AW#7

It was a long flight, the sun had set some time ago, and both dragons had slowed noticeably and there still wasn't any land in sight as the darkness set in. The nadder was still following closely. "When do you think we might find land?" I shouted to Hiccup over the wind.

He shrugged, "I don't know, soon, I hope. The dragons are tired!" He shouted back at me. He wasn't paying a lot of attention to me as we were entering a rather large cloud bank and he and Toothless seemed stiff. It crossed my mind that it could be another nest like the other one, I prayed rather fervently that it would not be, I didn't think 2 could exist so close together. I leaned against Hiccup tiredly and hoped that we could find something soon, I was tired, hungry and stiff.

"Up!" Hiccup suddenly yelled. I looked over Hiccup's shoulder as we banked up steeply. There was something large and solid in front of us. Hiccup leaned with Toothless, and I leaned with him. As we pulled up and over the top I realized it was a cliff!

"Land!" I cried gratefully, feeling the relief wash through me at the prospect of being on solid ground again.

"Shh" Hiccup hissed "We need to make sure there aren't people nearby, we have no idea if they might be dragon or stranger friendly."

So we circled up and around. It wasn't a huge island, it was quite mountainous and had some forest and some meadow along the coastline. We didn't see any fire or smell smoke, so it was decided that it was safe to land and we could make a more detailed survey the next day.

We chose a small sheltered cove on the north end of the island and settled in much the way we had the night before except that the nadder clearly wanted me with her. Spending some time tittering in concern, attempting to groom my hair but was frustrated by the fact that it was braided and finally wrapping herself around me protectively. Hiccup spent a lot of that time laughing at me fending off the attentive beast, before settling down with Toothless.

"Ha-ha very funny." I deadpanned at the boy. I sat down gingerly sore after sitting astride a dragon all day, and leaned against the nadder that cuddled up behind me and scratched her gently which seemed to reduce her to a blue heap of groaning, trilling pleasure. I laughed at her and felt the warmth of affection blush through my chest. "I'm going to have to give you a name, aren't I?" I asked her, she perked up at that and looked at me expectantly. "How about Bluebell?" The Nadder shook her head and cackled at me, a definite no. Her reaction made me laugh, "A great big NO to that then, huh girl? Well then what about Stormfly?" I asked. She tilted her head as if considering, then gave a bobbing nod and trilled rubbing her cheek against my shoulder. "It's settled then! Goodnight Stormfly." I smiled, as she settled contentedly against me obviously tired and ready to sleep. I looked at her and then over at Hiccup and Toothless, they already looked to be asleep. The day had been long and tiring, but relatively uneventful. "Let's see what the morning brings." I murmured to myself, then closed my eyes. Sleep came quickly.

Morning came bright and clear, with a crisp bite to the air that said winter was not far off even further south as we were. It was hard to convince Stormfly to stay a decent way back when I was trying to hunt, but she had absolutely mangled the earlier rabbit in her enthusiasm to 'help'. I carefully kept my sigh inside as I watched the rabbits in front of me frolic past my makeshift snare made from my arm wrappings. Finally! One finally went through the snare I gave it a good sharp tug and caught a plump squealing rabbit in the cord snare. I was careful to keep the tension tight as made my way to the rabbit and broke its neck that way the skin was preserved and we were going to need that.

Hiccup was back at the camp after having scouted the island early this morning and confirmed that it seemed currently uninhabited. Though there was an old decrepit shepherd's hunt on the south end that appeared long abandoned. Hiccup thought he had seen a few sheep as well, but hadn't caught any. The wool would be useful if we could shear them though I really had no good idea about how to do that, catching the wooly buggers was all I had helped with on Berk when sheering season was on us. Sheering at this time of year wouldn't be good either, might as well slaughter them than let them freeze. I gathered my cord up carefully and picked up the rabbit I had just caught with the two from earlier that had made it past Stormfly's helpfulness, and called the blue dragon. She popped up out of the underbrush happy that she was to be included again. I patted her and assured her that I wasn't mad and we made our way back to the new camp.

Hiccup had found a cave, it wasn't terribly deep but it would be a nice start he thought and was going about gathering both stone and logs when I had left with Stormfly figuring that it was better I stay out of the way. I was discovering that Stormfly had a sense of humor as we came back into the clearing the boys were working in. I was amazed at what they had gotten done in the time I was gone. Already there was a foundation and walls of stone mostly up along with what looked like a support structure for a roof.

"Hey Hiccup!" I waved at him he looked up from his work briefly and kind of nodded. I shrugged, he was busy I guess. Then I realized something was missing. "Where's Toothless?"

Hiccup looked up at that. "Oh, he's… He's at the meadow getting sod for the roof."

"Sod?!" I asked, how is sod going to make a roof? I thought, puzzled.

"Yeah, so sod works great! We lay these poles across as a support structure and then lay the sod over the top. It's not great for great buckets of rain, but it works well in snow and cold."

I nodded accepting of his explanation, and he looked relived. Just then Toothless burst into the clearing with a large bundle of dirt and grass, dragging behind him.

Toothless looked quite proud of himself and his mission, and I looked at the aforementioned sod. Well, okay I could see that this might work. Toothless had brought most of the root system with it, so the dirt and root layer was a good couple of hand spans.

"It would work better if it was more even." Hiccup said from behind me as he walked up. He gave Toothless praise and scratches, before hefting up the sod to put it on the roof. I looked up from my dealings with the rabbits to see if he needed help, he didn't seem to, I think the blacksmithing gave him more strength than most ever gave him credit for. I finished cleaning the rabbits and gathered some fresh willow branches stripping the bark and using the strips to lash the branches into stretching frames for the skins as they dried and hung the frames now with skins on a couple of convenient branches. Then set the rabbits on the spit over the fire. When they were done I called Hiccup from his work on the sod to come eat, there was the rabbit and some of the late berries that I had found along the way.

"So, are we actually going to train other dragons?" I asked him.

"I don't see why not, though the queen may not have much influence this far south." He reasoned.

I agreed, "Actually I haven't seen any dragons at all. Do they come this far? We are going to have a hard time if we can't find more."

Hiccup took a moment to finish chewing his food and then answered. "I'm pretty sure there are dragons, I saw a couple far off when we made the survey of the island this morning, and also what looked like roosts on those southern cliffs. It may take a little time to draw them out, but they are here."

"We just need to decide if the dragons are the priority or if we are staying here the winter." My mind began to wander to what winter here might be like.

"Well, I don't think winter is as harsh here." Hiccup stated.

I cocked my head at him puzzled, "What makes you think that?" I asked.

"Look at the birds." He pointed up to the tree where there were some small birds hopping around in the branches. "These birds summer in Berk, they had already left, but they are here. So what does that tell you?"

"That this isn't Berk!" I snarked at him.

He grinned at my sarcasm. "Well, yes, but…. If they are still here it means that winter comes much later here at least, which gives us time. We need time to train more dragons, to gather food, and" He gestured to the shelter he was building, "build a shelter. This place may have a much milder winter than Berk, but I don't believe at all that there is no winter."

"Okay, okay! You're right! So shelter and food, and then we find more dragons?" I asked.

"Yeah, because I don't want to die out here, I don't think you do either." He looked at me and I shook my head.

"Of course not! Wouldn't have even made this crazy trek with you if I wasn't interested in surviving!"

Hiccup laughed at that, so did both the dragons. Toothless had a low pitched grumbling laugh, Stormfly cackled just like she had back in the training ring at Snotlout. "Oh great senses of humor you two!" I told them laughing myself. "I knew you were laughing at Snotlout!" I told Stormfly turning to scratch her neck. Hiccup suddenly looked rather guarded which puzzled me a bit, but it must have been the reference to his cousin. It was probably best not to pursue that right now, as we had a lot of work to do.

"Well, I think we should go see if there is anything salvageable from that old shepherds hut. Pretty much anything that we can find right now would be helpful." Hiccup suggested.

"Okay, let's do it." I agreed. So we banked the fire and moved to the dragons. "Will you let me ride you Stormfly?" I asked her, she started prancing and chirping, in what looked like happiness. "Okay, let's try this." I smiled at the dragon, as I grabbed a couple of her spines and hauled myself up. She cackled a bit and looked back at me as if asking if I was ready. "Okay girl, let's go, but not too fast I can only hold on to your spines." She nodded at me and took off, staying low, just over the tops of the trees and level. Hiccup and Toothless blew by with a gust of wind and Stormfly scolded them for their rudeness, I patted her neck and held tight with hands and legs. "It's okay girl, let's go catch them, shall we?" She looked back at me to check and then put on a burst of speed to go catch the boys.

We landed in a meadow next to a small hut that had definitely seen better days. Though didn't look like it was actively falling apart yet. Hiccup was already on the ground beside Toothless and waiting for us when we landed.

"I didn't look inside earlier, wasn't sure just how stabile the place was." He said.

"Well it doesn't look like it will just fall apart, so let's take a look." I said walking over and testing the door. The door was stiff, and creaked loudly as I pushed the latch up.

"A metal latch?!" Hiccup asked surprised, "That seems unusual."

I pushed the door in and was rewarded with more creaking metal. "Metal hinges too, it sounds like."

Hiccup helped me push the door, as the hinges were definitely binding. They gave way with a loud screech that set the dragons to dancing nervously behind us. Hiccup and I looked back at them wondering if this was a bad sign or if it was just the noise, Hiccup shrugged. The open door allowed light in to reveal a simple hut, dirt floor, a small table, a stone firepit in the center of the room with a wrought iron spit over the top, and a grate set on the edge. A bed on one side and a fairly sizable cupboard on the other. I fingered the blankets on the bed, they were of a heavy homespun wool, warm, dusty and slightly moth eaten, but entirely serviceable after a wash. The cupboard was surprising though, a tall wooden things that had been carved and painted. The paint was peeling in spots but the craftsmanship was evident. Inside though, were baskets. Hiccup and I started pulling them down and carrying them outside to look through them in better light. Once we had them all outside we each chose one and started looking with curious dragons peeking over shoulders.

The first one I looked in had sewing supplies, a little wooden box of needles, and a variety of thread on wooden spools, also some homespun woolen yarn, and a drop spindle. Hmm, not something that I was great with, but I suppose if we were actually here for the winter something I could practice with. There was a leather pouch at the bottom under the yarn.

"Hiccup, look at this!" I showed him the contents of the pouch.

"Leather working supplies!" He sounded quite pleased to see the awls and punches.

Another basket had folded lengths of fabric. Just like the blankets on the bed, they were a little moth damaged, but not terrible, and cleaner as they had both the cupboard and the basket to protect them. Then there were some tools, a couple hammers and saws, and some carving knives, even iron nails, and rope. With all the baskets repacked and most coming with us, I took another look in the hut, wanting to strip the bedding haul the table out. There was a box of cooking tools in the shadows behind the table, a couple pots and 2 plates and some various cups and mugs, a knife and spoons.

The box under the bed was more interesting, if less immediately useful. There was a pouch of some kind of foreign coins at the bottom, some folded pieces of parchment that looked to be letters but I couldn't read them. Maybe Hiccup could, there were some folded fine linens, which seemed very out of place here, including what looked like a woman's head scarf, and some other miscellaneous jewelry and some small carvings. I carried it out and put it with the rest of the things we were taking.

"This is going to take a couple trips." Hiccup said looking up from where he was tying baskets to Toothless' saddle. "What's that?" he asked, gesturing to the box in my arms.

"This was under the bed, there's money, and some other interesting things." Hiccup looked intrigued but seemed to decide that he could wait till later. We got everything back to our camp after a couple trips, that rope certainly was useful. Hiccup immediately put the newfound nails to use on the roof, I put many of the baskets in the back of the cave, particularly the ones we wouldn't need immediately. Then hauled the blankets down to the stream to give them a scrub, and hung them on a line strung between the trees to dry. I came back to Stormfly piling up fish next to the fire and squalling at Toothless for grabbing some.

"You know for all the things we did find, I'm surprised there weren't any barrels or salt. You know food preservation things?" I told Hiccup

"We may very well find things later, sometimes people store stuff in caves because of the cold. I'm sure there are more around. Yeah, I get it though. So much was just left, things people would need and then not those." He shrugged as if to say 'Don't ask me I don't understand people.'

"Yeah, I guess." But it left me with an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Stoic steeled himself as he prepared to knock on the Hofferson's door. It should be easy, Hacksaw was one of his generals and they had always had an easy relationship, one of the few that had a cordial relationship with Hiccup. Well at least before 2 days ago, 2 days, was that all the time that had passed? It seemed like a lifetime.

Stoic knocked, after a few moments Inga opened the door.

"Hello there Inga, I need to speak with Hacksaw." She stared at Stoic for a few moments and then bobbed her head, and motioned towards the kitchen. Stoic wondered just how bad this was going to be, Inga was not a quiet woman. Hacksaw was sitting at the kitchen table with a mug in his hands but didn't seem to be drinking from it.

"Hello Stoic, come to talk about the kids have you?" Hacksaw asked. Stoic nodded and sat across from Hacksaw, Inga set a mug in front of him and then moved away.

"Had Astrid said anything to you about the dragons, or Hiccup?" Stoic began, best not to beat around the bush on this one.

"No…. not that I know of." Hacksaw replied.

"Complained to me that he was acting weird, even for Hiccup." Inga suddenly said from by the stove.

Stoic perked up at any news and turned to face her. "Did she say anything else?" He asked eagerly.

"No, just muttered about finding out who was training him. Think that may be that last I saw of her." She sighed and shook her head. "If that boy of yours has hurt her he will have her brothers to answer to!" Inga pronounced sharply. "Not that it will help her reputation any, and I don't suppose you have any solution to that do you!" she bit out caustically.

"I'm sure Hiccup would never hurt her." Stoic pronounced clearly, best not to mention the boy most certainly had feelings for her, if the journals were anything to go by.

"What about the beasts!" Hacksaw asked. "They were letting them go, none seemed inclined to hurt them that was incredibly strange! And that black one! I haven't ever seen one like it!"

Stoic sighed "My son wasn't lying when he said he shot down a Night Fury in the last raid. Instead of killing it when he found it he made friends with it." Both Hacksaw and Inga stared at Stoic with disbelief. "I know" Stoic continued, "but Hiccup kept a very detailed journal that he left behind. Leaving the village was apparently not planned. Or I doubt he would have left us so much information."

Hacksaw leaned across the table towards Stoic. "Could I look at these journals? I wouldn't normally ask, but my daughter is out there, and I want to know why." He looked pained.

Stoic nodded and pulled out the journal. "I figured you would, this is the one with the Night Fury in it."

Hacksaw took it and began looking through it, his eyes widening at some of the drawings. He paused a long time on the ship rigging ideas. "These are good!" Inga smacked his arm "right, right later!" Then he came to the Night Fury pages.

"He crippled it!" Inga gasped "But they flew away on the thing!"

"He built it a prosthetic." Hacksaw answered her "Look at this Inga! This is amazing!"

Inga sat back and crossed her arms. "What's amazing is that you are forgetting about our daughter!" She screeched "Even only being gone 2 days she can't come back with a reputation intact! How long does she have to be gone before you demand justice! What if she comes back with child! What are we going to do then?!"

"Calm down woman!" Hacksaw ground out. "Stoic is an honorable man and our chief! He'll see things done right."

Stoic nodded, sighing internally believing the boy was too young for this, but his hand was forced. Stoic could not afford to so gravely offend one of his generals. "I am prepared to offer you a contract."

Hacksaw nodded looking solemn and Inga looked smug, when Hacksaw noticed this he sent her out with irritation.

Stoic noticed Inga's look. Wonderful, despite his not being not being very vikingly Hiccup was a catch being heir to the chiefdom and only heir to the Haddock clan. Stoic also believed that Hiccup would eventually grow into himself, he looked like his mother and while she had been an awkward youth that had all changed and she had been a beauty when grown. Yes, Astrid and the Hofferson's were going to be the envy of all the maiden daughters and their mothers.

Hacksaw sighed "I'm sorry Stoic, I know this isn't what you wanted for Hiccup, not what I wanted for Astrid either."

"I'm sorry too." I answered him "but Inga is right there isn't really another way to salvage this situation with reputations intact, theirs and both our clans."

Both men nodded with finality. "It's agreed then." Hacksaw held out his hand and Stoic grasped it, sealing the agreement and their children's futures.

"Can I look at more of these plans of Hiccup's?" Hacksaw asked. "Some of these look really amazing and those pulleys would really reduce the fishermen's work load. And the rigging would take time to change but wow!" Stoic smiled at Hacksaw, it gave him a real sense of pride to have someone else recognizing Hiccup's work and talents.