Sorry it took so long, Writer's block hit harder than usual and most of my means of dispelling it were unavailable of late. I plan to upload the next chapter by the end of the month. Please leave a comment or review. ^u^
Mildew, watching in fascinated horror as Gon removed the chains from the Day Fury's legs, other Outcasts stood a good ways back, weapons in hand and ready for use, they were all shivering a little at the thought of having to tie the gold down again, but none of them were willing to admit it.
Alvin was in the cage, thinking it strange that someone so small could lift such heavy chains and shackles at all, but saying nothing, he was more interested in seeing just how well this 'enchanted collar' worked. And if it didn't, well he knew of very slow and painful ways to take out his frustrations, and he did like the idea of seeing that pathetic foreign face twisted in fear again.
As Gon removed the last shackle he patted his hands together and took a step back with a bow, "Go ahead Mr. Treacherous, he won't mind much."
Alvin nodded, his face like stone as he strode towards the huge limp golden body, his hands shivered as he touched the yellow scales, his heart pounding in his ears as he sat himself between the wings at the base of the neck and waited.
Fang didn't move for a moment. Alvin turned to glare at 'dress man' icily. Gon simply smiled, "Come now, the fact you're on his back without so much as a peep proves it works, he's been reduced to little more than a glorified pack horse with wings."
"I don't need a pack horse, 'Dress man" Alvin growled.
While his men chuckled among themselves at the use of Gon's old nickname, the little man himself didn't so much as flinch, "Every little dog can be tamed, and it so happens I've prepared a little something. An extra spell that should ensure your new mount obeys your every word."
He pulled out a large feather from his sleeve, a dragon feather, a white one that darkened to a dark toxic green at its center, Alvin couldn't help but notice there was something painted on it in red.
"As you may have guessed this is a feather from one of his own kind, written on it is the name of a particular, (ahem) acquaintance of mine, if you'll allow me…"
He gestured towards the dragon's head, Alvin nodded slowly. Gon needed no second bidding as he was soon tickling the dragon's nose with the feather.
"You may want to hold on to that collar tightly, Mr. Treacherous." Gon warned, Alvin needed now second bidding either.
***8***
Astrid noticed the two dragons long before they reached the arena, with a quick word to Stormfly she took off towards the barracks.
The twins watched her go for a bit, the Zippleback exchanged a word with the Nadder while the twins exchanged glances.
"Where's she off to?" Ruff asked; her twin stared at the sky a minute.
"Wait I know this one, don't tell me," he banged his head a few times shaking it off, "No I got nothing. Maybe if you…"
He pointed to his head, his sentence cut off with a swift right hook to the jaw.
"Well, did it work?" Ruff asked expectantly.
"Nope…"Tuff groaned, "But now I finally remember where we buried our first hatchet."
"Make a note; we can dig it up later." Ruff said excitedly.
Snotlout rolled his eyes, spotting Feather-storm, Toothless and hiccup as they came in.
"Hey there," he strode up to his cousin, addressing the silver with a smile, "Whose a pretty thing? You coming flying with us today, well then I hope you're up for a challenge because not only is Astrid in charge of today's training but me and Hookfang are the best warriors in the class."
Ruff literally dropped what she was doing, on her twin's foot, "Wait…Astrid's in charge today?"
"That hurts almost as bad as the fact you dropped a crate of something heavy on my foot." Tuff strained, "No I take it back, this is worse. Get it off!"
Feather-storm snorted, moving off to greet the other dragons with her musical chirrup. Snotlout then pulled Hiccup closer, "So…"
Hiccup looked at him confused, "what?"
"Anything going on between those two?" Snot said playfully poking his cousin in the ribs, "Something romantic?"
Hiccup rolled his eyes, "Like I told Gobber, we won't know unless it happens."
"Hiccup!" Astrid came running, a few rolled up parchments in her arms, "I've got our lesson all set up. You ready?"
All the humans accept the one called groaned, Astrid had a habit of making these exercises somewhat tougher than what hiccup had in mind, and that was why hiccup would let her take over the class every once in a while, her kind of training could prepare them for all kinds of situations out there. Especially when she involved how to work around the outcasts.
"Today we're going to play a little game, a cross between a treasure hunt and a race against time."
The twins glanced at each other before pulling out a mace each. Astrid raised a brow.
"Why do you have those?"
"Why wouldn't we?" Ruff asked.
"Yeah everyone knows when you teach the class you have to be prepared." Tuff huffed, clapping the weapon tighter.
Fishlegs gained a puzzled look, "Oh…kay, but why do you have those if you forgot that Astrid was teaching today?"
The twins looked to eachother then at their maces, then to the others all looking at them, speaking at the same time, "We don't remember?...AH YOU SAID WHAT I SAID, NO YOU DID, NO I DID, QUIT IT. ARAGH!"
With that the two of them threw a left hook at the same time, hitting each other in the face at the same time and falling over at the same time and groaned.
"Stop…copying me…"tuff groaned rubbing his chin.
The teens all rolled their eyes.
Astrid sighed and gave everyone two rolled parchments, "Each of these are maps of every island we've been to so far and a list of clues to each item you have to find, everyone has a total of three and you have to find them all ad be back here before the sun sets. Any questions?"
Everyone shook their heads; accept the twins who were glaring at each other carefully. Astrid gave them their maps, "You two heard everything right?"
Simultaneously they responded, "Yeah! AHHHH WE DID IT AGAIN!"
And again they smacked each other in the face with a left hook and fell over
***8***
Hiccup read the first clue aloud, "Where attackers are kept, one monster bound tight, a lock of its hair should give you a fight."
He sighed, looking up to the silver, her face etched in some despair. Obviously she had figured it out as well; the first item was a piece of Strider's fur.
Hiccup placed a hand on the smooth white scales, "Hey, I know you still feel bad."
"Her?" a voice caused them all to jump, "How do you think I feel?"
Hiccup was robbed of words as he turned around, expecting to see Strider, but instead of the hound he was used to seeing stood…a girl. She looked about 15 or so, little taller than Astrid and just as slender, her clothes consisted of a green shirt and leather jerkin, her legs were covered by baggy black leggings stuffed into knee high boots, a grey pack slung across her shoulder. She looked at the three of them with golden brown eyes.
Hiccup stuttered attempting to ask where in the world she had come from, but Feather-Strom gave a whoop of joy and rushed to the girl's side, her nose nudged her so hard it caused the girl to stagger.
"It's good to see you're alright, Milady." The girl smiled, stroking the dragoness's nose gently.
At the word 'milady' something clicked in hiccup's mind, he opened his mouth and forced out one word in astonishment, "S-strider?"
The girl turned to him, a pair of hound ears pricked up on the top of her head, the exact same color as the werewolf's fur, "Who else would it be?"
Hiccup nodded, his tongue suddenly loosened in the moment, rattling off questions like a rushing river, "Why are you here? Why do you look human, is it some kind of trick? Where did you get those clothes? Is it the same as when Feather-storm changes or are they yours? How long have you been out? What's with the pack? Is there more…?"
Strider's hand was suddenly on his mouth, moving just as fast as the night they met, "Slow down kid your mind might blow something."
She took a step back; Feather-storm chirruped a little sounding concerned. The wolf girl shrugged, "Well I suppose you need some explanation. In order, when you said 'you should've seen her' I decided to take you up on that offer so I escaped. I look human because all werewolves are half-bloods and I personally have the rare ability to change between them whenever I want, so it's no trick. These clothes change with me of course, I just have to concentrate to do so. I've been out since last night and getting my things. And to guess at that last one, is there more than one of me. Nope; just me."
She smiled slyly, adjusting the bag on her shoulder, "Satisfied?"
Hiccup took a bit to take this in, nodding slowly, "I guess so…"
"Good," Strider smiled, "Now then if you get the hairs last and you let me help you with the rest of that list then maybe you can help me with a little something."
Hiccup folded his arms in front of him, a sly smile crossing his face, "Oh so now you want my help."
Strider held up her arm, a humanoid paw with sharp claws clicked as she rubbed her 'fingers' with a smile, "I don't like asking a Viking, different as you are. Don't get so cocky."
Hiccup forced a smile, hiding his rising uncertainty. Now that she was out of the cell he couldn't help but feel a little…scared of her. Funny I didn't feel anything like that when she attacked me the first time. He thought to himself.
Strider sighed, returning her hand to normal and adjusting her bag again, "Although… there is something I need from you two, you and Toothless the Night Flier."
Hiccup couldn't help but feel a little pale, wondering if whatever she wanted from him wasn't going to be something he would regret later.
***8***
Wind whipped through his hair as he flew over the water, the familiar smell of the sea filling his nose and leaving a slight taste on his lips. The black scaled dragon underneath him was enjoying the trip more than he was. The night fury seemed like a dragon on a mission ready for anything as they flew on, the silver dragoness flying a little behind them looking more worried than enthusiastic. Strider lying on her stomach along the slender neck, with only her knees to hold on. She stroked the dragoness on the ears, trying to soothe her.
"It's alright Mimi, once we get there we you can hide while toothless and I check things out." Her voice practically a purr.
Hiccup shivered slightly, remembering Strider's small conversation with Feather-storm and Toothless in a strange tongue he couldn't make out. Apparently she went ahead to catch up with her dragon mistress a little, at least to the point where she knew why she had crash landed on Berk. And apparently it had the silver frightened, very frightened.
"So… you mind telling me where were going?" Hiccup called back over the wind, "And why?"
"All you need to know is once we get there your job is to keep My lady Mimi safe and hidden. Toothless and I already have plans." Strider said simply earning a gruff call out from the night furry. The werewolf frowned, "Don't give me that now; we both agreed that you and I are ten times better at hiding than a silver guise dragon and a Viking child with a metal leg."
Hiccup frowned, turning to Toothless, "Well could I at least know where we're going?"
Feather-storm flinched, sounding upset as an island loomed in over the horizon, Strider doing her best to calm the dragoness. But Feather-storm simply stopped in midair and attempted to turn around. Hiccup's heart sank at the sight of the land mass; it was a near barren place he knew only too well, even without a map. He felt he deserved a slap across the back of the head for not recognizing the area sooner.
"there's a place we can land over this way, if we go there Feather-storm can have a safe place to hide until you get back," Strider opened her mouth to protest, Hiccup beat her too it, "Besides, you'll need a crash course in flying if you want to ride Toothless. Like if you come under fire."
The werewolf shut her mouth with a sigh, "Point taken. Let's go"
Feather-storm crooned with a long musical purr as they flew a ways south, Hiccup glancing back to the island, unhappy that one of his suspicions was correct. Before Feather-storm had crashed landed on Berk, she had been attacked by Outcasts. It was no wonder she didn't want to go back to their island.