Chapter Ten
It didn't take long for Toothless to find Astrid. Compared to the speed of a Night Fury, a human might as well be a slug. Aniu saw her first running through the undergrowth, about to jump over a fallen tree. Toothless smirked triumphantly as Hiccup had him fly closer to her.
"You're not getting away that easily, hatchling," he scoffed. On Hiccup's command, Toothless suddenly grabbed her by the arm and tossed her in the air.
"Oh, great Odin's ghost! Oh this is it!" Astrid screamed loud enough for Aniu to cover her ears. Cybele let out a groan at the loud noise, not enjoying it herself. Hiccup had Toothless drop Astrid onto a nearby tree, and she clung to it for dear life. "Hiccup, get me down from here right now!" she shouted angrily.
"Astrid, would you please just let me explain?" Hiccup pleaded with her.
"I am not listening to anything you say!" she snapped hotly.
"Well, we could always just leave her hanging there," Cybele warbled in a hopeful tone. Aniu was more than happy with that idea. But she knew that Hiccup would try risking his life by placing trust in this girl. Whatever he saw in her, Aniu hoped that there was enough kindness in her heart to let them get away unscathed. Astrid's eyes narrowed with hate as she glared at them. Her eyes were fixated on Aniu and Cybele. "What are you staring at? I could easily rip your throat out, hatchling," Cybele growled in a warning tone.
"I'm sure that can be arranged," Aniu replied in Norse, earning a look of shock and fear from Astrid. Hiccup shot her a look that dared her to say anything else. Aniu was tempted to, she hated this Astrid girl more and more.
"Then I won't speak… Just let me show you," Hiccup tried using a different tactic. Aniu watched Astrid thoughtfully, wondering if this girl would actually go along with his pleading. All the while Cybele was hovering alongside the tree while Toothless continued clinging onto the same tree Astrid was holding onto. Her eyes narrowed with doubt as she looked at Hiccup coldly. "Please, Astrid," he pleaded again and held out his hand.
Astrid quickly brushed off his offer and proceeded to climb into Toothless' saddle behind Hiccup. Toothless narrowed his eyes with equal suspicion as he glared at her.
"I swear if you do anything to hurt him I'll make sure you suffer the consequences," he growled. Cybele warbled in agreement as Astrid looked at Aniu warily.
"Now, get me down," she commanded.
"Toothless, down. Gently," Hiccup told the male Night Fury and soothingly patted him on the head. Aniu had already guessed what Toothless was planning when she saw the determined look in his eyes. His wings slowly unfolded as Hiccup looked at Astrid hopefully. "See? Nothing to be afraid of…"
"Go ahead and show her what a Night Fury can really do!" Cybele cried out just as Toothless took off with Hiccup and Astrid on his back.
"And there it is," Aniu said with a mischievous grin. As Toothless flew off, Aniu had Cybele give chase and easily caught up with them. Astrid was screaming in panic as she clung onto Hiccup after almost falling off. Aniu just stared at the pair as she allowed Cybele to take her at full speed, not bothering to hold on. And of course Hiccup was desperately trying to get Toothless to stop.
"Toothless? What is wrong with you? Bad dragon!" he scolded Toothless while he continued spinning in the air and flying as fast as he could. "I-I'm sorry, he's not usually like this," he apologized to Astrid just as Aniu and Cybele flew alongside them.
"You aren't going to stop until she apologizes, right?" Aniu asked Toothless.
"Or until she drops over dead from shock," Toothless replied cheekily. "I'm sort of hoping that she does. She has an obnoxious scream."
This wasn't going to end well for poor Hiccup. Toothless had flown to a certain height before tucking in his wings. Hiccup's eyes widened when he realized what Toothless was about to do.
"Oh, no…" Hiccup groaned as Toothless performed a spiraling dive at top speed towards the ocean. Astrid's screams became more frantic when she clung onto him for dear life. Aniu kept them within her sights as Toothless consistently dunked himself into the ocean. "Toothless, what are you doing? We need her to like us," Hiccup pleaded.
Something tells me she is going to hate us for this, Aniu thought with a knowing smirk. And what happened next only confirmed her thoughts as Toothless began to spin in the air once he was far enough from the ocean.
"And now we're spinning…" Hiccup grumbled while Astrid closed her eyes shut with fear. Aniu joined them in time to hear Hiccup's sarcastic remark, "thank you for nothing, you useless reptile."
"I think I'm doing us a favor," Toothless retorted, enjoying Astrid's misery.
"I think you've lost a few years in that flight," Aniu pointed out when they caught up again. Astrid locked eyes with her after realizing she was talking to her. Then she finally snapped.
"Okay! I am sorry! I'm sorry! Just get me off this thing," she pleaded.
"It's about time," Toothless said before leveling out.
That was when things had taken a strange turn of events. Toothless began to relax in a rhythmic pattern, with the sun beginning to set above them. Astrid's eyes widened in disbelief when she realized that they were actually flying. Aniu couldn't deny the rush of joy she felt as Cybele flew further off towards their secluded island. Soon they had reached a part of the forest where she could practice her archery, and perfect her skills.
"I thought I'd never see this island again," she admitted as Cybele flew underneath the trees.
"You doubt yourself too much," Cybele crooned once Aniu had pulled out her bow and fired several arrows at the targets.
Soon they had reached the end of the island until finally spotting Toothless and the humans again. Aniu narrowed her eyes when she saw Astrid's arms wrapped around Hiccup's waist. The look of pure joy told her that things had ended well between them. Aniu broke her gaze and looked away, and Cybele sensed her unease.
"I told you things would never work out between us," she muttered.
"There still might be a—" Aniu cut Cybele off before she could argue.
"No! Enough is enough. I think it's time we headed back to the nest. Nina's probably already sent out search parties for us," she snapped.
Cybele looked like she was ready to argue again, but then she realized that Aniu was serious. She glanced longingly at Toothless as they soared higher above the pair. Astrid looked as if she was in a world of bliss, her arms hugging Hiccup as if she never wanted this moment to end. Cybele narrowed her eyes at the sight. That girl was the reason they were leaving. Things had worked out perfectly so far until she suddenly appeared.
Finally, Cybele reluctantly turned around and headed back towards their island. The nest was at least half a day's flight away. Hiccup and Toothless were lucky they hadn't found it; otherwise Nina would have set her wrath upon them. Aniu and Cybele, however, were in for a mouthful when they returned.
...
"Of all the irresponsible things you could have done, this is by far the worse!" Nina deadpanned when they returned. "I told you not to go back to that human village, or anywhere near that volcano, and what do you do?" She was pacing back and forth, her wings and tail spines ruffled in frustration. "You are just lucky that human boy didn't turn you in! Imagine what they could have done to you?"
Cybele's head was lowered in shame while Aniu locked eyes with the dragon that could have passed for her mother. Nina had always been protective over them. As the Alpha of the nest, it was only right for her to worry about what trouble they could have gotten themselves into. Yet something was off upon their return. Aniu was the first to notice that there were fewer dragons living on the island now.
Patchy, Grace and Alvida had all vanished. Only a few familiar faces remained, and that made Aniu worry. She remembered hearing of Toothless' tale when he was caught by the Queen of the volcanic island. He was placed under her spell and had been forced to work for her. She wondered if they all met the same fate.
"Nina, please don't blame Cybele for this mess," Aniu pleaded once Nina had finished her ranting. "I was curious, and couldn't resist."
That much was true. Hiccup had taught her that not all humans were bad. But that didn't mean she didn't trust them entirely. After his behavior with Astrid, she wasn't sure what to believe anymore. It was obvious those two would be together now.
"I am blaming you both. Cybele didn't have to follow your wishes, she could have stayed here," Nina snapped. Aniu flinched at that. It was just another reminder that she couldn't fly. She looked down at her feet and suddenly found herself feeling guiltier than ever. Nina's eyes softened when she realized she hit a sore spot.
"Come on, we should join the others," Cybele warbled in concern.
Aniu didn't bother arguing this time as she was pushed towards the cave where they slept in. Sure enough they saw very few dragons sleeping in the cave on their own spots. A Monstrous Nightmare known as Thorn lay on his back, tail twitching every now and then in his sleep. A Hideous Zippleback was busy snarfing down fish until noticing Aniu and Cybele.
"Well look who's finally back," SnapTrap growled. "I bet you two were off having your own grand adventure while Nina was busy telling us off the whole time."
"Sorry, SnapTrap. It's been a long day," Cybele whined, noticing that Aniu wasn't bothering to defend herself. "We just need some rest."
Aniu shrugged as Cybele guided her to their favorite spot. She waited until Cybele had scorched the slab of stone, then rested beside her. Nina flew in a few seconds later, looking disgruntled as she noticed the pair. Yet she couldn't stay angry at them for too long. They were young and inexperienced. Soon they would learn that humans could not be trusted, no matter what was said.
...
Toothless had just led Hiccup and Astrid to the nest after realizing Aniu and Cybele were gone. This was something he had done regularly before leaving the Queen. Return to the nest and make sure everything was in order. As the most powerful dragon in the nest, the Queen had always claimed him as her second in command. With him gone there wasn't much order in the ranks of dragons, and they were beginning to argue among themselves. Toothless had found that obvious when the Queen emerged from her magma pit, and tried ordering the stronghold of dragons to grab Hiccup and Astrid.
"Whatever happened to that other Night Fury?" Astrid suddenly asked once they had discussed what to do about the nest. She had almost forgotten about the girl until picturing her riding the Night Fury.
"They must have flown off before Toothless took us to the nest," Hiccup replied, looking around worriedly.
He wasn't sure how a human raised by dragons would react to that beast of a dragon. Toothless warbled his own concern, though he was more worried about Cybele than anything else. She was a fierce Night Fury who could easily defend herself. But with that girl, it was a different story.
That's when Toothless picked up a familiar scent through the ash and sulfur. His ears pricked up with interest as he started following the scent, unbeknownst to Hiccup and Astrid. They were too busy discussing what had happened in the nest to figure out what he was up to. That was until they noticed an island coming to view. It was already late, and Hiccup worried that the others on Berk would begin to notice their disappearance. Yet Toothless stubbornly pushed ahead, ignoring Hiccup's commands as he flew closer to the island.
"It's like something's drawling him here, like the Queen," Astrid mused as they approached the island fast. "Are those… those are dragon tracks!" Astrid realized when she spotted something on the ground.
Toothless landed on the island once they had reached it. He sniffed the air and picked up that scent again. It smelled strangely of sweet honeysuckle, and made his mouth water. Hiccup and Astrid slowly realized that this was no ordinary island either.
"Human footprints," Hiccup observed after studying the ground. It looked as if there had been a skirmish, but it didn't last long. He recognized those footprints as Aniu's. Exchanging a look of surprise with Astrid, they followed the footprints until reaching what looked like the entrance to a cave.
Their eyes widened in amazement when they saw dragons sleeping peacefully among each other. That was when they noticed someone familiar among the dragons. Or two things. Cybele's sleek shape rose and fell as she slept, and sleeping next to her curled up was Aniu.
"How can she stand sleeping with them?" Astrid asked warily, noting that there was one dragon in particular that was bigger than the rest. And brighter in color. A purple Deadly Nadder. She had never seen a more beautiful dragon.
"Aniu was raised by the dragons," Hiccup explained in a whisper. "She was taken in when she was six."
Astrid's eyes widened in amazement when he told her Aniu's story, best as he could. The more she heard about this girl, the more she realized that Aniu was a lot like Hiccup. An outsider to her own people, she had fled and turned on them. Then she found the dragons, and everything changed. If Stoick or the others on Berk found out about her, they would surely drive her away or worse.
"We should go, before they discover us," she sighed after they had left the cave. It was too much for them to stay inside with an entire nest full of angry dragons. Facing the Queen had been one thing, but this was something different.
Toothless looked back at the cave where Cybele was sleeping. He didn't want to leave her again. Not after everything that had happened. Hiccup was ready to leave when Toothless put on all his weight and made it impossible for takeoff.
"Toothless, we have to leave," Hiccup pleaded after noticing Toothless' odd behavior. "My dad and the others are going to notice we've been gone all day and night." Toothless just rolled his eyes in response and gestured for the cave, suggesting they spend the night there. Hiccup exchanged an anxious look with Astrid, who merely shrugged in response. "Come on, you overgrown lizard!" He tried pushing his weight against Toothless in the hopes of getting him to move, but his attempts were hopeless.
I am not an overgrown lizard! Toothless thought indignantly. He snorted and laid down, earning a glare from Hiccup. Try getting off this island on your own, I dare you.
"Hiccup, this isn't working," Astrid sighed in frustration. "Like it or not, we're stuck here until he decides to leave."
Hiccup let out his own sigh of frustration after realizing that she was right. He might have control over Toothless' tail-fin, but that didn't mean he could control when they could or couldn't fly. Toothless was a stubborn dragon, and he was going to learn that the hard way.
AN; Well, we didn't get to see much in the romantic flight between Hiccup and Astrid, but it did happen. That does not mean they will get together ;) I've got big plans that will probably drive readers crazy with relationship issues, but that's what makes it so much fun.
dragologistmaster - Thanks, and hopefully this was satisfying enough :)
MMM - I've heard very mixed reviews on it. I have Windows 8 on my gaming laptop, and a lot of people have complained about how they refuse to let some programs work because they were supposedly 'bootleg' games. I'm not sure if those rumors are true, but for now I'll stick with Windows 8. And as for Aniu and Hiccup's relationship, hopefully my AN explained what will more than likely happen :P There will likely be lots of drama between them.
Wild Cat 214 - XD I think you might have guessed wrong. I didn't go into full detail with their romantic flight, but I like the way it happened with the story being in Aniu's POV.
.JEAN - Thanks, I'm glad you're enjoying this so far!