This chapter takes place during Episodes 4, 5, and 6 of the show "Riders of Berk" however most of these events (and some are AU of the originals by the way) will be glanced upon and won't be focused deeply as other episodes in previous chapters except for episode 6, which plays a huge part in a later chapter.

Brothers

Chapter 20: A Series of Fortunate, and Unfortunate, Events

About a day or so after Snoggletog had passed, I found myself learning Norse again from Hiccup in the forge. This time, however, the larger Night Fury, Toothless, had joined us. The dragon appeared very curious to see just what all the fuss was about.

To him: it made sense for humans to have written language, but dragons…now that was odd. Even if I used to be human, Toothless found it odd that I was SO EAGER to learn Hiccup's language. Then again, he figured I wanted to feel as human as possible, and this avenue proved his theory.

And so, he sat next to Hiccup and me, leaning over to watch Hiccup write on a sheet of paper to me. I tried my best to follow his instructions, but it proved hard. Some letters were similar but being able to remember the grammar and spelling, plus on top of my nearly "useless" paws, progress slowed down considerably.

Haddock appeared frustrated, especially when he sees just how sloppy my handwriting is…it's NOT my fault…I mean…if I HAD hands this would be easier, damn it!

I'll say it loudly and for the record: I MISS MY THUMBS!

Suddenly, though, an idea washed over the Viking teen, and the boy grinned. It takes a day and a half, but he came up with an ingenious way to help with my messy writing. He used the forge to construct a device that I can use to write better.

How did it work? Once it was finished, he explained quickly and carefully: first, he fitted the device to my right arm and then handed me the lever from the base that I can put my paw in, albeit with effort of course. All I had to do was hold the lever down inside and voila! At the other end of the device was the pencil and all I had to do was carefully guide the metallic "prosthetic" along with the sheet of paper.

The result? Well, let's just say I had to get used to it, but now I could write much better than before. Though, a lot of work would have to be done until I get better or even good at writing in this dragon body. For the moment, however, it was a TRIUMPH for both Hiccup and me.

Toothless couldn't help but lick his rider as a 'thank you' after seeing it all play out. I must say, it feels good to have Hiccup around for these inventions and I couldn't help but thank him also with an affectionate lick of my own toward his face.

That night, once the three of us grew tired, I hop on my bed to fall asleep; however, Haddock catches sight of something next to me. He squints his eyes and sees a round object next to my paws…a bronze medallion. It's the gift that Toothless gave me on Snoggletog that used to belong to him. The human scratches his chin before making his way to me, "hey buddy, what's that you got there?"

I look up toward Haddock and then to the bronze item and I move it closer to him so he can inspect it. He grabs it with a hand and examines it, "hmm…where did you get this?"

I point over to Toothless who wags his tail and warbles to the rider like an adorable canine.

Hiccup smiles, noting the hole at the top of the medallion. He steps away and grabs a small leathery chain from his desk. Sure enough, he fits the chain through the hole and then walks back to me. I tilt my head as Toothless moves in to check on what Haddock had done with it.

Now the medallion appeared more like a necklace that I could wear around my neck. The boy brandishes it in front of me, "what do 'ya think, little bud?"

I nodded, loving the idea! And so, he reaches over and wraps the medallion around my neck where it rests firmly. I look back to the human, tail wagging in response, "thanks, Hiccup!" I warbled.

"Glad you like it" Hiccup patted me on the side.

The other Night Fury sniffs it and smiled without any teeth. He appeared just as happy to see it this way…he liked the idea of me showing it off to everyone in the village. Toothless figured it would allow me to look more "unique."

Anyways, I lie down again and surrender myself to sleep, appreciating what Haddock had done for me. I am liking the medallion more and more each day, and now I'll be able to take it anywhere I want!

Eventually, the others would notice me wearing the necklace. The Viking teens appeared to like it while their dragons were more confused. Eventually, however, the reptiles would slowly appreciate it more as time passed by.

Life sure is good right now…

Life isn't good right now…

Days pass, and with winter came long stretches of darkness. Going into the new year, it is completely dark and cold, with no sunlight for DAYS. This brought snow and more snow, colder temperatures, and barely any light in our daily activities. It's obvious Berk is above the Arctic Circle, and this is a yearly event lasting for weeks, and it affected me greatly.

Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse with winter up in this region, I found myself longing to see the sun again…feeling it would never rise again. It felt suffocating at times, to say the least. Of course, one day it will…but when…I wasn't sure.

Despite the seasonal gloom and doom, I tried to keep myself busy by doing menial tasks around Berk and trying to learn Norse from Hiccup. Although it proved more ambitious than I previously thought…why…because no thumbs that's why. Not having human hands tends to complicate things, even with Hiccup's invention. I suppose it could be worse, and I AM making some progress so I shouldn't complain honestly. Toothless would just watch from the sidelines: focusing intently on my handwriting. For him, he knew if I could learn the language of Vikings…maybe I would share my knowledge with the other dragons. Tooth would do ANYTHING to have me teach him for the sake of being able to communicate with Hiccup.

More days pass and soon enough…sunlight finally begins breaking through the horizon. Though initially, it is just a bluish hue, it's a sign that winter is entering its latter portion, thankfully.

After about two to four weeks since the end of Snoggletog, I saw the sun rise again for the first time in days…and it was a magnificent sight to behold…

I stood over a cliff, watching such a moment I took for granted happen again. I felt an overwhelming sense of relief and hope. It felt good to feel the heat of the sun and this feeling felt stronger now that I'm a cold-blooded reptile. It made sense after all: reptiles usually bask in the sun and whatnot.

It would be a while, however, until the sun would be as high in the sky as it was earlier in winter.

Still, there is light out again and activities soon returned to where they were Pre-Snoggletog.

Some things happened these past few days that I'm going to summarize as best as I can: first, we found a new species of dragon…the riders called it: Typhoomerang, a baby one of course, and let me say this…Toothless was less than thrilled to have had them around. A bit of misunderstanding transpired that led to the Night Fury being blamed for some things that happened. Eventually, the issue is resolved, and the hatchling named "Torch" is reunited with its siblings and mother.

Next, a few days later, the lesson that the teens learned at the time was about the trust between dragons and their humans. You see, Mildew, by this point, took it upon himself to try and rid of dragons from Berk once and for all…no surprise there…

Anyway, the Vikings found their possessions stolen and their property vandalized…presumably by a dragon, and Mildew used this to win favor over him, but Hiccup tried his best to discover the truth behind everything. Unfortunately, things got worse when Toothless, yet again, gets blamed for something he didn't do, and thus everything escalates. Stoick the Vast decides to banish every dragon to Dragon Island, much to Mildew's joy.

The next day we were all led to the partially destroyed volcano and left there by the humans. The Ex-Queen and her dragon enclave quickly hid from the Vikings, feeling dread fill their blood. Soon enough, however, it's just the dragons and me on the island.

Hiccup, still not giving up on us, decided that he would try to find the truth in the meantime. Once the ship carrying the teens left shore, Toothless and I looked behind us to see the Queen and her fellow dragons emerge from the inside, looking down toward us.

"How peculiar…" she muttered.

Toothless, and the other dragons, said nothing. I stood there…wondering what to do. Eventually, in my heart, I knew what to do…

The Queen secretly created a mental link between her, Toothless, and me. I shared my thoughts: of how this was all a sham caused by somebody on Berk and the other Night Fury agreed. With my communication skills improving, I decide to return to Hiccup and share my theory with him. The others did not object.

"I'll do my best…" I left the island, alone.

Toothless never stopped looking away, sighing deeply, "go get 'em you two" he whispered under his breath.

To make a long story short, I found Hiccup and drew a figure for him: figuring that it was Mildew who framed the dragons. Sure enough, the two of us ended up on the old man's roof. After the latter had left with his sheep, Fungus, to who knows where…Hiccup and I sprang into action! We entered the Viking's home and soon enough found proof of the man's role in recent events.

"I…don't believe it…though why am I surprised…" Haddock muttered before petting my head, "good job, boy, come on, let's go!"

Before Mildew and Fungus could return, we took the evidence to Stoick who couldn't believe his eyes at the treachery.

Unfortunately, around the same time, a group of men following a tyrant by the name of Alvin the Treacherous had invaded Berk by nightfall. In that time, however, Hiccup and the other teens were able to reunite with their dragons and defend the island from the strange invaders.

It would be the first confrontation between human tribes that I would witness during my time in this world…

"Alvin" and his band of outcasts had descended upon the village: they found the armory destroyed and assumed the Berkians were defenseless; however, as they moved deeper, we surprised them all!

The dragon riders and I spring into action, taking out the group one by one. Some were ambushed by Stoick and the adult Vikings.

"There ARE dragons here!"

"Those are Vikings on their backs!"

Some of the foes had cried out amidst all the confusion.

Alvin yelled in frustration, "which one of you is the Dragon Conqueror!?"

Hiccup thought about what he said and soon enough landed next to them, with his dragon snarling at the intruder, "that would be me…"

"You…Stoick's boy!?" The warrior exclaimed in shock.

"And I prefer the term…Dragon Trainer!"

The Outcast yells in response, charging at the duo with his weapon.

"Now!"

Toothless blasted the ground beneath the man, and the dust in the air obscured their vision. One Outcast tries to move blindly through the dust shroud, but I get in the way…using my small body to make them trip and fall.

Alvin retaliates but is slapped away by Tooth's tail and an enraged Stoick soon engages in a fistfight with his rival. Meanwhile, I took some rope with my mouth and ensnared an outcast member before I heard a loud shout from behind, "Flint!"

I look back before my pupils shrink in dread. I barely dodge and avoid death before Toothless jumps in and smacks the human foe away.

Momentarily breathing a sigh, I mutter a "thank you" to my savior.

The dragon nodded, soon growling towards the remaining enemies. Stoick punches Alvin away toward the latter's men. He staggers back, blood pooling from his mouth and nose. He looks up to see the Berkians and their dragons all staring him down fiercely. Before he or anyone in his group can retaliate, they are all subdued by nets and rope from the Vikings.

"It's over" the Chief of Berk said to them as Hiccup made it to his father.

"It's NEVER over, Stoick! I promise this…we'll be back!"

"If you so much as step on my island again, I won't be so merciful again" Vast narrowed his eyes and growled to the man, "now get going, the whole 'lot of 'ya!" The adult turns to his son and his Night Fury, "son, make sure they LEAVE our island and STAY gone."

"You got it, dad. Come on, guys" Haddock gestures to the group.

Not too long after, we were overlooking a cliff, carefully watching the hostile human tribe leave the shores of Berk.

As the humans talk amongst themselves and the other dragons continue watching over the cliff, I snort in response to the Outcasts leaving, "good riddance…"

Toothless looks down at me, lowering his head to meet mine, "are you okay" he asked with a deep warble.

"I'm alright…" I couldn't help but laugh a bit at what happened, "those were some…interesting moves you did back there. I didn't know you could fight like that" I tilt my head in curiosity, a manner like when he does, and he nodded back.

"I ought to teach you, Flint" Toothless replied.

"Oh boy…I guess I'm going to learn martial arts in this body!" I said quite sarcastically, but of course, he didn't follow what I had said. Nevertheless, he nudged me in response, "I do want you to be able to defend yourself in case we run into those buffoons again…I doubt that'll be the last time we'll see them."

"What, my dragon breath isn't enough?" I raised an eyebrow in slight confusion.

"And what if you run out of shots…then what?" Toothless made a GOOD point, a bloody good point.

"Touché" I nodded, "well…I'm open to learning anytime."

"We'll start in the morning, that means you BETTER be up BEFORE me!" The teenage Night Fury poked at my side, almost jokingly…though it felt more like a threat…Night Furies can be scary I'm telling you!

"Fine" I roll my eyes at him.

He chuckled in response, soon bringing me in to rub my head with his paw, "come on, where's the enthusiasm!?"

"Alright, alright…it's there!" I barked back before he lets go and laughs.

Soon after the whole fiasco, Mildew is taken to jail for his mischievous antics as the rest of us heave a satisfying sign of relief. Soon enough, things went back to normal in the village…as normal as an island filled with Vikings and Dragons go 'ya know...heh…

A day later, Toothless and I went into the forest adjacent to Berk so he can teach me how to fight in this body.

I sat on top of a small boulder as he stood across from me, beginning his lessons: first…he explained how we could use our wings to smack away opponents or shield allies.

"Wait, we can use our wings to protect others?" I raise an eyebrow.

He nodded, smiling back, "cool, right?"

I laughed when he said that word and he couldn't help but snicker too, "what?"

"Just you saying 'cool', it doesn't sound right."

"Well, I learned it from you" he smirked.

"Yea…" I folded my arms, "so…I've seen you smack away dragons and humans with that tail of yours also," I jump down from the boulder to meet his greenish gaze, "so I assume we can use them like whips?"

"Yes, just be VERY careful…you wouldn't want your tail or one of your tailfins to be cut off as mine did…" Toothless deadpanned.

"Right…"

Suddenly, he started circling me, "I figured we would start by dodging because believe it or not…playing a defensive stance may be your best chance at winning."

I remained silent, eyeing him carefully. He took notice of my confused look but continued, "Night Furies are agile dragons, and our stamina is the best. Using these two together you can wear out your opponent and gain the upper hand and/or use their movements against them."

"I see…" I nodded slowly, "not going to lie…this is sounding a lot like a boring classroom right now…YAWN…can we actually DO a demonstration."

The adolescent reptile groaned in response, "if you're twenty-nine like you say you are, you ought to have impeccable patience of an adult…you'll need it if you want to survive as a Night Fury. Listen Flint…" he trotted toward me, placing a huge paw on my side, "I may not always be there for you…you have to take this seriously…"

I sighed, "duly noted."

"Right then…if you want to go ahead and get to the nitty-gritty…let's have you try and evade my advances!" He retorted, motioning me to head to the other side of the forest glade, "whatever you do…don't overthink it…and keep your eye on me as best as you can!"

"Alright…" I snorted back; some fumes escape my nose. We both stand across from one another, lowering our bodies in preparation for our exercise. Immediately after, without warning, Toothless very quickly rushes toward me and I try my best to jump out of the way. At first, I'm successful…BUT…I wasn't expecting him to make another attempt quickly afterward!

In a split second he taps me with a claw before I could move away, "stop" he ordered as I rested, "you would be dead there."

"Well, you kept going…" I gave a light growl.

"That's what you got to realize, Flint…you got to expect things to be unpredictable…" Toothless smiled.

I rolled my eyes, "I guess…"

"Try again."

We do, and he does the same thing as before; however, I am ready this time and manage to duck when he tries to tap me. Unfortunately, I felt the end of his tail lightly hit my side as I groan loudly in frustration, "stop" he said.

"You're having WAY TOO MUCH FUN with this right now!" I narrowed my green reptilian eyes to him, and he gives a slight haughty laugh in return, "just trying to help a fellow Night Fury."

"Alright then…you want to play that way, let's go…let's try again!" I snarled in my high-pitched voice.

"That's MORE like it!" Tooth happily and excitedly roared.

The next bit had him and me doing almost the same routine, but when he charged at me, I jumped to the side and then followed up with a sidestep to avoid his pounce. Sure enough, he tries a combo on me, and I do my best to avoid the black dragon. Much to my frustration, however, I didn't expect him to fly at me with a small burst of his wings and I am consequently tackled by the bigger Night Fury!

"D-darn it!" I barked as he held me, soon licking my side as some sort of twisted punishment, "S-seriously!?"

He unsheathed his teeth soon after and laughed. The teenager lets me go as I wipe the slobber off my face, "you really are something, you know that?" I retorted before he gave an innocent smile.

"Back at you, Flint. Though, I will say this…you're getting the hang of it" he nodded in appreciation.

"T-thanks I guess?" I raise an eyebrow at him.

"Someday, you'll be a master at evasion like me, heh…" he giggled like a high-school cheerleader…I swear, "let's head back…we'll do more of this later…it's getting late. Wouldn't want Hiccup to get worried about us"

"Oh, so you're ending this after YOU win and embarrass me like that…is that it?" I growled as Toothless looked behind him with a side-eye and smug grin, "no chance, take this!" I rushed for him, and he easily steps out of line, but I'm not finished. I try getting him with a slap of my tail and a quick pounce, but he dodges everything perfectly. I try again and again to hit him, but he is just way too fast! Eventually, I tire myself and slump to the floor with my belly against the dirt, and Toothless snickers in response, "see? This is what I mean."

"I…guess you got a point…" I pant heavily before he helps me up and lands me on his neck, "come on, I promise I'll get you in better shape" he smiled. I finally give in and sigh, "I guess you're right, dragon…it's harder than it looks."

"Trust me, when I'm done with you, you'll be in perfect fighting shape!" The Night Fury barked back with inspiration in his words.

We make it back to Hiccup, inside the house, where my lessons in writing resumed before nightfall.

It is today that I get to show the boy what I've learned so far. I sit on the desk and use the device the Viking made for me and guide the pencil through a blank sheet of paper. Hicctooth watch from behind me as I write a VERY basic sentence in Norse. Once I finish, I move away and look up to them with a soft, idle, smile.

To the human teen it read: hi, my name be Flint

Of course, it wasn't perfect, and the grammar was lacking; however, he understood my message enough that he patted me on the head, "good job, WildWing!"

Then, I wrote a much shorter phrase for him: goodbye

"Nice job, little bud. There are some areas we'll fix but I am honestly surprised you're making progress! It still feels weird to see a dragon write, but hey…we'll have you writing letters to the villagers and Mildew soon enough!" He jokingly said regarding that last part.

Inside I felt a tingle…like I felt so fulfilled. Hiccup is right, I am making progress…and it feels really good!

Soon, the three of us broke apart as I decided to get some sleep, but not before I noted something very ODD. As I walked across Hiccup's bedroom, I noticed that I was a bit higher than some items that were scattered on the floor…that had been on the floor for a long time since I moved in. I noticed a chair that I appeared to have easier access to than before. That's when I tilted my head and asked myself loudly, the realization hitting me:

"Is it me…or am I getting bigger?"

Toothless walked by and noticed it too, and he can't help but grin in response, "well, you ARE getting older in this body, Flint. And, actually, I do notice you have gained quite a bit of height since I first met you."

"I…I can't believe this…"

"Heh, just wait a year or two, then you'll notice some BIG changes for sure…that's if you stay long enough to see it."

The teenage Night Fury walked away as I looked down. I haven't thought about it a lot…but imagine if I do grow to his size…everything wouldn't be the same, would it? This child dragon mind I have would eventually mature and I wouldn't be able to fit in places I used to in this form. Soon, the humans won't be able to pick me up, hell…now that I mention it even Hiccup can't muster the strength to do such a thing as of late. Heck, it might happen faster than I think…I mean…I'm not that far off from being Toothless age honestly…what…I'm four…five years behind him?

Even so, I shouldn't rush with this. Having lived as a child before in my past life, I want to take my time with these things…really appreciate being young…YOUNGER…once more, because I know I may not be able to live through childhood a third time…

Then again…third times a charm…eh?

Woooo! That's the end of this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it!

I'm going, to be honest here: I need some advice for the future of this story.

I'm sort of in a dilemma: should I even attempt to cover Race to the Edge? Even if summarized, it's 6 LONG seasons and a prequel to HTTYD2, which means it would be a long time before we even GET to the second movie. The show has a lot of events and characters that it covers, I'm not sure how I could incorporate them all…nor do I have the time and energy to do so...so I've been thinking of just skipping or at least covering the MOST IMPORTANT events from RTTE.

Second, I was thinking of introducing the Light Fury and Grimmel during Httyd2 (or months before) which would change the very outcome and events of Httyd2 and 3. What are your thoughts on this? Should I introduce them earlier in the story or not?

Should the Light Fury and Grimmel be introduced so early? Should they even make an appearance at all, or make their appearance in Httyd3 as normal?

Let me know what you folks think, thanks!

Also, just a note: there may NOT be an update next week because I'll be on vacation in Washington D.C., updates will resume afterward for sure. Take care ,everyone!