Hello readers! This is the little side story that I mentioned writing earlier. It is a side story to go along with Astrid's comment in Servant of Memories "Babette owes me fifty septims." How did that bet come about? Read to find out! If you would like me to continue this story, please leave a review saying so and I will update as soon as they start coming in!
****WARNING: THIS STORY WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR MY STORY, THE SERVANT OF MEMORIES, TO WHICH THIS SHOT IS A COMPAINION
Enjoy!
The Bet
With a hard swipe of its tail, Astrid and Shadowmere with rolling around in the dirty snow like tin cans, groaning and whinnying in pain as their bodies slapped against rock. The Viking woman just skidded to a halt, remaining face down in the ground before miserably pushing herself up on her elbows, coughing up blood.
The dragon turned around rapidly, taking in the sight of his wonderful pray miserably before her. The woman just looked so sweet, so innocent, and like a little snack for the recently awoken beast. She licked her lips before coming closer, bearing her teeth in a cynical grin.
Astrid concentrated on her breathing, insides freezing under the steaming gaze of the dragon. She looked up with a strained neck to see her horse unconscious about twenty feet away, his image doubling in her eyes. She could almost feel the dragon's hot breath pour over her like lava, chilling her to her bones. The sensation reminded her of her teenage years, and being paralyzed by the mist of the Flightmare, and she quickly began thinking.
What would Hiccup do? What would Hiccup do?
"Nivahriin joore," the dragon spat, disgusted Astrid's seeming weakness and inching closer, her snout now inches from Astrid's side, ready to bite her in half.
Cowardly mortal.
She had called her a cowardly mortal.
Astrid froze, horrified at recognizing the language. For years, Hiccup had talked about the dragons having an innate way to speak to each other, and she started to think he really was just becoming that one crazy dragon guy, like Mildew or something. When he had insisted that he was conversing with Toothless for the fourth day straight, she finally agreed to sit in on one of their "conversations."
To her astonishment, Hiccup and Toothless seemed to sit and actually converse, speaking in a strange but oddly enticing language that was the furthest from Norse she could image. Fascinated, she learned everything she could from Toothless and her boyfriend, slowly learning the language of dragons.
Could it really be that simple?
Finding a new strength and bravery, Astrid pushed herself into a sitting position, spitting out fresh red blood into the snow. She gasped as a previously unseen gash was spilling crimson down her back and into her armor, making it sickly sticky. She turned to look at the salivating dragon, staring her directly in the eyes. The sight was cold and hard, with an indiscernible sense of power. It was admirable, even though she saw the hunger for her flesh in them.
"Aaz," Astrid spoke, still holding miserable eye contact. Astrid held out her hands defensively, still trying to catch her breath as the dragon's eyes narrowed and she jerked back in response, scales scraping together.
"Sahrot, dovah. Please," she begged, "Mercy, mighty dragon. I speak your tongue. Hin rotmulaag."
The dragon stared blankly at her for a moment before what seemed to be a grin slunk onto her face. "I see, mortal. You are wise and have knowledge of the dovah," she spoke huskily, inching closer with glistening eyes. "I spare you with regret."
Astrid's heart fluttered in her chest as she tried to hide a hopeful grin. Her eyes betrayed her as they began brimming with tears. "Thank you. By Mighty. Kos sahrot."
With one final glance of almost approval, the massive silver-plated dragon took the sky.
Astrid felt the wind of her wings throw dust into her eyes as she took off, ignoring the bleeding Viking woman. She finally flew out of sight with one last strong roar, leaving the blonde to slump against the tree with a sigh, still pawing at her gaping wounds and wondering how she was going to get home.