth scales.
He stood with his eyes closed for what felt like hours, his insides slowly getting torn in half by what either parts of him expected. His anxiety was as high as the Halls of Valhalla. His breathing was slowly getting uneven and he was starting to feel dizzy because of it. Nonetheless, he refused to move away. He wanted this, and would only take action once his fate was decided by the dragon.
He stood there, watching Hiccup. When he saw his hand closing on him, he left out a small snarl. He did want to trust the human, but a part of him was hesitant and cautious, still feeling uneasy about the idea of trusting a human, his longtime enemy. But another part knew this was no ordinary human.
He didn't smell fear, or dragon blood, or hatred, or anger; just curiosity and wonder and, although a bit faint but present, a need to be accepted, to trust and be trusted. The Night Fury wishes that he knew what this human's story was. He didn't smell the scent of his kin, only his sire. He could smell a bit of loneliness, a small longing to be accepted. All of his years, he never met a hatchling with such scents. He had known a lot of dragon hatchlings, and was even able to smell human hatchlings from afar; and yet, none was like him.
When he saw him extend his arm and lower his gaze, fully trusting the elusive dragon, his hesitant side lost the battle inside him. Slowly approaching the human's hand, he sniffed it a couple of times, noticing the human was getting anxious, but stood still nonetheless. After a couple of seconds, he made his decision. A decision that would change his and Hiccup's life forever, and unbeknown to them, both dragon and Viking's history.
Hiccup, when he felt the soft and warm touch in his hand, almost recoiled in fear that he was being burned. But he didn't move, as soon as he noticed the absence of pain. Not knowing if removing his hand would offend the dragon's trust, he slowly opened his eyes to look at the dragon. The most majestic and fearsome dragon known to Vikings was right there, eyes closed and snout touching his hand, signaling he had been deemed worthy of the dragon's trust. Once the dragon opened his eyes, they met each other's gaze; but this time there were no fear, no hesitation, and no distrust from a bloody war. In each other's gaze there was only acceptance, trust.
At this very moment, a bond was created. Both dragon and human felt a strange feeling inside them, as if a door was opened, a door to a friendship. But this was no ordinary friendship. It was a special one, one that begun when a dragon trapped by bolas and wounded by the dagger of a human, and a human wounded by a wood debris and the brute force of a dragon spared each other; a bond born out of the curiosity of a Night Fury and the wonder of a misfit.
It was a connection that rose from the Dragon War, and set aside any and all grudges and resentment each could have. At this very trice, a forbidden friendship was born. Both of them knew that, and neither could care less...
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ANII: there we go... my longest chapter yet as a way to apologize for my delay i choose to take a deep insight of the bond formed rather than drastically change this scene because i felt this is the highlight of the movie, and whatever fanfic written during the movie shouldn't change too much it. Do let me know of what you all thought regarding my insight through your reviews, I'd love to hear your opinions.
Also i have a question to you all: would you rather wait half of a month to get a long chapter such as this or a week for a smaller chapter?
This is actually one of the parts of my fic i am mostly proud of, mainly because the entire scene just came out instantly one day.
And lastly, for all of those wondering whether Heather liked Hiccup or not, this chapter gives a clue to how her feelings toward him will be later in the story
Until next time!