Chapter 1: "The Young Hunters"
"Dragon, kill the dragon. Hunt them far and yonder." The figure sang as they took aim with their crossbow. "Dragon, kill the dragon. 'Til all of 'em are done for."
They fired, sending the arrow straight into the snout of a dragon….poster, that is.
"Yes! I hit it! Right on the nosy!" The figure cheered. It was actually a girl with dark skin, shoulder-length hair tied into low braided pigtails, and glasses over her yellow-green eyes. She wore a black cloak with a navy blue shirt, a beige skirt, and dark grey shoes. Her name is Brittany.
"Hmm~~ Meh meh! Bri-Bri's shots still pulling to the left. Must be right handed thing." A Nopon boy said. He had cream-colored fur with some patches of brown here and there. On his face, he had freckles of fur that made it look like had had cinnamon sprinkled on his cheeks. He had an eager look in his bright amber eyes and a tuft of tan fur sticking out of the top of his head. Lastly, he wore a simple dark blue vest. His name is Tilolo.
"What?! That was right on the nose!" Brittany protested.
"I'll admit it. That was a good shot." The two turned their attention to another girl. She had long brown hair and hazel eyes beneath a pair of glasses. She also wore a black cloak, but had an olive green shirt, brown trousers and black boots. Her name is Megan.
"Aha! Y'see? Y'see?"
"But you're aiming in the wrong place."
"What?! Not you too! I was aiming right for the nose!" Brittany said.
"Would not know by way Bri-Bri aim." Tilolo said, flatly.
"Once again, I admit, it was a good shot," Megan said, "but remember what Uncle Nick taught us."
"Ummm...When choosing between a sword or a shield, take the shield?" Brittany said.
"It's the wings and the tails that you want to aim for."
"Oh! Right!"
"If a dragon can't fly, then it can't get away." Megan said.
"Like Meg-Meg's Unclepon say, 'downed dragon is dead dragon'!" Tilolo said, jumping onto the table.
"I'll try to remember that next time." Brittany said. "Well, if there IS a next time."
They heard the door open. Megan and Brittany briefly freaked out as they put their crossbows down and grabbed cleaning supplies. Tilolo jumped off the table and scrambled to grab a dustpan with a nervous 'Meh meh meh'. He promptly tripped and rolled into the unlit fireplace, getting some soot on his fur.
"Kids?" Entering the room was a man, tall and rather well built. He had blue eyes, black hair with a few bits of grey and his beard was the same. Like Megan and Brittany, he also wore a black cloak but his hood was down. Instead, he wore a simple black hat with a brown band. He wore a brick red tunic, a tan vest with a black trim, dark brown trousers and boots. His name is Nicholas, and he's Megan's uncle.
Years ago, Megan had lost her parents in an accident. She did have an older sister, but her sister had felt that she wasn't prepared to care for her younger sibling. Her grandparents on her father's side had been deceased for years. On her mother's side of the family, there was only her grandmother, who was getting on in years. That left her uncle, and Megan's father was his brother.
Now, Brittany was another story. In the public's eye, they only saw her as Nicholas's maid. To the four of them, she was Megan's best friend and a member of the family. She had been living with Nicholas after he saved her from some unsavory types. A few months after that, Megan had been sent to live with her uncle. Thanks to Brittany's upbeat personality, Megan had managed to open herself up after losing her parents.
Tilolo was the more recent addition. A few years ago, Megan had found him abandoned on a stormy night. The circumstances behind this were unclear and no Nopon parent had come to claim him. Megan, with help from Brittany and her uncle, took care of the young Nopon. Tilolo had come to see the two girls as older sisters and Nicholas as a sort of father figure. He would always call Megan 'Meg-Meg', Brittany was 'Bri-Bri' and Nicholas was 'Unclepon'.
But enough about that...
"Y-Yes, Uncle?" Megan said, hastily sweeping up.
"Yes, Mr. Nicholas?" Brittany said, wiping off a window.
"Hello, Unclepon!" Tilolo said, tidying up his fur.
"Hard at work, or hardly working, are you?" Nicholas said, stepping into the small house.
"O-Oh yeah! I mean, practically finished!" Brittany said.
Nicholas examined the arrow currently stuck in the front door. "Well, you three have certainly been keeping busy, I should say."
"Yup! Busy sweeping, dusting, cleaning the dishes..." Megan said. As she spoke, Nicholas took a look around the room. "And...and...and mopping too! Between all three of us, we've managed to get on top of everything!"
Nicholas shook his head slightly with a small smile. The house was still a pigsty. Dishes were still on the table, dirty with food stains. There were pawprints on the floor, and the fireplace was just as messy. 'Oh, these kids.' He thought, chuckling to himself. He picked up one of the crossbows sitting around. "How far away is that dragon poster, I wonder?" He said as he took aim at the poster. "Ten? Fifteen feet, perhaps?"
"Unclepon wrong!" Tilolo said. "Easily twenty feet!" Brittany quickly covered his mouth.
"Hmm?"
"Uhh how should I know?" Megan said, holding up a frying pan. "I'm just the cook in these parts!"
"Megan, Berk is our new home." Nicholas said, gently but firmly. "This broom and bucket are to be your new tools. Not this." He put the crossbow down by the chair.
"Uncle, please. It's just so boring being cooped up in here all day!" Megan said. "There's nothing to do when we get done with cleaning."
"To be fair, with the three of us cleaning together, the work gets done pretty quickly." Brittany said. "We're restless! We can't help it!"
"Mmmmmeh meh meh meh meh! We going stir crazy!" Tilolo said, jumping about. "Want to go outside with Unclepon!"
"Tilolo's right. We should be out there with you." Megan said. "Y'know? Going on adventures like we did back in Woodbridge."
"Now, now, you three, calm down." Nicholas said. He knelt down to Megan's eye level and removed her hood. "Megan, Lord Grisely has strict rules about this. No children outside the village walls. You know this."
Megan looked down with a hurt expression. Even though she had her friends, she felt so isolated in this place.
"The forest is brimming with real dragons." Nicholas said, tying a simple white bonnet on Megan's head. "It's MY job to hunt them down, not yours, my dear."
"I'm not afraid of dragons." Megan said.
"You've never even seen a dragon. Well, aside from the wayward Terrible Terrors."
"I'm still not afraid of them."
"Me neither!" Brittany said.
"Heropons afraid of nothing! Not even dragons!" Tilolo said, striking a heroic pose.
"Which is why I must be afraid for you three." Nicholas said.
Megan turned away. He just didn't get it.
Nicholas gathered his gear and headed for the door. "Right then. I should be back before sundown."
"W-We'll just come with you to the gates!" Megan said.
"Stay indoors and out of trouble, kids." With that, Nicholas left to get to work hunting outside the village.
Megan puffed up her cheeks. She threw the broom she was holding down onto the floor.
"..." Brittany knew exactly what she was thinking. "We're gonna follow him, aren't we?"
"Heck yes we are!" Megan said, taking off the white bonnet and pulling her black hood over her head.
"Yup, saw that coming. Well, I'm game! Let's do it!"
"Great! Okay, Tilolo, time to practice your tracking."
"M-Meh?! Meg-Meg mean now?" Tilolo said.
"Yes. Now."
"Mmmmmmm...Okay then! Let's go track Unclepon!"
"You track him, we'll follow!" Megan said, grabbing her crossbow. She ran out the door as her friends followed.
"Leave to Tilolo!"
With their goal clear and gear ready to go, the trio set out. By hook or by crook, they would catch up with Megan's uncle. Maybe, just maybe, he would consider taking them with him on his hunt for dragons. All they needed to do was navigate through the busy and bustling streets of the village of Berk.
Yeah, short chapter, I know. Also, yes I know. Why did I make it the MC's uncle and not the MC's father? Oh, no particular reason. I just know someone's gonna say it. Yeah, I think it's possible I may have been reaching a little bit with my explanation as to how all these kids ended up under the uncle's roof. Even though I do what I can to polish up the chapters, I do apologize in advance for all the mistakes I make. (Especially in some later chapters.)
I'm happy with it, though, that's what really counts.
But don't worry! Next chapter, the trio track down Nicholas and track down a hint of danger as well.
Just remember, I only own my OC's-Be they human or Nopon!
