A/N: I do not own HTTYD.

"DRAGON RAID!"

Dozens of food-stealing, fire-breathing, scaly-winged reptiles darted in and out of the village, grabbing any kind of food they could get their claws on and wreaking havoc everywhere. Villagers rushed to defend their yaks, chickens, fish and whatnot. Houses were lit aflame and the clash of steel against scales and claws were all over the place as the war between dragons and Vikings raged on.

Things appeared to be under control, when the high pitch shriek made its entrance into the scene.

"NIGHT FURY!"

"GET DOWN!"

*BOOOM!*

Watchtowers were blown up and catapults were blasted to smithereens as the infamous unholy offspring of lightning and death participated in the fight.

Here's my chance! Hiccup thought to himself, looking up from the axe he was repairing. I just hope Astrid remembers to help me distract Gobber.

"GOBBER! WE NEED YOU OUT HERE! THE NIGHT FURY IS TOO MUCH! WE NEED MORE PEOPLE TO HOLD THEM OFF!" Astrid's voice came through the window.

Thank Odin for sending this Valkyrie to be among us! I knew I could count on her.

"Hiccup! I'm going out! Man the forge lad!"

"Okay!"

Gobber quickly attached his axe to his stump and hobbled out to fight, leaving Hiccup to his own devices. He trusted Hiccup enough to leave him alone in the forge by now, as he had been able to stay out of trouble for quite a long period of time (because he was busy training with Astrid but people didn't know that).

As soon as Gobber disappeared from sight into the fray, Astrid popped her head into the forge.

"Ready to go, crazy boy?"

"I'm on it milady."

With Astrid's help, the two of them wheeled his bola launcher out to a strategic viewpoint and set it up. The Night Fury was extremely hard to see in the dark since it blended in so well, but it was a starry night and Hiccup was determined to make history.

"C'mon, show yourself…" Hiccup mumbled to himself as he took in his surroundings.

"THERE!" The shrieking sound of the Night Fury alerted the two youngsters of its presence as it shot towards a catapult, a bright purple plasma blast building up in its mouth.

Hiccup swung his contraption around, lined up for his best shot, and let loose.

Time seemed to slow down for Hiccup and Astrid as they watched the bola sail through the air, breaths held in suspense while waiting for the outcome of the shot. As fate would have it, Hiccup's aim was true as ever and hit the Night Fury dead on in the middle before it completed its dive bomb. With an agonizing shriek, it fell down into the forest.

Hiccup couldn't believe his eyes. I've done it! He thought to himself. No, wait. WE'VE done it!

*Whack!*

"You did it!"

"WE did it."

A quick glance around told them that nobody else had witnessed the amazing feat, but Hiccup couldn't care less.

"So…are you going to tell your dad and get a search party out there to look for it?"

"….No. Others could easily take my credit. Yes I know you will vouch for me babe, but who else will? I'm not taking that risk, not when I'm so close to making a name for myself. Hiccup the Useless will be no more, I will be a legend for generations to come! Also…I hate to come off as selfish, but could you not be at my side when I bring back my trophy? Because people will be sure to accuse me of stealing the prize from you. It's not that I don't think you deserve credit, of course I do, but it's just-"

"Hiccup."

"…I'm sorry."

"Babe, relax. I know how much this means to you. Of course I'm not going to take it away from you. Besides, all I really did was distract Gobber to give you the opportunity to take the shot."

"…I really love you Astrid."

"I know. Now you need to get back to the forge and make it seem like you were there the whole time. We'll go looking for that Night Fury first thing tomorrow morning."

"Ok, be safe Astrid. Goodnight."

The two bade each other farewell and crept back to their designated stations for the rest of the raid.

0000000000

(The next morning)

Hiccup could barely sleep that night, he was way too excited about finding that Night Fury and completing his rite of passage as a real Viking. He was still contemplating a way to make it up to Astrid for helping him out when he heard a faint 'pssst' coming from his window. Glancing towards said window, it was apparent that the sun had barely risen.

Guess I'm not the only one who can't sleep. He thought to himself

"The girl of my dreams at my window before sunrise calling for me. I am honoured, milady."

"Shut it and get out here! Aren't you excited to find that Night Fury?"

"Of course I am. Which is why…"

Hiccup, fully dressed and ready to go, leapt out of his window and parkour-ed down the neighbouring tree.

"…I was already prepared!"

"Alrighty then. Let's go!"

The two youngsters quickly headed for the woods, Hiccup leading the way using an estimate of where he calculated the dragon to have fallen. From the direction, speed, altitude and angle the Night Fury had fallen from, he guessed its location to be somewhere around Raven Point. After a short trek, they had reached the entrance to said place, and kept their eyes peeled for any sign of the downed dragon. The search was concluded quickly when they found a noticeably damaged part of the forest, and knew the infamous unholy offspring of lightning and death itself was nearby. Following the trail of destruction, they finally came across it.

A black, sleek form lay sideways on the ground, bound by a bola around its midsection. It looked so pathetic, so helpless, as it lay there; supposedly tired after having thrashed about for a period of time. Hiccup crept closer to the dragon, remaining on the cautious side as he wasn't sure what the dragon was still capable of. As he approached, the dragon appeared to have sensed his presence and began moaning pitifully. It cracked an eye open to look at its captor, and Hiccup noticed that it seemed…afraid?

This can't be, can it? Dragons are supposed to be vicious, mindless beasts that raid us mercilessly. So, how can this Night Fury being showing signs of fear? Hiccup thought to himself, and then decided to get a second opinion.

"Hey Astrid, is it just me, or does Mr Night Fury here look kind of scared?"

"Now that you mention it, it kind of does…"

"Do you realize what this means?"

"Uhh…that dragons aren't really all we thought they were?"

"Exactly…"

Hiccup stepped back, observing the Night Fury as it observed him. It gave a pitiful wail, then closed its eye and laid its head back down as if accepting its fate. The two teens stared at what was supposed to be the most feared dragon known to mankind, reduced to such a state, and as much as they wanted to feel that it deserved as such, they couldn't help but feel sorry for it. Astrid, having been trained to be a hardened warrior from a young age, decided Hiccup might need a push to finish off the dragon and accomplish his life-long dream. However, as she was about to speak, he had arrived at a decision.

"I did this…if I kill it here and now I doubt I'll ever be able to live with myself. I'm…letting it go."

"W-What? Did I hear you wrongly babe?"

"No Astrid, you didn't."

Hiccup turned to look her in the eye.

"I will not sacrifice my soul to Hel just to feel like a "real Viking". This…this isn't me. I'm not a killer, and neither are you. I've noticed you never deal the finishing blow when you're out in the fray. You may be a warrior, but more than that, you're a protector, not a killer. You defend the village; you only fight back when what you want to keep safe is at stake. You've defended me, all these years, from the constant bullying of Snotlout. As for me, I'm a smith. A creator. An inventor. I give life to things, not take them. If…if I were to take this life here today, sure, I'll probably get what I've always wanted, and probably more so, but I doubt I will ever have the courage to face myself again…"

Astrid pondered his words, and truth be told, she was awed. Her respect for Hiccup only grew as she listened to him, and she couldn't help but love him even more. Courage, he said. Hearing that word took her on a trip through memory lane, as her late Uncle Finn had once told her. "Man fears that which they do not comprehend. They are afraid of change, and that is the reason for their downfall. Many empires have crumbled through the centuries, and one thing they have in common is their refusal to adapt. To see things in a different light. Vikings like us, we are a stubborn bunch. Even now, I am sure we will die out soon enough if we continue on like this. I only hope that someday, one of us might gather the courage to be different. To stand out despite his, or her, fears of being out-casted. To consider possibilities, options, a new way of life, and begin a new era. It could be anyone; a housewife, a shepherd, a warrior, a blacksmith, a trader, you, or maybe even a hiccup. I may or may not live to see it within this lifetime, but I hope you will little one. Then you will have a brighter future with better prospects, where perhaps you will find a man you love and settle down with him, and raise children safely and happily without fear. A future where you need not raise a new generation of warriors to fight an everlasting war. Courage takes on many different forms, but I believe only the most courageous will be up to this test.

"You're really amazing you know that?"

"I try my best milady."

The dragon's eyes snapped open as it heard a sawing noise, and swivelled to find the source of the sound. While it was unsuccessful at finding out what was going on, it did feel the ropes around it becoming loose. Sensing freedom, it gathered a burst of strength and broke free of its confinement, then turned to find the humans who had freed it despite having apparently shot it down in the first place. Torn between anger and curiosity, it really wanted to kill them for causing it so much pain, yet it felt indebted as they had not harmed it any further and had in fact set it free. Still slightly wary of the two Vikings who stood before it, it gave a low, warning growl as it crept closer to them for a quick sniff.

"H-Hey boy…or girl? Can you understand us?"

The Night Fury sat on its haunches a few paces away and to their surprise, nodded. It was glaring at the dagger in Hiccup's hand and its pupils were slits. Hiccup noticed its intense gaze at the hand holding the dagger, and decided that since it hadn't made any move to attack them, there was no need for a weapon, so he sheathed the dagger and placed it on a nearby rock. Upon returning, he noticed that its pupils were now dilated and it looked kind of…cute? Who would've thought, the unholy offspring of lightning and death could look cute?

"So…you're a male I guess?"

The dragon nodded.

"You're…not going to eat us I hope?"

The dragon snorted and made a supposedly disgusted expression while furiously shaking his head.

"That's nice to know. Would you like some fish? I'll bet you're hungry."

Upon hearing the word "fish", the Night Fury's ears perked up and it began panting, looking for all the world like a cute puppy begging for a treat. The sight was just too precious. Astrid had thought to pack some food before heading out, and tossed a fish jerky she had brought to Hiccup. Hiccup then held out the fish towards the dragon, which crept closer to him. When it was inches away from Hiccup, it opened its jaw, preparing to snatch the fish up.

"Huh, toothless. I could've sworn you had-"

Teeth grew out from its gums, and it quickly took the fish and ate it in two bites.

"Teeth…wow, retractable teeth. That's pretty cool."

The dragon, having finished the treat, was now looking at Hiccup strangely, and then proceeded to regurgitate half of the fish jerky it had just eaten and deposit it into Hiccup's still-outstretched hands. It once again sat back on its haunches and stared at Hiccup, who was staring at the saliva covered fish jerky in his hands.

"Umm…I take it you want to share…?"

*Nod*

"You really don't have to. It's all yours," he said, holding the fish jerky out to the dragon. Its response was to make a swallowing motion. Hiccup could hear Astrid trying to stifle a laugh behind him.

Seemingly having no say in the matter, Hiccup tried his best to swipe as much saliva as possible from a section of the jerky, then took a bite and swallowed. He grimaced as he tasted some of the dragon's saliva, but forced the food down regardless.

"…thanks for sharing."

The dragon licked its chops.

"Say, can I call you Toothless?"

The Night Fury narrowed its eyes, appearing to pondering the name (or perhaps the idea of a human naming him), then decided it was fine and nodded.

"Alright then. Hello Toothless, I'm, er, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, pleased to, er, make your acquaintance Mr Night Fury. To start things off, is there any particular reason why you don't, um, seem to be interested in eating us?" Hiccup stammered out, unsure if the question was appropriate; especially when he was addressing a flying, fire breathing reptile.

Toothless' response was to swipe at his tongue furiously while making a retching noise.

"We…taste bad…?"

*Nod*

"Ooookayyy, does this just so happen to be your personal preference?"

*Shake*

Well I guess that DOES make sense, seeing as they don't take off with humans, just our livestock.

"So…things can remain civil between us I hope?"

*Nod*

"Alright, great. Well to start off, I'm really sorry for shooting you down. I was just, y'know, trying to make a name for myself in my village. To just…fit in, really. But that's before I realized that you're not just some mindless killing monster of some sort. Being alive and able to hold this conversation with you is proof of what I have just come to realize. This beauty here, she's my girlfriend Astrid. She's been the only person who has stuck by me through all my ups and downs; though it's mostly downs since I'm considered somewhat of a klutz back in my village.

Anyway, let's get down to business. I was hoping you could provide some insight as to why you guys raid us for our livestock. I mean, sure we all need to eat, but couldn't you hunt your own food? I doubt you guys are incapable of surviving without stealing our supplies, and I'm sure it's safer and less troublesome than having to fight us to get food. Is it possible for the raids to stop?"

At this, Toothless shook his head vigorously and let out a woeful moan, then shifted his gaze towards Helheim's Gate with a vicious glare. He then proceeded to regurgitate the rest of the fish jerky he had just eaten onto the ground, stood to his full height and spread his impressive wings, and gobbled up the food.

Hiccup and Astrid looked at each other warily.

"So…there's this huge dragon boss in Helheim's Gate that's forcing you guys to raid us to feed it?"

Toothless nodded his head and moaned pitifully.

"Oh man…that sounds horrible. Astrid, we have to help them!"

"And just what to do you intend to do about this Hiccup? We can barely hold our own against these so-called underlings, how do you intend to take down a dragon that other dragons fear? Unless you mean…"

"Yeah, I fully intend to get help. What say you Toothless? Do you think we have a shot at taking this big bully down?"

Toothless had appeared hopeful at first, but suddenly seemed agitated about something behind him.

"Toothless, what's wrong?"

The Night Fury looked devastated as he swung his tail around for them to see what had happened.

"By Thor's beard! Half of his tailfin has been ripped off! Oh you poor thing…" Hiccup regarded him sadly, feeling extremely remorseful for having caused this magnificent creature such pain. "I swear to Odin, I will do everything I can to fix that. I doubt you can ever forgive me for committing such an atrocity, but I hope you can at least give me a chance to help you. Will you accept my help?"

Toothless, although still extremely saddened by the loss of half of his tailfin and by extension, his ability to fly, had at the very least still come to the conclusion that the humans before him no longer held any ill will towards him, and nodded in acceptance. He could feel Hiccup's remorse practically radiating from his being, and decided there would be no harm in trying to cooperate with these humans for the greater good of both humans and dragons by taking out the Bad Queen.