Dragonling - The Gathering Storm [a HTTYD 3 rewrite]

Chapter 7 - From the Outside

The POV switches in this chapter, from Rowen's in the first section, to Flame's for the last two. Hope you enjoy the chapter! :D

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I slipped into the Great Hall, which was now crammed chock-full of Vikings. Hiccup had already started talking. I came in to hear him say, "I know this seems like a bad idea-"

He got no further before a Viking near the back interrupted. "We've been here fer siven gen'rations, s'rvived dragon raids and ice-spittin' giant sea munsters, fer Thor's sake, and now you tell us we're aboot to leave, fer sume island in 'e middle o' nowhere 'at may or may not exist... all becuse of a crezy lunatic? 'At dousn't sound bad... 'at sounds terrible!" The crowd of Vikings roared in agreement, all of them yelling their objections at once. Hiccup tried shouting over them, but it was a futile effort.

WHAM!! Astrid slammed her axe into the table, yelling "Be quiet!" The Vikings immediately settled down and she continued in an only slightly quieter tone, "Your Chief is trying to tell you something."

"Thanks, Astrid," Hiccup mumbled as she sat down, then continued. "My father was convinced that the Hidden World did indeed exist, far away from anything... and anyone. That would mean, far away from Grimmel." He paused for a second, gathering his thoughts. When he spoke again, his voice was filled with emotion. "My father, before he died, told me to look after Berk. But Berk isn't just this island. I say that we are Berkians, and that Berk is wherever we are!" His voice rose to a shout and he pounded his fist on the table.

Dead silence followed.

Then a Viking in the second row jumped up, Tuffnut Thorston of all people. "I'm with him! Who else!" He looked around wildly, as if expecting Vikings to get up and start packing right then. He looked mildly disappointed when they didn't, although a low rumble of conversation began soon after.

Nobody noticed me as I slipped out into the night.

I'm not a Berkian. I'm not a part of this place. I'm an outsider. So where does that leave me? I walked the streets of Berk, letting the quiet sounds of a moonlit night soothe my troubled thoughts. I wasn't watching where I was going, and accidentally bumped into a blond-haired Viking. I looked up, a bit startled, and realized it was Kaydon.

"Oh, sorry," I said, backing away. Then I noticed what he was carrying.

A dragon saddle.

"What's that for?" I asked, curious but also a touch suspicious. He looked guilty for a second, then glanced down.

"It's... a saddle. It was my dragon's. I... wanted to bring it with. For memories."

Oh. Right. I reached out to touch him on the shoulder. "I'm... really sorry."

He shrugged me off, a hint of anger in his tone. "You wouldn't understand. You haven't been here as long as we have. This probably sounds like an adventure to you. But to us? We're uprooting our entire lives to go somewhere none of us have ever been." His voice grew quieter, so that I could barely hear him. "And some of us never will be." He turned around, walking to what might be the only house on Berk without a carved dragon head above the door. "My father built this house for my mom when they came here, during the fights with the dragons. It's been my home for about sixteen years. And now I'm leaving it, probably for good. You've been here how long? A few weeks at most? You can't understand. You're an outsider here. You don't belong with us."

He turned and walked into his house. I just stood there for a second, stunned. Then I slowly started walking, then running, towards my house.

Whenever I'm stressed, or mad, or confused, I find running is the best way to clear my mind. I reached that path that led to my house, then turned around and went back to circle the island. Despite having been here for only two weeks, I knew almost the entire island inside and out.