Chapter 50: Wives and Children
Six Years Later
Location: Fields of Valhalla
Date: April 9
Time: 4:30 a.m.
(Toothless PoV)
Toothless practically skipped through the great green fields of the place the humans called Valhalla. His siblings and parents were skipping along beside him.
Never in his life had Toothless been excited over anything. His mate, the Light Fury had recently passed away in her sleep and now she was to join them right here! He just couldn't wait to see her! And he couldn't wait to introduce her to his family!
Toothless looked over at his shoulder and saw the figures of Hiccup and his own parents a few yards away from them.
"Hurry up, Hiccup!" he called out.
"I'm coming, bud," Hiccup called back.
…
4:30 a.m.
(Hiccup PoV)
Hiccup put a hand to his mouth as he yawned loudly. It was a miracle wasn't stumbling like a zombie from being woken up so early. His parents were walking on either side of him and looking just as groggy.
"I've never seen Toothless look so excited before in my life," Stoick commented.
"Well, after all, he's going to be back with his true love any moment now," Valka pointed out.
"Yeah, I just didn't expect her to pass away so early in the morning," Hiccup said.
"You and me both, son," Stoick said.
"Well, today's an exception," Valka said, "Let's just be glad that Toothless and the Light Fury will be together again."
"Well, I have to admit, I am looking forward to meeting this Light Fury," Stoick said.
"You'll love her, Dad, just wait," Hiccup said turning from left to right trying to catch a glimpse of white through the tall grass and the still-dark sky.
…
4:31 a.m.
(Toothless PoV)
While the rest of his family stood a few feet from behind him, Toothless stood at the front, peering from left to right trying to catch a glimpse of white through the tall grass and the still-dark sky. Good thing he had night vision.
"LIGHT FURY!" he called out.
No answer.
"LIGHT FURY!"
Still no answer. Toothless opened his mouth and was just about to call again when he heard…
"TOOTHLESS?!"
Toothless' ears perked up straight and his pupils constricted in shock.
"LIGHT FURY?"
"TOOTHLESS?"
She seemed to materialize out of thin air. But there she was. Standing on her hind legs in a patch of the tallest grass just a couple of feet away from him stood…
"LIGHT FURY!" Toothless cried out as he ran towards her.
"TOOTHLESS!" Now she was running to him.
As soon as he was close enough, he pounced at her playfully and the two of them rolled around the grass and they were licking each other excessively.
"I can't believe you're here!" Toothless grunted happily.
"You can't believe I'm here? I can't believe you're here!" the Light Fury replied.
"And now that you're here, I want to introduce me to your family just as you introduced me to yours," Toothless said, getting up from her and looking over to his family. They were already walking up to them. "Come everyone, I want you all to meet my mate!"
His parents and all his brothers and sisters approached the Light Fury with curious expressions. The Light Fury stared back at them shyly.
"Light Fury, I'd like you to meet my mother, father, brothers and sisters," Toothless introduced.
"Hello, Light Fury, we are pleased to meet you," Sapphire greeted.
"My pleasure," the Light Fury responded.
"You're beautiful," commented the blue-eyed sister.
"Thank you."
"I can see why Toothless chose you to be his girl," the blue-eyed brother said.
"You found yourself a good mate, my son," said his father.
"Thank you, Father," Toothless said.
"Toothless," the Light Fury warbled softly in surprise.
Toothless turned to see that she now had her head turned to Hiccup and his parents standing not too far away.
"Is that Hiccup?"
"Yes, and those are his parents," Toothless said, "Would you like to see them?"
The Light Fury looked at him with a trusting and confident expression. "I'd love to."
…
4:36 a.m.
(Hiccup PoV)
As he watched Toothless introduce the Light Fury to his family, he took a deep breath. Although he was glad to see his best friend back with his mate, his heart ached to be with Astrid.
Still, he forced a smile as the Light Fury approached him and leaned her head forward to be petted.
"Hi there, Light Fury," he said, stroking her ears.
The Light Fury purred relaxingly.
"I'm happy to see you too," Hiccup replied.
"We all are," Valka said, gently massaging the nape of the Light Fury's neck.
"I can see why Toothless chose her to be his mate," Stoick said, scratching the side of the Light Fury's chin, "She's one beautiful dragon."
"Yeah, beautiful," Hiccup murmured.
Stoick looked up at his son looking confused at first but then smiled compassionately. He approached Hiccup and brushed back his auburn bangs with his thick fingers.
"Don't worry, son. You'll be back with Astrid soon enough."
…
Three Years Later
Location: Fields of Valhalla
Date: February 14
Time: 4:50 p.m.
(Hiccup PoV)
Stoick was right.
Hiccup had spent the next three years watching over his family in Midgard. As he did, Astrid had developed problems with her health and had slowly died from them in her sleep at age seventy-eight.
His heart was pounding with excitement as he trudged through the green fields of Valhalla with his parents, Toothless, the Light Fury, Stormfly (who had passed away two years prior) Astrid's parents and her uncle Finn Hofferson.
"Now remember," he told everyone, "I promised Astrid I'd be the first to greet her once she got here."
"We know, son," Stoick said.
"Don't worry, we won't interfere," Ingrid said.
"There she is," Valka said, pointing out to something.
Hiccup looked. A little ways from them was a figure lying on her side in the grass. Even from afar, Hiccup could easily recognize that braided blonde hair.
He probably looked worried because Ingrid put a hand on his shoulder and whispered, "Don't be alarmed, Hiccup. She's only asleep."
"Go on, son," Einar said encouragingly.
Hiccup nodded, took a deep breath and marched toward the figure of his wife.
His heart was pounding faster than any war drum now. She was dressed in her favorite style of clothing – the sleeveless top, the leather skirt and the shoulder guards, her skin was free of wrinkles and her hair had returned to that sparkling shade of blonde. Her arms were strewn out in front of her as she slept.
Smiling softly, Hiccup knelt down beside her, craned his neck and softly pressed a kiss against her cheek. Then he whispered into her ear, "Astrid?"
Groaning softly, Astrid lifted her head off the grass and opened her eyes. They were the same shade of crystal blue that she's had since her first day on Midgard.
…
4:54 p.m.
(Astrid PoV)
Even as her vision cleared, Astrid blinked her eyes refusing to believe what she was seeing.
He had the same auburn hair and beard as him, the same grass-green eyes as him, the same skinny figure as him and the same smile as him. But it couldn't be him. Or could it?
"Hiccup?" she blurted.
"It's okay, Astrid," he said softly, reaching out and brushing some of her bangs out of her face. "I'm here."
As she felt his flesh brush against her own, Astrid knew for sure that his was definitely her husband.
In a split second, she sat up and clung to her darling husband as tears of joy leaked from her eyes. After nearly nine years, she was back with him.
"Hiccup," she whispered through her tears as she felt his arms fold around her and listened to his sniffles.
She would never let him out of her sight again, ever.
…
4:55 p.m.
(Stoick PoV)
Stoick smiled as he watched his son embrace his wife. Seeing this was giving him the urge to embrace his own wife. Well, why not? After spending too many years away from her, he deserved to embrace her as many times as he wanted.
He approached from behind her, planted his hands on her shoulders and kissed her on the cheek. She glanced over at him with a surprised expression but he ignored that.
"My sweet, beautiful Valka," he whispered into her ear.
Now she smiled back. "My strong, handsome Stoick."
They kissed again, this time on the lips.
…
4:55 p.m.
(Toothless PoV)
Watching Hiccup reunite with his mate was urging Toothless to cuddle with his own. He leaned against the Light Fury's right side and purred, "I love you."
The Light Fury leaned against him and purred back, "I love you too."
…
4:55 p.m.
(Ingrid PoV)
Ingrid took a deep breath, holding back her tears as she watched her daughter reunite with her husband. Any minute now, she would be reuniting with her and her husband.
Speaking of her husband, she felt his arm wrap around her shoulders and his lips press against her cheek.
"Einar!" she chuckled.
"What? All the other husbands are embracing their wives," Einar said, gesturing to Stoick who was kissing Valka and Toothless who was leaning against the Light Fury. "So why can't I too?"
"Oh, you can embrace me as many times as you want," Ingrid chuckled with a smile and leaned over to kiss him on the lips.
…
4:57 p.m.
(Astrid PoV)
Still clinging to each other, Astrid and Hiccup stood up on their feet. Suddenly, she heard a familiar squawk. Looking over Hiccup's shoulder, she saw a blue Deadly Nadder making its way towards them.
"Stormfly?" she whispered.
The Nadder licked her face with its forked pink tongue once it was close enough and then it nuzzled her face.
Astrid laughed and reached out a hand to stroke her friend's head. "Stormfly!"
Hiccup also laughed. "Stormfly, please! I'm trying to have a moment with my wife!"
"Oh, let her join in, Hiccup," Astrid insisted.
"And now let us join in," came a woman's voice.
Astrid looked over and saw five adults making their way towards them. Her eyes widened even more. Two of those adults were her parents, Ingrid and Einar.
"Mom, Dad," she murmured, her tears resuming as she wrapped her arms around them.
"Astrid, sweetheart," Ingrid whispered as she and Einar embraced her back.
After about a minute, Astrid and her parents released each other from their embrace and she approached the other two adults: her husband's parents, Stoick and Valka.
"Valka," Astrid whispered as she and Valka embraced.
"Astrid," Valka whispered back.
Again, they let each other go and Astrid slowly approached Stoick. After so many decades, it felt good seeing his familiar hulky figure and lion's mane of a beard.
"Hello, Astrid, my daughter-in-law," Stoick greeted, holding out his arms.
"Hi, Stoick, my father-in-law," Astrid greeted as her husband's father folded his strong arms around her.
Astrid heard the sound of someone clearing their throat and Astrid turned towards the sound. The fifth adult was the one who was clearing his throat. Now Astrid was really refusing to believe what she was seeing now.
The fifth adult was a tall, strong man with a long blonde beard and matching mustache. Astrid remembered from her youth that this man usually wore a stern expression but this time he was wearing a kind smile.
"Uncle Finn?"
"Hello, Astrid," Finn greeted.
Stoick released his grip of her and Astrid ran to her uncle, crashing into his chest. Finn Hofferson chuckled as they embraced.
Then Astrid heard two types of warbles. The first warble sounded deep and slightly gruff while the second warble sounded high-pitched and serene. She looked up from Finn's chest to see two Furies approaching them: one was black with green eyes and the other was white with blue eyes.
"Hi, Toothless, and the Light Fury too," Astrid said, reaching a hand out to pet the two of them.
…
4:59 p.m.
(Hiccup PoV)
With his hands on his hips, Hiccup smiled as he watched his wife greet everyone else who had come to welcome her to the new world. Then he glanced over his shoulder at the great, green, seemingly endless field.
"Now we just have to wait for our children," he murmured, "And our children's children, and our children's children's children, not to mention all the children after that."
He chuckled over his little comment.
…
18 Years Later
Location: Fields of Valhalla
Date: September 18
Time: 11:45 p.m.
(Hiccup PoV)
Even as he yawned loudly, Stoick wore an expression that was a mixture of excitement and slight irritation.
"Nuffink had to die late at night," he griped, "If he was going to die today, he could've at least done it in the morning or in the afternoon or even the very early evening."
"Now, Stoick, it's not up to you to decide what time people should die," Valka pointed out.
"Yeah, Dad, just be happy you're meeting your grandson for the first time no matter what time it is," Hiccup added.
"I am, son, believe me, I am," Stoick insisted.
Hiccup smirked as he made his way through the fields with his parents, Astrid, Brant Ingerman, Toothless and the Light Fury.
In between the eighteen years since Astrid had passed away, the remainder of his family continued on with their lives back in the old world. Brant Ingerman had passed away at age 74. He thought about Zephyr all the time since his arrival and someone had to be by his side reminding him that Zephyr would eventually join him.
Now on this night, his second-born, his son, Nuffink had passed away just now due to having some severe pains in his head for a few months. He was seventy years old but Hiccup knew he wouldn't be surprised if he saw his son resembling a fifteen-year-old with blonde hair instead of gray. After all, everyone went back to looking young in Valhalla no matter how old they become.
"YIPPEE!" came a voice not far from them.
Hiccup turned to Astrid and they shared a smile. No doubt about it, that voice belonged to their son. They continued on, following Nuffink's voice.
"The pain is gone!" Nuffink continued happily, wherever he was, "The pain in my head is gone! Now I don't have to lie still anymore! Whoo-hoo!"
Through the darkness, Hiccup could see a tall figure dancing and spinning around joyfully just a few feet away from him.
"Nuffink?" he called.
Nuffink's figure stopped dancing and spinning and turned towards him.
"Dad?" Nuffink called back, putting a hand over his eyes.
"Yes, sweets, it's us, Mom and Dad!" Astrid called.
"Mom? Dad?" Nuffink said in disbelief.
Then he bolted towards him. As he got closer, Hiccup could make out his son's blonde hair, green eyes and skinny figure.
"Mom! Dad!" Nuffink cried again before crashing into Hiccup's chest.
"Oof!" Hiccup grunted the minute Nuffink crashed into him but then he laughed as he hugged his son.
Astrid joined in with the embracing, running her fingers through the back of Nuffinks' hair – blonde as hers and shaggy as Hiccup's.
Toothless nudged the three of them and grunted. Hiccup looked over at his Night Fury friend who was looking up at them expectantly.
"Hey, Toothless!" Nuffink greeted happily as he petted Toothless' snout, "And there's the Light Fury too."
The Light Fury approached them and purred relaxingly as Nuffink reached out to pet her. Hiccup couldn't help but feel impressed and proud of how more and more trusting the Light Fury became of good humans.
At that moment, Brant approached.
"Brant, is that you?" Nuffink asked in disbelief.
"Yes, Nuff, it's me," said Brant matter-of-factly.
"How are you doing?" Nuffink asked, holding out his hand.
"I'm fine, thanks, Nuff," Brant answered, shaking Nuffink's hand, "But I really miss your sister. How is she?"
"Oh, she's doing just fine," Nuffink answered, "She's still jotting down facts and sketching, taking care of her kids and grandkids and stuff like that. And she misses you too."
"I know she does," Brant said.
"But not to worry, Brant," Stoick said as he and Valka approached them, "You'll get your wife back soon enough, just as I got mine back and just as my son got his back."
"Stoick, is it really you?" Brant asked in disbelief.
"Yes, Brant, it's really me," Stoick said with a chuckle.
"Wow, I haven't seen you since I was a kid," Brant said,
"And I haven't seen you at all except by your statues and sketches from Dad," Nuffink said.
"Well, you're seeing me now, Nuffink," Stoick said, patting his grandson's shoulder.
"And Grandma Valka, you're all better!" Nuffink exclaimed, holding up his arms.
"From my odd sickness yes," Valka said, hugging Nuffink, "And also from another disease that I've been having for quite a while now."
"What disease was that?" Nuffink asked, pulling away and looking at his grandmother with a confused expression.
"The I-miss-my-grandson-so-much-disease," Valka joked.
Nuffink laughed and so did Valka. "I have to admit, I've been having another disease along with those pains in my head: the I-miss-my-grandma-so-much-disease."
"Well, then it looks like we're both cured," Valka smiled.
"Well, it's great seeing you all again," Nuffink said, looking around at everyone.
"And it's great seeing you again, buddy," Hiccup said, ruffling his son's hair.
"Dad!" Nuffink protested, half-laughing, half-annoyed.
Hiccup laughed and wrapped his arm around his wife.
"Well, we've got our baby boy back," Astrid said, leaning against his chest.
"Yep," said Hiccup, "Now we just need our baby girl back."
…
Twelve Years Later
Location: Fields of Valhalla
Date: December 28
Time: 7:30 a.m.
(Zephyr PoV)
Zephyr felt warm - warmer than she had been in her whole life. As energy seeped through her body in her sleep, she kept her eyes tightly shut as she thought back to everything that had happened in her life.
She had turned eighty-six the previous month. She had lived the longest life than any Viking in the world. But she knew her time had come. She knew for a fact that her eighty-sixth birthday would be her last. For the past three years, she hadn't had as much strength as she used to have. In fact for these next three years, she was confined to her bed. It broke her heart that she had been ordered not to move around so much, but she reminded herself that rest would help her to last a little longer. And it wasn't all that bad, her family visited her and stayed by her side every day. They brought her meals and special trinkets, they told her stories and recited poems that they made up just for her.
Just a few days ago, they had celebrated Snoggletog, her last one. The previous night, she had ordered all her family to be around her – her two sons and their spouses, her grandchildren and all her great-grandchildren. Like her, they knew that last night would be her last one and many tears were shed. But Zephyr said farewell speeches to all of them just as her Grandma Valka had done and just as her father and mother had done before their own departures. She promised each and every one of her family that they would soon be together in Valhalla, wherever it was and she made everyone promise that until that time would come, they should continue to live their own lives and that's exactly what they did.
Hearing those promises made Zephyr happy enough to fall into a deep and seemingly-endless sleep. Now she was just starting to wake up and whatever she was lying on felt very ticklish like the blades of tall grass in Haddock Meadow.
"Zephyr? Can you hear me, hon?"
Someone was calling out to her and something was running down the back of her hair.
Groaning softly, Zephyr rolled onto her back and opened her eyes. Through her bleary vision, all she could make out were a bunch of colors: some pale pink surrounded by some brownish color and right in the center, two green dots.
Must be a person, she decided. And it must also be whoever's calling to me. It was a familiar sounding voice. A familiar, funny sounding voice, almost similar to a honking goose. But that voice was also filled with kindness and serenity.
Wait a minute!
"Daddy?" Zephyr murmured, her eyes widening.
The minute she said that, her vision cleared up in a matter of seconds and Zephyr had a clearer look at the peaceful, smiling face of the man she had not seen in years: her auburn-haired-and-bearded, green-eyed father, Hiccup.
"Shh," was all Hiccup said as he reached out a hand and brushed back her bangs just as he had always done. Then he leaned forward and softly kissed both of her cheeks, her forehead and her nose.
Zephyr closed her eyes and smiled as she relished every one of her father's kisses. When she opened them again, another face had appeared right next to her father's. This face was mostly back with a white jaw (similar to a killer whale), sky-blue eyes, pointed black ears with white tips, a white spot on its nose and a toothy smile.
"Starspot?" Zephyr exclaimed.
Starspot, the blue-eyed Night Light warbled joyfully and practically soaked her face with her warm, pink, slimy tongue.
Zephyr laughed as she placed her hands on either side of Starspot's head. "Oh, I'm happy to see you too, girl!"
"Hey, Starspot, move over, please, I want to see my big sister too," came another familiar voice.
"Who also happens to be my sister-in-law," said a woman's voice.
"Nuffink?" Zephyr asked, turning towards the voice.
Sure enough, there was her brother, Nuffink with his shaggy blonde hair, his green eyes and his skinny figure. Standing right next to him was her mother, Astrid, with her long, braided blonde hair, crystal-blue eyes and kind smile. There was also Nott with her bright red pixie cut and her parakeet green eyes.
"Nuffink, Mom, Nott," Zephyr breathed, her eyes brimmed with tears as she sat up from the grass she was lying on.
She put one arm around her mother's neck while she put the other one around her brother's neck so that she was holding both them. She could hear her mother sniffling as she and Nuffink wrapped their own arms around her. Nott wrapped her own arms from behind her. Zephyr sighed. Gods, she had missed them all.
Opening her eyes, she lifted her head up in shock at the sight of another familiar figure standing a few feet away from them. Like Nuffink, he had scruffy blonde hair and green eyes. But unlike Nuffink, his hair wasn't too scruffy and he had a matching mustache.
"Brant?" Zephyr asked, refusing to believe what she was seeing.
"Come over here, Zeph," Brant insisted, holding out his hand.
Releasing her grip of her mom and brother, Zephyr took hold of Brant's hand and he pulled her towards his chest and held her tight.
With her arms around his back and her chin hooked on his shoulder, she whispered in her ear, "I'm never letting you out of my sight again."
"And I'm never letting you out of mine," Brant whispered back.
Lifting her chin up from his shoulders, Zephyr opened her eyes and her mouth hung open a bit. Standing a few feet away from them was a tall, thin woman with beautiful auburn hair so long it had to be tied in three braided ponytails, aqua-green eyes brimmed with tears and a kind smile.
"Grandma Valka?"
"Zephyr," Valka whispered, holding her arms out.
With slight reluctance, Zephyr pulled away from Brant and approached her grandmother and found herself confined in her tight embrace.
"I missed you so much," she whispered tearfully.
"Shh, I'm here," Valka whispered back.
Looking over from her grandmother's, Zephyr's eyes widened and she gasped. She had been so happy to see her grandmother again, she didn't even notice the other person standing a little ways from them. He was a tall, muscular man with beefy arms, broad shoulders, calloused hands and a thick, shaggy, red lion's mane of a beard.
Zephyr couldn't believe her eyes. This man looked similar to the great stone statue of her Grandpa Stoick. Then that must mean…No! It couldn't be!
"Are-are you…?" she started slowly.
"Yes, Zephyr, I'm your Grandpa Stoick," the man said in a gentle voice with just a hint of gruffness.
Suddenly, Zephyr felt like that timid little girl again at her first glimpse of her deceased grandfather. She stepped back hesitantly, feeling just as nervous she used to be about meeting new people.
"Come here, let me have a better look at you," Stoick said encouragingly.
Her lips pursed in fear, Zephyr looked at Valka who nodded. Brant wore a reassuring grin as he put his hand on her shoulder. And even Starspot was bouncing and warbling excitedly as she tilted her head in Stoick's direction. Taking a deep breath, Zephyr took about two steps towards Stoick and froze again. A nudge from Valka got her walking again, slowly. Brant and Starspot stayed by her side the whole time.
As she approached her grandfather closer, Zephyr could see a kind smile behind Stoick's great beard and his grass-green eyes were filled with many things: love, reassurance and support. Green. They were green like her father's and her brother's.
Soon she was just a few inches away from him. Then without warning, Stoick slid his hands under her arms, lifted her high in the air and spun her around. Zephyr was startled at first but soon she was beaming from ear to ear and laughing joyously. Stoick's smile and his deep laughter mirrored her own.
As Stoick placed her back down again, Zephyr wrapped her arms around his beefy neck, hooking her chin on his shoulder. "Mmmmm!"
"Ah," Stoick sighed deeply as he slowly swayed her back and forth as they embraced. His arms felt so strong and yet so gentle at the same time. Zephyr pulled away to look into the kind bearded face and even kinder green eyes of her grandfather.
"You know, this may be our first meeting but I feel like I've known you for years," Zephyr said.
"You have known me for years," Stoick replied, "Right in here." He patted her chest with his rather large hand.
Zephyr looked down at her grandfather's hand on her chest and looked back up at his face with a smile. He smiled back.
"Uh, Zephyr?" Nuffink asked, tapping her on the shoulder.
"Yes, Nuff?" Zephyr asked, turning to face him.
"Now that you're back, um…would you rub my belly and recite that poem you made up for me as a baby?"
Zephyr grinned. "I'd be happy to."
"And would the rest of you all join my sister in the rubbing and reciting please?" Nuffink asked.
"It would be our pleasure," Stoick said.
And with that, Nuffink crouched down and lay on his back against the tall, green grass with his arms stretched out on either side of him.
Hiccup, Astrid, Zephyr, Brant, Nott, Valka and Stoick all knelt down around him and each one placed a hand on his stomach and began to rub. Even Starspot joined in with the rubbing, placing her clawed paw on the lower part of his tummy.
"Finish your milk, it's very yummy, then you'll get a rubbing on your tummy," Hiccup, Astrid, Zephyr, Brant, Nott, Stoick and Valka all recited.
Starspot couldn't speak human language so she just purred rhythmically instead.
"Ah! This is the life," Nuffink sighed, "Well, the afterlife actually."
…
7:41 a.m.
(Hiccup PoV)
Hiccup laughed at his son's comment as did everyone else and then he turned to Astrid with a smile. "You know, Astrid, there's no better feeling in the world than being with your wives and children."
Astrid smiled back. "And I agree with you one hundred percent."
…
Okay, folks, get ready. Just one more chapter and we're finally finished!