Chapter Seven
"What the hell was that thing?" I asked as we flew as far away from the volcano as possible. My voice was still trembling from what had happened. The sight of that creature's large jaws and head still made my skin crawl with terror.
'There is a legend that is spoken of among dragons,' Snowfire began. 'Of a creature that is as large as a mountain, and can control those who are beneath it.'
Toothless shook his head as if to agree with her story. He crooned softly at Hiccup as the kid tried reassuring him. But even I had to wonder how such a creature could be stopped, if it was forcing those dragons to attack the village.
"It makes sense," I suddenly muttered. "That thing is like the queen, controlling the other dragons."
"That's the island my dad's been looking for all these years," Hiccup said. The two of us were flying side-by-side now. After what I saw back there I wasn't in any hurry to get eaten by that thing.
'Dragon Island,' Snowfire mused. 'Most of our kind claim it as their nest.'
"So I'm guessing your dad wants to kill all of these dragons?" I said the words quietly, not sure how Snowfire would react. The subject of dragon slaying was obviously unnerving for her.
"Yeah…." Hiccup stopped himself as we reached the island he was from. "Look, I can't let my dad find out about that island. If he does, he'll get himself and everyone else killed."
"Then what do you suggest we do about it?" I asked. "If your dad is as stubborn as you claim he is, I doubt he'll listen to you."
There had to be a way to stop them. Despite the fact that they were using only ships as their source of transportation, it was only a matter of time before they found the island. I had no doubt that if Hiccup was right about his father, than they would find it. And all hell would break lose if that happened.
"Either we could run away and never go back, or tell my dad the truth," he replied after giving it some thought. Running away didn't sound like a bad idea. But I knew I would be full of guilt if anyone died out there because I was a coward.
'Lying will only make things worse,' Snowfire pointed out. She did have a good point there. Lying always led to something even worse, as my mom used to say. Then again my dad was a possible liar who ran away, so who was I to complain?
"I vote for telling the truth," I announced loudly. Hiccup just gave me a look of annoyance before nodding in agreement. "So um… what exactly do we tell him?"
"We?" I smirked at the look of surprise that followed.
"Hey, we both saw that thing," I pointed out. "Besides, you shouldn't have to face your father's wrath alone."
Wow, where did that come from? I barely knew the kid and I was willing to help him. Maybe it was because he reminded me a bit of myself.
"Alright," he said thoughtfully. "But uh, I'm not exactly sure how my dad's going to react to well… you." I tried not to smirk as I imagined how his dad would look at me. Considering the way he reacted, I'm sure they'd be much less accepting.
"I'm sure he'll love me," I reassured him with a laugh. "Everyone does!" Wait, do Vikings get sarcasm? Thankfully he just laughed in response.
"Okay, this just got more interesting." I grinned sheepishly as we landed in the protected cove. I'm surprised that no one found this place. One would think with the inhabitants nearby the cove would have been discovered sooner or later.
'I would rather go back to my island,' Snowfire reminded me.
"You're welcome to go back any time," I reminded her. Snowfire looked at me incredulously, like that was the craziest thing I've ever said. I just smirked and shrugged as I started walking away.
'Perhaps I should stay, just in case.'
"She really trusts you, doesn't she?" Hiccup watched us in amusement as Snowfire nudged my elbow. I looked at him in surprise before realizing that he was right.
"I can't imagine why she would," I admitted with another shrug. "It's not like I've done anything to help."
"Well, you helped Toothless when he needed it," he pointed out. Toothless crooned in what I assumed was agreement.
I couldn't help but blush at that. I was only doing what came to my thoughts first. Though I wouldn't admit that I couldn't just leave him behind while he was in pain. Sometimes it was good to have a conscience. Mom always said that it would prove to be useful in the end.
"Shouldn't we be… going to your village?" I asked nervously.
"Uh, right. My dad's going to kill me when this is over," he muttered under his breath.
I rolled my eyes and followed him out of the small cave that led into the cove. This was really the first time I had walked through the forest during the day. Usually it was at night I had wandered around. And of course it was at night I found Toothless.
As the trees began to part I noticed that we were getting closer to the village. That was when a sudden thought struck my mind.
What if they attack me? I couldn't help but wonder that. Hiccup may have been willing to accept my story, but I doubted anyone else would listen to me or believe me. Heck they'd probably throw me into prison, or whatever it is they have when I told them my story.
I tried pushing the thoughts away as we headed towards the village. We walked on in awkward silence. I can understand why Hiccup feels so awkward. We barely knew each other and I was already meeting his father, which would only make things even more awkward.
"Hiccup, where've you been?" I flinched as an older looking man with a peg leg and missing arm approached us. "Stoick's been lookin' for ya lad," he added after Hiccup stopped in his tracks.
"Uh, Gobber…. Uh…. What exactly did he want?" Hiccup ruffled the back of his hair while I watched from behind a tree. Truth be told I'm sure that this…. Gobber guy already spotted me. I wasn't really sure what he would do with someone like me.
"What d'ya think?" Gobber raised an eyebrow before glancing over Hiccup's shoulder. "So, what're ya hiding there?" he demanded.
I tried to hide the fact that I was blushing once again when Gobber pointed at me. With a sigh of frustration I stepped out of my hiding place so that he could see me. Gobber eyed me suspiciously before folding his arms and looking at Hiccup.
"Look, I'm not here to hurt anyone I just… got a little lost," I tried explaining as quickly as possible.
"A little lost?" Gobber looked at me skeptically before glancing at Hiccup again. "So le' me guess, ya think Stoick's gonna be mad about this."
"Yeah, kind of," Hiccup replied with a shrug. "Look, where is dad? We need to talk."
"I can see why." I flinched at the suspicious look Gobber gave me. Something told me everyone would be reacting that way. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. "He's in the house."
"Thanks!" Before I could react Hiccup suddenly grabbed me by the wrist and led me through the village, not bothering to explain what that was all about. All the while I could still feel Gobber's gaze boring into my back.
I'm sure he had a million questions buzzing around his head right now.
By now my heart was pounding as we reached what looked like a large building that had just been constructed. Truth be told I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I reached the village. I'm so used to modern cities and towns that it was a little off-putting.
Thankfully I wasn't given much of a chance to think it through. My eyes widened when I caught sight of what lay inside the house-like structure. In a way it reminded me of something you would find in a fairy-tale.
The building itself smelled like wood-smoke, almost like someone had a campfire going. I noticed that the structure was being held up by large wooden beams stretching across the ceiling, with a set of stairs leading to a second floor.
"Hiccup, I've been looking for you." Again I couldn't help but flinch as a rather intimidating looking man appeared in front of us. He had the whole viking look going for him, beard and all. "Who is this?" My eyes widened again when his gaze reached mine. I'm pretty sure he could see just how terrified I actually was. Of course it didn't help that Hiccup was grinning like an idiot.
"Uh, dad," Hiccup began after realizing I was glaring at him. "This is Alex, Alex, this is my dad."
I eyed the man in question warily, not quite sure what to make of him. He really was a bit intimidating.
"Where'd you pick this one up son?" he finally asked. To which I found myself blushing in embarrassment.
"Dad, we need to talk," Hiccup suddenly reminded him.
"Of course, you were going to talk about how your dragon training was moving along!" I didn't miss the unease flashing across Hiccup's eyes.
Well I had to hand it to his dad, he sure knew how to change the subject when it wasn't in his favor. From what I gathered this really didn't surprise me. Maybe it was time I stepped in, but something told me that I should keep my mouth shut for now.
"Look, that's not it." Hiccup sighed in frustration as his dad pulled out a chair from the table and sat in front of him, as if expecting the full detail. All the while I was rubbing my arms up and down, suddenly feeling uncomfortable.
This was like that time I walked in on a friends house and their mom was giving them the 'talk'. I could still laugh at my friends expression, had I not heard the whole story at the same time. God, that was probably the most embarrassing five minutes of my life, and hers.
"There's something out there making the dragons attack our village," he suddenly blurted out.
His dad just looked at him like he'd gone insane. I bit the bottom of my lip doubtfully as he stood up and dusted off his outfit. I wasn't even sure what the proper term for that was. Hiccup braced himself as if he was expecting his father to lash out at him, which at this point wouldn't surprise me.
I suddenly wished there was more that I could do to help. But here I felt like it wasn't in my place to speak out for Hiccup's sake.
"Ah son, you just need some rest," he replied after patting him on the shoulder. "And as for your friend…." He looked at me warily before Hiccup shrugged.
"She could stay in the guest room," he pointed out.
Wait, weren't we getting off topic? I thought we were hear to talk about the dragon's nest? I looked over at his dad as he rubbed his beard thoughtfully.
"She doesn't seem like a threat," he muttered. "All right, you can stay."
"But what about the d—" Hiccup cut me off by putting a hand over my mouth, causing me to glare in annoyance.
"I think it's time for us both to get some rest." I was ready to argue when I caught the look he gave me. Clearly there was something he wanted to talk about without his dad eavesdropping. Though I had a feeling that would be easier said than done.
Before I knew what was happening he already led me up the stairs, hand still covering my mouth. By that time I got sick of it and bit his hand, smirking as he yelped in surprise.
"Did you just bite my hand?" I had to laugh at his expression. Wouldn't be the first time I've done something like that, and it certainly wasn't going to be the last.
"What the hell? I thought we went through all of this to tell your dad the big news?" Hiccup threw up his arms in frustration.
"Well what was I supposed to say?" he demanded. By now we had reached what looked like a large room. I looked around in surprise when I saw a desk to one side of the wall covered in sketches and cut marks from a knife. "My dad's not going to listen to me, not unless it has something to with killing dragons," he muttered crossly. "I should've known this plan wouldn't work."
My eyes narrowed thoughtfully as I looked at the sketches scattered across his desk. I had already guessed by now that this was his room, making things even more awkward. But getting to my main point, I was surprised at how beautiful they looked.
There was one sketch that looked like a rock formation he must have found. Another was of a young girl with braided blond hair and a fierce looking face (not the type of person I'd want to piss off). And finally I caught sight of a sketch that resembled Toothless.
"So what now?" I couldn't help but notice another half-finished sketch that was hidden by the others. It looked like a quick sketch of Snowfire, but I wasn't entirely sure. I didn't look long enough to notice.
"I guess… I'm just gonna have to show him what they're really like," he sighed in defeat. "The dragons we have captive are just like Toothless, not personality wise but close enough. If I can show them that the dragons mean no threat, than maybe…." He paused and tried to search for the right words.
"Maybe your dad will finally listen to you," I offered. Hiccup buried his face in his hands before nodding in agreement. "Okay than." I shrugged and rubbed the back of my hair uncomfortably. "So that guest room you were talking about…." Hiccup finally looked up in embarrassment when he realized what I meant by that.
"Uh, right," he murmured. "Sorry, it's the second room to your left." I was ready to turn around and memorize his directions when he suddenly stopped me. "Hey uh, I just wanted to say thanks," he added sheepishly.
"What for?" I looked at him in surprise. There wasn't really anything I had helped him with, other than probably getting yelled at by his dad. Which thankfully hasn't happened yet.
"For listening to me," he replied with a shrug. "You're probably the first person who's ever actually listened to me."
I couldn't stop the heat from rising to my cheeks once again. Luckily he didn't take notice to that.
No guy I've ever met was like Hiccup. And I'm starting to realize that may actually be a good thing. He's gotta be one of the friendliest kids I've met.
"And thank you, for not thinking I was completely insane," I said with a laugh.
Thankfully there wasn't much left to be said after that. I was already feeling exhausted enough after all the stress from today. And I hadn't realized until now how much time had passed since this morning.
It was as soon as I reached the room Hiccup mentioned that I wondered what my mom was up to. Or if anyone at home had even bothered missing me. I hadn't realized until now how much I missed her. Or my friends, as few as I had.
The room itself wasn't much to look at, but I wasn't complaining. I was just happy to have a bed I could lay on. I couldn't even remember the last time I slept on a bed. By today I really had lost track of how long I've been here. Now all of a sudden I was beginning to wonder if I would ever see my friends and family again. And for the first time since I woke up, I started crying.
AN: Okay, not the best ending, but it is an ending. And apologies for the long delay in update. Blame Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. They have been keeping me away :P I've also had a minor case of writer's block as well so... yeah. Sorry. By the way, is anyone else listening to Christmas music yet? I've been listening to Casting Crown's and MercyMe's Christmas albums a lot lately...
silverwolvesarecool - You'll have to keep reading to find out ;) Hopefully the next update won't take as long!
69759 - Hehe, sorry ^^" I didn't know that. But I do know that feeling of procrastination. One of my worst enemies when it comes to doing actual work :P
ZambleTheZombie - Who says she isn't staying? :P
