Haley and the Dragon Riders

River

Once I woke up I had a pounding headache centered right where he punched me. I looked around and seemed to be in a primitive cell. The walls and floor seemed to be made of stone, which explains my uncomfortable wake up. The bars were made of wood though it seemed fairly sturdy. I wasn't sure if I’d be able to cut my way through these bars without anyone noticing but I was gonna try anyway. I walked up to the bars and looked around. When I didn't see any people around I got out a small dagger and tried using it to open the lock. The lock opened and I was free. I quietly made my way outside. It had gotten dark while I was unconscious. Using the darkness of the night I took to the skies and made my escape.

It took me two days of nonstop flying to get back home. It was late in the evening when I arrived. I was exhausted and wanted to sleep, but I didn't have time to rest. I grabbed my hidden bag of clothes and what food there was left and got ready to leave again. I'd have to find a new home now that I was discovered. Maybe the island is big enough for me to just find another area, but if what that viking said is true, then this island is already taken. Seems I've just been lucky up till this point. Without anything left to pack, I began walking north. The dragon riders approached me from the south so the best way to escape would be heading north.

"Going somewhere?" The sound of Hiccup's increasingly annoying voice asked as I was leaving.

"Ugh.. yes. Away from you guys." I turned my back and continued walking.

"How did you even get here? We saw the feathers outside the dungeon, but you keep saying you don't have a dragon. Come to think of it, I've never seen a feathered dragon before."

"Leave me alone. I don't have any business with the Hooligan Tribe." I could hear his annoying footsteps following me, along with his dragon.

"I just want to know you're not hurting any dragons, then we'll leave." I stopped and looked over my shoulder.

"Yak dung. You already said that once and when I told you the truth you kidnapped me. You're far from the person I'd heard so much about. Now, if you don't wanna get hurt, leave me alone. I won't say it again." I continued walking once more. This kid was persistent, I had to give him that but man it was annoying.

"Alright so we got off on the wrong foot. Let's start over. I'm Hiccup, this is Toothless and you are?"

"Done with this conversation."

"Aw come on. Just talk to us. I told you, we're just here to help the dragon's on this island."

"I told you to leave me alone!" Without looking back I threw an arrow after them. It lodged itself in Toothless' leg and he became paralyzed.

"Toothless! What'd you do to him!? It's gonna be alright, bud. I got you." While he was worrying about his dragon, I continued walking.

"Don't worry, it'll wear off in a few minutes. It's not lethal or anything. It just gives me a head start. Now let me go, before I get angry." I went into a sprint before jumping high and flying away into the dark evening sky.

He seemed like a good kid but he needs to learn to let people be. One day he's gonna learn that not everybody wants to be friends and when that day comes, I fear the worst for that dragon. I didn't fly very far before landing again. I still had one thing left on this island that I'd have to bring with me. I looked through the various bushes but couldn't find anything.

"Where are you?" I asked into the darkness. I heard some rustling leaves behind me and froze. There was a good chance whatever was behind me wasn't friendly. I heard growling and slowly turned around. As I turned and laid eyes on the dragon behind me, I relaxed again.
"Oh thank Hel, there you are."

The dragon walked over and rubbed against me. It was making a sound that reminded me a lot about a cat's purring. I pet her on the top of her head and proceeded to move my hand down to scratch her under her chin. She melted in my hands but we didn't have time for this.

"Come on girl, I know you like this but we have to move. Our home is no longer safe. Let's check out another part of the island. We just gotta be careful. Apparently we're not the only ones here."

She growled in agreement and we began walking. As the sky got darker and darker, she became my eyes and helped me see. I walked on in blindness and only stopped when she gave me a low growl. I ducked down and followed her behind some hard, cold rocks.

“What is it, girl? What do you see?” I couldn’t see a thing but I could faintly hear people walking and dragons grumbling. Had I circled back and walked into Hiccup and his friends again or did I accidentally walk right into Dragon Hunter territory? I’m not sure which I was hoping for. Both seemed like bad options. something wasn’t right though. I couldn’t be sure without getting closer, but these dragons almost sounded sad.
“Is this why you brought me here? To find captured dragons?”

She hissed and rubbed against me.

“I get it. We might be the only members of the pack, but you just can’t help yourself, can you? You just have to help dragons in need, don’t ya?" I gave her a quirky smile. She cawed at me and pushed me with her snout and I pet her calmingly.
"I know it's not your fault. I can't help it when other dragons are in pain either. Alright, we can’t do anything for them right now. Even if you managed to take out the guards, I can’t see a thing in this darkness so we’ll have to wait until just before dawn. Okay, here’s the plan. It’s pretty late so I don’t think they’ll patrol very far out, which means I should be safe here. I’ll stay here while you hide a bit further in the forest. Later I’ll sneak in and free the dragons while you handle the guards. You better go hide and get some rest. We’ll attack early tomorrow morning.” She gave a small roar, licked me and quietly ran into the bushes to hide. While she was hiding, I closed my eyes to get some rest.