Defying The Rules

Hiccup and the Xeno,jiiva

Thalos led Hiccup through the forest and to the shore. They both got on the raft and started making their way through the cavern. Hiccup was asking all sorts of questions. He was asking so many, it was almost starting to annoy Thalos. He wanted to know the name, what it looked like, how he found it, ect.. Thalos finally had just told him that he would tell him once they got there.

Hiccup was in awe at the blue crystals that covered the cavern. They were beautiful. "This place is amazing..." the scrawny boy said breathlessly.

"Tell me about it." Thalos said, pulling the raft to a stop. He and Hiccup got off and started walking. "This way."

"I wish I would have brought my journal with me. This entire place is unbelievable." Hiccup looked at Thalos. "Now can you tell me how you found this place?"

Thalos sighed and nodded. "During the raid a few days ago, Astrid and I were trying to gather up the sheep back into their pens. Well, one had separated from the herd, and I volunteered to go get it. Well, long story short, when I found it, the ground caved in under us and the sheep and I fell into this cavern."

"Wow.." Hiccup said in disbelief. "I didn't see a hole on our way here."

"It was weird. It coverd itself up, like quick sand or something." He said. The two kept walking down the cavern. Thalos really hoped the dragon wouldn't mind him bringing a visitor. "Be calm, okay? I don't know how it's going to act with a stranger in its cavern. As long as you are calm, I don't think it will attack."

Hiccup looked at Thalos with a disbelieving look. "You think? That's not very comforting."

"Well, you didn't bring any weapons, and you don't look very threatening, so-"

Hiccup cut him off. "Thank you, for summing that up." He said sarcastically. Thalos gave an awkward grin and scratched the back of his neck.

They came upon the clearing. Thalos spotted the dragon pretty quickly, mainly because he was used to seeing it. However, Hiccup didn't see it. The dragon's crystal-like appearance made it really hard to see if you don't know what you were looking for. The dragon blended in really well with its crystal surroundings. Currently, Thalos could see the dragon laying down next to one of the walls. It's head was covered, so no one could see it's orange eyes and eyespots.

"Is it not here?" Hiccup asked, looking around. Thalos didn't even have to answer, because almost immediately, the motionless ball of "crystal" started to move. Hiccup's eyes shot over to the movement immediately.

The Xeno'jiiva stood up, stretched, and stalked towards the two Vikings. The beast stretched its neck out, giving a small growl as it approached Hiccup. It looked at Thalos, almost giving him a "Who the heck is this?" kind of look. It was clear the dragon couldn't tell if the boy was a threat or not.

Thalos watched Hiccup. He didn't seem to be too alarmed, and that surprised Thalos immensely. Actually, the first thing the small Viking did was stretch out his hand. He was doing the hand thing. Could he do that ten seconds upon meeting the dragon? Thalos wasn't sure what to think.

The dragon growled and eyed Hiccup. It was obvious that the dragon wasn't very comfortable with the new Viking. It hovered its head close to the boy. It sniffed his hand and looked at Thalos.

Thalos hesitated a moment before speaking. "You can trust him." He said. "He won't hurt you."

The animal made a rumbling sound with its throat and hesitantly put its nose on Hiccup's hand. However, that didn't last too long. The dragon took its nose off his hand and stood up straight, almost as if it was asserting its dominance over the small Viking.

"So, what is it?" Hiccup asked, watching the dragon move. "I didn't see it in the Book of Dragons."

"It's a Xeno'jiiva. I found a journal with its name in it." He said.

"It's incredible." Hiccup watched in awe as the dragon walked around the cavern, sniffing the ground. "Have you named it?"

"What? I just said it was a Xeno'jiiva." Thalos replied.

Hiccup shook his head. "I mean, have you named it? Like, I named the Night Fury "Toothless" because of his retractable teeth."

Thalos was going to say something, but Hiccup continued. "Toothless is by far my best friend. If you are looking to befriend this dragon, calling it something might help, just like you might call your human friend a nickname or something."

"But I don't even know if it's a girl or boy. What if it's a boy and I name it "Linda" or something. That would just be weird. Besides, I think it might even produce asexually." Thalos said.

"I don't know if the dragon is going to care if it has a girl name if it's a guy. But, I think dragons that produce asexually are, like, male for the first part of their life, and then they are female when they lay an egg, or something like that. If you are so worried about it, give him a gender nuteral name." Hiccup shrugged. He really wanted to check this dragon out more. It looked amazing. The dragon looked nothing like he had ever seen.

Thalos wasn't sure if he even wanted to name the dragon. He didn't really want to develope a close connection with it. He was supposed to kill dragons, not befriend them.

Hiccup looked at him and frowned. "Dragons aren't the monsters we think they are." He said, seeming to know what was what Thalos was thinking. "They're misunderstood. They only attack us because we attack them." He said.

"Your dragon hasn't attacked you, has it?" He continued. "It didn't attack me. Why? It's because we didn't come across as a threat. They defend just themselves."

"They started the raids." Thalos said. "They wouldn't have become a problem if generations ago, they had left Berk alone. They steal our food and kill hundreds of Vikings."

"And in turn, we kill thousands of dragons. They are intelligent animals, that one day, might not even be around anymore." Hiccup looked at Thalos. "Give them a chance. Toothless has been an amazing friend to me. He's been the friend that no viking has ever been to me. He accepts me. We trust each other." He looked at the Xeno'jiiva and continued.

"I even flew on him once. It was a bit sloppy and horrifying, but it was amazing. The thrill and rush of being on an animal while it's flying in the air... You feel free. I want to create a mechanism where I can fly him better, and have more control. Just think: What if one day, dragons and Vikings live in peace. Maybe one day, everyone can be on the back of a dragon and have a faithful friend."

Thalos looked at the Xeno'jiiva. It was laying down on the ground a few feet away from him. He knew it was watching them, and quite possibly listening to everything they were saying.

Thalos looked down. What if Hiccup was right? What if dragons weren't the merciless killing monsters that he had thought?