Nothing to Fear

Chapter Nine: The Kindness of Strangers

Adrianna didn't have nearly as many nightmares as she had when she was a child but a few of them sometimes made their way into her sleep cycle. By this time, waking up in a cold sweat was beginning to be almost ordinary. Rather than run to her parents, she merely wiped her face with a towel, changed into a different set of pajamas, and went back to sleep. It wasn't that the nightmares didn't bother her, they did, but they weren't a big deal anymore. But memories had a habit of resurfacing and the one that had popped into her brain and into her dreams was one she would rather push down with the rest.

As she wiped the sweat off her face and finally felt her heart rate return to normal, she began to contemplate what she had just remembered. Trying to ignore its presence was like trying to ignore a hungry Monstrous Nightmare while standing in the food storage. Memories this old weren't very clear but the emotions she had felt returned full force. Relief, hope... sudden fear as the hope was forcefully taken away. The realization that she was probably going to die before she saw her family again...

She pressed her palms against her eyes until little lights flashed in the darkness and began to be almost disorienting. Sometimes when she did this, she liked to pretend she was traveling through space while the little colors and shapes whirled around her as she pressed her eyes into their sockets. For some reason, she found it easier to focus with her eyes tightly shut.

She didn't like keeping things from her father. And it wasn't a secret that could be hidden for long; he would certainly look at the list. He couldn't possibly ignore an item that had been underlined three times. One so powerful that it could heal anyone at any point in the disease, as well as heal cuts when mixed with the right herbs...

If only it could heal the psychological scarring that seemed to linger every moment of every day.

"I need more sleep." Adrianna whispered. "Can't fly without sleep."

But the thoughts of what she had seen long ago coupled with her own concern for her fellow Berkians seemed to wake her up more quickly than freezing water in her face. Was Olaf okay? What about Taryn? And Svala... Lily had indicated that she was having a boy and Adrianna had been excited to tell her about her dragon's ability but now that little boy was in jeopardy. If he could survive this at all. Were Finn and Astrid doing okay with all the stress that had been put upon them so quickly? There were too many questions and not enough answers. All the Haddock girl knew was that she and her father would have to find those ingredients as quickly as possible.

She lay back on the bed and curled under the covers just as Lily let out a contented sigh. She wondered if dragons dreamed the same way people did. Did they ever have nightmares? They certainly didn't have the kind of nightmares humans had. Any monsters that chased them could probably be set on fire and they were always naked in public so those kinds of dreams couldn't plague them. She supposed they could always dream that their teeth rotted and fell out but she doubted it. Dragons probably had their own recurring dreams.

She smiled at her train of thought, shaking her head slightly. If she let it, her mind could wander forever and probably never come back. There were so many things to think about, to wonder about, and so few people seemed to understand that. Her father did and so did Erick. Again, she hoped dearly that Erick would be okay. She wished she could be there for her best friend but this was far more important.

She opened her eyes and was surprised to find daylight seeping in through the window. She hadn't even noticed that she'd fallen asleep! That was convenient and worth thanking the gods for before she rose from bed.

Hiccup was downstairs snacking on, interestingly enough, a loaf of bread someone in his group seemed to have left behind. When he spotted his daughter, he tossed her a second loaf.