learning to fly, how to train your dragon

002. the deal

chapter two
002. the deal!

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"HEY, DON'T worry, I'm sure you'll get another chance."

Freya scoffed to herself sadly at Toke's words. She scuffed her boots against where the cobblestone pavements met the grassy slopes nearby the plaza well. She and the other teens were helping clean up after this morning while most of their parents were discussing a council of war in the Great Hall. Again and again they have tried to end their plague of dragons, but every time, they have failed. Every time, those ships would either disappear at sea, or return barely drifting. Too many Vikings have been lost in those expeditions to search for the Dragons' Nest▬and more will continue to be lost if they don't find a way to stop all of this soon. But the only way they could, was to risk and sacrifice more of each other ... and it was an ongoing, unbreakable circle that nobody seemed to be able to figure out another way to end this suffering.

She kicked some splinters to the pile they had been making▬the ruins of what used to be the front steps of Hoark the Unlucky's house. Toke went blank-faced at her lack of energy. "Come on," he coaxed the young Viking who slumped against the side of the well, upset. "There will be another morning. There will be another dragon. We'll keep training▬and one day, you will kill a dragon, I know it."

Freya sighed, watching the Twins throw rocks at each other instead of helping Mrs. Lars children gather what rubble they could use to rebuild from. She propped her chin on the palm of her hand, glum. "When?" She asked Toke miserably. He glanced at her, frowning as he dropped a few more pieces of wood into their pile that they would then later burn or use to build fences (if they weren't too badly destroyed).

"What do you mean?" her best friend asked her.

"Well," said Freya, "you're going into Dragon Training soon. You won't have time to sneak away and train with me. You'll be too busy getting the glory you want and then your days will be spent hanging around as a full member of the tribe. You'll have no time for me."

"What?" let out Toke, finding this absurd. "That's not true▬"

"I lost every chance this morning," she mumbled, rather distraught. "That's it. I'm going to be stuck delivering remedies, listening to Mrs. Ack speak for hours, walking up all of those stairs to Gothi just to bring her new bark and herbs, and hearing about how I should pronounce each Sven in Berk differently and how I should gift Stoick the Vast earrings every Snoggletog!"

"You haven't lost every chance," her friend settled down beside her. Even then, he still was taller▬he had to spread out his legs and they sat like tree-roots in the grass. Now that the sun had risen over their home and brought some breath of warmth amongst the cold, Toke had taken off his fur vest. She grabbed it from where it lied at their feet and hugged it to her chest, wanting something to hold onto▬the warmth gave her little comfort. Already, she felt as if she had to cling onto whatever she had of Toke, knowing that as soon as he passed initiation into the tribe, all of their childish adventures would be over▬and she would be alone.

Toke noticed and nudged her lightly with his elbow. Despite the often cloudy weather, her friend had southern tanned skin that would glow like a summer sunrise when the clouds drifted apart. He was made of copper, and rust, and golden sunbursts. Just like his warm complexion, her best friend had a warm heart▬warm brown eyes, warm brown hair, a warm smile. He brought endless days of Summarhildr to the cold, rough wind of Berk and never lost it; it had been rooted into his very being until he had become the very reflection of his mother.