Chapter 2: Befriending the Enemy

The situation with the supposed ex-Berserker had gotten a bit awkward the first day she was there. Not finding any room, Stoick made a point to offer Hiccup's personal cabin to stay in until they could build an extra one for her, leaving Hiccup to take up his old room in the chief's home. Farrin tried to decline but Hiccup insisted, saying that it was alright and it gave him the excuse to check up on her and try to get to know her despite Astrid's claims of the girl being a spy. Every day though, Farrin spent most of her time with the young Haddock, whether it was to ask him where certain places were again so she could work on making herself some new clothes or him inviting her to go with him to the academy when he had to teach a class to the younger vikings. Even though she still had trouble adjusting to the dragons, the redhead tagged along with him just to see how the kids dealt with everything.

Over the days, Farrin watched Hiccup in fascination during the classes. The way the subject of dragons made his eyes light up made her admire him a little more. He was so passionate, he tried conveying it to his students and even her when she would let Toothless get close enough. It never failed that she would shy away and he would let her, grabbing another student to finish whatever he was trying to demonstrate. He had started the classes with training Terrible Terrors and after a couple classes that Fishlegs taught, the kids all had their own dragons, in different colors, species and sizes.

Wiping his hands off on his pants after feeding Toothless and dismissing the class, Farrin walked next to Hiccup as they left the academy together, the Night Fury walking behind them. "So. Any dragon seem to stand out to you at all yet? I mean, you've been coming to the classes with me almost all week, there has to be some sort of interest." Hiccup asked with a smile, the redhead looking away and shrugging her shoulders somewhat.

"I.. I don't know. I'm still not sure if I should even try, I can hardly handle being around Toothless most of the time." She commented, catching the fallen expression on his face. Sighing, she couldn't stand seeing him look like that and decided to rephrase. "Alright, so eventually I will try, but I just need more time. I'm still trying to get over my fear and the classes are sort of helping me." Farrin added, Hiccup nodding his head.

"I guess it's better then no then." He chuckled softly, Toothless butting his head into the man's palm.

"So, I was wondering if you wanted to join me for dinner tonight. I thought about cooking instead of grabbing something from the great hall since I saw you had some cooking pans I could use." Farrin asked, placing her hands behind her as she tried not to blush from the smile that crossed his face.

"Ah, been snooping around huh?" He playfully teased, the redhead huffing indignantly. "Sure though. As long as you aren't trying to poison me, some people might notice." At this, sea green eyes rolled as that had been a topic over the week of Astrid thinking she was a spy and voicing her concern to anyone who would listen, Hiccup starting to treat it almost like a joke.

"Har har, very funny." Walking back into the village, they mostly walked on the outskirts before reaching Hiccup's cabin and stepping inside. Signaling Toothless, the dragon lit the fire pit in the middle of the room while Farrin went to a chest to grab out some meat she had picked up, as well as a big pot to cook the meat and some cabbage in. Putting the pot over the fire on a hook, she poured some beef stock and water into the pot for it all to cook and placed the lid on top. Hiccup had sat on the makeshift couch he made a couple years back in front of the fire and smiled when Farrin came to join him, sitting on the opposite end while they now waited. "So what is your friend's deal with me?" She asked, tone cautious but at the same time curious, even if Astrid was right with her assumptions.

Hiccup shrugged his shoulders as he scratched behind a flap on Toothless's head, the dragon purring happily to the attention. "A few years ago, this girl named Heather washed up on shore and Astrid didn't trust her the moment she stepped foot on Berk. Well, she sort of ended up being right since Heather was sent here to get our book of dragons, but she was forced because this not so very nice man had her parents and threatened to kill them if she didn't... I guess Astrid was right, but I really don't think it would happen a second time to us." Farrin slightly paled to the story and looked away, nervously running her fingers through the ends of her hair and sighed as she thought about the choices in her life. "But that's why she's kind of hostile. Once she has her mind set on something, it's hard to make her see that she's wrong. Hopefully-" He dragged the word out purposefully, "-she'll come to see that you aren't some spy she's concocted and maybe you guys could even be friends." Wishful thinking, but Hiccup could hope. Farrin laughed somewhat.

"Yeah, and that'll be the day I ask to go flying." She said, Hiccup frowning slightly at the thought of her never wanting to fly.

"Can I ask what's behind your fear of dragons? I don't want to pry but..." Farrin shook her head and sighed, knowing that this question would be coming.

"It's fine. When I was younger, I lost my sister to a Night Fury. I honestly don't remember the incident, but I remember my parents telling me that was what happen. And a couple years after, I lost my parents to a Monstrous Nightmare. That was all before I ended up with the Berserker tribe." She explained, trying to keep a nonchalant attitude but her face falling a bit as she thought about it. Hiccup shifted towards her and wanted to reach out but instead was only able to put his hand down on the space between them. It wasn't everyday he heard of another Night Fury sighting, but if it had been from a time she didn't remember, it must have been a long time ago. And it wasn't normal after living with Toothless for so long to think that a Night Fury could kill someone.

"I'm... really sorry Farrin." He didn't know what to say, not wanting to say anything inconsiderate that might offend her. The redhead looked up to him and smiled sadly, shrugging somewhat.

"It's alright. It's life. They were vikings and they were just trying to protect me." Farrin had long accepted the fact that her family was gone and felt like she moved on. Hiccup swallowed nervously and took notice that her hand had moved closer to his and took her hand to give it a comforting squeeze, along with a sympathetic smile.

"I know this probably won't make you feel better, but I lost my mother when I was a baby. So I sort of know what the pain feels like. My dad wasn't always around either or if he was, he never really listened to me." He explained, feeling her hand move, her fingers wrapping around the palm and back of his hand as his did the same.

"Guess we both had family issues then." Hiccup nodded his head and chuckled quietly.

"I guess so." It was a weird feeling he had around Farrin but he decided that he liked it enough to continue to make the effort on getting to know her. It helped that she was opening up to him over the past week and it was easy to get along with her more so then he thought it would when he first found her on the boat and all he would get were nearly one or a couple worded answers. Spending the rest of the night talking about unimportant things and sharing funny moments in their lives, eating the actually edible dinner she had cooked, Hiccup bid her goodnight later on and headed home with Toothless.

The next day, Farrin spent with him in the forge, watching him repair weapons and help create custom saddles. Storm clouds rolled over the village and when the rain started, Hiccup called it a day and they headed over to the chief's home before the rain got to bad. They had seen Stoick on their venture to the cabin and he found shelter in the great hall with a few other vikings, Hiccup figuring that he wouldn't be coming home tonight with the company and possibly drinking, which was totally fine with him. Shaking out his hair once they stepped inside, Farrin wiped off her arms of the excess water and shivered somewhat. Noticing the small tremor that moved her, Hiccup looked to Toothless with a smile. "Mind helping us out bud?" He asked, chuckling when the dragon shook his body and quickly spit out a small blast to start the fire. "There, that should help warm us up. Want something to drink?"

"If you're offering, I'll take whatever you got." Farrin replied, now wringing out her hair with this grin on her face that suddenly made his face heat up and could already sense his cheeks were red.

"Right..." He muttered, moving to grab two mugs and filled them up with some ale. The redhead moved to sit at the table once she finished with her hair and looked around the bottom floor of the cabin curiously while he brought the mugs over. "Here you are mi'lady." He said, placing on in front of her and the girl nodding her head in thanks as she took it and swigged a quick drink. She laughed quietly after putting it down. "What?"

"Its just kind of funny. Any time I take a drink of something, I'm always expecting it to be mead." An eyebrow rose as Hiccup shifted in his chair towards her.

"Oh?" He inquired, curious.

"Drinking helped me forget the day and sleep. Gave me more peaceful dreams then ones filled with senseless violence. Or no dreams at all, I didn't mind those either." Farrin explained, tilting her mug slightly as she thought about where she used to be and where she was now. How could she think of betraying them? Betraying Hiccup when he put so much faith in her that she wasn't what Astrid knew she was. Maybe she wouldn't go through with Dagur's plot. She wouldn't report back and she'd try to become part of their village.

"Well, did you want something... stronger?" He asked, bringing her out of her thoughts and caused her to look up to him and smiled, shaking her head.

"No, it's fine. I don't feel like I need to drink here. Except when Toothless stares me down or any other dragon." She joked, laughing quietly. The rain started to pick up and they could hear it pelting the roof, Farrin looking up and frowning somewhat. "Do you mind if I stay here until the rain settles down?" She asked, Hiccup smiling.

"Sure. You might be here until tomorrow though, just so you know." He explained, knowing that when it rained, it rained for a while. Farrin shrugged.

"That's totally fine with me." The girl replied, taking another drink while Hiccup chuckled nervously. Getting up, he went to grab an extra blanket and pillow that he could find and placed them on the couch. "I'll take the couch." She announced, the man looking like he was about to protest but she put a hand up to stop him. "Thanks though." Sighing when she wouldn't really let him get a word out, he simply shook his head and ran a hand through his hair.

"Well, I think we're gonna head upstairs for the night. If you need anything, you know where I am."

"Goodnight Hiccup." The man returned the gesture and headed up to his room and got ready for bed, Toothless curling up on the rock slab that he could warm up with his plasma blast. The rain continued to fall, the storm getting worse throughout the night and soon the dreaded sound of thunder filled the cabin that woke Farrin up gasping for breath. Sitting up straight, she pushed the blanket off her lap and waited in dread for the sound to fill the cabin again. It wasn't long before she heard another clap of thunder and the bright flashing light of lightning following, causing the girl to stand and move towards the stairs.

She didn't want to bother him while he was sleeping. But she didn't want to be alone when back on the other island she at least had one person to help her through any storms that rolled in. Walking up the stairs slowly after grabbing her pillow, she paused every time a roll of thunder rumbled through the house and cringed until she pushed the door open. Toothless immediately looked up from his bed to the redhead and Farrin pleaded with her eyes that he wouldn't get up. Getting closer to the bed, she looked over the man sleeping in bed and thought he looked peaceful. She contemplated not waking him up and deal with her silly fear by herself until another clap of thunder made her jump slightly.

"Hiccup?" Farrin whispered, reaching forward and shaking his shoulder gently. "Hiccup.." She whispered again louder, the man stirring from sleep now.

"Mm? What...?" He slurred, shifting onto his back and sleepily opened his eyes to see the redhead standing over him. "Farrin? What's wrong? He asked, slowly waking up as he moved to sit up in his bad. The girl pursed her lips and it made him more worried. "Are you okay?" He urged, eyes widening a bit. She quickly nodded her head which made him feel relieved but with another roll of thunder, he watched as her eyes closed tight. "You're afraid of thunder?" Farrin nodded.

"Can I.. stay with you until it stops?" Blushing faintly, Hiccup shifted in his bed and pulled the cover up and cleared his throat. Grateful, Farrin crawled into the bed next to him and tried not to look at his face that was turning an unhealthy shade of red. "Thank you." Laying down, the young man beside her was a bit rigid as he followed her example and laid down awkwardly. There was hardly any room on the bed with both of them lying on their back so Farrin shifted to her side and scooted closer to the edge of the bed so he could take up most of the space again. Clearing his throat again, Hiccup tore his eyes away from the ceiling to glance over to her, moving into the space she gave him.

"S-so, is there a, uh, story that goes along with this fear?" He asked nervously, moving his arms under his pillow and under his head to try and keep them from wanting to instinctively wrap around the girl. Her moving closer to him didn't help, Farrin moving the pillow she had in her hand under her head as she shifted closer to his warmth and pulled the blanket up to her shoulders and to his chest.

"I used to love the sound of thunder when I was younger and the rain. One day I was playing outside during the rain and--" Cringing at the sound, she took in a deep breath and continued on. "I was wearing steel shoulder pads my dad had made me and I didn't know I was a great target for lightning to hit." Moving one hand, she pulled down her right sleeve so the collar of her shirt was pulled down over her shoulder, showing off a scar going over her should. Hiccup looked down at it and winced. "Yeah. Since then, I've been kind of paranoid with thunder since lightning usually follows. Even inside I'm afraid it'll just start a fire and burn me alive wherever I'm staying." She explained, letting go of her shirt and shifting her hands between her and his sides.

"Well.. I could understand the fear then." He mumbled, sleep starting to take over again but still awake enough to keep on with their conversation.

"Yeah. Being with someone sort of helps me cope." Farrin added shyly, staring at his wool shirt and timidly touching the shirt.

"Did you.. have someone out in the Berserker tribe to help?" He asked, slightly curious but at the same time not wanting to hear the answer for some reason, what reason that was he couldn't exactly place. The girl shrugged her shoulders somewhat.

"I did, but that was a while ago." There was a silence that grew between them and Farrin let out a quiet yawn that she covered with her hand.

"Why don't you try sleeping? I mean, I'm probably going to fall asleep anytime soon, which I apologize in advance right now if I do.." He said, chuckled quietly, blushing when he felt her move more into his side. One hand slid out from under the pillow and experimentally wrapped around her back. When she didn't move or protest, his body relaxed a little, then he felt her nod her head.

"Thank you, for letting me stay." She mumbled quietly, closing her eyes. The rain went on through the night and so did the thunderstorm. The sounds startled her a couple times during the night but each time Hiccup subconsciously squeezed her closer while the sounds never affected him but her movements did. While there were certain times that she woke up, she was able to go back to sleep every time, thinking to herself it might have been one of the best nights of sleep she'd had in a long time. Now if only it hadn't of rained, it would have been the best night of sleep next to the young dragon trainer.

The morning after, it was still drizzling outside, but the thunder had subsided. Hiccup would have continued to keep sleeping with the warm body wrapped in his arms if his dragon didn't have other ideas. Feeling Toothless's head butting into his back as sometime during the night he'd turned onto his side, Hiccup groaned quietly. His face buried into a head of red hair and squeezed the body tighter, letting go though when he heard a quiet squeak emit from the person he was squeezing. Pulling away, he blinked a few times to try and gain his bearings, suddenly remembering last night that Farrin had stayed because of the storm and came up to his room because the thunder scared her. She seemed to be sleeping soundly now that he pulled away enough to see her face. She didn't look like the scared mess he woke up to during the night at least.

More pushing against his back caused Hiccup to groan and lay away from the girl, blushing. "Alright alright, I'm getting up." He grumbled towards his dragon, Farrin finally waking up and stretching. "Well good morning sleepy head." He greeted with a smile as he threw his leg over the edge of the bed and grabbed his prosthetic to strap on. The girl yawned and sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"Morning." She replied in a groggy tone that made him smile wider.

"So... Sleep well?" He asked, casting her a sideways glance, the smile faltering for a moment while his cheeks turned pink. He watched as her cheeks took on a faint hue of red as well as she ran a hand through her hair.

"Yeah, I actually did." She replied, smiling. Moving out of bed and stretching again, she moved to the door and looked back to him. "I'll make some breakfast for us to show my gratitude. And.. get some fish out for Toothless." She added, not to comfortable with the idea, but knowing it would be rude if she didn't include the dragon when they were sort of a package.

"I'm sure he'd appreciate it." Hiccup chuckled, smiling again when she nodded and left to go back down stairs while he grabbed some new pants to change into and get ready to start the day, raining or not.

Chapter 1: Spy Among Us

Living with the Berserker’s tribe was almost enough to drive any sane person to become insane. It didn’t help when you were all alone with no one to call family and you were easily dispensable when you had no ties to the clan or anyone who would possibly miss you except maybe one person. It makes you… an easy target. Farrin Understoff usually learns those things the hard way, despite just trying to blend in, not cause any trouble and follow a daily routine she’d set for herself in this godforsaken place. Her abnormal red and blonde colored hair and choice of outfits were essentially her downfall though when the deranged chief called out to her one day while in the village. She stood out from the crowd, as usual and was the quickest person to be spotted.

“Farrin!” He greeted rather cheerfully with a wide smile on his face. She had already visibly paled by the time he reached her and she shifted awkwardly to lean her weight on her left leg and rest the basket of food she had on her hip.

“What do you want?” Her tone caused Dagur to laugh, placing a hand on her shoulder and forced her to walk with him to wherever it was he was leading her.

“I need your help with something! It would require you to leave the island though.” He explained, though it was vague and Farrin raised an eyebrow at what it was he could need from her. The sound of leaving sounded heavenly, but at what price would that sort of freedom cost her?

“And where would I be going?” She asked, pressing him to continue explaining whatever it was he was thinking. Dagur led her into one of the larger buildings on the island close to the cliffs and pushed her inside. Returning his hand back to her arm, he brought her to stand in front of a table with a map on it, now raising his arms as if everything about his plan could be understood just by looking at the map.

“Berk, dear Farrin, where the only known Night Fury resides along with the man who continues to keep me from killing it and the very person who stole my Skrill and hid it from me.” She already hated the sound of this and where it could possibly be going as she placed her basket down to her feet, glancing at the map before looking back to her chief. This freedom she was thinking of, this wasn’t it.

“Alright, why am I going there exactly?” Farrin questioned, seeing Dagur’s expression getting crazier looking by the second.

“To spy on them of course!” He threw his hands up in the air to express his excitement. “I need to know his weaknesses, the village’s weak points, everything! But in order to do this, I need someone there, earning their trust and learning their secrets and everything about them that can be exploited and used against them!” Crossing her arms, Farrin could already tell that this idea or plan of his wouldn’t work. There was nothing in it for her because if she went through with this, she’d either wind up dead or back on this island in the end and she didn’t like either of those choices. Might as well stick to what she was used too.

“I’m not going, find someone else.” Grabbing her basket, she was ready to leave before Dagur snatched the object from her and tossed it across the room, leaving the red head to stare with wide eyes as all her hard earned food laid on the disgusting floor and with nothing that could be salvaged. His smile only grew wider.

“I don’t think I gave you a choice, now did I? Either you go or you can meet your parents in the afterlife. I can always arrange that if that’s how you feel.” He threatened in a sickly sweet tone that made Farrin cringe. At this point death sounded like such an easy way out, but at the same time her parents never would have wanted her to go out like that over something so trivial. She was almost lucky they weren't around anymore or he probably would have threatened to kill them too.

Glaring at this chief she'd grown to hate, there was no getting past this plan he had in his head or that he'd decided that she would be the one to infiltrate the village and get them to trust her with their lives. “Why me? What makes you think that I can win over some… dragon lovers and get them to trust me?” She asked, now wondering why he’d chosen her out of his entire clan that he could have sent. He laughed as if it was such a simple answer and she was overlooking it.

“Because. Your life depends on it, I think anyone can do whatever it is they need to to protect their own skin and I know you’re great at telling stories!” He exclaimed, looking back at the map. Farrin didn't want to lose her life over refusing not to go, but at the same time, she didn’t want innocent people to get hurt either… But she didn’t know any of them and Dagur was right. She had to look out for herself. With a heavy sigh she looked down in defeat.

"...When do I leave?" Dagur chuckled and grinned almost maniacally.

"Right now, hopefully you'll reach Berk by morning. Try not to let them know about this plan, would you? I feel very gracious and I don't want to have to kill you. So come up with whatever story you'd like to help make you... more believable." He said as he gestured to her, before motioning for someone who was apparently in the room to come up behind Farrin and struck her in the head with some sort of heavy object that had instantly knocked the girl out. Satisfied with the job, Dagur pointed down to Farrin's unconscious which the older Viking had bent down to pick her up and followed Dagur out to the docks. "Put her on the most beaten up boat we have and guide it to Berk territory. Once you see Berk, leave the boat and return back, understand? And if she wakes up, well, don't let her wake up." Dagur instructed before leaving the older man to his own devices as a few others came to join him as per chief's orders.

They were lucky they had made it to Berk before the sun had risen. Farrin was luckier to have stayed knocked out the entire night without having to go through the painful experience of being bludgeoned again. Leaving the decrepit boat to drift on the open waters, the Berserkers set sail to return back to the island, their boat out of sight by the time the sun had peaked over the horizon and shined over Berk on the last day of summer. From the island itself, the boat might not have been completely visible but if someone were to see it from above, it wouldn't be hard to spot the red haired girl wearing a tan colored shirt that very much contrasted against the dark wood or that the boat had a tattered Berserker flag hanging from one of the sails pitifully.

Back on Berk, people were just starting to get up and fell into their usually comfortable routine. The younger generations of Vikings weren’t so quick to getting up, but the chief’s son had made himself get up out of bed for the sake of practicing and enjoying the last day of warmth and sun. Toothless had bounded up the stairs to the young man’s room after Stoick had let him in and eagerly waited for his friend to get up so they could eat and then go fly. Impatient, the large dragon nudged his nose into the blankets and let out a very impatient garbled sound. The young man laughed as he sat up, placing a hand on Toothless’s head. “Alright bud, I’m up.” Hiccup mumbled, swinging his leg over the side of the bed and grabbing his prosthetic to strap on. One of the reason he liked the summer; he hardly had to deal with the pain of his missing limb as much as he did during the other seasons.

Once that task was finished of strapping on his metal foot, he got out of bed and threw on some fresher clothes before heading down the stairs to grab something quick to eat and knocked over a small bucket of fish for his impatient dragon. Toothless ate all the fish in a matter of two minutes which made Hiccup shake his head, opening the front door. “There, you had your breakfast, can we go flying now?” He chuckled, listening to the Night Fury gurgle in response as he trotted past his rider and waited for him outside. Jumping onto the saddle with plenty of year’s worth of skill now, they were off the ground in seconds and slowly climbing higher into the sky as a warm up.

Hiccup usually expected the waters around Berk to be pretty bare when it came to ships when he knew that no one from the village had left and all the ships were accounted for at the docks. So it was clear to him that there was indeed a boat out on the water and it didn’t look like one of theirs. Leaning back in the saddle to stop their ascent, the young man stared at the boat for a minute and could barely even make out what was on the sail. “Let’s take a closer look bud.” Toothless responded and dove down towards the water, cautious when approaching the boat. Finally Hiccup was able to see the tattered Berserkers symbol on the destroyed sail and was even more hesitant in approaching the boat. There looked like no one was on it, but moving a bit higher just to make sure, they both saw the figure lying on the deck of the boat not moving. “Oh this is probably not good.” He muttered to himself before leaning forward to have Toothless land on the boat.

Checking the surroundings first, Hiccup was slow to approach the red headed Viking in case this was an ambush, taking note that the Viking’s hair oddly changed colors at the end to blonde. It wasn’t a normal blonde either but pushing the thought aside, he knelt beside the body and gently put a hand on the (what he determined to be a woman since the body was too small to be a man) woman’s shoulder, shaking it slightly. “Hey." There was no response from the female and beside him he could feel Toothless moving closer, sniffing at the girl’s hair before huffing and nudging her head. “Easy Toothless.” Hiccup chided quietly, putting a hand on the side of the dragon’s head. A groan suddenly escaped the female and she shifted somewhat as if waking up. Both dragon and rider’s attention returned to the stranger who slowly pushed herself up from the floor and moved her knees so she could sit up.

“Gods my head…” She mumbled, somewhat disoriented. Holding the back of her head, sea green eyes fluttered open and landed on Hiccup for a moment before looking up to the dragon that was trying to inch towards her but kept at bay by the man’s hand. Hiccup could see the woman visibly tense at the sight of Toothless and could see her eyes widen in what he was able to tell was fear. He remembered the same look on most of his friends when he first introduced them to their dragons and knew he’d have to teach her that she had nothing to be afraid of, at least with Toothless.

“It’s alright; we’re not going to hurt you.” He stated, attempting to push Toothless back but to no avail. Sighing, he placed his hand on his knee before glancing back at the woman who was torn between looking at him and the Night Fury. “Your boat is, uh, pretty destroyed…” He said, wondering if he could grab her attention long enough to get her to pay attention to him and not the black dragon standing beside him. “Are you... from the Berserker tribe?” Glancing at the sail again, the woman looked up as well and remained silent for a moment.

“I was.” She replied, her tone cautious as she pulled her hair over her left shoulder. Hiccup’s eyebrows knitted together in confusion as to what she meant and waited for her to continue but apparently she wasn’t going to unless he asked.

“What happened?” The girl shifted to sit on her bottom and placed her face in her hands for a minute. Running her fingers through her red hair, she looked away from him and to the sides of the boat, obviously thinking.

“I stole this boat, to get away from the island. Someone saw me and told the chief and he had his guards come after me and they destroyed the boat when they finally caught up and left me out here to die. I think I've been drifting all night.” Hiccup pursed his lips at the story. It sounded solid enough, but he knew that Astrid would probably think he was still too trusting even though the incident with Heather had been so many years ago that he’d almost forgotten about it. Something about the way she held herself though made her seem like someone who wouldn’t intentionally hurt someone and that maybe she could be trusted. Anyone trying to get away from the Berserkers and Dagur must have been sane.

“Are you hurt anywhere?” Hiccup questioned, wondering in the back of his mind how she even got out of the whole situation alive when he knew how eccentric Dagur was and that he wasn’t afraid to kill people. The girl tried shaking her head but instantly winced in pain.

“My head; I think I got hit, but I feel okay except for a headache.” She replied, pulling her hand away from her hair and checking to see if there was any blood. Hiccup looked too and was relieved to see that there was no evidence of the dark liquid red substance anywhere. Letting out a sigh he stood up and held his hand out for her to take so he could help her up. She stared at it for a moment and hesitantly took it, Hiccup using his strength to pull her up. The girl stumbled slightly and leaned into him for a second before she straightened up and brushed off her knees. “Thanks.” She murmured, brushing her bangs behind her ear. He smiled.

“I’m Hiccup by the way.” He introduced, hearing an impatient huff beside him which caused him to chuckle. The girl’s shoulders hunched slightly at the reminder of the dragon that was still present. “And this is Toothless. I promise he won’t hurt you; none of the dragons on Berk will hurt you… on purpose at least. They tend to rough house with some of the Vikings.” Rubbing the back of his head, he chuckled nervously as it didn’t seem to help relax the girl at all. She took a step back to put some distance between her and the dragon.

“I’m Farrin.” Hiccup’s smile got a little wider as he nodded in acknowledgement to the name, storing it away in the back of his mind to recall upon later since he was sure he was going to need it if she stayed on Berk.

“Well, if you’re ready to get off this ship, I think Toothless and I can tow you back to the docks and get you back to land.” Farrin nodded her head to the offer and Hiccup got up to look for rope so he could tie to the front of the boat and make it as a pull for Toothless. He would have just left the ship out here and taken the girl back on his dragon, but he didn’t feel like further traumatizing her then what she’d already been through.

Finding rope under a bucket, he moved to wrap it around the front of boat where he was surprised was still intact and kept the other end of the rope in his hand once he returned back to Toothless. “Alright, just hold on. Have you back on land in just a few.” Hopping on to the saddle, Hiccup shifted his prosthetic foot and Toothless was air bound again. Tossing the rope for the Night Fury to grab in his claws, towing the boat to the docks was simple and easy, only taking about ten minutes. Landing back on the docks, Hiccup tied the rope to one of the posts and watched as the red headed girl jumped down from the destroyed boat and onto the docks, a little wobbly at first but righting herself just seconds after.

"Welcome to Berk." Hiccup said after finally deciding that it felt right and it was possibly the best thing he could say. He watched as she looked around and then up towards the cliffs where the village was and chuckled quietly. "Come on, I'll show you around." He then offered, Farrin's attention brought back to him as she smiled. Her smile caused him to smile and before he knew it, Toothless pushed him as he had ended up staring at the woman in front of him. A faint blush crossed his cheeks, clearing his throat and motioning to where they were headed and she took it as indication to walk beside him while Toothless walked behind them. "So, uh, just to prepare you, there are a lot of dragons here. I know there aren't a lot or even any on the Berserkers island." Hiccup said, wondering if her fear back on the boat would be a problem for her.

"I'll be fine. They won't bother me will they?" Farrin asked, glancing up to him for an answer. His hand opened and his fingers spread, tilting it to the side as a sign of uncertainty.

"They might, but like I said, they won't hurt you. They are all pretty tame. Who knows, maybe if you stick around, you'll find one you like." Hiccup said, now wondering if she planned on staying here or if she planned on leaving the next opportunity she had. Farrin laughed quietly as she shook her head, causing the man to frown somewhat before she spoke.

"Trust me, dragons may be great and all, but I think I'll just stick to not having a dragon for quite a while." She noticed the frown pulling more at his lips once she looked over to him and sighed. "I um, just need time to adjust. I don't even know if I'll be staying here for long." She added, staring at the path ahead of them and they walked in awkward silence.

Thankful that his Night Fury distracted him most of the way up, Farrin looked around the village as it came into view and all the buildings. There were dragons flying in and out of one large building that was closest to the cliff they were just about finished climbing up from and Hiccup caught her looking. "That's our newest hangar for all the dragons if they can't fit inside their families home, gives them space to themselves and they're free to come and go whenever they want." He told her, the redhead nodding her head as she took in the knowledge to store in the back of her mind.

Upon reaching the ground of the village, he threw his arms open dramatically. "And this is Berk. Dragons pretty much everywhere. Again, I'm sorry if they bother you." Hiccup said, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked to her. Approaching the two was Astrid, needing to talk to the young man for an upcoming dragon race but automatically locked on to the stranger with abnormal red and blonde hair.

"Um, hey Hiccup. Who is this?" She asked, promptly crossing her arms when she stopped in front of them and Hiccup paled slightly.

"Oh, hey Astrid. This is, uh, Farrin. Farrin, Astrid." He introduced nervously, Astrid quickly narrowing her eyes on the brown haired man. "I found her on a destroyed boat that floated in past the markers near the docks. I couldn't leave her out on the ocean, so Toothless and I pulled her boat to the docks and I was just about to take her to the Great Hall for something to eat, if you cared to join us?" It was just better to invite her along now then try brushing her off Hiccup had learned. The offer didn't settle well with Farrin but she knew she had no say over this decision.

"Alright then, I'll join." The blonde replied, Hiccup walking again with Astrid to his right and Farrin walking to his left. "We still need to set up for the annual dragon racing and I thought we could practice, but I guess we'll have to wait." She said, her tone getting an octave higher at the end. The two talked on the way to the great hall while Farrin listened to them talk and tried ignoring all the looks the blonde kept tossing her way. Inside, they got some food and something to drink and sat at the same table, Astrid sitting next to Hiccup while the newcomer sat across from him.

"So Farrin, where did you come from and why was your boat destroyed?" Astrid asked, setting down her mug while the redhead paused in eating.

"I'm from the Berserker tribe, but I couldn't stand living there anymore. I stole a boat to get away from the island. Someone saw me and told the chief and he had his guards come after me and they destroyed the boat when they finally caught up and left me out on the ocean to die. I think I was drifting all night. One of them hit me in the head and I've been out since then until Hiccup found me." She explained, at least starting out that she was from the tribe and that she wasn't trying to lie about it, sticking to her original story that she had told Hiccup. Though the hit to the head still hurt and her hand moved to the side where she could feel the bump and cringed.

Looking away from Astrid, Farrin looked to Hiccup and her lips pulled up into a small smile of appreciation. "Thank you again though, for bringing me back to land. I don't think I said it before." This was at least genuine, and she was glad that she could be truthful about most things instead of feeling completely guilty about lying to them. She figured that she'd have to live with them for a few months or more so she needed to try and make friends if she could. Hiccup smiled to her gratitude and gave her a slight nod.

"You're welcome." Astrid watched the interaction and groaned, getting up from the table and grabbing his arm.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" She asked, Hiccup reluctantly following when her grip had tightened on his bicep, thinking that she'd leave a bruise if he didn't start moving. Excusing them Astrid walked him over to where they were out of ear shot and glared at him. "Are you seriously buying this story?" She asked, Hiccup looking at her with wide green eyes.

"What? If you lived in the same tribe with Dagur, wouldn't you try leaving?" He asked, trying to defend the redhead somewhat.

"Would Dagur really let her leave or live for the matter? There's something fishy about this, and I don't like it. She could be a spy and you're just welcoming her with open arms like a target just waiting to get stabbed." She said in a low tone, expressing her dislike for the newcomer already.

"Come on Astrid, just give her a chance. She doesn't even like dragons, how could she be a spy if that's what Dagur would want her to spy on?" He asked, pointing to Farrin for Astrid to see, trying to scooch away from Toothless who was getting closer to her and she was at the edge of the table bench.

Astrid looked back to Hiccup and shook her head. "Fine. If you want to trust her, then she's your responsibility. And she still needs somewhere to stay. Don't you dare think about asking my parents about the spare room though." She threatened, giving him one more pointed glare before leaving the great hall to blow off all her frustration on training with Stormfly. Hiccup sighed deeply once she left and ran a hand through his hair, feeling that this was going to be a long few days at least until everything hopefully settled down.