Chapter 3

 I finally made it back. I walked casually up to the fisherman with the memory of the cave still in my mind.  "Give me a basket of salmon." I said placing down a bag of money.  The fisherman gave me a basket that was the size of my leg. I flipped the top open to see if he fulfilled the order. "Thanks." I said swinging the basket over my back, as I left.

   Walking on the beach I looked up to see where the sun was. It looked like it was about three o'clock, plenty of time to spend with the dragon. Turning the corner I saw something that made me drop the basket and my jaw.

     Wild boars, creeping ever so slowly toward the dragon. The dragon was pulling wildly on the trapped wing and flailing the other one. It was roaring loud cries of terror, and whenever a boar would get too close it would fire at it, but the dragon had so many shots.

    I ran toward my found dragon. From my waistband I yanked out my small, but sharp dagger, that I never go anywhere without. There were about six boars that I could see, but I knew that there was a high chance that there were more. The boars were facing the dragon so I had a chance of a sneak attack.

    Running blindly out of terror and slight anger, I slashed at every boar the was in the way. Blood quickly covered my dagger and arm, but I finally made to the front of the pack. I looked behind to see what damage was done to the dragon. A few scratches and a bite mark or two. Once I turned around I couldn't see anything but brown fur and yellow stained teeth. I could feel sharp hooves tearing at my shirt and making its way to the flesh of my stomach. I nearly lost grip of my dagger, but I knew if I lost it, I'd be nothing but a memory. 

     I kept hold of my only weapon. I tried my best to avoid the boars tusks, and stabbed it in the side. I aimed for the heart, but missed. The boar jumped off of me and limped as fast as it could into the trees.

" One down, five to go." I thought to myself. 

    This time I attacked the boars. I lunged forward to the nearest one. I ended up cutting its nose , but it only backed up. From behind I felt  many heavy bodies and sharp hooves digging into my skin. A small trickle of blood ran down my back, staining my green shirt. I was quickly overwhelmed by the weight of the boars on my back, and fell over. My face hit the ground with a thud. I could barely see the light of day under all those hides. Frantically I started to wave my dagger around hoping to hit something. Suddenly my ears started to ring. The light that I could see was replaced with a flash of purple and white.

      The light of day was gradually getting more and more into my sight. I stood up, but the pain in my legs  kept me from standing up straight. I looked to the dragon to see that its mouth was filling up with green mist, meaning... I let my legs go loose, so I would fall to the ground. Hitting the ground, I barley missed the ball of purple and white fire that flew over my head. The shot did what it was intended to do and sent the boars running and squealing back to the forest. I looked back to the dragon. It was looking where the boars ran off, mouth open, just in case they came back. 

     I slowly brought over the basket of fish and knocked it over in front of the dragon's mouth, pretending that nothing happened. A flood of salmon poured out of the basket. I tried sitting next to the dragon, seeing if it earned my trust. The dragon did nothing but eat fish. I took out my journal again and wrote down what happened. I wrote down how the boars attacked and the dragon defending me. I stopped and realized that if anyone found this, I would have to explain. I erased it all. I looked back at the dragon.

"So I guess I have to name you." I said looking down at the dragon. "So you're a girl." I whispered.

   The dragon just kept eating, but she perked her ears.

"What should I name you?" I looked down at my arms and saw that they were bruised and bleeding, I could also feel the blood on my back get thicker. "Hmm, I got it! I'll call you Stormcloud." I was so happy with myself, and it seemed Stormcloud was happy too because she finally stopped eating and looked up at me.

  She looked happy, I think. Stormcloud had a twinkle in her eyes, but no smile. "Well, I guess you like it." I looked up at the sun, It seemed like I had enough time to walk around the island, but all the cuts and bruises I had, I just wanted to get home. I looked back at Stormcloud.

"I promise that tomorrow I'm going to try to get you out of there. I just have to find out how." I added to myself. "Bye, girl." I reached out my hand close to her nose. She looked questionably at it, but eventually she moved her head enough so it could fit into my palm.

"I'll be back tomorrow , I promise." I turned around and walked away.

    Finally making it to the village, or should I say the outside the village. I didn't want anyone to see that I was hurt so I decided just to go to the dam. The villagers finally finished fixing it after a storm.

It was on a large hill just above the village of Berk. I sat down among the flowers and cattail, on the soft ground. I looked at my reflection in water as it waved in the wind. The blood slowly creeping down my face looked like my own red hair. 

    I swiped the visible blood away with my arm then headed several feet into the forest, looking for a special leaf.   Gothi, the village's  shaman, once told me in her own special way, that there was a leaf softer the a new born lamb's wool. It was called Lamb Fleece, which I personally think was a dumb name. None the less, I walked up to a tree and pulled off a piece of bark along with a leaf that grew from a branch. While wrapping the leaf around the bark I walked back to the bank and dunked it into the water . I used it as a scrub to carefully washed off the drying blood, but kept away from the open wounds.

"I'll have to go see Gothi, see if she has anything for me." I told myself. I heard a rustle in the bushes behind me, and quickly turned around.  A panting Bottonlout walked out the bushes. "What in the name of Thor are you doing here?" I asked him, dropping the bark wrapped in a leaf.

    "I actually... to tell the truth I got lost." Bottonlout answered.

  "Then follow the river downstream, you'll reach the village eventually." I told him.

" Okay then, but what are you doing up here?" He asked me. I looked back at him deciding if I should tell him the truth or not. "I ran into boars." I finally said.

"Boars? Where?" He said concerned.

"Don't worry about it they're gone." I pulled out my blood soaked dagger and started to rub off the blood while I dunked it in the water.

"You're pretty brave if you fought them off yourself." He said with a smile.

"Yea, well, that's what people tell me." I said staring at my dagger. 

"Hey, what does that say?" Bottonlout sat down next to me and looked at my dagger. "Everything we know about you...is wrong?" Bottonlout said questioning the choice of words. 

"My grandmother gave it to me. So, I like to keep it clean." I replied.

"Well, I'm glad you're okay."

I stared at my dagger, puzzled at what Bottonlout said. 

"Why are you being so nice to me?" I finally said. "Before we were in the academy you wouldn't so much as look at me." 

"Well, I was immature back then." Bottonlout started to look like he was going to be sick,  or maybe that was what guilt looked liked. I hope I never look like that.

"Was?" I said to him.

"Okay okay I'm still kind of immature, but I." He stopped.

What was he trying to say? I looked toward the mountains. I noticed that the sun was about to hit the peeks. I stood up and looked down at Bottonlout.

"I have to go." I said.

"Go? Go where?" He said looking up at me.

"Home. I have a curfew you know."

"Well, it couldn't hurt to break it right?"

"Sorry." I shrugged and ran off.

   Back in the village I was walking to my home before black beast flew past my face knocking me on the ground. The creature landed in front of me staring at me with its yellow eyes.

"Hi Toothless, hi Dad." I stood up and walked toward the night fury. I started to scratch his head, but not his chin. He would faint in delight if I did that. Dad slid down off the saddle and took a small basket off the back of Toothless. He looked more serious then usual and I knew something was bothering him. I decided not to ask him right now. We walked in the house quietly.

  We were home alone right now because Mom was celebrating the repaired dam at a friend's house and Grandpa was at the Hall. He said he had some meeting or something. It seemed to me us Vikings like to celebrate a lot.

    My footsteps echoed through the house while I walked up to my room. I opened up the small trap door so I could see the soon coming stars as I fell asleep. I reached for my knife, but ended up grabbing nothing. I shot my eyes to my waist.

"My dagger, where's my dagger?" I tried to remember back. The last time that I could remember I had my knife out was... "The dam. I must've left it there!" I knew I couldn't do anything until tomorrow and even then I'll have to wait until after training. I attempted to take my mind off of it by drawing.  I drew about the new things I learned about Stormcloud. How she loves to eat and that she now trusts me.

I stopped.

  Again I didn't learn much about my new found friend.  I looked out of the trap door and the room and watched the stars come out of hiding, one by one. 

    After I've counted about 20 stars, I heard the front door opened. I closed the trap door and bounced downstairs. I'm always excited when someone comes home, because you never know who its going to be. It could a tribe member or even someone you don't know. Besides, if it is a tribe member they usually bring food. Dad reached the door first, but when he opened it I got a surprise.

   At the door was my knife, and holding the knife was Bottonlout. "Oh hello." 

"Hello Bottonlout, I see you have Freya's knife." Dad turned behind him to glare at me. I shrugged my shoulders and smiled acting innocent.

"Uh, yea," Bottonlout continued. "I found it after Freya left the dam."

"The dam? What was she doing at the dam?" Dad asked Bottonlout.  I pointed my fingers at my neck and slid it across the skin. I didn't want anyone to know that I was attacked, but again I didn't know why.

That feeling came back that I didn't like. Something just told me not to tell anyone. Thank Thor Bottonlout had some brain cells.

   "Uh... I don't know, but here's her knife back." Bottonlout shoved the knife forward. Dad took the knife out of his hand.

 "So would you like to stay for dinner?" Dad asked. 

"What!" I yelled out loud on accident.

"Sure." Bottonlout answered. 

"Well come on in." Dad said, moving aside so Bottonlout could come in. "Astrid will be home soon, but right now I have to go talk to my daughter." Bottonlout nodded and headed for the eating table, while Dad walked to me. When he was close enough I talked to him in a low voice to only he could hear.

"Dad, why did you invite him in!?" I asked, furious.

"It's your punishment for leaving your knife at the dam." My dagger was just as important to Dad as it was to me. Since my grandmother gave it to me in his mind she gave me gold.

"Why couldn't Mom have punished me?" I whined at him.

   "The opportunity was too perfect." He said with a smile.

   When we finished our quiet talk Mom and grandpa walked in seconds later.

"Why was the front door open?" Mom asled. Dad walked up to Mom and gave her a kiss after whispering some words to her. Grandpa walked up to me and ruffled my hair, but when he turned the corner into the eating area he had a big surprise.

"Hello Astrid, hello sir." Bottonlout said standing up. He seemed to be a entirely different person. I suppose he was trying to act like a civilized viking because the chief was here.  

  "Uh, Hiccup what is Bottonlout doing here?" Grandpa asked. Mom leaned over and filled him in on what happened.My family just loved to rub things in.

"Oh, I see." He said looking at me.

"Well I better get moving." Mom walked to the back of the house where we keep the food and came back with two plates. One with fish and the other piled with bread. While everyone else sat down at the table, she placed the bread in the middle of the table and walked up with the fish in the other hand. She walked to the side of the house and opened a trap door.

"Stormfly!" She called. With in seconds her Deadly Nadder, Stormfly, poked her head through the trap door. Mom held out the plate of fish, and looked over her shoulder.

"This is the new trick we've been working on." She said and turned back to her dragon. "Stormfly, cook." She said pointing to the fish. Stormfly split her mouth open slightly and let out a line of hot, yellow and orange fire. She closed her mouth after a one second has passed.  "Good girl Stormfly." Mom praised Stormfly and gave her one of the fish.

  Stormfly caught the fish with her mouth. Moving her head up and down and lifting her claws Stormfly did a dance of happiness. Watching her do that it always made me smile.  Mom set the plate of slightly burnt fish onto the table. "Dinner is ready." She said as she sat down.    

    I ripped the head off of my fish when my mother asked, "Where did you get all those cuts?" Right now everyone was looking at me. A heat wave ran through me.

"I, um, fell?" I lied.

"Oh Astrid leave the girl be its not like she fought a bear." Grandpa Stoick said with bread in one hand and a fish in the other.

"Okay then Stoick, what was that meeting of your's about?" Mom asked him.

"Humf, you were always the one who wanted to know everything. Alright the meeting was about Dagger." The room seemed to fall quiet.

"Dagger? As in Dagger the Deranged?" Dad asked. 

 "Aye, son. Dagger and his kin..." Grandpa began.

"His kin? you mean he has a family?" Mom's voice was trembling. I've only heard that voice once before, but this time was worse. 

   "Well sort of. He has a son Scythe. He just as deadly and deranged as his father." Grandpa went on.

"How do you know all this?" Mom asked. 

"That I can't tell you, but what I can say is that there seems to be some... activity going on over there. So Hiccup I'm going to need you and other dragon riders to go to the Beserker's land and find out what you can.  

"What!" Dad, Mom, and myself were so shocked that we all said it at the same time. But what I was thinking was why Bottonlout was being so quiet. It wasn't like him. I knew it wasn't the time for thinking about things when we just heard bad news, but I couldn't help myself. I drew my attention back to Dad when I heard that he actually agreed to go.

"But Dad you can't go!" I protested.

"I have to Freya and we all know why." Dad answered. "We might as well go tonight. Astrid are you up for it?" Dad asked his wife. 

"Hiccup we all know that answer to that." Mom said grinning.

"Alright," Dad continued, "Toothless!" Dad called to his dragon, and as usual, the Night Fury came bounding in happily. "Ready to go on a little adventure, bud?" Dad stroked Toothless's head, and in turn

Toothless licked his face and bounded to the door.

"Alright we'll be back before dawn, and if not, send help." Dad said grabbing his helmet. Dad walked up to me and and kissed my cheek, Mom did the same thing. I wiped my cheek, then turned to my grandfather.

"Hey, Grandpa, how do you get something out from under a rock slide?" Grandpa just chuckled, but apparently Mom didn't leave yet and answered for Grandpa.

 "You've got to take the rocks of from the top then work your way down. Why?" 

"I was just wondering. I'm going upstairs." I got up from my wood chair and started to walk to the stairs, but Mom stopped me. 

"Aren't you going to say goodbye to our guest?" She asked. This must be some new form of torture. I hate Bottonlout and I always will I try my best not to talk to him, but now.

"Bye." I said hastily with my back still turned.

"Forgetting something?" I heard him say. I half-turned my head to him. Between his fingers was a shinning blade. He threw it at me and it landed, blade in the ground, right at my heel. I turned around and picked it up. I looked up at him and wondered what he was up to. I again started to go to my room, but again Mom stopped me again.

"Freya?" She said.

I sighed in annoyance. "Thanks"  I said and ran upstairs.