Edge of Memory

Chapter 10: The Echo Between Us

The island wind had changed again.

You felt it in your chest — a pull you couldn't explain. Like a forgotten voice calling you through your bones.

Nyx paced the cliff's edge behind you. Her scales were sharp with static, her wings twitching even without wind.

She felt it too.

And though no one said it aloud, everyone knew:
It was time.

You'd go to the island soon.
To find Vox.
To see if he still remembered you.

But first... there was something else you hadn't faced yet.

⸻

⸻

The storms had quieted.

But only in the sky.

Inside the war room, the tension curled like smoke, invisible but choking. The Riders barely spoke, and when they did, it was clipped, functional. No jokes. No flirting. No teasing.

Especially not from Snotlout.

And you had noticed.

⸻

Distance

You first realized it at training three days ago. He didn't try to spar with you. He didn't even make a "dragon rider of mystery" entrance. He stayed quiet. Neutral.

Professional.

It was weird.

Then again at dinner. He took the seat farthest from yours — next to Ruffnut, of all people. He nodded when you spoke. But the eye contact? Gone.

And again today, when he passed you a tool during a repair drill with a simple "here" and no comment. No wink. No "don't fall for me too fast" nonsense.

Which, truthfully... you kind of missed.

You weren't sure why.

⸻

The Plan (And the Silence)

That evening, Hiccup laid the new island assault plan on the table: a stealth infiltration team (you, Astrid, and Hiccup) would make landfall at first light, with Toothless and Nyx circling as overwatch.

Your job? Reach Vox. Try to reawaken the bond.
But also?
Be ready to end it, if he couldn't be pulled back.

You said nothing.

Neither did Snotlout.

He just leaned against the back wall, arms folded, watching.

Expression unreadable.

When Hiccup dismissed the group, you lingered.

So did he.

But he didn't speak to you.

And that was the moment you realized:

You missed the noise.
The chaos.
Him.

And that's when you decided: you'd get a reaction.

Even if it meant lighting the match yourself.

⸻

Later – Training Grounds

It was dark by the time you tracked him down again. Snotlout was alone, tossing a small dagger into a tree trunk repeatedly, each thunk duller than the last.

You walked up behind him without a word.

Then said, "You know, for someone who talks so much, you've been very boring lately."