Chapter 12
Hi everyone! Thanks for the reviews, I'm glad to see some people are as enthusiasmed as I am for Baby Night Furies. Now let's see what's next for our heros!
One evening, Astrid searched for Hiccup, he should have been here but she couldn't find him anywhere. She was waiting for him, the sun had already settled since long. Maybe he was just late? It happened the first, even if after it he had been careful to be here on time. But what if something happened to him? She would have been warned if Dagur had been sighted around. Worried and running out of patience, she went out to search for him, she called her dragons, they would be of help.
Yet when she called, none answered, in fact none of them were in the cave or around it. Where were they all? It was usually crowded around here? Had Hiccup take them somewhere for training? She called for Stormfly, she trusted her more than any other dragon to answer her call, even if she wasn't under the spell. She called her, but the dragon didn't show up. Where was she? Now she was sure of it, something happened which was stopping Hiccup and her dragons from coming, she had to find out!
The sky was darkening but Astrid could perfectly see. She went toward the village. Maybe she would find an answer here. She saw the houses from afar, no dragons were attacking, everything seemed peaceful. She landed before the Great Hall and saw there was no one in the streets. With the cold, people were probably home, but there should be some guards...She saw none, and she soon noticed that there were no lights in the houses. Not a voice was raised, it seemed like no one was in, there were no sheep or cattle. She went to the riders' camp, they weren't here, nor their dragons. What was happening? Had an attack occurred? She fled around the island and saw no one, beast or human, she fled above the seas around, and she saw no ships, nothing, no one.
Astrid was starting to get really scared. Where were they all? At this rate she almost wished to see Dagur and his men. Then she got an idea: the mirror. It could show her anything, it would show her where they were. She went back in the cave which was still deserted and asked her mirror where Hiccup was. The mirror showed nothing. She asked where Stormfly was. The mirror showed nothing. Astrid felt scared, she had to find someone, go somewhere! She flew out and it was night, no stars in the sky, just empty blackness which envelopped everything around her and was coming closer and closer...
Astrid jerked up and screamed in fear, and once the cry died in her throat, she just let out a moan as she realized she wasn't outside but in her room, and everything she saw had been a dream. She was sweaty and trembling. This was a dream, only a dream…Wait, what if it wasn't? What if it was a warning? Hiccup wasn't with her, he had shown her earlier that evening the eggs and stayed with Lady and Toothless at that occasion. He was happier than ever and wanted to watch over those eggs as much as possible. Maybe she should check out...
"Astrid?"
She heard Hiccup's voice with relief but she couldn't stop trembling, a part of her wanted to rush to him, but she didn't dare, she didn't want him to see her like that. He appeared in the entrance and she turned her head away, she hoped he wouldn't see her. He had been elated all the evening because of the eggs, she didn't want to spoil his joy.
"It's okay, just leave."
"You were screaming."
"I'll be fine! Leave!"
She didn't want to yell at him, but she didn't want to admit she got scared by something as stupid as a nightmare either. Anger was what she expected from after the way she sent him away, but in spite of her angered yell, Hiccup went at her side and sat next to her.
"What's wrong? Tell me, please."
"It's nothing."
She felt his hand on her shoulder and softened a little. A part of her wanted to talk, he asked her to give him her trust, and she wanted to comply, but it was humiliating!
"Did you get a nightmare?"
Oh Hel, why did he have to guess? Because she was silent, he went on:
"It's okay, at a time I used to have some. I didn't tell my friends, but I would see Toothless dead, killed by our enemies. I would see Dagur pursuing us like crazy and massacring everyone I love."
"Is that why you felt so bad for Heather?"
"It's not the only reason but its one of those. What was yours about?"
Though she was tempted to deny, she felt it was useless, he guessed and he would know she was lying. After a short moment of hesitation, she finally explained.
"I was just…It was stupid but I was searching for you and Stormfly. I couldn't find any of you, I would search on the whole island, but I couldn't find anyone, the village was empty, the woods were empty, the cave…Everything. I was all alone on that island and even in the other places nearby there was nothing and no one, and I was calling and calling but I wouldn't hear anyone answer and…"
Her voice cracked, though she didn't shed tears, because she couldn't anymore, she emitted something which was in between the moan and the sob.
"I know it's stupid, it's ridiculous…"
"No, it's not."
Hiccup wrapped his arms slowly around her and pulled her gently against him. Astrid looked at him with wide eyes, he was taking her in his arms…He led both of them to lie down, embraced her closely and put her forehead in the crook of his neck. He gently petted her head and rubbed her back comfortingly and Astrid felt almost unable to move as she felt his body against hers. There was nothing sexual into it, but it was still a very intimate contact and she wasn't expecting that.
"It's okay, I'm here, I'm not leaving you."
She put her arm around him, and embraced him a little tighter.
"You're not alone anymore, and you won't be alone again, that part of the punishment is over. I swear you I'll find out how to undo the curse completely. My friends also wants to help you, you're not alone, you can rely on us."
The Beast released a relieved sigh, and took comfort in the warmth of their embrace, he was still rubbing her back gently, she liked that. She fell asleep again and they spent the night in each other's arms.
The next day at the dawn, Hiccup went to Toothless who was sleeping at Lady's side, after protecting and warming the eggs along with her most of the evening. He gently woke up his friend and let Lady sleep, though he would have wished to leave them alone a little more, this was important. He caressed the eggs very gently, feeling their warmth on his skin. He was impatient to see them hatched, Toothless would be a father soon, it was something he really hoped for since long. Then, he stood up, sat on Toothless's back and the two went at the top of the mountain, where he met the old woman for the first time.
Hiccup knew Astrid didn't want him to meet her again, but he had to, this couldn't continue. She had slept peacefully after he came and comforted her, but he didn't. While he was holding her in his arms he had kept thinking about everything she endured rose an anger in him which stopped him from sleeping properly. The two rose above the snowy mountains and found the green meadow and the lake, he spotted the oak tree easily near the lake.
"There, bud!"
Toothless rushed to the tree, feeling something was urgent for his master. Once they were here, Hiccup called, asking if someone was here, maybe the old woman wasn't here anymore. As he was looking around, Hiccup heard some light footsteps behind him, and turned round to see a hooded figure. He stood up and when the person revealed her face, he saw the old woman. Her face was exactly the same as when she left him, still old but not as ugly as when he first saw her. He bowed his head at her.
"I see you didn't leave as I feared."
"Indeed, Hiccup Haddock. I wasn't expecting you to visit me again. Did the Beast forbid you to do so?"
"No, she asked me not to do so, but I decided otherwise. She is scared for me, I think."
"Good she is learning."
"Free her."
The woman only tilted her head in response, hinting he had to develop a little.
"Please, she suffered enough, five years of staying alone in that cave! I can't even imagine how torturing that loneliness can be, she might have been unkind in the past but it's not by isolating her that she could have got better!"
"She wasn't alone, she had many possibilities to interact with humans or dragons."
"You perfectly know that under the form she is, interacting with humans would have been way too difficult! As for dragons, it's not that easy."
"But she didn't try, didn't she?"
Hiccup fell silent as the Valkyrie reminded him of his own words. He saw some wrinkles had disappeared.
"She was thirteen, couldn't you have tried to explain her the errors of her ways instead of tranforming her like this?"
"Would she have listened? I doubt it, you know how stubborn Vikings are, don't you? And now the spell is cast anyway, it doesn't depend of me anymore."
He sighed in frustration. He looked back at her, her lips weren't as thin as before and her skin was not only smoother but also fairer, not as yellowish as before.
"Alright...Then how can I break the spell?"
"If I was to tell you, any possibility of breaking it would be gone. You'll understand once you'll succeed. You're on the right way however, haven't you noticed something different in the cave with the mirror?"
Hiccup was a little taken aback at this. What was there to notice? There was nothing new or missing in there...He would need to check out.
"If you continue like this and observe well, you might understand something is already changing. Don't try to find the way to break the curse, Hiccup, things will go naturally if you continue on your way. It's just like what you did with dragons, you saw through their scary aspect and you used patience. Sometimes, trying to force things is just useless."
It was true, he knew it. All of sudden, a black and blue form emerged from the sky and landed between Hiccup and the old woman (though she didn't look that old anymore, and she seemed taller).
"Hiccup, leave!"
"Astrid, don't worry..."
"She'll curse you just like me!"
"Of course not, Astrid. There is no reason for me to curse that young man. Haven't you understood already?"
"Yes! I understood I was wrong, and I know what it's like to really held someone dear, and that's why I'd rather die than see him get hurt!"
The Valkyrie gave her a genuine smile, Astrid perfectly knew she wouldn't hurt Hiccup, but she was speaking out of an irrational fear, a fear only sincere and unconditional love could create.
"You still have much to learn and do. Don't worry, Hiccup and his friends have nothing to fear from me."
Her hair weren't so white anymore, it seemed light blond now and her lips were fuller.
"And Heather and the village? You said you would help them," Hiccup reminded her.
"I interceded in their favor, they'll have good harvest. You already did a lot by finding a cure for them. You don't really need me, you know."
"Then why do you keep coming?" Asked Astrid, still scared for Hiccup in spite of what the Valkyrie said.
The Goddess let out a laugh and looked up at the sky. Hiccup took Astrid's paw to comfort her.
"It's alright, don't worry."
"I always kept an eye on you, Astrid," the Valkyrie said, "when Hiccup came, I wanted to see for myself if he was the right one, and I'm pretty sure you couldn't find better."
She turned toward them again and Hiccup was astonished to see how young and beautiful she was now. She had changed suddenly! She took off her rags and a resplendent armor appeared.
"I already told you, you can reveal the beauty in others, Hiccup. I have no doubt you can do it with Astrid."
A strong wind blew and the Valkyrie vanished under their eyes and the young man wondered what was the real purpose of her visit. She said he would only know the real solution to break the curse once he would have succeeded. Maybe she was right, maybe it was the key: Astrid just had to change to break the spell and that was all. He felt Astrid's paw gripping his arm strongly.
"Hiccup! Why did you do that?!"
"I wanted to speak to her..."
"I told you not to!"
"Well sorry, I didn't know it was an order!"
Astrid let out a growl of frustration.
"It's wasn't an order but I asked you not to do it, I asked you to do that for me, and I thought it would be enough for you to understand!"
"I understand, and I wanted to go along with it, but after your nightmare I couldn't just sit around and let that continue!"
"Hiccup, I'm fine, it was just a nightmare! Are you gonna do something reckless every time I tell you something isn't right with me?"
He opened his mouth but got nothing to answer and sighed. This time, she wasn't being a control freak, she was just worried and she indeed asked him that as a favor he accepted. Sure he didn't promise, but he was still going back on his word.
"She wasn't going to curse me...Look, I'm sorry you got worried, and I know you didn't like it, but trust me..."
"How can I trust when you don't accept a simple request? It wasn't an order, I asked you to do that for me. Look I know you're not gonna obey me nicely, and you won't always accept when I ask you to do something, but it was important to me, really."
A silence passed between them and Astrid sat on a rock, feeling quite lost. She didn't know what to do and what to say. Was she right? She knew she shouldn't command Hiccup, he wasn't her servant, she understood that. But if she couldn't ask him a single thing...Yet she didn't want to lose him, if he started to hate her because she was asking too much...But why did he have to do that? She didn't want to loose him. He sat at her side.
"I'm sorry. You're right, I should have known it was important for you...And this concerned you in the first pace, I should have spoke to you about it. Sometimes when I want to help someone, I tend to get ahead of myself. And maybe I don't like to be protected much...Except by Toothless, but it's different with him..."
"You don't want to be seen as weak," she continued for him.
"I have been ordered around and seen as weak all my life, I don't want it to continue."
"I wasn't ordering you that time, and I know you can defend yourself, I saw that on the ship. But Hiccup, you made me realise something: I shouldn't be too demanding toward people. You showed me you can accept people's failures and weaknesses, so why are you so demanding toward yourself? It's okay to let someone worry about you or even protect you, believe me, it's worse when no one does."
It struck him again to think of how lonely she had been and he found himself wishing to take her in his arms again.
"And you're not just sitting around doing nothing, she said it herself: you're on the way to break the curse. And believe me even if you couldn't break the curse, it wouldn't be the most important."
"You're happy like this?"
"No but I'm happy to have you. You made me meet Stormfly, your friends and you were here for me. I hate to have this appearance, really, but the worst part of it all was the loneliness, and you took me out of it, that's matter most."
He sighed, she was right, he knew it this time, he had wished to help her but it was a little pretentious of him to try to protect her if he couldn't accept her to do the same in return. She told him he took her out of her loneliness and this was what he had to do.
"You're right, if I try to do too much I'll spoil what's most important. I'm sorry, I was reckless."
She could have felt good that this time it was him who was apologizing, but no. It mattered, but for other reasons.
"You never struck me as weak, you know...I was actually quite impressed the first time we meet."
"What?"
"Yes. Remember when I rushed at you and growled at you? It was the first time you saw my face. Berserkers who already fought against me and know I can speak are still scared of me. But the first time I tried to intimidate you, you stood your ground and smiled...I think I understood that you were strong, just maybe not the usual way Vikings are. You don't have pounds of muscles but you're...I don't know, I think Hel herself wouldn't be able to stop you. Plus when I saw you had a Night Fury, I was even more impressed. I just wouldn't say it."
He chuckled and she did the same. He took her paw and squeezed it a little.
"Okay, I'll pay more attention when you ask me something important, and I won't decide to do important things behind your back when it concerns you in the first place."
"And I'll try not to be too protective or too controlling."
She leaned against his shoulder and he passed an arm around her waist, letting his head rest against her skull. They let some times pass like this, not really needing to say anything. It was Hiccup who broke the silence when he remembered something the Valkyrie said:
"Astrid, she said something changed in the mirror room. What is it?"
"I didn't see anything different. Are you sure?"
"That's what she said before you came."
"Maybe we should check out."
They returned to the mirror room, thinking something might have been added or be missing but when they went in, everything seemed the same. The mirror was here, the little pond as well, the fireflies and the flowers were still glowing.
"I don't get it, what did she mean?"
Hiccup observed and the more he did, the more it seemed like something had changed, something in the atmosphere...I wasn't something missing or added but...
"Astrid! Look, the lights!"
"What?"
"They aren't of the same blue."
He wondered how he didn't noticed, maybe because the change wasn't that obvious at the first sight, maybe because it had been progressive, but it was there. The fireflies and the flowers used to be glowing of a clear blue, a shade between sky blue and icy blue. But now, the shade was different, it was more a clear turquoise, making the atmosphere still soothing but warmer as well.
"You're right," Astrid murmured. "But how can that be?"
"It never happened?"
"No, the color never changed, it was always the same. How didn't I notice?"
"Maybe it was gradual."
"But what does it mean?"
"I don't know...Maybe because spring has came..." He suggested.
"It never changed according to the seasons...No, I don't have any explanations...Does the mirror still work?"
Hiccup shrugged and asked the mirror to show him Fishlegs. He still didn't like to do that, but it was only a test. He saw Fishlegs talking with Heather, making her laugh. This was still working. In normal time, he would have probably been more focused on his friend because it seemed that he was having a chance with Heather. But the cave had some surprises for him and Astrid obviously.
"Maybe we should look around," she suggested, "to see if nothing else changed."
"I agree."
He wondered if there were other places in there he didn't see and followed Astrid.
Hope you liked it, as you can guess, you'll see new rooms of the cave in the next chapter, I just love to write those. Don't hesitate to comment!
