Howling Echoes - A How to Train Your Dragon Story, The Echoes, Book 1

23: Frozen Skies

     A/N:  Please comment!  I'm lonely!

   Also, thank you to @Whiplash246 for inspiring this story with her HTTYD Fanfiction, Take Flight on a Dragon.  This story wouldn't be here or have gotten as far without Whiplash and their story.  Go check it out!  (It's really good!  It's also really long XD.)

 I narrowed my eyes at the water, aware of the tip of Viggo's blade getting closer to me with every heartbeat.  Frostflake was getting tired.  Suddenly, I jerked her back, and Viggo's blade went flying into the ocean.  Without really knowing why I dove under the water and fetched it.

   When we got back to the skies, I glared at Viggo.  "Nice try,"  I growled.  He lifted an eyebrow and stayed silent as we flew back to his base.  Frostflake did a backflip and Viggo was dropped onto the docks.  We turned and flew away.

   Frostflake made a low, sad sound.  I rubbed her head.  "I know girl, I know.  We learned a lot from them.  All of them.  But...it's just not where we're meant to be.  Let's get the eggs from the stables before they wake up."

   Frostflake and I saw Astrid and Stormfly take off from the stables, so we slipped inside.  Perfect.  I took the orange-red egg and Frostflake took the other egg.  I mounted her and we took off.  "Come on, girl.  Let's go."  

   After a few hours of flying, we approached the island I first met Frostflake on.  I hadn't realized it was so close.  Frostflake landed, and almost immediately a chill fell over the area, and a snowstorm whirled around us.  Frostflake bent down a little bit and spread her wings to cover the ground below them.  I crawled underneath her wings, with both of the eggs now - one attached to the egg carrier on my back, the other in my hands - and felt the warmth emitting from them overcome me.

   Frost Wraiths are fearsome and seemingly can control snowstorms, but they needed some way to keep warm in the cold environment.  So, instead of having shelter, or being adapted to live in the cold, they had warm scales and their bodies were always warm.  Baby Frost Wraiths, however, did not develop this ability until they were old enough to glide, and even then the warmth is weak and can easily be diminished.

   Frost Wraiths used the warmth to keep their young safe, and the young stayed with the parents until they were old enough to fly and produce the heat needed to keep themselves safe on their own.  Sometimes runts will only produce half as much warmth and will need to stay with the mothers for their whole life, or maybe only half as long.

   I had studied the Frost Wraith families on Snowstorm Island for years.  At some point a few dragons - now I realized they had been the Dragon Riders - had come and relocated the Snow Wraiths of Glacier Island.

   The Snow Wraiths and the Frost Wraiths were constantly competing for territory, but Frostflake and I had always helped each kind get their share of territory.  It was time to see if those borders had lasted.

   Frostflake and I entered a small cave, and I tossed her a few fish I had gathered just before we left.  I caught myself wondering how and what Viggo was doing, but quickly shoved him out of my head.  He was dead to me.  He always would be.  He meant nothing to me, nothing!

   The small, frozen stick I had in my hands snapped in half.  Frostflake lifted her head and made a concerned sound.  I shook my head.  "Don't worry, girl.  I'm fine."  I assured her.  She curled up in the position Toothless slept in, but put her tail on her nose.  I started a small fire in the middle of the cave and she opened her eyes, then padded over.

   I yawned and rested my head on Frostflake's neck and she folded her wing over me like a blanket.  It had been eventful the past few weeks, and now we finally got to rest back where we were meant to be.