The Forgotten Friend (How To Train Your Dragon)

Chapter Four:

Upon entering the training arena, the other recruits and I are greeted by a maze of tall, wooden barriers, and our teacher is nowhere to be seen.

Fishlegs lowers his head, "I don't have a good feeling about this."

"It's Gobber we're talking about. Nothing's good when he's teaching," I grumble to myself.

To my left, Tuffnut raises an eyebrow, "Wait. You speak?"

"Of course I speak. Usually no one likes to hear what I have to say," I retort, leaning against one of the walls.

A Deadly Nadder squawk interrupts our conversation, causing everyone to tense; multiple yellow and light turquoise barbs launch in our direction. Snotlout screams, holding up his shield to deflect the poisonous barbs.

"Told you," I add, splitting away from the group.

I peer around every corner before proceeding forward. Despite the Deadly Nadder being in captivity, it is still wild, and I do not want to be in the path of the dragon's fire. Sticking close to the stone walls that outline the arena, I glance up, spotting my mentor, who is behind the safety of the iron cage over the arena. He props his chin up with his hand while keeping his seemingly bored stare on us. More specifically a distracted Hiccup. Hearing heavy footsteps behind me, I do not hesitate and rush past Hiccup as I feel the heat of the Nadder's searing fire collide with a nearby wall.

"Focus, Hiccup! You're not even trying!" Gobber hollers with clear annoyance in his voice, "Today is all about attack! Nadders are quick and light on their feet. Your job is to be quicker and lighter."

Not far behind me, the Nadder squawks. I hold my shield up to avoid the dragon's barbs, but nothing happens. I lower my shield, and I am unable to spot Nadder. However, Fishlegs' scream echoes through the arena.

"I'm really beginning to question your teaching methods!" He shouts, having me shake my head.

As I turn the corner, I run into the twins and the Deadly Nadder. We huddle in a line and manage to stay in the Nadder's blind spot, which is in front of the dragon's nose. With Tuffnut in front of us, Ruffnut and I can smell his... disgusting stench.

Ruffnut nearly gags, "Do you ever bathe?"

"If you don't like it, then just get your own blind spot," Tuffnut sneers, only for his twin to headbutt him.

"How about I give you one?"

The Nadder growls out of frustration and opens its mouth. An orangish-yellow color builds in the dragon's mouth. I gasp, snatching the twins, and drop to the ground as the Nadder releases its fire. As a result of the argument, the curved horns on twins' helmets are tangled.

"Stop arguing for once," I order, throwing my shield at the Nadder to gain its attention.

The dragon roars and pursues after me. Unlike the chase between myself and that mysterious dragon, I do not feel fear... or anything for that matter. Barbs speed past me, blocking my escape, while the dragon corners me. The Nadder squawks, fluttering its wings and opening its mouth ever slightly. Once again, I do not feel anything. My sea green eyes lock with the Nadder's yellow ones. The crown of spikes on the dragon's head lowers, and the spines on its tail lie flat. I glance around, searching for any prying eyes before my feet absentmindedly shuffle toward the Nadder. The dragon's eyes dilate, and it lowers its head. A rather soft purr emits from the beast, but the twins arguing disrupts the peaceful interaction. The Nadder retreats to another part of the maze after the twins.

I stare at my hand in shock, "Okay?"

More screams are released, quickly followed by the tumbling wooden barriers. I roll out of the way as the Nadder crashes nearby. With the dust slowly settling, my eyes catch Astrid on top of Hiccup, and her prized battleaxe is embedded in Hiccup's shield.