Chapter 3: "Hiccup and Astrid"
(Yes! I can do this before we start the chapter properly! For this chapter, we will have some featured songs, although I can't use the lyrics in any shape or form. You'll have to look them up, or don't-it's no skin off my nose-and I'll tell you when to start playing them with a well placed *. The featured songs for this chapter are: "Orinoco Flow" by Celtic Women, OR "Pocketful of Sunshine" by Natasha Bedingfield. Either one works, but it's OPTIONAL. That's out of the way at the start, so let's go~!)
Nicholas took the girls away from the forest and back towards the village.
By now, the sheep had been calmed down and were being herded into a cage by the woodcutters. Among them were Gobber and Fuufuun. They approached Nicholas and the girls.
"By Odin, you are two lucky girls, ye know that?" Gobber said.
"No doubt. That was Scalewalker!" Fuufuun said, wings flapping a bit. She and Gobber seemed to be a bit worked up.
Nicholas let Megan down as he said, "Now calm down there, you two."
"Ye can't be cuttin' down their woods! Everyone knows that!" Gobber said, nearly poking at Nicholas with his hook. "If ye do, they'll getcha! That's the deal!"
"Sorry, sir, but there's no 'deal' with anyone."
"Chiefs make deal with old pagans!" Fuufuun said, jumping up with anger. "Now you breaking it!"
"We need to clear the wood."
"Did ye not see?!" Gobber said, practically losing his cool.
"Actually, I did see the dragon attack." Nicholas said, matter-of-factly.
"Not that!" Fuufuun snapped. "The way dragons answered girl's call?"
Megan and Brittany looked at each other. They did think it was very strange the way those dragons just backed off when they heard that weird girl's howling.
"Them forests is riddled with dragons, I tells ye!" Gobber said.
"Well, it won't be too long until the dragons are gone." Nicholas said.
"Not be long before they inside village with hunger, meh meh." Fuufuun said. The girls quietly swallowed nervously at this.
"No. No, we will tame these islands. Lord Grisely has ordered it."
"Ohh yes, Lord Grisely. Renowned for bein' so~ true to his word. " Gobber said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "That's hilarious, that is."
"Fuufuun is not holding breath." Fuufuun said. "At least old chiefs knew how to keep Berk safe."
"Aye, but this one? Feh! He's nothin' but some upstart."
As they spoke, they didn't notice the group of soldiers approaching them.
"Mmm, yes...Calling himself a 'great protector' and all that." Fuufuun said. She shook her head and shrugged.
"Ha! Don't make me laugh!" Gobber said, perhaps a bit too loudly.
"Protector of what?!" Fuufuun puffed up angrily. "...Meh meh?" She reached behind her and felt a horse's hoof. "...He, umm...he right behind us...isn't he?"
"Oh no..."
The two turned around to face the group of soldiers and their leader.
Their leader, riding upon an armored black stallion, was a man. He was tall with a rather pale complexion and was decked out in an outfit crafted from leather. His hair was white like snow and the gaze in his light blue eyes was colder than ice. He is the man who ordered the forest's destruction and the dragons' demise. He is called Lord Grisely, or rather, Lord Grimmel The Grisely. "If the two of you have any grievances, you should speak with me directly." He said.
"M-M-Meh...meh meh meh meh!" Fuufuun stuttered nervously.
Two of the soldiers chained Gobber and Fuufuun up.
"Y-Ye've gotta be jokin' me!" Gobber protested. "OOH! May Thor drive ye outta this land, ye snakes!"
"Fuufuun agree! Fuufuun and Friend Gobber do nothing wrong!" Fuufuun yelled as the soldiers tossed her and her viking friend into the cage along with the sheep. "You devils!"
"Hmph." Grimmel turned his attention to Nicholas. "Another dragon attack?"
"Yes, milord." Nicholas said.
"Any more like these two, and we may have quite the rebellion on our hands. If we do not clear the trees, the farmers can not work the land. And the woodcutters cannot clear the trees with these dragons about. This is unacceptable."
"Yes, milord."
"We must show the villagers that the dragons are no threat. They are merely beasts. I am counting on you to finish them off."
"Aye, milord." Nicholas briefly dipped his head.
It was then that Grimmel had taken notice of the two young girls by the hunter's side.
Brittany let out a small squeak as she tried to hide behind Nicholas.
Megan visibly flinched under the pale man's gaze.
The girls couldn't properly explain it, but there was just something about Grimmel. Something about him that just downright unsettled them.
"Is that your girl?" Grimmel said, looking at Megan.
"This is my niece, sir. Megan." Nicholas said. "She is my late brother's youngest daughter."
"And the other one. She is your...maid...I assume?" The white haired man looked at Brittany with what could only be described as complete and utter disdain.
Brittany bit at her bottom lip nervously. The way Grimmel looked at her made her feel so awful.
Megan's hand clenched into a fist. She knew that her uncle only referred to Brittany as a maid in public. They both knew that she was a true member of their little family. If Megan could, she would have given this man a piece of her mind, no doubt.
"Y-Yes, sir. My maid, Brittany." Nicholas said. "One of her jobs is to keep my niece company while I am working."
"There should be no children outside the village walls." Grimmel said. "Why are these girls not in the scullery?"
"S-Sir...Th-They don't work there."
Grimmel turned to one of the soldiers. "You there, see to it that these girls report to the scullery."
"U-Uncle..." Megan nervously held onto her uncle's hand.
"Mr. Nicholas..." Brittany clung to him.
"Do as Lord Grisely commands, girls." Nicholas said.
"..." Seeing that arguing wasn't the wisest choice, Megan and Brittany went with the soldiers.
"I ride out to deal with revolt on an island to the south. When I return, I want these dragons gone from these woods." Grimmel said.
"Yes, milord." Nicholas said.
"You have two days, McMartin. Do not waste them." With that, Grimmel headed off with his men in tow.
Nicholas returned to his hunt deep within the woods.
Megan and Brittany were forced to head back to the village without Tilolo.
"Well...This is a mess..." Brittany said. "We've lost our friend and our freedom all in the span of one day. That must be some kind of record."
"Thank you for summing that up." Megan sighed.
"...Can I just say one thing? I really don't like that man. He's scary and kinda creepy."
"I couldn't agree more..."
After a minute or so of walking, Fuufuun tried to get their attention. "Psst! Psst! Girls!"
"Huh?" Brittany looked up at her.
"Girls, the one who took yer Nopon friend. We've seen 'er before." Gobber said, keeping his voice low.
"What?" Megan said.
"Yes, yes! One who took girls' littlepon friend! Fuufuun and Friend Gobber see her not too long ago." Fuufuun said.
"She's one o' them Scalewalkers!" Gobber said.
"Umm...I'm sorry, what?" Brittany raised an eyebrow at this.
"Scalewalkers?" Megan questioned.
"Aye! Scalewalkers!" Gobber said. "The ones that can talk to the dragons! Maybe even control them. I know it sounds crazy, but we swear it's true! Me and Fuufuun here saw that girl awhile back with two others."
"Two others?"
"There's more of them?" Brittany asked, slightly nervous.
"Oh yes. A woman and boy. Fuufuun thinks is a mamapon and boy is her littlepon." Fuufuun said. "Not sure what girl's relationship to them is. Friend, Fuufuun thinks."
"Cross our hearts, lasses, that girl ye saw? She's one o' them!" Gobber said. "Ye saw how the dragons ran at her call, right?"
"But Scalewalkers heal as well. They heal Friend Gobber with strange and wild magic. They probably heal girls' littlepon friend too!"
"Or they'll eat 'im. I dunno."
"Ohh, poor Tilolo..." Brittany said.
"We've got to get him back." Megan said.
"Ah good luck with that, lass...Once we're inside those walls, none of us are goin' anywhere..." Gobber said.
Megan knew they needed a plan and fast. Then she spotted the latch on the cage.
"Oh I know that look!" Brittany said. "Meg's got an idea!"
"Oh does she now?" Gobber said, rolling his eyes.
"Can you two keep a secret?" Megan said, smiling in a sly manner.
"Secret? Ooh! Fuufuun great at keeping secrets!" Fuufuun said.
Megan pulled the pin in the cage's lock.
The door to the cage swung open and all the sheep-along with Gobber and Fuufuun-burst out in one bunch.
Seeing that they were no longer caged, the sheep began to run about, to and fro, back and forth.
"AH! The sheep!" One of the woodcutters yelled.
As they and the soldiers tried to round up the sheep, Megan and Brittany made their escape in the ensuing chaos they had created.
"Didn't lock the cage right at all, now didja, lads?" Gobber said, trying to help out with the sheep-and also ensuring the girls escaped.
"Meh meh meh meh!" Fuufuun started bouncing on top of the sheep, thanks to their fluffy wool. "Sheep are fast, right, friends?"
"Oi you two!" A soldier yelled. "Get back in the cage!"
Megan and Brittany looked back at the scene as they reached the edge of the forest. They smiled as they put their hoods up. With a few laughs, they ran straight into the woods.
"That's an extra week in the stocks for you two!" Another soldier said, as Gobber and Fuufuun were tossed back into the cart.
"It worth it to help friends." Fuufuun whispered.
"Shush, furball." Gobber said, softly.
"Where are those girls?" The first soldier said. He turned to the woodcutters. "You there! Be on the lookout for two girls. They must've run into the forest. Get them and bring them straight to the scullery. Lord Grisely's orders!"
"Yes, sir!" "Yessir!" The woodcutters said.
"Hmph. Damn outsiders...who do they think they are, bossin' vikings around?" One said.
"What was that?" The soldier said.
"Nothin'!"
Meanwhile, the girls had begun their search. They had decided to split up. Naturally, Brittany was completely against the idea. If they ran into more dragons, they might have a chance if they were together. At best, they would just get caught again, either by the soldiers or Nicholas. Megan's argument was that they could cover more ground and find Tilolo faster if they did split up. Brittany still didn't like it, but nevertheless, she agreed, making her friend promise to be careful and stay safe.
As Megan went on her way, she couldn't help but think that Brittany was right. Splitting up was not the wisest decision. As Gobber had said earlier, the forest was filled with dragons. Dragons that were just like the ones that were attacking earlier. Dragons that would most definitely kill her without a second thought or shred of remorse. This line of thinking was not helping Megan stay focused on her mission.
To try and get her mind off of the potential dangers in her way, Megan started to hum to herself.
"Dragon, kill the dragon...Hunt them far and yonder...' She hummed. "Dragon, kill the dragon...Til all of 'em are done for..."
Soon, Megan found herself in a large clearing.
She cautiously stepped across, making her way to the middle.
"...Eh?" Megan saw something on the ground. She picked it up.
It was a small tuft of cream-colored fur. Wait...Cream-colored? And the texture of it...it felt just like—
"Tilolo!" Against her better judgement, Megan began to call for her Nopon friend. Was he somewhere nearby? What if that strange girl and the dragon flock were nearby too? "Tilolo!"
A rustling sound made the brunette girl jump. Oh no...Could Megan have attracted a dragon with her yelling?
The rustling came closer and closer until—
"Meg-Meg!" A familiar shape jumped down from the treetops.
"T-Tilolo!" Megan exclaimed. She scooped up the young Nopon in her arms. "Oh my Gods you're okay!"
"Meh meh! Knew Meg-Meg would come find Tilolo!" Tilolo said. "Where's Bri-Bri?"
"We split up, so I'd say she's still trying to find you! But oh my Gods you're safe!" Megan said. "A-And...And look at you! Y-You're...You're all good as new!"
"Wing all better now! Like it never happen!"
Megan gently hugged Tilolo, the two of them nuzzling each other. "I'm so sorry, Tilolo. I didn't mean to shoot you, I swear."
"It's all right. Meg-Meg never hurt friends!" Tilolo said.
"I'm...I'm just so glad. Your wing's all healed. How did that happen, though?" Megan said. "It was that dragon girl, wasn't it?"
"Yes! She heal Tilolo! It just like magic!"
"I was so afraid she and the dragons were gonna eat you!"
"M-Meh meh? Tilolo not very tasty!"
Another rustling sound broke into this happy reunion.
Megan turned her head and she swore she saw two big green eyes staring at her through the bushes.
"Meh meh?" Tilolo jumped out of Megan's arms.
Then, from out of the brush, a dragon stepped forward. This one wasn't one of the dragons from earlier. This one walked on four legs, much like a horse. Its large wings were folded on its back. Its long tail slowly flicked back and forth. It had smooth black scales as dark as the night, eyes as green as the forest and claws that were sharp as sharp could be. But the most interesting thing about this dragon was that part of its left hind leg was gone.
Megan's uncle had told her stories about a certain dragon. A dragon that was as black as a cold winter's night. A dragon that no hunter worth their salt would ever think about engaging in combat. A dragon that people called 'the unholy offspring of lightening and death itself'. They called it the –
"N-N-N-Night...N-Night Fury!" Megan exclaimed.
With her hands shaking and her heart pounding, Megan quickly loaded an arrow into her crossbow and took aim.
"Meh meh! Meg-Meg no!" Tilolo yelled. He grabbed at Megan's crossbow, trying to take it from her.
"T-Tilolo stop that!" Megan yelled.
The Night Fury continued to advance towards them, slowly.
"No, Meg-Meg! Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" Tilolo yelled, struggling with the girl.
"This is no time for games, Tilolo!" Megan snapped. In their struggle, she was forced back a few steps. "St-Stay back, dragon! I-I'll shoot!"
"Meg-Meg! Don't shoot dragon friends!"
"Are you crazy?! Dragons aren't friends!"
The two continued to struggle as the Night Fury moved towards them.
While Tilolo couldn't get Megan's crossbow, he did manage to grab the arrow loaded into it. He jumped away.
"Wh-What the heck?!" Megan yelled angrily. She took a step back. "Huh?"
And had promptly activated a hidden trap!
Before she even knew it, Megan suddenly found herself hanging upside down from a tree. Her crossbow fell to the ground. She had broken one of the cardinal rules of being a dragon hunter! Megan had fallen victim to one of her uncle's traps. Well, at the very least, hanging upside down was much better and far less painful than getting her foot caught in a bear trap.
Tilolo tossed the arrow on the ground as he landed nearby. "Victory for Tilolo!" He cheered, dancing around.
"Okay okay, you've had your fun, mister." Megan said. "Now get me down from here!"
"Mmmmm~ Tilolo get Meg-Meg down."
"Great!"
"On one condition!"
"Condition?"
"Meg-Meg must promise to not shoot dragon friends." Tilolo said.
"WHAT?! I am not promising that!" Megan yelled.
"Then Meg-Meg not come down. Simple as that."
"You've gotta be kidding me!"
"Goodbye, Meg-Meg!" Tilolo said, happily trotting away.
"Tilolo! URGH! That does it! I don't care!" Megan growled. "When I get down from here, we're having roast Nopon for dinner tonight!"
Then Megan remembered that the Night Fury was still here.
The Night Fury was looking at Megan...and she was completely at the dragon's mercy.
Megan gulped.
The Night Fury looked at her curiously. It tilted its head in a way that almost seemed...well, cute. The unholy offspring of lightening and death itself being cute? Brittany and her uncle would never believe it! She could hardly believe it herself.
Regardless, Megan had no choice but to get herself out of the trap. Somehow.
Megan started to swing herself, with her arms and free leg flailing about. "G-Get away dragon! O-Or...Or I swear I'll..."
The Night Fury sniffed at her. It reared back slightly as Megan took a swing at it.
"Go on! Get!" Megan said.
As she swung around wildly, the Night Fury looked...amused? It stuck its tongue out and it was panting like a dog. Its tail was wagging too!
While Megan continued to flail and swing her arms, the Night Fury began to jump up and tried to bite at the rope currently tied around her ankle.
Megan, however, thought that the dragon was attacking her. That it was trying to bite her leg off! "I said get away!" She yelled. She actually managed to hit and kick the Night Fury right in its mouth as it jumped.
Getting punched and kicked in its jaw multiple times, the Night Fury was getting annoyed. It growled as it jumped again.
This time, it did bite the rope and in the process, it had also bitten Megan's arm.
Megan fell to the ground with a yelp and a thud. "Ahh!"
As the brunette sat up, she felt a stinging sensation in her right arm.
Megan gasped fearfully as she saw...a fresh Night Fury bite mark on her arm. A bite mark...that was glowing? What in the world? The glow soon faded. Was this the Night Fury's doing?
Speaking of, Megan looked at the dragon before her.
The Night Fury looked...It looked horrified by what it had done.
Megan blinked and when she did, she saw something strange. Instead of the Night Fury, she saw a boy. A boy who looked just as horrified as the black dragon. He had scruffy looking hair with a few small braids and was wearing a leather outfit that had at least three or four belts across his chest. But the vision of this boy was brief, and Megan was staring at the dragon again. 'Wh-What...What was that?'
The Night Fury warbled sadly as it reached its head over.
"N-No! Get away!" Megan exclaimed, as she covered her face with her injured arm.
Then, the Night Fury licked at the wound on her arm. Was this its way of apologizing?
"...Huh?" This utterly baffled Megan. Her uncle had always told her: A dragon will always go for the kill. So why didn't this one?
The Night Fury turned away and was heading back the way it came.
"Meh meh!" Tilolo dropped down from the trees. So he was still here. He followed the Night Fury and hopped onto its back.
The black dragon looked back at Megan before it rushed off.
"Tilolo! Wait!" Megan yelled as she gave chase. In her rush to follow the Night Fury, she had left her crossbow and arrows behind on the ground.
Megan ran after the Night Fury as fast as she could. There was no time to track down Brittany and tell her what was happening.
Besides that, it was almost as if the Night Fury was beckoning her to follow.
'Where is it going?' Megan thought.
The Night Fury stopped and turned its head. Was it making sure Megan was still following?
Megan blinked and it happened again. Instead of seeing the Night Fury, she saw the boy. Megan rubbed at her eyes. 'Gods, I'm seeing things!'
She pushed past the branches as the dragon went on ahead.
"A-Ah!" Megan tripped a bit but quickly got back up. She continued running on the path the dragon was clearly leading her down...
Only to come straight to a dead end.
'What the? But the Night Fury came this way. I'm sure of it!' Megan thought, as she stepped up to a wall of thick, lush ivy.
How did the Night Fury get past this wall without getting tangled up in this?
"Huh?" Megan soon spotted a tuft of fur in the ivy. Tilolo's fur. That dragon did come this way! She reached out to grab the fur when the bite mark on her arm started to glow.
The ivy seemed to respond to this. It was glowing and it moved on its own. It parted, creating a path through.
Surpised by this, Megan pulled her arm back.
The ivy stopped glowing and went back to its normal position. The tuft of fur was sucked into it.
'Tilolo!' Megan thought. Knowing her Nopon friend was still with the Night Fury, Megan threw caution to the wind and went through the wall of ivy.
Beyond the green, grassy curtain, "W-Wow..." Megan gasped softly.
It was as if Megan had entered a completely different world. This was the same forest beyond Berk, right? She could see a large waterfall in the distance.
And just ahead of her was a clear cut path. The dragon and Tilolo must've come this way, no doubt.
'At least I'm on the right path.' Megan thought as she kept going.
This path was a bit of a climb. Brittany hated running and Megan hated climbing steep hills. At the top of the hill, Megan had a bunch of branches and leaves stuck in her hood and hair.
Megan grumbled as she brushed off the foliage. She looked up and gasped.
There! The Night Fury was standing on a ledge or an upper path with Tilolo still on its back. It was waiting for her? Wow. What a weird dragon.
Well, anyway, Megan picked herself up and followed the path.
Tilolo jumped off the Night Fury's back as the dragon slipped behind the waterfall at the top of the path. He waited for Megan.
Megan noted that the waterfall poured into a pond and that pond led into another waterfall which seemed to lead to a river below with some sharp rocks sticking out. It was quite beautiful. She stepped behind the main waterfall and was staring at the entrance to a cave.
Without saying a word, Tilolo went into the cave with a spring in his step.
Megan hesitated. The cave looked so dark...and deep, like it could lead to the center of the earth. She took in a breath to steady her nerves.
Slowly and carefully, she walked through the cave. Megan could faintly see some etchings on the walls. One of them was circular and had a picture of a person sleeping and a dragon above them. "Whoa..." She whispered.
But as the brunette girl walked, it was clear she wasn't alone.
Eventually, Megan could see a light at the end of this tunnel. This must be where the dragons made their lair. Megan hid behind a rock and took a peek. Well, there was the Night Fury.
That wasn't the only thing.
Megan could see three people in the middle of this apparent dragon nest. One of them was the girl from earlier. The other two, she had never seen before. An older woman and a boy. Those two must be the 'mamapon' and 'littlepon' Fuufuun spoke of. They all appeared to be sleeping peacefully. Megan could see a Stormcutter dragon curled up around them. It was protecting them as they slept. She tried to lean in for a closer look at these dragon people, and she could see that the boy had a peg leg replacing his left foot.
Suddenly, the flock of dragons from earlier began to enter the nest. The Monstrous Nightmare, the Deadly Nadder, the Hideous Zippleback, the Gronckle, the Rumblehorn and the Razorwhip, along with a few other species. There were some Megan could recognize, and a few that she couldn't.
Megan watched as the Night Fury was joined by another Nadder. They stepped into the middle of the nest.
The two dragons looked at each other and nodded. Then something strange began to happen. Their tails began to glow. They jumped up and their bodies transformed into light. These light dragons seemed to be going inside the boy and the girl, at least that's what it looked like to Megan. She could make out the silhouettes of the dragons' heads in front of their faces as the boy and girl opened their eyes.
Megan nearly let out a loud gasp, but managed to cover her mouth as she hid against the rocks. 'What did I just see?' She thought. 'WHAT did I just SEE?!' Maybe...Maybe she could quietly slip out and gather her thoughts once she was away from this place.
"You might as well come out now." The boy said.
'Ohhh...no...' Megan thought, with dread slowly creeping onto her face.
"We can smell you." The girl said. "Thor, do you stink!" She stepped towards Megan with the dragons.
"I knew you were behind me the whole time." The boy said. "So there's no use in hiding."
"..." This was not good. The boy said it himself. There was no use in hiding, so did that also mean that there was no use in escaping? Unfortunately, Megan had no time to contemplate that possibility.
Something knocked her out of her hiding spot and onto the floor of the cave.
Megan felt a weight on her chest. She looked up to see a black paw pressing on her. 'A-Another Night Fury?!'
Indeed, it was, but this one looked different than the one she encountered at the clearing. For one, all of its limbs were intact and two, its eyes were a different shade of green.
"D-Don't...Don't kill me, please!" Megan pleaded.
"We do whatever we like." The girl said. "Let her up."
The Night Fury removed its paw and its expression softened. It started to sniff at Megan, much like a dog or a cat. It sniffed at the wound on Megan's arm, and let out a warble.
Megan quickly stood up as the dragons surrounded her, the boy and the girl. She also saw a white Night Fury walk up to its black counterpart.
The white Fury stepped up to Megan and also took a sniff at her. When it sniffed the wound on Megan's arm, it let out a soft coo and began to nuzzle the brunette girl's face.
Megan jumped away in surprise. She turned to the two dragon kids. "Y-You...Y-You two are—"
"We're Scalewalkers." The girl smirked. "And so what? You oughta be thanking this guy, you know!" She gestured to the boy. "He saved your life."
"..." Megan shook her head in an 'Are you kidding me' fashion. "Saved me? Saved me?! He bit me!"
"It was an accident!" The boy said, as the blond girl gave him a surprised look. "You kicked and punched me in the face too many times to count!"
"You were attacking me!"
"I was only trying to get you out of that dragon trap."
"Well, anyway...You came into our woods." The girl said.
"Your woods?" Megan said. "These are our woods! Your dragons are attacking the woodcutters and the sheep!"
"They should be staying closer to the village!" The boy said.
"And so should you, village girl!" The girl said.
Megan and the two dragon kids stared each other down.
"Alright, let's get a look at you." The boy said. He and the girl began to closely examine Megan.
"H-Hey! What are you-?!" Megan exclaimed.
The girl looked at Megan's glasses and eyes, nearly poking them out. "Wow, can you even see anything?"
"G-Get off me!" Megan said, as the girl started sniffing at her like a dragon. "Q-Quit it!" Even the boy took a few sniffs at her. "Urgh!" She tried to pull away from them.
"Definitely smells like a village girl." The girl said.
"Any extra fur or scales?" The boy said, slightly pulling at Megan's hair.
"Oww! Hey! Would you two get off?!" Megan yelled. She tried to push them away, but the two continued to poke, prod and sniff at her. She attempted to wriggle out of their impromptu examination, but the boy had grabbed a hold of her wounded arm.
"W-Will you stop?!"
"I said get off!"
"Let me fix it!" The boy said, slightly snapping at her.
Megan tried to pull her arm back, but the boy kept a firm grip on it.
"Please. Let me fix it." The boy said, more calmly. Then he added under his breath, "Before it's too late."
"Huh?" Megan just barely heard it. 'Before it's too late'? Too late for what? "Wh-What do you...?"
The boy seemed to ignore her as he closed his eyes in concentration. He raised his left hand and it began to glow with the slihouette of a dragon's paw. He and the flock let out draconic howls as the boy gently drew his hand over Megan's wound. It started to disappear.
Megan was amazed by this. "...W-Wow."
The boy healed the injury he had inflicted on her. "There we go. All better." He said, taking his hand away. "Like nothing ever happened."
Tilolo bounced down from a nearby rock. "See, Meg-Meg? Dragons friends!" He said. "It crazy but true."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, off ya go now." The girl said, brushing them off.
"W-Wait, you...You healed Tilolo, didn't you?" Megan asked.
"I fixed your Nopon friend. He fixed you and saved your life. You're welcome, by the way."
"So goodbye!" The boy said, trying to get Megan to leave.
"N-No, wait, who's that?" Megan said, looking at the woman still asleep. "Is...Is that...your mother?"
"..." The boy turned away from her.
The girl seemed to take offense to this. "You'd better leave now...or the dragons will get you."
The flock looked at the blond girl, slightly surprised by what she said.
"B-But, I-I—" Megan stuttered.
"Uh-oh too late!" The girl said, with a devilish smirk. "Now the dragons are gonna eat ya!"
Megan's eyes widened. She quickly turned and made a mad dash out of the nest with Tilolo following close behind.
The girl looked at the flock. They weren't moving. She gestured with her hands. "Come on, guys. Work with me here."
Soon the flock sprang into action and ran out of the nest, with the girl climbing onto the Nadder's back.
As the chase began, the two Furies looked at the boy.
The white Fury nudged at the boy's arm and purred.
The boy turned to them. His expression softened into a smile. Somehow, he knew that the brunette girl meant no harm with her question. She was only curious. He gave the white dragon a pat on the snout. "I'm okay, girl."
The Night Fury rumbled and gave the boy a look.
"Oh don't look at me like that, bud." The boy said. "I would've given her a five minute head start." He climbed onto the black dragon's back. "Let's go!"
The boy and the Furies joined in the chase. (*)
Megan ran out of the cave and jumped through the waterfall concealing the entrance. "AAAHHH!" She landed into the pond. She made her way out of the water and onto the path.
The flock and the two dragon kids were right on her tail.
"N-No!" Megan exclaimed, running to a ledge at the far side of the pond. She was hoping to jump across to the other side, like a shortcut.
"Meg-Meg look out!" Tilolo stopped her.
"Wh-What?!" Megan said, looking down. The ledge she stood on, she underestimated the distance between herself and the other side. Not to mention, there was a number of sharp rocks at the bottom. If she tried to make that jump and missed, she'd be dead.
Since this option was clearly a bad idea, Megan turned around and continued down the main path.
"You'd better run, girlie!" The blond girl called out. "The dragons are after ya!"
"AAHHH!" Megan screamed as she tried heading back the way she came.
Although, one girl running away from a flock of dragons? Of course they were rapidly gaining on her.
The Deadly Nadder, which the blond girl was riding on, chomped its jaws trying to grab at Megan's cloak.
"Oh my Gods! Leave me alone!" Megan cried.
"Aww you're no fun!" The boy said, smirking. He and the Night Fury had made their way to the front of the flock.
"And you're so~ slow!" The girl said. "You villagers are always slow!"
"Except when you're cutting down our forest!" The boy said. "You're all just scared of your own shadows! What do you know about dragons?"
The girl jumped off the Nadder's back and began to run alongside Megan. She nimbly moved around, rifling through the brunette's pockets as she did. "Why do you have so much stuff with you anyway?"
"Hey stop that!" Megan yelled. "That's my gear for hunting!"
"You? A kid like you? A hunter?" The boy scoffed. "You've got to be kidding me!"
"But you two are kids, just like me!"
"We're no kids!" The girl said.
"We're Scalewalkers!" The boy said, proudly.
The Nadder then grabbed Megan's cloak in its jaws. It tossed the brunette behind it!
"AH!" Megan yelped.
The girl took this moment to jump back onto the Nadder's back. "Up ya go!" She said, as Megan now found herself riding with the boy on the Night Fury's back. "When we sleep, we're dragons! And when we're awake, it's just us!" She stood up on her dragon's back, throwing a fist in the air as she proudly proclaimed, "Me! Fearless Astrid Hofferson and Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III!"
"Th-Those are your names? Astrid and...Hiccup?" Megan said. "Wait, really? He's called Hiccup?" That must be a Berk thing.
"Yeah, great name, I know!" The boy-Hiccup-said. "But it's not the worst name out there. In these parts, parents believe that giving their kids a hideous name can frighten off trolls and gnomes. Like a charming viking or Scalewalker demeanor wouldn't do that."
Megan thought that was strange. Trolls? Gnomes? As if dragons weren't bad enough...
"So what's your name?" Hiccup asked.
"M-M-Megan."
"Megan, huh? It suits you."
"A village girl's name if I've ever heard one!" Astrid said.
"Watch it! You don't see me making fun of your names!" Megan said, snappishly.
"Fair enough." Hiccup added.
Megan soon saw a chance to escape these crazy dragon kids by way of a low hanging branch. She grabbed the branch and used the momentum to swing off the Night Fury's back and landed on solid ground. "...Yes!"
It looked like Megan had managed to outsmart the kids and their dragon flock. Now, all she had to do was find Tilolo-no doubt he was following from the treetops-meet up with Brittany and sneak back into Berk before Nicholas got home.
Well...that was the plan.
"AAHH!"
Megan had, once again, fallen victim to one of her uncle's traps. Just like in the clearing, she was now hanging upside down.
"OH COME ON!" Megan yelled.
And it seems that Hiccup and Astrid weren't far behind.
"Well, well, well...What do we have here?" Astrid chuckled.
"Gotten ourselves caught again, have we?" Hiccup said, teasingly. "Some hunter you are. That is two for us...and zip for you!" He spun Megan around.
"Urgh!" Megan groaned as she stopped spinning. "You two are so annoying! Get me down from here!"
"Okay, village girl, if you say so." Astrid said. "Stormfly!"
Megan gasped, realizing what was about to happen. "No, no, no, no wait!"
The Nadder that Astrid called Stormfly flew up to the rope tied around Megan's ankle and bit it, releasing the brunette from the trap.
"Ah!" Megan fell to the ground headfirst. "O-Oww..." She brushed herself off as she stood up.
Then the Night Fury decided to give her a big, sloppy kiss.
"Ugh yuck!" Megan exclaimed, wiping the dragon spit off her face.
But the Night Fury continued to lick Megan's face.
"Eww~~! C-Call it off!"
"Okay, okay, that's enough, Toothless." Hiccup said, between chuckles. "You know that doesn't wash out, bud!"
"T-Toothless? I'm pretty sure I saw teeth!" Megan said, as the white Fury walked up to her and nuzzled her face. "Wh-What is with these dragons?!"
"I think Toothless and Luna like you."
"Good for you, village girl!" Astrid said.
"And stop calling me that!" Megan snapped.
"All right then, Me~gan, fun's over. Time for you to go home."
"Well, Miss Fearless Hoffer Heffer, your idea of fun is—"
"SHH!" Astrid suddenly covered Megan's mouth. "Hiccup, do you hear that?"
"Mmph?" Megan looked at her questioningly.
"A man."
"I'll handle this." Hiccup said. He ran off with Astrid behind him.
"Oh no. Uncle Nick!" Megan gasped softly.
So we finally meet our villain! In all honesty, though, Grimmel was the only villain that made sense for this role. Guys, it actually pained me to type his name, I am not even joking. Seriously, I can't tell you how badly I want to whack him with a cast iron frying pan! I should stop before I really get myself wound up.
That's not all! Hiccup and Astrid have made their way back into the story since we saw them in the prologue and chapter two. Yes!
In the next chapter, a few more shenanigans ensue!
In the meantime, remember I only own my OC's that show up. I don't own the properties or the songs used! Sorry if I forgot anything. Also sorry for that * bit. You won't see that again, I swear you won't! Please keep reading if you so desire!
Hopefully I'm uploading this on the right day! Happy Halloween, everyone who's read so far!
