The One Who Ran Away [Open]

[Revan]

Lanayril | Female Wanderer

The first thing that invaded Lanayril's nose was the salty sea air. That and the stench of vikings, but she had gotten plenty used to that. It wasn't too hard getting off the ship, since she had actually managed to befriend a few vikings who had caught her hiding away. Vikings; fierce warriors, sea tamers, dragon riders, but when faced with a young girl alone and stowing away on a ship they suddenly weren't so scary. Not that she wasn't grateful, especially since without their help she probably would have gone through her meager stash of food in just a few days or less. From what Lana had gathered, it sounded as if they were on their journey for almost two weeks, though to her it felt much, much longer.

With her feet now planted firmly on the dock, the first thing Lana noticed was the dragons. They were everywhere, and for a moment she thought they had arrived just as the town was under a raid. Then, once her heart had stopped pounding, she saw something different. These dragons weren't attacking, they were just hanging around. Some of them played with vikings, some lounged on rooftops, and some of them soared high above the village. It was a new experience, to say the least. Of course, rumors of vikings taming dragons had travelled even as far as her little town, but she never would have dreamed to see it for herself. In fact, part of her was a bit excited about perhaps getting the chance to talk to one of the riders.

Her rambling thoughts were suddenly interrupted when her stomach growled. Then another pressing concern was brought to mind; she needed to find food and shelter before it became dark. She didn't fancy stumbling out in the woods at night for a place to sleep. She did bring a small amount of money with her, so finding an inn was one of the first things on her list, if the town had one. With this in mind, Lana quickly scurried away from the dock, not looking to stay out in plain view for long. It was a new place, so she wasn't exactly sure what to expect from the locals.

"Speech." | 'Thoughts.'

[Dusty the Small]

It was one of those rare occasions when Hiccup had a moment to himself, just a chance to sit quietly and enjoy some peace. But, of course, the peace didn't last long as Dusty scampered into his workshop. Hiccup could hear Slicediver outside, greeting Toothless. He sighed and crossed his arms at Dusty.

"What do you want, kid?" he teased, half-serious. She did as she always did, and started inspecting his latest projects as she spoke. She picked up a helmet for a new flight suit and turned it around. "New cargo's here. I thought maybe you should know. Maybe you should... Oh, I don't know... pay the guys that brought it here? And don't call me 'kid,' I'm only five years behind you." He rolled his eyes at her and nodded. "Six years. And I'm going. I just needed a break."

He headed out, patting Toothless as he passed him. Dusty followed eagerly, with Toothless and Slicediver nearby. The stormcutter was usually too proud to play with most other dragons on Berk, but he was like a baby when Toothless was around. After a bit Toothless caught up with Hiccup and walked beside him to the docks. Once they were there, Hiccup noticed a girl he'd never seen before who looked a bit uncomfortable, not far from the docks.

He grabbed Dusty's arm and handed her the payment. "Here. Pay them off for me, will you?" She followed his gaze to the stranger and nodded before she trotted off to do him yet another favor. Slicediver stayed on the shore, as he took up almost the whole dock by himself. Toothless and Hiccup walked toward the stranger together.

"Hi, there. Are you new to Berk? Lost or something?" He tried his best not to sound exhausted. "I'm Hiccup, I'm the chief, and this is Toothless." he added, smiling.

Dusty's Speech	Dusty's Thoughts
Slicediver's Speech	Slicediver's Thoughts
Halvor's Speech	Halvor's Thoughts
Hiccup's Speech	Hiccup's Thoughts
Toothless' Speech	Toothless' Thoughts

[Revan]

Lanayril | Female Wanderer

Lanayril's eyes darted to the source of the voice that had spoken to her. A man, clearly older than her, likely by at least a few years or more. But what really caught her attention was the dragon by his side. It was sleek and black, almost cat-like in appearance, and she had never seen anything like it. Perhaps it was one only native to this island, or maybe it was rare. Toothless, she heard him introduce it. It seemed like an odd name, since Lana highly doubted this dragon did not have teeth. Perhaps she'd ask about that later. But while she was staring at the dragon, the other words the man had said finally sunk in, as if she hadn't quite heard them when they were first spoken due to being mesmerized by his companion.

'The chief? He doesn't look anything like a chief..' Of course, Lana's experience with chiefs came from her own villiage, who were usually big burly men with beards almost as large as their ego. Maybe things were much different in dragon-riding towns. After all, the man, Hiccup he called himself, seemed like he'd never have trouble with anything so long as that dragon was by his side. When the realization came to her that she had yet to speak, she clasped her hands together in a somewhat nervous gesture. "Oh, um, yes, I suppose I am a little lost.. I'm new here. My name is Lanayril. Um, just Lana is fine though." She silently scolded herself for rattling off so much at once. The man was likely just making friendly conversation, or maybe he wanted to make sure she wasn't any sort of threat to his people. Or, maybe he was just genuinely curious about a random girl appearing on the docks. Perhaps all three.

"I, uh, I like your dragon. What kind of dragon is he?" Lana asked, letting her gaze fall once more to the dragon. Hopefully she hadn't gotten the gender wrong, she wasn't very good at telling. She had to admit it though, she usually saw dragons as big ugly creatures, but this one was actually pretty cute with its big green eyes rounded face. He seemed pretty friendly, too. She hoped the rest of the dragons around here were the same way.

"Speech." | 'Thoughts.'

[Midnight[x]Traitor]

Holly the Healer smelled the flowers in her arms. She had made a bouquet of wildflowers using lilies and tiny blue flowers. Lilies were her husband's favorite flower, and what she decided to name her Nadder. Lillydew walked alongside her, more interested in the new scent that she could detect than in the flowers. She did not understand the use of flowers to commemorate her rider's mate, but it seemed to ease the human conscious. That was enough for her to not interfere and not questions further. She had observed humans using flowers to mourn the dead or celebrate the life of love. It was odd to use the same gesture for both occasions, but she only went along to make sure Holly did not fall into the ocean. If she did, she would surely join her mate.

Holly began the decent to the docks, smiling at a fisherman who trudged by. He glanced at the flowers, then back up at Holly with a remorseful and understanding smile. Holly smiled back, but did not want to be the center of one's pity. She was passive, and few things irritated her, but being seen as weak was perhaps one of those things. Holly gazed back at the docks and noticed Toothless first. The sleek-black dragon was always impressive to her. She knew Hiccup would be next to him and then.... oh? Who is that? Lillydew walked ahead of Holly to great Toothless with wings slightly splayed in a playful way. She always got sillier when Toothless was around. Holly wondered if the older Nadder had a crush on him. She smiled at the two, then approached Hiccup and the newcomer. Greetings Hiccup. She spared no small talk. Who might we have here? Her tone was loving and calming, as should be the tone of a healer.

[Dusty the Small]

He was surprised that Lana didn't know what kind of dragon Toothless was. "Oh, he's a night fury." Toothless made a mumbling sound as if he was talking to her and Hiccup patted the top of his head. "So are you coming here to visit? I didn't know we were going to have a visitor."

"He means to say 'It's nice to meet you, welcome to Berk' but with him, it always sounds like suspicion." Dusty chimed in, striding toward them and running her hand along Toothless' side affectionately. Slicediver was behind her, but he sat down a reasonable distance away. He didn't feel much like meeting someone new. "I paid them off for you." She said to Hiccup. "Okay, thanks." She nodded and turned back to the stranger. "I'm Dusty. And he's Slicediver." She pointed with her thumb at her dragon and his frill perked up when he heard his name.

Hiccup smiled at Holly. "Hi, Holly. How are you doing?" He glanced at her flowers and then met her eyes again. "Lana, this is our healer, Holly. Holly, this is Lana." Meanwhile Toothless opened his wings a bit at Lillydew and smiled with his teeth hidden. Slicediver noticed and reluctantly joined them, fluttering his frill and rumbling.

Dusty's Speech	Dusty's Thoughts
Slicediver's Speech	Slicediver's Thoughts
Halvor's Speech	Halvor's Thoughts
Hiccup's Speech	Hiccup's Thoughts
Toothless' Speech	Toothless' Thoughts

[Revan]

Lanayril | Female Wanderer

So, the dragon was a night fury. It seemed fitting, at least the 'night' part. The mumbling noise the dragon made only made him seem even cuter. Maybe the dragons around here were just more friendly. If that was the case, Berk seemed as good a town to find a place to stay as any. But then again, she probably had to make sure if it was alright with the seemingly suspicious cheif. Her attention was then grabbed by a new voice, the source of which was a girl with a massive dragon trailing behind. Another which she did not recognize. By this point it didn't seem too odd, there were likely plenty new dragons on this island that she'd come across sooner or later.

"Oh, uh, that's okay. He is the chief, so I guess any stranger warrants suspicion.." Lana replied, letting her hands fall back to her sides. She listened to their short exchange of words before she chimed in with her name after Dusty introduced herself. "I'm Lana." Her gaze trailed back to the girl's dragon who perked up at the mention of his name. It actually looked a little bit like the night fury, only much larger and shaped a bit differently with brighter colors. She glanced back to the girl with a hint of a smile. "Um, your dragon is nice too."

Then, when a third voice was heard, Lanayril greeted Holly with another small smile. In her mind, she silently thanked Hiccup for introducing them. Once again, her eyes were drawn to a dragon. She had seen this one before, a deadly nadder. 'Does everyone around here have a dragon? Surely there are some who don't..' Lana turned her attention back to Holly, once again folding her hands neatly together. She noticed the healer's tone was soft, comforting, in fact. It almost reminded her of her mother. "It's nice to meet you, Holly."

"Speech." | 'Thoughts.'

[Midnight[x]Traitor]

Holly smiled politely at Hiccup. I'm doing well thank you. I'm just, you know... She gestured to the flowers in her arm. She knew he was fully aware of what she was doing, so she did not have to explain further. She knew Hiccup was old enough to know who her husband was. He had been on one of the boats that Stoik took to find Dragon Island before Toothless was used to show the way. She did not blame Stoick in any way, and had remorse along with the rest of Berk when Stoick had passed.

Holly smiled at the young girl. It seemed the girl didn't have a dragon of her own. She wondered if perhaps she hailed from a place where dragon riding was n0t something that was common yet, or if she merely hadn't bonded with a dragon. As usual, Holly always assumed the good in people. Lana did not have the personality of one who seemed like she was plotting something. She did not seem aggressive, nor too shy. Her arms were folded neatly in front of her, showing that she is respectful and not threatened or closed off. Just like Hiccup, Holly was curious about where the girl was coming from, and what she was doing here. So, Lana, where is it you are coming from? She chose her words more carefully than Hiccup had.

Lillydew acknowledged Slicediver with a flick of her tail, playfully waving it in front of his face.

[Dusty the Small]

Seeing Holly with the flowers made Hiccup - and Dusty - miss Stoick a little. He'd done his best, raising Hiccup and keeping Dusty out of trouble. But they shouldn't be wasting time on that. They glanced at each other knowingly. It was a welcome change of subject when Lana complimented Slicediver. "Yeah. He's a good dragon." Understatement of the year. She giggled at the dragons playing together. "Hiccup, can I fly Toothless later?" she asked, her eyes lighting up. Hiccup thought about it. "Have you ever flied before, Lana?" Dusty jumped up and down a little, obviously excited. "I could take you! There's nothing like a stormcutter." Hiccup was doing a better job of keeping his cool.

"Nothing like a night fury, either. But you don't have to if you don't want to."

Slicediver touched at Lillydew's tail. It was rather catlike, for a dragon that resembled an owl so much. Speaking of catlike dragons, Toothless jumped onto Slicediver's back and nibbled playfully at one of his spikes. Slicediver rumbled, more of a purr than a protest. Any playtime with Toothless was more than welcome as far as he was concerned. He could play with any other dragon, any time, but Toothless was always with Hiccup, and Hiccup was always busy.

Dusty's Speech	Dusty's Thoughts
Slicediver's Speech	Slicediver's Thoughts
Halvor's Speech	Halvor's Thoughts
Hiccup's Speech	Hiccup's Thoughts
Toothless' Speech	Toothless' Thoughts

[Revan]

Lanayril | Female Wanderer

Lana wasn't necessarily trying to hide where she came from, but she had to admit, telling the chief that she ran away from her old home wouldn't have been a very good first impression. She was partly distracted by the flowers that Holly was holding that the question she was asked didn't register in her mind for a moment. When she did answer, she brought a hand up to the back of her neck. "I come from a small island, pretty far from here.." she answered, realizing her gaze had fallen to the ground. Lana let her hand fall back down to her side and once again made eye contact with Holly while she added, "I suppose I'm out here to do some soul-searching." It wasn't entirely untrue, in fact it was a pretty acurate statement. When it came to dragons, Berk seemed pretty different from what she was used to. She figured her opinion on dragons was going to change by the time her time here was done.

Her attention was then grabbed by Dusty, who had spoken about her dragon. The comment made her glance back to the oversized reptiles, who seemed to be playing much like cats or dogs did. Now that was a side of dragons that she had never seen before. She began to wonder what it might feel like to fly on the back of one.. right when Hiccup asked his question. It caught her off guard a bit, since before arriving at Berk she had only known dragon riders to be a rumor. Now suddenly she was offered the chance to fly on a dragon. Both the excitement from Dusty and the very short debate over which dragon was better caused Lana to giggle a bit. "No, I haven't ever flown before. It sounds terrifying actually.." She glanced from the stormcutter to the night fury, taking note that both seemed like expert flyers. She wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

"Um.. which dragon would you say is better with beginners?" Lana asked, glancing back to Dusty and Hiccup. She was so going to regret this later. But she had just spend two weeks on a boat, and was willing to try anything that made her forget the horrible sea. Besides, if she wanted to stay in Berk for a while, she needed to fit in with the rest. Honestly the thought of being up in the sky was already making her stomach churn, but for some strange reason, she was still willing to try it.

"Speech." | 'Thoughts.'

[Midnight[x]Traitor]

Holly watched Lana's movements as she explained where she was from and why she was here. When Lana reached for the back of her neck as she explained where she was from, Holly instantly knew Lana was troubled by something back at home. By what though, she had no idea. It did not seem like she was trying to hide a threat of any sort, but perhaps there was something about where she was from that she did not want to share. Everyone had something to hide, whether it be a dark past or a shameful experience. Lana's eye made eye contact with Holly's again, and explained why she was here. Holly could tell she meant the truth there, and Holly smiled genuinely. Well, if we can help you in any way on your journey feel free to ask.

Lillydew perked up at the word "ride" and playfully nudged Holly in the back. They had not flown today and Holly knew that Lillydew was excited for some riding time. Holly rubbed Lillydew under her chin and answered Lana's question. Both Toothless and Slicediver would never in a million years let you fall, I know that. Neither would my Lillydew. The dragons can sense you are a new rider and will take it easy on you. Toothless is the fastest dragon I know. It would be an honor to ride him for sure. Slicediver is a very smooth flier, especially with his multiple wings. Lillydew is a much older dragon, but she is still a good flier--and very gentle. Lillydew snorted in discontent. Old? You are older than me! Holly pulled a fish out of a sack at her side and threw it in the air. Lillydew snatched it out of the air, swallowing it whole. She nudged Holly for another one.

[Dusty the Small]

Dusty smiled at Lana. "Oh, don't worry. I was terrified to fly too, but Slicediver fixed that right away. He's the third fastest dragon on the island. Toothless first, then the other stormcutter, Cloudjumper. Then Slicediver." Hiccup nodded in agreement. She was proud but honest, just like her dragon.

Since Lillydew was nudging her rider and not playing, Slicediver moved closer to Dusty and brushed her hand with his claw. Toothless went to sit next to Hiccup and puffed his chest out proudly. The other riders were complimenting their dragons. He expected Hiccup would probably do the same.

Hiccup patted the flat of Toothless' head. "Yeah, Toothless is really fast and he won't let you fall, but he's got a bit of a limitation." Dusty ran her hand along Toothless' side and scratched the base of his wing, right in a tickly spot. The dragon, obviously enjoying it, lifted his tail and shook one of his back legs. Hiccup nodded toward the red prosthetic tail fin. "He can't fly on his own. Myself, my wife, my mother, and Dusty are the only ones that know all the tricks to flying him."

Slicediver tilted his head at Dusty and Toothless. He blinked a few times and then got his first good look at the stranger. Curious, he moved a bit closer and sniffed at her from a distance. So that was what they were talking about. There was no dragon smell on her. She didn't have a dragon.

Dusty's Speech	Dusty's Thoughts
Slicediver's Speech	Slicediver's Thoughts
Halvor's Speech	Halvor's Thoughts
Hiccup's Speech	Hiccup's Thoughts
Toothless' Speech	Toothless' Thoughts

[Revan]

Lanayril | Female Wanderer

Lana nodded to Holly with a hint of a smile at her offer. She wasn't eager to talk about her home, but it was nice to know that there was someone to talk to if she was feeling troubled by it later. Holly seemed like an understanding person, perhaps because of her age, because Lana usually founder older individuals to be that way. Until it came to dragons, at least. The older vikings in her village were always stuck in their old ways when dragons were involved, but Berk was different. "Thank you, I'll keep that in mind," Lana finally answered, once again giving a small smile. It was a genuine smile this time, not like before where she smiled because it would have seemed weird not to. On top of that, she was also looking more relaxed.

She listened to Holly's explanation of the dragons, letting her gaze trail from one to the next. Oddly enough to her, the dragons seemed to understand most of the conversation, or at least enough to know that they were being praised. It made her wonder how much dragons could actually understand human communication. She was relieved to hear that the dragons would take it easy on a new rider, but she was not so excited to hear that she was dealing some of the fastest dragons on the island.

When Hiccup spoke, Lana followed his gesture down to his dragon's prosthetic tail fin. How had she not noticed before? It was bring red, obviously not a natural part of the night fury. Lana stared at it for some time, until she realized she was probably being rude in doing so, and looked back to Hiccup. "That's too bad.. but it sounds like you two must have a pretty good relationship since you depending on each other so much." She cast another glance at the tail fin, wondering what had happened to make him lose it. In the middle of her thoughts she was alerted to Slicediver's presence, who had moved a bit closer to sniff at her. The dragon was so large that it made her a bit nervous, but she gave an uneasy smile as if to prove otherwise.

"Speech." | 'Thoughts.'

[Midnight[x]Traitor]

All the dragons seemed to become interested in the girl rather than playing with each other now. Lillydew now stood beside Holly, tilted her head curiously at the girl. While Hiccup and Dusty talked about their dragons, Holly decided she didn't she should probably get rid of her flowers soon if they were going to take flight. She walked to the edge of the dock and knelled down on both knees. The waves were becoming stronger and stronger as the weather warmed up and the ice melted. She felt Lillydew's presence behind her, and was relived that the dragon was there in case she fell in. She knew she should learn how to swim, but every time she started to get into the piercing cold water it made her stop breathing in a panic. The water is so... dark. A large wave splashed up against the dock and made her gasp slightly. She stood up quickly, backing up into Lillydew. The Nadder let Holly lean on, cooing comfortably to her rider. Although she was not born during the time of her rider's mate's death, Holly would often talk to her about it. Sometimes her rider would wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. Lillydew would listen as Holly explained how she fell into a bottomless ocean, and the cold water rushed into her lungs. Lillydew was not afraid of the ocean herself, but certainly did not enjoy the cold water.

Holly turned back to the group, watching as Hiccup showed Lana about Toothless's prosthetic. Despite that, the Night Fury seemed so full of life. You find that many riders bond with their dragon. We rely on each other. She gestured to Berk behind them. If you ask just about anyway on Berk, they will tell you of their bonding with their dragon. I raised Lillydew from an egg, so to us, we are family. The dragon responded by nibbling at Holly's short hair playfully.

[Dusty the Small]

Dusty understood better than most why Holly seemed to freeze up around the water. She couldn't swim either, and she was terrified to try. And she had lost things in the dark water. She had lost people. In an effort to keep things from getting gloomy, she watched Slicediver with interest. He generally met people on his own terms; he didn't like people being introduced to him, rather, he would approach them when he was ready. Usually it was a few sniffs and then he was off. She knew he wouldn't hurt the newcomer, but Lana seemed uncomfortable.

Slicediver straightened his neck as if considering something, and then moved a bit closer to Lana. She was cute, as humans went, like a little hatchling. He reached out with one of his claws and leaned his head to one side a little. Behind him, Dusty laughed a little. "He likes you." She said, walking around to stand on the other side of Hiccup. "That's a rarity." Hiccup remarked. Dusty shrugged. "It's not his fault he doesn't like people."

She turned her attention to Holly as she spoke to Lana, then nodded in agreement. "Yeah, Slicediver's like my big, scaly brother. And Hiccup and Toothless are even closer than that." Hiccup shrugged as Toothless nudged him. Dusty wasn't scratching him anymore and he wanted some attention. "Anyway, if you were to fly, you'd be sharing the saddle. Since it's your first time. And I'm sure you wouldn't want to fly alone."

Dusty's Speech	Dusty's Thoughts
Slicediver's Speech	Slicediver's Thoughts
Halvor's Speech	Halvor's Thoughts
Hiccup's Speech	Hiccup's Thoughts
Toothless' Speech	Toothless' Thoughts

[Revan]

Lanayril | Female Wanderer

Despite her nervousness at being examined by the large dragon, Lana found herself watching Holly as she took her flowers to the water. She wasn't entirely naive, so she had a pretty good idea of what the flowers were for. She didn't make any comments though, as she had enough insight to know that would be innapropriate. Very soon she turned her attention back to Slicediver, who had reached out with one of his claws. This made her take a small step back, but she was reassured by Dusty that the dragon had no harmful intentions. Feeling a bit more confident, she reached out an open palm; similar to the way she'd approach strange dogs or cats back home. She wasn't sure if it was the same procedure for a dragon, but Lana figured it wouldn't hurt to try.

Lana was a little turned out during Dusty's next words, being so focused on the stormcutter, but Hiccup caught her attention again. "That's fine by me. I think it'll be a long time before I fly by myself." It was only a moment later before Lana realized what she had said. She didn't have a dragon, she didn't know that she would even want one, and yet she just implied that she would someday fly by herself on a dragon. Her pessimistic thoughts quickly brought her back to reality. 'You can't tame a dragon. You were almost eaten by one less than a month ago.' The thought made her drop her smile only momentarily, but it soon returned.

"Um, if any of you are willing to take me, I suppose I'd like to try it," Lana finally answered. It was time she tried something new anyway. "I've been on that boat for far too long.. and I've never seen the world from a point higher than the roof of my home. It must be pretty nice, right?"

"Speech." | 'Thoughts.'