Two Birds

Chapter 5

Toothless heard his name-not 'Shadow-Blender', his name, the one Hiccup used-called out from somewhere in the night, and he spun in a circle, looking for the source of the noise. His eyes landed on the small body of a brown Shadow-Blender, who had a grin on his face, tongue lolling out. He whispered, "Hiccup," as he started forward. Suddenly, Hiccup's delighted expression turned to one of fear, his ear plates lowering and eyes widening.

Toothless heard the noise of the air change, a piercing whistle, but didn't react quick enough. Something heavy rammed into his side, wrapping itself around his body like a crude, strange snake. He felt the weight pull him down, but when he tried to open his wings to slow his descent, he found them firmly bound against his back. He struggled against his bonds as he fell closer and closer to the ground, the trees growing larger, more imposing. He glanced up at the forms of the other dragons, nervously flying around and calling out, and, as he hit the trees, his eyes met Hiccup's.

He heard Hiccup's terrified screech, but didn't, couldn't, call back.

He closed his eyes as he felt the forest floor rise up to meet him, slamming into the ground with the force of  the Queen crushing a dragon in her jaws. He skid and tumbled, breaking tree limbs, and leaving a huge gouge in the earth in his wake. When he finally came to a stop, he wearily opened his eyes, breathing heavily, but couldn't move, even if he wanted to. His front legs were pressed against his chest, his wings bent at an uncomfortable angle, and his tail...

It throbbed with every beat of his heart, and a burning sensation was running up the length of it. He tried to strain his head to see what was wrong, but all he could see was bloody dirt. He wasn't sure if it was from the numerous cuts and abrasions on his body, missing scales, or something else, but the amount of blood was concerning.

He sighed and pressed his head into the dirt, hoping death came to him quickly, or, by some miracle, he got free. Maybe if he rested, he'd have enough strength to break whatever was coiled around his body.

Chapter 5

Hiccup's mind was blank as he watched his other half plummet to the ground. He looked around at the shocked faces of his and Toothless' flares, and it hit him. Toothless had come to save him! "Toothless!" He cried again, tucking his wings into his body to dive down to where he saw his brother disappear. Suddenly the Flame-Skin from his flare swooped in front of him, causing him to pull up to keep a mid-air collision from happening.

"Let me go!" he cried, flapping his wings harder than necessary. His mind was spinning, thoughts hurtling around faster than Toothless had fallen. He shook his head to clear it, a growl rising up in his chest. "I have to make sure he's okay!"

"No. There are still Vikings down there," the Flame-Skin argued, glancing below him. Hiccup curled his lips, but the Flame-Skin continued. "You're in charge. You need to lead us, all of us."

Hiccup shook his head again, muttering, "No. I can't. I'm leaving you in charge. Get them back safely." And with that, he stopped flapping and let himself drop, down, down, down to the ground. When he got too close, he flared out his wings, slowing his decent so he could land safely onto the earth. His feet touched the dirt and he instantly sprang into the forest, searching for Toothless.

He couldn't smell anything but smoke and earth, but he knew the scent of dragon permeated this forest on a normal day, so it would be no use, anyway. A buzzing had crept through his head, insistent and annoying, humming somewhere at the back of his skull. Hiccup shook his head to try and chase the buzzing away, but it remained, so he decided to ignore it for now. He had more pressing issues.

As the night wore on with no sign of Toothless, Hiccup grew more agitated, anxiety welling up in his chest. "Some dragons lose a fish or their favorite stone, but not me. I somehow manage to lose an entire Shadow-Blender," he growled, stamping his feet. In anger, he slapped a branch in front of him with his wing, only for it to snap back into his eye, making him wince and hiss in pain. The buzzing was at its worst now, so overwhelming that it made it hard for him to think.