Stormcutters in flower crowns still make me very happy!
-HTTYD-
"Rrrrrrrrr."
"Tripfire..."
Valka couldn't help but laugh as she watched Eret try to get the flowers off of Tripfire's head. She was quite fond of her crown, it seemed. She backed up so he couldn't, roaring a little laugh when he rolled his eyes at her.
"If you don't take it off, you're gonna lose it as soon as we go flying, you ridiculous reptile."
Finally, Tripfire let him take it off. Eret chuckled all the while, looping all the removed flowers around his arm until Mala took them off of him.
"I will return them to your home. I need to get my things, and I think we'd all rather I did not do that later."
There was snickering - and a choked sound of protest from Hiccup - that went along with Mala's pointed look, Valka's cheeks flushing slightly.
"Subtle, Mala. Are you guys leaving tonight?"
Eret asked, handing over the amassed floral accessories.
"No, I will make my farewells in the morning. Now begone with you, before those hatchlings get too excited and set something alight. Again."
"Aww, they're only babies! They didn't mean it. But you heard the good queen Valka, lets go flying!"
As they usually went flying in the mornings, waiting until the evening was quite a while to them both. But then, it was quite a special occasion, Valka smiled to herself.
"Do you want a lift up there Mala? Or will you have your men carry you?"
Mala folded her arms, raising an eyebrow at Eret.
"Don't make me regret not killing you."
"Ah, come on, you don't mean that. C'mon kids, to the air!"
Eret hopped up on Tripfire's back, and as Storm and Junior were already taking off, their mother had little choice but to follow them toward the sky, Alva and Vali shooting off too. Valka watched them with a fond smile, saw Cloudjumper giving her pointed looks as if to say "well, what are we waiting for?". She turned to Mala.
"Thank you for being here today."
"I would not have missed it. I will see you in the morning, go enjoy some time with your new husband."
Mala hugged her carefully, so as not to crush the flowers, then turned to start walking away. Hiccup approached, and hugged her too.
"What she said."
He gestured toward Mala, and Valka understood that Hiccup was struggling to come up with the right words.
"Thank you. I will see you tomorrow. Come on Cloudjumper, lets catch them up."
Hiccup smiled and waved her off, Astrid coming up to his side and wrapping an arm around him before Valka could no longer see them past the wings of her dragon. They joined the others up in the sky, the sun almost gone for the night and leaving behind beautiful dusk colours.
Eret beamed at her from Tripfire's back when Cloudjumper levelled out beside his mate. Valka smiled back, breathing deeply and letting the familiar chill of the higher air wash over her skin. The clothes she had on for their wedding didn't really lend themselves to flying well, but she wasn't flying for aerial acrobatics. Just enjoying time with her husband and their dragons.
Gods, her husband. A small laugh escaped her, smile fixing itself to her face. She could never have imagined that some annoying, defiant and mouthy trapper who landed in her life by mistake could have become a good friend, let alone so much more. And yet there they were, newly married, with their growing family flying around her and another member growing within her. Her nightmare seemed so long ago already.
"What are you giggling about?"
"Me? Oh, nothing. Just remembering how very unfriendly you were when we first met."
"Oh, because you were an absolute ray of sunshine."
Eret replied, his exuberant gestures accompanied by a cheeky smile.
"I think I was a perfectly courteous host, considering how rude you were."
He stuck his tongue out, which only made Valka giggle, ruining any chance either had of feigning irritation with the other. That time was some three years ago by then, and Eret was barely recognisable as the same person, though Valka had seen promising little peeks through his snark and dismissal early on that encouraged her to keep trying. An effort she would never regret, not when things had turned out so very well with him.
Perhaps because the 'wedding night' held no mystery for the couple - they'd been intimate with each other countless times, and Valka was already pregnant - they were in no real rush to leave the sky, even as it darkened to the point Alva could have easily gotten herself lost. Vali had no such trouble, his bright pink scales all but glowing in the moonlight. Storm and Junior had gotten tired, but their older brother and sister happily carried them, the youngest two chirruping happily from their vantage points or squealing in indignation any time there were spins or dives.
"I guess we should get back, those two need sleep or they'll get, you know, burn-y."
Eret indicated the youngest Stormcutters, who were obviously tired and keen to flop down somewhere soon. Valka nodded, and the two turned to head back. They weren't that far out from Berk, but the long day and long flight began to show on the dragons, and even the adult two looked happy to be landing. Of course, Tripfire had enough energy to give Eret several affectionate licks, roaring with laughter as Eret protested.
"Pain in the ass dragon. Get some rest, I'll see you in the morning."
He still stroked her and bade her goodnight though, so Valka knew he wasn't really that upset. Eret headed in first, presumably to clean himself up. Valka stayed to give Cloudjumper some reassuring chin scratches - he'd had some trouble adjusting to Eret's place in her life, but he had come around eventually, and Valka made sure to let him know she appreciated it. It wasn't as though Eret coming into their lives hadn't had some benefits for Cloudjumper though, as with Eret came Tripfire, and Cloudjumper was obviously ecstatic about that development.
When Valka headed in herself, Eret had already gotten the fire on, and taken off his tunic, which Valka spotted soaking in a bucket, to no doubt help shift the dragon spit. He turned from where he was kneeling by the flames, his features lit up as he smiled up at Valka. She could see his face and hair were damp with water as he stood up, reaching out toward Valka as she approached.
"I'm sure I've told you already, but I'm gonna tell you again. You look beautiful."
Valka ducked her head against his shoulder, unsure why she was coming over shy.
"Thank you."
"I'm serious, I barely noticed anything else that was happening as soon as I saw you."
She laughed lightly, feeling his arms wind around her back to hold her close.
"I hope that's not going to be an excuse for forgetting we got married."
"No no, I remember that bit."
"Glad to hear it."
Though they'd shared more kisses than Valka could count by then, something about the warmth of Eret's mouth pressing to her own threatened to make her weak in the knees just then. His hands cradled her back, silently promising to hold her up if she buckled. And though he'd undressed her countless times, Eret's hands were still slow and reverent as he took each article of clothing off of her body, and his fingers still mapped her bared skin as though he'd not memorised every inch by then. She undid the ties of his bottoms, and they fell to the floor unheeded seconds later.
Their bed wasn't far, but it seemed it was still too far, as Eret pulled Valka down to the floor by the fire pit. They sat there to eat often, and so there was a thick rug and cushions to protect them from the chill of the stone ground beneath. The fire couldn't compete with the heat of Eret's hands on her body, his stocky hips sitting neatly between her knees as Valka straddled him. She felt his cock swell, resting against her inner thigh as they kissed. She buried her hands in his hair and hummed as he stroked fingers along the curve of her spine. Valka hadn't known her body was capable of responding so strongly before Eret, who made it look effortless as he drove her to maddening levels of arousal.
The way he looked at her when they parted stole Valka's breath, half-shadowed by the firelight but there was no mistaking the heady mix of love and want in his eyes. Perhaps they'd married rather quickly to legitimise their relationship on Berk, and for the sake of their child, but Valka had no regrets about it, no question that she wanted to stay with Eret indefinitely, no doubts that he felt the same.
Valka was wetter than she'd realised, fingers trailing down her stomach followed by a sharp intake of breath from them both; Valka at the contact, Eret at the feel of her slick and hot to the touch. His eyes were fixed on her face as his fingers moved, stroking and pressing in all the ways he knew could take Valka to pieces in an embarrassingly short period of time. It had taken some time for her to get used to the unrestrained passion between them, her only point of reference for sex beforehand many years prior, with a sense of duty to bear an heir for her husband. Nothing like Eret, with their wild lifestyle not so compatible with marriage or children that didn't have wings.
Of course, some of that had changed now, but not the way Eret's touch could send fire through her veins. Her hips rolled into his fingers of their own accord, sweat forming readily on her skin with the heat of the flames so close by. He was in no hurry to make her come, but urgency soon bloomed until Valka was keening, whimpering needily and batting his hand away. Eret got the message, guiding her back a little before he reached between them. Valka lowered herself eagerly, felt a low moan escape her as her backside came to rest on Eret's thighs.
Eret's hands splayed over her stomach, fingers of one hand still damp with Valka, but she was too turned on to really care. He caressed her still-flat abdomen, traced thumbs across her hip bones before his touch trailed up, his hands cupping her breasts. They were a little more sensitive than pre-pregnancy, but Eret already knew that and handled her gently.
The pace they set was slow at first, Valka's attempt to savour their connection rather than rush. Her arousal soon overrode those wants, too tightly wound after Eret's fingers and feeling completely undone by the raw emotions in his gaze as he watched her move atop him. One hand moved to her hip, helping steady Valka so she could focus more on sating the ache of need inside her. His other hand stayed on her chest, thumb grazing her nipple, fingertips applying the smallest pressure to sensitive skin and Eret's mouth curved into a smirk when Valka mewled and shuddered in pleasure.
Valka knew it wouldn't take much, but even she was taken aback by just how soon she was a spasming, shaking mess, hand clutching Eret's forearm so tightly her nails drew blood. Eret didn't complain, simply held her as Valka climaxed, and held her tighter when she was done. Curled into his chest, Valka felt a few shivers run through her as Eret's arm rested loosely around her waist. When she'd recovered enough to think straight, Valka noticed he was still hard, having put off chasing his own climax when she fell apart for a moment or two.
"Don't worry about it."
Eret seemed to follow her thoughts, actually going so far as to raise her off of him, laying her on her back on the floor before he was leaning over her.
"But-"
He kissed her to cut her off, amber eyes bright in the firelight.
"Seriously, I'm good waiting. Besides which" Eret's smile became a playful smirk "I prefer when it's just you I can taste."
Her cheeks burned, but fresh heat pooled low in her belly at his words.
"Wait, wait. Bed."
Eret frowned.
"The floor too uncomfortable?"
She shook her head.
"Too hot by the fire."
Her skin already felt flushed and hot, and that was only going to get worse when Eret's mouth was on her. Rather than let her get up, Eret simply picked her up and carried her over, air less stifling when he laid her on their bed.
"Better?"
"Much."
Beaming, Eret kissed her lips, followed by her chin, then her collarbone before he peered up and answered.
"Good."
The dragons were awake, Eret could hear. Which meant he ought to wake Valka, but he kept putting it off. She was so sweet when she was so deeply asleep, face pressed into his chest, her breathing slow and rhythmic. They'd had something of a late night, so it was little wonder she needed the rest.
But Mala was leaving that morning, and he knew Valka wanted to see her before she left. Eventually, reluctantly, Eret shook his new wife awake. She grumbled into his skin before yawning, beautiful eyes fluttering open.
"Morning."
"Mmm. Morning."
She yawned again, stretching her lithe body with a groan before rolling onto her back and rubbing her face.
"Is it late?"
"Not really. I would have let you sleep in, but I know you'd be mad if you didn't get to see Mala."
Still sleepy, Valka took a minute to fully process his words, but he knew she had when she nodded.
"Yes, yes I would have been. Thank you for waking me."
"Anything for my wife."
The smile that spread across Valka's face was radiant and infectious, leaving Eret grinning right along with her.
"That's going to take some getting used to."
"In a good way?"
"Of course."
They lazed for a few moments more just to smile dopily at each other, enjoying the cosiness of sleep-warm skin beneath the furs on their bed before rising for the day. Eret made Valka her stomach-settling tea to go with breakfast, though her nausea hadn't been so bad the last couple of days.
Then they washed and dressed, heading out to be greeted happily by their Stormcutter family. After their excitable greetings, the two of them mounted their dragons and took the quick way down to the village below.
It didn't take long to track Mala down in the Great Hall, eating breakfast at Hiccup's Chief table. Eret assumed she had permission. They joined her there, exchanging morning pleasantries and nursing cups of tea since the newlywed couple had already eaten.
Eret smiled when Hiccup found them there and joined the table, sitting next to his mother and engaging Valka in casual, easy conversation. About dragons, but that was to be expected, as a great passion the two of them shared. There were a few murmurs from Berkians who still hadn't really come around to Valka and Eret's relationship, but if that was the worst of it, Eret would take it.
They spent part of the morning that way, until Mala, Throk and the handful of Defenders they brought along for the trip had to start heading back. It was sad to see them go - despite the death threats, Eret did genuinely care for Mala - but it wasn't permanent, after all. They'd see each other again. Mala actually hugged Valka in front of everyone, which was rare in itself, and made Eret smile.
"Until next time."
"Indeed. Do keep me updated, but I hope that your marriage and pregnancy are uneventful."
"Me too."
Valka's hand slipped through Eret's as they watched the ship take off, leaning against him until they could no longer see the sails in the distance.
"Thank you."
Brow creasing in confusion, Eret looked to his wife - gods, his wife!
"What for?"
Valka shrugged, but she was smiling.
"Just... being here. Being you."
-HTTYD-
Yes, almost entirely shameless fluffy Valkret and I think we all needed it!