Chapter 2 - Test Drive
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Tracks: See You Tomorrow/Test Drive
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The boy comes back with another saddle.
Night Fury tries to run, but there are only so many places you can go without flying. And he certainly needs his tail to fly.
Human is persistent, and the dragon slowly follows his lead. He's never trusted a man before – let alone one as little as this one – but he finds that Human would never try to kill him again.
And that, for now, is enough for Night Fury.
He allows Human to ride him and test the tail. It doesn't work most of the time, but the boy keeps writing things down on his notebook, determined to find the defect. His determination to help the crippled dragon is only surpassed by his willingness to connect with Night Fury.
Oh gods. So be it.
The little Viking isn't as bad as he would like him to think, really. It's just nice to remind Human who's in charge, after all.
In spite of Night Fury's attempts, he finds himself looking forward to their afternoons together. Not that he has any choice – he's quite literally stuck with the boy – but Human is kind, a quality often underestimated by Vikings, but that does not go amiss by the dragon.
There was one time that the boy's clumsiness got them to fall on grass.
Ah, the grass. Sweet green relief.
Human was really getting him stressed out. He needed a break from all the bad-conducted flying. So he rolled around until he fell asleep.
There was another time that Human touched him suddenly, and he nearly fired. But as soon as the scratching started, he lost all coherent thought.
Good nice this feels so –
Night Fury warbled in satisfaction as Human hit that precious spot below his neck. If it weren't for the boy's quick reflexes, the dragon's weight would have crushed his hand.
Thinking back, showing a Viking how quickly a dragon can crumble to the ground probably wasn't the best of ideas. But they weren't just some dragon and some Viking. Night Fury was a downed dragon. He couldn't fly. Human was a sort-of-Viking. He couldn't fight. Together, they were capable of doing both.
Therefore, maybe showing a few of his 'weaknesses' wouldn't hurt. Human had shown his by not being able to kill him, after all.
Actually, come to think of it, the dragon had yet to see one of Human's strenghts.
They decide to appear on the day of the test drive.
Night Fury and his rider are no longer attached to anything, and can fly as high as they wish. The boy has a piece of paper, and commands positions to the dragon, apparently forgetting that he is the one who's supposed to flick the tail.
As they fly normally for the first time – well, mostly it's normal; the boy can't seem to turn fast enough, earning an ear-slap from the dragon –, Human calls him something else entirely.
Bud.
That nickname actually sounds friendly, the dragon muses. Even Toothless didn't sound as bad as before. It's only a matter of time, getting used to a human-given name.
Stubbornly though, he calls himself Night Fury in his mind.
As they test maneuvers in the sky, all thoughts vanish. It's only the dragon and the clouds.
Well, and Human. But his shouts of joy and eagerness to go higher make Night Fury happy for sharing this amazing experience, albeit forced to in the beginning. He no longer feels he's obligated to carry the nuisance around; like it or not, Human is now a part of his life, and he can't say he minds much.
He can't really say anything, but that's not the case.
"Yeah! Go baby!" the boy shouts as they are soaring, higher than the clouds. Baby? Honestly, sometimes he just wonders why he hangs out with the child in the first place –
Suddenly Human's equipment decides to fail. He's detached of the dragon that, without his rider, can't fly. They start falling and it's gonna be painful, Night Fury just knows it - he really didn't want to die like this. Odin, the irony! A dragon killed by a fall! What was he given wings for?
"Oh gosh! Oh gods! Oh no!" Human freaking out is not really helping Night Fury's panic. "Alright okay, buddy you gotta… angle yourself! Okay no no no, come back down towards me, come back down to –"
Night Fury's tail hits the boy square in the face. Oops.
Well at least it makes him stop the frantic shouting. The slap makes Human snap out of it, and take action. He manages to mount in mid-air and take the reins of the situation, as literally as possible. The dragon's wings tear the sky almost painfully against the wind as they descend rapidly...
...and in the direction of some huge rocks. Just perfect. As if they were in some shortage of problems.
Human, however, throws caution (and charts) to the wind and flicks Night Fury's tail perfectly, seemingly reading the dragon's mind. His instinct was one of his strengths, it seemed. He got both of them up again in seconds.
The feeling of mirth comes to Night Fury with the adrenaline rush and a little respect for the boy.
"Yeah!" Human shouts happily, both hands in the air.
As soon as the dragon blasts, however...
"Come on!"