Chapter 9: An Unusual Life

I've never been around more than a few people at the same time. Having grown up an only child with next to no one besides my dad to talk to and sometimes not even that. So it's needless to say that I am very awkward when it comes to social confrontation. Mix that in with the fact that people having been surrounding me non-stop since I started doing well in the ring and things get very awkward very quickly. Just a few days ago people avoided me like a plague. Now, people are sitting next to me in meals and fighting over who gets to sit closest to me. People are greeting me whenever I pass them and smiling at me. I'm not saying that their change of manner isn't unwelcome, it's all just very weird and very new to me. Usually people would pretend to me nice before pulling a prank on me, so I guess I'm still a little wary.

But nonetheless, it's nice not to be ignored for a change. It just so happens that my reason for doing so well in training requires the maximum amount of secrecy and now I can hardly be left alone, which is completely ironic. I have to make excuses like "Oh darn, looks like I left my axe back in the ring" and "I'm not feeling that great, you know, feminine stuff…" just so I can sneak off to get to Toothless. And it was great fun to see the reaction of the boys' faces when I said that second excuse. But sneaking off to work on Toothless's saddle and tail has been a struggle in itself.

Getting away today is a bit easier. The vikings got unusually loud and rowdy during lunch, so slipping out the door unnoticed wasn't difficult at all. I skip down the stone steps leading up to the Great Hall and walk down the path to the forge. The cool air and warm sun feels nice as I walk through the village and I smile a bit more as I breathe in the fresh air. Even though it's nice to be surrounded by people who actually want to talk to you, it's great to have some alone time on such a beautiful day.

By the time I reach the forge I'm energized and ready to test out the tail again. The changes I've made to Toothless's tail are drastic. What started out as a piece of canvas cloth over a few metal rods has turned into that attached to a saddle with wires and knobs. What I'm trying to work on now is a way for me to change the position of the tail fin without having to manually move it with my hands or a rope.

I grab the latest model and hold it under my arm as I leave the forge for the cove. Stepping back out into the village, I spot a head of blond hair down by the carpenter's hut. An involuntary blush makes its way to my face. I've been kind of avoiding Asher lately. It got awkward, at least it did for me, after I saw him shirtless in the woods on my way to see Toothless. And what's worse is that I actually stared at him for a bit longer than necessary. I mean it's not entirely my fault. He could have been wearing a shirt but no, Mister Perfect just has to flaunt his perfectly sculpted torso while working out in the woods. He hasn't brought it up, thank Thor, but I still get nervous whenever I see him.

Testing Toothless's tail goes surprisingly well. The foot control modification that allows me to change the position of the tail by moving my left foot works fantastically. I sit on the saddle on Toothless's back as he's tied to a tree trunk near the edge of a cliff. The gusts of wind from the ocean make it possible for us to glide and test out the tail. Each time Toothless jumps in the air, I'm able to try a new tail position to see how it will affect the direction of our flying. Every tail and foot position is jotted down on a piece of parchment in front of me for future use, just in case I forget.

A strong gust of wind comes as Toothless jumps up again. We stay suspended in the air for just a few moments before the wind becomes stronger and the rope holding is to the trunk snaps. We're sent tumbling backwards into an area filled with tall grass. As we were sent backwards, the strap meant to keep me on Toothless unhooked, and I tumbled a little farther than said dragon did.

I groan as I hit the ground, trying to sit back up. I look around for Toothless, but the tall blades of grass block my vision mostly. Somewhere to my left, I hear a loud shuffling noise. Knowing it's Toothless, I run towards the sound to check if he's okay. Hopefully he didn't get hurt and lose another tail fin because of me. That would be terrible, I cringe inwardly.

When I pull back some of the grass and finally see him, he's rolling around in the grass making satisfied dragon noises with a happy smile on his face. The area of grass around him has been flattened due to his rolling around. Curious, I bend down and grab a few pieces of grass and cautiously bring them up to my nose. The greenery has a slightly different smell from grass. When I look back at Toothless I notice that he looks a bit drowsy and his eyes are droopy and his tongue is hanging out of his smiling mouth. I laugh at the sight and stick the few pieces of the grass into my vest.

"Okay, bud, I think it's time to go," I say as I grab a strap on the saddle and start tugging to get him upright. He obliges in a half-sleeping stupor and makes a crooning noise. When he's finally up I start pulling him in the direction of the cove and he follows slowly but surely. As I walk beside him with my hand still on the strap, I notice he's swaying slightly and laugh. It's almost like walking with a drunk dragon, which is probably more true than not at the moment.

"Well, I don't know what this stuff is, but I say we keep you away from it now." Toothless simply looks at me before licking my face with his scratchy tongue, leaving spit on the left side of my face. "Oh come on, Toothless! That's gross!" I wipe my face and get off as much of the spit as I can while Toothless makes laughing noises at me.

My hand is coated in spit and I get an idea. I flick my hands toward Toothless, and the spit flies onto his face. He scrunches his face before bringing up a paw to wipe it off.

"Who's laughing now?" I laugh at his pouting face as he shakes his head. I look up. The sun is setting and it should be dark soon. I frown.

"Come on, Toothless. Time to go home." I sigh. Toothless follows me as I walk slowly back to the cove.

"You know, I really wish I didn't have to go to training." I don't know why, but I just need to say this to someone, even if it's just my dragon.

"All that vikingness and fighting, that's not me. It never was. And now I actually have to go through with all of it, and the only reason people think I'm good is because I have you. Which they can never know about." I look at Toothless, and see his wide green eyes staring back almost sympathetically. It's amazing how human his emotions could be. I bring a hand up to my braided hair and tug on it slightly. By this time we had arrived at the cove.

"I don't want to have to fight dragons anymore, bud. It doesn't feel right." I plop myself onto the ground and throw a rock into the water in front of me. Toothless makes a crooning noise and comes up next to me before pressing his wide snout against my side. I sign of comfort, I realize. He brings his head up and licks my cheek again, but this time I don't get grossed out. I know he's just trying to help.

"Thanks, bud." I smile and reach up to pat his head. I look up to the setting sun. Dinner should be starting soon. I stand up and wipe the dirt off my pants. "Well," I begin as I turn to Toothless. "I'll see you tomorrow." He makes a low sound in his throat as he lowers and presses his forehead against mine in an affectionate manner. I smile and scratch his chin. Whoever said dragons were fearsome creatures that needed to be slaughtered couldn't have been more wrong.

It's nearly dark by the time Hicca arrives at the Great Hall, and dinner has already started. Light spills onto the darkening steps as she slowly opens the door and steps inside. Since many of the older men and women left with her father on the quest to find the dragons' nest, the hall was considerably less empty than it is normally. Small children ran about chasing each other as the men sat together and talked loudly.

Hicca walked past the group of teens unnoticed as she went to get her food. After filling her plate with a small piece of chicken and a few potatoes, she found an empty table by the corner of the hall and sat there, not feeling up to sitting with other people. Of course, the universe had other ideas.

"Hey gorgeous, why're you sitting here all alone?" Hicca let out a sigh as she looked up and saw Tuffnut sitting down in front of her on the opposite side of the table.

"It's because she's trying to get away from you, barf brain." Ruffnut pushed his face away from her as she climbed into the seat next to him.

"Oh yeah?" Tuffnut started. "Well, maybe she's trying to get away from your smelly hair!"

"Is not."

"Is too."

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Hey Hicca! Have you seen the new dragon book someone just pulled out from the archive?" Fishlegs was next to join the growing group as he squeezed next the the bickering twins. This caught the young girl's attention, but she barely opened her mouth before an arm was felt over her shoulder.

"Hey Fish face, stop annoying my cousin with stupid things like books." Hicca frowned at Snotlout. They had always been cousins before, but now that Hicca was actually worth noticing he wanted to make it as known as possible.

"Books aren't stupid, Snotlout," Hicca stated as she wiggled out from under her cousin's arm.

"Oh yeah. Totally not stupid. I read them all the time." Hicca rolled her eyes as Snotlout went along with what she said. So much for eating alone, Hicca thought.

"Books are great and all, but combat practice is definitely a better way to pass the time." Hicca froze as the owner of the new voice sat down on her other side. Asher was sitting next to her. It was as if someone had set off warning alarms in her head as she tried her best not to blush.

"Yeah well, maybe you wouldn't be so dumb if you read books instead of training!" Tuffnut piped up, seeing him sit down next to the girl he was trying to win over. Asher cocked an eyebrow at Tuffnut. It was well known that Tuffnut was not the smartest of the teens, and that Asher was definitely smarter than him.

The conversation continued among the rest of the teens while Hicca picked at her food. The others had gotten in a loud argument about something, but Hicca channeled them out and was lost in her own thoughts. That is, until she heard a voice coming from her right.

"Hicca, why were you late for dinner?" Asher had asked. The young girl almost dropped her fork. Odin help me, she prayed in her head.

"I, uh, fell asleep." she said the first thing that came to her.

Asher looked at her questioningly. "You fell asleep?" He repeated, as if not believing her.

Hicca gulped. "Yeah, fell asleep. All this training gets a person tired, you know?" Hicca chuckled nervously and her hands moved about when she spoke.

Asher's attention was suddenly on her braid. "Um, there's grass in your hair, Hicca." He pointed it out with a finger and Hicca's eyes widened slightly. From falling off Toothless, she remembered.

"Oh that, ha. It's from uh… I tripped while running to dinner! Yeah that's it. I tripped while running to dinner because I overslept." She laughed nervously. Oh gods, he's never going to buy that.

If he didn't believe her he didn't let it show. Instead he looked concerned. "Did you get hurt?"

Hicca's heart skipped. It was a simple question, but the way his blue eyes looked with concern at Hicca made her feel giddy for some reason.

"Oh um, no. No, I'm fine. It's not like it's the first time I've fallen down before." Hicca mentally kicked herself at that.

"Well, it's a good thing you're okay." Asher smiled and returned to the conversation with the others. And Hicca was picking at her now cold food once again, fighting the small smile and blush that were rising to her face.

Well, long time no see, hehe… Dx Things have been really busy and I hope you guys understand. I'm definitely not going to quit writing the story, but from now until the end of the school year in May I won't be able to upload as frequently as I would want to, sadly. Anyway, I hope you all have had a great spring break/Easter vacation if you celebrated Easter. And thank you so so so much for all your reviews and for favoriting and following. It makes me so happy ^-^ I should have a new chapter up in about two weeks, so keep a look out! I love you guys, see you later!