Zenna's POV
"This was no ordinary forest fire…" I murmured as we flew over the burnt forest, one part still covered in flames while the further part contained the charred remains of trees. The scent of smoke was overpowering as we flew across the fjord. Maria, Winter, Hiccup and Toothless were on point and Stryka and I were right beside them with Astrid and Stormfly right behind us.
Finally, we reached the fjord's opening…and were greeted by an astonishing sight.
A huge glacier like structure made of ice unlike any glacier we've ever seen before!
"Whoa…" "Holy Shields…" Hiccup and I both mumbled in awe. Hiccup turned back to look at Astrid and Aurora, who looked kind of uneasy. "Stay close." He advised her before we cautiously flew over to the massive hunk of ice. It didn't take us long to see the ruined fort stuck in the jagged spires of ice. We were completely shocked. What kind of thing could have that much power and that much ice to destroy such a fortress?
"What happened here?" Hiccup wondered out loud.
"Whatever it was, it was something humongous." I told him, noticing a gigantic footprint in the mud. Apparently I wasn't the only one feeling uneasy, for Toothless and Stryka growled warningly.
"Alright, easy, bud." "It's okay, Stryka, it's alright." Hiccup and I told our Night Furies soothingly.
"Hiccup! Zenna!" Astrid whisper-shouted to us, seeing movement on some of the ice spires.
Suddenly, a voice cried out, "FIRE!" and a net was launched at us!
"Incoming!" I yelped as Stryka quickly flew out of the net's path.
"ASTRID, LOOK OUT!" Hiccup yelled as he and Toothless avoided the net. Astrid and Stormfly weren't so lucky and they got caught!
"No! Aaahhh! Hiccup!" Astrid screamed as she was thrown off Stormfly as she plummeted. Luckily, Hiccup caught her. Now we had to rescue Stormfly!
When we came in for a landing, a bunch of men were already trying to keep Stormfly subdued. One of them, a man with black hair wearing a yellow fur vest, was leading them in tying her up. "Watch the tail! Ah! Tie those legs up!" he ordered as he lassoed Stormfly by the horn. My blood instantly began to boil with fury.
'Nobody messes with any of my friends' dragons and gets away with it!' I thought as Hiccup and I told Toothless and Stryka to land.
"STOP!" Hiccup yelled as we descended onto the ground.
"Leave the Nadder alone!" I cried. "Stormfly!" Astrid shouted worriedly.
As soon as we got off our dragons, we readied our weapons. Astrid held up a jagged bit of wood (her axe was still attached to Stormfly's saddle, you see), Hiccup took out his flaming Dragon Blade, Inferno while I took out my battle sticks…and hit the switches.
Instantly, the top ends of both sticks screwed off and flaming iron spearheads popped out! Then I quickly attached the special iron cuff that bound my sticks together to make them into one, fire tipped battle staff! Trust me, it took all of my, Hiccup and Gobber's combined ingenuity and two weeks to make those upgrades. While the battle sticks originally belonged to Elias, I knew that he would want me to make them stronger and have more purpose so I did just that.
"What are you doing?!" Astrid asked the men, who we figured were Dragon Trappers, angrily as Hiccup and I waved our flaming weapons around.
"Whoa!" the other trappers, save their leader, were amazed and temporarily distracted.
"Back again?" the leader then said before he focused on Toothless and Stryka, who growled aggressively.
"Soil my breeches. Those are Night Furies. I thought they were all gone for good." He said in mock admiration, which made me all the more mad. "Looks like our luck's turn for the better, lads." The leader said to his crew, casually planting one foot on Stormfly's snout before adding, "Don't think Drago has one of those in his dragon army."
That piqued my interest. A Dragon Army?
"Dragon army…?" Astrid mumbled out loud, also as suspicious as I was. Hiccup, meanwhile, tried to diffuse the situation before things got ugly. "Look, we don't want any trouble." He said to the leader carefully.
To which he replied with, "Ha! You should have thought of that before you stole all of our dragons and blasted our fort to bits." Gesturing angrily to the remains of the fort. His men shouted angrily in agreement.
"What are you…talking about?" "What are you accusing us for?" "You think we did this?" the three of us all asked.
"Ha. Dragon trapping is hard enough work as it is without do-gooder Dragon Riders sneaking in to rescue them." The lead trapper said disdainfully while he kept a watchful eye on Stormfly.
"What do gooder—" Hiccup began to ask when he remembered something important.
"There are other Dragon Riders?" my best human friend asked.
"I thought we were the only ones…" I murmured to myself in shock. I guess Berk wasn't the only place in the world that had dragons coexisting happily together with humans…this was quite a discovery.
The trapper we were talking to didn't seem too interested with our questions.
"You mean, other than your thieving friend from last night? You tell me. You may have an ice-spitting dragon on your side…but we still have a quota to fill. How do you suppose we explain this to Drago Bludvist?" he asked us, narrowing his eyes at us.
I was about to tell him that we'd never heard of a thing such as an ice-spitting dragon when I noticed that his eyes were…a familiar shade of brown. But where had I seen that shade before…? Slight amber like look to them…really familiar…
"Drago What-vist? Does anything you say make sense?" Aurora asked sarcastically.
One of the trappers stepped forward.
"He's expecting a new shipment of dragons for his army by tomorrow." He told us grimly. Another trapper stepped forward and warned us, "And Drago don't take well to excuses."
'Wow, their boss sounds like a ray of sunshine and inspiration…' I thought as I saw the leader of the trappers pull down his shirt. My eye widened in horror once I saw the huge, symbol like scar on his chest. By the looks of it, the thing must've been applied with a branding iron…something that was guaranteed to hurt like high hell.
"This is what he gave me the last time I showed up empty-handed. He promised to be far less understanding in the future." He informed us as he straightened up. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him…Branded like a common bull by your master just because you messed up a bit…that's just awful.
The situation was getting tense. Hiccup could sense it and quickly began to devise a plan.
"Alright, we don't know anything about a dragon thief or an ice-spitting dragon…" he began to say but I could already see the men on the ice spires pointing their crossbows at us.
I quietly gulped and locked my gaze on the lead trapper. He had a smug look on his face that I now wanted to wipe off.
"Or your lunatic boss and his dragon army, okay? Just give us back our dragon and we'll go, strange, hostile person whom we've never met." Hiccup concluded.
Still…the guy looked oddly familiar to me. Maybe Hiccup and Astrid have never met him…but maybe I have…Was that even possible?
That's when I looked down from the strange trapper's face…and saw the pin.
On the man's fur vest…was an old tarnished silver pin made to look like an owl-faced dragon.
My heart nearly stopped beating. It was the exact same one I gave…
"Oh, where are my manners? I'm Eret."
Holy Shields…
"Son of Eret."
Holy…Holy Shields…
"Finest Dragon Trapper alive."
Holy…Holy…Holy Shields…
"After all, it's not just anyone who can capture a Night Fury." He was now pointing his sword at us. Toothless and Stryka looked like they were both ready to attack so I did the one thing I could only think of at that crucial moment.
And that was to say…
"Eret?"
You could've heard a pin drop for miles around after I said that one name. Aurora, Hiccup and Astrid both looked at me like I had sprouted two heads. Toothless and Stryka curiously cocked their heads to the side. The dragon trappers looked confused while Eret kept his sword raised and pointed at me as I dared to walk to stand in front of him.
I ignored all the weird looks and stares as I gazed at the face of the one person I had yearned to see for the past 12 years. The brown eyes that reminded me of rich amber…those blue tribal tattoos I had seen get marked on his chin when he came of age at 12 back in our old home in the South…
His face had changed a little bit but I still recognized him. Why I couldn't earlier was either due to my anger or maybe my eyesight. And, oh gods, the pin…he had kept it all these years even long after it had lost its silver gleam…
But as I looked at him, I could tell that Eret didn't recognize me. I guess I had changed a lot ever since we said our good-byes…
But my love for him hadn't. If ever, it had become stronger.
"Twelve years…twelve years and you still wear it…" I whispered to him, gently touching the pin, hoping that maybe he might remember. Eret looked at me with a mix of suspicion and bewilderment. But when his gaze dropped to his mother's pendant, which was around my neck…
'CLANG!'
Just like that, the sword slipped out of his hand and I saw a flash of recognition in Eret's eyes as his facial expression turned into one of complete and utter shock.
'A completely natural reaction when you're reunited with your childhood sweetheart after 12 long years…' I thought as he gaped at me, speechless. Finally, he hesitatingly reached out his left hand to touch my face. I nearly melted as his strong hand cupped my right cheek. It had been so long yet his touch still took my breath away…
He had tears in his eyes as he stared at me, completely focused solely on my face. His thumb gently brushed against my cheek, making me sigh longingly as I leaned into his gentle touch. I closed my eye, wanting to savor this moment. In all honesty, the present situation we were currently in…not exactly a good time for a reunion.
But I didn't care. I was just so happy.
"…Zenna?"
I opened my eye once I heard Eret call my name. He still looked so shocked, so confused…
'Don't be scared, Eret…It's me. I'm really here…' I thought as I smiled at him. Eret then finally smiled that sweet, adorable smile I've missed so much. What I didn't realize was that we were leaning closer towards each other. My heart hammered in my chest.
My second kiss was about to happen!
What I also didn't realize…was that my friends decided to execute their escape the second Hiccup saw me and Eret about to kiss. Aurora, Toothless and Stryka both fired plasma blasts at a large ice spike above us, causing me and Eret to spring away from each other. Hiccup then ran over to Stormfly and used Inferno to cut her free from the net.
"Stormfly, come on! Go! Go!" Astrid shouted as she led her away. Hiccup then grabbed my hand and began to pull me away from the scene.
"W-wait! Hiccup, wait, I can't-" I tried to protest but Hiccup had already gotten me on Stryka's back and we were already taking off and leaving!
"Stryka, no! You don't understand! I need to go back!" I yelped. But Stryka ignored me and kept flying. Suddenly I heard Eret's voice.
"Zenna! Zen! ZENNA!"
I looked behind me and I saw Eret running over to the edge of the ruins of the fort. When he couldn't go any further he looked up at me and Stryka as we flew farther away, a look of pure grief on his face.
Just when we were reunited at last, fate became cruel and decided to separate us once again…gods, my life sucked…
Just when we were about to get too far away, I forced Stryka to turn around. I knew I couldn't make her go back, but I had to tell Eret something important.
At the top of my voice, I yelled out the promise he had made me 12 years ago when we said good-bye to each other…
"I'll come find you! Just wait for me!"
Stryka let out a roar of distress before we finally flew away from the ruined fort. We both caught up to Aurora, Hiccup, Astrid, Toothless and Stormfly in record time. Hiccup and Astrid were both giving me weird looks along with Toothless and Stormfly. Stryka was really worried too and warbled softly at me.
"I'm okay, girl…I'm okay…" I said softly, not really wanting to say anything. "Zenna, what was that all about? All of a sudden, you just happened to say that guy's name, go over to him and…" Astrid asked me, completely shocked at my behavior before Hiccup politely cut in.
Looking at me with serious emerald green eyes, Hiccup asked, "Zen, do you…know him?" I could hardly meet his gaze. "I don't wanna talk about it…" I said quietly. "Zen, we're serious. Did you know Eret before all of this?" Astrid asked me. "I said that I Don't. Wanna. Talk. About. It!" I snapped at them angrily.
That shut the two of them up.
Still, I felt bad for just going off like that. It was just…argh! Everything was suddenly all so messed up! I just reunited with my childhood sweetheart, the love of my life, and realized that he was a Dragon Trapper while I was a Dragon Rider, got separated from him once again…
My life was now currently being thrown into chaos that was just so maddening that I felt like I was going to suffocate from it and explode!
Finally, I sighed in frustration and patted Stryka gently on the side of her head. "Back to Berk, Stryka. Full speed ahead." I told her. She obeyed…and we flew on ahead of our friends.
'Just wait for me, Eret…But how long do I have to keep you waiting…?' I thought guiltily as the two of us flew on ahead.
Eret's POV
'I'll come find you! Just wait for me!'
Zenna's words continued to ring in my head long after she and those two other Dragon Riders left. My men took one look at me, knew that it wasn't a good time to ask about what had happened, and quickly got to work readying the one ship we had that hadn't been destroyed for our next outing.
I had to sit down for a moment not from exhaustion, but from the shock I'd been feeling ever since I saw my mother's old pendant around Zenna's neck.
I just couldn't really believe that I had seen her again…
Twelve years…twelve long years full of longing and then, all of a sudden, she was there. I sighed as I remembered her face, which I had made sure to burn into my memory from the moment I recognized her during our tragically short reunion.
Gods, she was even more beautiful than I remembered…Her face had beauty that rivaled all the Valkyries in Valhalla…her long black hair, dark as the deepest night…
Then I remembered that she had only one breathtakingly bright violet eye. She was wearing a black leather eye patch on the right side of her face! Oh Odin, she was still too young to lose something so important to her body like that! What happened while we were apart?! Who could have been so savage enough to take her right eye?!
'If Drago was the one who did it…Oh no…I seriously hope that it wasn't him!' I thought worriedly. Then one of my men came over to me with a slightly hesitant look on his face.
"The ship's ready, sir. We sail at your command." He said quietly. I was at a crossroads.
Zenna told me to wait for her. And I know I didn't really say it out loud, but I told myself that I would. But then we had to return to Drago's camp, with a shipment of dragons which we had lost the night before. What was I supposed to do?
Do I stay here and wait for Zenna to come back? Or get back to business as usual for Drago?
Come to think of it…I just realized that Zenna and I had grown up to become completely polar opposites. I was a Dragon Trapper…She was a Dragon Rider, and of a Night Fury no less!
'She actually rode that one-eyed Night Fury! And it was like the dragon was her friend! Odin's axe, what happened to Zenna…? I'm so confused!' I thought, still reeling from shock.
That's when a sudden sense of panic seized me.
If she was a Dragon Rider and if Drago ever found out about her…
Oh, gods…
My hand automatically grasped the pin on my vest as I tried to keep myself from imagining the horrifying things Drago would do to Zenna if he ever got his hands on her.
And mind you, those things I tried to keep myself from imagining weren't pretty and were very much capable of giving somebody nightmares for all eternity.
I should know…I've experienced them…
And there was absolutely no way that I was going to let them happen to my dearest heart.
"We head out now. Get the men and we'll set sail." I said, putting on a brave face. My cohort nodded and went on ahead. I picked up my sword and set it back in its hilt. Then, hesitating slightly, I pulled out a small scrap of paper and a pencil. Scribbling down my message for Zenna, I left the note out in the open where I knew she would find it.
I trusted Zenna that she would try to come and find me…
I just hoped that she would understand that I didn't want her to…because I wanted to protect her…
It didn't take long for Aurora, me and Stryka to reach Berk.
Once we had landed, Aurora and I made my way to my house where my parents were outside and feeding Serpent and Serpentine. Stryka warbled a greeting to my parents' Hideous Zippleback, who both warbled back.
My parents looked at me and, upon seeing my frazzled look, quickly led me inside. I chose to sit down for a minute while Mom brewed some tea and Dad lit the fireplace.
Normally I would have told them that there was no need to fuss, but I was still in too much shock to complain.
"What is it, love?" Dad asked me, concern evident in his eyes.
"Aurora, Hiccup, Astrid and I were out exploring. We found this fort stuck in ice. And there were Dragon Trappers." I began.
"Trappers? Heading this way?" Mom asked worriedly. I shook my head.
"No, Mom. They're not planning to head to Berk. It's just that their leader…" I managed to say before sighing heavily and looked at the fireplace.
It was a long moment of silence before I found the courage to speak again.
"Their leader was Eret, Mom and Dad. I saw Eret again. He's a Dragon Trapper now." I said at last. Mom was pouring me a cup of tea when I said that while Dad was stoking the fire in the hearth. Instantly they sharply looked at me in shock, tea spilling over and the embers popping.
"Eret, Son of Eret? Zenna, are you sure?" Mom asked in bewilderment.
"He was wearing the pin I gave him, Mom. I know it was him." I nodded gravely.
"Good gods…" Dad muttered, shaking his head.
"Yeah…Good gods indeed…Oh Thor, I never should have stayed away from him for so long…I could've at least taken Stryka and gone looking for him myself…" I murmured guiltily to myself.
Maybe…if instead of waiting for Eret to come find me, I could have been the one to find him.
I could have taken him on a great flight on Stryka, like when Hiccup took Astrid on that romantic flight five years ago, and shown him how wonderful it is to have a bond with a dragon. And maybe he wouldn't have to work for this Drago Bludvist, whom I'm pretty sure is bad news, and come live on Berk with his father and be one of us.
'Come to think of it…I didn't see Eret's dad with him…Wonder where he is…' I mused.
"It's not your fault he's gone astray, love." Mom soothed me.
"I've known Eret and his father for years, Zen. I find it very hard to believe that the boy who swore on his life to protect you at all costs would stoop to this kind of low, but it looks like he's changed…and not for the better." Dad said grimly.
I believed Mom and I wanted to agree with Dad. But I still felt this gnawing sense of guilt within me. Circumstances such as my move to Berk could have given Eret little happiness. I knew even back then that he and his father were barely scraping by. I could have implored my parents to let them come with us so we could start new lives together. But I didn't, and that was the regret I had been regretting ever since I left the South.
Plus, Eret had sworn to protect me. Solemnly swearing on his own life, in fact! It was one of the many proofs he had shown me that he really loved me. And I, for one, refused to believe that he had chosen the wrong path. I couldn't just sit here wondering. I needed to find Eret again.
I needed to know the truth.
Standing up, I headed outside and got on Stryka. Serpent and Serpentine crooned at me curiously as my parents also joined me outside.
"What are you planning to do, my dear?" Mom asked me, putting a hand to her belly as the baby had started moving again.
"I can't accept it, Mom. The whole idea of Eret being one of the bad guys, I mean. That's why I need to get the truth straight from the source." I answered seriously.
"You're going to go out there and find him? What if he is one of the bad guys now and tries to take Stryka away from you and take Winter away from Maria?" Dad asked worriedly.
Stryka warbled at me and I gently patted her head. If Eret had changed…I would make sure that my love for Stryka, my draconian sister, will overpower my love for him. But that, was something I hoped that will not come to pass. I prayed to the gods that I'll be successful in changing Eret's mind before looking at my parents with a grave eye.
"I won't let it happen, Dad. And besides, I know Eret better than anyone. He'll never betray me." I reassured my father before I urged Stryka up and we headed out along with Aurora and the Fury Family.
What I didn't know was that Hiccup had the same idea of going after Eret and his crew…only his agenda was to go to Eret's boss and talk some sense into him.
What I also didn't know was that he and Astrid were going to have to perform an act of mutiny in order to do that because Stoick had grounded all the dragons. Whatever the reason was, I'll find out later.
Right now, I had to get to Eret and fast.
Stryka and I went back to the fort. To my disappointment, it was deserted. Stryka sniffed the air before looking at me. I sighed and walked around the carnage. Nothing but splintered wood and damaged supplies, weapons and traps everywhere. Then, a lone scrap of paper caught my eye. Picking it up, I traced Eret's handwriting with my fingers.
'Even the mighty wolf has to turn tail and flee when the hunter gives chase. I'm sorry, Zenna…But please don't come looking for me anymore…
Eret'
I was stunned. Why would he not want me with him? I could help him! Holy Shields, this was beginning to frustrate me!
But still, I had to smile at the part of his message that had 'the mighty wolf' in it. Back in our old home in the South, the wolves were considered as revered animals. We treated them with high respect. Eret and I respected them alright…and we even considered them as playmates.
(Zen's flashback starts)
'"It's alright, Zen. Come on, he won't bite." 11 year old Eret coaxed the now seven year old Zenna while he petted a large gray wolf. A pack of them was with the two children in the woods that day. Eret had decided to let Zenna in on a little secret-he had befriended the local wolf pack that hunted close to their village. In accordance to tribal law, this kind of secret was considered disrespectful as the wolves were supposed to be seen as sacred beings that should be respected from a distance and never treated like common housepets.
But Eret was never really one to follow tribe laws that seriously…and neither was Zenna. But of course, the young Fiersome girl was wary and decided to stay a good three feet away from Eret and the wolf and hid behind a nearby shrub. And once she saw that the wolf Eret was currently playing with was the alpha male, she was ready to turn around and run with her metaphorical tail between her legs.
"Eret, that's the alpha male of the pack! What if he doesn't like me?" Zenna squeaked nervously. "Well if he doesn't I'm sure that his mate, the alpha female, will." Eret chuckled, making Zenna all the more nervous and not to mention confused.
"How do you know the alpha female will like me?" the seven year old girl asked. Eret smiled. "She's right over there with you." He replied casually.
That's when Zenna realized that she had a companion with her in the shrub. The alpha female had been by her side all along!
"Holy Shields…" she squeaked, cautiously backing away. The alpha female trotted over to her, tail held up proud and high. If Zenna hadn't been so jittery, she would've thought the alpha female as a regal wolf queen.
"Uh…N-nice wolf…G-g-good Alpha Female Wolf…" the Fiersome girl stuttered as she warily held out her hand. Then, to her surprise and Eret's delight, the alpha female nosed her muzzle into Zenna's palm in kind greeting and sat at her feet. Zenna then stood still, amazed, before sitting on the dirt. This allowed the wolf to plop her furry head onto her lap and whine, asking to be petted.
"See, Zen? What'd I tell you? She likes you!" Eret laughed, leading the alpha male to his mate. Zenna now giggled as she gently petted the alpha female, enjoying the feeling of the soft, fluffy fur as she bonded with her new playmate. The alpha male along with Eret followed and, soon, the whole pack was with them. Both Eret and Zenna had a great time playing with the wolves. The alpha male even let Zenna get on his silver furred back and loped about the thicket, the young Fiersome girl shrieking with delight.
"Eret, how did you make friends with them? Was it magic?" Zenna inquired curiously as she cuddled one of the pups. "Nope. Just kindness, Zenna. As long as you have a kind heart, you can make friends with anyone." Eret had told her, while wrestling with one of the juveniles.
Zenna took Eret's words to heart that same day. As long as she was kind, she could befriend anyone…just how Eret had taught her…'
(Zen's flashback ends)
I sighed deeply and got on Stryka's back once more. That's when Stryka did one of the things she rarely did-talk.
"Awre wree stwill goowiingg two lwook fwor thwattt Errrwwreett peewwrrssoonn, Zzen?" she asked me. Needless to say, I was surprised to hear Stryka once again speak in human language. The only times she did that was when she really needed to say something to me.
I guess today was one of those times.
"We are, girl. And we're not going to stop until we find him." I replied as we took to the skies to begin our search. "I dwon't gwet it, Zzennnaa. He'sss a baadd gwuyy. Wwwhhyyy dwo ywou waaannnaaa gwo fiinnddd him…?" Stryka asked me as we flew about. "It's…It's kind of hard to explain, Stryka…Eret's actually…a really important someone." I said haltingly.
"You love him?"
That perfectly pronounced sentence that came out of Stryka's mouth nearly made me fall off the saddle. I looked at her in shock and awe before composing myself. Stryka looked up at me with her one good eye, a curious toothless smile on her face. I had to smile at my beloved dragoness' intuition.
"Yes, I love Eret. He's my one true love, Stryka. And I have to find him again…I just have to…" I whispered.
Stryka didn't say anything else, and we continued our search in silence.
Eret's POV
"Keep your eyes peeled, lads! At this wind we'll reach Drago by daybreak. So best we fill this ship up with dragons and quick." I shouted to my men as I stood on the stern. To my relief, Zenna hadn't come flying out of nowhere on her Night Fury yet so there was still a chance that I could keep Drago from finding out about her…
'As long as we stay course, she won't be able to find us…' I thought as I carried on with, "There's no time to be picky…" before hearing one of my men say, "Ah, Eret…" I ignored him and continued, "Not if we want to keep our…"
That's when I heard the familiar sound of dragon wings flapping. Looking up, I saw the Deadly Nadder and male Night Fury from earlier! "HEADS! Off the port quarter!" I yelled. My men immediately scrambled to prep the net launchers.
"That's it, lads! Take 'em down!" I told them as I readied my own. I focused on the Night Fury that was being ridden on by that fire sword-wielding amputee.
"You're not getting away this time." I muttered before giving the command.
"Fire!"
Nets were launched in all directions! But much to my annoyance, not a single dragon caught. Then, just when I thought we were going to have to reload, the dragons and their Riders landed on deck.
"And here I was worried we might turn up empty handed." I sneered, pointing my sword at the Night Fury Rider. Oddly enough, he didn't look the least bit afraid. "Nope. It's your lucky day." He replied before putting his hands up declaring, "We give up."
I had to admit, this guy was courageous…and also strange.
"That's one Night Fury, one Deadly Nadder and two of the finest Dragon Riders west of luk tuk. That'll make the boss happy, right? Excuse us." As he said this, he and the Nadder Rider got off their dragons, took the Nadder Riders battle axe away, put a net on her and, then, escorted her and himself to below deck while making sure to shut the hatch behind him. "What are you doing?" the Nadder Rider asked him in shock.
Yep, this lad had officially lost his marbles.
I just watched in shock as the Night Fury tried to join his Rider. "Ah, Toothless stay." The boy told him, as if the beast were a mere friendly hound.
'Toothless? That Night Fury has some of the sharpest teeth in the entire dragon world! Could this day get even weirder?' I thought to myself. First Zenna, now this!
"The dragons don't really care for cramped spaces so they'll just hang out with you, they won't be any trouble." The boy told me, just as the men pulled out their swords.
Almost instantly, that Night Fury jumped up in surprise like a cat and promptly snarled at us, showing us two sets of perfectly knife-like teeth!
"Unless you do that." The boy added. I had to agree with him on this one, though. My crew? Not exactly the best compared to the rest of Drago's fleet.
The boy kept talking even though we weren't so interested. "You know, wooden boat, big ocean. H-How is your swimming?" he asked us. "Not good." Another one of my men admitted sheepishly.
See what I mean?
Suddenly the fire sword poked out of the opening! I had to admit, it was rather impressive. I even found myself wondering if Zenna had one…
"Oops, almost forgot, can't have armed prisoners." The boy popped up, still looking as calm as ever. I heard the axe girl whisper, "How is this a plan?" to him. I made sure to keep my eye on that boy. For all I knew, he was just putting on this little show to trick us…
"Just what every dragon trapper needs. One end coats the blade with Monstrous Nightmare saliva, the other sprays Hideous Zippleback gas." He informed us, ducking down as one of my men hit the switch to release the highly explosive Zippleback gas. Luckily I managed to flee the blast zone while the boy said, "All it takes is a spark and…"
Thank gods I didn't get caught in the explosion. My men? Eh, not so much.
What really got my attention was how playful the boy's Night Fury was. It was even batting away at the embers like an innocent kitten! Was that how Zenna's Night Fury acted like as well?
"Oh yeah, there you go. Once they see you as one of their own even the testiest dragon can be trained, right bud?" the boy said innocently.
Finally I lost my patience, said, "Gimme that." and snatched the contraption away from my men before hurling it off the ship. And to my surprise, the Nadder flew after it and retrieved it. To the dragon, I was playing a game of fetch with it!
"What game are you playing?" I asked the boy, all the more suspicious. "No game, we just want to meet Drago." He replied simply. "Why?" I had to be honest, I never thought I'd meet someone who would actually want to meet Drago.
"Because I'm going to change his mind about dragons."
Well that got me and my crew laughing. Was this lad actually serious?!
"He can be really persuasive." The girl Rider then stood next to him supportively. Patting the Night Fury, the boy told me, "Once you've earned his loyalty, there is nothing a dragon won't do for you."
"Pfft, you won't be changing any minds around here." I told him as-a-matter-of-factly. "I can change yours, right here, right now." The boy said as he pushed on some sort of lever and the Night Fury's red tail fin opened. That's when I realized that both Zenna's Night Fury and the boy's had lost important body parts…along with their Riders.
In this case, both the boy and the male dragon were missing once crucial part to help with their mobility.
In Zenna and her dragon's case, they were both missing their right eyes.
Then another thought entered my head.
'Had Zenna found somebody else? Was this one legged boy her boyfriend?'
I cast those thoughts aside and decided to test him. And what better way than a little showdown right here on my ship?
"Well seeing as Drago won't care if I give him to you dead or alive, I'll give you as long as it takes to remove that noisy, oversized head of yours. How's that?" I said casually as I waved my sword about, turning away from him.
"Fair enough." The boy said as I turned to look at him. Then I saw him look at the girl and ask, "Is my head really oversized?" to which the girl replied, "Your hair is."
Ha! I had to admit that that was funny!
"Hahaha, hilarious." The boy said sarcastically before facing me again. "So, you trap dragons and ship them north? To Drago?" he asked me.
"Except when they're stolen by you!" I said sharply as I leaped onto the side of the ship to come at him from above! But the lad was a fast one. He cut some ropes holding some barrels in place and I found myself struggling to keep my balance!
"Right! By my good friend the Dragon Thief and his ice-spitting buddy." My opponent stated. "Your days of rescuing dragons are over. Drago has found the ice-spitter's cave!" I grunted as I tried to take a swing at his head. He ducked, much to my frustration.
"Soon, all of your dragons will be claimed for his army." I warned the boy as I continued my attacks. "Ah, the Dragon Army. How exactly did he pull that off? I mean dragons aren't really the easiest to train." He pointed out as I kicked the barrel off and glared at him.
"Even dragons know better than to cross Drago Bludvist." I said harshly as I grabbed him by the front of his armor. "Is this part of changing my mind?" I decided to ask. "That part's coming." The boy replied, loosening one of the pulleys used to hold up the sails and grabbed onto the rope and rode it up to the mast!
"Rope burn!" he shouted as he went up.
As much as I found that guy obnoxious, he was a rather worthy opponent.
"Come now, Drago's about to take over the world! You're either with him or against him!" I called up to him, climbing up as well. When I finally got up there, I readied my sword. "And the way I see it, against is a losing proposition." I told the boy as I backed him up to the very edge.
"Any last words to change my mind?" I asked coldly, ready to swing my blade. "Actually, yes. And it's more of a question actually…" the boy said before looking at me with a serious expression.
"Do you know Zenna?"
I nearly lost my balance and fell off the mast when he asked that.
"Because from the way she was behaving when we encountered you and your crew, it looked like that you two have a history. What kind of history that is, I'd like to know." He said, standing up to see eye-to-eye with me. I was so busy debating whether to answer him or not, that I didn't see him take out his knife and sever the rope holding the mast down.
We were instantly catapulted right off the ship!
"YOU IDIOT!" I yelled at the boy, who looked like was enjoying this moment of terror.
Strange, lost his marbles, a worthy opponent…might as well add completely insane to the list of things I could use to describe him!
That's when I also heard Zenna's voice accompanied by the shriek of a Night Fury.
"ERET!"
I managed to spin myself about and caught a glimpse of her speeding towards me on her dragon, a look of pure shock on her face. That was also the same time, I think, when the other Night Fury came flying up out of nowhere and grabbed me. I saw the boy on its back and he pulled a lever, opening the tail fin and pulled up.
And it was a good thing it did because I was close to hitting those rocks earlier!
But to add to my misery, the boy and his Night Fury both decided to take me on a joyride. "Make it stop! Make it stop! Someone make it stop!" I shouted, not really caring to enjoy the thrill of being airborne and desperately praying to the gods for mercy.
Zenna and her Night Fury finally reached us and flew alongside. "Hold on!" the boy smiled as his Night Fury went for a dive! "Hiccup, he's had enough!" Zenna yelled, frantic.
Even if I was terrified, I found myself thinking, 'What kind of a name is HICCUP?' before I got dropped off. Still stunned from that near-death experience, I watched Zenna and her dragon land. And mind you, I had never seen Zenna so angry.
The other girl landed on the ship as well as four other Night Furies, four White Night Furies and three... eh.. I didn't know what the other three were but they looked like the other dragons combined.
The boy, who I now knew as Hiccup, had just finished praising his own dragon when Zenna marched up to him and bonked him hard on the head with one of the sticks she carried.
"Ow! What? I was just trying to get him to see what you and I see!" Hiccup flinched.
"By traumatizing him, Hiccup?! Really?! And how in Odin's name did you two get airborne earlier?! What? You two got catapulted or something?!" Zenna shrieked at him.
I watched as the two of them had a really loud conversation, my men also watching as words flew back and forth.
"Actually, yeah. We were having a little talk up on the mast of his ship."
"The mast of his…! Wait, were you two fighting?!"
"Well, he started it! I was just trying to convince him that our dragons are friends!"
"You couldn't have just waited for me? I can talk to Eret without having things escalating into a showdown!"
"Astrid and I would have waited, but then we found out from your parents that you went on ahead to go find him! And really, Zen, what is going on with you? It's like you two know each other!"
Finally Zenna all but screamed, "That's because we do know each other!"
I swear everyone had their eyes locked on me and Zenna once she blurted that out. I glanced at Zenna and she caught my eye. She reached into her pocket and pulled out my note.
"While the wolf flees, the hunter continues the chase and is relentless in pursuit…" she began quoting an old saying from our old home. "…so the wolf has a choice: keep its tail between its legs and keep on running…or face the hunter, claws sharp, fangs bared and ready to fight till the end." I finished for her.
In the South, members of the Wolf Pack Army were taught to be as fierce as wolves. Aside from giving respect to our enemies before we delivered the death blow, we were taught that we could either run away from our enemies when they overpower us…or keep on fighting until our last breath.
I'd been gone from the South for a long time and I never forgot our code…and neither did Zenna.
"That's pretty poetic. Where'd you two learn that?" the blonde girl asked, stepping forward. "It's a part of the South's fight code of honor." I informed her.
"Where Eret and I are originally from." Zenna added, looking at me with a small smile.
Then she looked at Hiccup, the dragons, the girl before finally looking at me.
"Astrid, you and our friends were always curious as to why I never had any relationships with any of the boys back on Berk, right?" She directed her question to the blond axe wielder. The girl, Astrid, looked surprised but nodded.
"Well…now you know why. It's because I had already found someone long before I came to Berk." Zenna sighed before finally doing the formal introductions.
"Eret, these are my friends Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III and Astrid Hofferson, my adoptive sister, Aurora Frode Fiersome, our dragon friends Midnight, Snow, Moon, Eclipse, Luna, Winter, Snowheart, and Crystal.
Toothless, Stormfly and Stryka. Hiccup, Astrid, Toothless, Stryka and Stormfly, this is Eret, Son of Eret…my childhood sweetheart."
My little confession must have been equivalent to setting off an explosive, because Hiccup was gaping at me like I had gone insane. Astrid mirrored his reaction while the Fury Family, Toothless, Stryka and Stormfly warbled in confusion. I glanced at Eret who looked just as uncomfortable as I was before looking at Hiccup again.
"Yeah…It-it's kind of a long story…" I managed to say before the both of us were suddenly snatched right off the ship! Hiccup and I both screamed in shock but then realized that we had been snatched by Hookfang! Why would he and Snotlout do such a thing, I have no idea. Toothless and Stryka had managed to leap onto the ship's mast and were now watching us from below.
In the meantime, Hiccup chose that moment to have a mid-flight conversation with me about my love life. As if that was the issue right now!
"Zen, are you telling me that all these years, you had a BOYFRIEND and you never told me about it?! Or the fact that your boyfriend is a DRAGON TRAPPER?!" Hiccup all but yelled at me. Honestly, I didn't understand why he was so freaked out. I tried to stay calm as I explained. But to tell you the truth, it wasn't easy because I had gotten mad at him earlier for his recklessness.
"Technically he wasn't a dragon trapper when we were kids. And like I said, he's my CHILDHOOD. SWEETHEART. That was the more appropriate term to use because we were still kids at the time." I told him, emphasizing the words 'childhood' and 'sweetheart' as firmly as I could.
Hiccup still looked pretty shocked. "How…Just how old were you guys when you two fell in love anyway?" he asked me. Well that made me clam up for about two seconds. But I managed to say, "…I was 4 and he was 9…" my cheeks turning red with embarrassment.
Yeah, Eret and I have a 5 year age gap. And we fell in love when we were that young. It's kind of…unusual to some but for me and Eret, it wasn't.
But to Hiccup, it was both unusual and alarming.
"What?! He's five years older than you!" he exclaimed, flabbergasted. "Age is just a number, Hiccup! And besides I'm 21 now. You do remember that I'm older than you by a few months, right?" I reminded him. I was beginning to get annoyed. Honestly Hiccup was acting so overprotective!
"Still doesn't change the fact that he's a DRAGON TRAPPER, Zenna!" Hiccup told me, looking just as annoyed as me.
"Sheesh, since when did you start getting so overprotective of me?" I scoffed at him. But then again, it might not have been such an appropriate question to ask. Hiccup has always been protective of me. And his protectiveness of me was strengthened even more when Elias had died.
"You know, saying it like that, you make me sound like Elias when he goes into 'overprotective brother mode'." Hiccup told me in a scolding manner. "Which is pretty much true at the moment in your case." I retorted.
"Either way, you still haven't answered my question on why you never told me that you had a boyfriend." He said emphatically.
"CHILDHOOD SWEETHEART!" I pretty much yelled out in exasperation.
What part of those two words did he not understand?!
"Whatever! I just wanna know why you never told me about him!" Hiccup shouted back at me.
"I'll explain later. Now, Snotlout, you and Hookfang better put us down unless you both know what's good for you!" I shouted, directing my last sentence to the pompous Jorgenson sitting astride on his Monstrous Nightmare.
Snotlout plainly ignored us since he was so busy trying to impress Ruffnut. "See how well I protect and provide?" he asked Ruffnut cheerfully. Ruffnut just made a face.
'I am seriously going to have to tell Snotlout that Ruffnut has zero interest when this is over…and also give him a good beating.' I thought as I watched the Twins dodge nets on Barf and Belch.
"Agh! What's with all the nets?!" Tuffnut muttered frustratingly as they dodged nets launched from Eret's ship left and right.
"Hey, watch it! That was…close…" Ruffnut managed to say before her face went all goofy. Confused, I studied her face. It looked like she had gotten a serious case of the lovebug…
"Oh my…" she swooned. I followed her gaze down to Eret, who was preparing to launch a net at her and her brother.
"Me likey."
You might as well have mistaken me for an angry mother dragon because I was livid.
'Oh, no! No, no, no, no, no you don't, Ruffnut Thorston! Eret is MINE!' I thought furiously as Ruffnut said, "Take me!" and threw her arms open to embrace the net Eret had launched. I pitied poor Tuffnut, who was looking at his sister like she was crazy.
"Okay, that's it, I've had enough." I muttered as I pushed myself off of Hookfang, Hiccup following me and we both activated our flight suits. I saw Eret's crew about to fire a bunch of nets at us but he and Astrid quickly yelled, "Hold your fire!"
'He still cares about me!' I thought, feeling giddy as Hiccup and I glided through the air. Hiccup grabbed hold of the rope and slid down the sail while I accidentally (no actually, deliberately) angled myself the wrong way and crashed right into Eret, both of us yelping in surprise as we collided.
Good thing Eret had really grown and we both weren't injured.
"Thanks for breaking my fall…" I smiled shyly at him. Eret, dazed as he was, managed me a small grin. "D-don't mention it…" he stuttered adorably.
As crazy as this whole thing was, I found myself giggling like a love struck little girl!
I must have been on top of Eret for quite a bit, because Hiccup suddenly heaved me to my feet and firmly planted himself between me and Eret. 'Holy Shields, Hiccup, really?!' I thought in annoyance while Eret looked at me and my best human friend in suspicion.
"Hicc, relax." I told Hiccup, pulling him away from Eret.
Thankfully, he shifted his attention to Snotlout and the rest of the gang who had arrived.
"Ah, what are you guys doing here?" he asked our friends just as Gobber arrived on Grump, his Hotburple. "We are here to rescue you!" our two-limbed blacksmith friend told us. "Zenna and I don't need to be rescued!" Hiccup said in protest.
"Enough!"
My heart nearly skipped a beat as Stoick landed on the ship on Skullcrusher, his Rumblehorn, along with…my parents.
"Well, didn't you just pick the wrong ship eh? I am Eret, son of—" Eret began to introduce himself before Stoick promptly shoved him out of the way. I winced as Gobber then clonked him on the head with his hammer hand and made Grump sit on him.
"Get…this thing…off me…!" Eret wheezed.
"It's been a long time, Eret." Dad greeted him curtly.
"Sorry, lad, but it's for your own good." Mom told him, stroking Serpentine's head. I saw Eret's jaw drop in shock.
"Mr. and Mrs. Fiersome? What the hell is going on…?" he muttered in shock.
"Anyone else?" Gobber inquired to the other men, who all backed off upon seeing the rather large party of Dragon Riders surrounding the ship.
"Hmm, that's what I figured." Gobber smirked.
On the other hand, Eret gave me a look that clearly said, 'What is going on and what have you not told me?' that made me feel so guilty. Maybe I should explain to Eret already…
I was about to go over to him when Stoick looked at me and Hiccup, a rather miffed expression on his face.
"You three, saddle up. We're going home." He told us sternly. While Hiccup and I had different reasons to refuse, we both said, "No."
Aurora just looked back and forth between us and Stoick.
Stoick glared at Hiccup.
"Of all the irresponsible-" he muttered through gritted teeth when Hiccup interrupted. "I'm trying to protect our dragons with Zenna and Aurora and stop a war! How is that irresponsible?" he fired back at his father. I found myself blushing a bit. Did Hiccup really have to include me in whatever thing he and his Dad were arguing about? Then again, he and I both do whatever it takes to protect the dragons.
But as I looked at Eret, I could tell that he was beginning to suspect that Hiccup and I were possibly romantically connected. And, really, we're not!
I was about to tell Hiccup to knock it off when Stoick yelled, "Because war is what he wants, son!"
Wait, war?! A real war?! Holy Shields, what was going on?!
I looked to my parents for answers. Dad gave me a look that told me to listen to what the Chief had to say.
I saw Stoick heave a great sigh. I had a feeling that this was serious.
"Years ago, there was a great gathering of chieftains to discuss the dragon scourge we all faced. Into our midst, came a stranger from a strange land. Covered in scars and draped in a cloak of dragon skin…" Stoick began.
"Drago Bludvist…?" I whispered to Mom, who shrugged. I guess she and Dad didn't know about this guy either…but why did they follow me out here? I worriedly placed a gentle hand on Mom's tummy. The baby instantly kicked, but then calmed down. I hoped that my little sibling was alright…
Stoick continued. "He carried no weapon and spoke softly, saying that he, Drago Bludvist, was a man of the people. Devoted to freeing mankind from the tyranny of dragons. He claimed that he alone could control the dragons and he alone could keep us safe if…we chose to bow down and follow him." He told us.
That part made most of us laugh. I even smiled to myself and rolled my eye. Whatever Drago was thinking, it was absurd. Nobody could ever control a dragon, unless it trusted you well enough to let you.
"Stupid." "Ah, good one." Ruffnut and Tuffnut both jeered.
Stoick's face, however, remained grave. "Aye we laughed too, until he wrapped himself in his cloak and cried, 'Then see how well you do without me!'." He said grimly.
I could imagine Drago storming out of the hall like that. But I could have never expected what happened next…
"The whole rooftop suddenly burst into flames and from it, armored dragons descended from it, burning the hall to the ground."
At those words, I gasped in horror. Branding Eret and, now, incinerating a hall full of Chiefs? How ruthless was this Drago Bludvist man?
"I…was the only one to escape." Stoick concluded sadly. Everyone was silent as a sign of respect to the fallen. I found myself looking at Eret. He looked pretty troubled. I wonder if he had been there when Drago committed that terrible act of murder.
Stoick then looked at Hiccup. "Men who kill without reason cannot be reasoned with." He told him seriously. Hiccup kept a firm stance. "Maybe." He said and went to Toothless.
"Hiccup!" Stoick grumbled crossly.
"I'm still going to try." Hiccup said, catching Eret's attention. I saw him look at my one-legged best human friend in awe of his courage.
Once he was on Toothless, Hiccup looked at his Dad. "This is what I'm good at, and if I can change your mind I can change his too." He told him.
"Wa-wait a second, Hicc. Are you telling me that you're going to try talking some sense into Drago?" I asked him worriedly.
"Yeah I am, Zen. It's your choice if you want to come with me. Unless…" Hiccup replied, before looking at Eret with disgust.
Oh, here we go…
"Hiccup, don't look at him like that. I know Eret. I'm coming with you but first…let me talk to him." I said carefully. I approached Eret and then saw that Ruffnut was next to him, ogling at him!
"Ruffnut!" I snapped at her, pulling the amorous female Thorston away from my childhood sweetheart.
Getting down to his eye level, I gazed at Eret. "Hey…" I said quietly. Upon hearing my greeting, Eret looked at me. "Hi…" he said softly.
"You know, I think this Drago guy's bad news. And if you're scared of him, my friends and I can help you. We can work together to stop him and his crazy scheme. All you have to do is give us directions to wherever he's at." I told him gently. At my offer, Eret tensed up.
"I can't, Zen…I just can't…" he mumbled.
"Why not, Eret?" Mom stepped forward. "If what Stoick has said is true, then it might not be wise to associate with Drago, Zenna…including his followers." Dad told me, glaring at Eret. I ignored them and locked eyes with Eret. He looked like he had been backed up into a corner and was desperate to get out of this.
"Please, Eret…I can help you." I said gently. He shook his head and looked at Stryka, who growled a warning. "First you, then your parents…what about Elias? I don't suppose he has a dragon of his own too?" Eret asked me.
At that question, I became silent. Oh Thor, how was I going to explain to Eret that Eli was…
"Zen's older brother? He died in a dragon raid about eight years ago." Snotlout piped up. I flinched slightly when Eret looked at me in shock.
"What?" he asked me, eyes wide.
"That was before the war between Berk and the dragons ended…But…but now, everyone on Berk has dragons of their own. And…it's all thanks to me and Hiccup." I admitted. But now, Eret looked upset with me. He glared at Stryka before harshly looking at me.
"So you're telling me that you befriended the very monsters that killed Elias?" he asked coldly. "And you have...eh... what exactly is she supposed to be?"
My anger flared up as I told him, "Stryka is not a monster! She's my best dragon friend! My sister not by blood but by bond! And I will not tolerate anyone who speaks ill of her! Including you, Eret! Now, tell me at once where Drago Bludvist is hiding!" my one violet eye flashing in rage. "As for Aurora, she's a hybrid."
All at once, Eret's cold expression shifted into a worried and scared one. And, also at the same time, he avoided my gaze. My anger was quickly replaced by guilt. I didn't mean to get all harsh, really…
"I-I'm sorry…I didn't mean to…" I trailed off once I saw that Eret was refusing to look at me. My emotional state was in a precarious situation. All the shock, anger, confusion was threatening to spill out of me in the form of tears. Close to losing it, I managed to say in a steady tone, "Twelve years…Twelve whole years, Eret…I waited for you…I waited for you to come and find me…But in the end…it was I who found you…"
Eret still refused to even so much as look at me. My throat began to feel tight as I felt tears well up in my eye. Mom and Dad were beginning to get worried, so were Hiccup and all the others.
"Eret, please…I promise I won't judge you for who you've become. I promise that I'll stay and that I'll help you." I began to plead. He still refused to meet my gaze.
My voice cracked as I whispered, "Just please…say something."
Complete and utter silence was what I got…
And just like that…my heart shattered into a million pieces…
Tears streaming down my face, I got up and raced over to Stryka. I ignored my Mom and Dad's pleas as I nudged Stryka upwards.
"Zen, wait!" Hiccup and Aurora shouted, going after me. We both left the ship and flew off to wherever the winds would take us.
I ignored Hiccup's worried voice as he tried to comfort me, Toothless and Stryka's worried croons. My heart was broken and I wasn't sure if it would ever be mended again. I just couldn't believe that it had actually happened…
Eret wouldn't even look at me or even say anything…
His silence could have only meant one thing…
…That he didn't love me anymore…
Twelve long years of waiting gone to waste…Was it really all for nothing?
Finally I couldn't take it anymore and buried my face in Stryka's warm black scales, muffling my sobs as I cried. I didn't care about Drago Bludvist, the danger of just running off like this with Hiccup to Thor knows where at the moment.
All I cared about now…was that I just wanted to get away from the blasted ship and away from the man…who had once been the boy that I loved with all my heart…
I just wanted to get away…I just wanted to get away…I JUST WANTED TO GET AWAY!
Eret's POV
I looked back in time to see Zenna take off on her Night Fury, tears streaming down her face. "Hey wait for me" Aurora cried as she zipped into the air followed by the Fury Family.
"Zen, wait!" Hiccup shouted and then looked back at me. I inwardly cringed as he glared at me with those angry green eyes of his. Without another word, he also got on his dragon and flew off. I saw Astrid then get on her Nadder.
"Let's go." Just as she was about to take off, the Chief stopped her.
"No! Lead the others back to Berk, I've had enough mutiny for one day." He said gruffly before looking at me.
"You disgust me." He growled. I could only look down in shame. I knew he was right…
That's when Zenna's father pulled me out from under the Hotburple and readied his fist! Gulping, I closed my eyes and braced myself for the pain.
"Edgar, stop!"
I opened my eyes and saw Zenna's mother holding Edgar back. But even she looked mad as she said, "He's not worth it."
Edgar then dropped me against the side of the ship. I woozily shook my head, seeing stars. Once I got my vision to refocus, all I saw was Zenna's parents and the Berkians looking at me with disgust. I could practically feel the guilt clawing at my insides.
"E-Edgar, Henna, I-I…" I stammered out stupidly. "Save it, Eret! You've done enough damage here!" Henna snapped at me. Edgar looked at me with an enraged expression on his face but I could see the tremendous hurt in his eyes.
"My daughter LOVED you! She loved no one else!" Edgar yelled at me, making me flinch.
But that wasn't the worst of it.
"Zenna gave you her whole heart, Eret! And what did you do with it?! You broke my sweet little girl's heart!"
You might as well have stuck a dagger into my chest because that really, really hurt. And the worst part is…was that it was all true.
Zenna's parents then left along with the others. But Astrid stayed behind long enough to give me another harsh glare. "I don't know what Zenna saw in you back then, but I hope you're happy with yourself because you just broke her heart." She spat out venomously.
Oh, I was feeling the exact opposite of happy right now for sure…
Once all the Riders had left, I stood up and retreated below deck. I leaned heavily against the wall, trying to calm myself down. Glancing down at the pin Zenna had given me, I felt all the guilt and heartache threatening to consume me. How could I have been so stupid?! She was just trying to help, and I pushed her away! Why didn't I say something?!
At that moment, I chose to recall the day Zenna and I had said our goodbyes…as well as the promise I made to her…
(Eret's flashback starts)
'Thirteen year old Eret stood at the very edge of the dock, watching as the ship carrying his childhood sweetheart and her family away to their new home sailed away. Eret could make out Zenna's petite form standing at the very back, waving at him as she and her family sailed away…
Suddenly Eret felt the need to promise her something. At the top of his lungs he yelled, "I'll come find you! Just wait for me! I promise, Zenna! I'll come find you again!" just as the ship disappeared from his view.
Then Zenna's small, sweet voice reached him across the waves.
"I will, Eret! I'll wait for you! I'll wait for you forever!"
And even if Eret couldn't see Zenna anymore, he knew that she was still waving goodbye to him…
(Eret's flashback ends)
I broke my promise to Zenna…
She had waited for me for so long…
And I never came to find her…
I took the pin off my vest and stared at it. Finally the tears that had been threatening to spill out of my eyes came streaming down my face and dropped onto the pin.
'I'm so sorry, Zen…I'm so sorry…' I thought as I sank to the floor, stifling my sobs as I cried.
…What have I done…?