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

Chapter 65: A Year Past

   "Woohoo!" 

   Frostflake shot past me, roaring with delight.  I sped up, hoping to catch the black sheep clutched in her claws.  I grinned, my wings beating the air as I rammed into the side of my dragon.  She yelped.  "Kiara!"  She cried, losing her grip on the furry black sheep.  When it dropped, a red Singetail caught it, gleefully cackling.  I growled.  "Hey, Ruby!"  I snapped.  "That was mine!"

   "And now it's mine!"  The mischievous daughter of Whiplash's sped away, the twins and Snotlout on her tail.  "Get back here!"  I roared.  Frostflake shot past me, laughing with glee while the Razorwhip sisters, Amber and Amythest, followed.  Amber snapped her jaws at Frostflake's tail, making her yelp and fly faster.  I felt footsteps on my back and narrowed my eyes.  Astrid.  I thought.  I grinned.  Maybe I can help her out.

   I backflipped, making Astrid land on my back in a sitting position.  Then I dove in between Amber and Amythest, twisted past Frostflake, and rolled so that she landed on Barf and Belch.  She gave me a thumbs-up, and I stuck my tongue out in a delighted reply, watching her leap from the green Hideous Zippleback to the red Singetail.  She snatched the sheep out of Ruby's claws and landed on Stormfly's back.

   Fishlegs and Snotlout were on her tail.  I grinned and sped up, but Chroma and Viggo cut in front of me and shot after the Deadly Nadder.  Amber and Amythest took advantage of me slowing down for a moment and sped past me after Frostflake.  I snarled playfully and dove toward the sea.  I twisted between the sea stacks, then shot up into Stormfly's belly, making her drop the black sheep.  Chroma twisted beneath her and Viggo caught the sheep.  "Oh, come on!"  I roared.  Chroma roared back in delight, approaching the sheep baskets.

   The twins had nine, Astrid had four, Snotlout and Fishlegs had none, Ruby had five, Amber and Amythest had 3 each, Chroma had two, and Frostflake and I each had one.  

   I sped up, locking my eyes onto the sheep.  You're mine this time, wooly.  I thought, an uncontrollable grin splitting across my face.  

   Fishlegs and Meatlug beat me to it.  "Sorry, Kiara!"  Meatlug called as she bumped the sheep out of Viggo's grasp.  He growled in annoyance.  I swooped up and snatched the sheep just before Meatlug caught it, then spun ahead, ducked underneath Snotlout, who came at me from the front, spiraled between two of the nets (the twins' and Snotlout's) to avoid Frostflake, then flipped back and twisted upright over my net.  I dropped the sheep in and swept past the others, who were growling and muttering in annoyance.

   "And Kiara takes the game!"  Stoick yelled.  I roared in victory, spiraling high into the sky until I was out of earshot of the cheering Vikings below.  

   I glanced at the clouds below me, remembering the time where Whiplash would've had a teasing comment about her victory.  The race that time was a special race, normally I would've ridden Frostflake and Viggo would've ridden Chroma.  This was a race to celebrate the beginning of Hiccup's Cheif training, although I could guess he wasn't really liking it.

   Stoick had accepted Viggo after a year of Viggo proving that he could help, at first by helping with planting crops and calming randomly aggressive dragons, but slowly being allowed to help Stoick when he didn't have enough time to do all of his cheifing.  

   Hiccup had started to explore beyond the archipelago again, but in an entirely different direction than the abandoned Edge lived.  

   It was driving his father crazy.

   I decided to go to the stables and see how the others were doing after the race when Frostflake butted into me, surprising me and making me flash back into a human, where she caught me.  I had started to stay in my dragon form more often now, not only because I didn't really want to live in a hut, but also because I felt more like myself as a dragon.  Sleeping with Frostflake and the other dragons in the stables not only allowed me to see the comfort level the stables provided for the dragons, but also helped me feel safer and closer to my dragons.  

   Frostflake laughed.  "Nice job, Kiara!"  She purred.  I laughed, petting her head and making her purr more.  "Thanks, girl!  Wanna go back to the stables?"  I offered.  "Where's there fish GALORE!?  Uh-huh!  You know it!"  She laughed, twisting around and diving through the clouds.  She spread out her wings and landed in the stables.

   I turned into a dragon and started slurping up fish from a trough in the middle.  Randomly Stoick came running down yelling.  "Close the stables!  Lock the dragons in their stalls!"  I narrowed my eyes and locked my gaze with Frostflake's.

   Chroma tensed beside us.  "Not even on your best days pal."  

(P.S.  Go back to "Goodbye" and "A Lost Legacy", the chapters, please.  I added something at the very beginnings.)