Chapter 5
Draco watched Edelweiss continue to go to the Academy from his perch on the volcano. The dragons of Berk kept an eye on her, making sure none of the Vikings harmed her. Her strength and abilities grew stronger each day. Draco was proud of his creation. Suddenly the sun came out and it seemed to glare down at him. He looked back at it.
"Don't look at me like that Sol," he said. "This human belongs to me, I can make her look however I want." He waved his wing and the clouds covered the sun again. He figured the human gods wouldn't like the way Edelweiss turned out, but there was nothing they could do about it since her sole was his. But he figured they would have some strong words to say to him when he got back to Rastaban. He would go back after the campout on Dragon Island, which was just one week away. He wrapped his tail around the volcano and made himself comfortable.
On the day before the campout Fishlegs gathered all the students in the arena. Edelweiss sat beside Meatlug.
"You should pack your things tonight," Fishlegs said. "We're leaving for Dragon Island first thing in the morning. Edelweiss, you should spend the night here so you can leave with the rest of us." Edelweiss sighed.
"All right," she said. "But I should tell my parents and friends."
"We'll let them know," said Fishlegs. "Hiccup says you can stay at his house for the night."
"My mother has a house here, can't I stay there?" Edelweiss asked.
"It's locked and you mother has the key," said Fishlegs.
"Ok," said Edelweiss.
When the lesson was over everyone headed out. Fishlegs sent a Terror message to Dragon Island explaining where Edelweiss would stay tonight. Edelweiss went up to the big house on the hill. She turned around and glanced in the direction of Dragon Island. She could just make out Draco on the volcano, and could almost feel his golden eyes on her. She reached Hiccup's house and knocked on the door. She had never stayed in a viking house before. The door opened and Valka looked down at her.
"Hello Edelweiss, come on in," she said. Edelweiss entered the house and Valka closed the door. Edelweiss looked around the large room. One else was in there since they were still out working.
"So, are you excited for the campout tomorrow?" Valka asked.
"Yeah," said Edelweiss. "Are you?"
"I am indeed," said Valka. Edelweiss glanced around again.
"I've never spent the night in a viking house," she said.
"You have actually," said Valka. "But you were too little to remember at the time. Anyway, make yourself at home. I'm getting dinner ready." Edelweiss smiled and explored the big house. She went upstairs where Hiccup, Astrid, and Toothless slept. She glanced around at the drawings and blueprints on the walls. The room was a bit of a mess, littered with the metal legs that Hiccup had grown out of and the metal tail fins that Toothless had grown out of. Edelweiss spotted the large, blackened stone where Toothless slept. She sat down on it, feeling the warm stone. She looked over at Hiccup's bed, which was very untidy. She spotted something tucked into a nook in the head board. She went over to get a better look. It turned out to be a tiny stuffed dragon toy. She picked it up and held it. It had chipped buttons for eyes and the name Hiccup stitched into its side. At that moment she heard the door open and close again. She went to the edge of the room and look down.
Hiccup, Astrid, and Toothless had come home. Edelweiss ran down the stairs and gave Toothless a big hug.
"Hey Edel," Toothless purred, hugging her back. "How was your day?"
"It was okay," Edelweiss said. She let go and turned to the others, stroking Toothless's neck.
"You ready for tomorrow?" Hiccup asked.
"Yup," Edelweiss said. Then Hiccup spotted the toy in Edelweiss's hand.
"Oh, you found my old stuffed dragon toy," he remarked. Valka looked up at this.
"Yes, I wasn't planning on stealing it," Edelweiss said, and handed the toy back.
"I remember making that for you," Valka said. "How'd you get it back?"
"Trader Johann found it," Hiccup said. Toothless let out a low growl. "He lost it to some Smothering Smokebreath dragons on Breakneck Bog, and we had to go and retrieve it."
"I remember Pirate's squadron," Edelweiss said. "They make their nest out of metals."
Valka cooked dinner while Hiccup and Astrid cleaned up their room. Toothless sat near the fire pit, and boosted Edelweiss on his shoulder with his tail. Edelweiss returned the favor by scratching him behind his ears.
"Do I feel heavier to you?" she asked.
"You do, but not because you're half dragon," Toothless said. "Because you're growing up." Edelweiss smiled.
"I don't want to be too heavy to ride dragons," she said.
"Dragons are very strong," Toothless said. "Even as a juvenile I could lift up to 400 Ibs."
"Wow," said Edelweiss. "I hope I'll be that strong." Toothless smiled.
"Maybe you will," he said. Edelweiss leaned her head on his neck. "You tired?"
"Yeah," Edelweiss said. "But I can eat first."
Soon dinner was ready and Edelweiss was called to the table. She slid down from Toothless's shoulder and sat at the table. There was a plate of yak meat, bread, and salmon in front of her. The wooden cup next to the plate was filled with an unfamiliar, honey colored liquid. She picked up the cup and examined the liquid. It didn't smell like water.
"What's this?" she asked.
"It's mead," Hiccup said. "It's okay." Edelweiss sipped the mead, it was strange but she liked it. She ate her dinner without complaint, though the food was a bit flavorless. Toothless was eating his basket of fish in the corner.
When dinner was finished Edelweiss helped clear the table. By then the sun was well set. Edelweiss glanced around.
"So where do I sleep?" she asked. Hiccup was pulling something out of a near by closet.
"You'll have to sleep in here," he said. "I've done it in the past, and it's not as uncomfortable as it sounds." He pulled a bed roll and blanket out of the closet and set it near the fire pit. Edelweiss stared at the bedroll, which was made out of a shark pelt.
"That's a shark," she said.
"Yes, we don't have any big fury animals on Berk," Hiccup said. "Sharks are very common in these waters."
"Oh," said Edelweiss, and she didn't object any further. She curled up on the shark bed with her head on the shark's snout, it was surprisingly very soft and comfortable. Toothless nuzzled her and licked her scaly cheek. She hugged him and kissed his nose.
"We're right upstairs if you need us," Toothless said. Edelweiss nodded and turned onto her other side, pulling the blanket over her. She heard everyone else go to bed, leaving her alone in the front room. She absentmindedly ran her fingers over the scales on her arm. She could still feel Draco watching over her. She drifted off to sleep.
She dreamed of a large bearded man glaring down at her from the clouds. He wore gold and black armor and had a grey eye patch over one eye. Edelweiss had no idea who this man was.
"Abomination," he boomed. "Draco will pay for this." The man was joined by two more people. One was a younger man with sandy blond hair, goatee, grey armor, and a red cape. He clutched a large hammer in his hand. The other person was a woman wearing a golden yellow dress and a gold crown in the shape of the sun. Neither of these other people looked as mad as the first man.
"That abomination must be destroyed," the older man said.
"Draco has her protected," the younger man said. "He'll never let us touch her."
"Besides, she doesn't deserve to be destroyed," the woman said. "She's a nice kid. Maybe we can strike a deal with Draco." The older man huffed but said nothing. He turned around and left, the other two followed. Edelweiss was more confused than worried. She didn't know those people, but they knew Draco. The dream soon faded and she slept more peacefully.
Toothless woke her up early the next morning. She sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Everything's loaded, we're about ready to head over to Dragon Island," Toothless said.
"What about breakfast?" Edelweiss asked.
"You'll get breakfast on the way," Toothless said. "Now come on." Edelweiss got out of bed and stretched.
"You all packed?" Toothless asked.
"I don't need to pack, my stuff's there already," Edelweiss pointed out.
"Oh, right," Toothless said. "Well, let's get outside then." Edelweiss rolled up the shark and put it back in the closet. She followed Toothless outside to the plaza.
"How did you sleep?" Toothless asked.
"Okay, though I had a strange dream," Edelweiss asked. "There were three people, two men one woman."
"What did they say?" Toothless asked.
"They called me an abomination," Edelweiss said. "I don't know what that means."
"It's probably better that way, it's not very nice," Toothless said.
"Oh," said Edelweiss. "Who were those people?"
"What did they look like?" Toothless asked. Edelweiss described the three people she'd seen in her dreams.
"And they knew Draco," she finished. Toothless considered.
"You should ask him who they are," he suggested. Edelweiss nodded. "But put it from your mind for now."
"Okay," said Edelweiss. She joined everyone else in the plaza. Hiccup, Fishlegs, Valka, and their dragons were waiting. They divided the students up and assigned them to a rider who would fly them and their gear to Dragon Island. Edelweiss was assigned to Toothless, which excited her. She had ridden on her father's Night Fury plenty of times. Hildaguard, Gull, and Igor were assigned to Toothless as well. They all just stared at Edelweiss's face full of scales. She ignored them and waited to take off.
They all got on the dragons. Hiccup had Edelweiss sit in front of him, separate from the others to save her from any bullying. When everyone was in place, the dragons took off. They headed for Dragon Island. The sun came up as they headed over the ocean. Edelweiss and Toothless spoke to each other in dragontongue.
"This reminds me of when we had a couple of kids come out to Dragon's Edge," Toothless said. "They climbed all over me, pulling on my ears."
"What's Dragon's Edge?" Edelweiss asked.
"Oh, it's this old outpost Hiccup and the riders set up a few years back," Toothless said. "It's a day's flight from Berk. Tenor helped us defend it against dragons hunters. It's still there as far as I know, unused."
"Why'd you all leave?" Edelweiss asked.
"Hiccup had bigger responsibilities to take care of on Berk," Toothless said. "He had to return and get ready to become chief, and all his friends came with him. We haven't been back since."
"That's a shame," said Edelweiss. "Maybe my friends and I will go visit it."
"Ah, you'll love it," Toothless said. "You can see for miles from the clubhouse, and even farther from the top of the volcano."
"Volcano?" said Edelweiss. "This place is sounding better and better."
They soon landed on the stoney beach in front of the big doors. Everyone dismounted and looked around. Edelweiss stayed on Toothless's saddle. The big doors opened and Re came out followed by all of his comrades.
"Hey Re," said Hiccup. "Mind if we borrow your land for a few days." He chuckled. Re smirked.
"By all means," he said.
"So you'll keep all the wild, scary dragons off us?" asked Camicaze.
"The dragons here don't actually answer to us," said Aurora. "They answer to him." She pointed a wing at Toothless. "He's their alpha." Edelweiss scratched Toothless behind the ears.
"Hey Tenor, is it true you lived on a place called Dragon's Edge?" she asked. Tenor heaved a huge sigh.
"Ahhh, I miss Dragon's Edge," he said. "Those were some good times."
"You remember that time when you got a whole lot of grimoras on you?" Toothless said, snickering. "You probably got more of them then we did." Tenor glared at him, but swayed his tall back and forth playfully. "And that time you got flattened by the Screaming Death, with one blow too."
"Yeah, how many times did I have to come rescue you?" Tenor shot back. "Amateur." Toothless roared and went into a playful crouch. Tenor pranced out of the way. "Come on, bring it!" Then forgetting Edelweiss was on his back, Toothless sprang at Tenor. Edelweiss could do nothing but hold on tightly to the saddle as Toothless ran after Tenor, up the beach. Tenor was way to fast for Toothless to catch him with running alone.
"Ha ha, can't catch me!" Tenor hollered over his wing. The then spread his wings and took off. Toothless spread his own wings and took off as well. However, his tail fin closed and he started to fall back towards the rocks. Thinking fast Edelweiss slipped her feet into the stirrups, which she could just barley reach, and opened the tail back up. Toothless stabilized and sped up.
"Oh, Edel," he said. "I'm so sorry, I forgot you were up there. You're so much lighter than Hiccup is."
"It's fine," Edelweiss said. "The dragonets do that all the time, even when I'm still in the saddle." Toothless sped up and soon caught up to Tenor, who was a bit surprised. They flew low over the beach, at high speed. Toothless put on a burst of speed, and sped passed Tenor. Suddenly the Red Death's skull came out of nowhere. Edelweiss pulled back on the saddle, to avoid Toothless running into it. Tenor caught up and they hovered over the Red Death's skeleton.
"Right where, we left it," Toothless said.
"We now call it the Red Death Hideout," Edelweiss said. "I guess it's sort of like Dragon's Edge."
"Impressive," Toothless said. The two dragons landed.
"You okay Edel?"Tenor asked.
"I'm okay," Edelweiss said. "Dragons are so fun to be around." She patted Toothless on the head. Just then the others caught up with them.
"Have you two lost your minds?" Windwalker asked. "Edelweiss could have gotten seriously injured."
"It was just a bit of fun," Tenor said.
"I completely forgot she was up there," Toothless said.
"Way to hold on though," Tenor said to Edelweiss. "You can get down now." Edelweiss slid down Toothless's wing and stood next to him. Everyone's attention turned to the Red Death.
"Wow, so that's the Red Death," said Igor, in amazement. "It is big."
"What's with the wall?" asked Fishlegs. "And flagpole?"
"This is our new hideout," Edelweiss explained. "The Red Death Hideout. Draco likes it." Fishlegs didn't seem to like this.
"You made a hideout out of a dead dragon's skeleton?" he asked. "That's just wrong."
"Draco doesn't mind," Edelweiss said. "And he made the Red Death." Just then the dragonets stuck their heads out between the Red Death's teeth.
"What's going on out here?" asked Avalon.
"Sorry guys, we're here for our campout," Hiccup explained.
"Oh, so why are you all standing out here?" asked Apollo. "Arguing." Edelweiss quickly explained to them what just happened. They were impressed.
"So, do you all hate our hideout?" asked Eider.
"I like it," Hiccup said. "Did you guys set this up yourselves."
"With a bit of help," said Apollo. "We'll show it to you, since you put this here."
"Another time, we have to go set up camp," Hiccup said.
"Oh, we'll come too," Avalon said. "We won't get in the way, we'll just watch."
"Okay, you will have to let Edelweiss go through the island by herself," Hiccup said.
"Deal," said Black Widow. The dragonets ducked back into their hideout. The jaws opened and they came out. The jaws slammed shut as soon as everyone was clear.
"So where are we setting up camp?" asked Gull. Hiccup pulled out a map out of his saddlebags. He unrolled it, showing them a map of Dragon Island.
"Mom, Valka, and I will fly our dragons to this cave on the other side of the island," he pointed to a spot on the map. "You guys will be going through the island on foot, without any weapons. You can take what every trail you want. This is an opportunity for you to practice what you've learned so far." Everyone except Edelweiss groaned. "Re and his comrades will be on hand in case of a real emergency, other than that you're on your own. Hopefully you'll find the dragons meant for you." With that; he, Valka, and Fishlegs mounted their dragons. "You're dismissed. Come on guys." The dragons spread their wings and took off. Re turned around in mid air to look back at the students.
"You too dragonets," he said. The dragonets looked at Edelweiss.
"We'll see you over there I guess," Black Widow said. The dragonets took off after their elders.
The students divided up and headed inland. Edelweiss went down a trail that she knew very well, that lead right to the cave. It was much rougher terrain, but it was also the quickest way. She leaped from rock to rock, over all the streams and crevasses. She was very aware of Draco watching her. She didn't see any wild dragons yet, but kept her eyes open for them.
She roamed along a short cliff. She suddenly heard wingbeats above her. She turned around in time to see three wild Nadders coming at her, a blue one, a purple one, and a red one with yellow stripes. They landed on all sides of her.
"It's one of our human neighbors I think," said the red Nadder. "The youngest one."
"I'm Edelweiss, what are your names?" Edelweiss asked. The Nadders exchanged a glance.
"I'm Scalebird," said the blue Nadder.
"I'm Yellowspine," said the red Nadder.
"And I'm Fire Flower," said the purple Nadder. Scalebird then noticed the scales on Edelweiss's face.
"So you're the dragonborn child," he said. "Our mighty lord goes on and on about you."
"You're not going to kill me?" Edelweiss asked.
"We don't kill neighbors," Yellowspine said. "Only intruders." She lowered her head, and gave Edelweiss a friendly nudge. Edelweiss petted her beak.
"Do you need a ride somewhere?" asked Fire Flower.
"I need to get to the cave on the other side," Edelweiss said. "I'm supposed to go on foot."
"In that case, we'll walk with you," said Scalebird. Edelweiss smiled.
"Thanks," she said. She continued towards the cave. The three Nadders followed her.
"So, how many dragons have you met on this island?" asked Yellowspine.
"Just you three," Edelweiss admitted. "I'm usually hanging out with my friends."
"Well, maybe this will get you acquainted with more dragons," Fire Flower said.
"I'm hoping so," Edelweiss said. "I've found dragons fun and interesting ever since I was born." She leaped over a gap in the trail, that fell down into a deep trench.
"And now you're practically one of us," said Yellowspine.
They continued onward towards the cave. They sang songs and told stories. They were almost to the cave when Edelweiss and the Nadders came across four Thunderdrums; two blue ones, a green one, and a purple one. They looked up when they saw Edelweiss and the Nadders.
"Hey, Scalebird," said the older blue Thunderdrum.
"Hey Thornado," said Scalebird. "Sorry for the intrusion."
"It's fine," Thornado said. Then he noticed Edelweiss.
"This is Edelweiss, she's the dragonborn child Draco was going on about," said Fire Flower.
"Oh yes," said Thornado. "I can tell by the scales. How are you Edelweiss?"
"I'm having a great time out here," Edelweiss said. "I'm heading for the cave at the end of this trail. You are Thronado?"
"Yes," said Thornado. "And these are my wards; Bing, Bam and Boom." He pointed to the three younger Thunderdrums.
"Hello," Edelweiss said happily.
"Are you walking to the cave, or do you need a ride?" Thornado asked.
"I'm supposed to walk there," Edelweiss said. "I guess it's to learn to not rely on my friends so much."
"That makes sense," said Bing, the green Thunderdrum. "You should be able to have their backs in addition to them having yours."
"We should get going," Yellowspine said.
"You guys can come if you want," Edelweiss said. "Though, it's not much farther."
"We have other things to attend to," Thornado said. "Perhaps we can talk another time." Edelweiss and the Nadders nodded, and went on their way.
They walked a little farther, until they heard the ocean again in the distance. They came out onto the opposite beach, near the tide pools. The cave in question was down the beach a few feet. The glow of a campfire radiating out of it.
"That's the cave," Edelweiss said. "I can go the rest of the way. Thanks for walking with me."
"You're welcome," Fire Flower said. "We'll see you latter." The three Nadders took off and flew back the way they had come. Edelweiss turned and ran towards the cave.
Inside she found Hiccup, Valka, Fishlegs, and their dragons waiting for them around the fire. They looked up when Edelweiss came in.
"You're early," Valka said.
"I followed a trail I knew of that was the shortest way," Edelweiss explained.
"Did you meet any dragons?" asked Hiccup.
"Three Nadders and four Thunderdrums," Edelweiss said.
"Did they give you any trouble?" asked Valka.
"No, they were quite friendly," Edelweiss said. "They knew I lived here." Fishlegs gave her a hard look.
"You know, talking to dragons gives you an unfair advantage over the other students," he said. Edelweiss looked timidly at him.
"Well, you can read different human languages," she said. "Does that give you an unfair advantage over your friends?"
"In this case no," said Fishlegs.
"My mom and dad said talking to dragons is nothing to be ashamed of," Edelweiss said.
"They're right, you shouldn't be ashamed of it," said Valka gently. "But as with all talents, there's a right time and place to do it. Now is not one of those times. You can talk to dragons on your own time, right now we ask that you try to fit in a bit more." Edelweiss sighed.
"All right," she said. "Well, I'm going for a walk." She turned and left.
She walked up and down the beach, between the tide pools and the cave. She saw more wild dragons but ignored them. She couldn't see her friends at all, but suspected it was because they were still watching the other students.
The sun soon went down and the other students arrived at the cave. Edelweiss joined them. She sat with everyone around the fire. They all talked about their trek through the island. Edelweiss kept her mouth shut, not wanting to draw attention to herself. When it was dark outside, she got up and left again.
She walked to the tide pools, where her friends were playing happily. The tide pools had been covered by the high tide and the dragonets were playing in the shallow water. They looked up when she joined them.
"Wow, you don't look very happy," Avalon said. "Were they bullying you?"
"No, the Berkians want me to stop talking to dragons," Edelweiss said. "They said it gives me an unfair advantage over the others."
"I can totally see how they would be annoyed by that," said Apollo. "I mean, none of them can talk to dragons. But you're with us now, and we don't care that you can talk to dragons."
"Do they know you're out here?" asked Eider.
"No," Edelweiss said.
"I'll go tell them," Eider said. "We wouldn't want you to get in trouble." He spread his wings and took off.
"Thanks Eider," Edelweiss called after him.
"So what are you guys doing tomorrow?" Black Widow asked.
"I don't know," Edelweiss said. "But I'm sure it will involve more wild dragons. It'll be hard to not talk to them." The dragonets exchanged a glance. Then Avalon used her magic to make a red string out of thin air.
"Here this will help," she said. "Give me your hand." Edelweiss held out her hand. Avalon grasped it and tied the string around her index finger in a tight bow. "I put an enchantment on it so that when ever your about to talk to dragons, it will squeeze your finger. Not too tight of course, just tight enough that you'll notice. The enchantment will only be in effect when your with the other students, and will lift when you're with us."
"Thanks Avalon," Edelweiss said, and hugged her. At that moment Eider returned.
"They want you back," he said. "It's bedtime."
"Are they angry?" Edelweiss asked.
"No," Eider said. "But they will be if you don't get back soon."
"We should head to bed too," Apollo said. "It's too dark to play now."
Edelweiss hugged her friends good night. They took off and headed for their rooms. Wishing she could go with them, Edelweiss walked back to the cave. The others were all ready asleep, and the fire was out. She found a spot and laid down and closed her eyes. She fell asleep a few minuets later.
