☽𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄☾
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐎𝐍 𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐒𝐒

∽✍︎∽

Toothless is eyeing the sky, lovesick, from Burk's cavern stables entrance. The cave is a flurry of activity. Astrid and the Gang are busy feeding dragons and cleaning stalls at work. Ruffnutwatches Toothless, who is still staring dumbfounded into the distance. "What do you mean, "gone?" snoutlot says to Hiccup. "Vanished, into thin air." Hiccup answers from his place on a stool, carefully removing a splinter from a Gronckle's foot. Fishlegs bounces over with the baby Gronckle in his backpack, showing Hiccup a new dragon card he's been working on. "What do you think?" Hiccup shakes his head, saying, "Uh-uh. no ears and spikes instead of dorsal plates." the latter nods and says, "Okay, got it." he then makes a few adjustments. Eret walks past, hauling a bundle of fresh hay into a clean stall.

"What a night!" he exclaims. Toothless nudges Hiccup, growing ever more impatient. "Bud, what's gotten into you? Whatis all this slobbering and panting?" Hiccup asks as Astrid comes over and rubs Toothless' muzzle playfully. "Isn't it obvious? He's in love!" she singsongs and walks away. Hiccup whispers to his dragon, "Trust me. Relationships are nothing but pain and misery." at his words that she celery heard Astrid punches him. He recoils and gestures at Astrid, saying to Toothless: "What did I just say?" Toothless resumes are prancing around, unfazed. "Am I not enough?" Hiccup calls after him. Toothless stares blankly, frothing and panting, then bolts away. "I think that's a no." Tuffnut snickers from behind Hiccup. Toothless spots a pair of Nadders enacting a courtship display. He wanders, curious, as Fishlegs appears hiccup's side with the revised card. It's a mess of smudged pencil lines.

"Something like this?" he sighs. Hiccup sighs and gives up. "You know what? Just trace your toothless card and make her bigger and sapphire-colored and with horns" Fishlegs's small smile falls, and he mutters. "You could've led with that." Fishlegs nods, hobbling away.

∽♦︎∽

"Can you believe it? Toothless has agirlfriend!" Astrid chuckles as she walks down a few stairs in the stables. Hiccup answers her but does not take his eyes away from his task. "I never took you for a romantic.Like, ever." Astrid sighs and says, "But it's so sweet. I mean... look." She gestures to Toothless, now privately practicing theNadders' courtship display with his own shadow. He extendshis wings and throws his head back, clucking awkwardly. "Okay. That's just sad. And weird." Tuffnut speaks up, and his sister agrees. "Yeah, you better do something." even Snoutlout agrees with the twins, and that's a first. "Seriously. I'd rather shovel poopall day than watch that." Hiccup sighs. He pulls the splinter from the dragon's foot andsets it down. "All right, let's head back to thewoods and see if we can find her," he says, and Toothless bounds over excitedly, smothering Hiccup in licks.Tuffnut sets down his broom and joins.

"Ah, good idea. A little privacy," he says, and Hiccup frowns, confused. "Uh..." he trails off, but the latter only shushes him. "Shhh." he then lifts his head a little and calls out to the others. "It's boy talk." Hiccup's frown deepens. "What?" he says, but Tuffnut only chuckles and ushers Hiccup out of the stall. 

in the woods, Tuffnut talks to Hiccup. "So, you want to get married," he says, and they shuffle through the woods backto the clearing. Toothless sniffs the ground ahead of them,focused. "Uh, no." Hiccup denies. as they walk, Tuffnut swings a stick at the underbrush. "Good news -- I've been to twoweddings, crashed both. But none ashigh profile as this one. Lots ofpressure. Judgment. And not justby me." he says. "Look, we talked about it. We're notgetting married." Hiccup says, and Tuffnut chuckles knowingly. "Cold feet. I've seen it before. Butdon't worry, Little Hiccy..." He puts his hand on Hiccup's shoulder. Locks eyes in asympathetic stare. "I'm here," he says. He then walks off, and Hiccup mutters, "Wait, Hiccy...?" Tuffnut then speaks up from a little more forward away from the chief, "Now I've seen the way Astrid looksat you. Everyone has. That doubt.That not-so-subtle disappointment.That longing for something more.Than you. You need to focus onbeing worthy." 

He pauses a lite before continuing, "I mean, she's a warrior queen, forThor's sake, and you are...neither. But with me as your bestman, your spirit guide,you'll learn to embrace your innerViking. Show these naysayers, ofwhich there are many, that you'remore than just a malnourished runtwith bad hair, strange teeth, and atwig for a neck." Hiccup sighs, not particles in a better mood due to his friend's speech. "You're terrible at pep talks." he hisses quietly, but the other bouy only ignores that statement and continues his talk, "Stop letting these insecurities getthe best of you! Everyone'swatching. I mean, everyone. Youneed to get brave. Do as I do." They enter the clearing—no sign of the sapphire dragon. Toothlesssighs, disappointed.

"It'll be hard, but you have myword. And until I break that word,I won't give up." Tuffnut says. Hiccup spots something glimmering in the brush at the far endof the clearing. He approaches, curious. "Hey. Hey! What, am I wasting mytime here?! You see some shinything in the woods -- ooh, what isthat?" Tuffnut calls and coaches down behind Hiccup, looking at what he holds. Hiccup reaches down and retrieves a discarded dart containinga glass vial. Hiccup furrows his brow, studying it. A singledrop of green fluid drips from the end of the barb. He whips around to see Toothless sniffing leaves and pineneedles near the center of the clearing. "Toothless!" Hiccup calls out to him, panicked—toothless recoils in response, eyeing Hiccup, confused.Hiccup holds up a hand. 

"Don't move a muscle," he says tensely. Hiccup glances around the clearing, spotting an undisturbedarea at its center. He reaches for Tuffnut's walkingstick and hurls it like a spear into the center. "Hey!" TUffnut calls annoyed. It sticks its landing, then... CLANG! In an explosion ofdebris, two giant iron jaws snap shut in the air like a bigbear trap, obliterating the stick that triggered it. Hiccup leaps backward as the webrings out into the forest.Toothless roars, startled. Hiccup looks left and right,scanning the forest with flared, paranoid eyes. 

∽✍︎∽

a little cliffhanger