The 'Dragon Defender'

Not By The Book

"Oh, wow!"

Adriana is awestruck as we enter the Great Hall, a large grin forming on her face as she looks around.

"Yeah, it's okay, I guess," I mumble in a bored manner, causing her to snap out of it, laugh and playfully push my shoulder, hardly enough pressure for me to even feel it. "Shut up! This is amazing and you know it!"

I roll my eyes, but can't help chuckling at her. "I know. I know."

Fishlegs leads us over to where the Book of Dragons is laid out, open to the page on Gronkles. "Let me guess; you were reading before Hiccup told you we were here?" I assume, to which Fishlegs nods. "Exactly. It's probably a good thing we came back; we don't want anybody sneaking in to take it."

"Why would they do that?" Adriana frowns, confused. "It's just a book, isn't it?"

"With all the information the dragon riders have gathered over years of being in close contact with dragons," I remind her. "Sound familiar?"

"Ah... yeah, that might be a good point..."

"Don't worry, nothing happened," Fishlegs smiles serenely, turning the pages right to the Stealthwing page, though the title has now been changed to say Morphwing. "Here's all we know about them so far; Morphwings are distant relatives of the Razorwhip and possibly distant relatives of the Changewing. They're just as intelligent as a human and can somehow hide in plain sight among them, but we're not sure what Atali meant by that just yet. Then there's the fact that Nightling was able to put Dagur to sleep just by hiding him in her wings."

"That makes somewhat sense," I hum, debating carefully what my next words will be. "Dragons usually find it easier to sleep when curled up in another dragon's wings, it's like what they do as hatchlings. It's likely down to the warmth and feeling the dragon's heartbeat, it can put them at ease. If Morphwings really do have a way of hiding around humans, it's possible they've picked up on ways to extend this comfort to humans as well."

"That's so interesting!" Fishlegs gushes, beginning to write this down eagerly. "I'm so glad that you're here to help with this! We're going to work out so much about Morphwings! So how do you think they get so close to humans?"

They get into a fight with a Typhoomerang that results in their sister and mate taking them to a human healer?

"Hm... you said they may be distant related to the Changewing..." I mumble, knowing that I'll have to carefully offer up little tidbits of information or it'll seem suspicious. "Maybe they have some kind of camouflaging ability? I'm not too sure."

"Oh, yeah! That would be amazing!" Fishlegs grins. "I love seeing what new dragons can do! They're always so interesting!"

"You don't know the half of it," I hum, noting Adriana's raised brow at my comment.

~•~

After a good while of letting Fishlegs ramble and Adriana flip through the book curiously, the door to the Great Hall opens. I casually take a step back to I'm hidden behind a pillar, just in case it's some Berkian who wants a look at the 'Dragon Master', but to my relief Valka is the one to enter.

"Fishlegs? Is Artemis here? Oh, who's this?"

"Adriana's with me," I inform Valka, startling her since she walked closer and was nearly beside me by this point. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, there you are! Artemis, Hiccup told me about what was going on and why you're here, I'm very sorry..."

I frown beneath my mask at this, noticing how Adriana lost her smile as well. "Thank you. I'm sure everything will work out, though. We're a tough brood."

"A tough brood? What do you mean by that?" Fishlegs inquired, confused. "Why are you both here, anyway?"

Adriana looks to me to answer, so I sigh to buy myself a moment of time to consider how best to answer.

"... Adriana's betrothed was attacked by a Typhoomerang, we brought him here to Gothi. It was the least I could do for them."

"Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't hear about that..." Fishlegs pats Adriana's shoulder in an attempt to try and comfort her. "It's not your fault," Adriana replies, offering a small, thankful smile. "It's been nice to have a distraction here."

Valka turns back to me while Fishlegs brings Adriana's attention back to the book to keep her distracted. "Who are they to you?"

"Well what's Hiccup been telling you?"

"Not much. He said that you brought that young man here but didn't explain why."

"Good on him," I nod approvingly, lowering my voice now. "He's my brother. Only Hiccup and Astrid know this."

Valka is visibly surprised by this. "Your brother? What do you mean?"

"I found my family," I confess. "And... I trust them. Mostly. They've earned it. I just want my brother to be okay."

Valka is silent for a long time, seeming to be contemplating how to react to this. "... What did they do to earn your trust so quickly?" She asks eventually, her voice a little flatter than usual. "They... they're a lot like me," I 'admit', trying to be as truthful as possible without giving too much away. "They've gone into hiding to protect dragons. They've got their own sort of sanctuary, I suppose. It's... amazing."

This seems to work in terms of convincing Valka that my family didn't manipulate me into liking them or whatever. "Hm... so that's why you haven't been at your own Sanctuary, I suppose?" She notes, frowning.

"... That's true. Alpine made sure I stayed with them for a while. He was very... non-negotiable."

"He's worried about you not being with your own kind."

"I suppose he is."

Valka sets a hand on my shoulder, looking down at me in a way that's much firmer than her grip. "We're your family, too. Don't forget that. Okay?"

"Of course not."

"Good. Just make sure you watch your back."