Hiccup had about twenty minutes of peaceful travel before more moans tempted his ears. What was with him and suffering animals today? Still, the last one he had had to help hadn't been all that much trouble, and he got a great bath out of it. He might as well check this one out too.
When he saw what it was, shame filled him. It was another dragon, a beautiful crimson Monstrous Nightmare, twisted in a net trap. His heart lurched. Who would do this? He dove for the rope suspending the cage, slid his dagger out of its sheathe at his belt and neatly sliced through the rope. The net fell, releasing the dragon which promptly pounced on the boy. It dug in the claws of one massive paw around him, caging the prince completely.
But it simply sniffed him for a moment before lifting off the paw and racing off into the woods. Hiccup didn't know it was heading towards the Whispering Death it had smelled on the boy, and would also decide to follow him in the hopes of repaying his debt. But the information wouldn't have been useful anyway. But with the dragon no longer close enough to scorch him, Hiccup sat down and pulled out his provisions. He hoped that Toothless was holding out.
Toothless wondered the same thing about Hiccup as she looked out over the forest land, beneath a sky covered in menacing black clouds that threatened to storm. She was perched on the highest tower of the castle, the farthest away she could get from Thanatos without hitting the chain magic's barrier. He'd adjusted it since last time. She'd really hated the electric shock that ran through her when she hit it the first time. Some of the burns still hadn't healed, but luckily they weren't in too obvious of places. Thanatos didn't like it when his toys got damaged.
There was a pull at the back of her neck as the second piece of magic Thanatos had added to her captivity kicked in. Why couldn't he just call me when he wanted me, thought the night fury as she dove back into the castle. Now she had to feel that blasted tug like a collar around her neck every time he required her presence, and if she didn't come right away, the spell itself would pull her down to him. She preferred to go to her doom with at least a little dignity.
She flew through one of the open windows into what Thanatos called the throne room and she called "where you play make-believe." She chuckled at the memory of the first time she'd called it that. He hadn't been able to look at her without turning red from anger. He really had looked like his moniker. But at least the windows were big enough to get through in her night fury form.
The Red Death was sitting on his 'throne'. "Ah, the princess has sought fit to grace us with her presence. Now, if she will?" Toothless stripped off her skin and wrapped it around her now human body. "No, no, no. This won't do at all. A lady such as yourself requires more…elegant garb. Cloudjumper!" A man wrapped in a stormcutter skin walked into the room carrying something over his arm. "Give the princess a gown worthy of her station."
The servant held up the dress for inspection, but Toothless was more interested in the man behind the fabric. He was tall, but built more along the lean lines of her husband than the bulky blocks of King Stoick. His long russet hair was pulled back from his face in a ponytail at the crown of his head, and underneath the bowed head, his eyes blazed. Hiccup would have liked him instantly.
Then she looked at the dress. A bit more modest than the last one, this dress actually went to the floor with a reasonably high halter collar. Then he turned the dress over and she grimaced. The whole back was missing! But the Red Death just laughed. "You will dine with me, and I request you wear this. Unless you would rather not." She was about to reply that that's exactly what she'd do when he cut her off. "You haven't eaten since lunch yesterday, and it is now dinner time. I suggest you think a bit more carefully before dismissing me. Rest assured, Princess, you will not dine without me tonight."
She reluctantly took the black dress from Cloudjumper and went up to her room to change. It would do no good for Hiccup or her if, when he finally showed up, she was too weak from hunger to help him defeat Thanatos. She slipped into the dress and shivered as the cold air brushed against her bare back. Thanatos was going to regret this if it was the last thing she did. Lightening crackled outside her window and she hoped that Hiccup found somewhere dry to stay until the storm let up.
Toothless didn't need to worry. Hiccup had found a large cave and, thanks to the firewood he'd collected as a precaution against the weather earlier in the day, he was both dry and warm. Cooked fish were removed from the fire and he was about to dig in when a squawk sounded from just outside the cave. He stuck his head out and saw a Deadly Nadder shivering outside.
And suddenly the dragon was Toothless, waiting to be let into the warm forge from the rain outside. It had been only a few days before their four-month anniversary, so she'd probably been working on the necklace somewhere outside when she got caught in the weather. Hiccup had lifted up the tarp he threw over the opening to keep out the rain and she flew in, landing soaked on the desk. The Nadder needed the warmth no less than she had that day.
He went back inside the opening, and when it followed him, he didn't try to scare it off or threaten it. The cave was big enough for both of them, as long as the dragon kept its fire under control and didn't get to trigger happy with those spines. But his draconic encounters so far hadn't been all that life threatening, so he decided to leave it alone. He sat back against the cave wall and finished his fish in peace as the Nadder curled up beside the ashes of his fire and went to sleep. He joined it a while later, hoping that, wherever Toothless was, she was sleeping soundly as well.
Someone gave me an insane idea to turn my future Blue Eyes White Dragon into another form for Toothless. While I don't want to do that, it did make me think of a few things I could do with this story. The biggest one right now is whether or not to give Hiccup skin-changing abilities. He won't have to kill dragons if it's that way, but I posted a Poll so you can decide for yourself whether or not he gets to be a dragon.
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