Okay, so, I'm back! It's taken me a long time to choose the name for this fic, but now that I have, I can finally publish it! I have a feeling this one might turn out to be kind of long, but maybe some people might like that, I don't know. Anyway, I hope you're all as exited as I am! It's great to start on something new. I'm hoping to update every two days, but that may well not happen, so you must just be patient with me!

Also, just to clear this up, Vikings did bury their dead in long barrows as well as burning them in ships. It was basically just that but on land, as far as I know. Then they shovelled a load of dirt on top. So yeah. No hate.

Here we go!

The dragon tossed its weight to one side, banking sharply. He beat his large wings hard, gaining speed again, swooping down, heading straight for his target. His eyes narrowed.

"Now, Hookfang!" Came the cry from his saddle, and the Monstrous Nightmare opened his jaws and let forth a great cloud of fire. The tree didn't stand a chance. The wood snapped and crackled as the flames ate it up in seconds.

"Woo-hoo!" Cried the dragon rider, throwing his arms above his head and almost knocking off his ram-horned helmet. Snotlout grinned in elation as he and Hookfang soared over the forest of Berk. The wind whipped through his short, mud-brown hair and nearly torn his jacket from his broad shoulders. When Hiccup had announced that there would be no training that day, he'd quickly taken the opportunity to use the free time to destroy stuff and do some flying. Training exercises were good, but they could get boring quite easily. Burning trees to the ground in seconds never got tiring.

"Okay, Hookfang, let's find somewhere to rest. I'm starving, and those yak sandwiches looked so good..." His stomach growled as he licked his lips and steered his dragon towards a nearby clearing. Hookfang, also ravenous, followed his commands obligingly, landing neatly on a patch of mossy grass at the edge of a fairly large opening in the trees. Snotlout slid ungracefully from the saddle, hitting the ground heavily and stumbling. Straightening up as gracefully as possible, he brushed imaginary dust from his jacket and looked around.

"Whoa..." He breathed. Before him lay the single largest burial mound he'd ever seen. The great barrow stretched for at least twenty paces lengthways and was more than eight strides across. His mouth hung open in awe as he approached cautiously. Covered over in swaying, emerald grass, the colossal mound was taller than he was. Hookfang crawled beside his master as the two surveyed the burial mound, his head down beside Snotlout's waist. The rider just couldn't understand what his dragon was so worried about.

"This is incredible! Look at this thing, Hookfang!" Snotlout mused incredulously. "Imagine the kind of person who was buried here! I bet it was one of the first chiefs of Berk. What about what's inside? Think of the treasure! We could be rich beyond our wildest dreams! We could have all the ladies on the island drooling over us!" He reached out and took his dragons jaw in his hands. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? Of course you would! Who wouldn't?"

He walked all the way around the barrow twice, looking it over for any openings, but there were none. At one end, there was evidence of an entrance, but it looked as though it had collapsed. He looked closely at the soft pink flowers that grew over the top, and then tried to climb up to get a better look. As he scrambled to his feet and looked down, he laughed at his dragon's expression.

"Hey, Hookfang! I'm taller than you!" He scoffed, smirking jokingly. The dragon reared up, thrusting his head high into the air and looming over his rider's head. Muttering curses, Snotlout slid back down to ground level. "We could be so rich, Hookfang. Imagine bringing some of this stuff back to dad. He'd be so pleased with me, don't you think?"

Snotlout's expression was almost unreadable. The joy and hope lit up his eyes, while longing for his father's love stood out in his slight frown. Blinking, and with his mind set on this single task, Snotlout Jorgenson clambered onto his dragon's saddle and, leaning back, he tugged Hookfang's horns and the dragon spread his wings.

"Sure, we'll help" Tuffnut Thorston folded his arms over his chest, his signature smirk adorning his long face. Snotlout grinned, turning to the girl stood beside him. She sighed.

"Whatever," Ruffnut snorted, feigning disinterest. She fiddled with the greasy, dirty-blonde braids that cascaded down her chest, easily reaching her waist. Stood beside her brother, the twins were almost indistinguishable from one another. They had the same bright, sky-blue eyes, the same flowing fair hair, the same turned-up noses and skinny, lanky build. They even had the same dragon. Barf and Belch stood behind their riders, the sun glinting off their emerald scales. With a click of their fingers, the Zippleback's heads came snaking around the twins, and the two climbed into their saddles.

The Zippleback followed the Monstrous Nightmare closely as Snotlout led the group back towards the clearing where he had found the burial mound. Hookfang was being slightly stubborn, shaking his head from side to side and snorting as his rider scowled insults at him. Seeing his struggle, the twins exchanged looks and gently urged their dragon on, pulling alongside their fellow rider.

"Having trouble there, Snotlout?" Tuffnut called across, smirking slightly.

"Yeah, stupid dragon!" The Jorgenson boy shouted back in annoyance, looking down at Hookfang. The dragon growled. "Doesn't matter, we're nearly there anyway."

The crimson Nightmare banked gently right, followed by Barf and Belch, their two heads bobbing up and down as they flew. Hookfang circled the clearing before setting down as far from the barrow as he could. Disgruntled, the dragon bent his neck to allow his rider the dismount. He was soon joined by the twins, leaving their dragon to bother the Nightmare as they stared in awe at the structure before them.

"Wow. That's cool," Tuffnut smirked.

"Totally awesome!" His sister agreed. "And look at the size of it!" She stretched out her arms, as though trying to grab the thing from the ground. Her brother chuckled.

"Just think about the stuff that could be inside it! It has to belong to one of the former chiefs of the tribe. No-one else could afford anything this big!" Snotlout announced proudly. "And it's all ours!"

Ruffnut's face fell. "Wait, this is a grave?" She asked, peering at the Jorgenson boy questioningly. He nodded, hands on his hips. "Whoa, whoa, guys. We can't just go digging up people's graves. Don't you know what happens if you do?"

"We've all heard the story, Ruff. But it's just an old hag's tale, made to scare little children so they don't steal the treasure inside. Now, are you guys gonna help, or are you too chicken?" Snotlout sneered, throwing a shovel at her brother. He caught it, sniggering, and the boys approached the burial mound.

Whoops! Looks like the boys are turned grave-robbers! And all to please Snotlout's father, as usual. I like to show Snotlout as a victim of his up-bringing, rather than just the run-of-the-mill jerk of the group, which he's not. I don't think it's fair to blame just him for his brazen attitude and idiotic antics. The twins, on the other hand, just have no common sense. At least, one of them doesn't. Who wants me to write out the tale that Ruffnut is talking about? 'Cause I will, just say the word.

All proof-read, but do tell me if you spot any errors so that I can change them. Thanks!