I'm so so SO sorry I left you guys hanging for so long. A lot has happened over the last few years. A couple of years ago, I had to go to this jobcorps center which served as a replacement for college. I had to spend a year there only able to come home on weekends. Which did not allow me a lot of update time. Then after I finished my year there, I started working as an overnight cashier at my city's Walmart. Because its overnights, i'm tired all the time so that doesn't make me able to do much updating. The headaches I usually get have also increased in the last couple of years which makes it hard for me to focus on anything without getting dizzy. My flashdrive, which I kept all my writings on, also crashed earlier this year and, since I got a new computer and flashdrive, I've been trying to replace everything I lost, but its not easy. I had to rewrite this chapter from scratch cause I couldn't recover the old file.

Hopefully, I can make it up to you guys! Read and Review!

Chapter 8:

"How's that feel, Rana?" Hiccup asked me as he tied the new prosthetic on.

I shrugged. "It feels okay, I guess." Hiccup nodded slowly.

"Try standing on it. We need to know if you can balance okay on it."

I did as Hiccup said, wobbling for a few seconds until Skalm, who had been staying close by ever since Hiccup and I had gotten back, put her head under my arm.

I slowly put more of my wait on the prosthetic. Hiccup watched me carefully in two different ways. One was the inventor and the other was the protective older brother. "How's it feel now?" He asked.

"Like I have wood and metal tied to my leg." I answered. Hiccup raised an eyebrow at me.

'Rana.' Skalm voice said in my mind. 'Answer him honestly'

I sighed. "Like before, it feels fine but it'll take some time to get used to."

Hiccup nodded. "That sounds about right." He muttered standing up.

I nodded. "So am I free to go?" I asked.

Hiccup thought a moment. "I think you'll be okay, but really Dad is the one that put you under house arrest."

"Oh yeah." I said softly.

A few days later, I was out walking around with Hiccup and our dragons. I was slowly getting used to the prosthetic thank goodness. We walked to the Academy where we found the others waiting for us.

"It's about time!" Snotlout exclaimed. Astrid punched his shoulder. "Ow!"

"Looking good, Rana." Savanna said smiling. I shrugged.

"So what's on the agenda today?" Astrid asked.

As Hiccup explained the plan for the day, I saw Fishlegs eyeing Skalm seriously. I slowly walked over to him. "Hey Fishlegs." I said. "What's up?"

Fishlegs shrugged. "Nothing. Just observing."

"Observing Skalm?" I asked. Fishlegs didn't reply but I already knew the answer. "She isn't dangerous, Fishlegs."

"You lost your leg because she crashed into the side of a cliff!"

"It was an accident. She wasn't as ready to fly as I had originally thought."

Fishlegs frowned. "She's intelligent Rana. She knew you trusted her and used it to her advantage."

"That isn't true!" I exclaimed, getting upset. This attitude wasn't like Fishlegs at all and I couldn't tell where it was coming from. "Skalm is perfectly safe and she trusts me as much as I trust her!"

I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see Hiccup looking between me and Fishlegs. "Now come on guys, break it up. You're not the twins."

"Yeah because we're way too awesome!" Tuffnut exclaimed.

We ignored him as Hiccup looked between me and Fishlegs. "Now what's going on?" He asked.

"I was simply telling Rana that Skalm is an unknown dragon. She could be the most dangerous dragon ever for all we know. I think the rock incident proves it."

"Then why did she protect her Fishlegs? It doesn't make sense if she was only watching out for herself." Hiccup pointed out.

"She could simply be trying to gain our trust."

Astrid and Snotlout walked up to us. "How about we get started?" Astrid said.

"Yeah I wanna show everyone how awesome I am!" Snotlout exclaimed.

"Or how well you can crash?" I asked. Snotlout glared at me.

That night, as I lay in bed, I couldn't stop thinking about what Fishlegs had said. I didn't believe him but then again, what proof did I have? I'd only known Skalm for a couple of weeks now. And her breed was unknown even to Bork the Bold. What if trickery was a trait of the Electric Fang?

I slowly sat up, looking across the room to make sure Hiccup and Toothless were asleep. Hiccup was on his side, facing away from me, the Book of Dragons on the floor near him, and Toothless was curled up just about as tight as he could get on his stone slab.

I quietly got out of bed, thankful when it didn't creak. Toothless's hearing was so good he'd be awake in an instant if it did. I crept downstairs, looking around to make sure Dad wasn't anywhere near. When I didn't see him, I crept out the front door.

As I quietly limped through the village, I looked out towards the academy where I knew Skalm was staying for the time being. I had to speak with her. Even if she lied to me, I needed to see if she would tell me the truth.

The road to the academy seemed a lot longer then it had before, but I assumed that was because I was in a little pain as well as my being alone. The sea came in my line of vision and I stopped for a moment to look out. At night, the sea seemed so peaceful. As I turned to continue my way to the academy, something caught my eye.

I walked closer to the cliff side so that I could get a better view of whatever had caught my vision. Looking close, I saw a ship coming towards us. But that didn't make sense. My dad made sure all of our people were safe in their homes and didn't allow any ships to leave the port.

As the ship inched closer, in the full moon light, I got a good look at the insignia on the sail. That wasn't a Berkian ship. It was an Outcast ship. The Outcasts were heading right for us. And I figured it wasn't just to say hi. I had to let Dad and Hiccup know. Alvin the Treacherous was coming. And who knew what he had planned for us all.

Now, I hope you guys enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. I'll try to be better about updates from now on! If you guys have any suggestions, feel free to let me know! I'm always eager to hear any ideas you guys may have.

BTW Ive also been working on how Rana fits into the first HTTYD movie as well as rider and Defender of Berk and Race to the Edge so that might be the next thing I do after I finish here :)