Shadow stormed away from the camp towards the river. How dare they? They dared to think that they could use the Black Moon to create an army of Night Furies. Did they seriously think that it would produce offspring like a factory?
They disgusted her. They didn't even have any idea what they were saying about her. Shadow shivered in disgust. Her skin felt filthy. The scales on her back itched with repugnance, as if she had been violated.
She needed to try and wash away the invisible filth she felt and decided that a bath would be the best thing. Finally, she found the best spot, surrounded by trees and rocks by the river. Completely hidden from sight.
Shadow pulled off her shirt and undershirt, revealing the bandages strapped around her form. Next she tugged off her leggings and everything else, then set about unwrapping the bandages.
The cuts and wounds from her fight with the Whispering Deaths and the Screaming Death had healed, leaving fresh scars on her skin. Every other scar stood out on her flesh, but the angry red scar tissue from the more recent ones stood out more against her pale white flesh.
She looked at the scales on her back, pitch black armoured chainmail like pieces, protecting the weak parts underneath. They stretched over her shoulders, up her neck, all the way down to her lower back and around her ribs. The skin underneath and some of the closer areas had turned a sickly looking ashen grey, but most of her body was still its normal pale colour.
Still looking over her shoulder, she checked the area. Not a single person, dragon or animal in sight, and her nose told her the same thing. She huffed in satisfaction and went over to the water. It was cold against her skin, but not unpleasant.
She swam around for a few minutes before stopping and leaning up against one of the boulders submerged half way in the water. She could see dirt and sweat covering her body, so she used her hands to scrub it away as best she could. She worked quickly and efficiently at removing the grime from her skin.
Shadow dived under the water, feeling the cold rush around her head. It was very refreshing. When she came back up, her short black hair was flattened against her head, and exposing her small ivory horns.
All six of them, linked in pairs at the back of her head, each one acting like a spearhead crossed with a Warhammer. Usually she didn't have them visible, nor the scales on her back, but after her recent partial transformations, it was too painful and too risky to try and get rid of them. Her hair, when dry, could easily conceal the horns, so it didn't matter so much. The teens couldn't see them if she kept her disguise well enough. And there was no way they would see the scales on her back either, as if she would allow them to sneak up on her with them visible.
No, she thought, they would not be able to notice.
She continued bathing for a while, and heard the sounds of splashing and laughter not too far away. The teens had decided to go swimming. Shadow was fine with this, as long as they didn't get too close to her while she was here.
Hiccup and the gang practically ran to the water. They were all eager to go swimming in the crystal clear waters and relax. As soon as they made it to the bank, everyone started pulling off items of clothing. Snotlout and Tuffnut were the first ones to dive into the water, wearing nothing but a pair of shorts, but were met with the hard bottom of the river. They groaned in pain as their rear ends hit the rocky ground under the water.
Figures, it was shallow. The girls and Fishlegs laughed at them. They finished getting undressed and went into the water along with them, wading into the deeper parts before diving under. It was still far too shallow for proper swimming, so they all decided to move down stream further.
Unbeknownst to them, Shadow was still bathing a bit further down the river.
Everyone swam around, enjoying themselves and the cool water. They splashed each other and pushed their heads under to surprise them. Everyone was having a great time. Hiccup swam around underwater for a while, practicing how with only one leg. He still wasn't good at swimming, but was determined to get it right.
When he resurfaced, he realised that he was quite a few meters away from the gang. His amputated leg was getting sore, so he sat down on one of the submerged rocks.
He had been sitting there, watching the others for a few minutes when he heard something. The sound of waves made by something moving in the water. Curiously, he snuck around the boulders to spy on whatever it was that was lurking in the water. His face had barely made it around the large rock before he froze.
He couldn't make out what it was, but all he knew was it had scales. It was hidden in the shadows well, but it looked like it had black ones. He could only just see a section of flesh covered in the natural armour from his vantage point, but he was sure it was a dragon.
But what exactly was it? It hadn't detected him yet, and if it did, it would most likely run away before he could identify it, so he crept around ever so slowly. Now he could make out a head, completely black, with horns. Six of them on the back of its head.
His eyes widened.
Could it be? After all this time waiting, wondering where it was hidden, was this the Black Moon dragon he longed to see? Hiccup tried to step further around to see it better, but his foot slipped. He had no prosthetic on, so he couldn't stop himself from tripping before splashing face first into the water.
The loud splash spooked whatever it was, and it bolted deeper into the shadows before he brought his head back up. His head broke the surface of the water with a gasp, the creature was gone.
"Hiccup! What are you doing here?" it was Shadow.
Hiccup turned to where her voice came from. She was hiding behind a large rock, with her head in the shadows. She looked frightened.
"Shadow? What are you doing?" he asked.
"What do you think I'm doing?" she answered. He could see her eyes narrowing.
"The gang decided to go swimming, and I sat down to rest just over there. Why are you over there, why don't you join us?" he said calmly. Shadow hid further in the shade that the undergrowth was providing.
"That's not such a good idea right now." He tilted his head curiously. She saw his expression and sighed. "What do you think someone does when they take a bath?"
It took him a few moments to realise what she meant, and his face blushed bright red. Stammering, he coughed and turned around so she could get out of her hiding spot and over to her clothes.
He heard her moving through the water and didn't turn around, fearful of what she would do if he saw her in her current state. He decided that he could take his mind of that if he apologised to her for what had been said earlier.
"Uh, Shadow. I want to apologise for earlier. It was stupid and selfish for even thinking that. My mind got ahead of logic and I can see it greatly upset you. I'm really sorry. I know you have cared for that dragon for its entire life, but I let my own selfish desires get in the way of thinking of the effort you put in to caring for it. I am truly sorry."
She stopped moving through the water at his words. She could sense the sincerity in his voice, and knew he meant what he said. Very slowly, she went over to him, he heard her approaching and dared not move. He did not want to anger her by moving an inch.
"I should have taken into consideration everything you worked for before even thinking of anything else." She was getting closer, yet she did not speak a word. His mouth became dry, thinking that she still wasn't happy with him.
He attempted to speak again, to keep apologising, but she got closer and closer to him, making him shiver. He felt her hot breath on the back of his neck when she stopped right behind him. His breath hitched in his throat from fear. He was stuck, trapped, and completely at her mercy. And they both knew it.
He dared not move, in fact he couldn't. His muscles froze in fear, his heart hammering in his chest. He shivered again when another warm breath tickled the back of his neck.
The great black beast inside Shadow's mind was revelling in all this, with him at her mercy. The beast basked in her control over him, the way he was frozen in front of her made it think of the glorious power it held.
"You are a very strange human." She said lowly. Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"Others have tried to take the Black Moon, and exploit it without mercy. Or take advantage of me. None have ever apologised as sincerely as you."
Her clawed finger lightly grazed his back, right down his spine, making Goosebumps appear all over his body. He was completely at her mercy, and could do nothing about it, even if his body could respond. She revelled in her control over him.
"You broke part of my trust by telling them, but I can forgive you for that, they are your team, your clan. You work together as one… You are slowly gaining my trust, but how can I be certain that you won't do anything to me, or the dragon?" she asked in a low tone.
Hiccup's breathing hitched again as her breath came closer to his neck and her claws raked down his skin, igniting it on fire. The black beast growled within her with desire, the desire to manipulate him to her will.
"I would never do anything to hurt you. Or the Black Moon… I care too much." His throat closed up at those last words. He hadn't been in control of himself when he said them. Her touch was making him go insane. He couldn't think straight.
Shadow was curious about his words, but she knew that she was causing his reactions. She leaned in closer, her teeth right next to his ear.
"What would you do for me? To make me trust you?" she asked.
"Anything." Was his immediate and breathless reply. His mouth was out of his control. It was like he was hypnotized by her. She growled appreciatively. The sound ignited the blood in his veins. His brain was foggy, he couldn't think straight, his body was frozen yet tingling from her touch and her voice.
Shadow could see his inner torment, with the way his taught muscles reacted to her touch, the way her breath altered his voice. She loved watching him squirm. It made her feel powerful again. She had him at her every command.
"Would you pledge yourself to me? Promise your loyalty?" she crooned.
He could barely speak with her fangs so close to his neck, driving him mad. He could only nod, and struggle to keep his body still from fear. She was awe-inspiring and terrifying at the same time. Hiccup had no idea what she would have him do, but right now, he would do almost anything. But whether it was from raw fear, or something else, he couldn't tell.
Shadow had him wrapped around her little finger, and could ask him to do anything for her. There were so many opportunities here, which one would she choose?
And would she really place her trust in him for a few promised words? The great black beast told her not to trust him without proof. It wanted something to solidify his loyalty, and to believe that he would keep his promise. It was all well and good to have him as hers, but it would do no good if he turned.
What could she do? She wondered. Would she really risk her trust, and therefore her life? She wasn't sure. The black beast inside her mind whispered something, and she grinned wolfishly. She could mark him.
This could work out well in her advantage. Let it never be said that Shadow was not a manipulative person when she chose to be.
"In exchange for my trust, I want your loyalty. Your life." She murmured. "Allow me to call upon you once when I need you to protect me from harm, and in exchange, you have my eternal trust. Within reason of course."
Bother her clawed hands raked marks over his shoulders and down his back. Hiccup's body was on fire and so many emotions went through his head. He wanted to turn around, gaze into her eyes, and look over her body. But with a great amount of self-control, he stayed where he was. Rooted to the spot.
"W-what does that mean?..." he groaned. His eyes closed in contentment with the way her claws scratched his back and lit his flesh on fire.
Shadow growled appreciatively. "It means, that if I want you to, you have to lay down your life for me. If I was to be trapped, or hunted, and I call on you, you would have to defend me with your very life."
Her words enchanted him entirely. The feeling of her breath on his skin, and so sensually near his ear, made him putty in her hands. He was helpless to resist, and couldn't deny her what she asked. Shadow's fangs strained to mark him, make him hers to command.
Hiccup, so entranced by her, as if by magic, nodded and agreed to her terms.
Shadow snarled lowly and lunged forward, driving Hiccup towards a large boulder and pinning him to it. His hands were splayed in front of him, stopping his face from hitting the rock, but the rest of his body was pressed up against it, with Shadow stopping him from moving. The movement was sudden, and Hiccup didn't understand what was going on until Shadow whispered by his ear.
"Just a little something to bind you to that contract…" she growled. The great black beast strained for control, to come to the surface, it growled and thrashed within her mind as it fought to lunge forward onto him.
Hiccup was completely helpless, and could do nothing as her mouth opened, and bared her fangs at his heated flesh. She stretched forward, extending her fangs to bite down on his shoulder and mark his body. The dragon within her snarled with pleasure as her teeth bit down, tasting his blood and marking him. Hiccup groaned.
He was hers to command.
Woah, that was a big chapter. I hope you enjoyed it, although honestly I have no idea what kind of reaction it will get from my readers. I would appreciate it if you left a review on it and let me know what you think. Sorry for the later update, I was away on a tourism camp and had no access to my computer. but I hope this long chapter makes up for it.
so yea, thanks. favorite and review!