The Short Nap

Chapter 2

After a short walk around the village, I found my mark down in the dragon pens feeding Hookfang. Finding a quiet dark corner just inside the door, I struck a casual pose and began my stakeout. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary at first; the Monstrous Nightmare worked steadily at devouring half its weight in fish, while Snotlout put some elbow grease into cleaning his saddle. After an hour or so, I wondered if I had gotten the wrong idea about this rube. Not only was he not doing anything suspicious, but the little he was engaged in was positively boring (very much like the man himself).

As I started to ponder who else could have been responsible for the Dragon Master's misfortune, events finally took a more interesting turn. One by one, the other Vikings in the pens had been finishing their work and drifting off to their homes or to the Great Hall for lunch and ale, but not Snotlout. As soon as he was alone, this most likely suspect wandered over to an empty pen and disappeared into the darkness. He emerged less than a minute later carrying another saddle; it was a racing saddle... a Nadders racing saddle.

Everything fell into place as Snotlout rested the purloined item on a wooden stand and began to tamper with the body strap buckle using some kind of long flat tool. This was all the proof I needed; I approached him silently as the time had come for confrontation.

"It must be difficult getting Hookfang to wear a saddle like that one."

Like all people feeling the pang of guilt, Snotlout yelped, dropped the tool and jumped back three feet.

"WHAT THE... Tuffnut? What are you doing sneaking up on me like that?" he protested.

"I could ask you the same question Snotlout."

"Well I... wait a minute; I didn't sneak up on you."

"What? Oh... no, you didn't" his fast double talk had my mind in a spin.

"Do you want something Tuffnut?"

"I remember now; it was the 'What are you doing' part, that I could ask you."

"Have you been playing Chicken with the Gronckles again? What am I doing? I'm working on this saddle."

"So you're doing a number on it, are you?" I accused him.

"No; there's already a number on it" Snotlout pointed to the back of the seat where the figures 02-R could be seen clearly.

"Don't get smart with me young man; I mean you're putting the fix on it" I growled.

"Yes I am" he crumbled under my interrogation.

"So you admit you took care of Hiccup in the race two weeks ago and intend to bring Astrid down in the next one?"

"Huh? You're crazy Tuffnut. I didn't do anything to Hiccup in that race and I'm not doing anything to Astrid now. This isn't even her saddle."

"You can't pull the Yak fur over my eyes Snottykins. That's a love heart on the pommel. Hiccup only puts that mark on the things he makes for Astrid... or are you trying to tell me that Hiccup is your sweetheart now?"

"Alright it WAS one of Astrids racing saddles" he admitted "But she's given it to Kara."

"Oh really? Why would Astrid give Kara, who is ten years older and at least a foot taller, one of her saddles?"

"Some of the adult Vikings are starting their own racing league. It's a great way to upgrade your riding skills while having fun."

"Ah HA! So you're trying to take down Kara by weakening the buckle on the girth strap. I assume you've wagered a few gold pieces on one of the other riders, eh Snotlout?"

"I don't know how you're coming up with this load of Yak droppings Tuffnut, but listen closely. Astrid is giving this racing saddle to Kara because Hiccup has made her a new lighter one. I am lengthening the stirrup straps and filing off a sharp casting bur on the girth buckle for Kara as a... kind of payment. Hookfang knocked over her washing line last week so I sort of... owed her a favour."

"What about the failed strut in Toothless's tail?"

"WHAT ABOUT IT?"

"I'll bet you used that file to make sure Hiccup didn't finish that race."

"I borrowed this file from Hiccup a couple of hours ago so I couldn't have... wait a minute..."

Snotlout smiled; I don't like it when my suspects smile.

"Would that be the race... a week from last Friday, Tuffnut?"

"Err... yes."

"The race that was won by a certain Zippleback and his twin riders?"

His words hit me like a Nadder's spine shot in the head. Ruffnut and I had won that race, so Snotlout couldn't be the saboteur.

"Congratulations Snotlout; you're off the hook" I patted him on the back and made for the exit.

"I may be off the hook Gronkle brain... BUT YOU'RE NOT!"

I don't know why Snotlout was so upset; you would think he would be happy to have his good name restored. This latest revelation really put the Changewing in the henhouse. My sister and I had won the race Hiccup had to retire from, so we were the ones who benefited the most from the sabotage. But I didn't do anything to Toothless's tail so it must have been... wow... who would have guessed?


This is a strange situation. I have had three reviews for stories recently: One on the FanFic site, one by e-mail and the last in the HTTYD soundtrack comment section on YouTube. How long could it be before I get one in the post?