Secret of a Dragon (An HTTYD Story)

Chapter Eight: Making Friends

For those of you who missed the changes alert, a new character has been added to the previous chapters and will be added to the upcoming chapters. Those of you who don't know what I mean by "the changes alert," forget about it. You already know the changes because you know about Autumn.

Enjoy!

Hiccup barely notices where he is walking. Astrid's words echo through his head.

"...some kind of a joke..."

"Our parents' war is about to become ours."

"Figure out which side you're on."

He cannot stop dwelling on the final sentence she spoke before walking away. Who does he want to win the war? Of course he doesn't want to see his people killed.

But does he want to see his people kill the dragons?

He is on his way to the cove. Studying dragons may make it harder for him to make his decision, but it is too hard to resist. Apparently, no one except Crystal had ever seen a Night Fury before. What is it about the mysterious dragons that she does not think he should know? Whatever it is, her refusal to tell him only makes him more curious. It is time to find out for himself.

The dragon had to be inside. To make friends with her, he had brought a fish as a peace offering, but he had also taken a shield as a safety precaution. No one knows what a cornered Night Fury will do. Will she be docile enough to allow a friendship? Or will she attack?

This time, Hiccup manages to find a lower entrance to the cove. He peeks over the top of the shield, and, with no dragon in sight, tosses the fish inside. He pokes his head in, but doesn't see the Night Fury. He slowly moves forward, but suddenly stops.

The shield is stuck between the two rock walls.

And in looking down, Hiccup also discovers something that makes his stomach clench.

There is blood on the ground. It forms almost a solid trail. It appears inside the cove, comes straight through the entrance, and stops just as suddenly as it began. Hiccup's mind whirls. Why is it there? Who was bleeding? Why were they bleeding? What had happened?

And why did it begin and end so abruptly?

A rustling inside the cove brings Hiccup back to the Night Fury. He looks up, shakes his head slightly to clear it, and tries to maneuver the shield from its trap. It cannot be moved, however, so he ducks under it and tugs halfheartedly at it from the inside. Sighing, he turned away and scooped up the fish by its gills.

The large cove seems empty. The lake is still and silent. No bird crosses the sky. There is no life from what he can see.

Then there is a small noise behind him, and he freezes. Ever so slowly, he turns to confront the Night Fury, which is jumping down from a rock pillar, pupils dilated as they focus on the fish in Hiccup's hand. She sniffs the air hopefully, and creeps closer to Hiccup. He holds it out, leaning backward in the process. His vest drops away from his body. The dragon's eyes jump down to his dagger, which is tied to his belt, and she leaps away, snarling.

Hiccup jumps, pinning the fish to his body with his arm. He uncovers the knife, surprised that the dragon knew it (although she had seen him threaten her with it). He slowly, slowly lowers his fingers to touch it, and the Night Fury growls with renewed vengeance. Hiccup grabs the dagger and holds it out to the side. He drops it onto the ground. She nods toward the lake, and Hiccup, again startled by her understanding, lifts it with his foot and tosses it into the water.

The dragon instantly relaxes. She glances at Hiccup, at ease, looks down at his fish, and back up at him. He holds it out. She narrows her eyes, but carefully tiptoes closer to him. She holds her mouth open in front of him, as if asking for the fish, but Hiccup doesn't move.