Since the people of Berk had made peace with dragons, after countless years of fearing them, fighting them, killing them, the mighty reptilian beasts became far more to the village than pests or dangerous foes… They became allies, close friends, and the finest of steeds. Following the lead of the chief's son Hiccup and his extraordinary Night Fury, Toothless, many other villagers soon began to seek out and befriend dragons to call their own. Steadily the village adapted further to accommodate the new reptile residents; feeding and washing stations were constructed, events created revolving around dragon riding. Having a dragon became a must for those growing up in the village.

So you can imagine what it was like for someone like me, that one girl who, amidst her circle of fellow Viking friends, had not yet bonded with a dragon.

All of my friends had dragons by that time. No, I'm not exaggerating; absolutely ALL of my friends had a dragon of some sort. My best friend, Brigit? She had a Monstrous Nightmare, a noble beast with grass-green scales that faded into yellow along the edges of his wings. Her sister, Grete? She had a Deadly Nadder, a playful individual with striking lavender-coloured scales. My neighbour, Arian? His dragon was an intimidating Whispering Death; Arian, as good a friend as he was, was forever bragging about how he had managed to 'tame' one of the most terrifying dragons of all, and that his dragon was the coolest. Unfortunately, myself not having a dragon, I frequently became the subject of playful teasing by my friends.

"Where's your dragon, Alexa?"

"Why haven't you got a dragon yet?"

It was extraordinarily frustrating. I hadn't chosen to go without a dragon partner; if anything, I desperately wanted to befriend a dragon of my own. But it was no simple matter. I wanted to be sure that, in order to have the strongest bond possible with my dragon, it had to be precisely the right kind for me. I'd spent time with Gronckles, Monstrous Nightmares, Deadly Nadders, Arian's Whispering Death… None of them had felt like the right species of dragon for me. I was almost at my whit's end. I was beginning to think that I'd never find the right dragon for me. Never would I feel the joy of flight, the sight of Berk from high above, or the wonderful feeling of having the friendship of such an extraordinary creature.

I wanted that to change. Desperately, I wanted that to change. But I didn't just want to resort to befriending a dragon I didn't feel a true connection with. I had to find the right dragon.

When, where, and how would I find that dragon? Would there really be a dragon out there for me at all? I didn't know.

On one particular day, the teasing of my friends became too much for me to handle. In order to avoid expressing my anger at them – I knew they hadn't really meant to offend me and had only aimed to playfully tease, so I didn't want them to feel bad for making me feel that way – I decided to go for a walk to clear my head. Thus, I headed out of Berk and into the isle's woodland; it was a peaceful enough place, with nobody out here to make their teasing remarks. I figured that I'd spend an hour or so out here, taking in the blissfully peaceful alone time and calming myself somewhat before returning to the village for the evening. The weather was fair, with the sun bathing the isle in an unusual (but welcome) cloak of pleasant warmth. That warmth, coupled with the gentle breeze weaving its way through the woodland trees and gently teasing at my soft, brown hair made for a wonderfully pleasant walk. My mood soon improved; as I continued to walk, I broke my silence by softly humming a tune to myself to couple with the soft thumps of my feet against the forest grass. I glanced up at the sky, noting the sun's position and considering whether or not to turn back and begin the journey back to Berk. Deciding against it for the moment, I faced forward and prepared to continue on just a little further…

Suddenly, my ears were bombarded by an earsplittingly loud roar. The sound was of such volume and was such a surprise to me that I jumped, letting out a shriek of shock as I instinctively moved over to the cover of a large tree's shadow, before turning around in order to ascertain what had made the frightening noise. At first, I saw nothing, and prepared to cautiously step back out into the light; then, however, I spotted a glimpse of something moving behind several trees about twenty feet away from me. I couldn't tell immediately what that something was, but I could tell that it was rather large. I was scared; whatever it was didn't sound happy. Nevertheless, I felt a strange urge to take a closer look and see what it was. Proceeding with extreme caution, I crept out of my hiding spot and tip-toed over to the cover of the bushes between the trees, behind which I had heard that terrifying roar, and seen the brief movement of something big. Staying under cover as best I could, I looked out from my hiding spot and found myself looking out unto a large clearing. It was circular, covered in long, soft grass and scattered patches of wild flowers. It was a beautiful place, for certain… But the beauty of the clearing was not what had my focus. My eyes soon found and locked onto the source of the petrifying roar that had startled me before. A shiver ran its way up my spine, for I knew that I was rather close to something that could easily kill me in an instant. It was a dragon that, whilst I had never seen it with my own eyes before, I could identify instantly. The Book of Dragons told tales of the ferocity of these creatures; countless Vikings had lost their lives to these notoriously deadly beasts. And one was right here, right in front of me.

Mere feet away from me… Was a Skrill.

I stared in awe from the cover of the bushes at the legendarily fierce creature. From what I had read in the Book of Dragons back on Berk, and judging by this specimen's muscular but sleek build, it seemed to be a female at first glance, and also seemed to be fully-grown. Its scales were mostly a very dark grey in colour, almost black. The underside of its wings were a gracefully mottled light grey, the same colour as its underbelly. The sleek markings adorning her head, wings and back were a dark pinkish-purple colour. The dragon before me was not only an image of sheer strength and speed, but it was also a picture of absolute beauty. I was captivated by the sight of this deadly dragon, and remained in hiding watching her in awed silence for a few more moments. Then, however, my eyes drifted from her magnificent head, across her sleek body, and down to her clawed feet…and I noticed something odd.

Around the Skrill's right ankle was what looked like part of a wooden brace, trailing from which was the remnants of a metal chain. I'd never seen anything like it before; it certainly wasn't anything any of the people from Berk would put on a dragon nowadays. The wooden part seemed to be somewhat embedded into the flesh of the Skrill, and judging by the end of the trailing chain, which looked broken, made me recall something else from the Book of Dragons that I had read. There were tales of these dragons being captured and used by Viking ships to utterly destroy their enemies. Could it be possible that this Skrill had been one such captive dragon, but had managed to escape and ended up here?

My thoughts were cut short when the Skrill opened its mouth and let out another echoing roar; being so close to the dragon when it did so sent more shivers down my spine. This time, though, now that I was actually seeing the Skrill before my eyes, I could see why it was roaring. It hadn't spotted me, wasn't angry with me or hungry for human flesh… This Skrill was in pain thanks to the chain remnants around her ankle, and wasn't about to move on whilst that pain persisted. In such a state, this was a particularly dangerous creature to be around, perhaps even more so than usual. And yet, I felt that I had to help it. I felt enormous sympathy towards this Skrill, and couldn't just leave her here without doing something to help. This dragon needed my help, and that was exactly what I intended to provide.

The moment I decided to help… I realised something, something I had long wished to feel for myself. This was it. This was the one.

This would be my dragon…but how would I get her to trust me? How could I help her?

I silently considered how best to approach the situation. I had a knife with me; it was small, but could most likely remove the wooden part of the chain from the dragon's ankle. But how in the world could I get the dragon to let me do so? Skrills were notorious for how fierce they were and how many lives they had taken, and this specimen's frustration would definitely not make this easy. I wasn't about to give up, though; I thought intently for a solution to this dilemma. Thinking back, I remembered being told how my neighbour Arian had befriended his Whispering Death, a dragon with similar ferocity. Apparently, the first step had been feeding it; I also remembered being told by my other friends that their dragons had a particular fondness for two kinds of fish, those being brown trout and salmon. I recalled briefly overhearing someone else talking about a plant called dragon nip, too…apparently, dragons found the scent of that plant irresistible, and it could help make them docile. I didn't know if that was true or not, but those bits of information were all I had to go on.

My plan was formulated. My mind was made up. Creeping back from my hiding place as quietly as I could, I then turned and ran back to Berk as fast as my feet could carry me. I knew what I had to do. I just hoped my plan would work…

A short while later, I was hurrying back towards where I had spotted the Skrill earlier in the day. This time, I was prepared to put my plan into action. I carried a large satchel with me; inside it were the things that I hoped to use to earn the Skrill's trust, as well as the knife I would use to remove the wooden brace from the dragon's ankle. As I neared the spot, I hoped that I had been right about the Skrill staying in the clearing I had first spotted it in…

A shrieking roar echoed out nearby, and I breathed a sigh of relief; the Skrill was indeed still there. I finally came to the spot from before, and peered out from the bushes I had been hiding in to observe the Skrill earlier. Sure enough, there it was in all its glory; apart from having moved about the clearing a little, it hadn't moved all that much. I gulped a little, nervously. This was it. Either I'd be able to help the Skrill out…or become another victim of a dragon's rage.

I moved around a little and slowly stepped out from the bushes, aiming to maintain passive body language. In an instant, the Skrill took notice of me; she looked up, sharply, and glared at me with her piercing golden eyes. Her lips curled in a threatening snarl, and the sight of her sharp teeth sent chills through my body. I hesitated for a moment, intimidated by the dragon's warning growl, but after a moment I calmed myself with a quiet breath and began to put my plan into action.

"Hey there, g-girl…" I greeted the Skrill, with a slight nervous stammer. "It's ok, it's ok… I'm just here to h-help you…"

The Skrill snarled again, a little louder this time. Without breaking eye contact for even an instant – if I had allowed myself to do so, the Skrill might have taken that opportunity to launch an attack – I slowly lowered my satchel to the ground, and took out two brown trout, one fish in each hand. My nose wrinkled up a little in response to the strong smell of the two trout, but I didn't let that hinder me. Slowly straightening up, I began taking cautious steps closer to the Skrill, which continued to glare at me, watching my every move. As I got closer to her, I could feel my heart start beating faster out of sheer exhilaration. This was the 'make it or break it' moment that would decide everything.

"Are you hungry, girl…?" I cautiously asked the Skrill, stopping about four feet away from her and holding out one of the two fish to her. She lowered her head and snarled again… Then, slowly, she began to step towards me. My outstretched arm was shaking a little as the Skrill stopped before me and raised her head, sniffing at the trout I was offering to her. I had hoped that she would pick up on a certain something different about the fish in question… When I had fetched it for her back in the village, I had also managed to find some of that 'dragon nip' I'd heard about before, and rubbed it on the fish to help make it a little more appetising. I was about to see whether or not it would work out…

I almost flinched as the Skrill, so close to me now, let out another growl and bared her teeth; this time, however, the growl was a little softer, and didn't sound as outright aggressive. Rather, it just seemed to be a growl of wariness this time. Heart racing, I watched intently as the Skrill sniffed the fish one more time… before opening her jaws and gently taking the trout into her mouth, swallowing the fish in one gulp and licking her lips. Inwardly, I wanted to breathe a sigh of relief. But it wasn't over yet. The Skrill looked me right in the eye again; we maintained silent eye-contact for what seemed like hours, but it was probably closer to a few seconds. The dragon then blinked, and uttered another of her soft growls of wariness. With my plan going on well thus far, I decided to move on to the next step; I held out the second dragon nip laced trout to the Skrill, who took it more quickly than the first, but this time allowed herself to chew the fish and probably enjoy the flavour a little more.

It was then that I made my move.

Drawing my small knife from the inside of my boot – I had placed it in there because the two fish had taken up pretty much all the space in my satchel – I carefully moved closer to the preoccupied Skrill and knelt down beside her. I quickly got to work, bringing the blade to the wooden brace around the dragon's ankle. The wood was partially worn out, and using my knife to saw through it wasn't quite as difficult as I had anticipated, much to my relief. As I had expected, however, once the Skrill had finished the fish and noticed what I was doing, she wasn't best pleased. She emitted another, somewhat louder warning growl and turned her head, taking a snap at me with her sharp teeth, but thankfully not catching any part of me in her jaws. Realising that I couldn't stay much longer, however, I redoubled my efforts… And, thankfully, a few seconds later, my knife had managed to cut right down the side of the wooden brace. Throwing my knife to the side as the Skrill gave a growl of annoyance, preparing to snap at me again, I reached in and grabbed the wood; giving it a slight readjustment, I managed to remove it from the Skrill's leg, and hastily backed away to give the dragon some space.

The Skrill growled at me one last time as I backed away; she soon became silent, however, and broke eye contact with me, looking down at her ankle. There was a slight scar from where the brace and chain had been; the dragon softly licked that faint mark and gazed at it for a while, almost as though to reassure herself that the brace and chain really were gone. I stayed a respectful distance away to observe her and check that she definitely didn't have any further injuries. She seemed to be alright now, though.

"Thank Thor…" I whispered, moving back over to my satchel, picking it up and slipping it over my shoulder once again. I turned back to the Skrill and watched as she lifted her head, making eye contact with me once again; this time, though, I did not see aggression in those piercing eyes of hers. If I didn't know any better… I could have sworn I saw the faintest hint of gratitude in her golden gaze. Moving in silence, the Skrill began to slowly walk towards me, wings folded by her side as she stopped right in front of me. I could feel the warmth of her breath on my cheeks, as her snout was mere inches away from me. I didn't sense any hostility anymore, and my own nervousness began to fade away. Once again, we maintained our shared gaze for what seemed like ages. Then, almost without realising it, I steadily raised up my hand towards the dragon's noble head…

I felt something warm and scaly press gently into my palm. Blinking myself out of my daydream-like state and back into the here and now, I realised what had happened; the Skrill was nuzzling my hand, her eyes closed. I could hear her uttering a soft, purr-like growl from her throat. After a few moments of shock and awe at having experienced this magical moment, a smile of absolute happiness spread onto my lips, and I could scarcely stop myself from crying tears of pure joy. Finally, it had happened. I'd finally established a bond I'd have for the rest of my life.

At long last, I had found my dragon.

No longer so nervous, I reached up and scratched the Skrill just behind the spines of her head. Her purring got a little louder, and it seemed that she particularly enjoyed that spot being scratched. I kept it up for a few more moments before gently withdrawing my hands from her scales.

"There…not so mean anymore, are you?" I softly cooed. The Skrill softly snorted, almost as though in agreement. With a soft chuckle, I scratched her behind her head again. "Such an amazing dragon, you are… But what to call you?"

I allowed myself a few silent moments to consider what name to give my new reptilian friend. A number of options ran through my mind, and it seemed quite difficult to choose a fitting name… Suddenly, though, I hit upon one name that felt perfect. I looked to my new Skrill, smiled, and said to her, "How about I call you…Cyclone?"

The Skrill snorted again, as though in agreement. I smiled and petted her scaly snout; it was settled, then and there. The name of a friend that would be with me for the rest of my life. The best friend I'd ever have. The most loyal companion anyone could ask for. A new chapter of my life on Berk had begun; no longer would I be known by my friends as 'that girl without a dragon'. I could fly alongside the others, see things I'd never seen before…

That marked the beginning of my friendship with Cyclone, the Skrill. My dearest and most loyal companion. Far more than a pet, more than a friend…

Cyclone means the world to me. And, someday, we'll see the world together.

Just you wait and see.