The Strength of the Princess (HTTYD)

The Trouble With Heather

Chapter 23: The Trouble With Heather

Eira awaited Heather's arrival with the other dragon riders. Recently, it had been discovered that Fishlegs was secretly corresponding with the girl. The others were worried, so they read all the letters. They decided to help Heather out and invite her over with the intention of eventually asking her to become a dragon rider.

Eira was not quite sure what to think of the situation. Her relationship with Heather was rocky, although the last time she saw her had not been too bad. She did feel bad for her and wanted her to be able to rely on her friends. But Dagur had been asking about her in his letters to Eira, so what could she tell him now?

Windshear landed in front of the group, and Heather slowly dismounted. She gave everyone a tentative smile.

"Hi, you," Hiccup said. "We thought you could use a couple of days to rest up."

"Thanks, Hiccup," Heather said. "I really appreciate this." She smiled when Fishlegs approached her excitedly. "Fishlegs! Thank you so much for the letters."

Fishlegs smiled shyly.

"I'm glad to see you're doing alright," Eira said.

Heather nodded. "You too, Eira."

"Hey!" Tuffnut exclaimed. "We should sing the Dragon's Edge welcome song."

Hiccup blinked. "Tuff, we don't have a Dragon's Edge welcome song."

"Sure we do. It's very catchy. I can perform it in several keys and there's sort of a dance that I do along with it."

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Yeah. I think Heather would rather set her gear down and get settled." She guided Heather away from the rest of them.

Eira did not see her again until that evening when she made dinner for everyone. It turned out to be pretty good. They were all enjoying themselves when Hiccup suddenly entered the clubhouse with news:

"Uh, gang, sorry to tell you, but we've got more Nadders incoming."

Snotlout groaned. "Oh, come on. Now?"

Heather blinked. "Nadders?"

"The yearly Nadder migration takes them through the worst of dragon hunter territory," Astrid explained. "We've been herding them away and diverting them to a different route."

"It takes them longer to get to their migratory home, but at least they actually arrive safely," Fishlegs said.

"Heather, you and Windshear could come with us," said Hiccup. "We can sure use the help."

Heather hesitated. "Windshear is still tired from the long trip. We'll only slow you guys down."

"Maybe Meatlug and I should stay behind and keep Heather company," Fishlegs said with a smile.

"Hey, I can keep Heather company," Snotlout protested. "Everyone says that I'm a great company-keeper."

Astrid gave him a look. "Who has ever said that?"

Snotlout frowned. "You don't know everybody. Shut up, Astrid."

Eira looked from Fishlegs to Heather. She had a feeling she knew what was going on here. Snotlout still stubbornly stood in place, so she grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the clubhouse. "Come on. I need you, partner."

"Fine," Snotlout muttered. Once they were in the air following the others, he shot her an anxious look. "I am better than Fishlegs, right?"

Eira took a minute to respond. Did he actually like Heather, or was this about his insecurities again? She decided to play it safe. "It's not about who's better, Snotlout. Different girls are attracted to different type of guys."