Rituals
*Dagur's Point of View*
"Well you could always just propose to her," Eret suggested.
"But we have only officially been courting for a week! What kind of guy would that make me?" Snotlout asked.
"One who doesn't want to lose his girl," Eret responded.
"Guys, what's going on?" I asked. Hiccup, who had walked into the conversation with me, nodded in agreement with my question.
"Willow's parents received a marriage offer for her. It's some guy from Outcast," Snotlout said sadly.
"Oh, well if it makes you feel any better, I wouldn't sign it," Hiccup said.
"You wouldn't have to. Only one chief has to sign it," Snotlout groaned miserably.
"Oh... Eret is right though. I can help you write up a contract if you'd like," Hiccup offered.
"Really? You guys don't think it is too soon?" Snotlout asked.
"Snot, if you know she is the one, why waste any more time?" I asked.
Snotlout nodded. "Okay," he said, "Hiccup, how exactly does one write up a marriage contract?"
"Well, first you need to negotiate a dowry with her father. Go talk to him and come back to me with that negotiated price and we will write it up together," Hiccup instructed.
Snotlout jumped up. "Okay, gotcha. Gods, I am actually nervous," he said, wiping his sweaty palms on his tunic.
"Relax, Snothat! She loves you. You got this," I reassured him.
He nodded then walked towards Willow's house, his steps not quite as confident as usual. Eret followed behind as moral support.
"I can't believe Snotlout is actually going to negotiate a dowry. Not just that, but for a girl who actually loves him!" I said incredulously.
Hiccup laughed. "Yeah, I am surprised too. But, honestly, they balance each other out perfectly," he said.
"That they do," I agreed with him.
"I mean, Willow is incredibly intelligent and sweet. She is a very calming presence. And Snotlout, well he is Snotlout," Hiccup chuckled.
"Rough and tumble, prideful, all viking?" I suggested.
"Perfect," Hiccup laughed.
"Hey, have you seen Heather? I wanted to ask her about the ceremony. I am officiating," I said proudly.
"I was just about to ask you if you've seen Fishlegs. He was supposed to go scouting on the east side of the island with me, but I haven't seen him," Hiccup commented.
"Hmmm… Heather and Fishlegs both nowhere to be found?" I said sarcastically.
"I was thinking the same thing. Maybe he took her scouting with him," Hiccup thought aloud.
"You going to go look?" I asked.
"Probably. Astrid can hold the fort down here for a few hours. You want to join me?" Hiccup offered.
"That actually sounds like a nice break from the day to day operation here," I sighed.
"Then go pack a lunch and fill your canteen. Meet on the eastern edge of town behind the twins' houses in an hour or so? I have to let Astrid know what we are doing," Hiccup said.
"Okay, I'll meet you there," I agreed.
Hiccup smiled and left to go find Astrid. I started walking towards the Great Hall.
I walked into the back door, straight into the kitchen.
Valka was there talking to some of the cooks. "Valka, what are you doing here?" I asked.
"Just checking on the food inventory here. I run the crops and planting, remember?" Valka chuckled. She walked over to me and gave me a hug.
"I remember. I guess I just never realized how closely you work with the kitchen," I said.
Valka nodded with a smile. "What can I do for you, Dagur the Deranged?" she asked.
"Gods, haven't heard that one in a while," I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck. "I came to pack a lunch. Hiccup and I are scouting the eastern side of the island… and looking for my sister and Fishlegs."
"I can pack one for you if you'd like," Valka offered.
I sighed. "That would be really nice, thanks Valka," I said gratefully.
"Of course, dear," Valka replied. She took my bag from me and opened it. I watched as she packed an apple, some leftover fish from the previous night's dinner, and a loaf of bread.
"I figured you could share the bread with my son. Knowing him, he won't pack a substantial lunch unless Astrid helps him," she chuckled.
I nodded. "Of course, Valka," I replied. She handed me my bag.
"Now, get going," she said, waving me off.
I turned towards the door. "Thanks, Valka!" I called over my shoulder.
The Thorston huts were on the outside edge of town. They needed their space. Ruffnut had a large pen and several pits for her boars. She provided a lot of the towns boar meat. Tuffnut, on the other hand, had a massive chicken coup behind his hut. He refused to kill any of the chickens, so we only got eggs from him. I had been inside his house briefly and the main hallway was also lined with straw for even more chickens. But his favorite, Chicken the First, was constantly by his side, even slept in his bedroom. It was a bit strange, but undeniably a very "Tuffnut" thing to do.
When I got there Hiccup was already waiting for me.
"Sorry I kept you waiting. I was getting my lunch. Your mom gave me extra because she didn't think you would pack enough for yourself," I teased.
"Gods…" Hiccup muttered, shaking his head. But I knew he loved it. He hadn't had a mom to fuss over him when he was a kid.
"Look here," Hiccup said, kneeling down by the treeline.
"Ah, two sets of footprints," I chuckled.
"So he did take Heather! And he didn't think to tell me? I would have gone too!" Hiccup feigned hurt.
"Hiccup, brother, trust me. You would not have wanted to go with them. I have been spending a lot of time with them and they are in full love bird mode," I laughed.
"Sounds like you have seen some things," Hiccup laughed.
"When it was you and Astrid, I was okay with it. But this is my little sister! Every time they kiss I want to yell at Fishlegs to get off her," I said.
"Well, it is a good thing you don't. I do not think Heather would appreciate that," Hiccup chuckled. And he was right.
We started walking the way the prints led.
We soon had to stop for lunch. Valka had been right, Hiccup was really bad at packing a lunch for himself. All he packed was an apple and half a yak chop. He tried to make me keep all of the food Valka packed for me, but I reminded him what she had said and he took what I had offered him, not without a complaint or two of course.
After about an hour of walking, we heard them.
"Oooh! Look! Goat Weed!" Fishlegs squealed.
I laughed quietly. "And to think, I thought we'd find them making out or something," I whispered.
"Not Fishlegs. Not when there are plants to discover," Hiccup whispered in response.
We emerged from the thick bushes, surprising Fishlegs. He yelled when he saw us, holding his hand over his chest.
"You could have given a warning! My heart is about to beat out of my chest," Fishlegs said.
Heather laughed and kissed his cheek before walking over to me.
"Hello, brother. What are you doing here?" she asked.
"Just looking for you," I said.
She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry…" she mumbled.
"What have you guys found?" Hiccup asked.
"Hiccup, we have found so much! We found a whole clearing of Dagga Plant, a lake with a sandy shore that was covered with Buckthorn, and look at this field of Goat Weed!" Fishlegs said excitedly.
"That's great Fishlegs!" Hiccup exclaimed, matching his friend's excitement.
I shook my head. "Nerds," I mumbled to Heather.
She laughed. "You have no idea, brother."
"Oh! We also found a clearing where we think a pack of Changewings nested! There are Changewing skins all over the place! And there are tons of dragons scales around the lake we found!" Fishlegs informed us.
"Hey, that's actually pretty cool, Fishface," I told him.
He nodded in excitement. "I know, right?" He said happily.
"So, why were you looking for me, brother?" Heather asked.
"I was just wanting to ask you a question about the ceremony next week," I said.
Fishlegs and Heather both looked up.
"Oh? Well, ask away," Heather said.
"Are you guys going to do this wedding Berserker style or Hooligan style?" I asked.
"Actually, we are going to do a bit of both," Fishlegs said.
"Yes, we are going to do the cloth binding tradition of the Hooligan tribe and the sword exchange of the Berserker tribe. We are going to leave out the Berserker goat sacrifice," Heather explained.
"Sounds perfect!" I said.
"We are also going to do the ring exchange since both tribes do that," Fishlegs commented.
"What's the sword exchange?" Hiccup asked.
"It's an old tradition where a sword is passed down from generation to generation. The bride receives the groom's sword and eventually gives it to their son and the groom receives the bride's sword and eventually gives it to their daughter," I explained.
"And what if they have more than one of each?" HIccup questioned further.
"Then either a new sword is made or another ancestral one is brought forth," Heather explained further.
"Interesting… When we merge the tribes all weddings after can be held like yours. That way we have bits of both tribes," Hiccup decided.
"But, Heather, we lost our father's sword. How are you going to exchange it?" I asked.
"Actually, I have been meaning to talk to Hiccup about that," she said.
"Me?" Hiccup asked.
Heather nodded. "I have a drawing of Oswald's sword in his journal. Do you think you and Gobber could make one like it for me?" she asked.
Hiccup smiled. He loved when he could work in the forge. "Of course! Just bring the drawing by later and I can start making a mold and get the material together," he said happily.
Heather thanked him.
I looked up at the sky and saw the sun was swooping down towards the west.
"We might want to start heading back before it gets dark," I suggested.
The others agreed and we started the trek back to town together.