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

34: Memories..?

   Viggo's eyes narrowed slightly.  My gaze ran over his half-burnt face.  

   He seemed...I didn't quite know the word.  Sad?  Unsure?  Disappointed?  Maybe it was just dimmed triumph.  But why would it be dimmed?  It wasn't like Viggo cared about me.

   Did he?

   I narrowed my eyes back.  Come to think of it, how was he even alive?  He had fallen into a volcano, for goodness' sakes!  "Let's just kill her and get it over with,"  Krogan growled, stepping up next to Viggo.  I tensed.

   "We have good reason to keep her alive, Krogan,"  Viggo replied, not taking his dark brown gaze off of me.  "Have you found the dragons?"  Krogan narrowed his eyes.  "Hm."  He jerked a dragon proof chain I hadn't noticed was in his hand until just now.  He turned and I saw a Singetail's tail nearly hit Viggo's side, except he walked up to the stable doors before it did.

   "Brave, but foolish,"  Viggo commented.  I gritted my teeth, barely resisting the urge to punch his superior expression right off his face.  Viggo and Krogan most likely had a lot more reasons to keep me dead than alive...I didn't want to add to them.

   "Why can I do this?"  I asked.  If I was in here, I might as well get some answers.  Viggo let out a soft chuckle.  "Speak Dragon, I presume?  Turn into a dragon?"  I narrowed my eyes.  That would be enough of a response for him.  I felt a splinter poke into my finger and I peered at it.

   I tried to pull it out but I stopped, gritting my teeth in pain.  "Ow ow ow,"  I whispered.  A pair of pliers was thrown to me.  I glanced up, and Viggo was still watching me.  I carefully pulled out the splinter, biting my lip, then threw them back.

   Viggo raised an eyebrow at me.  "What?"  I snapped, irritated.  "What is it?"  "I honestly expected that you would have figured it out by now."  He admitted.  I narrowed my eyes.  "No, you didn't,"  I replied, although he looked like he really meant it.

   Viggo let out a soft chuckle.  "Refusing to believe what is true,"  I remembered this line from when he first spoke to me.  "One of two ways to be fooled, Kiara,"  I growled.  "Why?"  He smirked and held out a perfectly circular stone.  It was light blue and smoother than anything I'd ever seen before.

   I felt enchanted by it, stepping toward it without meaning to.  I held myself back, and Viggo let a hint of surprise slip through his masked expression.  I let myself step toward it, closer, and closer, and closer, until I could feel a small, icy chill coming off of it.

   "What is it?"  I said in a low, soft voice, reaching out to touch the smooth surface.  Suddenly, when my fingers brushed the stone, I jerked back, and a memory-not-memory flashed before me.

   "You can't spend money on such unimportant things!"  A man yelled.  He had a black cap on with a black shirt and pants.  His lips were chapped and dry and his dark green eyes sparkled with anger.  His skin was light but had a darker undertone to it.  He had black tennis shoes.

   "It's important!"  A woman yelled back.  She had short, black hair and sea-green eyes.  She had a red dress on and was barefooted.  Her skin was pale but with small black spots in some areas.  Her eyelids were sparkling purple and she had dark red lips - darker than any lips should be.  Her cheeks were shimmering in the light.

   But where was the light coming from?  I looked up and saw a bright, shining light.  I blinked repeatedly and stumbled back.  I hit something and fell to the ground, my back flaring with pain.  I started to cry.  "Honey, are you ok?"  The woman rushed to me, grabbing me in her arms and lifting me up.

   At least they stopped fighting, I thought.  "Mommy!"  I cried, suddenly seeming to have no control over my words or actions.  "It's ok sweetie, it's ok."  She cradled me - I seemed to be around four years old - in her arms, the anger that had filled her gaze before turning to love.

   I glanced up and saw the light was coming from some sort of upside-down light yellow triangles attached to the ceilings.  I couldn't see or hear any fireworms though.  The ground below us was made up of several dark brown planks, and I saw a light brown wooden chair that had been knocked out of place.

   "The chair is mean!"  I cried, pointing at it.  "Bad chair!  Bad chair!"  "Yes, very bad chair."  The woman agreed with a soft smile, putting the chair back.  "Yeah!"  I smiled.  The pain in my back suddenly seemed to dim.  There were white circles on the dark brown table that had leftover food on them.

   "I'm hungry,"  I complained.  "Ok, you can finish your dinner."  The woman said.  I stopped.  "Nevermind, I'm not so hungry."  "Come on."  The woman ignored me, putting me down in the chair.  There were broccoli and mushrooms in front of me.  "That's what you have left.  Finish that and I'll give you more if you're still hungry."  'Mommy' said, then left to sit down on some light blue cushiony thing.

   I looked down at it.  "Eeeeeeeeeeeeew."  I moaned.  I hated mushrooms.  They were vile and disgusting and THEY ALL DESERVED TO DIE!  "Mommyyyy, mushrooms are gross!"  "Then just eat the broccoli."  She said.  Suddenly, some scary...thing showed up on a big black rectangle facing the cushions.

   I blinked rapidly, trying to make the image disappear, and found myself breathing heavily on the ground of the stables.  "What just happened?"  I gasped, but when I looked up, nobody was there, and Viggo was gone.