AN: This is my first fanfic ever! I hope you enjoy. :)

How to Understand a Hiccup

Chapter 1: Upside Down Bonding

The bright sun loomed overhead, lazily inching away from the horizon. Chatter could be heard amongst humans and dragons alike as they made their way to the Dragon Arena for the latest lesson. Upon entering the former Kill Ring, the group of teens was surprised. The usual noises of a content Night Fury and its rider were absent. Several minutes ticked by, yet the crippled pair were nowhere to be found. No one dared to break the awkward silence that had fallen upon the normally lively group. No one, that is, but Snotlout, whose harsh words sliced through the silence like a sword.

"Where has Useless gone off too? Did he ditch us to play with his useless dragon? Honestly, I've never met a more pathetic pair than the two of them – a dragon that can't fly and a Viking that can't do… anything."

Astrid punched him and was just about to start yelling at him when she heard a familiar noise. The sound of a dragon growling met the ears of everyone in attendance, but the sound didn't belong to any of their reptilian counterparts. No, this growl was unmistakably from a Night Fury.

Looking around for the source of the noise, the gang found the dragon to being hanging upside down from a chain atop the Dragon Arena. Toothless (who had just woken up from a nap) gave a most menacing glare to Snotlout with his acidic eyes before nudging something underneath his wings.

"Toothless?" An unforgettable nasally voice could be heard, yet the speaker could not be seen. "Is it almost time for dragon training?"

"Hiccup?" Astrid called out, wondering where the small rider was. Her unspoken question was answered as the Night Fury unfurled his wings, revealing the location of Hiccup to be in his grasp. Upside down.

"Hold on." Hiccup rubbed the drowsiness out of his eyes before grabbing part of the saddle and swinging around to the back side of Toothless. The Night Fury jumped down to the ground and the young Viking hopped off, absentmindedly scratching the dragon's scaly hide.

The other teens gaped at him, completely shocked.

"Hiccup… How did you do that?" Fishlegs snapped out of his stupor and spoke up. "It shouldn't be possible to remain unaffected from hanging upside down. I mean, blood rushes to the head when humans are inverted, and it can cause stiffness, strokes, or even death from an excess amount of blood in your-"

"Dude," Tuffnut said, preventing Fishlegs from rambling, "The longest I've ever lasted upside down is like two minutes, but you were sleeping upside down! How do you do it?"

Snotlout snickered, "Maybe he was dropped on his head as a baby." He received another punch from Astrid before she spoke up.

"Seriously Hiccup, how is that possible?"

"Well…" He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, not sure why it was such a big deal. "Night Furies sleep upside down quite often. Once I was sleeping under Toothless's wings, and when I woke up, he was hanging on to me while sleeping like a bat. It's never really bothered me, so I just do it whenever he feels like being upside down."

The teens looked at him like he had lost his mind.

"You know, Hiccup, you could just sleep in your bed," Fishlegs said, voicing everyone's thoughts. It was Hiccup's turn to stare at the group like they were insane.

He laughed, "Are you kidding? I haven't slept in my bed since I lost my leg! Toothless is much more comfortable, and he wouldn't like it if I slept on my bed away from him. Right bud?" Toothless warbled in agreement, tucking his head under Hiccup's arm for more pampering.

"Hiccup, shouldn't we start training?" Astrid asked him, still wary of what was going on inside his head.

"Oh! You're right. I was thinking that today we could spend some time bonding with our dragons…"

"Again?" Snotlout complained, groaning along with others.

"You didn't let me finish. I was thinking we'd do it in the place that Toothless and I first met.

Astrid gasped, "You're not talking about the Cove are you? I thought you weren't going to show anyone." Whispers broke out amongst the group, wondering what this "Cove" was and why they didn't know about it.

"I figured now was a good time to share it with others. Let's get going." Toothless tossed Hiccup onto his back, ready to go.

-Line Break-

After a fairly quiet flight, the riders reached the Cove. The serene sounds of nature were interrupted by the abrupt whooshing of wings as the dragons landed on the soft earth. Everyone dismounted, and all stopped to admire the scenery. Even Astrid, for she had only been there once, and she was more focused on the unholy Night Fury then.

Hiccup let out a content sigh and spoke, "Welcome to the place where Toothless and I became best friends." Toothless crooned happily and licked Hiccup's cheek.

"Now what do we do?" Snotlout asked Hiccup.

"Just… spend some time with your dragons, relax, play with them, anything like that."

After a few moments of consideration, everyone went and found things to do with their dragons. Astrid and Stormfly played fetch, while the twins played an intense game of hide and seek with Barf and Belch. Fishlegs decided to relax with Meatlug and admire the scenery, and Hookfang convinced Snotlout to fly around inside the Cove. All was well for the time being.

Toothless, after noticing the fun everyone else was having, nudged Hiccup, wanting to do something. The teen laughed and spoke, "What do you want to do first, bud? Maybe play a game of tag, or do some drawing?"

The Night Fury barked happily and ran off, signaling that his choice was to play tag. Hiccup finally felt like he could relax and be himself, without having to worry about anything else. He smiled and quickly chased after Toothless, well, as fast as one could with a prosthetic leg.

-Line Break-

The sun slowly set across the horizon, and the orange hues signified that dinnertime was approaching. One by one, the teens stopped what they were doing and prepared to leave. All of them, that is, but Hiccup. He and Toothless were still playing with each other. The others watched them, surprised at how relaxed they were when it was just the two of them.

Hiccup wrapped his arms around Toothless's neck, trying to get push him, "You feeling it yet? Picking up on all my heartfelt remorse?"

The dragon's ears flattened, and he didn't budge. After a few failed attempts, Hiccup felt the ground disappear from beneath him as the Night Fury stood on his hind legs. He waddled over to the lake, letting Hiccup dangle over the water's edge. "C'mon. You wouldn't hurt a one-legged- Ah!" Hiccup noticed the water beneath him and tightly clung onto Toothless. "You're right! You win! You win."

The other riders laughed along with Toothless and watched as the dragon fell backwards, letting Hiccup land on the ground before pinning him down. "Oh he's down, and it's ugly."

The inseparable duo pretended to fight each other. "Dragons and Vikings, enemies again, locked in combat to the bitter-" Hiccup's sentence was cut off by a loud groan as Toothless's head flattened him to the ground.

Another groan followed it as Toothless began to lick Hiccup. He just barely escaped the dragon's grasp, somersaulting backwards to free himself. "You know that doesn't wash out!" Hiccup grabbed some of the slobber and flicked it back in Toothless's face. He finally noticed the laughter coming from everyone else in the Cove, and blushed, feeling pretty embarrassed that they witnessed Toothless effortlessly pin him down and give him a bath.

The duo made their way over to everyone else, with Toothless looking smug, and Hiccup trying to act like that didn't just happen. Everyone stared at the strange pair, before they shrugged it off as "something Hiccup would do." The group of dragons took off, leaving the peaceful sanctuary behind and heading back to the village, having enjoyed the wonderful day.