22 reviews for chapter 8? You guys are awesome! Thank you!
Enjoy chapter 9! :)
-Clary Chase
The morning after Astrid slept until late.
Sleeping had been good for her injured arm and leg and she almost felt new.
When she woke up she lyed in bed staring at the wooden ceiling, thinking about all the things she had discovered in only one night.
She desperately wanted to know where Valka came from but she figured it would be long before she could find out.
The way the woman had gasped almost imperceptibly upon hearing her name.
Her way too hard tone when she had said she wasn't a Viking.
It was like she held a grudge towards them that was far beyond their hatred for dragons. It was something deeper.
She shook those thoughts away and sat up.
There was a clean dress on the chair beside her bed and she quickly changed into it even though she found it extremly uncomfortable.
She surely had missed breakfast because she found a plate full of food on the window.
She didn't feel like eating so she hopped down the stairs.
The big dining room was full of troubled voices and she slowly pushed the doors open.
They all turned to look at her and she stood there awkwardly.
"ASTRID!" her friends yelled.
She barely had time to register what was happening before she surprisingly found herself wrapped in Ruffnut's arms.
"Ruff... can't... breath"
"Sorry" the other girl quickly pushed her away.
"Are you okay?" the others asked.
"I've been better" she said "But yes, I'm pretty good"
"Astrid"
The guys stepped aside and she found Stoick glncing down at her.
"I'm glad you're okay" he said with a little smile that told her thousands of things he couldn't express aloud.
She nodded biting her lip.
"Told ya she would be fine!" Gobber bellowed "She's a hard one ta kill!"
She smiled and made eye contact with Hiccup.
He was watching her with a straight face. Any sign of what had happened beetween the two of them the day before was completely erased.
"I was worried about you"
Surprisingly, Astrid saw it was Merida who had spoken.
She hadn't said we, but I.
Was that for real or was she just being a good host?
She couldn't know.
She had never been good at reading people, and the princess surely hid her emotions very well.
She nodded at her "Thanks for your concern, your majesty"
"We were actually talking about your quest" the king said "Would you tell us what happened?"
She bit the inside of her cheek and sat on the chair Gobber was holding out for her.
"Of course"
And she did.
She left out Valka saying Stormfly had took her out of the cave when she passed out.
Hiccup furrowed his eyebrows a bit at her omission, but said nothing.
"So basically you came back with empty hands" the queen said.
Her voice wasn't cold as usual, more concerned and maybe a little scared, but it still pissed Astrid off.
"It's not like I didn't do my best" she deadpanned.
Elinor looked up at her with an eyebrow raised and Hiccup gave her a side-glance as if to say 'do not make it worse'.
"You surely did your best, but you didn't find out why the dragons attacked that village"
"One quest isn't enough to discover something this big"
"Maybe dragons just aren't friendly as you all think"
That made the Berserkers flinch a bit.
"You have no right to say such a thing!" Astrid exclaimed, clenching her fists.
The queen glared at her "Oh, but I do! Since, you know, your dragons clearly threatened my daughter with no reason!"
"MOTHER!" Merida shouted.
Astrid didn't know what she was doing.
All of her stress and resentment for the queen of Dunbroch came up and she stood up abruptly.
"Have you ever thought that maybe they did have a reason to?"
The queen narrowed her brown eyes and opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
Astrid didn't wait for an answer, she turned on her heels and stormed out.
She could hear Stoick screaming her name but she didn't come back.
Her feet brought her to the stables where she plopped on the straw under Stormfy's wings.
Toothless saw her and crouched in front of her, placing his head in her lap.
She smiled sadly and scratched his chin "Hey, buddy"
"Are you insane?!" a way too familiar voice shouted.
She turned and glared at Hiccup "Excuse me?"
He stopped in front of her with heavy breaths "What in Thor's name did you think you were doing?" he yelled "'Maybe they had a reason to'! Are you trying to let them find out about us?!"
She pursed her lips "Excuse me if my stress and maybe tiny depression is getting over me and I snapped at the queen trying to defend our dragons!"
"This has nothing to do with defending the dragons!" he threw his hands in the air "You were giving her your death stare since the beginning! She's just worried for her people's well-being. Try to be a little understanding!"
"Well, have you thought that maybe I don't want to be understanding with the woman that ruined my life?!"
That made Hiccup bit his lip "She didn't know..."
"I don't care!" she shrieked, her eyes stinging "Are you defending them? What's gotten into you, Hiccup?"
"I'm just trying to fit in what will be my life from now on"
His sentence felt like a stab in her heart.
Astrid took a step back and looked away "I get it"
"Astrid-"
She looked at Toothless and said "How long has it been since Toothless' last flight"
"I don't know but it doesn't matter now, listen-"
"It doesn't matter?!" her voice was getting louder and louder but she couldn't care less "Hiccup he's your dragon! Your best friend! He was there way before all of them. Don't you think you owe him at least some flights?"
Hiccup looked a little guilty "I do, yes-"
"How long?" she repeated.
He rubbed the back of neck awkwardly "Five days?"
Astrid widened her eyes "What?"
"But look I've been-"
"That's it"
She hopped on Toothless' back and he warbled cheerfully.
"What do you think you're doing?" he asked with a sharp tone.
"Taking him flying" she stated.
"You don't know how to ride him"
She glanced down at him and said "Oh, yes I do. You taught me. Or have you forgotten that day already?"
A memory flashed in his eyes.
It had been two years before, they were eighteen.
He had taught her to ride Toothless and in the middle of their 'lesson' a storm had caught them.
They had taken refuge in a cave and warmed themselves up with the dragons' fire and kisses.
Their kisses had become more and more passionate and they had made love for the first time, lying on the pile of furs that were their clothes.
"Of course, not. I could never-"
She didn't let him finish.
She whistled "Come on, Stormfly!"
"Astrid!"
She spurred Toothless and the dragon took flight, followed by Stormfly.
Tears started to stream down her face but the wind quickly wiped them away.
She didn't know how long she flew.
She actually didn't even look where she was going.
Her limbs were screaming for a break and she knew it had been a bad idea to go flying again after just one day.
That damn dress was the most umcomfortable thing she had ever worn.
To sit properly she had to pull up the gown and her bare legs were basically showing completely.
Not that there was any man on sight.
Toothless had brought her in one of the many desert lands near the sea.
They were flying above the rocky coast when she heard voices.
Human voices.
She looked down and saw a tiny boat docked in the bay.
"Fire!" she heard someone scream.
"Toothless!" she moved the dragon just in time not to be taken down by a flying nest.
Stormfly otherwhise wasn't so lucky and she fell on the boat completely tangled in the ropes.
"Stormfly!" Astrid shrieked in panic.
She hurled herself down and landed heavily on the boat.
"Let her go!" she ordered swinging her axe.
Some of the men backed away, a little scared.
Toothless hissed and threw himself in front of Stormfly.
"Well, is that what I think it is?" a deep voice exclaimed.
She turned to see a young man around her age getting closer.
He was handsome, big and muscular. He had an olive skin and dark hair.
On his chin was tatooed a little beard and scars could be seen anywhere his clothes left his skin uncovered.
Ruffnut would've probably drooled over his biceps.
"Stay where you are!" she yelled holding up her weapon.
The man raised an eyebrow and grinned "A curious sight, isn't it, my fellows?" he said checking her out "A beautiful young lady in a silk dress riding a Night Fury and sided by a Deadly Nadder! Things are really weird up here"
Astrid glared at him "Who are you?"
The man slapped his forehead "Oh, where are my manners? I am Eret, son of Eret!" if the twins were there, they would have probably died laughing from his name "Greatest dragon trapper ever!"
He pulled out his sword and pointed it at her.
Toothless hissed again and she put a hand on his head "Calm down, boy"
Eret scrolled his shoulders "Well, I'll give you that, you're a tough one, my lady" she flinched at the nickname Hiccup reserved for her "Not only you stole one of our dragons to devastate a village, but you also managed to catch a Night Fury and tame it"
"What are you talking about?" she said "What village?"
"Oh, don't tell me it freezed over on its own" he said.
Astrid gasped in realisation.
He was accusing her of stealing one of their dragons.
Did that mean there was a Bewilderbeast like Valka's one?
"Well, I can let you go, sweetie. And the Nadder as well. But not the Night Fury. My master needs one of those"
"Your master?" she asked.
"Drago Bludvist" Eret said like it was obvious "He needs a dragon to ride to guide his dragon army and he's been looking for a Night Fury for so long"
Drago Bludvist. Dragon army.
So many information all in so little time.
Astrid's head was throbbing "I don't know who your master is, but he certainly won't have my dragon!"
The men laughed along with Eret.
"Drago always gets what he wants" he said in a calm tone and then yelled "Shoot them down!"
"Toothless!" she screamed "Plasma blast!"
The dragon aimed at the mast and let out one of his infamous blue plasma blasts.
The sailors yelled in terror as the mast crashed down and Astrid took the opportunity to cut the ropes that trapped Stormfly with her axe.
"Go, girl! GO!"
She herself jumped on Toothless and took flight.
"This isn't the end of it!" she herd Eret yell "Drago's coming for every dragon!"
Astrid's legs were shaking wildly.
She wanted to go to Valka, to tell her what she had discovered but she was tired and shocked and going to the sanctuary meant she would have to show Toothless and answer the questions that would rise.
She had only one option: coming back to the castle.
It was late when she left the dragons in the stables and ran to her room.
She almost screamed in surprise when she found Hiccup pacing back and forth in front of her bed.
"Astrid!" he exclaimed when he saw her.
"What are you doing here?" she inquired in a skeptical tone.
He frowned "What do you mean? You've been away all day! I was out of mind with worry!"
She pushed past him and he took a step back "You had no reason to" she muttered.
He made a scorning sound "Oh, really?"
"Yes, really" she said staring at him as if to dare him to contradict her.
"Well, I think I have every right to be worried when you disappear in the middle of nowhere and to know where you have been since you're my-"
"Your?" she hissed "Your what, Hiccup?"
"You're still my girlfriend!" he exclaimed taking a step forward.
Astrid shoved him back "No, I'm not!" she yelled "You do have a girlfriend but that's not me anymore!"
For a moment Hiccup watched her with wide eyes.
Then he held up his hand to her face but she batted it away "Astrid, please" he whispered.
"You said you're trying to settle into this new life, right?" she said, not meeting his gaze "Well, so be it. I'm not part of this new life"
He flinched "Astrid-" he repeated.
"Go away" she ordered opening the door.
"Come on, babe. We can figure this out together-"
"I said go away!" she exploded pushing him out with one swift move.
She shut the door and leaned her back on it.
Hiccup pounded his fists on the door "Astrid, let me in. Let's talk about this. I love you more than anything else. I didn't mean any of that"
Astrid fought back a sob and shook her head "Well, I meant everything I said. Leave me alone, Hiccup"
There was a brief moment of silence.
Then, slowly, he stood up.
"I still love you though" he said in a small and hurt voice.
His room was just a few feet away and she heard his door open and close with a loud bang.
Astrid wrapped her arms around her legs and buried her face into them.
She started to cry silently and thousands of images danced in her mind.
"Just let me show you"
"That's for everything else"
"Why does everyone get to be happy but not us?!"
"Just because we cannot be together it doesn't mean we can't love each other"
"I'm not a Viking"
"Drago always gets what he wants"
Her head was spinning.
Her back slid down and she curled in a ball on the cold floor.
She closed her eyes and sleep seized her.
Well, many of you wanted to see and angry Hiccup so there he is.
Writing my babies fight was one of the hardest things ever, you had been warned about the little drama!
What do you think of this chapter? Did you like it?
Let me know in a review!
Til next update!