Chapter 21 - The Discreet

Hiccup's POV - Open Sky

On the flight back to Berk, we tried to come up with a suitable explanation for our abrupt departure. The rescued Gronkle was carrying Stiildus and Fierce-Eye back to Berk, reportedly as part of his punishment. The newly named Thorn was following our group a few lengths back.

"I think the easiest explanation would be to say that you went for a walk and lost track of time," I suggested, "Astrid and I will just say we went for our morning flight after her match and found Thorn in an old trap on another island."

"I would argue those stories are both true," Fierce-Eye joked back, "The trap simply wasn't man-made!"

Stormfly grumbled something and Fierce-Eye just shook his head. "Stormfly, telling the truth is a bad idea. Humans are stubborn and skeptical to the extreme, especially Vikings. They wouldn't believe this adventure, nevermind magic and Dovahzul. Think about what it took to convince Astrid!" Stormfly crooned sadly while Astrid and I stared at Fierce-Eye.

"I'm still trying to wrap my head around it all," Astrid admitted, shaking her head at Fierce-Eye's little speech.

I smiled at a new idea. "After we get the others believing in Dovahzul, would you mind teaching it to me?"

Stiildus raised his head at that request. All of the other dragons looked surprised. Fierce-Eye opened and closed his mouth a couple times. 'What's the big deal?'

Finally, Fierce-Eye turned to the dragons. "Dreh naangein mindok waan tolro orin korasaal?" Every dragon rumbled back. Fierce changed back to Norse. "No one knows if that's even possible."

"How'd you learn it then?" Astrid challenged back.

"According to the dragons, any human that spends enough time away from other humans will eventually lose the strict adherence to human languages," Fierce-Eye explained, "That takes two or three years. If at least one dragon is accompanying the human, he or she will naturally learn Dragonese through immersion and speak Dovahzul when they try to emulate it. I suspect that was how I learned before my amnesia hit. The idea of shortcutting around that immersion period has, apparently, never been tested."

'So, if I had run away with Toothless that day, would I have already learned Dovahzul by now? So much for Heather's Shattered Chain theory.'

"If you had avoided human contact, it would explain why none of the chiefs recognized you," Astrid acknowledged.

Fierce-Eye nodded and closed his eyes in thought.

"It's too bad learning Dovahzul is that difficult," I lamented. Toothless rumbled in agreement.

Whatever Toothless said made Fierce-Eye snap to alertness. "Fos drey hi nunon saag?" Toothless rumbled again. Fierce gestured with his right hand as he mumbled to himself. "... uld kroson ... maldeykel vulsik siith ... lost wah nuft Norse to ..."

'Is he actually THINKING in Dovahzul? How long does THAT take?' Fierce was still in his little world when Berk appeared on the horizon.

Camicazi's POV - Berk's Great Hall

I smirked when I saw Hiccup and Astrid enter the Great Hall, together. 'My taunt about Hiccup seems to have had a few side effects.'

"What's up Camica- oh!" Heather noticed the couple behind her. Ruffnut snickered quietly. Gustav was busy eating his lunch and the other Riders were focused on Heather. Hiccup and Astrid came over to the table with their meals, noticing our stares.

Astrid reacted first. "What?"

"You two missed the signing ceremony," Heather reported, "Chief Stoick wasn't happy about that."

"We needed to get some air time. Then we found a Nadder caught in some old trap on another island," Hiccup answered dismissively, starting on his food, "Did anything interesting happen?"

"Interesting, but not unexpected," I replied, "The gamblers are arguing about whether or not some bets on an Outcast victory should be paid, the ones made while Fierce-Eye was mislabeled. Been a couple fights, but nothing with weapons yet. Mom was in a good mood after I beat Ox-Arm, so she didn't make TOO big of a fuss at the ceremony. Alvin officially cast-out those kidnappers, so execution is an option for their punishment. The Outcasts are leaving after lunch, thank the Gods. Fierce-Eye is probably in bigger trouble than you two. He missed his own victory ceremony!"

"No one has been able to track him down yet, but they're not too worried yet," Gustav added, nearly done eating, "His real sword was also missing, so he's armed, and he couldn't have won the tournament on luck alone. It's not like he could leave the island without a riding dragon."

"I bet he just went for a walk to get away from the crowds," Astrid supplied, "He might have even avoided returning for the ceremony."

Hiccup nodded. "You wouldn't believe how long it took me to get used to all the attention after the Red Death."

"Yeah, you st-st-stammered li-like c-c-c-crazy!" Snotlout teased. Hiccup just rolled his eyes.

'Going from misfit to acceptance to exile to town hero in a single month would be disorienting.'

"Speech impediments aside," I dismissed, "What riding dragon do you think I should get?"

Hiccup smiled at the blatent change in subject. "That's not an easy question. Your tribe still uses a lot of ships to raid the foreign settlements. You'll need a light dragon to take it on trips with you, but it also needs to be strong enough to carry you around."

"And don't forget FAST!" I pushed excitedly.

"A Nadder might work for you," Astrid pointed out, "As long as you keep it on a poultry-heavy diet."

"But birds aren't common enough on the open ocean," Hiccup corrected, "I just don't think we've found the right species of dragon for you yet. The available species are too heavy, too small, or otherwise not compatible with your lifestyle."

Fierce-Eye's POV - Friendship Cove

The three Gronkles happily gave my magic a power boost before they flew off for some family bonding. I was looking forward to testing the new spells, but Thorn was quite insistent on some food.

I slipped in and out of the village without too much trouble. The Great Hall was still filled with the Outcasts, so I avoided it. A couple of Vikings congratulated me for the tournament, but no one bothered me as I gathered Thorn's food. I had also grabbed some oils that Stormfly recommended for Spinetail scales.

::It took you long enough,:: Thorn grumbled when I brought his food back to the cove.

::Well excuse me for not having wings.:: I removed some fish for Stiildus and myself and started a small fire to cook mine.

Stiildus ate his fish quickly before curling up for a nap. Thorn focused on his larger meal of chicken and fish, so I let him eat in silence.

After a while, Thorn noticed that I hadn't left. ::Why are you still here? Shouldn't you be eating with your own kind?::

::A couple other tribes are visiting today, so the village is too crowded for my tastes.::

Thorn stood up from his meal to look at me better. ::Do you not like these other humans?::

::Some of them. I doubt you like every dragon.::

::True. But the average dragon is easily better than the average human.::

I had to shake my head. ::There are a lot of humans in this world. Neither of us will ever meet most of them. Makes it kind of hard to judge the 'average human'. Even the Viking tribes seem to be so diverse, that I'll never get a full picture on the 'average Viking'.::

Thorn huffed at my reasoning and resumed eating. 'Stubborn as a Viking is a fairly accurate saying, though.' After we finished eating, I showed Thorn the oils I'd brought with me.

::You expect to rub that stuff on me?:: Thorn asked loudly, waking Stiildus.

::Stormfly lets Astrid apply it,:: I pointed out, opening the bottle for him to smell, ::And you've seen how healthy her scales are.::

::Are you worried that Fierce-Eye is going to hurt you?:: Stiildus teased the larger dragon.

::It not fear. It's caution!:: Thorn argued back.

::Please,:: Stiildus sounded bored, ::If he wanted to kill you, he'd have done it while you were still unconscious!::

Determined to prove that he wasn't a coward, Thorn let me apply the oil. He didn't let me touch his wings or tail (this time), always keeping an eye on me. The Spinetail began to croon in delight a couple of times, but quickly caught himself. Once the massage was done, I stashed the extra oil in a sheltered nook and washed my hands.

::That was better than I expected,:: Thorn confessed.

Stiildus gave a dragon grin. ::You liked it.::

::SHUT UP!::

I laughed at the bickering dragons.

::Aren't you two going to be missed at the human nest?:: Thorn suggested, clearly wanting us to leave.

Hiccup's POV - Berk Docks

I was surprised when Astrid and I found Fierce-Eye and Stiildus at the docks. We had to see the Outcasts off, but Fierce-Eye clearly disliked Alvin's tribe. Dad and the other Berk council members were saying their final farewells to the Outcast delegation. The Burglar delegation didn't come, but some crew members were working on their ship.

"What are you doing here?" Astrid asked, clearly confused.

Fierce-Eye subtly looked around for curious ears before answering. "Beats me. After I brought back Thorn's food basket, I was going to practice some magic when one of the Gronkles insisted I stay at the docks. He wouldn't say why though." Dad noticed me talking to Fierce and glared a bit, but he was busy with his own conversations.

I knew it was a matter of time until Fierce would be lectured. "How's Thorn doing?"

"Still hates accepting a human's aid. Still doesn't understand Norse. He probably wouldn't let another human near him. I gave him some food and an oil massage that Stormfly suggested, but he's still anti-social. Wouldn't let me touch his wings or tail at all."

Astrid raised an eyebrow and I knew why. Very few people knew that Stormfly enjoyed an oil massage. It made her scales extra shiny, especially if no other Nadder recieved that treatment. 'Accepting that Dovahzul is real is very different from getting used to it.'

Fierce-Eye looked at me and said, "When you have some time, I'd like to run an idea by you two and your dragons later."

I nodded and watched the Outcasts climb into their ship. The ship got underway and Dad began to lecture Fierce-Eye for missing the conclusion of the tournament. Fierce-Eye looked up at the chief, listening to the conversation but not taking any of the criticism seriously. 'Saving two lives or attending a ceremony. He's not the only one that would choose the lives.'

Suddenly, Fierce looked straight up. "What the-!?"

The rest of us looked up and saw several dragons flying out to sea, led by three Gronkles. 'It's three o'clock.'

Sure enough, as the dragons flew over the departing Outcast ship, they began ... their three o'clock ritual. The smelly green goop rained down on our new 'allies', eliciting cries of disgust and outrage. Several dock workers and crew members (including the few Bog Burglars) laughed as the Outcasts hid under their shields . Alvin was swearing loud enough for the Great Hall to hear him.

Astrid had a small smile on her face. Stiildus was giving a dragon laugh. Fierce-Eye was clearly stunned. 'So that's why he had to be on the docks.'

Dad just shook his head. "Just don't miss the feast in the Great Hall tonight. I've got to go reprimand the twins."

'I don't think the twins had anything to do with that.'

Thorn's POV - Sky over the Human Nest

The human nest was not what I was expecting. Even though I didn't understand the humans' language, I could still recognize the situations. Large troughs of fish were laid out for dragons. Hatchlings of both humans and dragons chased each other in game. Adult dragons helped humans perform their work, moving cargo and building new sea vessels. In the distance, some Flame Bodies were scaring fish towards the human fishing boats. It was very surreal to see such peace and co-operation.

A large man was shouting at a pair of similar humans. He clearly had authority over the younger humans and was not happy, shouting over their protests. 'Troublemakers in every nest.'

One group of human hatchlings were asking a larger adolescent questions. The adolescent seemed pleased to share his knowledge, giving long and detailed answers. A nearby Rock Hide, clearly partnered to the adolescent, rumbled a few comments now and then. 'They take the time to learn about us. How to keep us healthy and treat our sicknesses.'

Several humans were hauling barrels and foodstuffs towards a set of very tall doors. The humans were all excited about something, but I couldn't tell why. 'Some sort of celebration? Or are they just storing food for the winter like most mammals do?'

The Dragonfriend was on a beach, showing a paper to the humans from the Rage Graveyard. Both of them seemed very interested in what he was saying. The Star Stalker was scratching dragon runes into the sand. They seemed busy, so I just kept gliding.

Eventually, I came upon a short stone and chain building. It was marked with a large spiraling dragon at the entrance. 'Must be dragon related...somehow.' There were no humans around and my wings were getting tired, so I landed for a closer look.

From the smell of it, there were several humans here recently, but they've all left. It seemed to be some sort of entertainment place, designed for spectators to be along the roof. 'Do they fight dragons here? I don't smell any fresh burns or hear any other dragons.'

I noticed a small pile of wooden weapons near the wall of the pit. Two weapons are painted black and white, smelling faintly of the Dragonfriend. The third weapon is broken and smells much stronger of the female from before. A bag smelling of metal and an unknown male human is also among the weapons.

'I guess they had a fight here, but stopped when the third weapon broke.' I sniffed the air as thoroughly as possibly. 'No blood. I guess this place is for training, not killing.'