Sorry I haven't updated in a bit. I have no excuse. *cheeks turn red and grins sheepishly*
EXT. HIGH SEAS - DAWN
A painted DRAGON, with a sword run through it. It's the
billowing sail of Stoick's ship.
Stoick hovers over the familiar nautical map - his eyes on
the uncharted corner, swirling in mist and illustrations of
dragons.
STOICK I can almost smell them.
'we do not stink.' Toothless protests as Hiccup laughs.
They're close. Steady.
Stoick raises his gaze to...
AN EPIC FOG BANK, towering from sky to sea like a bruised,
daunting curtain, beyond which nothing is visible. The three
ships drift alongside it, skirting its solid edge, looking
for an opening.
ON DECK the crewmen mill nervously, all too aware of what
Stoick is considering.
STOICK (CONT'D) Take us in.
The helmsman steers Stoick's ship into the fog. The men draw
their weapons, prepping for the worst.
VIKING Hard to port... for Helheim's gate.
The first ship disappears into the whiteout, followed by the
other two.
A BEAT
Suddenly a flash of light. A silhouette of a dragon. Hollers.
Sounds of splitting and shattering wood. Plunges into the
water. Another bright flash.
MATCH CUT TO:
EXT. TRAINING GROUNDS - RING - DAY
CLOSE ON a DRAGON painted onto a shield. Hiccup runs his
finger over its outline.
HICCUP You know, I just happened to notice
the book had nothing on Night
Furies. Is there another book? Or a
sequel? Maybe a little Night Fury
pamphlet?
Astrid pops Hiccup on the back of his head. "Really Hiccup! We were in training!" She shrieks.
Calming down a bit she snorts, "a pamphlet?" Her voice goes dry, "really..."
Hiccup blushes something fierce and Astrid shakes her head and chuckles with Toothless.
KABLAM! A blast takes the axe head off of Hiccup's hilt,
leaving a smoking hole behind him. Hiccup YELPS and RUNS.
GOBBER (O.S.) FOCUS Hiccup! You're not even
trying.
CUT BACK to reveal a Deadly Nadder, loose in a maze-like
arrangement of moveable walls. Gobber calls orders from
above.
GOBBER (CONT'D) Today... is all about attack.
The Nadder hops from wall to wall, sending the recruits
scurrying.
GOBBER (CONT'D) Nadders are quick and light on
their feet. Your job is to be
quicker and lighter.
Hiccup snorts and grumbles under his breath to the displeasure to all that hear (not including Astrid and the dragons), "ya and that's totally possible, they can't even see their toes let alone be agile."
The teens move in, stumbling over Hiccup and his unwieldy
shield. The Nadder spots Fishlegs' ample rear hiding behind a
wall. It whips its tail of spikes. Fishlegs SCREAMS and lifts
an entire wall to shield himself from the spray.
The teens chuckle.
FISHLEGS I'm really beginning to question
your teaching methods.
"I've been questioning them my whole life," Hiccup says sarcastically.
"Oi!" Gobber yells.
There's a flash of white in the darkness as Hiccup grins.
Stoick looks down at the obvious closeness between the two.
GOBBER Look for its blind spot. Every
dragon has one. Find it, hide in
it, and strike.
Ruff and Tuff rush in, diving and rolling up to the Nadder's
nose. The Nadder sniffs the air - it can't see them. Tuff
and Ruff are smashed together - too close for comfort.
RUFFNUT
(WHISPERED) Do you ever bathe?
Tuffnut grins, "nope."
there are several groans to this.
TUFFNUT If you don't like it, then just get
your own blind spot.
RUFFNUT How about I give you one!
Ruff and Tuff SHOVE each other, till their movement and noise
gives them away. The Nadder ATTACKS, SNAPPING at both of
them.
GOBBER Blind spot? Yes. Deaf spot? Not so
much.
Hiccup wanders up to Gobber, while the others dart past.
HICCUP Hey, so how would one sneak up on a
Night Fury?
Two cracks fill the air as Astrid again hits Hiccup and Gobber facepalms.
GOBBER None one's ever met one and lived
to tell the tale. Now get in there.
HICCUP I know, I know, but
hypothetically...
ASTRID
(WHISPERED) Hiccup!
She puts her finger to her lips and gestures for him to hide.
A moment later, the Nadder leaps over the walls, surprising
them by landing in front of her.
Astrid somersaults into its blind spot, confusing it. She
rears back to strike - just as Snotlout LEAPS IN,
protectively SWEEPING Astrid behind him.
Snotlout's father groans and shakes his head,w hen will his son ever get a clue?
SNOTLOUT Watch out babe. I'll take care of
this.
ASTRID Hey!
Snotlout MISSES. Astrid glares at him.
SNOTLOUT
(DEFENSIVE) The sun was in my eyes, Astrid.
What do you want me to do, block
out the sun? I could do that, but I
don't have time right now!
Hiccup rolls his eyes, "actually you couldn't and we would all die if that happened."
Snotlout scowls.
The Nadder tears off after her, knocking down walls in
pursuit. She leaps and dives like a highly trained gymnast.
Hiccup wanders up to Gobber again.
HICCUP They probably take the daytime off.
You know, like a cat. Has anyone
ever seen one napping?
GOBBER Hiccup!
ASTRID -Hiccup!
Hiccup spins around to see the maze walls collapsing like
dominos toward him. Astrid comes flying through the dust and
crash-lands on top of him, laying him out in a limb-tangled
mess.
TUFFNUT Oooh! Love on the battlefield!
Astrid and Hiccup turn red.
RUFFNUT She could do better.
Toothless growls.
The Nadder closes in, emerging through the cloud of dust.
HICCUP (struggling to untangle)
Just... let me... why don't you...
The Nadder spins around and races back toward them like a
Raptor.
Astrid untangles herself and tries to pull her axe from
Hiccup's shield... which is attached to his limp, gangly arm.
She PLANTS her foot on his torso and YANKS the axe free,
still burrowed into the shield.
Several wince, "oooooo." That really had to hurt.
She SPINS and SWINGS the axe and shield, scoring a DIRECT HIT
on the oncoming Nadder's NOSE. It yelps and scurries off.
GOBBER Well done, Astrid.
Gobber hobbles off to wrestle the Nadder back into his cave.
Hiccup gets to his feet - all eyes are upon him. He turns to
find Astrid glaring at him, winded.
ASTRID Is this some kind of a joke to you?
Our parents' war is about to become
ours. Figure out which side you're
on.
She grabs her axe and stomps off. Hiccup watches, stung.
Toothless growls loudly and Astrid apologises but Hiccup would have none of it and thanks her.
Astrid looks at him confused, he explains. "That is what made me question and investigate the dragons. How can you choose when you don't know both sides?"
Astrid is silent.
CUT TO:
EXT. COVE - MAGIC HOUR
CLOSE ON A fish... being thrown into the cove. It hits the ground and
slides. A moment later, Hiccup peeks through a gap in the
rock, looking around cautiously. Nothing.
Hiccup squeezes through and enters the cove.
A BEAT, then Hiccup hears a SNORT from behind him.
Hiccup turns to see the Night Fury, crouched on a rock like a
stealthy panther. It descends, approaching him... ready to
pounce.
Hiccup swallows his fear and offers the fish. Doing so
reveals the dagger at his waist. The dragon sees it and
hisses. Hiccup reaches for it, eliciting a growl.
Hiccup trows up his hands, "I have a dagger you're not happy, I try to get rid of the dagger and you're still not happy would you make up your mind bud?"
Toothless rolls his eyes and huffs.
He pauses, carefully lifts it by the handle, and tosses it away. The
dragon calms.
As it approaches the fish, Hiccup notices that it's missing
teeth.
HICCUP Huh. Toothless. I could've sworn
you had...
Astrid smiles. "So that's how you got your name," she whispers, petting Toothless and enticing a purr from him.
A set of razor sharp teeth emerge from its gums to grab the
fish. Toothless snatches and gnashes it up, swallowing it.
HICCUP (CONT'D) ... teeth.
The teeth retract again.
Toothless presses closer with an expectant look. Hiccup
retreats nervously.
HICCUP (CONT'D) Uh, no. No, I don't have any more.
The Fury backs Hiccup against a rock, placing himself the
same position as before. The dragon closes in over him,
staring blankly.
A tense moment passes... then Toothless regurgitates a chunk
of fish onto Hiccup's lap.
"Ewwww," several gag at the sight.
They exchange stares. Hiccup
realizes what Toothless wants him to do.
Hiccup crouches slowly and squeamishly picks it up.
The dragon waits expectantly. Hiccup gags and gnaws off a
bite of the slimy fish.
Snotloud screeches, "you actually ate it?!"
Hiccup snickers.
He forces a smile. Toothless mimics
him.
Amazed, Hiccup sits up and tries to touch him. Toothless
HISSES and flaps off to a crash on the other side of the
cove. He BLASTS the mossy ground to a red-hot temperature...
and curls up on it like a giant dog.
He turns to find Hiccup seated beside him. Toothless
tolerates his persistent presence... until Hiccup tries to
touch his damaged tail. Toothless SNAPS at him. Hiccup takes
the hint and leaves.
Chuckles.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. COVE - LATER
It's MAGIC HOUR. Toothless wakes, hanging upside down from a
tree. He spots Hiccup sitting on the other side of the cove.
Sketching in the sand.
CLOSE ON a sketch of Toothless.
Stoick tilts his head, that's pretty good.
Hiccup draws with a stick,
minding his own business. Toothless appears behind him,
watching carefully. Aware of his presence, Hiccup continues,
trying not to scare him off.
Toothless walks off. A moment later, he reappears with an
entire sapling, drawing lines in the sand. He rushes here and
there, making haphazard lines in every direction.
Finally, Toothless drops the tree and inspects his work. He
seems pleased.
Several men and all the women are unable to contain themselves at the adorable sight, "awwwwwwwwwe."
Hiccup stands and takes in the sprawling scribble, amazed by
it. He accidentally steps onto one of the lines, eliciting an
instant growl from Toothless. He steps on it again. Toothless
growls again.
Hiccup chuckles and pats Toothless's head, "a bit sensitive aren't we bud?"
Toothless rolls his eyes.
Realizing how sensitive he is, Hiccup steps
carefully between each line, turning round and round until he
unwittingly bumps into Toothless.
Toothless snorts. Once again, they're face to face. Hiccup
slowly extends his hand. Toothless hesitates. Hiccup turns
his head away and closes his eyes. To his amazement,
Toothless bridges the gap and presses his muzzle against
Hiccup's hand.
In a flash, the dragon is gone, leaving Hiccup astounded.
Woah... The Vikings are left startled, there eyes wide at the astounding connection that formed before their eyes.
