Note - This story occurs just after Dreamworks Dragons: Riders of Berk (Season One), spoilers for HTTYD 1, The Gift of the Nightfury (Highly recommend watching this one before reading this story!), and Riders of Berk.
Things have changed since I have found my dragon partner in the ice cave.
I never knew how freeing having a winged ice blasting friend would be, and now I cannot imagine life without him.
But things are still bothering me. What does the message on the rock mean? Is my father trying to tell us something? Why did he leave it there without telling anyone?
I am not one for words but for actions, and I will find the answer.
Lucia Geirsson
Woooosh!
The dragon and rider soared over the snow ladened treetops at high speeds, spreading snow in all directions. Leaning in close to Frostfall, Lucia was gripping onto her dragon's neck as tight as she could. They were having their daily morning flight over the wilderness nearby Lucia's home. Lucia shouted in excitement as Frostfall roared in pleasure. They loved their flights. It was the only time they could spend time just enjoying the rush of icy cold air before having to land among the close huddled buildings of Berk.
"Come on Frosty, we need to get back." shouted Lucia, who glanced up at the sun.
It was a busy day today. Stoick had called everyone to meet at The Great Hall, for today was the annual dragon migration. Frostfall gave a small snort of annoyance and Lucia gave him a small pat on the head. He did not like to land. If he had his way, he would have wanted to fly with Lucia for the rest of their lives. Frostfall started to turn, flapping his massive brown wings in steady beats, away from Berk. But a sharp nudge from Lucia's foot stopped him.
"We haven't had breakfast yet, Frosty. I know you want to fly, but I also know you're
hungry." Lucia noted.
Frostfall felt his belly grumble and gave a small growl. He turned towards Berk and flew steadily to The Great Hall. Lucia laughed and leaned in. She did not have a saddle yet, so it was difficult to keep herself on Frostfall without scratching her legs on his scales. Hiccup tried to fit a saddle on Frostfall, but Toothless' saddles were the only ones that matched Frostfall's body shape. Because Toothless' saddles were designed for the Night Fury, they were too slim for Frostfall's bulkier body. Hiccup was still trying to make a saddle that both fit Frostfall and did not interfere with a Woolly Howl's fur-like scales. As Frostfall approached the center square of Berk, he angled himself onto his back feet and landed as easily as Toothless would. He landed with a thump, and Lucia slipped off his back. Frostfall shook his head, his scales rattled as they scraped against each other. Lucia dusted off extra snow from his head and her shoulders.
"Hey! Lucia!" shouted a voice.
Lucia and Frostfall turned their heads towards the voice. Hiccup came up to them with Toothless bounding up behind him. The two dragons met and began sniffing each other in a friendly manner.
"Morning, Hiccup. Do you know when the meeting is going to happen? Frostfall
and I are starving." Lucia asked, while flexing her knees.
Hiccup nodded.
"It's going to start pretty soon. Once my dad gets here. He had to help out with some sheep again."
Hiccup noticed Lucia bending her knees and looked at her with concern.
"Is riding Frostfall hurting your legs too much, Lucia? I'm still working on the saddle. It's taking much longer than I thought to find a material that won't wear out from Frostfall's scales."
Lucia shrugged.
"It's fine Hiccup. I rather wait for you to come up with a sturdy saddle anyways. Frostfall and I ride pretty hard. I should probably toughen up my legs anyways, incase I ever have to ride bareback." Lucia explained, practically.
"Well whatever you need Lucia, just ask." reminded Hiccup.
Hiccup was always impressed by Lucia's toughness. He remembered how she pinned a Monstrous Nightmare with her brute strength during dragon training and how she survived one of the worst winter storms they had seen all season. Hiccup had never met her father Thoronir Geirsson before, but he heard stories from his father and Gobber about how stubborn and tough he was.
A strong wingbeat overhead made them look up. The silhouettes of a Monstrous Nightmare and a Deadly Nadder came closer as they landed. Hookfang and Stormfly easily landed and their riders dismounted. Astrid patted Stormfly on the beak while the Nadder stretched her brilliant wings. Snotlout tried to do the same, but Hookfang snapped at him before venturing off towards some vikings carrying barrels of fish for the meeting.
"Hookfang! Get back here! Those aren't for you!" Snotlout shouted as he ran after his dragon.
"Hopefully he doesn't eat all the fish like last time." Astrid sighed, rolling her eyes.
Hiccup went up to Astrid and Toothless turned his attention to Stormfly, greeting her like the way he greeted Frostfall.
"Good morning, m'lady." Hiccup smiled.
"Good morning Hiccup, Lucia. When's the meeting going to start? I made sure Stormfly and I woke up extra early for our morning flight and to make it to the meeting." Astrid asked.
"In a bit. Once my dad's done rounding up the sheep. I think Fishlegs is helping him too. I saw him and Meatlug flying towards the fields not too long ago."
"Uh oh, you don't mean Sven's fields do you? I saw the twins around there too. I thought all the sheep were rounded up so I didn't think they were up to anything. Maybe one of us should go take a look."
Hiccup groaned.
"Of course it had to be them. Astrid, do you mind chasing after them for me? I want to make sure the meeting is ready." Hiccup asked.
He knew it was a lot to ask of Astrid, especially since she just got back from a flight. But she knew where they were and he was…
"Lucia! What about asking Lucia to do it?" Astrid interjected.
Hiccup was taken by surprise.
"Lucia? Wha…" Hiccup stammered.
"Hey! Lucia, can you come here for a second?" Astrid called.
Lucia, who was partially engaged in their earlier conversation, and mostly engaged in giving Frostfall belly rubs, looked towards Astrid. Frostfall was rolling around happily like the way Toothless did in dragon nip, but this time on the icy ground. Toothless and Stormfly gave the snow wary looks. It looked like fun, but they did not want to freeze on the frozen ground.
"Yes, Astrid? Did you need something?" Lucia asked.
"Yeah, can you do us a favor and go to Silent Sven's fields and check on the twins. I think they were up to something fishy over there. It would help Stoick out." Astrid explained, as nicely as she could.
Even to Hiccup her tone sounded faked, and Lucia caught it. Lucia curled her nose and gave an icy look that made Astrid shudder slightly. But Astrid (being Astrid), stood her ground. It was Lucia who gave in first and shrugged. She went over to Frostfall, who rolled over from being on his back for belly rubs, and mounted on him.
"Be back in a bit." she said shortly, and left.
Hiccup scratched the back of his head nervously. He looked at Astrid who was watching Frostfall and Lucia fly off.
"Let me guess, you still want to recruit her." Hiccup sighed.
They had been wanting to recruit Lucia ever since she partnered up with Frostfall. She had proven herself to be a capable dragon rider and her skills as a lancer were well known in Berk. Hiccup and Fishlegs were particularly interested in Frostfall, and had hoped that when she joined the Riders, they would be able to examine a Woolly Howl more closely. Astrid, meanwhile, had acknowledged Lucia as a skilled warrior and dragon tamer. Everyone was interested in having her join, but she declined. Time and time again, Lucia refused to join, no matter how many times they asked. Hiccup had decided a while ago to just leave Lucia alone. He did not want to intrude on her, but the others stubbornly continued concoct ways to recruit her. Just the other day, the twins had the absurd plan of kidnapping Frostfall and keeping him prisoner until Lucia agreed to join, until they realized Frostfall had ice breath.
"She can really help us, Hiccup." Astrid explained.
"But I cannot force her. You know she has other responsibilities with her family. Plus I don't want to get on her bad side."
Astrid rolled her eyes. She knew what Hiccup was talking about: old viking treaties and alliances. Lucia's father was a renowned warrior of Berk, with his ancestry spanning back to the beginning of Berk's founding. Geir, the founding ancestor of Lucia's name Geirsson, was one of the original founding vikings. Lucia was the latest descendant of Geir, and it showed. No one in Berk had better lance and spear skills than she did. But Geir was known to be an independent man who did what he wanted on his own terms, resulting in past conflicts, and it showed in his family. Thoronir's brother, and Lucia's uncle, the warrior Ulf Geirsson renounced his loyalty to Berk and became a Berserker. Stoick had warned Hiccup about the Geirsson family's reputation, and advised Hiccup to be on Lucia's good side.
"If we don't test her now, how can you trust her in the future, Hiccup?" Astrid asked.
She was skeptical of Lucia. She was familiar with the Geirsson family, and she could not see why Hiccup would not want to keep a closer eye on Lucia.
"I want to work with her Astrid, really I do. But I don't want to push her to do something she doesn't want to do. The Dragon Riders were formed to keep the peace, not force people who can ride dragons to be used for every little thing around Berk. Lucia has other priorities and I think it's better to negotiate than to force. She's been really useful either ways. The other day she helped out when that Gronkle was going crazy over the dragon nip, remember?"
Astrid sighed, but nodded.
"And we didn't even ask her. She just got up and helped out. I just think we need to give her some space."
Lucia and Frostfall glided over the houses of Berk towards Sven's fields. Everywhere, vikings were preparing for the annual dragon migration. Children gave their last tear filled hugs with their dragons, and adults were preparing baskets of fish for their dragons as a parting gift. Many were already on their way to the Great Hall. Lucia patted Frostfall on the head. They only met each other a few weeks ago, and yet it felt like they had been together for their whole lives. Frostfall gave a small purr when Lucia petted him and she smiled. But secretly in her mind, she was sad. She knew Frostfall would want to go with the other dragons during their migration season, but she did not want him to go.
Eventually they got near Lucia's house. Her mother was flying on Flash and Flare's back with the twins sitting on each of the Zippleback's heads. The boys were laughing in delight as they clung on as tight as they could. Flash and Flare were remarkably patient with them despite the loud noises they were making. Their mother had strapped them tightly to their seats to ensure they did not decide to jump off. The three Terrible Terrors, Stripe, Stumpy, and Blue, were flying beside them. When she saw them, Lucia's mother Freda waved. Lucia turned Frostfall around so that she was next to her mother.
"Did you forget something, Lucia?" her mother asked over the wingbeats of the dragons.
"Astrid wanted me to check on Sven's sheep. She's afraid Ruffnut and Tuffnut are up to no good again." Lucia called.
"Those twins again? Those two would level Berk in a resounding explosion if they had their way. Well, make sure you don't miss the meeting, dear."
Flash and Flare flew off towards the Great Hall, while Lucia and Frostfall turned towards Sven's fields. They quickly flew over to find Stoick and Gobber trying to round up the sheep. Thornado stood at the edge of the field to ensure the sheep did not escape from one end, while Gobber and Stoick took the other open ends. Sven was doing his best to calm the sheep down. The sheep appeared spooked and jittery. When Frostfall flew over, Stoick looked up and waved at her. Frostfall and Lucia landed next to him.
"Ah Lucia, did Hiccup send you? We could really use the help." Stoick asked.
"No, Astrid did. She told me she saw the twins earlier today around here. Maybe they are up to something?" explained Lucia.
Stoick gave a long winded sigh. He was fed up with those two and their ridiculous pranks.
"I sent Fishlegs into the forest to look for any strays. Maybe he has found them. And if you do find them Lucia, make sure you send them back to me."
Lucia nodded and mounted back on Frostfall towards the direction Stoick sent Fishlegs. As she flew over, Lucia noticed a few damaged fence posts here and there. Keeping her sharp eyes open, she looked for signs of any disturbances. They eventually found Fishlegs who was hovering with Meatlug with a sheep in her claws.
"Oh! Lucia! Did the chief send send you? I think I got all the runaway sheep. At least I think I did." Fishlegs called.
Meatlug stopped and hovered in place so Fishlegs and Lucia could talk. Frostfall and Meatlug were particularly friendly with each other and the two appeared happy to see each other.
"Astrid sent me. She said she saw the twins flying over here earlier. And I noticed there are some broken fence posts around here." Lucia explained.
Fishlegs looked down and saw the fence posts.
"Huh that's strange. I didn't see them like that before…"
Suddenly some rustling caught their attention. The two turned towards the woods where they could have sworn they saw the glint of a vikings helmet and the long whip like tail of a Zippleback.
"Those twins again!" Fishlegs groaned.
Lucia tapped Frostfall and they were off, gliding towards the bushes. Fishlegs and Meatlug were nearly spun like a top as Frostfall zoomed past. Frostfall flew low enough for Lucia to grab one of the broken fence posts. Even though it was broken, it was still a good two feet long. It was sturdy but sized enough for Lucia to grip it in her hand. She pulled out a knife and whittled the end of it while Frostfall glided into the woods.
The twins lay hidden in the bushes with Barf and Belch laying close by them. They did not think anyone would find them, or know that they were stealing sheep to practice with their new sheep launcher. That was until they heard the wingbeat of a dragon.
Frostfall landed and gave a mighty roar at them, blasting cold air as he did so.
"Ah! They spotted us!" Ruffnut shouted.
The twins and the Zippleback got up and tried to scramble into the woods. Lucia quickly accessed the situation and pointed at Barf and Belch to Frostfall, who growled in agreement. She lept off her dragon and landed easily as Frostfall lept at the fleeing Zippleback. Lucia arched her arm back and aimed with the makeshift spear. Her shot was straight and true. With a solid thud, Tuffnut was pinned to the trunk of a tree by his coat.
"Hey Hey! No fair!" he shouted.
Lucia crouched and leapt at Ruffnut while Frostfall successfully pinned Barf and Belch. Ruffnut gasped as she found Lucia's sharp eyes glaring at her angrily.
"Ah! What the?!" Ruffnut gasped.
"Explain yourselves!" Lucia snarled.
She looked angry, angrier than what the twins knew her for. They had screwed around before and they had been chased by Lucia before, but she was much angrier than usual.
"We were just borrowing a few sheep for our launcher. Nothing that serious." Tuffnut said, crossing his arms.
"Besides, these sheep are going to the good of the village anyways. We were using them for a brand new method of village defence." he added.
"Except that we may have broken a few fences along the way." Ruffnut reminded.
"Yes, but for the good of the village." Tuffnut reminded.
Lucia was not convinced.
"I'm going to report you two to Stoick. He'll know what to do with you two."
Several hours later, the group finished up and arrived at The Great Hall. Everyone in the village was there and waiting for them. As Stoick strode into the Hall with the dejected twins following behind him, and Thornado following from behind. Everyone parted way so he could reach the chief's throne. He pointed towards a corner near his throne.
"You two meet me there after we are done." he growled.
The twins and their dragon quickly scrambled to mingle amongst the crowd. Lucia, Fishlegs, and Gobber came into the hall and took their positions. Gobber, being Stoick's second in command, went up to stand near Stoick. Thornado stood at his other side. The Great Hall was festive, decorated with wreaths of holly and decorated pine trees. But the cheer in the Hall was not so lively. Although the vikings knew their dragons would return, many were still unhappy. Children cried as they gave their dragons tight hugs, in hope they would not leave. Stoick could see the unhappiness of his people, but also the anxiety in the dragons. They wanted to go.
"Vikings, Dragons." Stoick began.
"I know today is a sad day for some. But remember, Snoggletog is a season of cheer, not sadness."
Stoick turned towards Thornado and gave his Thunderdrum an affectionate pat. He went to Thornado's side and removed his saddle. Thornado shook himself, rattling his scales, and gave Stoick an affectionate growl. The other vikings followed suit, removing dragon saddles and giving their friends one last hug. Astrid slowly removed Stormfly's saddle.
"Safe travels, Stormfly." she murmured while Stormfly gently preened Astrid's hair.
Lucia turned towards Frostfall, who was looking longingly out the Hall doors. He was ready to leave. Seeing everyone ready, Stoick waved at the vikings near the doors.
"Come now, let's give our friends a proper Berk farewell."
Everyone went outside. The dragons came forward and stood excitedly in front of the Hall. Toothless gave a purr and stayed near Hiccup's side.
"What? You don't want to go?" Hiccup asked.
Toothless glanced at Stormfly and Meatlug, but stayed his ground. He had refused Hiccup's new tail last year and this year was the same. There was no reason for him to leave this time.
Lucia's mother, Freda, was the only other viking with a dragon by her side. Flash and Flare had refused to leave her, even last year when the vikings first discovered dragons migrated during the winter. It was as though the Zippleback had resolved to stay near her for as long as she needed them. The boys, however, sobbed as the family's Terrible Terrors joined the leaving group.
Lucia gave Frostfall one last hug and he gave her a wet cold lick. She did not expect to be emotional, but a few tears came down cheeks. Thankfully, Frostfall's tongue caught the tears before they were noticeable. It was cruel that she only had a few weeks with Frostfall, but she knew it was not just her happiness but her dragon's happiness that was important in the end.
As though on cue, a flock of wild dragons flew over Berk, going towards their migration grounds. The Berkian dragons spread their wings to join them. The vikings cried and cheered as their dragons left, wishing them safe travels. Fishlegs sobbed, hugging onto Snotlout, as Meatlug gave him one last look. Snotlout, trying not to be strangled by Fishlegs, gave a Jorgenson war cry to Hookfang. The twins waved, trying to shout louder than the other to Barf and Belch. Astrid stood next to Hiccup and Toothless, giving one last wave to Stormfly. The dragons left, one by one, until most were all gone. Lucia stood at the edge of of the vikings. She was trying to convince Frostfall to leave. He was anxious to go, but did not want to leave Lucia behind. Tugging on her coat, he wanted her to go with him.
"No, Frosty. You need to go on your own." she said firmly.
Frostfall was determined, but Lucia's tone made him hesitate. She reached out and gave him a gentle rub on his scales.
"Go on with them." she smiled.
Finally, Frostfall let go. He was the last dragon to leave.
Even though there were no dragons around, the vikings were still getting ready for Snoggletog. This year, after knowing the dragons will return, the Berkians were more determined than ever to make this year's Snoggletog a better one. They wanted to have a massive celebration this year, ready for the dragon's return and the arrival of more baby dragons. Last year they were underprepared. Baby dragons were sleeping in every warm nook and cranny they could find and fish supplies were dangerously low. This year they were better prepared with new barns and plenty of fish stored. The next day, Hiccup was wiring a new water defence mechanism onto one of the new barns. They had one too many fire accidents last year. He was not as upset as the other vikings, since Toothless was with him, but he knew how everyone felt. It was strange last year without Toothless, like he had lost another extension of himself. As he hammered away, he noticed Astrid entering the barn.
"Good morning Astrid." he called.
"Morning Hiccup. Hey have you seen Lucia anywhere? I wanted to talk to her." Astrid called.
Hiccup stopped his hammering and climbed down the ladder he was using.
"You wanted to see Lucia? Uh, I haven't seen her. Have you checked at her house?" Hiccup asked.
"Yeah I did, this morning. She wasn't there." Astrid sighed.
"Uh, why did you want to talk to her?" Hiccup inquired.
Astrid gave him a look.
"I wanted to apologize to her."
Hiccup looked surprise, until he remembered how Astrid made Lucia chase after the twins. In reality, he knew where Lucia went, he just did not want to tell Astrid. Especially after she made him promise.
"Did you try near the Great Hall?" Hiccup asked.
Astrid gave him a funny look. She knew something was up.
"No, but I'll stop by to take a look."
She slipped outside the barn and ran towards The Great Hall. Vikings everywhere were setting up decorations and stocking up for the winter. It took Astrid a bit longer than normal to reach The Great Hall. She was used to Stormfly giving her a quick lift there in seconds. The doors were wide open for anyone to enter. Even though it was morning, there were few vikings hanging around. Most were outside, taking advantage of the rare morning sun that day. But inside, Astrid found Lucia sitting at a bench reading from a massive book. She was taking a few notes on some scrap paper next to her. Astrid went up to her.
"Hey, Lucia." she said.
Lucia looked up in surprise.
"Astrid? What are you doing here?" Lucia stammered.
She had told Hiccup especially that she did not want to be disturbed, especially by Astrid.
"I just wanted to apologize for the other day. I… I shouldn't have pushed you." Astrid explained.
Lucia was pushing some of her notes away. She just shrugged.
"Apology accepted, Astrid. Now, I really need to read this."
She turned towards the book again, but now Astrid was suspicious.
"What are you reading?" she asked.
Lucia tried to push the book away, but Astrid grabbed at her note papers. She looked at them and it only took a second to recognize what Lucia was sketching.
"No. Lucia you can't go back there." said Astrid firmly.
"Astrid…" Lucia growled.
Astrid knew. Lucia wanted to go back to the underground cavern she found the day she met Frostfall. It was deemed unsafe and dangerous to enter because of weak foundations, but that did not deter Lucia from trying.
"Lucia! Hiccup and Stoick told you, you can't go back there! It's too dangerous! Without a dragon or anyone, you could get caved in."
Lucia stood up and glared at Astrid, eye to eye.
"It's just a monument Lucia. Besides, you and Hiccup already made a sketch of the rock so you don't have to go back to it. Just let it go."
But Lucia just got angrier.
"It's not just a monument Astrid, it's a message from my father. And I want to figure it out." Lucia snarled.
"I cannot let you go Lucia!" Astrid growled back, "I'll tell Stoick if you…"
Lucia slammed her fists to the table.
"Shut it, Astrid!" Lucia shouted.
The Hall went quiet. Everyone was looking at them, wide eyed. Astrid was speechless.
"Just because you have a father doesn't mean you get to deprive me of mines!"
She grabbed her notes and left the hall, stomping down on the stone floor. Astrid stood in shock. Lucia had left the book behind and Astrid looked down at it. It was an old tome of viking tribes and families. The page Lucia was on was for her family, Geirsson. The pages were decorated with feats of grandeur, of dragon slayers and heroic acts. She had the page turned to the more recent entries, ending with her father. Words were marked with scraps of paper, such as "Spearpoint" and any mentionings of "north". Astrid shuddered.
Hiccup was heading towards the Great Hall when he saw Lucia running past. He kept walking and saw Astrid right after.
"Hey Astrid!" Hiccup yelled.
But Astrid did not respond, and instead continued running. She felt terrible. Perhaps Hiccup was right, she should have left Lucia well enough alone. But she had a bad feeling. Lucia seemed desperate, too desperate.
She kept running until she made it to Lucia's house. She did not see Lucia, even though she was right behind her. Lucia was much faster than she realized. Outside, she found Lucia's mother tending to some yaks and watching Lucia's brothers.
"Good morning Astrid." Freda called.
She went over to a bucket and filled a nearby tankard with milk. With a smile, she gave it to Astrid, who drank it thankfully.
"Thank you so much. Mmm it's so fresh. Uh, have you seen Lucia pass by here?" Astrid asked.
"Oh you just missed her. She just ran inside to get some things and then left. I think she was heading for the woods."
Freda pointed towards the direction she saw Lucia running in. Astrid thanked her again for the milk and ran in the direction Lucia went. It was quite a ways in, but Astrid knew what Lucia was looking for. She found the mouth of the underground cavern Lucia and Frostfall had dug out a few weeks ago. A cavern that led to that mysterious monument shrine. Astrid knew it was weak and could crumble at any time, but she went in anyways. Crawling on all fours, she slipped into the main cavern, where Thoronir's carving was.
The cavern was icy and frigid, despite the fact that it was morning. The shrine stood at the middle of the cavern, but Lucia was nowhere to be found.
"Lucia!" Astrid called.
A sudden rumble made Astrid start. She looked at the entrance and saw the rocks shake. Widening her eyes, she realized it was caving in.
"No!" Astrid cried.
She ran towards the entrance but it was too late. The cave collapsed and she was trapped inside!
Hiccup was worried. He had a bad feeling about Astrid's expression and about the fact that she was chasing after Lucia. Toothless came up to him and gave him a purr.
"Come on Toothless. I have a bad feeling about this."
He jumped on Toothless and flew to Lucia's house, knowing that the two of them were running in that direction. Seeing Toothless landing, Freda waved. She got another tankard of milk and offered it to Hiccup.
"Good morning Hiccup. Did you need something?" Freda asked.
"Yes. Have you seen Astrid or Lucia?" Hiccup inquired.
Freda nodded and pointed in the direction they went. Thanking her, Hiccup and Toothless flew in that direction. Right when he got to the cavern entrance, he saw the cave in.
"That's not good…" Hiccup groaned.
Toothless landed and the two began checking at the rubble.
"Astrid! Lucia!" Hiccup called.
Astrid had curled herself up into a ball to protect her face and neck. Luckily she was unharmed. A faint cry perked her up.
"Astrid!"
Astrid opened her eyes and crawled over to the cave in.
"Hiccup?!" she shouted.
Outside Hiccup heard her faint voice.
"Astrid! Just hang on, I'll go get some help. Don't try to dig out! The rubble is really loose up here." Hiccup warned.
He jumped onto Toothless and flew back to alert his father.
Astrid heard and gave a sigh of relief. She crawled back into the cavern and found Lucia standing next to the shrine.
"What are you doing here?" Lucia asked.
Her eyes were angry.
"I was looking for you. In case you did something stupid." Astrid said, crossing her arms.
"Well, thanks for caving us in. The foundation is weak, you should know that." Lucia scoffed.
Astrid glared.
"Well you shouldn't even be here. It's dangerous and you should know too."
Lucia turned around and decided to focus her attention on the monument.
"Whatever."
Seeing that Lucia was still mad at her, Astrid decided to see if there was a way out. She found the cavern where Lucia and Frostfall had managed to stay in when the avalanche when over the, but there did not seem to be a way out. At that cavern, however, she found additional ice and wooden pillars on the walls. It seemed to have been extended somewhat. More wood pillars were leaning against the wall.
"There's no way out." Lucia said, her voice echoing off the walls.
"Frostfall and I have been trying to reinforce the cavern. But now I don't know if we can keep going." she grumbled.
Astrid went back to Lucia. She was looking carefully around the shrine, examining it closely.
"This is important to me Astrid. But I guess you don't understand. At least your father is alive."
Astrid knelt next to Lucia. She felt even more terrible than before.
"Lucia… I…" Astrid began.
"I… I'm sorry. I… I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."
Lucia looked up at her.
"I know I am lucky to have my father with me. But remember we all lost our fathers when we continued the Dragon War. Lucia, I…"
Lucia put her hand up and shook her head.
"I'm sorry too Astrid. I... I was just so excited when I finally found this shrine. It was like my father had actually come back and it gave me hope. But it's not worth our deaths. It was selfish of me. Frostfall and I could have been caved in and we could have died down here."
Lucia sighed and sat with her arms around her knees. Astrid gave her a comforting arm.
"Hiccup already knows we are down here. He's going to bring back help." she reassured.
The two sat huddled together. The chill did not affect Lucia as much as it did Astrid. Astrid was shivering, rubbing her hands together. Lucia had offered her the outer coat she was wearing, but Astrid refused. Astrid was looking down at her hands when she noticed something.
"Hey Lucia. What's that?" she asked.
Lucia stood up to get a better look at what Astrid was staring at. At the base of the monument was a shiny blue bit. Where Lucia was sitting it was difficult to see. But where Astrid was sitting, which was to the right side of the monument, it was clearly visible.
"Where?" Lucia asked.
Astrid waved for a convenient spear by Lucia's side. Grasping it in her hands, Astrid dug down at the blue bit. A loud clink! echoed in the air. The two looked at each other excitedly. That did not sound like ground or stone. It sounded like something else. The two dug at the spot, occasionally using the spear to chip away at hard ice. Lucia took the spear and made a well aimed strike at a large piece of ice, expertly digging away. Astrid was impressed that Lucia knew exactly what to do and in frozen conditions. After a few more minutes of digging, they finally uncovered a strange object in the ground. It was a dragon egg sized blue stone. At first the two thought it was actually an egg, but on closer inspection, the object was too crystalline to be an egg. Astrid reached out to touch it, but recoiled. It was cold like the coldest ice. Lucia decided to reach for it and even she felt its chill.
"What is this thing?" Lucia wondered.
"I dunno. Maybe Gothi knows?" Astrid asked.
Normally Lucia never wore gloves, but this time she asked Astrid if she had any. Astrid found a spare pair in her coat and gave them to her.
"Maybe I can pick it up now."
With the gloves on, Lucia scooped up the strange object and put it down on the ground. Now that it was above ground, it was obviously not an egg.
"We need to take this back. This… Frostfall and I have been back a few times but I never saw it before."
A sudden rumble made them jump. The rocks blocking the exit shifted and bright fresh air swept into the cavern. Black claws and stout arms pushed through.
"Astrid! Lucia!" Hiccup called.
"Hiccup!" Astrid shouted.
The two called out in relief. They were , Toothless, and several vikings from town opened up the cavern and helped them out. As the exited, Lucia grabbed the strange egg-like object. Blinking in the sun, Lucia gasped as her mother ran up and gave her a tight hug. Lucia dropped the egg-object which landed with a soft thud.
"Oh my goodness Lucia! You could have died! You could have been stuck down there and no one would be able to know you were down there!" her mother shouted hysterically.
Lucia sighed and hugged her mother back. Staying down there, she forgot about her mother and how she would have felt. Nearby, Lucia noticed Astrid's parents hugging her and checking to see if she was alright.
"Lucky Hiccup was following you two or you would have frozen to death in there." said Gobber who lumbered up to Lucia.
"About that Gobber." Lucia sighed. "I… I've been sneaking down here even after Stoick told me not to."
Gobber and Freda were shocked.
"You have been sneaking down here?! Lucia! I thought the chief already told you this place is off limits!" her mother scolded.
"I… I know. I'm sorry. I just wanted to know if father left us something. Some sort of message." Lucia apologized.
Her mother paused and looked pained. Lucia rarely revealed her feelings, having to be the strong core of the family after her father left and her mother's injuries became worse. Freda knew Lucia was particularly close to her father and saw him as a role model.
"Lucia…" her mother whispered.
"But look, Astrid and I found something."
She knelt down and picked up the strange object they found in the cavern. Gobber and Freda looked at it wide eyed.
"Do you know what it is?" Lucia asked.
The adults were as baffled as Lucia and Astrid were.
"Hmm, maybe Gothi knows. I'll take it up to her." said Gobber.
Lucia warned him that it was freezing cold, so cold that Astrid could not pick it up. Because it was so cold, Gobber could not deliver it. So he asked Lucia to take it to his forge so he could put it in a cart to send to Gothi.
A few days later, Lucia sat at the edge of a cliff, waiting patiently. Today was the same day last year when the dragons returned. Feeling the sea breeze on her face, Lucia smiled. Everyone was waiting at the central plaza in front of the Great Hall, but she decided to wait at the cliffs. It was much colder there but she did not mind. Gobber had sent the strange object to Gothi to identify it but she seemed unsure and took it to her hut to investigate further. Either ways, Lucia knew Astrid had found something monumental. Something she would not have been able to find alone. All those days she spent looking around the shrine and it took Astrid, an outsider, to find something she missed. Lucia knew she had to thank Astrid and promised to gift her some extra cheese, some roasted chicken for Stormfly, and maybe a few more promises to patrol around Berk. It was a nice change for Lucia, having friends. She closed her eyes and lay on her back, listening to the waves.
The wing beats echoed above her, sending gusts of wind. A large viking ship sailed overhead, purposely rigged by Hiccup for the dragons to carry their babies back to Berk. Most of the flock already left when a familiar growl and wingbeat caused her to open her eyes and sit up. Frostfall came gilding easily to the cliff. He landed and almost tacked Lucia, licking her excitedly. Lucia laughed and hugged him, ready for the best Snoggletog she had in years.
All this time I believed I could do things on my own.
But I began to realize that I cannot do things by myself.
I have recovered a mysterious object my father wanted to hide.
But I could not have found it on my own.
My ancestors prided themselves for their stubbornness and pride, their solitary nature.
But I have learned, it is better to die with friends.
And even better, friends can save you, even from yourself.
Notes = Lucia does research into her father's message (from Chapter 1) but what it means will have to be told at a later date ;) This series is pretty much going to be an annual series as it is for Berk Grapevine's Snoggletog gift exchange. Apologies for anyone who was hoping for a more weekly or monthly thing…
