Disclaimer: Don't own anything but the slightly changed plotline.
The montage will be broken up with a [SCENE]
Hiccup carefully twined the thin rope, curving it through the tiny hole and tying it in a knot so it wouldn't fall off. He tied another knot before holding it up, revealing the scale he had kept, turned into a necklace, and he grinned.
He then turned his attention to his next project. He cut and stitched leather, hammered it out, and drew and shaped steel.
When he was finished, he laid his work out before him, wiping off a few specks of dust; he had made a saddle.
[SCENE]
Hiccup proudly held up the saddle before Toothless, and the dragon hopped into a crouch, and playful noise escaping him. He wiggled for a brief moment before he ran off.
"Hey!" Hiccup shouted, giving chase.
Toothless released what sounded like a laugh, cocking his head toward Hiccup teasingly as he ran.
It took about two hours, but Hiccup did manage to get the saddle on him.
[SCENE]
Hiccup clutched the handle of the saddle as Toothless glided above the stream of the ravine. He glanced back at the prosthetic tail fin, held open by a string Hiccup was hanging onto.
In an attempt to steer, Hiccup pulled the string to the right, but Toothless' tail jerked, causing their direction to falter, and Hiccup and Toothless let out a shout as they fell.
Hiccup flew right over Toothless' head, landing face first in the shallow stream.
[SCENE]
That night, Hiccup went back to the forge, adding a few pieces of iron and steel to the saddle. He used more leather, sewing it up until it resembled a large belt with two strings of leather hanging off of it.
Hiccup grabbed one of the strings, hooking the circular piece of metal at the end into one of the added metal pieces of the saddle.
He shook the saddle, testing out his new harness, and gave a proud grin.
[SCENE]
Toothless let out a roar as he and Hiccup flew high above the ravine trees. Hiccup let one of his feet hang off of Toothless, a rope tied around his ankle.
Hiccup clutched the saddle tightly, keeping his eyes on the prosthetic fin as he attempted to steer with the foot with the rope, letting out a few strained grunts.
He pulled on the rope with his foot, and the prosthetic flared out.
"Whoa, whoa, whoaAHH!"
Toothless lost his balance, letting out a shout along with Hiccup as they fell into the trees. Hiccup's harness slid out of place, causing him to fall off of the dragon.
He landed stomach-first on a tree branch, and he quickly scrambled to wrap his arms around it so he wouldn't fall. He glanced down, catching sight of Toothless, who was looking up at him from the ground.
The dragon was on his back, his feet curled close to him, staring at up Hiccup in irritation.
Hiccup only shrugged.
[SCENE]
"Go, Stormfly!" Astrid shouted in encouragement as the Nadder attempted to get some air time. Astrid ran after her as she flew high above the cove, toward the grassy field above.
Astrid gasped when Stormfly lost her balance, falling into the field with a squawk, disappearing from sight. She picked up her speed, spreading the long pieces of grass aside as she attempted to find the dragon.
"Stormfly! Are you-" Astrid stopped short at the sight before her, raising a questioning eyebrow.
The Nadder was releasing purring grumbles, rolling around in the grass like a dog, a look of pure bliss on her face.
Astrid picked a few pieces of the grass, looking down at them in thoughtful wonder.
[SCENE]
Astrid held up the grass, looking at it for a moment as the Gronkle head-butted Tuffnut, who flew back with a shout.
It suddenly turned its attention on her, and it quickly sped towards her.
Astrid cringed, glancing at the grass briefly before turning away, holding out the hand filled with grass, squeezing her eyes shut.
The Gronkle's eyes widened at the sight of the grass, letting itself slide along the ground before coming to a stop right in front of her. Astrid looked at it; its nostrils flared out, its eyes dilated, and it let its tongue roll out like a dog.
Astrid quickly began scratching the grass along the Gronkle's snout, and the dragon released a blissful sound, kicking its leg like a happy dog before turning over onto its side.
In the stands, Elder Gothi narrowed her eyes.
[SCENE]
The recruits quickly swarmed Astrid as they walked along the wooden bridge that led away from the arena. Their voices jumbled together as they tried to ask Astrid about the Gronkle; Hiccup followed from behind, the only quiet one.
"Ah, I," Astrid stuttered, "Left my axe back in the ring, so..."
She quickly twisted around, nearly colliding with Hiccup as she began running back to where they came from.
Hiccup stepped forward a little, glaring in suspicion.
[SCENE]
That night, Hiccup grinned a little as he watched Toothless. The boy had started a small bonfire in the ravine, and the dragon hopped onto his hind legs, releasing a few happy grunts, tilting his head curiously as he used his front legs to bat at a runaway ember. [1]
Hiccup used his axe to swipe at the fire, releasing more embers into the air, and Toothless crooned, falling back onto all fours. He cocked his head, his eyes wide, smiling as he hopped around, trying to catch all the embers at once.
Hiccup grinned as he watched, leaning back onto his arms.
His time with Toothless was the one time he was free of all stress, and he liked that.
[SCENE]
In the cove, Astrid stood next to Stormfly, smiling as she scratched her, and the dragon arched into the touch, purring. The bandages on Stormfly's wing had been removed, and the stitches looked much healthier than before; Astrid was certain that she would be able to remove them soon.
Astrid moved her hands around, catching Stormfly under the chin, and her eyes suddenly dilated and she went down in a heap.
Astrid looked at her; Stormfly groaned, looking quite blissful.
Astrid gave held up her hands, looking at them in amazement.
[SCENE]
Hiccup tossed his axe at the dark blue Nadder, and it head-butted it to the side, running after him. He ducked to the side, revealing Astrid behind him.
She cringed, dropping her mace, flinching back as the Nadder suddenly stopped, giving her a confused look.
Hearing a war cry, they both turned, catching sight of Hiccup, his axe above his head, running after the Nadder. Astrid blinked, confused; he was holding his axe sideways, so the flat portion would smack the Nadder rather than the sharp end. She blinked again, the moment finally catching up with her.
Astrid let a panicked expression cross her face before scratching along the Nadder's neck, quickly moving her hand down under its chin. Just like Stormfly, its eyes dilated before it went down in a heap right before Hiccup swung.
He gave the Nadder a confused look, panting, dropping his axe limply against his shoulder as he stared at Astrid.
[SCENE]
Astrid entered the Great Hall, walking passed the recruits' table instead of trying to take a seat. She really just wanted some time alone; she wants to be able to concentrate on Stormfly, believing the dragon would be able to have her stitches removed soon, but afraid that the weakened skin would rip easily.
She took a seat on the table next to them, and the recruits, minus Hiccup, immediately flocked toward her, their voices mingling together.
Hiccup's face fell into one of annoyance, and he smacked his cup onto the table as he turned away.
[SCENE]
Toothless purred curiously, his ear plates twitching, his head and eyes following Hiccup as the boy paced in front of him in an angry manner, his axe clutched tightly in his hand.
"I mean, I don't want to hurt the dragons. Especially not after meeting you. I just figured I could, you know, knock 'em out or incapacitate them or something, but not hurt them. But she keeps getting in the way!"
Hiccup released a frustrated sigh, letting himself fall next to Toothless, dropping his axe next to him, and the dragon released a small croon. Hiccup patted his head a little. "I mean, I don't wanna be jealous, but I can't help it," He said.
Toothless cocked his head as Hiccup lowered his eyes a little, his tone resigned, "This is the one chance I had to prove myself to my dad. But she's taking it away."
Hiccup sighed in frustration again, holding his head in his hands. Toothless crooned comfortingly, nuzzling his snout into the back of Hiccup's hands, and the boy sighed again, lifting his head.
He gave Toothless a small pat on the head, smiling a little, "You wanna try flying again?"
Toothless gave a happy grunt.
[SCENE]
Astrid held up her stitching needle, letting the sun reflect off of it, creating a tiny dot of light on the ground. Stormfly followed the dot curiously, cocking her head from side to side, releasing a few chirps as she kept her gaze on the light.
Astrid grinned as she watched her waddle around, glancing at her wing. The stitches were gone, but the flesh of the wing was wrinkled. Stormfly will have to wait a little while before she tries flying again; Astrid didn't want the weakened skin tearing again.
[SCENE]
"Meet the Terrible Terror!"
The cage unbarred, but only a tiny slot on the bottom of the door flicked open. The dragon was tiny, its eyes extremely wide. It suddenly flicked out a tongue, catching its eye in a manner very similar to a gecko.
"Ha!" Tuffnut grinned, "It's like the size of my-"
He was cut off when the Terror suddenly flew at him, catching his face, knocking him to the ground.
"AGH! GET IT OFF!"
The Terror chewed at his nose, but its attention was suddenly drawn to a ball of light on the ground, and it climbed off of him. Tuffnut rolled over, clutching his nose, shouting.
"Oh, I'm hurt! I am very much hurt!"
The Terror twisted around as it tried to catch the light, releasing a few curious squeaks. Astrid used the metal center of her shield to reflect off the sun, leading it toward the cage with the ball of light
"Wow," Tuffnut said as the recruits watched Astrid, rubbing his red nose, "She's better than you ever were."
Hiccup shot him an annoyed look.
The Terror crawled back into its cage, and Astrid looked behind her at the recruits, giving a tiny smile.
[SCENE]
Hiccup, in his frustration, violently threw his axe at the trees. It embedded each time, the throw becoming more and more violent as he went.
After the fourth throw, he snatched his axe free, jumping into a tumble before he shot up right, his axe ready to throw, but he froze.
Astrid stood in front of him, clutching her medic box, staring at his new harness curiously; he had redesigned it after he continuously fell off of Toothless, and now it created an 'X' over his tunic, making it much more noticeable than just the belt.
She jumped when she caught his eye before cringing and walking off.
Hiccup narrowed his eyes before he followed her as she moved into a jog, running behind a rock. He looked over the rock, but she was gone. Frustrated, he slapped his fist against the rock.
He shook his head, snorting a little in his anger before walking back to the trees, picking up Toothless' new saddle before running in the opposite direction of Astrid.
[SCENE]
Toothless released a few happy noises, his head stuffed inside a basket of fish. He ignored the tugging he felt from Hiccup as the boy attached a new rope to his prosthetic, dragging it back. The prosthetic flared with the movement of the rope, and Hiccup dragged it through a few slots in the saddle.
He stepped back admiring his work. He had managed to change the saddle stirrups into a pedal and pulley system. He had gotten the idea after looking at a few mast designs for their longboats, and he was confident it would work this time.
[SCENE]
Toothless glanced up at Hiccup for a brief moment as they hovered in the air, using the wind to their advantage. Hiccup had tied some spare rope to Toothless' saddle, and he tied the other end of the rope around a tree stump, keeping them from flying off.
Hiccup looked back at the prosthetic, glancing down at the stirrup pedal for a brief moment. He pressed his foot down, hearing the click, and the prosthetic flared out, letting Toothless gracefully drop the the ground on his feet.
He and Hiccup shared a triumphant look before the boy grabbed his charcoal stick. He used it draw on the small piece of parchment hooked to the saddle; inscribed upon it were several tail positions and their pedal position equivalents. When Hiccup finished drawing the current position, Toothless flared out his wings to let the wind pick them up again.
The wind grew stronger, however, and the rope snapped, causing the two to fly backwards with startled shouts, crashing to the ground. Toothless grunted, rolling onto his feet, and Hiccup released a surprised noise when he was dragged up a little with Toothless' movements.
He looked at the saddle, finding one of the metal pieces to be dented downward, trapping his harness in place.
"Oh, great," He groaned irritably, tugging at the harness strings.
Hiccup poked his head around one of the village buildings, looking around to make sure nobody would see him. Toothless suddenly poked his head out as well, his curious eyes glancing around the village.
The last thing he needed was to get caught.
Hiccup forcefully tugged on the attached harness string, dragging Toothless toward the forge. He looked around, making sure no one was inside before he let Toothless in. Toothless curiously looked around, sticking his head into a bucket and tossing it aside.
Astrid, inside the medic hut, digging around the shelves, jerked her head up at the sound of a crash. She looked out the window, her gaze drawn to the forge. She hopped out of the window, running toward the smithy.
Hiccup grabbed a metal file and stuck it under the dented circlet of the saddle, attempting to pry it open.
"Hiccup? Are you in there?"
Hiccup glanced up, sharing a panicked look with Toothless.
Astrid walked closer to the forge, jumping when the wooden windows suddenly opened up and Hiccup hopped through.
"Astrid!" He grinned, his tone a little off, "Hey! Hi, Astrid! Hi... Astrid! Hi, Astrid!"
Inside the hut, Toothless caught sight of a sheep, his head cocking to the side. The sheep saw him, its eyes widening, its jaws dropping, releasing the grass it had been munching on.
Astrid raised an eyebrow. "Are you... okay? You're acting weird."
Hiccup was suddenly jerked backward by his harness, and he let out a startled noise. He recovered rather quickly, giving Astrid a strained grin.
Astrid stared at him, her eyes wide. Now she was completely weirded out. "Well... okay, now you're acting really weird."
Astrid's eyes widened when Hiccup was suddenly pulled against the window so tightly that he was actually lifted into the air. He gave another strained grin before he was suddenly pulled into the forge, the windows snapping shut.
Astrid jumped a little, quickly opening up the windows, looking inside, but Hiccup was nowhere to be found.
As she looked inside the hut, Hiccup and Toothless quickly sprinted behind her before running up one of the village trails and taking to the air.
Astrid shook her head. "That was... really weird..." She mumbled before she walked back to the medic hut. She poked her head inside, smiling.
"C'mon, Stormfly," She said quietly, and Stormfly let out a quiet chirp, walking up to her. The weakened skin on Stormfly's wing had ripped, but only slightly, and Astrid decided to take her to the medic hut so she could take care of it real quick instead of putting it off.
Astrid gave her another smile before grabbing the rope she was using as a leash to lead Stormfly toward the forest to head back to the cove.
Astrid paused, glancing around, making sure no one would see them.
The last thing she needed was to get caught.
Oh, they were so close...! ;)
Okay, so not only was this chapter incredibly short, but I'm also alone for the rest of the day and have nothing better to do, so I may upload another chapter today, so keep an eye out just in case.
1) I got the idea of Toothless playing with embers from one of the httyd2 clips, which is called "Eret," or "Son of Eret." You should watch it; Ruffnut's hilarious, and Toothless and Stormfly are totally cute :)
And, as I said before, the only person in the stands is Elder Gothi, so when you imagine these scenes, try not to imagine anyone else in the stands, so... yeah.
Also, does anyone know if Eret and his little minions are Sami? The way they dress makes me think they are.