I am happy to announce that I have officially finished exams :D
Snotlout creaked the door opened from his assigned hut on Caldera Cay, scanning the outside world for a moment before proceeding to walk out, remaining quiet. It was late by now. The other Riders had done gossiping over a plan that to his opinion was the worse plan he'd ever heard. A grim expression painted his face as he closed the door behind him and walked on, saddlebag in hand.
Hookfang lied in a nice patch of green grass on the other side of the town square, snoring peacefully despite the circumstances. The odor of his rider woke him up instantly and the Monstrous Nightmare raised its head to greet his rider, puffing a few clouds of smoke aggressively.
"Not now, Hooky," warned Snotlout, jabbing a finger under the dragon's chin. He was not in the mood to be pushed around and even less by his own dragon. Hookfang narrowed his eyes but had no comment to add and lowered his head while his body lifted off the ground. The Rider threw the bag over the saddle and prepared to mount up and leave this place – his team – once and for all. Clearly, he wasn't needed here. So what point was there in staying?
He pulled on his Nightmare's twisted horns, looking up at the night sky still lit up with glimmering stars.
"Snotlout?" called a steady voice. "You going somewhere?"
Snotlout twisted around in the saddle to meet Throk's gaze looking up at him, a look of amusement shining in his eyes.
"Get out of here, Throkman," quietly snapped Snotlout, refusing to share the same calmness of tone. He didn't want to deal with any sort of confrontation right now.
"You're leaving, aren't you?" continued Throk, reaching his hands to his back. "Without as much saying goodbye?"
"Just go back to sleep, Throk," said Snotlout, turning his dragon around so he wouldn't have to meet the Defender's gaze. "This doesn't concern you."
"But you can't do this to your team," said Throk, taking a step forward with an outstretched hand his way, as if offering to help get down his dragon and stay.
Snotlout huffed out a burst of short laughter before twisting his dragon's neck around again. He smiled, but there was nothing close to contentment that he could feel.
"My team?" he echoed, jabbing his thumb in his chest. "We're nothing of a team. Just a few soldiers who've been trusting blindly in one another. I thought I knew my friends… turns out I don't. There's no hope for us left, and even less for Hiccup. We failed, and I'm fine with that. It was bound to happen sooner or later anyway." His words started aggressively but finished full of pain, turning away from the Defender. "Now, if you would; pretend you never saw me and walk away. I'm leaving, and there's nothing you can say that'll talk me out of it."
"Well, to me," continued Throk, shrugging his shoulders and managing a small smile. "You haven't failed. Failure - lack of success. How can you fail if you haven't even tried yet? Your leader needs you, now more than ever. How can you fail if the battle hasn't yet begun?"
Snotlout remained stiff, holding Throk's gaze. He finally sighed but held on to his Nightmare's horns.
"You weren't there, Throk," he said, a sadness to his tone. "You weren't there when Hiccup turned on us – the way he tore us all apart, saying things no one ever dared think about. Until now. He revealed our true colors, that's all he did. Bringing out the worst in all of us. He showed me that no one in my own team – the people I considered family - trusted me to do the simplest task possible. That Astrid would be willing to have us all killed to save Hiccup's life. That Heather will do what she has to do to achieve her own personal goals… We all knew that. But we buried our heads in the sand and ignored it. And I refuse to go on like this – to be part of something where I'm not even trusted by my own friends."
"Then prove to them you are trustworthy," said Throk. "Going AWOL won't fix this mess. You're lucky to have friends, a family – a team. Don't throw it all away now. Fix it instead."
"It's easier said than done, you know," replied Snotlout, cocking an eyebrow at the warrior.
Throk chuckled lightly. "Trust me, I know," he said, eyes chasing memories before returning to the present moment. "I've had my fair share of inner combats. This one you're fighting is no different. Challenging, but no different nonetheless."
"You're not letting me go, are you?" asked Snotlout, crossing his arms over his chest.
"No, I'm not," smiled Throk, crossing his own arms over his middle. "You are exactly where you need to be, and your friends need you now more than ever. Even if they don't realize it yet."
Snotlout's eyes dropped to the ground and almost automatically, he slid off the saddle, landing on his two feet without as much thinking about it.
"Alright," he said, looking at the town square for a moment. "I'll stay. But I'm only doing it for Hiccup and Hiccup alone."
"That's reason plenty," agreed Throk, nodding his approval at the Rider's change of mind. "Now get some rest, Dragon Rider. Tomorrow is another day."
…
Astrid walked toward her teammates gathered in the center of the Defenders of the Wing's town, the flat stones hard under her boots, a much similar design to the one back on their home island.
All of the other Riders waited around next to their dragons, fastening their saddles on their backs and necks. Her eyes scanned her friends, but there was no sign of Snotlout. She wasn't surprised though. After their small talk the night before, he'd let her know he wouldn't be coming along for this mission. It wouldn't be a hammer to the stomach if someone told her he'd taken off in the night either.
Stormfly squawked as she walked to her rider's side, sniffing the saddle under her arm. Astrid reached a gentle hand and patted her Deadly Nadder distractedly.
"We'll get through this," she whispered, approaching her dragon's side and placing the leather saddle on her back. She hopped on her back and squeezed the handles, looking up at her teammates, mounted and ready.
"W-wait," said Fishlegs, looking around frantically. "Where's Snotlout?"
Astrid sighed. "He's not coming. We're own our own."
"But we can't be a Rider down," objected Heather. "Not for this mission."
"You won't be a Rider down," spoke up Snotlout, approaching on Hookfang, ready to fly. Astrid met his gaze, surprised. She blinked, able to read his thoughts just as he was able to read hers. "I'm not going anywhere. We're getting Hiccup back, one way or another."
Astrid remained frozen for a few more seconds before nodding, a determined look shading her eyes. "Okay," she managed, taking a deep breath. She turned to the other Riders and Berserkers. "Are we ready for this?"
"Ready?" echoed Dagur before exploding laughing. "Baby, I was born ready."
"This is a good plan, Astrid," reminded Heather. "It's gonna work."
"Yeah, nothing can stop us from winning the black sheep prize!" cheered Ruffnut, throwing her fist in the air.
"This isn't a game, Ruff," warned Astrid, looking in the twin's direction. "This is real life."
"Still sounds like a race to the black sheep to me," mumbled Ruffnut to her brother, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning back in the saddle.
"Is it true what they say?" said Tuffnut, grabbing tightly to his dragon's thin horns. "Nothing like a good old friendly competition to push you even further. Or in our case, settle some issues."
"However, never compete with someone who has nothing to lose," added Ruffnut, holding up an index at her brother's face.
"Good to know we'll be winning this thing," chuckled Tuffnut.
Astrid rolled her eyes and took to the skies, her team chasing close behind her. They were going after Hiccup. They were going to get him back, with or without venom running through his veins. Hiccup was her only priority.
The twins' exchange echoed in the back of her mind as they speeded across the sky, toward the heart of their enemies' territory. Nothing like a good old competition to fix a broken team... Dragon Races. The Black Sheep. She remembered those good old days when they were living back on Berk, coming up with new games to pass the time with their dragons. A time when life was simple – easy. A good time. She truly hoped they could kill two birds with one stone.