Hiccup decided to wait for a few minutes before believing that it was best to try to engage in conversation with Farran. The dragon rider knew all too well that talking to someone while they were freshly angry wasn't usually a good idea, mostly due to his own father when Berkians had come to him with their long and often ridiculous requests, especially on Gripe day. So keeping that in mind the skinny teen waited a good twenty minutes allowing the hunter to calm down before deeming it safe enough to at least try and talk. Calmly but carefully he stepped over to the quiet form that was Farran and sat down about five feet away, allowing his legs to dangle over the edge. Since the hunter hadn't made any comment or threatening sounds, Hiccup began.

"Wow so, you and Heather sure seem to share a bit of a... complicated history." The rider tried breaking the ice.

"Complicated?" Farran sneered without bothering to turn his head. "She is a dragon rider, I am a dragon hunter. We fight and do what we must to kill the other. There is nothing complicated about it."

"Well I mean when you put it in that simple way, sure." Hiccup then muttered under his breath. "A very VERY simple way." Before quickly speaking up again. "But we'll get to that later. Right now maybe we should address your also very simple minded strategy? Of taking Ryker down?"

"A simple and effective strategy that you wish to complicate by keeping the enemy alive." Farran grumbled. "Take the main threat down and the remaining forces will either retreat or be unable to form an effective leadership before their ships are sank by your dragons. To deviate from that would risk everything."

Hiccup gave something of a sarcastic nod. "Right so let me see if I got it all lined up. We charge head first into battle, pass through all of Rykers defenses and hope that his island destroying weapon doesn't sink before we reach it. And if we do manage that and take him out, the rest of the hunters just magically evaporate." The rider mocked, acting his words out with his hands. "Thought long and hard about that one, didn't you?"

"It will be more likely they break formation if he is killed rather than captured. As a leader I would have expected you to be more strategic."

To his annoyance Hiccup chuckled. "Well we have rescued hundreds of dragons from you guys and beaten your fleets back many times, so I'd say we're managing well enough."

Farran kept his tongue in check, not daring to let this unusual rider get the best of him. Especially since he had a point. "You expect to be given the same mercy from that madman?"

"Oh far from it. Most likely he'll run me through the first chance he gets."

An angry yet worried yelp from behind suggested that Hiccups dragon did not like his rider talking so casually about being killed. Farran glanced behind him and found the black scaled monster far too close for comfort to both them and their conversation. The brown haired viking however rolled his eyes at the beasts response.

"Don't worry bud, Ryker wouldn't be able to lay a finger on me before you knock him down."

"Or tear him to shreds." Farran butted in, glaring at Hiccups pet. "As would be expected from the unholy offspring of lightning and death."

Having expected a threatening growl or some similar action as was the norm, the hunter found himself surprised to instead see the dragon open and close its mouth a few times while making strange noises that sounded like it was... mocking him? That was new.

"Yes. Or that. Thank you for pointing it out." Hiccup grabbed his attention once more. "You know, dragons aren't as bad as you think they are-"

"They destroyed my entire village and everyone I've ever cared for." Immediately cut him off.

"Oh." Hiccup fell silent, unsure how to follow up with such a blunt response. "Well when you put it that way..."

Farran wasn't done as he decided to drive his point home. "I did not come to this island to make friends with the people who befriend monsters that kill innocent vikings without mercy, so don't you dare try to convince me they are something they are not! Especially with what happened with Heather island! All that matters is stopping Ryker. That is it. Beyond that, nothing else matters! So either stick to the task at hand or we might as well part ways now."

For a moment neither side spoke as the tension seemed to radiate from Farran like heat from a monstrous nightmare. Even the night fury merely watched in the background curious to hear what would come next from either conversationists mouths. It almost felt like if one wrong word was said then the hunter would abandon them and try to find a way to kill Ryker himself. But after a while, Hiccup seemed to manage a smile and a short chuckle.

"You know, you and Heather are surprisingly alike."

Farran frowned. "We are-"

"Nothing alike? Yeah had a feeling you might say that." The rider grinned. "Just like the pair of you aren't as stubborn as a pair of dragons fighting over fish." An indignant gurgle sounded from the dragon. Hiccup chose to ignore it. "You're both loyal to a fault, strong minded and more than often prefer to fight with your fists than with your minds."

"So we share the same strengths, as do hundreds of others in the Archipelago. Is this talk meant to have some sort of conclusion?"

"Well I'd like to think so. She's been though a lot over the last couple of days."

"She is not the only one." Farran grumbled as his hand slid onto his bandaged stomach.

"Exactly! So my conclusion is, cut her some slack. Right now our goals are the exact same, even if the methods we want to reach them by are different. Just... say sorry and take it from there, like any of us would do. We're all going to have to get along until Ryker shows up anyway. The last thing we need is for some small grudge to fracture whatever we've got going on with this... alliance right now."

Farran seemed to mumble something under his breath before deciding he had had enough of sitting and rose onto his feet. "Very well. It seems I have little choice in the matter. And since we are addressing this, I trust you will do the same with those under your command? After all their suspicion is just as dangerous."

Hiccup nodded, knowing that Farran seemed to only point this out just to show some sort of authority and wasn't just some cannon fodder to order around. "Seems fair. Oh, and before I forget. Say we survive the next few days, everyone walks away happy and healthy, what then?" Hiccup very suddenly became serious. The most serious Farran had ever seen him. As the skinny viking stood himself up, he looked right at the hunter eye to eye. "I keep my promises Farran and you'll be free to go, whatever happens. But if you harm another dragon then we WILL stop you."

He was certainly braver than he appeared, Farran mused. Even if the night fury wasn't watching his back he seemed like the type to make his point clear when it came to the protection of these beasts. The question was why? Did his village not suffer under the war with dragons? What kindness could such savage animals have possibly offered him to make him feel at peace around even the most dangerous of their kind? Whatever the reason, Farran responded.

"I will keep that in mind. After all, I know I am not enough of a threat to your group on my own. But know that the scars of their sins will remain until Ragnarok, and not everyone forgives."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "The scars of their sins? And what exactly does that mean?"

The hunter didn't respond and walked away, leaving Hiccup to ponder on his words.

././././././././././././././

Hello everyone. I hope that you are all doing well. I'm sorry that this chapter is so short and it's been so long since I last updated. And the reason for that is that I've been going through something of a rough time over the last few months. I suffered a bit from depression and had to leave my previous job, so getting a new one has been my top priority above everything else. I haven't exactly felt happy for a while, but thankfully I recently managed to get a new job and I've been feeling a bit better now so hopefully I'll be able to get chapters out more often too, although I might need to work on real life first. So thank you for you patience and expect a longer chapter soon. Take care!