"I Do.... NOT!!"

Chapter 2: Shot Down

                     ....Hiccup's POV.....

I tucked my wings tighter and brought Boreal closer to my body, hoping to shield him from approaching branches and a hard landing. I knew I was going to regret this... I should have thought first before rescuing him from the dragon killer. To Astrid, I must have seemed like another monster, out to kill her brother.
    
     I growled and winced as Boreal's screaming and thrashing tree branches assaulted my ears and body, then let out a soundless roar as my back and side hit the forest floor and knocked the air from me. I layed there a few moments, unaware of anything except my own wheezing. Then I started and opened my wings to see Boreal, still huddled under my arms and shaking.
   
     "I'm gonna die- g-g- gonna die!" He whimpered, and then began to sob again. Hey you're not gonna die! I'll get you back home as soon as I can! I said, but it came out as a few growls that turned Boreal's sobbing into full blown screams and kicks.

     I lurched away from him, smashing myself harder against the net that held us captive and shook my throbbing head... maybe if I pretended to be knocked out for a little while he would calm down. After a few moments Boreal stopped kicking and began looking for a way out of the net, still crying and shaking. I sighed and waited as Boreal finally found the spots where the weights were stuck together and began to untangle both of us.

     Sweet relief came as my twisted tail finally dropped back to a natural position and my wings came unpinned. Finally I was able to get my legs underneath me, knocking Boreal over in the process.

     He yelped and covered his head as I carefully nosed the ropes off both of us and then slipped my other wing out of the bola. It's ok- I tried to explain, keeping my distance. But again, I just sounded like a terrifying creature threatening him with death, so Boreal fled into the woods, deeper into dragon territory. NO! I roared, galloping after him. I didn't get a massive head ache and sprained wing just to see him die!

     I caught up with the stumbling boy a few places later and grabbed him by his shirt. Boreal screamed and slapped at my snout as I dragged him back and tried to take off, but I only got a few flaps into the air before my wing seized up and sent me crashing to the forest floor. I groaned as Boreal kicked me in the snout again and wiggled away, then took off again, this time heading towards Berk.

     I turned away, but then my battered ears caught the sound of dragon talk a few miles to the north. The human will be dead soon anyway. We'd best put it out of it's misery I heard them say, then shook myself and turned back to the trees where Boreal had gone. I couldn't leave him alone... and I had a bad feeling that this human was Astrid. She probably thought I'd killed Boreal and was hurt while searching the woods! I raced after Boreal and to her aid, hoping it wasn't too late. Hopefully Boreal's path would cross Astrid's and I would catch up to both of them before a real dragon found them. I soon reached the two deadly nadders, now sniffing at a human on the other side of a large rock. Crackling energy began to fill my chest as I recognized Astrid, her pale face resting against the gray rock.

     I smelled the blood before I saw her left leg, badly wounded and oozing blood. I struggled to control the lightning inside, then leapt between the nadders and Astrid HEY! That one's mine! I roared, feeling sparks at the back of my throat. I spotted Boreal hiding behind a dead tree to my left, clutching a stick.

      I swallowed hard and retracted my teeth, trying to be less intimidating. The wrong move would just get Astrid killed faster and make me podless. One of the nadders was Stormfly- at least she would reason with me. 3 years after leaving Berk, then going through heck and back again, she was the first dragon to take pity on me, save my life, and teach me how to fish and work with the pod.

     Sorry, I know the humans were awful this time, but this one was just protecting another human. I was going to take it back where it belongs. I quickly explained, giving both the nadders a toothless grin. Are you crazy? We still have to catch more sheep, and there's to many vikings out to do it safely. But if you can get rid of this one and find more sheep... We shouldn't kill humans if we don't have to, Stormfly hissed, then turned to her purple scaled partner, Spiketail. He means nothing by it. If he'll risk himself for a dying human that's his problem. Besides, he's the best in our pod at sheep snatching. You'll bring us 2 sheep in return for this human? Stormfly said, giving me a meaningful look.

     I knew she was trying to help... I wasn't so sure why I was helping these vikings anyway, but I couldn't bring myself to leave Astrid or her brother to the misunderstandings of the dragons who called me their own. Of course, I replied, relaxing just a little as Stormfly's partner smoothed his spines.

     Where's your hunting partner? He growled. I hunt alone. If you'll excuse me, I have sheep to catch, I growled, then carefully sniffed at Astrid's leg as the two nadders took off. Watch it night fury. Dragons that associate with humans are dead to us! Roared Stormfly's partner as he and Stormfly flew into the early morning mist.
   
 
     I sighed and turned back to Astrid. She was in bad shape... I didn't think she'd make it back to Berk. Intense heat and a feeling of being smashed rippled through me as I shrank to my viking form. I gasped and stumbled as the last of my black scales shrank into my body, leaving me as a small viking in smooth, black scaled coverings that looked like simple leggings, cut off close to the knee. They were my thickest scales, they could shift into any sort of scaled covering on command and worked great as a full body suit during winter times when I morphed into human form. The rest of my scales could blend into human skin and fool most into thinking I had no scales at all.
    

     "Ok... Let's get you home." I told Astrid quietly, surprised at how foreign my human voice sounded. This was the first time in nearly a year that I had turned back to my viking form... And I was already struggling to contain it. The dragon side of me didn't like being penned up for long.

     I picked Astrid up and took her to the nearby stream, then set her injured leg in the water to clean it. I ripped the bottom half of her leggings off on both legs and bound her bleeding leg after a few moments, then picked her up again and headed to a small cave a few lengths away.  After I was sure she would be safe, I turned to the cave entrance. "Who... Who are you?" Boreal asked, now standing at the cave entrance with his mouth hanging open.

     I face palmed myself and groaned. "Ugh... Boreal please promise you won't tell anybody about me! I'm going to get you and Astrid back to Berk safely and disappear. I will never have existed to you once you're home safe, ok? I'm... I have the ability to switch between dragon and human form," I explained. Boreal crept closer to me and then stayed along the side of the cave to reach Astrid.

     "Is she dead?" He asked quietly, beginning to cry. I quickly sat next to him and put my arm around his shaking shoulder. "She's not dead, just very sick."  I have to go get some things to make her better. Will you stay here and protect her? Don't leave her. I'll be right back," I told Boreal.  Boreal nodded and I jumped to my feet, then jogged out of the cave and into the woods to find herbs and firewood for Astrid.