Chapter Text
Hiccup stared at the small crater holding the net he'd shot at the sky the previous night. The dragon, the Nightfury, was thrashing around inside.
Except, it didn't seem very... Nightfury-e...
It was small, the dark colouring certainly made him think it was a Nightfury. And it kept making the whistling sound he'd come to associate with Nightfuries, but it was way too small. Carefully, Hiccup let himself step closer to the thrashing net, drawing his knife. His eyes darted around nervously, there could be more lurking around. He paused, more Nightfuries? In the day?
It seemed unlikely, but he remained cautious.
The dragon heard him coming and froze.
It had brilliant green eyes, pupils narrowed into slits that would have looked intimidating on a bigger dragon but here it just looked like a cat. With the way it was tangled, it seemed to come up to Hiccup's knee. He tilted his head. Why hadn't it clawed its way out of the net? The net was meant for a bigger dragon, to get their limbs tangled in. A small dragon should have been able to cut right through, unless...
"Are you a baby?" He whispered.
Its claws seemed only half developed, same with the teeth that were being bared at him. A baby Nightfury. This was what had been causing his village so much trouble? Its teeth were weak, its claws not yet hardened, but its firepower was still incredible.
Hiccup approached as confidently as he could, letting the knife be seen. The dragon's eyes seemed to grow larger. Hiccup swallowed.
"I'm going to kill you, Nightfury," He declared. "I'm going to kill you and deliver you to my father. I'll be the first to show my village what a Nightfury looks like!"
The Nightfury squealed, a high-pitched whine coming from its throat as Hiccup raised the knife higher above his head. He'd aim for the head, the scales seemed less hardened there. An easy kill, a swift death. Merciful. He watched as the dragon curled into a fetal position and closed its eyes.
He took its lead and closed his own eyes, "I am a Viking!" He growled, bearing his teeth. He tried to bring the knife down, but his arms refused to move. He breathed in deeply, "I can kill dragons!" He brought the knife down swiftly-
- And stopped right before it hit the baby's head.
The dragon pried its eyes open to see the knife close and yelled in high-pitched squeaks again. Hiccup stepped back. "I did this," He murmured, almost ashamed. He turned away.
He couldn't kill the dragon, but nature would. He'd let nature do the rest.
He would.
His feet were turning back towards the net.
Nature would kill the dragon either way, right?
He knelt down.
His hands gripped the net, and he began cutting an opening big enough for the little dragon.
Suddenly, his knife was skidding to the side as the dragon pounced at him, knocking him onto his back. Hiccup stared into those green eyes, and the dragon stared back. It... Bounced on his chest and roared. Except that roar sounded like it had hurt its throat and desperately needed water. It seemed to be waiting for something, so Hiccup arranged his face into one of fear.
The dragon's eyes lit up in what Hiccup could only describe as joy. It hissed at him and then jumped off his chest and ran into the woods.
Hiccup leaned his back against a nearby boulder and watched it go, curiosity bubbling in his chest. He doubted that was how any other Nightfury encounter had gone.