Booming roars rang from the towering mountain in the sky, various dragons flying from all around and landing in the various cave-like-entrances that led to a large cave at the center inside the mountain; the walls all lined with torches that lit everything in a faint orange hue from the fire sparking at their tips. Shadows of various beasts weaved and bobbed from the large bodies that entered the already crowded cavern where a large four-winged dragon with blood-red eyes stood. His pointed antennas flicking slightly as shouts were thrown at him left and right. His eyes scanning the crowds in a hidden coldness, a low rumble leaving his shielded chest as many voices spoke out as one in worrying haste.
"Is it true? Has the shadow returned?!"
"You said we would be safe!"
"Wh-what if it leads those humans to us?!" A frantic voice bellowed. "We're all going to die!"
"Why aren't you sending out more scouts?!"
Letting out a deep growl, he raised his wings and roared so loud it shock everything, lose pebbles falling from the roof and shadows seemed to leap up from the floors and walls. "SILENCE!"
Everyone seemed to freeze before all eyes turned to the front, a few squeaking at the red eyes that glowed in rage. Deathslayer scary when he got like this, him being the oldest there and possibly the strongest, he was all but unofficially the elected leader of the Paradise region. Everyone went to him with any major issues and his word was rule - though there were a few that ignored him and did whatever, especially those with opposing powers.
"Now," He took a deep breath after a moment. "As you all know, a few months ago a group of Capalas spotted the strange darkness growing from the Eastern Isles of Thana, it having seemed to grown and spread out slowly." He paused, looking around. "What none of you do know is that it grows bigger and stronger with each marine filled area it covers; leeching the life away. I fear that as it makes a course back towards our Islands, it'll become stronger; strong enough to break past our barriers and destroy everything-"
"-WHAT?!"
Loud roars and shouts cut him off once again. Dragons of various kind shifted and chattered nervously while others rose and stomped the grounds in great bone-shaking shakes. Fear and panic-filled them as soon as they heard this news. How could Deathslayer not mention this sooner? Were they even safe?
"WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!"
"We should leave, leave, and hide!"
"I agree. What about one of those emergency Islands?"
"Why didn't you tell us?!" A Deadly Nadder splayed her spikes, teeth bared. "Our lives are at risk here, why did you keep this from us?!"
Roars of agreement rang out, a Monstrous Nightmare shouting over the noise. "He wants us all to die, that's why he didn't say anything. Never trust a Shadow Fury or any kind of Fury."
"That's it!" A screech rang out, a glistening white-blue dragon shot into the air. "I'm tired of your constant bashing of our kind! What about you? You and your big fat body always setting our homes! If anything, you and your kind are worse then mine!"
Growls and roars rang out again, some in protest and others in agreement, nods, and murmurs flying rapidly as all eyes turned towards the two bristling dragons. The cavern seemed to take on two temperatures, an ice-cold one on the left side and burning like a furnace. Steam rose as the two temperatures collided.
"We wouldn't be setting things on fire if you Furies didn't build your homes on our stomping grounds!" The Monstrous Nightmare hissed.
"Stomping grounds?!" The Ice Fury snarled. "You aren't supposed to be in the Northern parts! That is the territory of the Ice and Snow dragons!"
The male dragon just snorted and rolled his eyes. "I don't see your names written on it. No name, free reign. You don't like it, leave, go join your relatives outside the borders... Oh wait, you can't they're all dead," The Nightmare snorted in amusement. "For you Furies being so strong and feared, you sure are dumb and weak if a little fleshy can kill you."
"You arrogant firebrain!" The Ice Fury shot a blast of ice, hitting the other dragon in the face.
Stumbling back slightly, the Monstrous Nightmare's eyes seemed to slit before a growl emerged from his throat. Standing up to his full height, he combusted into flames and got ready to pounce, the Ice Fury springing forward just as he did. But before they could meet, shadow-like vines wrapped around there torsos and threw them back into the walls on either side of the cave.
The temperatures died down as all eyes turned towards Deathslayer who looked ten times his normal size. Retractable teeth bared and sharp, four wings standing up and bristled as his red eyes seemed to glow, the shadows swirling around him creating an even more eerie effect. Everyone could tell he was pissed off as the feeling of dread seemed to have increased twenty-fold.
"Knock. It. OFF!" He roared. The two dragons scampered back in fear. "This is a serious matter and you all are proving the exact reason why I decided to not tell any of you!"
Guilt struck everyone as they all sheepishly looked down. They knew that they were all in the wrong when Deathslayer kept a secret, it was normal to prevent something like what just happened from happening. But they still believed they should have been told, that way they could all be on the lookout and ready to fight or leave if needed. Yes, it was a leader's duty to keep the panic on the down-low but it was also the leader's duty to keep everyone informed on something that might be there end if not careful.
"I should've told you, yes. But what would you have all done? Run? Abandoned everything we've worked for to keep safe? We're dragons. When did we become such cowards?" He dared anyone to speak. "You showed just now what you would've done. Run and hide, blame others, and start even more of a mess. This is why I didn't tell you."
More sheepish looks crossed the faces of the large group.
"I have troops out scouting for any sign of danger now, so far after our last attack, it has withdrawn into itself. Let us hope it stays that way. But in the meantime, observe more. If anything seems odd or looking like life is fading from it, alert me immediately." He looked around, voice full of authority. "It's weakness seems to be light, any dragon with that power I want upfront and center."
It was silent for a moment, everyone exchanging looks as if trying to seek out all those of light and fire. It made everyone feel a little safer knowing that, but there were some lingering doubts. If it was getting stronger, would it not become immune to the light?
"Everyone understand? Yes? Alright, meeting-"
"-Wait!" Suddenly a gleaming white-scaled dragon broke through the crowd, blue eyes full of panic. "What about Sunflower?"
"...What?"
It fell silent as curious eyes turn towards the female dragon.
"Sunflower," Lightglider buzzed in worry. "She's still missing."
Green eyes blinked up at the sky in a dazed off wonder, lost in thought as she tried to take in the rays of the sun that poked through the fading clouds. The air was moist, the ground still dampened from the storm the night before. She didn't mind though, it reminded her of home.
... Home.
She wondered how things were doing. Were Lightglider and Orion worried? Had anyone noticed her absence? Surely they did, she had made it a routine to stop by all the Furies and other dragons to check up on them and see if the guards spotted any danger that was a threat to their colony. She was worried that something had found a way in, slaughtering everyone she cared for. It was Lightglider she worried for the most, she practically raised the younger dragon and knew well enough that the Light Fury would do about anything to defend her home.
Even if it meant diving straight into a battle with no fighting skills.
She didn't know what she'd do if she were to go home and discover her little Light Fury friend had disappeared. It'd be Sunflower's fault if something did. She swore to protect until the day either female died, Sunflower determined to see that it was of natural death Lightglider died from and not some gruesome murder like she nearly had.
'Good job you're doing,' She mentally berated herself. 'Getting caught and stuck somewhere you don't know in a human infested area, might I add!'
She should've taught Lightglider some survival skills other than the blast, flap, and flea. Now she was really regretting it.
Hanging her head, Sunflower continued to mop and wallow in self-pity, pretty sure that if she were a Storm Fury another rainstorm would've been pouring. She didn't care how childishly she appeared to be at the moment, which she assumed she looked rather ridiculous.
Glancing at her wing she winced and growled as she moved it, "Heal already. Why won't you heal?!"
Flapping her wings in anger she let out a loud roar and sent a blast at a large rock nearby, growling bitterly as it shattered. Standing up she began to pace, wings dragging on the ground, her injured one being brought up as another spike of pain went through it.
"It's been four days. Four! I should be healed by now!" She stomped the ground, slamming her tail into a rock. "I need to get home! I need to- Oh, the human's back." Sunflower blinked, a little thrown off by the round thing he was hidden behind before a small growl bubbled out. "Doesn't this egg brain learn?"
Sniffing at the air she froze. Was that... was that fish? Dear sunlight, he brought food! She watched as he peeked out from behind his circle thingy, struggling with two large fish as he glanced around.
She was torn on what to do; Kill him or suck it up and get the food?
On one wing he was a human, the sworn enemy of her kind since for as long as she could remember. He was the one who shot her down and put her in this mess. He tried to kill her!
But on the other wing, he didn't kill her. And the Night Fury had more of the blame than the human. There was also the fact that the human kept coming back and didn't show signs of wanting to kill them.
'But that fish could be laced with something...' Her mind rumbled. 'Easy way to kill you. Lace it with poison berry juice and feed it to two hungry dragons.' The small grumble of her stomach had the female glancing down and blinking sheepishly even though no one was there to hear it. She was so hungry at the moment that she was really considering the fact of going over there because dear human gods she didn't think she would make it another day before she snapped. 'He wouldn't have poisoned it, he's too curious about us to do that. That's it! He's trying to studying us! That's why he had the magic pen and weird scroll... but, why?'
Now she suddenly understood... the human was going to try and make them tame! He was trying to turn them into human loving pets! Her?! A ferocious dragon! Turned into a pet?! With another rumble of her stomach, Sunflower only just hesitated for a second when she saw the human hatchling toss one of the fish out, feeling the strong urge to race over and snatch it up; but she pushed the feeling down and gave into her stubborn and wild dragon side.
She was wild, and that was how it was meant to be, how it should be. And no human was going to change that. Ever!
Scampering back, she hid in the shadows of the overgrown tree roots and peeked out.
The human stayed between the gap of the rocks for just a moment and watch when none of the dragons came out did he start to come out of hiding. Struggling for a moment when his shield got caught between the rocks. Sunflower let out a purr like-chuckle as she spotted the Night Fury sneaking up onto the rocks behind him. She found it even more amusing when he couldn't get his source of protection unwedged and came out anyway.
Even from the distance, she was at, the Sun Fury could smell the fear and anxiety floating off of him in waves; it was rather amusing in a way only a dragon such as herself would find funny. The boy slowly went over and picked up the fish, cradling the large body to his chest with the other one as he glanced around.
Totally unaware of the beast flattened out on the rock behind him.
The Night Fury's - she refused to call him by his name - tail flicking about as he crouched lower, eyes slit and focused on his scrawny frame. The Night Fury wiggled his shoulders, moving forward slightly in a clear sign he was getting ready to pounce.
Sadly, the snort and rumble had the human spinning around with a startled gasp, ruining his surprise attack and forcing the dragon to slink down the rocks and walk in a crouched scurry. He sniffed the air, obviously smelling the fish that had his mouth-watering.
Sunflower wondered if he would do the natural dragon reaction and attack, or fall into the hatchling's obvious plan.
Swallowing in fear. the human holds out the fish nervously. Sunflower sat forward, ears perked up as she watched the Night Fury tentatively step over to take it. Her jaw dropped as she watched her slip further into the trap. "... don't take it. Don't take it." The female felt like banging her head on a rock as she watched him slowly stretch out to take it. "... And this is why I always say females live longer than males. Usually."
Sunflower nearly jumped back when the male jutted back, a growl ripping its way from his throat as his eyes zeroed in on the weapon the boy had tucked in his belt. It took the startled human a minute to realize what had happened, but upon following the dragon's gaze, he quickly realized. Sunflower let out a small hiss of her own when he opened his vest and showed his dagger.
'It's the same thing he tried to de-heart us with!' Warning sirens rang in her head as she flapped her good wing slightly. 'Hellloooo! Dumb Night Fury, run! Why aren't you running?!'
She was sure if she was louder and more out in the open, the human would think she was having some weird twitchy death of sorts. In other words, she probably looked stupid.
She deadpanned when all the male dragon did was growl, the human backing up slightly. Hanging her head, Sunflower mentally mourned the stupidity of her race. Was this why so many of the Furies died? Uh... Probably. "... At least he's not like Orion... that idiot wouldn't be able to tell if he was impaled or not if he got into a fight with an ice dragon."
Orion was a sad excuse for a Fury.
Raising an eye ridge, Sunflower watched as the boy stiffly pulled his dagger out, dropped it, and kicked away into the water as the Night Fury watched his every action with a rather intense stare, lightning up when the weapon was no longer in sight. Letting out a small sigh of relief, the female couldn't help but wonder if the Night Fury was either brave or stupid... Noticing the small glance he sent her way as if he were trying to impress her, she quickly deciding he was stupid.
Turning her head she stubbornly lifted her nose up and 'hmmpf'ed' like one of those delicate prissy she-dragons that were all crystal and diamond wearing. She cracked her eye open and glanced over at the male who seemed to deflate a little bit at her actions.
"Oh..." The human muttered, following the male's deflating gaze. The rays of sunlight reflected off of her red scales, giving him a clear view of the dragoness. "... You're trying to impress her, huh? And she wants nothing to do with you... I know how you feel, I have one of those too."
The Night Fury looked at the human with a look that said 'Really? Who've guessed'; all though feeling slightly defended, the human returned the look with a shrug.
'One of those? What the moon does he mean by "One of those?"' Sunflower turned her head to glare.
Holding out the fish once more, the Night Fury slinked over and opened his mouth in an expecting way. The boy, in a look of bafflement, tilted his head and stared into the dragon's opened mouth. "Huh. Toothless. I could've sworn you had-" Suddenly sharp teeth popped out of his gums and he snatched the fish away. Devouring it quickly as the boy let out a startled gasp and jolt. "-Teeth."
Curling her tail over her two front legs, Sunflower raised her wing and covered the lower part of her face to keep her bubbling laughter at the whole scene. The human hatchling looks so startled as he cradled the other fish it made her shake. Obviously, he didn't know anything about Furies. Almost all of them could do that, some just prefer to have their teeth on display all the time.
The dragon suddenly eyes the other fish and the boy hugged it closer, stumbling back into the rock as the dragon pressed closer as if expecting it. "U-uh, no. No, this fish is for her. N-not you," He stuttered lightly. Sunflower flinched back in a gag as Nightstriker started hacking up his fish, coughing the lower body up in a slimy mess. "... Ew."
Sunflower suddenly became very aware of the other fish the human dropped. Her growling stomach having her glance down then at the meat with a lick of her lips. Squeezing her eyes shut, she pushed down her pride and slowly slinked out. Taking to darting to and fro from rocks she slowly reached the one the boy was pressed to, peering out at her treat with a small purr.
At that moment she truly did look like a cat; Ears perked up with interest, twitching slightly and she crouched down with a small purr like mewl. Her eyes sparkled brightly as she crept out slightly and swiped at the fish with her paw. After a few tries, she got it and quickly darted over to a rock bathed in sunlight where she sat; tail curled over her front legs and body and her wings tucked in yet puffed out in an almost heart type of formation.
She tried to ignore the fact that the Night Fury was feeding the human, indicating he liked him, and the fact that the boy ate some of the fish with gags in an attempt to please the Night Fury. Nether male seemed to notice the female as she snapped the fish up much as the male had. Now curiously peering over at the two.
Sure, she still hated the human, but she was also curious. Curious as to why he wasn't showing much fear around them. Why the Night Fury seemed to have taken a liking to him. Why he kept coming back. She wanted to know...
'He's not bad... I suppose,' She thought. 'I'll consider this as some of the payback for the whole trying to shoot me and nearly killing me thing. Still doesn't mean I fully like him though.'
He was her natural enemy, after.
Watching the human being forced to eat the fish pushed her curiosity back for now. It was amusing but gross at the same time though kind of saddening. Out of all the small fish they've managed to catch from the small lake he had bothered to try and feed her. N-not that she wanted him to, or anything cause that would mean he liked her and she would have to return the favor meaning she liked him back, which she didn't or she thought she didn't she was really sure because her small amount of jealousy said otherwise but still...
You know what? Just ignore her ramble, it was the hallucination from lack of food speaking.
As the Night Fury tried to copy the human in smiling, the Sun Fury felt her eyelids drop in a deadpanned expression once again. His gummy smile was not a crystal winning image. It slowly faded though as the boy stood up and stretched out a hand, the Night Fury quickly unsheathing his teeth he let out a ferocious snarl-growl mix and turned so quickly and flaps off, landing clumsily landing on the other side.
The boy watched with a look of defeat as the Night Fury he was now going to call Toothless blasts the mossy ground, stomping around on top before curling up. Sunflower lied down, watching as the boy snuck over while Nightstrkier was distracted with a bird. When he does notice the boy sitting just feet away, smiling in amazement, he layed back his ears and moved his body so he could block the human, his one tailfin covering his face.
It was then Sunflower felt a pang of guilt. She had been so self-absorbed in her dislike for both the human and dragon she seemed to forget that he had his own issues too. 'He's stuck here whereas I won't be when this heals...' She frowned, glancing at her wing. 'And I haven't exactly been nice about to either. Dear Moon, I really am as heartless as the others claim.'
Watching as the boy and dragon parted ways after the human tried to touch the Night Fury once again, she made up her mind. She'd try to be nicer... even if it meant falling for the boy's trap. As much as it damaged her pride and wild side that was screaming for her to blast him to bits.
In her moment of thought, she failed to notice the human's glance in search of something. His face brightening up once he saw her perched on her rock. The small pat on her leg and excited inhale of breath had her lips sucking in and eyes widening to the point that looked about ready to pop out.
Slowly tilting her head downwards the female scrunched her neck down in utter shock, jolting backward slightly.
There the human was. Petting her like some trained animal. The strangled squeal of shock had the boy glancing up and blinking sheepishly, a small ping of fear filling him when he noticed a strange glint in her green eyes. Letting out a small snarl, she used her bad wing to push him away, letting out a noticeable flinch and shuttered rumble as pain surged through.
Hiccup paused, taking note of her action and eyes immediately landing on her wing where he noticed her favoring it, a pang of guilt filling his heart as he knew he was part of the cause for the injury. He went to reach out a hand but the female took notice and darted away with a tiny growl.
Retracting his hand, he let out a sigh. At least she didn't try to kill him this time.
Sunflower couldn't help but stare curiously at the boy as he sat on the rock and used a stick to make designs in the sand. The sky was darkening into shades of purples, pinks, and oranges, signifying the quickly approaching night but he was still there. The human, who in his rambles earlier that day blurted out his name was Hiccup, had made it a point to follow her around the cove most of the day in an attempt to touch her again.
Apparently the brainless fleshly took her none vicious attitude as a go-ahead to pet her. And it was terribly annoying. The only reason she wasn't attacking was because she figured that he would keep bringing food whenever he visited, and in turn, that food kept her alive and strong for when her wing was healed just enough for her to leave this blasted island.
'Hopefully, I don't get kicked out for fraternizing with a human,' She rumbled mentally. Watching the human draw, she deflated a little. 'Lightglider used to do this all the time when she was little. I wonder how she is doing?'
Orion had better be keeping her safe otherwise Sunflower was not going to be a happy trooper upon her return. She knew she shouldn't be so overprotective as it was beginning to annoy the female Light Fury, but Sunflower couldn't help it. She considered Lightglider as her little sister and it made her want to protect her. But... apart of her wondered if this was fate.
Maybe Sunflower getting shot down was meant to happen for a reason.
Maybe this was to let Lightglider learn how to survive on her own. Maybe it was to show the Sun Fury that there were some good morals left in the human race. Maybe it was for her to find the last Night Fury. She didn't know but had a somewhat belief that maybe it was fate. Destiny.
"What is he doing?"
The sudden voice from her side had her jumping with a shriek, whipping around and gripping her heart dramatically. "You!" She hissed, smacking him with her tail. "What the hell did you think you were doing? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!"
"Sorry," He jumped away from her tail. "I didn't think you'd react like that."
"Sure you didn't," She spat sarcastically giving him the evil eyes. Her stubborn side kicking in once again. "If you must know, he is making pictures in the ground with a stick."
"Drawing...?" He muttered with a curious sound.
Shuffling over the male dragon took a spot behind the human, the boy taking note of his presence with a small freeze before he went back to drawing. Sunflower also slunk over, peering around the male dragon and at the ground curiously. Her face dropping into a deadpanned expression as she was the image of two dragons that looked suspiciously like the two of them.
One was a rather stiff looking male dragon and the other was a smaller one that looked like it was throwing a hissy fit over something.
'Seriously?' She pouted. 'Why am I always portrayed as the grumpy nag?'
Sunflower continued to sulk as the Night Fury watched on in a entranced state. He was very intrigued by this if the overly excited look on his face and little purr like croons said anything; his head tilting to the side while his eyes followed the stick. He suddenly felt the urge to draw as well, a spike of thrill running through him as he spotted another "stick" a few feet away.
Standing up on his hind legs, he waddled away like some weird flightless bird.
"Uh..." Sunflower narrowed her eyes, she and the human both watching as he grabbed the "stick" and dragged it over to where the two sat. He carried it in his mouth, dragging it around the ground where it left haphazard lines left behind in the dirt as he scurried around in every direction. Circling around Sunflower which left her staring in confusion. "... Uh, what are you doing?"
"Grr... I..." He grunted, stopping as if to examine his work, dotting the ground before he continued on, nearly waking the human and dragoness in the head, causing the two to duck. Sunflower let out a huff in annoyance as the Night Fury came to a halt, dropping his stick and nodding in approval with a purr. "... There."
Hiccup looked around in amazement. Just how smart was this species? Wanting to get a closer look at everything he began to walk, freezing as he stepped on one of the lines and the male dragon let out a growl of disapproval, pearly teeth bared. Biting his lower lip Hiccup raised his foot, becoming curious when the Night Fury stopped his growling and instead a cooing sound replaced it.
Looking between the male dragon and the line Hiccup steps on it again, electing a growl from the dragon and a purr like coo when he lifted his foot. Doing this a few more times Hiccup watched in amazement as his pupils enlarged when happy and shrank into slits when angry, ears laying back or perking up with each action. Planting his foot over the line, Hiccup knew he must've done something right as the dragon didn't growl.
Sunflower moved over to the rock the human abandoned, perching herself atop of it and stretching her neck to look at the drawing. It wasn't that impressive, it being a giant scribble. But staring at the amazed look on the human's face had a strange feeling filtering through her. Was the Night Fury trying to surpass her by amazing the human? Gain his affection by being all nice while it left Sunflower looking like the anti-human killer? She hated the human but she was NOT going to be one-uped by the idiot dragon!
Glancing at the scribble than the human's drawing then finally up at the human who was so preoccupied with not stepping on the lines, he didn't notice that he was approaching the Night Fury until he nearly bumped into. Hiccup turned around as a sort of hot air ruffled his hair, eyes locking with the Night Fury's he slowly raised his hand, flinching back slightly as the dragon growled with hesitation; turning his head away and stretched out his hand once again until it was mere inches away from Nightstriker's snout. With another moment of hesitation and ceasing of growls, the dragon looked between the boy and his hand before gently pushing his muzzle against it, eyes closed.
Hiccup gasped and turned his head to stare in amazement. After a moment the Night Fury pulled his head away and shakes it with a snort, staring at the boy for a moment then taking off in a flash. Hiccup could only stare in astonishment.
Sunflower didn't know what to feel at the moment; she had just witnessed the full act of trust displayed between a human and dragon, and although she herself wasn't one hundred percent sure about the human, she was beginning to see that maybe he wasn't ao bad compared to those others she had seen. And the Night Fury seemed to realize this - despite the small remaining amount of hesitation and uncertainty he held.
Looking back at the two drawings then the boy, she, very oddly, felt a little lonely and a little jealous.
Hiccup was about to turn and leave for the night when he felt a small nudge in his back. Turning around he stilled upon meeting the vibrant green eyes of the dark red Fury. He tilted his head in wonder as he realized she wasn't growling or seemingly plotting his demise; in fact, as she sat back on her hind legs, tail curled over them and head bent down so she was peeking at him, he realized how... sheepish she looked.
It was strange...
"Um, hello, girl...?" He wasn't one hundred percent sure if she was actually a female, so he let out a small sigh of relief as she cooed in affirming sort of way. Licking his lips, he glanced around before slowly stepping closer. "Do you need something?"
This was strange. Really strange. Having a conversation with a dragon who couldn't talk back to him at all. If only the other recruits could see him now, they'd surely call him a nuthead.
Getting down on all fours, Sunflower hesitated for all a moment as she reached out to grab a hold of his shirt and dragged him over to a set of lines in the ground a little further from the set he and the black dragon had drawn. Nudging him towards them, she backed off a little bit and sat there like a sheepish puppy.
Honestly, she felt ridiculous for acting this way, but this was the first time she had felt lonely and since the only company there was a pride ruining dragon and human who seemed to only see her as a... aggressive jerk. That didn't settle well with her, and- okay, maybe she was also doing this so she wouldn't get shown up by the male as well.
Hiccup slowly walked over to the lines and stopped as he reached it. Glancing at it he placed his hands on his hips and pressed his lips with a squint of his eyes. What... what was it? It was a big circle with various sized almost circular shapes protruding out of it, a long line coming out from behind the bigger one. In the corner, a little higher than the uh, bigger circle, was another one with squiggly lines surrounding it.
Glancing over it one more time, he let out a nervous chuckle and turned toward her. Sunflower had an expecting look on her face, looking at the drawing and the boy. 'He better not step on it,' She mentally stated. Luckily he didn't, the boy obviously not wanting to upset as he wasn't sure how'd she'd react.
"It's... nice," He tested for the right word. "What is it?"
Sunflower gave him a sort of bitchface before doing what he assumed a dragon groan of exasperation and huff before she stood and waddled over, pointing at the smaller circle than at the sky towards the fading...
"...Sun," He breathed. "I get it!" Looking at it, he nodded suddenly envisioning what she had. "That the sun and that... That's a star?" When she shook her head he tried again. "The moon?" Once again no. "Is it a rock?" Sunflower gave him a look before pointing her head towards a small group of flowers. Hiccup followed her line of vision then looked between that and the bigger picture a couple of times. "... flowers."
Looking towards the dragoness he found that she had planted herself between the two images, looking proud of herself. It took another moment for Hiccup to speak, his brain running a hundred miles per second. "... Are you trying to tell me that this-" He pointed at the pictures. "-is your name?"
'Yes!' She snorted loudly.
"Sunflowers?" He questioned. Scrunching her neck back she gave him a small shake of the head. "Sunflower?"
With a sharp nod, she gave a coo sound, grinning happily. Hiccup could only stare at the red creature in awe. He had no idea that they were capable of this level of intelligence. Huffing an airy laugh, the boy quickly jotted this new discovery down, mentally wondering if all dragons were this smart or if it was just this kind. Looking at all his collected research over as he flipped through his journal, Hiccup couldn't help biting his lip and looking up in hesitant wonder. She had drawn a picture and come over to him willingly... would she let him...?
Caught up in her happy thoughts of successfully one-upping the idiot dragon she didn't know what was happening until she glanced down and just froze like a statue. The boy had wandered over and was now holding out a hand to her. The dragoness freezing with a small growl that came out on instinct. She wanted to jerk away, to bite him, to do something, but at the same time, she felt... she didn't know what she felt. Eyes flickering towards his hand and back, she simply let her body move subconsciously as the boy did what he did ith the other dragon and turned his head, eye closed. Sunflower froze at the last minute, catching herself as she began leaning down. No. She couldn't do this. Doing that meant she trusted him - trusted humans - and she didn't. Not after what she's seen, what she's gone through, what all of her kind has gone through. Gritting her teeth she let out a steaming breath that brushed against his palm before turning and bounding off towards her temporary cave.
What was going on with her? She had almost let a... a human... touch her. Her enemy, the dragon races enemy! She almost betrayed them, almost betrayed her sense of good judgment because of feeling jealous and lonely. She had to be careful. She couldn't...
What had she almost done?
Author's Note: This story is also on Quotev, Wattpad and Ao3