I do not own the How to Train Your Dragon franchise.

Quick message to leave, here. First off, thanks so much for making this my first story to get over one thousand reviews. It makes me incredibly happy, and I'm glad you all enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing.

Second, I entered my story, Project Ghost, onto Inkitt for their Fandom contest. If you could spare a moment, and if you feel like it, to click the recommendation button, I'd really appreciate it.

Dare suggested by TheDoctor1998.

Of Dung and Dangerous Dares

If anyone accused Ruffnut of avoiding her only female friend, she would of course deny it. But as she sat in the loft of her home, curled up against the cobweb-covered wall, she reluctantly acknowledged that she was acting a bit cowardly.

But she felt she had good reason to be wary. Astrid was the next person to give her a dare, and she knew it was going to be a horrible one. Her ears had finally healed from Stoick's sound boxing and she did not need another injury from some irate and furious villager who happened to be the unfortunate target.

"Whose stupid idea was this dare contest, anyway?" she grumbled. She paused, thought, and suddenly realized with slight bafflement that she couldn't remember how it all started. But it was probably Snotlout's fault.

"Ruffnut!"

The girl scowled as her name echoed off the walls of her home, rudely intruding her quiet space. She reluctantly crawled to a gap in the floorboards and lowered herself down, landing neatly in the main room where Astrid was waiting.

"What?"

Astrid smirked. "Hiding?"

"No," denied Ruffnut.

"Sure." Astrid rolled her eyes. "I've come with a dare."

"Figures," muttered Ruffnut, bracing herself. "What is it?"

Astrid pointed at her with a wide smile. "I dare you to fling dragon dung on Stoick."

The angry curse Ruffnut let out was to cover the growing ball of panic she felt inside her stomach. She had messed with Stoick plenty of times, sure. But she and her brother knew when to space out their pranks, so as not to draw the full wrath of their powerful leader. But after messing with him barely a week ago, she was now going to have to mess with him again.

She didn't think her ears would survive.

The smug smirk Astrid wore was intolerable. "I got it, okay?" said Ruffnut snippily. "Get out."

Still smirking, the girl skipped out, no doubt wishing that her female companion would chicken out at the last minute, or at least get a sound thrashing. Stewing in her fury for a minute, Ruffnut reluctantly left her home and started for the dragon stalls. On her way she passed Snotlout, who was bitterly carrying a shovel and heading in the same direction. She quickened her steps and snag the shovel, causing the boy to look at her in surprise.

"I'm gonna need this," she said.

Snotlout took only a second to understand. His eyes narrowed. "Dare?"

"Yup."

"Astrid?"

"Uh-huh."

"Don't lose this."

Ruffnut mock saluted him. "Over my dying breath."

Snotlout saluted back before backtracking. Ruffnut continued forwards towards the dragon stalls, where the stench wasn't as overwhelming for her as it was for others. After all, she and her brother were notorious for not bathing, and they got used to nauseous-inducing smells after a while.

"Thor be with me," she said as she shovelled clumps of the foul dragon waste into a wooden bucket. When it was full, she grabbed the sides and left the musty, stinky stalls. She crossed the village and went straight to Hiccup's house. Before she could lose her nerves, she rapped sharply on the wood.

Hiccup answered, and immediately stumbled back a few steps when the aroma struck him. "Don't do it!" he shrieked, covering his face with his hands. "I'll surrender!"

Ruffnut shot him a withering glare. "Don't let Astrid hear you say that. Is your dad here?"

Relaxing his posture, Hiccup stared at the blonde incredulously. "What?"

"Is. Your. Dad. Here?" Ruffnut repeated, enunciating her words slowly.

"Uh…no."

"Then where is he?"

"Probably at the docks," said Hiccup, eyes wide. "Do you have a death wish?"

Ruffnut snorted. "I think we all do."

She turned on her heel and started off in the direction of the docks. When she reached the wooden platforms, stretching across two layers of the cliff side leading to the water, she could see Stoick speaking with the shipwright on the dock directly below her.

He wasn't directly directly below her, and she realized with a heavy heart she would need to go down to his level. Swallowing nervously, she started her walk down the flight of stairs, stance rigid as she kept her eyes on Stoick. His back was to her, and the shipwright was now slightly bent over the ship, studying a crack in the structure.

Ruffnut came to an important discovery. There were no hiding places. She would either have to run with all the speed she had, or slip into the ocean and hope that Stoick did not notice her. Gritting her teeth, Ruffnut grudgingly inched to the edge of the water and took a few deep breaths. Without really looking, she flung the bucket at Stoick and jumped into the water, trying to make as little splash as possible.

The water was freezing. Goosebumps prickling along her flesh, Ruffnut could feel the water soaking in her clothes, weighing her down. She reached up and grasped hold of one of the dozens of wooden beams that kept the dock just above the water's surface. She kept a death grip on it, for if she let go she would sink to the murky depths.

Though that would be the preferred option than facing Stoick.

There was a small pocket of space between the dock and the water. She managed to lift her face, taking large gulps of air. Though her ears were still partially submerged in the water, she could hear the thunderous roars of Stoick as he tried flinging the dragon waste off of him.

But then there was a beat of silence.

All of a sudden there was a massive splash just beside her, and she turned her head to see a bulky form with bushels of red hair just beside her. Without wasting another second, Ruffnut was back on land and flying up the wooden stairs, back to the village.

"Thorston!"

Heart pumping madly in her chest, Ruffnut ran with all she had, and she could distinctly hear the sound of pounding feet following a distance away. Stoick would be upon her soon.

She just running past a village hut when the door flew open. A hand shot out and dragged her inside. Startled, Ruffnut looked to see her brother standing in front of her. "What are you doing?"

"Borrowing this house," he replied flippantly. "Stay here."

She watched as he went over to a water barrel stashed in the corner. Her eyes widened as he eased himself into it, getting himself completely drenched. "What in Thor's name are you doing?"

"Saving you from a thrashing," he returned, climbing back out, sopping wet and water dripping to the floor.

Ruffnut gaped. "Are you insane?"

"Oh, totally," he assured. "But I figure if I wanna help you win, this is probably a good way to keep Stoick off the trail."

Her eyebrows flew up. "Seriously?"

"There's no way I'm going to deal with Astrid's gloating. Now we can be sure Snotlout has the chance to let Hiccup have it."

Ruffnut smirked. "Thanks, moron. Try not to die."

Tuffnut grinned. "I make no promises."

He sauntered outside and closed the door firmly behind him. Ruffnut hovered near the window, staying out of sight and listening intently. Stoick puffed up moments later, soaking wet and still having chunks of dragon dung clinging to him.

"Thorston, you pretty pray for mercy," declared Stoick, grabbing hold of Tuffnut's arm roughly and dragging him off. "Between you and your sister, I'm this close to tying you both to boat and sending you off into the open ocean."

Ruffnut set a hand on her chest, sighing with relief. She supposed there were some benefits to looking like her brother. In certain situations, it was sometimes difficult to tell them apart, like when they both looked like drowned rats.

Guess I owe him one, she thought, somewhat grudgingly. Thanks, bro.

As Stoick was hauling a soaked Tuffnut away, Astrid observed the action from the shadows. Her eyes narrowed into slits, and she knew she had made one fatal error in what she thought would be the dare that would get Ruffnut extremely busted.

Even though the twins were no longer in the contest together, it was foolish to count out Tuffnut. Because even if they disliked it, Ruffnut and Tuffnut were one entity.

And as Ruffnut lived to see another dare, Astrid suddenly felt very nervous-especially when she looked across the plaza and spotted Snotlout watching everything with a wide, absolutely wicked grin.

Hiccup was in for it.

Next chapter: In which Snotlout dares Hiccup.