"I'm glad we had this talk, Hiccup" Fluttershy smiled at him as they walked from her house back to the library the next morning.
"Yeah, you're really thoughtful. I think I understand my dad a little more" Hiccup returned the smile, "Oh, and thanks for the tea"
"You're very welcome. You're very nice, and I can see why your dragon likes you. I wish I was brave like you"
"And I wish I was as patient as you. See, that's why your friends like you so much. You're not a doormat; you're a good person…pony with your own contributions."
"That's really nice of you"
/
/
/
This successful human-pony relationship extended to more than just the more empathic ones
"Darling, you didn't need to help me with the dishes"
"You did made breakfast and I just felt obligated"
"I could have done them myself-I usually do. But that was rather thoughtful of you, Fishlegs" Rarity was a picture of relief, "I admit I had a rather discouraging first impression"
"Well, to be honest the twins are like most Vikings on Berk, only a little more so. I'm sorry about the vase"
"I did catch it in time; you don't need to apologize. I'm surprised by how interested you were in my books"
"I just wish I could read them"
"Oh, I'm sure Twilight will think of something. You were a perfect gentlepony, darling"
"Glad I could oblige" With that, Fishlegs started imitating Rarity's elegant stride.
/
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/
"Does your brother ever talk more than two words?" Snotlout asked as he accompanied Applejack to town.
"When he has to, sugarcube; he's a lot smarter than ponies think. He lets me do the talking, but when he says somethin', it's always important" Applejack explained, "Anyway, thank ya kindly for your buckin'. Sure you ain't tired?"
"My dad taught me that you gotta lift a tree every day, and rest is for the weak" Snotlout almost preened himself.
"I hear ya. I thought that too a long time ago, then one day I worked so hard I couldn't see the table in the kitchen. You gotta trust your friends, sugarcube, or they ain't gonna trust you and you ain't gonna trust yourself"
"We're Vikings, Applejack," he argued, stopping the walk, "you have to rely on yourself!"
"There's a difference between being able to do somethin' for yourself, and knowing when you can't. Sounds like you need to talk your friends more than your paw" Applejack's tone turned more serious.
Snotlout almost said something, growled in frustration, and stomped down the path.
/
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/
"And I love my knife and I love my goat, and I love my dragon-headed boat, I'm a Viking through and through!" Somehow a baritone, mezzo-soprano, and a coloratura soprano managed to squeak out in perfect harmony.
"I think that's the last of the verses we made" Ruffnut scratched her head
"Your turn again, Pinkie!" Tuffnut cheered
"Okay, which one do you guys want to sing this time?"
"How about that one about those cup things again?"
"All righty! All you gotta do is take a cup of flour, add it to the mix/" Pinkie Pie belted out the song, the twins following her lead.
The Library doors opened to the assembled Ponies and Humans as Twilight, Spike and Astrid joined the rest in the main square. All eyes turned to Twilight as she walked confidently out to meet them.
"Good morning everybody", Twilight had repressed the habit of using "everypony" at the moment, "I thought it over last night, I think we should start the search in Canterlot. We know there's already a human there, and there's train lines to most regions of Equestria from there. Furthermore, that library's a lot bigger than mine, including many books on dragons. I first read those when I was raising Spike, and they had maps showing dragon habitats. Your dragons may have fallen in with them to socialize, or if there's a conflict, they'd be roosting nearby. And, of course, we should look alongside watercourses."
"Are there fish spawning areas around here? They'll be following the schools" Hiccup asked.
"Ooh, that's a good idea. Fluttershy, you work with water animals; got any ideas?"
"Well, I live by a stream where the otters and raccoons like to eat, but there's not enough fish there for a dragon" Fluttershy looked sheepish, "I'm sorry"
"Don't be. We can use your knowledge of the wilderness on the search" Hiccup reassured her.
"I still think we should look for them from the air. Dragons aren't exactly stealthy-we should see them a mile away!" Rainbow Dash argued.
"Hold it, you can fly that high with those little wings? Gronkles have bigger wings than that!" Snotlout interrupted.
"Shouldn't have said that, sugarcube" Applejack grinned.
Rainbow Dash smirked, "Don't think I could do it? I forgot you didn't know who won the Best Young Flier Award OR who enlisted in Wonderbolt Academy. Tell ya what, buddy-you're gonna ride me and you'll see how high I can go."
"Yeah, saw this one coming" Spike commented dryly.
"I'm surprised it didn't happen earlier" Astrid replied deadpan.
"Please, Hookfang takes me over the clouds; I can't see a little horse doing better than Hookfang."
"Are you too chicken to do it?" Rainbow Dash's eyes narrowed.
"Nobody calls me chicken!" Snotlout glared back at her.
"Then get on"
"Fine. Keep it short, though" Snotlout muttered as he mounted Rainbow Dash right behind her wings.
"Hang on!" she gave him a sinister grin before spreading her wings, crouching down for a spring, and then taking wing.
There was a rainbow-colored streak in the pegasus' wake as she sped upwards over the houses, quickly growing smaller in the distance as Snotlout's continuous scream faded.
"That was a bit extreme" Rarity commented, peering through her field glasses at the distant rainbow streak circling the sky.
"With Snotlout, you have to get the message across a little harder" Hiccup sighed.
Soon enough, the rainbow streak came to earth, slowed down, and then suddenly stopped in the middle of the square. A quick buck of Rainbow's hips sent Snotlout into the dirt. Astrid and the twins cheered and applauded.
"Thank you! Thank you!" Rainbow Dash waved a hoof in pride, "Well, how's that, flyboy?" She turned to the Viking lying facefirst in the dirt.
"Mmt mmmt mmmm mmm mmm-nmnn mmm mm-mmp"
"I think he got the point" Applejack smirked.
Meanwhile, Twilight was showing Canterlot on a map of Equestria to Hiccup
"Centrally located, lots of land-that limits the dragons' food sources, and that means that Outcasts will have to travel on foot" Hiccup rubbed his chin thoughtfully
"Good. We can outpace them if we take the train"
"Train?"
"Think of a big ship pulled by either magic, steam energy or horsepower over a fixed path" Twilight explained
"That's one of the less weird things I've seen here. How fast does it go?"
"Well, we'll reach Canterlot by dark even in bad conditions. We're still early enough. I trust everyone's had breakfast"
"Just one, yes" Pinkie Pie replied.
"I suppose I'll have to pack" Rarity sighed
"It's only a train ride" Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes as Rarity trotted back home to change
When she returned, she was wearing a blue dress and matching wide-brimmed hat with a lace trim. "I made it myself!"
To her disappointment, no one seemed to take particular notice at the train station. The humans were busy looking at the train, and the local ponies looking at the humans.
"It's okay-they're with me." Twilight assured the ticket vendor.
"Hey Hiccup, think you could make one of these?" Fishlegs was in awe of the train.
"Well, I'd have to find out how it works. Besides, we've got the ships and the dragons. Do we really need a-um-" The word escaped him
"'s called a train, sugar" Applejack chuckled
"Whoa, what would happen if we literally trained a dragon?" Tuffnut scratched his chin.
"How do you turn a dragon into a train?"
"No, I mean hitched one up to a train"
"I LIKE IT!" Ruffnut approved
"Actually, that might just work" Hiccup tapped his lips with his index finger.
"Tamed Dragons. I have GOT to see this" Rainbow Dash said to herself as they boarded.
"Oh, don't worry, you will" Astrid grinned at her, " I mean, that's why we're here, after all!"
They were well on their way, they were almost to Freiberger Mountain just south of Canterlot and Mt. Faust, and Twilight was looking out the window when there was a sudden jolt and everything went black. When she woke up, she was flat on the ground, dizzy, sore, and completely confused.
"What just happened?" She groaned as she struggled to get up on all four hooves
"The worst track repair ever!" Pinkie snorted in anger
"Someone dug a pit for the train!" another pony, a passenger from another car, explained
"The Outcasts! They planned this!" Fishlegs was frantic
"They took Spikey!" Rarity joined his shrieking
"Oh no! Is anypony hurt?" Twilight looked around
"Just some bruises and bumps" Astrid rubbed her head
"What are we standing around here for? Let's get 'em!" Snotlout raised his sword.
"They're not getting away!" Rainbow Dash agreed, stamping her hooves
"Fluttershy, see what you can do about the other passengers. Ponies, Vikings; saddle up and ride out!" Twilight Sparkle didn't usually adopt one of Rainbow Dash's attempted catchphrases, but she needed Rainbow Dash's bravado if she was going to rescue Spike from these new, clever enemies. She'd faced all sorts of adversaries before-she once did charge solo against Nightmare Moon, after all, but with Spike's life in the balance, she once again felt afraid.
"How are we supposed to catch up to them?" Fishlegs asked
"Get on our backs" Applejack slid beneath him and in an impressive show of strength carried him easily.
"Think you can hang on this time, flyboy?" Rainbow Dash sidled up to Snotlout
"I feel a need for speed, Dash-you're no Hookfang but you'll do!"
"Dibs on Pinkie!" The twins raised their hands.
"Good think I stashed my party chariot in the train" Pinkie Pie whipped out a two-person chariot from the wreckage
Rarity meanwhile had stripped off her dress and instead put on a saddle-"Hiccup, could you be a dear and tell me how it fits?"
"Astrid, you're with me; hang on tight-we got to gallop!" Twilight tossed her mane, "Follow the tracks!"
/
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/
"I've got powerful friends; you're going to regret this" Spike glared defiantly at the Vikings guarding him. The little dragon struggled against the bonds as Alvin walked over.
"It's your friends I'm countin' on, my little dragon." Alvin chuckled, "This magic stuff is pretty interesting"
"Oh, you'll gonna get magic, all right! More than you can handle!" Spike threatened.
"I'm countin' on that too." He turned to his men, "Savage, take the lads and make a perimeter. Gnat, Bonedrunk, you stay here with me and the prisoner. Mildew, take the looking glass-they might come in from the sky. Remember, everyone, I want purple one alive. Kill the others. "
"What about Hiccup?" Mildew stopped to ask.
"If he has his dragon, fall back to me. If he doesn't, he can't do anything to us anyway"
As the outcasts fanned out, Alvin noticed a new figure sitting, relaxed in midair behind a desk with a microphone and papers (Alvin didn't know or care) on it.
"How close is this Sparkle to her dragon?" Alvin asked Discord.
Discord was adjusting a headset with his claws as he answered
"They're like brother and sister. A tag team. She'll come for him, and she'll do anything to get him back" Discord explained calmly, enticingly.
"That's what I thought" Alvin smiled thoughtfully at Discord.
"LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE!" Discord announced into his microphone.