I'm trying to write as much as I can, but man, I just found this thing, School of Dragons, and I'm sad enough to have made myself an account. Stupid me. Hopefully, after the exams are over, I will be able to go on it and also write more. Hopefully. I just came up with a good idea which includes Snotlout as a main character, which is cool, because I feel like I write too much about the twins. Hehehe.

Thank you for all the PM's I'm getting, I do get them when you post them by email but they don't always appear in the reviews page, so don't be afraid, I have seen and read your lovely reviews. Thank you!

Ruffnut stood, completely in awe. How long had Astrid been there? Since the beginning? Why hadn't she helped them? Why hadn't she stopped Tuffnut from eating those berries? So many questions buzzed around her head that all the came out of her mouth was a jumble of sounds spilling over each other in their race to be heard.

"Out of the way!" Astrid scowled, pushing her aside as she continued to gawk like an idiot. The athletic blonde made her way over and knelt by Tuffnut's side, an eyebrow raised, checking him over. She brushed her long braid over her shoulder. "What colour were the berries?" She asked curtly.

"Red." Ruffnut replied almost immediately.

"Did you eat any?"

"What? No, I'm not stupid."

"That's debatable." Astrid tested Tuffnut's pulse, checked his breathing with the back of her hand, and then jumped back onto her feet. Ruffnut was at her shoulder in a second.

"Will he be okay?" She asked waveringly.

"I'm not going to lie to you, Ruffnut, he's probably not going to make it. But that doesn't mean we can't do everything to save him." She turned her unsmiling eyes to the girl beside her, pity plain on her face. Although Ruffnut was in quite a state on the inside, she was blocking her feelings on the outside and didn't return the gaze, looking only at her brother. "I'm going back with Stormfly. You need to stay here while I get Hiccup."

"Wait, Stormfly? Where's she?" Ruffnut was very confused. She looked around, just to confirm that the only Nadder in the clearing was indeed the white one. However, as she stared closer at I, she realised that the whiteness on it's back was thinning out where the rain was beating down on it.

"We covered Stormfly in chalk dust and clay to camouflage her against the clouds." Astrid shot breezily over her shoulder as she jogged over to the dragon, hopping up into her saddle. "Remember, keep him alive! If he's sick again, roll him over!" She called, and then Stormfly spread her wings and was away.

Ruffnut watched her until she grew to be a speck in the sky, then turned back to her ailing brother, kneeling by his head and stroking his hair. She lifted off his helmet, placing it in the grass nearby, and slid his jacket off to keep him cool. He looked so frail, she was almost afraid that he might break in two. Sighing, she stared wistfully after Astrid and Stormfly, willing them onwards.

"Come on, girl, time to live up to your name!" Astrid shouted encouragement to her dragon as they sped across the sky. The rain lashed down into their faces and scored marks on Astrid's arms as she crouched low in the saddle. Stormfly chirruped, fluttering into the gusting winds, flailing uselessly to try to stay level. Astrid clung on; it was all she could do.

"Come on, Stormfly... hurry..."

Barf and Belch curled around their riders, using their body to try to shield them from the worst of the deluge. Their heads snaked in too as Ruffnut propped herself up against the soft rise and fall of their ribcage, pulling her brother closer and resting his head on her lap, like a pillow. She found comfort in winding her fingers through the knots of his platinum blonde hair, feeling the grease and rain coating her fingers. Closing her eyes for a second, she then looked away, out into the black sky, looking out for any sign of the other rider. Finding nothing, she turned and let her foggy head fall back against the dragon's flank.

Stormfly looked exhausted, fighting the gusting wind and driving rain. It was quite possibly the worst ride Astrid had ever had the misfortune to experience. With every flutter and gust, her stomach flipped and pressed into her throat. Air-sickness was definitely the last thing she wanted right now, though her body was convinced otherwise. To try to take her mind off it, She turned her thoughts to Hiccup and to Berk, her destination, and willed away the miles as they flew through the heart of the maelstrom.

A loud crash of thunder woke Ruffnut with a start, and she shook her head, embarrassingly aware that she had fallen asleep on the job. Barf stared at her, nudging her hip with his nose, Belch fast asleep beside him. She stared curiously.

"Wait, you guys are taking turns? You can actually do that?"

As if to answer her question, Barf nudged Belch awake and laid his own head down beside Ruffnut, close enough that she could reach out and stroke his nose. The other head was checking his rider, sniffing around him and touching his fingers gently with his snout, but to no avail. Tuffnut was getting no better. His sister closed her eyes, praying for Astrid's swift return.

Finally, Stormfly dropped down out of the clouds. Berk was below them, at last, and Astrid shouted words of encouragement as the Nadder dropped lower and lower, swooping over the houses, heading straight for the main square. Astrid was off her back and running for the chief's house even before her dragon landed, in a fearful frenzy. It won't be too late. It won't. She told herself, taking the steps up to the wooden hut two at a time and pounding up the steep path to the carved, wooden door. Three time, she slammed her fist against the door, screaming for Hiccup, looking up as she did so at the enormous carved head of a Monstrous Nightmare that glared down from above her.

The door flew open. "Astrid!" Hiccup's voice came from the darkness inside, and she was pulled into the shelter, out of the rain. There he stood, the chief's son, getting taller and, if possible, even more skinny. His mop of red-brown hair fell lazily over his emerald eyes and down the back of his neck. Already, he was a head taller than the girl who stood before him.

"What's going on? Astrid, what's wrong?" He held her shoulders in a firm yet comforting grip, his face a picture of worry. She gulped, taking a breath to steady herself.

"Tuffnut ate a poisonous berry. He's collapsed and.. well, I don't know what to do!" She explained hurriedly. Toothless, Hiccup's dragon, who had been lurking in the shadows before now, slowly sneaked out and placed his nose in her palm to relax her. Hiccup gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry. We'll go and get Gothi, you bring him in here-"

"No, Hiccup, you don't understand. He's still out there, still on the island. Barf and Belch can't fly; you bound their wings, remember?"

"Oh, well that was a stupid idea!" Hiccup groaned. "Well, we're going back for him, then. I'll get my dad to get Gothi ready for when we get back." Toothless hummed uneasily, gazing out into the storm. "I know, bud, I'm sorry, but if we don't do this, Tuffnut will die. I can't lose a dragon rider, you know that!"

Consenting, the dragon allowed Astrid to pull his harness on and buckle it hurriedly while Hiccup disappeared further into his dark house to find his father.

Is Tuffnut saved? Well, I know, but you don't! Wait and see, for soon you will! I'm now on study leave, but I have to focus on my studies until my exams are over. I can't neglect them, I certainly don't want to fail, so bear with me! I hope this is as enjoyable to read as it is to write!