This chapter is partly my idea, partly a suggestion by godspeed83. Hope you enjoy; I still have a few of your suggestions to go!

Entry 105

If I thought flying with Astrid was crazy, that's nothing compared to what happened today.

I was at the forge, fixing a piece of Toothless' tail, when a piece of paper hit the back of my head. I picked it up, uncrumpling it to read "meet at arena at midday. -Snotlout". I admit, despite how different things were, I got a little scared upon reading those words. The only time Snotlout ever wanted to see me alone was to bully me… surely he wouldn't still do that, right? I thought back to the joking-turned-insult incident, and how he never actually apologized for it. Hopefully this wasn't just another opportunity to make fun of me...

When the sun reached its peak, Toothless and I made our way to the old killing arena (on the ground, because I didn't get to finish the tail piece, unfortunately). Inside, Snotlout was waiting by Hookfang.

I slipped off Toothless' back, offering a "did you need something?" toward Snotlout's seemingly uninterested form. Toothless must have noticed my apprehension, because he didn't let himself get more than a footstep behind me.

"Uh, yeah… I mean, I could probably do it myself- I could DEFINITELY do it myself- but I figured it might not hurt to ask you…" he replied, giving what looked like an almost concerned glance at his Nightmare. "Hooky hasn't wanted to fly in a couple days. I was wondering if you knew why."

A strange feeling washed over me. Snotlout was asking ME for advice? He nearly hadn't said a word to me since the "crippled dragon" incident, and this was what it had come to? Still, I tried to respond best I could, since he was being nice. "Hm. Maybe he's hurt." I stepped closer to Hookfang, walking around him and looking for any obvious injury. "I don't see any signs he's injured. What started this attitude?"

"I dunno… I just woke up and he didn't want to go flying. He doesn't even want to look at me anymore."

"Have you guys been bonding? Maybe he feels like you don't care."

"Well, of COURSE I don't care… not much, anyway. But… maybe that'll work. It's dumb but I guess it's worth a try." Despite the words, I could tell his tone was trying too hard to sound despondent. "Hey, Hookster. Wanna fly?" The Nightmare turned away, almost seeming to glare at his rider. "See what I mean? He's mad at me for some reason." It did appear that way. "Can you and Toothless do some flying or something, show him it's okay?"

I almost didn't want to answer. Fear crept back in that if I said Toothless couldn't fly at the moment because I still needed to finish his tail, then Snotlout would insult him again. But I couldn't just lie. "Actually… I need to finish working on- on his tail."

"Oh," was the only reply I got. "Then what do I do?"

I looked back at Hookfang, thinking back to those early trips to the Cove, and how Toothless acted so similarly. Suddenly, it clicked. "I don't think he trusts you."

"But he did. What happened?"

"I should be asking you that question. There's something you're not telling me."

Hookfang shot another sharp glance at his rider, and Snotlout finally caved. "Fine… the truth is, Hiccup… I think he's mad at me because of YOU."

"Me? What did I do?" I replied, trying not to sound offended.

"Nothing. It's what I did TO you…" I just blinked, unsure what to make of those words. "Ever since that day we were s'posed to switch dragons, he's been trying to get me to apologize. But I kept refusing. So I… I wanted you to come here so I could…"

I felt Toothless nudge my side ever so slightly. I glanced at him, and he looked just as surprised as I felt. So Snotlout KNEW what was wrong with his dragon? He just… said that to get me here? To… to apologize?

A faint sense of humor settled in my chest; that was the most roundabout, noncommittal, SNOTLOUT way of doing it.

"So, yeah. I guess I'm sorry. Not just for calling you and Toothless crippled, but for everything before that." He only managed to meet my eyes on the last word, tapping his fingers together in a decidedly uncharacteristic show of nerves.

"Thanks," I managed to get out, though I wasn't sure what else I could say. Never in my life would I have imagined Snotlout apologizing… it was truly shocking.

His expression shifted. "Don't think that means we're friends! You're still my archenemy, Hiccup! That'll never change!" He said, though even as he said it, I knew we both heard the fondness in his tone. Hookfang head butted his rider, seemingly proud. And then, without another word, the two of them took off, leaving me and Toothless alone in the old arena.

It's been hours, but I still can hardly focus on finishing my project. Even if it wasn't the most sincere apology I've gotten, it's more than I ever expected from that guy. And I guess… that's enough.

Until next time..

-H