Fury of the Sun

10. Renewal

WARNING! Major plot spoilers in the first few paragraphs! I'm sorry about including them, but because of the way I've written it, I kind of have to. Plus, this contributes to the storyline.

Thanks to Lillyrue142, Tribocharge, sango_ar and LoneDingo for voting :) Sorry if I missed anyone else.
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Chapter 10
Renewal

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Soundtrack: None
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It had been almost sixth months since I was held in captivity by Orvask. Since then, though I hadn't figured out how to become human again, life had been full of adventures and danger.

Hiccup discovered the scheme of man named Drago, who planned to enslave an army of dragons under the power of his Bewilderbeast, a huge, powerful dragon that could control the minds of lesser dragons.
The Bewilderbeasts were also known as the Alpha dragons, the kings of the dragon world.

He also found his mother, Valka, who lived under the protection of the kind Snowy Bewilderbeast, along with thousands of dragons she had rescued.

Unfortunately, Stoick the Vast, Hiccup's father, was killed in battle, protecting Hiccup.

Oh, and Toothless discovered some new powers of his own, not to mention he became an Alpha in status after defeating Drago's Bewilderbeast.

Hiccup was made Chief almost a month ago now, and the only downside is that now he's barely able to spend any time with me because of his duties. He and Astrid have had a closer relationship than ever, and I even overheard Valka suggesting marriage to Hiccup.

But if he's happy... I guess I'm happy too.

. . .

I waddled through the village, heading for the cliffs. I'd just eaten a huge fill of fish and I was looking for a nap.

I wandered over to the edge of the cliffs, near the docks, and flopped down with my forelegs hanging over the side.

Memories of the attack on Berk filled my mind. I wondered what Orvask and Thade were up to now, if they were alive and plotting ways to get me back.

I lay my head down, gazing at the shifting waves far below. The afternoon sun glinted off the watery crests and shone gold in the light.

The sound of footsteps behind me interrupted my thoughts. I looked back to se Valka, Hiccup's mother. I made a sound of curiosity in my throat, and she chuckled lightly.

"Hello to you too," she greeted me. The viking woman wore simple, earthy coloured clothes, and they fluttered as she knelt down next to me. She scratched my neck in the one place she knew I was particularly fond of, and I let out a sigh of appreciation.

"Well, I didn't come here just to chat, ___," Valka informed me. I narrowed my eyes in confusion and tilted my head to convey this to her.

She gave me a reassuring smile. "Don't worry!" she chittered quickly. "It's nothing bad. Hiccup and I were talking yesterday, and we agreed that you should help out in dragon training," she explained, a grin bursting out. "What do you think?" she asked impatiently, anxious for my response.

I looked at her for a moment in shock. Dragon training!

I breathed warm air onto her face and gave her a gummy smile, making an approving ruk-ruk sound in my throat.

She laughed, and threw her arms around me. "I knew you'd agree!" she exclaimed, beaming. When she knelt back, she gave me an affectionate look, and stroked the side of my face, like a mother would.

I crooned softly, and pressed my head into her hand. She smiled in response.

"Well, ___," she murmured, breaking the silence, "good luck."

. . .

The next morning, Hiccup woke me at dawn by pouring an icy cold bucket of water onto my head. I roared in surprise and knocked him over when I stood and flung out a paw.

"Hey!" he protested, though he was grinning like a lunatic. The bucket was on his head, and residual water drops clung to his face and hair.

Dirt and dust covered him from where he had fallen on the ground inside my den.

I had made my home just out of the village, in an old hole in a cliff-face. It went about ten metres into the cliff, and was high enough for me to jump, but not fly. Soft hay provided by the village lay at the far end, where I slept. Moss, soil and pebbles covered the ground. A small ledge provided a place to land outside.

Toothless stuck his head inside the cave, and when he saw Hiccup on the ground, he bounded up and leant over him from behind, ending up looking into Hiccup's face with his head upside down.

I grunted and chuckled again. Hiccup pushed Toothless away and laughed, rubbing the black dragon's head.

"Come on ___, it's time for Dragon Training," he announced happily.

He mounted Toothless and beckoned for me to follow. I loped towards the edge of the cave and shot out, rising into the sky. Toothless and Hiccup had already ascended.

Together, we flew into the cluster of buildings and landed outside the old arena.

A number of young vikings, all in their teens, stood assembled in the open area, chatting and fighting amongst themselves. Nearby were Hiccup's friends, who I had gotten to know quite well - Fishlegs, Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut, as well as Astrid. They talked and argued over some matter, and barely noticed when we walked in.

The young vikings certainly did, though. Most of the whispered and pointed at me, but one boy caught my eye. He was nothing like the other vikings, who were muscly and armour-clad, throwing around axes and swords like they were play-things.

He was thin, and pale-skinned. Pale silver hair gleamed at the edges of a short blue hooded coat, unlike the sort of clothing I had seen here. It only reached to his hips, and I wondered why we didn't have them. He was also sporting simple leather pants that clung tightly to his legs. He had thin, lightly furred white boots that were nothing like the layered yak-fur boots all the others wore. I eyed him suspiciously as we passed, and he seemed to stare back from under his hood.

"Alright, class!" Hiccup tried to say over the racket. "Shut it!" Astrid stepped in.

The raucous group settled immediately. "Okay, we're splitting you into two groups. Half with Hiccup, Fishlegs and Snotlout, and half with me, Ruffnut and Tuffnut," Astrid announced.

"Aw ,man," I heard Snotlout complain.

Hiccup took over quickly. "Do you all have a dragon?" He asked. The blue-cloaked boy stepped forward. "I don't," he said stiffly. Hiccup's eyes narrowed almost unnoticeably. "I see. Well, you can fetch one from the dragon stables-," he suggested, but I butted in, pushing Hiccup aside and gesturing to the boy.

The auburn haired dragon rider looked skeptical, but I insisted. "I don't know if this is such a good idea, ____," he cautioned, but I ignored him. I wanted to learn about this boy, and what better way than to fly with him. Dragon flying often brought out people's real nature.

The boy seemed slightly peeved, but glad at least to have a dragon to ride. He tentatively placed a hand in front of my nose, and I stared at it stupidly.

"Normally dragons allow people to touch their noses to show they've gained their trust," Hiccup hissed quickly.

I bumped my nose briefly against the boy's hand. "So, what's your name?" Hiccup asked.

"Jack. Jack Frost," he introduced himself, holding a hand out to Hiccup. They shook hands vigorously, then parted.

"Okay, we'll pick you out randomly to join us. Astrid will start."

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A/N: I know Jack doesn't have shoes, but he doesn't have powers in this, so he'll die of cold without proper clothing! Anyway, I this was a bit shorter, but I was stuck on what to do, and then I realised I could include Frost :D

Chill out and be cool (Hehe, puns),
Ivoryscales