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“Who’s going out first tonight?” Mala asked the girls as they got ready backstage. She wore her favorite sequin cold shoulder top and dark jeans, her golden soulmark peeking out from under the sleeve.
“Depends,” Elsa said, finishing her blue and silvery makeup as Astrid tightened the laces on her shorts. “What do we have booked?”
Heather nodded her head.
“What she said,”
The Dragon’s Dagger was a strip club in the city, run by Heather’s older brother Dagur and his wife Mala. Some people thought it would be weird for someone to run a club where their baby sister pole danced, but Dagur had boundaries. He was never in the room when she danced.
Currently, the club employed seven dancers. Elsa, Astrid, Atali, Heather and Merida were traditional dancers, but they each had their own styles. Rapunzel was the club's silks performer, and had her own corner set up with the necessary equipment. Finally, Rapunzel’s boyfriend Jack worked part time as a bouncer, but also as a dancer after Mala had caught him trying out a pole.
“Hic’s friends are coming in,” Merida called from the back.
‘Well,’ Heather thought. ‘That explains why she’s wearing the good bra,’
“Shit,” Astrid muttered. “I forgot it was a birthday,”
‘Hic’ was Hiccup Haddock, Astrid's childhood friend and Merida’s soulmate. His friends had a dumb tradition of going to the Dragon’s Dagger on someones twenty first birthday to celebrate. Merida and Hiccup had met and learned they were soulmates when he’d accidentally spooked her outside the club. She’d punched him in the jaw, so their soulmarks were across her knuckles and slightly under his chin.
“This is the last one though,” Merida said.
“Only means they’ll be in here more,” Astrid muttered. “I know Snotlout too well,”
Heather grinned and leaned back, pretending to finish putting her shoes on while the others talked. In reality, she was looking down at the ink splotch on her arm, which would one day burst into color when she touched her soulmate.
Letting out a breath, she grabbed a set of fishnet gloves from her table and yanked them on, standing up to snag a spot in the roster before Mala chose it for her.
The night started around seven, with Dagur and Throk on bouncer duties since Jack had the night off. Mala supervised both the backstage and floor, and then their main bartender Minden manned the bar.
Elsa took the first dance set, followed by Atali and Astrid. When the blonde came back, she breathed a sigh of relief about only having to do half a song for her friends, muttering something about ‘dumb boys’.
Rapunzel went out to do her silks set at nine, and reported that Hiccup and the birthday boy were definitely the most well behaved of the bunch.
“God, even Ruffnut’s as bad as Snotlout!” Astrid moaned. Merida laughed and took her slot. Since she knew she was next, Heather slipped out to watch her, then smirked as the red head mainly focused on Hiccup, taking pride in how red he got everytime she looked at him.
Merida was also just really good at pole in general. She had good leg muscles and core strength, which let her do some really fun moves if she wanted.
And then it was Heather's turn. Mala gestured her out, pointing her towards the other pole on the main stage.
“I’m messing with the birthday boy?” She asked, and Mala smiled.
“Only if you want the extra tips,” She said. Heather grinned and took the bills, tucking it into her waistband as she reached the stage.
The music changed to a new song - one of Heather's personal favorites. She did a few combos to warm up, dipping and sliding effortlessly before flipping around to face the group. She did recognize the group, although this would be her first time dancing specifically for them.
They were a small group - mostly guys, one girl. The loudest was definitely the bulky dark haired dude and the skinny blonde guy, while the skinny blonde girl was flip flopping between interested and screaming Heather’s praises. In the back, Hiccup was looking at his phone, cheeks very red because he didn’t want to do anything to make Merida mad.
And then the special guest. Fishlegs, Astrid had said.
He was tall, bulky and blonde, and also very red in the face. It was probably a mix of being the center of attention and all the alcohol, since it was a twenty-first birthday celebration after all.
“Are you the birthday boy?” She asked, bending over at the waist and leaning all the way down to match eye contact. Before Fishlegs could answer, she reached out, twirling her hand around his arm and slowly standing back up. The edges of their fingertips brushed together as the song ended, and Heather walked off stage, pausing to collect her tips.
She grabbed a water bottle as she reentered the room, Atali and Elsa taking her place for the side stages.
“Well tha’s some pretty colors,” Merida smirked, nodding at Heather’s arm as she tied her hair up.
“What?” Heather said, fumbling with the cap on the bottle as she looked at her soulmark.
She pulled the glove back and stared at the swirling colors. It was a mix of black, red, yellow and silver that was slightly freckled by the patches of skin from where the fabric of the glove covered it.
“That’s pretty sick,” Astrid commented. “I’ll buy you and Fish a drink later,”
Heather grinned, then ducked out from behind the curtain to look at the group again. Most of the boys had left to refill their drinks, but she caught the eyes of Fishlegs, who was still sitting in his chair.
He waved, and Heather grinned.
The same colors on her soulmark wound up the arm she had touched.