When Astrid enters the shop, the strong scent of lavender hits her. She wrinkles her nose as she looks around. She was standing in a big room filled with different kinds of things. There were expensive and inexpensive clothes, trinkets, and tools for many people in the city. But behind the counter were true treasures. Expensive rings, medallions, necklaces, earrings, but most of all, weapons and armour. They all shine in the light of the small fireplace on the right side of the counter.
From the back room arrives a short girl of Astrid's age and smiles at the guests. With her slender body and small height, one could expect she would not put up a fight, but Astrid had a feeling that assumption would be wrong. The girl's free blonde hair was floating in a slow breeze.
"I didn't expect so many significant customers in one day." The girl says as she puts her hands on the counter in front of them. "Name's Cami. When I welcomed the prince into my humble shop, I would not even imagine that on the same day, my humble shop would be visited by the mighty Queen and mighty Princess. King's family is doing me a great favour."
"Well, I heard about your new shop and got intrigued by it." Astrid's mother says as she walks around, looking at the goods. "I heard that you are selling weapons and armour from Berkian Royal Forge below the market price. As I can see, it was quite true. May I ask how that is possible?"
"Anything you see in my shop is legally obtained," Cami says, visibly offended by the question. "Price of items from the Berkian Royal Forge is the same as you would find on Berk."
"So the other merchants are inflating the price?" Mother asks, and Cami nods. "Yes, they are doubling the price of the goods, and they are quite furious that I am down-selling them. They are straight-up thieves in my eyes."
Astrid half listens to her mother and merchant. She is intrigued by the daggers resting in one of the display cases. "Even when your price is lower, I could barely afford a pair of daggers from the Berkian Royal Forge. Why are they so pricey?"
Cami looks at her, and her eyes spark. "I see that you are looking at the daggers. Woman by my own heart. No woman should leave their house without one of these." Cami says as she walks to the display case and takes out the dagger that intrigues Astrid. "First of all, it's not just some dagger. It is the dagger. It will not break, it will not rust, and most of all, even the slightest touch will draw blood." Cami hands the dagger to Astrid. Astrid takes it and weights it.
"It's too Light. It will shatter upon impact," Astrid says with a frown, and she looks at the laughing merchant. "Wanna bet, princess?"
Astrid was flabbergasted. Not a single person dared to talk to her in that tone, and she looked at her mother. To her surprise, her mother was smiling. Astrid never saw this side of her mother, and she was quite different when she was with people from Northern tribes. If her mother were okay with this, Astrid would be okay too. She smirks at the merchant.
"What kind of wager are you proposing?" Astrid asks, and Cami smirks.
"You see that shield over there?" Cami asks as she points to the shield hanging from the wall on the other side of the shop. Astrid nods, and Cami continues. "Throw that dagger. I will let you choose anything from my shop for free if it shatters. If it embeds in the shield, you will pay me the price of the shield, which is ten coins."
"Deal!" Astrid says, and she positions herself. She throws the dagger as powerful as she can muster, and the dagger embeds into the shield. Astrid stands there open-mounted, her mother walking to the shield. The dagger was embedded into the shield, stopping only because of the hilt. Mother grabs the hilt and yanks it free. The dagger left the shield without problems, and Astrid's mother examined it and then walked to Astrid and handed her the dagger. Astrid takes it and explores the dagger's edge, but to her surprise, she doesn't see any damage.
"Incredible..." Astrid softly says, bringing her finger to the edge and lightly touching it. Immediately she could feel the sensation of damaged skin on her finger, and she pulled back before it could draw blood.
"That was some excellent throw, my lady," Cami says from behind the counter, and Astrid looks at her sheepishly.
"Thanks..." She says softly, embarrassed that her enthusiasm for weapons clouded her judgment, and she knew that people frowned their noses at that.
"Hey," Cami softly says, gaining Astrid's attention. "You have nothing to be embarrassed about. I am from the Northern tribes, remember? I will not judge you for being yourself." Cami jumps on the other side of the counter and walks closer to Astrid. "Northern tribes don't judge a woman. So in the presence of my people, feel free to be yourself."
Suddenly, Cami did something that Astrid would not imagine, even in her wildest dream. She hugged her without a care for the world. It felt foreign for Astrid because she never got embraced by anyone else except her family. Even the other heirs kept their distance from her. Astrid returns the hug, a content smile on her face.
Astrid's mother was watching the exchange sideways, a warm smile on her face. She missed the familiarity of other women in the tribe, and this land had a lot to learn.
After a short while, Cami releases Astrid from her hug and jumps behind the counter again. Astrid hands her the dagger, and a pang of sadness hits her, for she does not wish to part ways with such a fine blade. Cami takes it and places it in a display case.
"Oh, you don't need to pay for the shield," Cami says as she hops on the counter and sits down.
"Oh, no, no, no..." Astrid protests as she brings the coin from her purse hidden in her clothes. "Wager is a wager. You won fair and square, and I am a woman of my word." She hands the coin to Cami, and Cami takes them with a smile.
"Oh, that necklace which the prince bought was for you?" Cami says, even with a bigger smile than before. "High Chiefs family will be delighted."
"I sent my son for it to another merchant, but he did not have it." Mother says, and Cami's smile disappears.
"Ah, yes... That man..." Cami says as she crosses her hands. "You see, my lady... Those medallions were forbidden to sell on the mainland unless the sellers were not from our tribes."
"Oh, I didn't know that. When did this happen?" Mother asks, surprised. "When I asked that merchant if getting it would be a problem, he said no."
"Of course, he said that. Because he could sell it to you for an inflated price. I have, however, confiscated all illegal things he sells. At first, he was aggressive, but when your guards arrived at the scene, he quickly complied. The man who sells it to him will also be punished as he betrayed our people."
"Did you find out who sold it to him?" Mother asks, and Cami shakes her head. "No, but I will report it to the authorities, and they will quickly figure that out. The merchant had quite a big stock. Every merchant must record all transactions, so it will not take long to find a culprit."
Astris was now examing and beautifully ornated axe behind Cami. Astrid's mother seeing her daughter's interest continues her conversation with Cami.
"Who is now the forge master of Berkian Royal Forge? I remember Gobber being a good blacksmith, but he had no patience for these.
"Rubber The Cheerful is the forge master, but he doesn't make these, nor does he oversee their creation," Cami says as she gestures to the display cases behind her. "Lord Hiccup makes these beauties. And many other weapons and armour. And some jewellery, too."
Astrid and her mother look at Cami in bewilderment. "High Chief's son makes these things?!"
"Of course, because of that, they are so pricey." Cami points out. "Every single piece is unique, and he somehow even created a new metal that is light but strong. That dagger was but one handy work of lord Hiccup. However, he didn't tell anyone the secret behind that metal. Also, he doesn't have an unlimited amount of that metal. Because of that, his creations are so expensive. You will not buy it anywhere else."
"That is quite incredible," Astrid's mother says, and Astrid couldn't agree more.
"If you would ask for my opinion, I think he should sell them at a higher price or not sell them at all," Cami says, looking around cautiously as if she was afraid of someone. Astrid looked around the shop but did not see anything that could spook the merchant. Cami continues even quieter. "But I can not say he doesn't know what he is doing. He could build one of his most valuable plans with few purchases." Cami pauses, and Astrid curses the merchant for that dramatic pause. "The trebuchet..."
"A trebuchet?" Astrid repeats but Cami shook her head. "No, the trebuchet."
"What is it, and what is so special about it?" Astrid asked while her mother was silent. She glanced at her, and in that split second, she knew that her mother already knew about this thing. Spies indeed reported back that the northern tribes were building something.
"It is something that supports all people in thinking that we can be isolationists. Imagine a ballista that can swing stones that can destroy whole ships in one shot." Cami said, and Astrid went white. That would mean that no ship could ever attack the island at an efficient scale.
"Does every Island has them?" Astrid continued, and Cami nodded. "There are only a few ongoing constructions of them, but every single one will be finished before winter. After that, the Archipelago will be an impenetrable fortress. Nobody could ever hope to attack tribes and come out on top."
"I am sorry, but why are you telling us this?" Mother suddenly spoke, and Cami looked at her with a grim expression. "I am telling you this so you can understand the gravity of the situation we are currently in. If something happens to Lord Hiccup or his family during their stay here, the Archipelago will fully close itself. Mainland will be left alone." Cami then looks at Astrid and, with all seriousness, continues. "You will hold Lord Hiccup live in your hands before this ends, and it will be your decision if you will let him die or live."
Astrid was at a loss for words. Did this woman know something that she didn't? Until today, she had no idea that Lord Hiccup even existed, which made no sense. Before anyone could continue, a loud horn sounded through the whole city. The visitors from the other houses were arriving.
"It is time, Astrid." Her mother says, and she nods. She turns to Cami and smiles. "Thank you for the pleasant company."
Cami smiles back. "It was a pleasure to meet you, princess. You are truly one of a kind." Astrid's smile widens, and then she turns and walks to the door. She hears that her mother bids farewell to the merchant and Astrid opens the door for her. There seemed to be even more people than before, all impatiently waiting to get into the shop. Astrid glanced at her mother and saw her mother shaking hands with Cami. A commotion from outside drowned the sound of two talking women, so Astrid didn't hear what they were talking about. After that, her mother quickly walks out of the door, and Astrid follows her. Before she could close the door, Cami shouted at her.
"Remember, Astrid; you always have a choice." And with that, they were gone.
Astrid's mother ushers her quickly into the carriage, and soon they arrive at the castle. Even when officially they would welcome all tomorrow morning, the princess and the queen were obliged to be presented in the court if someone from the visitors wanted to see them. Astrid, however, had no plan of meeting anyone that day. As soon as they arrived at the castle, Astrid bid farewell to her mother and went to her room. Astrid's mother didn't force her into anything as she knew that Astrid has already a lot on her plate.
When Astrid arrives at her room, she quickly closes the door behind her and leans back to them. She sighs as she rests her head against the door. "Oh, lady, have mercy on me." She whispers and looks around her room. In half of the year, she will be gone from here. That thought left a sour taste in her mouth. There is a soft knock on her door, and Astrid sighs again. Of course that someone will come to bother her. She turns around, straightens her clothes and opens the door. Her irritation quickly changes into a sweet smile.
"Hello, my beloved sister." Her brother says, standing there with a bunch of flowers he probably picked from indoor plants on his way to her room. The staff will surely be irritated again, but for Astrid, it was the sweetest thing her brother could do for her. Astrid quickly drags him to her room and closes the door.
"These are for you, sister. Dearest sister." Astrid takes them and loudly inhales. It was a mixture smell of lavender, gardenia and jasmine.
"Thank you, brother. You are the best." She says, her smile widening even more. She walks to the table where she has a vase for her brother's flowers. It was not the first time he had done this for her, but it could be the last time. Her smile fades with that thought, and she slowly caresses the gardenia flower. She remembers the first time she saw this flower as a child in a merchant's stock. She begged her mother for this flower, and later her father bought a vast amount of the flower and planted it all around the castle halls. Along with lavender and jasmine, their halls always smelled of flowers.
"You sad, sister?" Her brother's voice brought her back from her thoughts, and she turned to him.
"No, brother, don't worry." She forces a smile on her face and continues. "Thank you again for the flowers."
"Anything for my sister." He says as he sits down on the chair. "How are you holding up, dearest sister?"
Astrid dry laughs. "What can I say to you, brother? That I hate this? That I hate my life? That I hate, I need to the pretty little doll? That I cannot even comprehend what is going on around me anymore?" She looked at her brother, and he looked sad.
"If there is anything I can do for you, my sister dearest, I will do it." He says, and she sweetly smiles at him despite her foul mood. She walks to him and kneels in front of him. She takes his hands into hers and looks him in the eyes.
"You cannot do anything, brother. This is my life trial, and you will have yours." Astrid saw in her brother's eyes something else. He was sad and afraid, but not only for her. "What has happened, brother?" She asks, and suddenly he looks nervous. "Nothing happened, dearest sister. Don't worry, sister. It's nothing."
Now, she knew something had happened, giving him the sternest look she could muster. Her brother shifted, and soon he broke.
"You won, sister. Father was angry today. Very angry." He blurs, and Astrid frowns. "Angry... At you?" She asks, and he shrugs. "I don't know. When my mother sent me to him, he was arguing with Eric. When he saw me, he somewhat calmed down, but when he realised that I hadn't finished my homework, he was angry again.
"Oh, brother, you know that it would anger him. Why did you not do it?"
"Because our staff had a lot of work and I decided to help them. They were truly grateful for my help, sister. The Chef even gave me some cookies for my hard work. But then, when I went to my room, I forgot about my father's assignment and fell asleep. I only remembered it when my father brought it up. I-I am so sorry, sister. I-I-I will do better." And now he was crying. She knew that her brother would never be fit for a king. Her parents knew it too. Her father often said he would need to let his throne to her and not to her brother. Her brother always agreed, but she was the only one who protested. But if it saved her brother, could she really refuse? If her brother got on the throne, everyone would be able to use him for their own gain, and her land would surely fall.
"Don't worry, brother." Astrid soothes him. "Everything will work out in the end." She herself didn't quite believe that, but her brother didn't need to hear this. "I-I believe you, dearest sister. I truly do."
She hugs him, and he returns the hug. "I will not allow anyone to hurt you." She says to him, and she feels that he hugs her stronger. Even if that means that I will have to take everything on my shoulders. She thoughts to herself and signs. She needs to find someone to confide in, or she will go crazy soon.
They stayed in the embrace for some time, but her brother broke it. "I must go, sister, dearest sister. My father gave me some assignments I have to finish before the opening banquet tomorrow. He would be angry if I failed again."
Astrid stands up and nods. "Of course, brother. I will not delay you any longer." He walks to the door, but before he opens them, he turns back to her. "I will make sure that you will be happy."
She smiles at him. "Don't bother yourself with me. I will make do with anything that is thrown at me. You should know that."
He smiles back. "That I know, sister. Dearest sister." He turns around and walks away. Astrid sighs and walks to the closet, rummages through it and soon takes out her light nightgown.
There was another knock on the door when she was ready to go to bed. She walks towards it, opens them a little and pears at the person standing behind them. It was Alison, and she was holding a tray with two cups and a kettle.
"I hope I am not disturbing you, my lady," Alison said, and Astrid shook her head. "Of course not, dear," Astrid says as she opens the door and invites Alison inside.
"I took the liberty of making you a tea, my lady," Alison says, and Astrid smiles at her when she closes the door. "Alison, you are a treasure, but also, we are alone, so please drop the formalities.
"Of course, Astrid. As you wish." Alison says as she puts the tray on the small table. Astrid sits down and watches how Alison pours the tea for them. Alison is soon done with her task and sits down with a sigh.
"Long day?" Astrid asks as she takes her cup of tea. It was steaming hot, so she at least warmed up her hands with the cup.
"Yeah," Alison answers as she mirrors Astrid's movement. "You wouldn't believe the number of preparations for accolades of several heirs. One accolade is enough, but this? This is insanity."
"Yeah, my father likes insane ideas," Astrid says dryly, and Alison laughs. "Yeah, that is the truth." She sighs. "But at least your father got us more people, and he is paying us double of our pay, so it is not so bad."
There was a moment of silence as both women sipped their teas. "So..." Alison slowly says. "How are you coping with all this?"
"Better than I anticipated, worse than I hoped," Astrid says, a slight cold creeping up her spine. "But it's only the begging, and I don't know how I will hold on through this."
"This castle will be empty without you." Alison sadly says, and Astrid looks at her. "Alison, I didn't want to bother you with this right now because a lot can happen in the next months, but I would be glad if you would go with me when I am married away."
Silence fell on the duo. While Astrid patiently waited for Alison to speak up, Alison looked into the cup. Yes, it was a huge request from Astrid. Alison would need to leave behind everything she knows. Her family, her friends, and her home. Just like Astrid.
"I..." Alison starts but then stops. She takes a deep breath and looks straight into Astrid's eyes. At that moment, Astrid saw devotion, loyalty and friendship. "I would go with you to the world's edge if you would ask me. I will gladly accept your offer if nothing changes in the coming months. But you never know."
Astrid smiles at Alison and gratefully nods. Women fell silent again, but something was bugging Astrid's mind. You never know. Those three words hold a lot, Astrid thought. Her mother was planning something. She was sure of that. Her mother even said that if everything went along with her plan, her brother would not know the hardship of the ruling. But if she took the throne from her father, her husband would need to accept the role beneath her. She would be the one with the final word and not the other way around. No one from heirs she knew would agree to such terms. She knew then too well for that. But she didn't know all of them. One was still a mystery for her. She, however, doubts that the heir of the Northern tribes would agree with being second in command of the mainland. It went against their pride. But her mother was somewhat sure of herself, so maybe she knew something about that heir she did not mention.
"You know Alison," Astrid starts slowly, and Alison immediately perks up. "There is something I need to ask you." Astrid sips from her tea, but no liquid hits her mouth. she frowns and looks into the cup. She didn't even know when she drank it all. She blushed a little and put the cup on the tray. Alison immediately jumps from her seat and refills her cup. Astrid thanked her with a warm smile, and soon both women were sitting in their chairs. Astrid sips from her tea, and a blissful smile emerges on her face. Alison was patiently waiting until Astrid continued.
"There is one heir I didn't quite know about." She says, and Alison nods. "You mean Lord Hiccup, I presume."
"Yes, him..." Astrid sips from her tea again. Alison does, too and then speaks. "There was not much to know about before your father announced the accolades for the heirs. Even then, I didn't know anything about him, and I learned more when more people from the Northern tribes arrived."
"So you did learn anything?" Astrid said, a quiet irritation escaping her mouth. The fact that Alison knew about the tribe's heir than she did cause her quite distress. Alison noticed it at looks at Astrid. "I am sorry, my lady. But every time I even mentioned anything about your possible future partners, you shut me down. I tried to talk to you about him, but you never gave me the opportunity."
And that was quite the truth. Astrid thought. When Alison mentioned an even distant topic related to marriage, she quickly shut her up. Astrid sighs and smiles. "Fair enough, my dear. But now, please tell me what you know."
Alison looks relieved, and she takes a deep breath. "Of course, Astrid. But there is still a lot of unknown about the man."
"Figured as much. If he managed to be so secretive until now, I doubt that we will know a lot about him anytime soon." Astrid leans into her chair, tightly holding her cup.
"Anyway, as for what I know," Alison says as she shifts in her chair. "Everyone says that he is a thinker and diplomat. One woman from the tribes even said that the number of problems that were solved only by combat is now solved by discussion. He is a strong supporter of the Alliance between our people and his, and he is not afraid to show that if that notion is refused here, they can quite manage to be self-sufficient. The number of mines, farms and workshops greatly increased under his supervision, and there is even a rumour that he built some kind of defences inpenetrable by naval forces. From a more basic side, I learned that he is quite handsome and romantic."
Astrid finishes her tea and thinks. Alison told her everything she had learned about him today by herself. "Anyway, thank you for your wonderful tea and pleasant company." Astrid suddenly says as she places the cup back on the tray and stands up. Alison mirrors her movements. "It is quite late, and there is a big day in front of us." Astrid continues while Alison takes the tray with the tea set. Astrid walks with her to the door and opens it for her. "Again, thank you for your company. It improved my mood immensely."
Alison bows to her with a smile. "Always a pleasure, my lady. I will see you tomorrow." With that, Alison left, and Astrid closed the door. She felt a pang of guilt that she threw Alison so suddenly out of her room, but she needed to think. And for that, she needed to be alone.
