The Dragon Master and The Lightning Rider *Hiccup Fanfic*

22. More To Know

It was Viggo.

Skye stood silent and impassive. Viggo looked at her for sometime before smiling. He was slightly short but fit man in his mid-twenties—handsome with a clean beard. Skye looked a him warily, especially the open yet secretive way he held himself up.

"You must be Skyla," He said welcomingly.

She glared. "It's Skye. Nothing more, nothing less."

Her sharp eyes and tight scowl didn't faze him a bit. "I'm not one for poking the bear, so I'll respect that. But," a playful smile stretched across his face. "I'm curious what would happen if I repeated that mistake."

"Would my reputation speak for itself or would I have to show you?" Skye snapped. He was irritating her, wasting her time, but she wasn't an idiot. He was testing her in his own way.

"I'd like to think I'm a pleasant person to be around," Viggo replied, "threats towards me only happens because the other person can't be that nice."

"Well, I threaten anyone I find that's worth it." Skye's hands drifted to the concealed dagger on her thigh. It was instinct in a hostile situation.

Viggo's clever eyes followed the simple movement. "Surely you don't threaten an adversary? Wouldn't that be foolish?"

Skye grinned. "Now you know where you stand."

"Interesting. You would threaten the person who welcomes you with open arms, Skye?"

The rider laughed out darkly. She gestured her hands to the tent. She then hissed out with a pointed glare, "You call this welcoming? I call this a test. I know that there are men outside, just waiting for the word to take me down-"

Viggo blinked in surprise. "So, you have noticed them. Impressive."

She clenched her jaw. "Don't evaluate me. I don't have time for your games and tests."

His response was immediate, like he forsaw this happening. When she would be the first to crack under the game. "On the contrary, you don't have anything to go to. That's the reason you joined the Dragon Hunters. To be part of something bigger than you or me. And we have the chance to make it count."

Skye stopped moving around the tent. "You know, when I joined the Hunters, I also expected an explanation of what we do. I have never received it—at your orders, might I add—and here you are, speaking as if I will understand every riddle."

They both could hear the strong, dry tone of her voice. Heartbeats passed as Skye suddenly realized she had challenged him. The leader of the Dragon Hunters. Oh, maybe she shouldn't have done that. Maybe he wasn't the kind to take this lightly.

Viggo's lips stretched into a smile and Skye felt relieved. He face revealed nothing that her mind felt. "You're better than I thought," he mused, rubbing his chin. "It makes me wonder why you're...here of all places. You are a good person. So, why join us?"

"Being good doesn't have anything to do with it."

"For my sake, think of this as a job interview. Why do you want this job?"

Skye wanted to pinch the bridge of her nose and sigh loudly and dramatically, but she only let her fingers twitch for a second before they went still. "I'm tired of the life I lived before, and I'm open to something that will make me stronger, powerful, and most of all... something which provides safety."

The gears were running in Viggo's brain. There was a red flag in her words, some part of it that just seemed like it had an underlying message, but he couldn't figure out where. She was vague when she wanted to be, so he made a mental note of it before he said, "you were with Berk before. They don't agree with my...methods. Why pick us over them?"