Of Axes and Dragons

To Kill A Dragon

Astrid ran a rock against the edge of her axe to sharpen it. She looked up, she was in a damp rock near a river that ran through all Berk. The trees around her whistled with the wind and, as she repeatedly motioned the rock in her hand to sharpen her weapon, she calmed herself. For the past few days, right after Chief Stoick had died and Drago Bludvist had seen his terrible fate, Astrid was facing sleepless nights and days full of shivers and irrational fears.

She took one deep breath, sharpened her axe. Then another. She couldn't seem to find herself. Tears were knotting down her throat but she held them in, for if there was one thing she absolutely hated, was crying. One more breath.

As she tried to hold herself steady, she heard a snap in the ground and rustle in a bush nearby. She drew her axe towards the sound and accuired a defensive poise.

"Who goes there?!" She demanded.

Out of the nearest bushes, Eret son of Eret walked towards her, both hands raised by each side.

She chuckled more to herself and lowered the weapon. True, she was not a big fan of the newest adopted Berkian, but that was no reason to be hostile. After all, if her own dragon, Stormfly, seemed to like him, then she was willing to give the new guy a chance.

"It's just me" he said, lowering his hands. "is it a bad moment?"

She sat on the big rock once again and continued sharpening her axe. He took his sword out to his scabbard and, grabbing a peeble nearby, mimicked Astrid in the methodical sharpening of their weapons. Stormfly, who had been sleeping nearby, raised her head and whined playfully, Eret smiled and the creature and it went back to sleep.

"Not a bad moment, I just thought I was alone" she admitted, gluing her sight to her hands. Both her hands were shaking due to the extreme sadness she was under.

"Is something bothering you, Astrid?" asked the newcomer, sitting in front of her over the grass.

She looked over at him. He was wearing a light brown fur cape and his longish hair was drawn backwards and held in a sort of ponytail. His brown eyes regarded her carefully and worried, as though he was actually interested in the feelings of the girl in front of him. She sighed and looked at a tree nearby, unable to hold his stare for more than a few seconds.

"A lot of things, actually" she said, trying hard not to spill every thing in her chest then and there. "but it's okay, we don't need to talk about it."

He tilted his head to one side and furrowed his brows. He stared at her gray eyes, full of sadness and in the brink of tears. A pang of pain hit his chest and he placed both his sword and the rock he used to sharpen it beside him and held his chin with both hands.

"Actually, I think we do need to talk about it" He said, and the blonde turned to face him confusedly, "something is obviously wrong and I want to know what is it. Tell me, please, how can I help?"

She sighed and put her axe beside her, then hugged her legs with her arms creating an imaginary wall between her and Eret. And, knowing she was about to cry, she buried her face on her knees and begun talking.

"Excuse me if I cry, I don't think I can help it anymore" She said, her voice muffled by her skirt, "It's just that I don't think I can hold this up for any longer. I have many secrets, Eret, secrets I'm not proud of and, if anyone were to know, I would never be seen the same again."

Eret looked at the ball of a girl who sat over a big rock and couldn't help but to feel pity for her.

" Astrid, if I know anything about the people here in Berk, is that they are forgiving," he said, which made the blonde in front of him peek her head out of her knees and stare at him, "I used to hunt dragons and I attacked you and your friends directly, yet you decided to take me in as one of yours and even gave me a dragon of my own"

Astrid laughed. Hiccup was the forgiving one, not all of Berk. A few tears ran down her cheeks and she decided not to hold them in anymore.

"But, you see, I think you, more than anyone, would understand" She begun once again. "You used to hunt dragons for sport-"

"Not for sport, Astrid, for money. I did not enjoy it, and it is not a past I'm proud of" he interrupted, facing her and glancing at her severely.

"Yes" she nodded, "Sorry. What I mean is... When I was little, all I ever wanted was to prove that I was capable of protecting my family, of protecting Berk, and when I was little, the only way of protecting each other was... You know. Killing dragons."

Eret didn't say anything, only looked at her as her shoulders sank and she tightened the girp of her legs.

" When I was little I used to kill dragons, Eret, and now I train them." She finally admitted, her breath grew heavy and the tears she was already crying, flooded more intensely out her eyes. Her face was reddened and she couldn't keep her eyes open, she closed them as the stubborn tears kept cascading down her cheeks."And, since I was little, I did not kill adult dragons, per say, in fact... I pryed on Terrible Horrors and baby dragons of all sorts, practicing for the one day I got to kill a big dragon."

Eret let out a deep breath. He walked over to her and placed a hand over her shoulder, careful not to make her feel as if he was invading her space.

" My hands are covered in blood and it doesn't wash of" she finished, and wept loudly.

"People change, Astrid." He said, grabbing her face with both hands and making her face him. Her gray eyes met his own brown ones. "You grew to be an extraordinary woman, a caring one. You became a dragon rider, the defender of Berk."

She smiled through the tears. The sight before her was blurred with her salty tears, yet it was still astounding. Eret was a handsome man, with a strong jaw and intimidating tattoos decorating his chin. His eyes and thick brows faced her with a concern she thought no one ever felt towards her. Without being able to control her own movements, she pushed forward and pressed her lips against his. At first, he was tensed and caught off guard, but as he realized what was happening, he fell more tenderly into the kiss.

Then Astrid pulled apart terrified. She looked at the viking in front of her as though she had just committed murder, and, stumbling off the rock she was seated on, she started cussing.

"Oh shite, what the Hel, this is bad, this is terrible," she said, backing off and grabbing her axe. He looked at her dumbfounded and unpursed his lips.

"What? You started the kiss" he said. "I'm sorry, I didn't say all those things for you to kiss me..."

He apologized, surrounding the rock and walking carefully towards her, but she drew her axe towards him, holding it with both hands for dear life as she walked backwards with wary steps.

"No it's not that. I did want to kiss you" She said, looking at him with pure horror, "But I'm engaged."

His eyes widened. All the scenes he had witnessed of her and Hiccup spending time together, touching each other playfully and talking to each other with love, came rushing to his head.

"Oh." he said, as the truth settled in his stomach. "OHH."