Wow, I dont think my story has been so popular. I must say I'm touched.

I skipped the scene where Hiccup tells the whole village since that would just be a repeat of everything so far. long story short the village will tolerate Tannski. For now.

I step out of the great hall and sigh with relief. "That went better than I thought it would."

Astrid ducks under my wing and stands next to me. "I'm sure you imagined various ways that could have gone wrong. I'm surprised how well things turned out, all things considering."

"I'm surprised too. I was half expecting to have to use my shade to escape from there, flee Berk, and find a way to craft the Thunderspear without a proper forge." Astrid looks at her palm, probably wondering how she would fit into this plan. "Anyway, I should go unpack my things, we've got a busy day tomorrow."

Astrid pauses. "You honestly thought things would turn out so bad you packed in advance?"

"Yup." I unfold my wings and glide over to my house. Astrid yells something after me, but I don't wait for her this time. I reach for the latch and pause, noticing just how small the door is. I would have to crouch down in order to get inside. I keep forgetting how much bigger I am when I am Tannski. I stare at the door. It seems so unreal, even now. So much has happened in such a short amount of time.

I must have spaced out because all at once Astrid is at my side, panting. "What's wrong?" She asks after catching her breath.

"We did it," I say. Astrid doesn't seem to understand, however.

"What do you mean? Yes, we did get the village to accept- oh, I get it now." She looks up. "Want to go for a walk in the woods? Maybe visit the canyon?"

I consider it and decide to just sleep in the canyon tonight. "Sure. Would you like a ride?"

I squat down so Astrid and I are at eye level. Before she can realize what's going on, I scoop her up in my arms and take off.

Now, I've flown with Astrid before, but not with her carried in my forearms like this. "You comfortable?" I ask her.

She nods as I flap my wings to gain more altitude. "It's good enough." She takes time before continuing. I can tell she's trying to find the right words.

I suddenly realize that if any of the villagers were to look up, they would see a dragon carrying off a human. It would undo all the good that had been accomplished tonight. I quickly fly fast over the trees so this won't be a problem. "So let's go over the plan for tomorrow. We begin by pacifying the arena dragons and try to convince them to allow fusion with the trainees. Once they are willing to form bonds, we introduce each dragon to a trainee. Which dragon do you want to attempt to bond with?" I already have an idea which dragon Astrid wants to fuse with, but I'll wait for her to answer.

"Currently stuck between the Monstrous Nightmare and the Deadly Nadder."

This suggestion is not what I'd expected. "Really? You're considering fusing with a Monstrous Nightmare?"

"The setting oneself alight trick can come in handy during melee battles. I may even be able to wield burning weapons."

I pick up on the idea Astrid projects of herself fused with a Monstrous Nightmare. (I must say she looks great in red.) The image is of Astrid but covered in red spines and, interestingly enough, a pair of wings behind her arms with a second pair of hands she uses for stability. Then I see her facing off with a different dragon who I can only assume is an Astrid who decided to fuse with a Deadly Nadder. Nadder-Astrid is smaller than Nightmare-Astrid, but she is covered in sturdier spines that are probably venomous. The Deadly Nadder crown coming out of her hair makes her look like some sort of feral chieftess of the Bog Burglars. The difference in size doesn't make either of them any less terrifying.

Then the two hypothetical Astrid fusions begin to duel. The smaller Nadder-Astrid demonstrates the light(-)footed nature of the breed by dashing around and shooting quills at her counterpart. But Nightmare-Astrid does something brilliant when she plants her wings into the ground, almost using them like stilts, to lift herself off the ground and deliver a two-footed kick straight to Nadder-Astrid's center of gravity. This attack sends Nadder-Astrid tumbling backward. She eecovers and hisses in fury before taking off into the sky. Nightmare-Astrid is right behind her.

It's here in the sky the two Astrid fusions really strut their stuff. (I privately notice we're over the canyon, but I just circle it while I receive the battle Astrid is orchestrating.)

Nadder-Astrid shows just as much dexterity in the air as on the ground, if not more. Nightmare-Astrid, however, is also pretty terrifying in the sky. She actually sets herself alight and, using both her wings and burning scales, sends waves of fire at Nadder-Astrid. While none of the flames touch Nadder-Astrid, she's pretty bothered by the flames. Especially when the spines the throws get burned and blown aside before they ever make contact with Nightmare-Astrid. Nadder-Astrid throws several spines towards Nightmare-Astrid's face and, discreetly, shoots one lower, almost appearing to aim for her tail. Nightmare-Astrid, of course, sends a wave of fire at the spines aimed for her face and attempts to dodge the spine thrown at her tail. She twists out of the way and the spine just misses. It grazes her leg as it sails past her. An odd discoloration begins to spread from the slight scratch and I realize that this quill must have more than the usual amount of venom. I'm actually surprised to see it smoking. Smoke seeps from the wound as the poison eats away at flesh and muscle. The leg goes limp. If that quill had hit Nightmare-Astrid's tail as intended, it would have severely hampered her ability to fly. Nadder-Astrid gives a triumphant shriek as Nightmare-Astrid wobbles in the air. Dejectedly, Nightmare-Astrid comes in for a landing with Nadder-Astrid close behind. As soon as both dragons land, the projection ends.

"That was incredible, Astrid," I tell her as we settle down. "I can tell you've thought about this for a while."

Astrid blushes at my observation. "Yeah, I've been thinking about it for some time." She sits down on the boulder at the edge of the pond. "It's a given that the twins will fuse with the Zippleback. Snotlout will want something tough, like a Gronckle or Monstrous Nightmare, and Fishlegs will probably choose a dragon with a more passive nature, so either the Gronckle or Deadly Nadder. With the Zippleback and Gronckle guaranteed, I looked at the Deadly Nadder and Monstrous Nightmare. After seeing my imaginary duel, which dragon do you think I should try to bond with?"

I consider her question and play the faux battle in my head again, and notice which way Astrid appears to be leaning. "Try forming a bond with the Deadly Nadder first. If it doesn't feel right, you can ask the Monstrous Nightmare."

Astrid nods absently, but I can tell she's not really listening. "That sounds good. I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"See you tomorrow."

I head for the mead hall as soon as I finish my morning exercises. I sit down with the rest of my age group (all save Hiccup that is) and jump into the conversation. "What have I missed?"

Fishlegs turns to me. He has this odd expression of… okay, I'm not sure how, but Fishlegs looks scared out of his wits but also just as equally excited. "We're talking about today's lesson that Hiccup plans to lead."

I look at him, "you mean Tannski?" I put my elbow on the table and lean on my hand in such a way as to show off the gem on my palm.

This doesn't go unnoticed, but Ruffnut ignores it to ask a question instead "What's the difference?"

I try to think of how I can put into words what fusion is like, but I draw a blank. "I can't really put it into words. You need to have fused, to have truly experienced bonding with another in such a matter to understand."

Fishlegs looks like he's about to wet himself. I can't tell if he's nervous or excited. Maybe both? "When you fuse, do you just... disappear?"

I consider my answer carefully. After having come so far, I don't want to inadvertently scare anyone away. "You don't disappear, not truly at least." I struggle to explain something that I, myself, am barely beginning to understand. "When you fuse, your old name is just the name for your mind, heart, or hand." I gesture to my palm so they know what I mean. "Does that make sense?"

Surprisingly, it's Snotlout who catches on the quickest. "I think I get it. It's like being a member of a family. Each of us has a role we try to fulfill."

"That's not the exact metaphor I'd been looking for, but it works just fine." That was much easier than I thought it would be.

Tuffnut scratches his head, somehow looking more confused than before. "But if it's like a clan, what does that make Hiccup and his dragon… crap, what's the dragon's name again?"

Ruffnut slaps the back of his head. "Hiccup called the dragon Toothless, you idiot."

"Yeah, anyway," Tuffnut continues, glaring at his sister and scooting a little farther away from her on the bench. "What kind of relationship does he have with Toothless? Is there any kind of social expectations or regulations that are required to fuse with someone?"

It takes me a moment to digest the fact Tuffnut used so many big words properly before I answer him. "I'm no expert, but dragon species, from what I've observed, can be classified on a scale. At the bottom, most small dragons treat fusion as an activity you can do with your friends or even acquaintances. At the top there are breeds like Hideous Zipplebacks that treat fusion like some sort of marriage. Most dragons are sandwiched in that scale somewhere."

It's after I'm done speaking that I hear the scratch of Fishlegs writing down everything I say. He continues writing for a bit until he realizes we're all staring at him now. "What? This is new territory for the book of dragons. I want to catch up as soon as possible."

I decide now might be the best time to head for the arena. Everyone follows as I stack my dishes next to the teetering pile of unwashed crockery and give a nod to the two unfortunates who have dishwashing duty this morning. We make our way outside and head for what might be the most difficult step in our education.

Luckily, when we all arrive at the arena, Tannski is already there with five (well, technically, six,) pacified dragons waiting in front of him. Gobber is outside the arena, trying to appear casual as he observes the scene.

I project a quick greeting to Tannski, which both he and the other dragons sense. He turns to us, but before we enter the arena, he speaks aloud. "Leave all weapons outside, we won't need them today." I proceed to drop my ax in a barrel at the gate and make sure everyone else follows my lead. Once we're all inside, Tannski holds his hand out to me. "Astrid, you already have a gem, so you get to choose whom to bond with first."

I look at the Deadly Nadder and Monstrous Nightmare (which are conveniently side by side.) At first, I'm not sure who to try and talk to first, but then I remember what Tannski told me last night. My decision made, I walk right up to the Deadly Nadder. "Greetings, my name is Astrid."

While the dragon does not speak any human tongue, she responds with her emotions. 'Hello, human, query, memory stone?'

So she wants to know how I received my gem? Delighted to share the story, I project the memory of me saving Hiccup's life by pulling him out of harm's way and us accidentally fusing. She finds the circumstances quite amusing and chortles out loud. I've been around Toothless enough to know how dragons laugh, so I laugh along with her.

I reach out with my right hand, projecting a quick query. The Deadly Nadder pushes her snout into my hand and I feel the rough scales beneath my palm.

"Query, do you have a name?" I ask her. Her response is to show me a Deadly Nadder flying through a . But despite the shifting winds, she flys elegantly, and even appears to be enjoying herself. Making up my mind, I ask her permission to give her a name in my own tongue. As soon as she agrees, I speak the name aloud. "How does Stormfly sound?"

'Stormfly? Yes, my name is Stormfly.'

To any who are curious, in my story, the twin's madness is akin to that of king Bumi from Avatar: the last Airbender. there's a fine line between genius and madness. the twins like to play jump rope with that line.

R37uy: I'm glad you found it believable. not gonna lie, that chapter worried me.

Umbra Lycan: Thanks. I'm still looking though. glad you like the concept.

Jake: I know that. Like I said, I'm using a different approach. These dragons willingly throw themselves into the Queen's maw.

Eris: Like I said, the twins jump rope between genius and madness.

Guest: thanks.

Ryder: for now, Hiccstrid is non-binary. I'm not sure if that will change later but thats what they are for now.

your support has been a great help. Please dont forget to review or PM me if you have any ideas or suggestions.