Disclaimer: Don't own anything but the slightly changed plotline.
I know the chapter title is lame, but I couldn't think of anything, so...
"So, why didn't you...?" Astrid murmured as she kneeled, picking up the large rocks that weighted the bola. She had decided to skip out on going to the Great Hall for lunch after hearing what Gobber had to say about the dragons; instead, she had decided to go out in search of the Nadder she had shot down, though she wasn't too sure why she made such a decision.
Dragons always go for the kill, he said.
Then why was she still here? That Nadder had done nothing but growl at her before scurrying off; it didn't even seem like it wanted to attack her, just intimidate her.
She wanted to know why.
Sighing, she stood, continuing her trek through the forest. Eventually, she came along a gap in the rocks that led to a large cove. It had a wide lake, and it looked like a spot perfect for scenery and relaxation.
The Nadder was nowhere to be seen.
Astrid sighed heavily, a little annoyed. She's been searching for hours now, and she still couldn't find it. It had flown away, more than likely.
She glanced down, catching sight of something shining in the sunlight. She knelt down, studying the rock-sized scales left on the ground. Each one was a swirl of daylight and sky colors, and she picked up a light blue one, examining it. One side was rough and hard, looking dull in the sunlight; the other side was smooth, still hard though, and shined like metal in the sun.
She squinted her eyes, looking a bit closer when something suddenly shot up in front of her with a shriek, making her fall back in shock.
It was the Deadly Nadder.
It was scrabbling on the rocks in front of her, trying to get itself up, but something seemed to be weighing it down. It shoved off the rocks, and, for some reason, only used its right winged forelimb to awkwardly glide down to the edge of the lake with a frustrated squawk.
Fascinated, Astrid slid down the rocks to get a better view. It tried again, scrambling at the rocks with its forelimbs before it slid down again, and, in its frustration, it shot some of its tail spikes, embedding them into the walls of the cove.
She finally saw the problem, the reason it wasn't using its left wing. There was a large tear in the wing, split very close to the middle, going a long ways up. It made the two sides of the wing flap uselessly, like a piece of parchment in the wind.
She watched it for a moment as it ducked its head in annoyance, catching sight of a few fish swimming through the lake. It snapped its head into the water, but missed, coming up empty.
Huh... so dragons eat fish...?
Astrid, trying to get a better look, shuffled forward, causing a few pebbles to fall over the side. The Nadder immediately looked up at her, and she froze, afraid it was still angry with her when recognition entered its eyes.
The dragon, however, simply cocked its head, regarding her curiously, and Astrid's eyes calmed, taking on a more curious look as well.
They had made eye contact for the fourth time since they met, and they weren't trying to kill each other this time.
That had to be a good sign.
"Why!? You had me right there, and you just let me go!?"
Hiccup sighed through his nose as he trekked through the woods, using his axe to brush aside any bushes or branches. He was attempting to retrace his steps; figure out where he was when he first found the Night Fury.
He wanted to know why it didn't just kill him. Dragons always go for the kill, Gobber said. Then why did the most feared dragon of the archipelago simply screech in his face before running off. In fact, it looked more curious than anything when he was able to keep its gaze without showing fear, despite his heart trying to jump out of his chest.
The offspring of lightning and death itself had spared his life. And that made him curious.
He stopped when he came upon an odd sight. The trees around him were scratched up, some broken, and the ground had claw marks running through it, as if a dragon had been using it as a take off ground. It seemed, though, that it kept failing to actually take off.
How did he not notice this last time?
After what felt like hours of walking, following the path of broken trees and upturned dirt, he came upon a large ravine. It was a deep, narrow, steep-sided valley with a stream of running water flowing along the downslope channel at the bottom; the stream had quite a few large rocks that could be used as stepping stones within it. From where he was standing, he could see that the stream flowed directly down a small cliff - like a miniature waterfall - and into another ravine; the second ravine was more rocky instead forest-like. Grass and trees surrounded the stream, as well as patches of mud; the hill he was standing on was a mixture of both mud and grass. [1]
The mud had prints in it; large, clawed prints.
He gazed around, trying to find the source of the prints; aside from said prints, nothing seemed out of place. It shouldn't be so hard to find such a large, black dragon; then again, this dragon was the top dog when it came to stealth.
Releasing a quick breath, Hiccup slid down the hill, somehow managing to stay on his feet the entire time. When he reached the bottom, he caught himself just beside the stream, quickly looking around again.
Nothing.
Hiccup rolled his eyes in frustration. "Well, this was stupid," He muttered bitterly, finding a large rock to sit back on.
Grrrll...
Hiccup started, releasing a sharp breath through his nose, jerking his head to the right. He let out a surprised noise, falling back from the rock and onto his back.
The Night Fury stood just a few feet away from him, its bright green cat eyes fixated on him. It was hunched over, ready to spring at any moment, its wings slightly folded inward. A growl rumbled in the back of its throat, seeming to never end.
Hiccup released deep breaths, his adrenaline catching up to him. Slowly he reached out a hand. The dragon's eyes snapped to his hand for a brief moment before it caught his eyes again, the growling taking on more of a warning tone.
Hiccup quickly retracted his hand, and the dragon's lips sealed shut, hiding its teeth from view. The growling went silent, and it kept its eyes on his.
The Night Fury kept his gaze for several long minutes before its eyes narrowed curiously. It began sniffing at the air before it looked back at him, its head cocked. It took a cautious step closer, still sniffing, and Hiccup furrowed his brows a little, having a good idea of what it was smelling.
He shifted, and the dragon jerked back, releasing another growl. Hiccup moved his hand toward his fur vest, and the growling increased in volume. Reaching inside, he pulled out a small bag, and the dragon narrowed its eyes, sniffing at the air again. When it realized the smell was coming from the bag, it shifted its eyes to it in curiosity, taking another cautious step forward, continuing to sniff.
Hiccup untied the string around the bag, opening it up and pulling out a strip of fish jerky; bass to be exact. The dragon cocked its head again, sniffing at the dried fish meat. It released a curious rumble, its eyes dilating, but only slightly, making them look a little less slit-like.
Hiccup held up the bass jerky in offering, and the dragon shifted, but did not take another step forward. Sighing, Hiccup tossed the jerky into the air, and the Night Fury quickly snapped its head up, snatching the jerky in mid-fall. It ran its large tongue over its top lip, releasing a satisfied noise before returning its attention back to Hiccup.
"You like fish, huh...?" Hiccup murmured quietly, feeling that speaking too loudly would ruin the moment; although, he was unsure of what this moment was.
The dragon snorted, giving him one last look before it walked closer to the stream. Hiccup watched in fascination as it released a concentrated stream of fire onto the ground, twisting around until there was a charred patch about the same size as the Night Fury before it curled up onto it and rested its head on its front legs.
Hiccup shifted, and the dragon's eyes snapped over to him, watching his every movement. He re-tied the bag of fish jerky before replacing it inside his vest. He took out the leather book he constantly carried around, as well as a stick of charcoal. He started carrying this book around after discovering all the wild dragons in the forest, the sky, and the sea. He liked to draw them, especially if it was a dragon he's never seen before, and capturing the Night Fury on paper would be a huge treat.
And, the fact that it was right there, just looking at him instead of attacking him, made that treat even more special.
The dragon watched him curiously as he drew it, hearing the sound of the charcoal scratching onto the parchment of the book, and Hiccup stopped, narrowing his eyes when he noticed something off about the dragon. He shifted a bit closer, and the dragon let out a halfhearted warning growl.
The left tail fin was torn and tattered, as if something had taken a large bite out of it.
He placed his book and charcoal back into his vest before shifting closer again, and the halfhearted warning growl turned into a real warning.
Hiccup held up his hands in surrender, stopping his movements, and the dragon quieted, its lips twitching in an attempt to ignore its instinct to continue growling at how close he was.
"What happened to your tail…?" Hiccup whispered, and the dragon let out a snort, turning its head away and bringing up its tail, using its good tail fin to block its face from view.
Hiccup stared at it for a moment before his curiosity got the best of him. He slowly reached out a hand, wanting to know if he could get away with touching it this time, curious about the wounded fin.
Maybe it got into a fight...?
Damn his curiosity; the dragon already gave a warning and he was still going for it.
By the time Astrid had made it to the Great Hall, she was soaked. A storm had started up as she was walking back to the village, and she hadn't made it back in time to remain dry. She reached out her hands to push the large doors open.
"Astrid?"
"Ah!" She let out a startled shout, jumping around to face Hiccup. He was just as soaked as she was, giving her a look that was both apologetic and amused.
"Hiccup, you're... not with the others...?"
"Ah," He shifted, looking a bit uncomfortable, "No, I... skipped out on lunch. But, I figured if I made it back for supper, Gobber won't be as upset."
"Right," Astrid nodded, "Right."
Silence.
Man, this was awkward.
Astrid glanced down, and her eyes widened at the sight of Hiccup's left hand. He was holding his axe in it, but it was covered in blood, oozing out from what looked like bite marks.
She quickly snatched his hand up, her healer instincts getting the best of her. "What happened to your hand?" She demanded, her tone a bit startled.
"Ah," He tried to snatch his hand back, but she wouldn't let him, and he released a hiss when she increased the pressure of her grip in an attempt to keep his hand in hers. She quickly released him at the sound, giving him an apologetic look.
"It's fine, it's fine," He tried to placate her, but she just gave him a stern stare.
"Look, Astrid, I went walking through the forest and one of the animals bit me. It's no big deal, and if it makes you feel better, I'll have Gramma Gothi look at it, alright? Now, let's just get inside before we get sick from the rain."
Astrid continued looking at him for a moment. Obviously, he was bitten; the teeth marks say that much. He didn't look sick or tired, so the animal wasn't venomous. The most he would have to worry about was infection, but Elder Gothi can handle that just fine. Besides, Hiccup was her great-grandson; she would give him the best treatment there is. [2]
For gods' sake, she even let him get away with calling her 'Gramma'.
"Okay," She sighed out reluctantly, and he gave her a little grin, leading her into the Great Hall. The recruits were the only ones present; the voyage to the Nest consisted of pretty much every Viking that wasn't elderly or young, plus Gobber and the recruits, so there weren't very many people left in the village.
"And where did Astrid and Hiccup go wrong today?" Gobber asked in a booming voice, his tone annoyed, most likely irked at, not only their tardiness, but the fact that they had skipped out on lunch.
Astrid had the decency to look embarrassed, but Hiccup simply ignored him, grabbing a plate with a single drumstick and a cup of ale.
"Uh, they showed up," Snotlout smirked, and Hiccup shot him an irritated look as he took his seat next to him.
"They didn't get eaten," Tuffnut added as Astrid grabbed her own cup of ale, walking around to the other side of the table to take a seat next to Ruffnut.
"We're never where we should be?" Hiccup offered, one of his smartass grins on his face, and Gobber let out a huff.
Ruffnut smirked at him before suddenly giving Tuffnut a swift punch on the arm, ignoring the indignant "ow!", the force of the punch causing the blonde to slide over. Ruff scooted over as well, leaving room for Astrid to sit to the left of her. Astrid gave her an amused grin before sliding into her seat, taking a sip of her drink.
"Thank you, Hiccup," Gobber said, his voice somehow both monotonous and irked at the same time. He held up a book, shoving food out of the way to drop it on the table, "The Dragon Manual. You've got to live and breathe this stuff. All we know about every dragon we know about." Gobber glanced up at the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance. "No attacks tonight. Study up." He walked out of the Hall, leaving everyone sitting at the table behind him.
Tuffnut, who had been trying to balance his knife on its sharp end, suddenly sat up straight, letting the weapon fall back, "Wait. You mean read?"
"While we're still alive?" Ruffnut added, a horrified look on her face.
"Well," Astrid grinned at her, "I very much doubt that you could read while you're dead."
Ruffnut simply snorted at her.
"Why read words when you can just kill the stuff the words tell you stuff about?" Snotlout said irritantly, slapping his fist on the table, causing one of the eaten crab legs to shoot into the air for a brief moment before hitting the table.
"Oh! Oh!" Fishlegs piped up excitedly, "I've read it, like, seven times! There's this water dragon that sprays boiling water at your face!" Snotlout stared at Fishlegs like he had suddenly grown a second head. "And, and there's this other dragon that buries itself for, like, a week-"
"Yeah," Tuffnut grinned, making a 'silence' motion with his hand, "That sounds great. And there was a chance that I was gonna read that."
"Buuut..." Ruffnut added boredly, "Now..."
"You guys read," Snotlout said, standing and walking off, "I'll go kill stuff."
Fishlegs started following him, once again going on about another species of dragon he had read about. The twins followed as well, trying to catch up and push each other down at the same time.
Astrid shook her head with a small smile as she watched the twins antics before looking at Hiccup, who was picking at his food; he looked very deep in thought. He was picking his food with his bloody hand, and Astrid cringed at the sight of it, afraid if he put off treatment of it an infection would take him.
"So, uh..." She tried, a little hesitant about cutting into his thoughts, "Guess we'll share...?"
"Hm?" He glanced up at her, seeming to not have heard her question. He glanced at the Dragon Manual, his face thoughtful. He suddenly shook his head, standing. "Already read it..." He mumbled, turning to leave.
"Okay, all mine, then," Astrid muttered before looking up at him. He was nearly at the door before she called out to him. "Hiccup...?"
He turned, giving her a questioning look.
"Um... your hand...?"
"It's fine, Astrid. Like I said, I'll just have Gramma Gothi look at it."
Astrid simply stared at him, and he sighed, walking back over to her and sitting next to her, letting his wounded hand rest on the table, blood still sluggishly seeping out of it. Astrid grabbed the medical box she always kept strapped to her belt, setting it on the table and rifling through it. She took out a small bottle and opened it up, glancing over at him.
"This stuff stings," Was the only warning he got before she poured some of the contents onto his hand, the liquid making his hand look like it was bleeding more than it really was, and Hiccup hissed, his hand locking up and shaking from the pain; a few bubbled piled up in the wound, and he could've sworn he heard sizzling.
"That," Astrid said, closing the bottle and putting back inside the box, "Was to clean it. When it bubbles up like that, it means you had something in there that could've caused an infection."
"Ah," Hiccup muttered as she took out some herbs and spread them along the wound, "Lovely."
"Are you sure this is just an animal bite?" Astrid asked as she wrapped his hand in some gauze, "Because it kind of looks like…."
Astrid trailed off, unsure of how to go about the question she truly wanted to ask. Obviously, she was taking too long to think, because Hiccup shifted, looking as if he wanted to leave, but not wanting to just ignore her.
"Hiccup, do you ever think that dragons... don't really hate us?"
He looked startled at her question, and also a little suspicious.
"What...?"
"Um," Astrid stuttered, kind of wishing she had just let it go, "Well... maybe they aren't... out to kill us like we think... or something?"
Silence.
And the awkwardness returns...
She glanced up at the sound of him shifting, and she saw that he had scooted a bit closer to her, looking to be deep in thought again, his eyes on the table. The light in the room began to fade as the fires began to burn out, until all that was left were the two candles on the table where they sat. "I don't know, Astrid," He murmured, "Maybe they aren't."
She didn't expect Hiccup to look up just then, and she realized just how close he had gotten to her. Their faces were just inches apart, and she would have jumped back or pushed him back if it weren't for his eyes. She never noticed how green they were before, and looking into them was like looking into a sea of confusion; she didn't think that 'lost' was something that could be seen.
To her embarrassment, she felt herself falter when his warm breath mixed with hers. Her face felt hot, and she knew it was beginning to turn pink.
"Um..." Why was she whispering? "What if I can't kill a dragon?"
He stared at her, and she wanted to look away from his intense gaze, but found that she couldn't. "Can't or won't?" He whispered back, and she furrowed her brows at the question as he suddenly stood and turned, walking back towards the doors.
Can't or won't...?
She glanced up, starting at the sight of him opening up the doors. "Ah, okay!" She called out to him, "So, I'll see you," the doors slammed shut, "tomorrow..."
Can't or won't?
Astrid took a seat at the recruits' table, using the two candles as a source of light. By the time Hiccup had left her to herself, the lights in the room had been completely burned out, and she would be completely lost if it weren't for the two candles at the table.
She opened the book, looking at the contents.
"Dragon classifications..." She read aloud, her voice quiet, "Strike Class, Fear Class, Mystery Class..." Astrid shrugged, turning through the pages to find the dragon she was looking for specifically.
"Deadly Nadder, Deadly Nadder, Deadly Nadder..." She mumbled to herself as she flipped through the pages.
She stopped when the one she was looking for caught her eye.
"The Deadly Nadder..." She murmured, reading, "Size Medium, Attack 10, Speed 8, Armor 16, Firepower 18, Venom 16, Jaw Strength 5, Stealth 10, Shot Limit 6..." She sighed, shaking her head; that wasn't the kind of information she needed. She looked back at the page, trying to find something else to read. She read aloud again.
"The Deadly Nadder is one of the most beautiful dragons in the world. It is easily recognized by the brilliant yellow spikes that cover it head to tail. This colorful dragon is active any time of the day or night. Nadders are quick and agile in the air and can fly for long distances, but will almost always land before attacking. Nadders travel and raid in groups, making them especially dangerous. The Deadly Nadder isn't the largest or fastest dragon, but it possesses the hottest fire in the dragon world. The blast of a Nadder can melt steel, or turn a man to ash in seconds. But the dangers of the Nadder don't stop there. The tail of the Nadder can be whipped around, releasing a volley of giant, poisonous spikes that can penetrate trees, walls, and Vikings. Extremely dangerous. Kill on sight."
Astrid stared at the page for a moment, gaining plenty of information about the dragon she shot, and yet, somehow, gaining none at all. She flipped through the pages again, reading the small glimpses she caught as she turned them.
"Extremely dangerous... kill on sight... Gronkle... Zippleback... Skrill... Boneknapper... Whispering Death... burns its victims, buries its victims, chokes its victims, turns its victims inside out... extremely dangerous, extremely dangerous, kill on sight, kill on sight, kill on sight-"
Astrid abruptly stopped when she reached the final page of the book. It was completely blank aside from the title and a few words at the bottom.
"Night Fury..." She whispered, "Speed Unknown. Size Unknown. The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Never engage this dragon. Your only chance, hide and pray it does not find you."
Astrid stared at the page for a long moment, slowly lifting a hand to her chin, resting her elbow on the table, her eyes never leaving the page.
"Huh... I wonder what would've happened... if I had actually caught you..."
Aw, Hiccstrid moment :)
And poor Hiccup; Toothless snapped at him.
1) A ravine is a deep, narrow steep-sided valley formed by running water (some people might know this, but I actually didn't myself, so I decided to put this in here). If you want a better picture in your head, simply type in 'forest ravines' in the google image search; I used a picture depicting a forest surrounding a stream that was filled with rocks, a picture depicting a stream with a fallen tree that had a rather large hill leading to it, and a picture depicting a ravine with a miniature waterfall.
2) After looking up some Viking culture, I discovered that there was a select few Viking villages that practiced this tradition. When the chief, should he live that long, became too old and passed on his title to his successor, he and his wife would be considered village elders. I've seen a few fanfictions that decide to make Elder Gothi Hiccup's grandmother, and I decided to do it as well using that practice; only, she's Hiccup's great grandmother in this one as opposed to just his regular grandmother. I really like her as Hiccup's grandmother :)
Also, I know it's spelled 'Grandma,' but I call my grandmother 'Gramma,' so I decided to make Hiccup do that, too.
Okay, hope you enjoyed this chapter. I felt that the movie and the series didn't really do much with Astrid and Hiccup, so I'm attempting to fix that by adding in a few moments :)