Chapter 10: Aftermath

Eira awoke in her hut at Berk with a searing headache. And yet, the pain had lessened greatly from when she first received the wound. She reached up to touch her forehead instinctively, feeling a rough bandage.

"Careful," Asmund said. He sat by her bed, his usual stoic expression turned to a look of concern.

"Asmund," the girl said, sitting up slowly, "have you been there all night?"

"Of course," the man said without a hint of regret. "It is my job to see to your well-being."

She gave him a small smile. "I am sorry to have caused you so much trouble."

"Not at all. Your friend Snotlout told me what happened. Though I do not condone you putting yourself in such danger, you did it to save another, and for that, your father would surely be proud... as am I."

Tears brimmed Eira's eyes. She sniffed and wiped them with her arm. "Thank you, Asmund. That means a lot to me."

Loud pounding on the door echoed throughout the room. "Hey!" came Snotlout's muffled voice. "Is Eira awake?"

Asmund frowned and stood. "If she was not, she would be now." He opened the door, and Snotlout tumbled to the floor.

The young Viking scrambled to his feet, fixing his helmet. "Hey, Eira, how are you feeling?"

"Better," Eira said. "Thank you."

Asmund looked from Snotlout to Eira. "I will prepare something for you to eat."

Eira nodded. "Thank you, Asmund."

Once Asmund had left the room, shutting the door behind him, Snotlout made his way over to the bed and sat on the edge. "Are you really alright? You were hurt pretty bad. Not that I didn't think you would make it, but... the others were very worried."

Eira smiled. "I'm fine. I appreciate your concern." She reached out her hand and placed it on top of his on the bed. She felt him flinch at the contact, but he did not withdraw his hand. "Thank you for making sure I got back here safely. You're a good friend."

Snotlout looked away, and Eira almost thought she saw him blushing. "Right. It was nothing." He looked up at the ceiling and then down at the bed. "So, uh... Why did you do it? Save, Dagur, I mean. Not that there's anything wrong with what you did. I just-"

"It's fine," Eira said, cutting him off. He seemed to relax as he finally looked at her again. "I did it because I couldn't just stand there and watch someone get hurt while there was something I could do about it. And it's not like I had much time to think. I just... acted." She assumed she would have done the same thing for anyone else. She did not think there was anything special about Dagur.

"I think what you did was very brave. We're lucky to have you with us. If you'd do that for an enemy, you'd do if for your friends, right?"

"Of course." She smirked playfully. "Are you expecting me to need to save you sometime soon?"

Snotlout shook his head. "Not at all! I was talking about the others."

Eira chuckled. "Right. I suppose you'll be the one saving me?"

He flushed. "I-If you need me to."

She smiled and shook her head. She could tell that he was so used to vying for attention without receiving any that he was not quite sure how to react when he actually got it. She found his awkwardness cute.

There was a gentle knock on the door. "That must be Asmund," she said.

Snotlout finally pulled his hand away and stood up. "I'll find a Terrible Terror and let Hiccup know what's going on. I don't want the others to worry too much. And I'll ask Gothi when she thinks you'll be well enough to fly on your own."

"Alright. Thank you, Snotlout."

He gave her one last smile before exiting the room, letting Asmund inside with a platter of food. Eira's head still hurt, but she felt a lot better than before.

"You're as good as new," Fishlegs said as he unwrapped the bandage form around Eira's head. His eyes fixed on her forehead, and his smile faded. "Well, almost."

Hiccup adjusted his position so he could see what his friend saw: a jagged scar ran from the top right corner of Eira's forehead down to her eyebrow. The girl reached up her hand and touched the scar. "It's a battle wound," Hiccup said. "People will think you're tough."

Eira smiled, though it did not reach her eyes. "Yes. Thank you. Both of you."

"We're just glad you're alright," Fishlegs said. "Let me know if your head starts to hurt again. I don't want any complications. It was tough without you this past week."

Hiccup nodded. "You're a valuable part of our team."

This time her smile was genuine. "Thanks. I'm sure I'll be fine after your expert care."

A fluttering noise had Hiccup turning his head. A green Terrible Terror sporting a blue and gold scarf flew into the clubhouse and landed on Eira's shoulder.

"Squirt!" the girl said in surprise. "You found me!"

"Didn't you send that little guy to your family in Torvald?" Hiccup asked.

"That's right."

"He made it all the way there?" Fishlegs said in wonder.

"Let's find out." Eira grabbed the letter tied to the Terror's foot and unfurled it. Her face brightened as she read. "He did make it there! My father was very impressed with him. Good boy." She pulled a few strands of dragon nip from her pocket and offered them to Squirt, who chirped happily.

"How's your family doing?" Fishlegs asked.

Eira took a moment to scan the letter before responding. "They're doing great. They wish all of us the best of luck in our adventures."

Hiccup smiled. "Good." He eyed the Terrible Terror. "Where did the scarf come from?"

Eira folded up the letter and placed it in her pocket. "It's my brother's. He gave it to me before I left. I wanted Squirt to have a scent to follow, but I suppose he no longer needs it." She unwrapped the cloth from the dragon. She stared at it for several seconds and then wrapped it around her own head. "How does this look?" The scarf fit around her head like a bandanna. It was mostly blue with small, gold lines placed throughout.

"Oh, you look cute!" Fishlegs said. "Doesn't she, Hiccup?"

"It looks very nice," Hiccup said.

Eira beamed at them. "Thank you!"

"Well, it's time to feed Meatlug," Fishlegs said. "I'll see you two later."

"Later, Fishlegs," Eira said. Once he left, she started searching around the clubhouse for something. "Hiccup, do we have any paper and ink?"

"I should have some back in my hut," he said. "Are you going to write back to your family?"

She shook her head. "That's a long flight, and I want to give Squirt a break. I was simply thinking I should write Dagur and let him know I'm alright."

Hiccup frowned. "Are you sure that's such a good idea?"

"You said he was concerned when I was hurt, right? It only seems right that I let him know he doesn't have to worry anymore."

And Hiccup still had not wrapped his head around that situation. Had it just been a one time freak out, or did Dagur actually care? He would hate to see Eira hurt in her search to find out. "Yes, but he's still Dagur. He might find some way to use this against you."

Eira merely smiled at him. "I'll be careful, Hiccup. Don't worry; I won't forget that he's the enemy. But if I can get him to forget, wouldn't that be good for us?"

Hiccup let out a long sigh. "I won't deny that would be helpful. If you think you have a chance... I won't try to stop you." He reminded himself that he had to let her do her thing. He never would have thought she could get Dagur to care about anyone but himself. Perhaps she saw something in him that he couldn't.

"Thank you! I'll do my best."

"I know you will." He had to admit, he was curious to find out where this would lead. His eyes landed on Eira's scarf - the scarf the had the scar she received saving Dagur. He was very curious.

"Why can't anyone do their job around here?!" Dagur bellowed, sending his men scrambling. It was a typical morning aboard his ship, which meant that he had to put up with his pathetic excuse for a crew.

"Uh, sir?" Savage said tentatively.

Dagur spun around to face him. "WHAT?!"

Savage raised a shaking finer and pointed behind him. "There's a dragon coming this way."

Dagur's expression immediately transformed into one of delight. "Ooo... who is it today?" He looked out over the edge of the ship, hoping to get lucky. But he saw no rider and his dragon. No, the tiny green creature flying towards him could hardly be called a dragon at all. Dagur glared at Savage. "That's not a dragon! That's a rat with wings!"

"I believe it's called a 'Terrible Terror,'" Savage said 'helpfully.' He shut up when he received another glare from his captain.

The dragon landed on the side of the ship and squeaked. Dagur tried to shoo it with his arm, but the dragon only flew up and settled on his head. "Get out of here!" He swatted at the dragon but missed. The Terrible Terror flew in circles around his head.

"What's that attached to its leg?" Savage said.

"How would I know that?" Dagur growled. He looked up and saw a piece of parchment attached to the dragon. The next time it got close, he snatched the paper. The dragon settled on the deck of the ship and looked up at him expectantly.

"This better be good," Dagur grumbled as he unfurled the parchment. His eyes immediately went to the signature at the end, and he brightened. "Oh, it's from Eira!"

Savage blinked. "Eira?"

"You know, the girl who saved my life. Better than all of you can say."

"I would save your life if I had the chance," Savage said weakly.

Dagur ignored him and read the letter. Eira had wrote that she received treatment for her wound and healed up fine. She also thanked him for helping her after she was injured. She explained the Terrible Terror's name was 'Squirt,' and he could be used to send messages. He found himself smiling at the end.

"What does it say?" Savage asked.

Dagur's smile fell. "That's none of your business!" He carefully folded the letter for safekeeping. His gaze landed on the dragon, still staring up at him. "What do you want?"

Squirt chirped.

Dagur's face lit in understanding. "Oh, she wants me to write back, does she?" He smiled at the dragon before rounding on Savage. "Get me paper and ink! Now!"

"Right away, sir!" Savage said before scurrying away.

The Terrible Terror took to the air and started flying around the ship. Dagur watched with mild amusement. "I wonder why she calls you 'Squirt.'"

The dragon suddenly flew across the ship and dove down into the water. A second letter, he popped back up and squirted Dagur in the face with water.

At first, the Berserker chief appeared stunned. Then he burst into laughter. "Oh, I get it. Clever girl." He looked around and noticed the rest of his crew giving him odd looks (which, admittedly, was not that strange). He sent them all glares. "What are you looking at? Where's my paper?!"

They were on a mission. A rogue dragon rider had been attacking ships and stealing provisions. From Bucket and Mulch's description, the dragon riders used the Dragon Eye to deduce that the rogue rider's dragon was a Razorwhip: a very dangerous sharp class dragon.

Razorwhips ate sea slugs, so the riders searched the islands where slugs were plentiful. They had to find the rogue rider and stop him. Hiccup worried it might be Dagur. Whoever it was, they were causing too much damage to be left alone.

The sixth island they checked, they found a campfire and Razorwhip slashings. They were on the right track. They all split up to search the island for the rogue dragon rider and Razorwhip.

Eira flew way up high with Swiftwings. Windwalkers did well at higher altitudes, and she thought she would be able to see better from way up there. Unfortunately, she did see movement, but it was all too quick for her to track. She flew in closer.

She reached the treeline only to have huge branches hurling at her! Swiftwings zipped out of the way, but she was not quite fast enough. One of the branches struck her rider and sent her flying off the dragon and crashing into the water. Luckily, she was merely bruised. She groaned as she stood up in the water.

"They got you too, huh?" Snotlout said from beside her.

Eira frowned. "This may be a problem. I hope the others are alright."

"If the Razorwhip got me, it definitely got them."

Eira hoped that was not the case. Swiftwings and Hookfang soon found them, and they all slowly made their way back to the campsite they found earlier. Everyone save for Hiccup and Toothless were already there, grumbling about the rogue rider. None of them got a good glimpse of him.

"Look who I found!" Hiccup declared as he strolled into the camp, escorting a girl their age with black hair and green eyes. Toothless and the Razorwhip walked behind them.

"Heather!" exclaimed everyone except for Eira. Instead of explaining who she was, everyone started complaining about what she had done to them.

"Guys, now I'm sure Heather has a really good reason for doing what she did," Hiccup said. "Right?"

Heather stepped forward and looked at everyone with an apologetic expression. "Look. I've been living on my own out here for years, and I made more than a few enemies. I didn't want you guys to be involved. I needed to send you back to Berk."

Snotlout shot her a look. "You couldn't have just, I don't know, said that?"

"Would you have listened?"

"She does have a point," Astrid said. "We're pretty stubborn group."

"I don't listen to anyone!" Snotlout declared.

"Except Eira," Ruffnut said.

"Eira?" Heather said, finally looking at the red-headed girl.

"You two haven't met yet," Astrid said. "Eira is from a far-away island that has been training dragons for years. She lives with us now. Eira, Heather is a friend we made a few years back."

"Oh, nice to meet you," Heather said.

"Nice to meet you too," said Eira. She was sure there was a story there, and she planned to get Hiccup to tell it to her later.

"Now that that's out of the way..." Hiccup said. "Heather, whatever problems you have, whatever enemies you've made, we can help. You don't have to be out here alone anymore."

Heather gave him a pained look. "Hiccup, please, just let this go."

"We have a base not far from here. Why don't you come back with us? Nothing permanent. We'll get you some provisions and catch up. You can see how you like it."

It took a little more convincing, but Heather finally agreed to go back with them. Soon, they all gathered in the clubhouse. Everyone surrounded Heather and her Razorwhip, Windshear, admiring both of them.

Heather explained that she found Windshear injured from a fight with a Typhoomerang. She nursed her back to health, and the two of them had been inseparable since then. She boasted about all the deadly aspects of her dragon, becoming very enthusiastic. Clearly, both dragon and rider were deadly.

Eira wanted to like the newcomer, but something felt off about her. Yet, everyone appeared entranced by her. Everyone except Hiccup, who stood off to the side with an uneasy look on his face. Eira extracted herself from the crowd and stood beside him.

"So," she began, "Heather seems... interesting."

"She is," Hiccup said.

"Has she always been this... intense?"

Hiccup frowned. "No. As a matter of fact, she was pretty sweet and normal when we met her three years ago. It's apparent she's been through a lot since we last saw her."

Eira gazed at the girl, reveling in the attention she received for her strength. She looked back at Hiccup and frowned. "I'm sure she's great, but... I get the feeling she's still hiding something."

Hiccup did not appear surprised at this admission. "So do I. Why is she attacking ships, for one?" He paused. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who's wary, but I thought you of all people liked everyone."

Eira shook her head. "It's not that I don't like her. It's just..." She wracked her brain for a way to explain properly. "I suppose I have the ability to see things in people others don't - both the good and the bad. People are a mixture of both, and you should look at the whole. I don't want all of you to be blindsided."

"I'll talk to her, Eira. I promise I'll figure this out."

Eira gave him a small smile. "I know you will." As she returned to watching Heather, she could not dismiss the uneasiness that still sat in the pit of her stomach.

A/N: Well, there you have it. Y'all know what's coming next. It's going to be fun. ;)

Also, for those of you who play School of Dragons, please read my newest story based off the game, Heart of a Berserker. It's mostly based on the expansion story-line. Check it out.