Night Furies: the Next Generation Chapter 14

A/N
To the guest known as "Guardian Sage" whose review rebuked me for multiple spelling and grammar mistakes, without citing any specifics: I usually delete negative reviews from guests, because I can't tell a sincere review from an anonymous flame. I'm keeping yours because, after scolding me for my alleged English errors, you mentioned "the rough Night Fury" when you meant "the rogue Night Fury." The irony is just too delicious. Thank you for making me smile.

o

"What do you mean, you don't want to learn how to fly?!"

Agnarr could not believe his ears. It had been two days since his twin brother had accidentally been turned into a Night Fury, and in all that time, he had made no attempt to learn how to do what dragons do best. He'd declined multiple invitations to join Newest-boy's flight school for new Night Furies; he'd politely turned away when Six offered to teach him; he hadn't tried to teach himself anything. As far as Agnarr knew, Agmundr hadn't even attempted to spread his wings. Could this be the brother who went flying on Six's back at every opportunity, who was endlessly fascinated with the view from half a mile up, who had been sorely tempted when offered the chance to become a dragon back in Berk? Now he really was a dragon, and he was suddenly determined to stay on the ground.

Six had made one more attempt, and tried hard to be nice about it, but he'd refused again. Ancient dragons have extraordinary patience, but Six was less than three years old and could be as hot-headed as any human. She lost her cool. "Are you planning to join the Grounded in this crater, you stubborn hatchling? There are over two thousand miles of rough terrain between us and Berk, and I can't carry you on my back any more! Either you learn to fly, or we're going to leave you behind!" She turned her back on him, lay down on the rocks, and folded her forelegs in a gesture that any human could understand.

Agnarr stepped over to his brother and rested a hand on his huge black head. This is my brother, he kept telling himself. This is my brother. "Agmundr, talk to me. What's the issue here? You used to love flying! This is supposed to be your dream come true. Why won't you even try it?"

"I can't explain," Agmundr growled sadly. "Hard to put into words. Harder to put into Forge words."

"Okay… I know you pretty well. Would I be right if I guessed that this is some kind of line you aren't willing to cross? As soon as you try to fly, you'll be accepting the fact that you're a dragon? You'll have to admit to yourself that you'll never be human again? Am I right?"

Agmundr stared at him, wide-eyed. "Of course you are," he admitted. "You know me better than I know myself!"

"Okay, then." Agnarr sat in front of his brother, who lay down so they could make eye contact without neck strain. "I don't know how to put this nicely, so I'm just going to say it. For better or for worse, you are a dragon. No one and nothing can undo that. You've crossed that line already. Flying, walking, doing handstands… none of that is going to change what you are. The only question left is, what kind of dragon are you going to be? Are you going to fight it, or are you going to let yourself be awesome?"

He rubbed his brother on the nose, trying not to be patronizing about it. "I want you to be awesome, Agmundr. I know you can do it."

"I have never been awesome for one day of my life," Agmundr rumbled.

"Me, neither. But you're a Night Fury now, brother. That changes everything. Go do something awesome. Do it for both of us."

After a few seconds, Agmundr got to his feet and shuffled around to face Night-fury-six-shooter. "I'm sorry about being stubborn and stupid. I'm ready to learn now."

She blinked at him, then rose. "Okay. We'll start at the beginning. Climb up on that rock and face to your right. Fan your tail fins into a 'V' – a little flatter. That's good. Spread your wings as far as they'll go, and keep them tense. When I say 'go,' just jump forward without flapping, and you'll glide until you land over there. Make sure to keep your tail straight! Are you ready?"

"No," he said apologetically. He turned towards Agnarr. "I have never started new project without you before."

"I'll be with you," Agnarr exclaimed. "As soon as you take off, I'll be running right beside you until the moment you land, unless you wind up in the water or something. We're still a team."

"He probably shouldn't ride you on your first flight," Six added. "You'll have enough on your mind. Besides, he once said he'd feel weird riding around on his brother's back."

"Okay," he said, sounding like he wasn't fully convinced. He spread his wings. "I think I'm ready."

"All righty, then," Six smiled. "Ready… straighten that tail a little… GO!" Agmundr jumped off the rock.

He suddenly found himself twelve feet off the ground. The wind was in his face. His wings were holding him up. He wobbled slightly, but kept sailing forward. "I… I think it's working!" he shouted in amazement.

Agnarr was running beside him, pumping his fist in the air, slowly falling behind but doing his best to keep up. "YEAH!" he shouted. "You're doing it! You're flying! Go, baby! You're the MAN!"

"Technically, no," Agmundr corrected him, with the barest hint of a smile. The ground was coming up to meet him; he braced himself and skidded to a halt. Agnarr nearly ran into him.

Six glided over to meet him. "That was quite good, for a first try. Climb up there and try it again." He did so. He veered slightly to the right, but corrected himself before he hit the rocks and made a smoother landing than last time.

"Do you know why you didn't fly straight that time?" Six asked him.

"Of course I do – I did that on purpose," Agmundr replied. "I wanted to see how my tail works."

"You're getting ahead of the program, genius," she answered, a bit tartly. "I know you think you've got it all figured out, but watching dragons fly is not the same as doing it yourself. Please get familiar with the sensations of being in the air before you jump ahead to the next lesson."

"But I am familiar with it!" he protested. "We've been flying together for months! I've watched how you fly, and I've felt your muscles tighten and loosen when the wind catches you. I've seen how you use your tail, your wings, even your head sometimes to correct your flight path. Agnarr and I have talked about it, too. Six, I know the theory! Now I want to do it!"

"Okay, hot shot!" Six said. "Tell me how your wings move in level flight."

"Well, I flap down, which creates lift. Then, if I flap straight up again, that will push me down again, so I don't flap straight up. I'll have to angle my wings on the upstroke so there's less air resistance. I think my wingtips will make ovals in the air in level flight."

"I'll give you a point for cleverness," Six answered. "Your wingtips actually make a flattened figure-8 in level flight." She took a deep breath. "Either you know a lot more than I think you do, or you're way too cocky and you need to be taught a lesson. Either way, we'll skip ahead a little and see what happens. Climb back up on that rock and face the lake." He did so. "Now, jump off and try to fly. If you fail, you'll splash, which hurts less than crashing. If you succeed, I'll catch up with you and… and I'll make something up. Any time you're ready."

He looked out across the lake at the far shore, a bit less than a mile away. This was it – the real thing! This was what he'd been craving for months, and avoiding for days. He brought his wings up, fanned his tail, took a deep breath, and jumped.

His first downstroke was awkward and crooked, but he quickly found his rhythm. His airspeed rose. A bit of up-angle on the tail, and he was climbing. He stopped flapping and glided for a few seconds, then swung his tail slightly to the left and turned smoothly. A few more flaps, and he had regained his airspeed. He was almost a hundred feet above the water already. The feeling was intoxicating. Why had he resisted this for so long?

A black shape in his peripheral vision startled him. It was Six, just above and behind him. "So far, so good," she grinned. "For a second, I thought you were going to fly right out of the crater."

"I feel like I ought to be going faster," he said. "Why am I getting so much wind resistance?"

"Tuck up your legs," she suggested.

"Oh – yeah, that would help. Wow, what a difference!" He surged forward; she matched him easily.

"Okay, next question," he began. "When I turned, I felt like I was about to skid in the air. How do I control that?"

"Bank your wings," she answered. "The sharper the turn, the more you need to bank. Your tail can help with the banking as well as the turning. Getting them to work together smoothly takes practice."

"I can see how that would help in a level turn, or a diving turn," he wondered, "but how do I bank my wings while I'm flapping with them?"

"That also comes with practice," she replied. "You're nowhere near ready for that exercise. For now, make a nice, easy right-hand turn and try to stay over the water." Instead, he banked his wings hard and snapped into a tight 360-degree turn, then widened his turn so he stayed within the crater. It seemed so easy, so instinctive! Suddenly, he felt like he could do anything.

Watching from the ground, Agnarr could tell his brother was showing off. He knew he should be rejoicing at Agmundr's first flight – after all, he'd encouraged him to do it. Instead, he felt an empty feeling inside. We've always done everything together, from working to playing to staying alive. I thought we'd be a team forever. But the team is broken up now. I'm on the ground, and he belongs to the sky. Soon, he'll belong to Six, too. We're still brothers, but it's never going to be the same.

Night-fury-six-shooter maneuvered to get right next to Agmundr's face. "Keep showing off like that, and I'll slap you silly when you land," she growled. "I know this is fun, but it's not a game! You're brand-new at this, and you really can hurt yourself up here, you know."

"I know it's serious," he answered, "but… it all just makes so much sense! I can feel the air under my wings, holding me up. I turn my tail a little, and I feel the wind press against it, and it turns me around. I tip it up, it tips me up and I climb. I can explain all this to Agnarr without using any fancy words, and he'll understand me perfectly! I won't be surprised if he comes up with some suggestions for me." He paused with a surprised look on his face.

"I thought turning into a dragon would be a hopeless obstacle between him and me. I thought things would never be the same. Maybe I was wrong."