(A/N: We're finally here, guys, we're here! The end of season one! That's right, this is the second part of "Have Dragon, Will Travel". I'm so excited and I'm hoping that all of you are too.
Again, this is going to be a very long chapter and I'm sorry about that. Trust me, it's very hard for me, from the beginning all the way to the end. I'm not saying that I regret anything, I don't (at least for the most part), but I am saying that it's stressful, especially when I get writer's block or if I'm simply unavailable.
Thanks for the support through this part of the story, I appreciate it. :) I hope you guys like what I have in store for you, it's going to be a crucial part to this chapter and what will eventually carry into the rest of the story. I think I've given enough teasers, now let's get on with it!)
U-x-O-v-O-x~*I*~x-O-v-O-x-U
The sun was gradually rising over the horizon, giving a golden, orangish color to the ripples on the water. It would have been a beautiful sight to see, but Hiccup and Ladok were not interested. All they were interested in was stopping Heather from doing something she would regret, as it could lead to the deaths of both her and Windshear.
They knew exactly where she was going, after they persuaded Johann into giving them the information about her whereabouts. The man tried to give her more time by giving them useless words, including an attempt at another 'fantastic' story, but they eventually got him to crack.
"Ugh!" Hiccup grumbled, frustrated. "I can't believe she would-"
"Up ahead!" Ladok informed him, pointing.
He set aside his frustration to look at the scene just ahead of them. His heart dropped into his stomach when he saw Heather and Windshear enchained in midair, with Dagur and a fleet of ships!
Ladok growled at the sight of so many ships, "Johann! That bastard-"
"Ladok, he didn't know, but now we have to save her," he averred. "Let's go, Toothless."
While they were trying to bring them onto the main ship, Dagur noticed a familiar black dragon flying overhead, "Well, look who the dragon flew in! Glad you could join us, brother! It wouldn't feel like a family reunion without you."
'Family reunion?' Ladok mentally repeated. 'What's he talking about?'
"Now, take out that Night Fury!" he ordered.
Arrows were shot at them and Hiccup immediately maneuvered Toothless to avoid them, "Look out, Toothless." They avoided one deadly assault, but he didn't plan to wait and see if they would survive the next attempt. "Blast the chains, Toothless, now!"
Ladok recognized the color of the metal and tried to stop him, "Hiccup, wait!" It was too late, Toothless already fired at the chains, only for nothing to happen.
"Dragon-proof chains?!" Hiccup shrieked, stunned. After seeing that, he had only one thought on his mind, 'Just like on the Reaper.'
He felt the bottom of his brother's fist come into contact with the top of his head, but not painfully, "Listen to me next time! Hiccup, I'm your brother, I'm trying to help you, and right now you really need it."
A wave of realization came over him when he heard that, "You're right, I do, and I should listen to you more. You've seen this before, haven't you?"
He nodded, "I have. And if there's one thing experience has taught me, it's that people are constantly making mistakes and underestimating their enemies."
"If we can't blast the chains…" he let his eyes wander down to the main ship and noticed a weak point on the deck, "...blast the winches!"
Dagur smiled twistedly seeing Heather being pulled closer towards his ship, "Come to Dagur…"
"Fire!" Hiccup commanded Toothless. He shot his plasma blast at the winches, severing the chains, and freeing Heather and Windshear. "Nice shooting, bud!"
Angry beyond what words could describe, Dagur walked up to one of his soldiers, "Ahem. Excuse me, what good are dragon-proof chains," he grabbed him by his tunic, "without dragon-proof winches?!"
He forcefully shoved the soldier to the ship's brig and pushed him down into it. His other soldiers backed away from him, fearful that he might do something worse to them.
"Heather, you can't take on Dagur and his fleet all by yourself," Hiccup affirmed.
"I'm not alone, I have Windshear," she contended. "I'm too close, I might not get this shot again!"
"But this is suicide!" Ladok asserted.
"I'm willing to do whatever it takes," she maintained.
"But are you willing to sacrifice Windshear, too?" Hiccup queried. She looked down at her dragon with a sad, guilt-ridden expression. "Heather, there will be another time. I promise you!"
"But now is not the time," his brother further stated.
They flew away from Dagur and his new fleet, headed for Dragon's Edge. The other riders were likely awake by that time, and very upset to find their dragons locked in the stables.
The flight was silent with no one, not even the dragons, making a sound; and Heather decided to break it. "Blasting the winches, pretty smart."
"Yeah, and a little luck never hurts either," Hiccup replied. He then decided to tell her about what he and Ladok learned from Johann, "We talked to Johann, he told us Dagur wiped out your entire village… and your family. I'm sorry." He felt his brother's arms tighten around him.
She frowned, "Then you know why he has to pay."
He nodded solemnly, "I do, but you don't have to do this alone."
"I don't know, it seems that I'm destined to be alone," she muttered. "First, when I was a little girl, I got separated from my birth family."
Ladok's hold tightened more, his claws and scales digging into Hiccup's leather singlet. His older brother merely ignored it, choosing to continue his conversation with Heather.
"Your birth family?" he repeated.
"Yes. I don't remember much, it was so long ago. Just a few pictures in my mind." She closed her eyes as she dug into her memories, "I remember my father's hands. They were rough like sandstone, but so gentle. And I remember the smell of his wooden shield. I don't think I was allowed to play with it, but he let me anyway. And this," she took out a horn with rope hanging from it. "He gave me this horn. I don't know if it means something, but whenever I look at it, I think of him. I just wish I knew who he was."
It seemed impossible, but Ladok's arms tightened their hold on Hiccup even more. This time, applying enough pressure to his stomach to flatten it, and nearly bending his ribcage simultaneously.
He grunted as he took in a sharp breath and tried to pry his arms off, "Ladok, let go!"
He finally let go of him, holding his hands up in the air, embarrassed, "Sorry, Hiccup. I guess I zoned out."
"Are you okay?" Heather asked.
"Yeah, I think I'm just tired," he responded, linking his hands together as he wrapped them around Hiccup again. "We stayed up all night, remember? I'm going to have insomnia for weeks."
His brother grimaced when heard that, "Last time you had insomnia, you were sick to your stomach. Helene might have something that can help you, you might wanna ask her before she leaves."
At the mention of Helene's name, Heather noticed that Ladok's eyes seemed to be wandering quite a bit. As a woman, she knew that it was likely that he might have been blushing, or at least felt some degree of embarrassment.
When they finally got back to Dragon's Edge, they landed in the stables where the other riders' dragons were still stuck in their stalls. Heather gave them the keys when they arrived and they were able to unlock the cages and release them. The dragons were excited and relieved that they were at last allowed to spread their wings and stretch their legs.
As soon as she freed Ripwave, Helene was quick to apply the moisturizer she made the previous night. Salt water was not good for locking moisture into scales, as they were not porous like skin, but her recipe would ensure that she was healthy and strong.
While she was kneeling next to her dragon, rubbing the salve on her thigh and leg, Heather brushed her hand on Ripwave's wing, where the moisturizer had just been applied. "Wow, I can't believe how soft this makes her," she complimented.
"I wanted to put it on her last night, when it was fresh, but someone locked her stable and took the key," she muttered resentfully.
The same feelings she felt when Heather betrayed them years earlier were now resurfacing. Although, she would give her the benefit of the doubt, for now at least.
She sighed understandingly, "Look, I'm sorry I locked up your dragons, I just didn't trust that you guys would let me go after Dagur."
"Trust does need to be earned with both humans and dragons," Fishlegs replied sympathetically.
She smiled, content, "Thanks for understanding, Fishlegs."
He smiled back at her, then scowled when Snotlout pushed him away to be the center of her attention, "I don't really trust these guys either, Heather."
"You know, we can hear you," Astrid reminded him pointedly.
"Jealousy is an ugly quality, Astrid," he coolly expressed. "But clearly, I understand where it comes from."
She rolled her eyes in disgust, "Ugh!"
Noticing how uncomfortable Heather was, Hiccup decided to get back onto the main topic, "The point is, we have your back, Heather. You're one of us."
"Yeah, I stocked Windshear's stable with buckets of sea slugs," Fishlegs gestured to an open stable with buckets inside.
Again, Snotlout tried to make himself the focus of her attention, "And I made room for you in my hut!"
"And I've made it clear to Snotlout that you're not staying in his hut," Hiccup added, giving him a deadpanned glare.
"Even though you were the Rogue Dragon Rider, and you sabotaged our dragons, and you snuck away in the dark of night," Tuffnut pointed out. "Wait a minute, why do we like you again?" Ladok nodded, agreeing.
She cupped both of her hands over her chest, over her heart, "I'm truly sorry, Tuffnut."
He staggered, shocked, "Whoa! That was… sincere. What am I supposed to do with that? I'm a little bit flushed and overwhelmed. Little help here, people?!"
Ruffnut snorted, "Ugh! Help yourself."
"And if you need any help with Windshear-" Fishlegs began before Snotlout once again tried to take all of Heather's attention.
"Why don't I show you around the Edge?" he offered with a wink. "I'm basically chief."
She gave an awkward, anxious smile, "Thanks, guys, really. I-"
Then, Ruffnut was suddenly by her side, nudging her in the ribcage with her elbow, "Hey, glad you're back. Your dragon rocks."
Sensing how overwhelmed she was, Astrid saved her by hooking her hand onto her arm, "Let's go have some girl time."
She sighed in relief, "Good idea."
"Wanna come with us, Hele?" Astrid offered.
"I have to leave soon, I don't have time," she responded, finishing with the moisturizer.
"Oh, come on," she playfully whined. "Not even for one round of axe throwing?"
She considered the offer for a moment, "Okay, but only if I can borrow your spare. I'm not much of an axe person."
"Deal," she replied, smiling.
The three girls went to a small open area in the forest with the axes and target shields. It was far enough away from Dragon's Edge that no one would bother them, and wide enough that there was a small chance of accidentally hitting someone, or a dragon.
"Two axes are better than one!" Astrid proclaimed as she threw her axe.
"True, unless you have one of these!" Heather extended her dual-ended axe, throwing it and hitting the target.
"You really have to show me how you made that," she grinned.
Helene wasn't having as much luck with the axes as they were. When she threw the one she borrowed from Astrid, it hurled passed the shield and became impaled in a tree instead.
Ripwave went to go get it for her, leaving her feeling quite a bit frustrated, "How do you guys do this easily?" Her dragon came back to her and dropped the axe into her hand.
Heather laughed, "You're really not that good with axes, are you?"
She couldn't help but to smile, "Nope, I prefer using anything with a rope or chain. I'm also not too bad with knives. I guess Hiccup and I are more alike than I thought, he's not good with axes either."
"Oh, so you have a preference for the element of surprise, huh?" she asked. "I'm more of the close combat type myself… so I can stare my enemy in the eye."
She and Astrid went to get their axes out of the shields. Their own dragons were not with them, Ripwave was only there because she and Helene had to leave.
"I personally like to utilize the element of surprise too," Astrid mentioned as she pulled out her axe. "It's one of Hiccup's favorite tactics."
Heather pulled her own axe out and they went back to Helene. As they prepared to throw their weapons, she asked Astrid, "So, you two are a thing, right?"
"What?" she questioned, stunned, as she threw her axe again, missing the target and causing it to become stuck in a tree. "No! Just friends!"
She smiled teasingly, "Come on. I've seen the way you two are together."
"No. Seriously. Friends," she vehemently denied, her cheeks flushed.
She hummed, "He's kind of cute."
Helene threw the axe again, missing the shield, again, "Damn!" Ripwave left to get it.
Astrid shrugged, "I guess. If you like that unassuming, heroic, Dragon Rider type."
'Hiccup Haddock in a nutshell,' Helene thought as her dragon returned with the axe. "Thanks, girl."
Heather threw her unique axe at the shield, hitting the middle of the target, "Bullseye."
"Now, you and Snotlout, that's a match made in Valhalla. I don't know whether to thank you or be sorry for you," Astrid's voice was full of laughter as they went for their axes again.
"I can handle Snotlout. And besides," she got her axe out of the shield, "I'm not into the macho Viking type. I like a little smarts, like Fishlegs."
"Fishlegs?" she repeated, pulling her axe out of the tree's trunk. "Seriously?"
She giggled, "What? I think he's funny and cute."
"We're talking about Fishlegs, right?" Astrid questioned with a raised eyebrow as they walked back to Helene. "The guy with the Gronckle?"
"Well, I'd say he's a better choice than Snotlout," Helene remarked as she prepared to throw the borrowed axe one last time. Even though she wasn't confident she would finally be able to hit the target.
"How about you, Helene? Is there anyone special in your life?" Heather asked.
She laughed, "No, definitely not."
"What about Ladok?" she asked her again.
The question stunned her as much as Astrid was when she was asked, she threw the axe sloppily, causing it to hurl off course. Instead of getting stuck in another tree, it sliced through all of the targets.
She seemed to not notice her unintentional victory, as her mind was swirling with Heather's question, "Wh- what? Me and- Me and Ladok? What gave you that idea?"
She gave her a teasing smile, identical to the one she gave Astrid, "Oh, come on, you can't tell me you haven't noticed? I've seen the way he looks at you. How he reacts when someone says your name, and when you said you had to leave the island. He always seems to be next to you. No doubt, he has a crush on you."
"What? No, no!" she denied, waving her hands, her entire face heating up. "We're just good friends. Really good friends."
She laughed, "Okay, I'm just teasing you."
She managed a slightly shaky smile, "Okay, well, um, I better get going. I don't want my Dad and the council waiting all day for me."
"Alright, we'll see you when you get back," Astrid responded. "And don't worry about the axe, I'll get it."
Helene climbed onto Ripwave, situating herself in the saddle. "In that case," she gave her dragon a pat and she flapped her wings as she began to ascend, "see you later."
The flight to Outcast Island was long, more than an hour longer than the journey to Berk from Dragon's Edge. She was exhausted, and she knew Ripwave was getting tired; her wings faltered a couple of times, causing a rough fly.
Finally, they were approaching the island, she never thought she could ever be so happy to see its gray and black landscape. As they descended, she looked down at the water and saw a couple of ships she had never seen before in the docks.
That worried her, she knew that very few tribes were open-minded enough to make peace with dragons and she had Ripwave with her. She already had a headache from the exhaustion, she wasn't in the mood to get into a potential conflict with possible future ally tribesmen.
She landed on the dock, where she found her father waiting for her. When he saw her, he smiled, "Well, it's about time you showed up!"
She got down from Ripwave with a smile of her own, "I know, an old friend recently came back and, let's just say, it's been pretty interesting."
"You can tell me all about it, but now we have a meeting to get to." He placed a hand on her back as he led her to the Great Hall on their island.
The Great Hall they had on their island was loosely modeled after the one on Berk. Alvin had it constructed from memory to make Outcast Island feel more comfortable for him and his soldiers, many of whom were defected from Berk, just like him.
"I still can't believe this is my first meeting since I moved to the Edge with the other riders," she uttered.
"Me either," he replied. "It's been kinda lonely since you left. You should come back more often."
"And I would like to," she responded, "more than anything, but it's not often that we get time to ourselves. And when we do, it's usually not for too long. The life of a Dragon Rider isn't an easy one, trust me."
"Speaking of which, I hear you've just recruited someone," he mentioned.
"Who told you?" she asked him. As far as she knew, she had not told anyone who lived on Outcast Island about Ladok yet. Johann knew, and he was infamously known for his 'fantastic' stories.
"Is it true or not?" he questioned, his voice now becoming slightly louder.
She hadn't seen him in such a way in years, it made her a little bit worried, "Yes, it's true."
"I've heard he's apparently another Haddock. Does Stoick have another boy?" he asked.
She nodded, "Yes, he's Hiccup's brother. He doesn't have a dragon yet, but he's a good person. He's always helping any way he can."
She decided not to tell him any more, not that he wasn't human and especially not what she had discovered herself that very day. Although she was certain that Heather was genuinely teasing her, she still couldn't get it off of her mind, though she would not dwell on it. She had other things that she needed to have her full attention on.
They came up to the large, thick doors, which he opened for his daughter, "Well, this meeting's not going to start itself."
She simply smiled and went inside, where everyone else was waiting for them. The spacious communal area was well lit with candles and torches with rows upon rows of tables and chairs on the floor and weapons, tapestries, murals, and other decorations adorning the walls. Their guests, the other participants, were talking amongst each other as they drank mead and ate snacks. Alvin allowed Ripwave to step inside before he went in himself.
Helene was content with her dragon being allowed to be with her during this time. As long as her presence would not cause any conflicts among any of them, she would be a welcomed guest for the newcomers to see and experience a trained dragon.
She gave her a scratch under her chin and on the side of her jawline, "Be on your best behavior, okay?" She met her eyes and warbled.
"Are you ready?" her father asked.
She nodded, "Yes, more than ready."
The meeting was very long and seemed to continue on forever, but it did not take as much time as she thought it would. It ended by the middle of the afternoon, and now all of the participants were partaking in a feast. She was happy that she and Ripwave would likely be back on Dragon's Edge by nightfall.
"I have to say, I was impressed by that dragon of yours, little lady," the chieftain of a visiting tribe praised Helene. "She's a beauty."
She smiled, politely and gratefully, "Thank you, sir."
"When I heard about you and your friends, I thought I must have stepped into the Prose Edda," another visiting tribesman joked.
Another visitor stood at her side, "You know, I have a son who-"
The man fell to the floor when she swept her foot, tripping him. "Not interested," she replied coolly as she walked away. Ripwave growled and stepped over him as she followed her.
She went over to her father, who was drinking a stein of apple metheglin, a type of flavored mead. He was telling them a dramatic yet hilarious story when she tapped on his arm.
"Can I talk to you in private for a minute?" she asked.
He set his drink down, "Sure. However long you need."
She took him aside into a corner so that no one could hear them. The last thing she wanted was for people she had only just met hearing anything about her or her friends and their dragons.
"Alright, what do you want to talk about?" he asked his daughter.
"Remember when I told you about the friend who came back?" she began.
He nodded, "Yes, I do."
She took in a breath, "Well, that friend is someone you know too. The girl's parents you took hostage, Heather."
He chuckled, "Heather? Well, is she still angry about it?"
She smiled, "No, not anymore. She's angrier with Dagur than you."
"That makes two of us," he remarked. "I had no idea you two were friends."
"I met her back when I was still with my Da-" she quickly corrected herself, "with Johann. Back when I was with Johann. I hated her when she stole Stormfly and I thought I got over it, but then she locked up all of our dragons. Now, I don't know what to think about her. I think she's still a friend, but I also think she'll turn rogue and go off on her own."
"Why in Thor's name would she lock up your dragons?" he questioned.
She looked over her shoulder to be certain that no one was listening to them, "She wanted to go after Dagur herself and kill him out of revenge. He'd murdered her family and devastated their entire village. She wasn't able to, Hiccup and his brother stopped her by talking her out of it." She became quiet for a bit of time before she told him something they all learned when the three of them returned to the base, "They said that… she told them her parents weren't her real family and that she wanted to know where she came from."
Despite the lingering contempt she still felt towards Heather for locking up the dragons, she also felt sympathy for her. She had never felt like she belonged with Johann, she first noticed that they looked nothing alike when she was a toddler, he never told her anything about her mother.
That was one of the main reasons why she wanted to stay on Berk to train dragons with her friends, she felt like she belonged with them. She still felt like she belonged with her friends and fellow riders, and now she also felt a sense of belonging on Outcast Island as well.
It was for that reason that she was sympathetic to her, she now longed for a place to belong. She wanted a family, especially after losing the one that cared for her for so many years.
"Do you think she'll ever find her real family?" she asked.
"Time will tell," he answered. "You found me."
She smiled, "Yeah. Ironically enough, all thanks to her. If she hadn't stolen Stormfly and the book of dragons, I wouldn't have met you."
"Don't forget that little Smokebreath of yours," he reminded her playfully.
Someone called out his name and he left to find out what they wanted. She stayed in their little corner for a little while longer while she still held a smile.
'Smog is the reason for all of this,' she thought. 'I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him.' Her mind went back to Heather and her wish to know who her family was, "I hope she's able to find her family too."
The guests eventually left when the after-meeting feast was over and Alvin gave his guards some time off. That left him, his daughter, and her dragon inside of the Great Hall, alone.
He was eating the rest of his meal from the feast, the food that was uneaten was given to the prisoners; the remaining prisoners. Meanwhile, she was packing her dragon's saddle bags with fresh supplies. She wanted to leave while it was bright outside.
"Are you sure I can't convince you to stay overnight?" he asked her. He wanted her to stay on the island a little longer, he missed having her around.
"Sorry, but I really do have to get the Edge," she responded. "I'd rather not miss anything important."
"Is something important happening soon?" he asked her again.
'Why is he so persistent?' she mentally asked. "No, but that doesn't mean anything. Hiccup, Fishlegs, Astrid, they always have something for us to do. And even if they don't, Snotlout and the twins are causing us trouble all the time."
He chuckled, "It sounds like you have your work cut out for you."
She smiled and shook her head as she finished with the saddle bags, "You don't know the half of it."
"Well, if I can't get you to stay the night, can I at least get you to go to my house and grab me a new knife?" he asked her. "These aren't enough for this meat. I don't think it was cooked right."
She shook her head again and left the Great Hall for his house with Ripwave. She used to live in it with him, she knew exactly where it was.
His house was slightly similar to Stoick's on Berk, except it was covered in spikes on the roof; her father liked spikes. It used to have several dragon skulls on the outside and inside, he got rid of them after she moved to the Outcast Island and declared peace with the dragons.
She went inside and looked for a knife for him. A single-edged blade would be better for cutting meat, but she knew that he preferred using one that was double-edged.
'If there's one thing I've learned about my father, it's that he loves anything sharp and lethal,' she thought.
While she was looking, Ripwave started to sniff around the house, like a pet canine or feline. She was sniffing a decorative shield with swords in the shape of an 'X' and a wooden skull in the center that was mounted on the wall, then, all of a sudden, it fell.
Helene heard the sound of the impact and turned her head. She saw a guilty Ripwave with the fallen decoration on the floor.
She wasn't mad, but she was disappointed, "You've got to be more careful, girl."
She picked up the decoration and hung it back up on the wall. While she was doing that, she didn't notice a paper falling to the floor from the back of the shield. Ripwave did and sniffed it, occasionally playing with it using her front claw.
When she was finished, she saw her dragon playing with a piece of paper. "Hey, what is that? What did you find?" Using her mouth, Ripwave gave it to her, so she could look at it.
The paper was quite old, as it had a bit of yellowing on it. It might have been as old as she was, but it was in relatively nice condition. The age of it was not what intrigued her about it, however, it was what was on the paper.
It was a drawing of a woman, she looked like… her mother. She knew what her mother looked like because her father had portraits of her in his house and inside of the Great Hall. The woman in this picture had red hair, like blood, her mother's hair was closer to orange in color, like the glow of fire. While the hair color was different, the eye color was very similar to hers. Her mother's eyes were a vivid yellowish green, similar to an emerald, this woman's eyes were slightly darker, yet they were identical to hers.
She had no idea who she was, but she did recognize her eyes, two people she knew had the exact same eye color. Heather and Dagur.
She ran out of the house, shouting for Ripwave to follow her, "Ripwave, come on! We have to get to my Dad!" The purple Shockjaw hardly had any time to react, but she followed her nevertheless.
They ran up the steps of the Great Hall and she pushed the doors open, allowing the early evening sunlight to evade the inside. Alvin was still sitting at the table, waiting for his daughter's return.
He smiled at her, but she walked up to him with a blank, stoic look on her face. She slammed the paper onto the table, "We need to talk."
When she removed her hand, he could see the drawing of the woman on the paper. He could have gasped when he saw it, "Where did you find this?"
"Your house. Now, tell me, who is this woman? Why does she look like my mother?" she demanded, her voice was on the verge of yelling at him.
He didn't say anything and seemed to be reluctant to look at it. His silence only made her more upset with him.
"Were you cheating on her?!" she yelled, fully angry. She knew better than to accuse anyone of something she couldn't prove, but she wanted answers and she was beyond upset. "Tell me! Did you cheat on your wife?! My mother?! You know just as well as anyone that her passing to Valhalla does not give you the right to-"
He stood up from his seat, his fists on the table, "I would never cheat on your mother! She was the love of my life, her murder tore me apart more than anything!"
The atmosphere was tense, it was so thick that it would take a knife made by the gods to cut through it. It was not only the two of them, Ripwave was there too, and dragons were very sensitive to emotions.
She would have waited until they relaxed, but she was unwilling to at that moment, she knew she had to do something. She stood on her hind legs and set her front claws on top of the table, she fired her electricity, breaking the tension between them. Replacing the anger they were each feeling with shock.
Soon, Helene's shock wore off and smiled gratefully at her dragon, petting her on the head, "Thank you, Ripwave. You're a godsend." She warbled happily. She gestured back to the drawing, "This woman, who is she? Please, just tell me."
He sighed and finally gave her an answer, "Her name is Erna. She looks like your mother because," he paused for a while as the emotions began to overwhelm him, "she… she's her cousin."
Her jaw dropped, she could barely get the words out of her mouth, "Her- her cousin?! So… so that makes her… my cousin!"
He nodded, "Your first cousin. Erna and your mother were like sisters, they were always together. When your mother died… it tore apart her soul. She couldn't handle the grief… and took her own life."
"She…" she couldn't hold back her tears, "...she's dead too?"
He let her cry the tears out of her eyes, wrapping his arms around her. Ripwave tried to help soothe her rider by rubbing her head against her legs.
When her tears finally ceased, she choked up slightly as she asked him another question, "Did- did she h-have a family?"
"Aye, she did," he answered. "She had a husband and two little wee-ones."
"A-are they on Berk?" she asked him again, her voice was shaky. He didn't answer her immediately and she lightly punched him in the stomach, "Dad, come on."
"They… don't live in Berk. It's a little more complicated than that," he responded. "You see, over twenty years ago, before your mother and I were married, there was a war with the Berserker Tribe. It was during that time when Stoick met his future wife," he chuckled slightly at the memory. "Though we were able to outmatch them, those Berserkers weren't willing to stand down, especially not their chief, Oswald the Antagonist."
'Antagonist?' she thought. 'I thought Oswald was called the Agreeable?'
"He did eventually agree to end the fight, but only if a woman in the village was willing to marry him," he explained. "Erna was the only one who volunteered. Oswald agreed to marry her and peace was declared."
She didn't know how to process all of this new information, "M-my cousin married Oswald the Agreeable. She's the wife of the chief of the Berserker Tribe." Then, a realization came to her, "She's his wife… and she's… Dagur's mother! Dagur is my cousin!"
"I didn't realize it at first," Alvin admitted, "but I saw that his hair was the same as hers."
"And when were you planning to tell me?" she questioned, her anger returning. "When were you going to tell me that I'm related to a psychopath?! The same one that killed Heather's family, no less!"
She then suddenly realized another thing, Erna's eyes. They were green, Dagur had green eyes, but so did Heather. She had green eyes, the same color as Dagur and Erna, his mother.
"Dagur and… Heather?" she muttered, confused. "They're related…"
It was difficult for her mind to comprehend, but it also seemed to make sense. Heather was separated from her real family when she was young and Hiccup once mentioned that Dagur had a sister.
"They're related… to me! They're both related to me!" Another realization came to her, "Oh, no! She wants to kill him! Heather wants to kill Dagur! She wants to kill her brother! I- I have to stop her!"
Alvin said nothing as he watched her mount her dragon, he thought he had said and done enough. She left through the door, racing back to Dragon's Edge as quickly as possible.
Her heart was beating at a speed faster than the velocity of a Speed Stinger. She was nervous and she knew that Ripwave was likely nervous as well, dragons could always sense fear.
Dagur was not a good person, he was evil in every sense of the word, she knew that better than some. However, he was also her cousin, she had to save him, lest she risked the blood of her own family staining her hands.
'I can't believe this!' she thought. 'I can't believe that Dagur of all people is Heather's brother and my cousin!'
She may have been nervous, but she was also angry. Not angry at Heather or Dagur, she was angry with her father. He knew they were related the entire time and he never said anything.
She was preoccupied with her thoughts and it wasn't until Ripwave howled that she snapped out of it, "What is it, girl?"
She pointed her snout directly ahead of them and warbled. She looked where she wanted her to and saw a black dragon flying some distance from them.
"Is that Toothless?" she asked. "Send out a signal."
Her tendrils sparked as she howled again and released her electricity. Toothless slowed down slightly, allowing them to catch up to him and his two riders.
Hiccup smiled nervously at Helene when she caught up to them, "Hey, Hele. How did the meeting go?"
"I just found out something about Heather and Dagur," she informed them, ignoring his question.
"So did we," Ladok replied. "Dagur and Heather are related. They're brother and sister."
"I know that. And I just found out that…" she paused as she contemplated what to tell them, "...that… Dagur and Heather are my cousins."
"What?!" they exclaimed in unison, causing Toothless to briefly lose his equilibrium.
"Our mothers were cousins," she explained. "They're my second cousins. I was going to tell everyone back at Dragon's Edge."
"Well, they're not going to be there," Ladok mentioned. "We were just there, everyone was gone."
"What? Where did they go, then?" she questioned.
"After Dagur," Hiccup informed her. "We found a map at the stables."
"Lead the way. We have to stop Heather from killing Dagur," she stated.
After a flight that seemed prolonged by tension and suspense, they saw a fleet of ships below them. It had to be Dagur's, he was the only one they knew who traveled with an armada.
It was nearly nighttime, a dim darkness made trying to see slightly difficult, but they were able to clearly see fire from their friend's dragons. The only dragons they didn't see were Windshear and Stormfly.
That was until they looked at the main ship, where Dagur was, and saw Heather and Astrid sneak onto the ship. Using stealth, they took out Berserker soldiers and tied up Dagur when he noticed that his men were gone. Then, they argued as Heather gagged him by stuffing a sack into his mouth. She was going to kill him!
"We gotta get down there!" Hiccup affirmed.
'No shit,' Ladok mentally retorted.
Helene took out a sack from her saddle bag, "I'll follow you."
Just as Heather and Windshear were about to end Dagur's life, Hiccup shouted at the top of his lungs as he landed on the deck, "Stop! Heather, stop!"
"Why should I?!" she snapped, her voice full of anger and venom.
"Because then I would have to kill you," she heard Helene counter.
Helene was standing on the deck with Ripwave beside her as she glared at her. The Shockjaw stood in an offensive stance with her wings spread and growling threateningly. Calmly, she put her hand into the sack she held and took out a handful of eels.
"Eels?!" Ladok shrieked. "Helene, what are you-" He was silenced when Hiccup reached his hand back and covered his mouth.
"She knows what she's doing," he whispered. Astrid was about to say something as well, but he shook his head.
"If you don't call off your dragon and put your axe down, Ripwave will swallow these eels and she will have enough energy to destroy this entire ship, with us on it," she declared.
Heather was still in shock by what she said and didn't put down her axe or tell Windshear to pull her tail away from Dagur. When she didn't comply, Helene raised her hand, and in a second the dual-ended ax was on the deck. Small razor blades were embedded in the hilt of her unique weapon.
"I'm serious," she attested. "I wasn't lying when I said that I was good with knives."
Heather's entire body went cold with fear and she finally dropped her axe. She waved her hand at Windshear and she retracted her tail. Helene gave a nod to Hiccup, which he returned.
He took out the horn her father gave her, "Look, you told me and Ladok that your father gave you this."
"He did, but what are you doing?" she asked, confused.
He showed her the crest engraved onto it, "This is our father's Chief Seal."
"Stoick's seal is carved in my horn? What are you saying?" she questioned.
"I'm saying, years ago, Stoick gave this horn to the chief of the Berserker Tribe, Oswald the Agreeable, as a gift for his newborn daughter," he explained. "You were that newborn, Heather. Oswald the Agreeable is your father, and he is also Dagur's father."
"Dagur is your brother," Ladok chimed in. "You can't kill him."
She felt light-headed after hearing this, she felt like she could faint, "No."
A killer was her brother?! She looked down at Dagur, who simply shrugged.
'I tried to tell you,' he thought.
"That's not all," Helene uttered, which piqued the interests of everyone, except for Hiccup and Ladok. "Your mother is related to my mother, they were cousins. That makes the three of us cousins too."
The revelation stunned them, Heather fell backwards and Dagur nearly choked on the gag in his mouth. The other riders were equally as shocked as they were, they were not expecting her to say that.
"We are family, Heather. If you kill your brother, I will be forced to kill you," she promulgated. "Do you understand that?"
Heather held onto Windshear as she lifted herself off the deck. Her eyes were tightly closed and she said nothing, not that she knew how to respond to her words.
Dagur finally managed to spit out the gag and freed himself of his bindings, "Nope." He grabbed an axe and hurled it at Helene, it missed because Ripwave pushed her down.
Astrid looked over the side of the ship, "It's the rest of Dagur's fleet!"
"Heather, we have to go," Hiccup affirmed. She was still in shock over the revelation and didn't hear him.
"Heather!" Ladok yelled at her.
She blinked and shook her head, "What?"
"We have to go, now," he insisted.
"I have to admit, you never disappoint, brother," Dagur remarked. "Or maybe you're actually my uncle? Who knows in this crazy world?"
"Heather, come on," Helene told her as she climbed onto Ripwave.
She mounted Windshear and they all left Dagur's ship. It was a day they didn't win the battle, but there would be another time.
"Heather, I'm your brother, your closest relative. Join me, sister!" Dagur shouted as they flew away. "Don't fight destiny. I know you feel the Berserker blood flowing through your veins. Come back, sis! "Heather the Unhinged" has a nice ring to it, no? You'll be back and I'll welcome you with open arms! And you too, Helene, don't forget, we're family too! I hear Outcast Island is-" Ripwave shot her electricity down at him, causing him to fall onto the deck. "I really should have seen that coming."
"Alright, gang, back to the Edge!" Hiccup commanded.
"Under the circumstances, I wholeheartedly agree with that plan," Fishlegs commented.
They arrived back at Dragon's Edge and Heather was preparing to depart again. She didn't want to leave, but she needed time to herself to think.
Astrid watched as she packed her bag, "Guess your leaving, again. I thought you were tired of being alone."
"I am," she replied sadly.
"Then don't be. It's safer here. You have support and family here," she insisted.
"I know, I just-" she sighed, "I just have a lot I need to figure out." She pulled Astrid into a hug, which she returned. "Thanks, Astrid. It was nice having a friend again. Tell Helene that I forgive her for what she said back on Dagur's ship and I hope that we can get along together as a family in the future.
She nodded, smiling, "Of course. I will."
She walked away from her and closed her bag, climbing onto Windshear, "Let's go, girl."
Hiccup went to give Astrid comfort as she watched her friend fly away. Ladok, meanwhile, noticed Helene was standing behind the stables.
"Hey, did you hear what she had to say?" he asked as he stood next to her.
She nodded, "Yes, I did. Every word."
"I understand how you must feel and I hope that you can work it out with her," he expressed. She nodded again, frowning. "Uh, if it makes you feel better, you two combined technically have more family than Hiccup and I do."
She smiled, "You really know how to cheer someone up, don't you?"
He shrugged, smiling back, "It's my job."
U-x-O-v-O-x~*I*~x-O-v-O-x-U
(A/N: Whew! So much writing! I'm sorry it's another Monday update, but I didn't want you guys to be forced to wait another week.
So… did I surprise you? I bet I did! :D This all stems back to chapters 4 and 5 of the prequel story, "Secrets and Silence", which you would know about if you read it.
Anyway, as you know, this is the end of season one, but don't worry because season two will be here before you know it. I will be taking some time off for a little while, so there won't be any updates until then.
I'm very excited for season two, without giving any spoilers, all I can say is that something special will be happening to Ladok. Thanks for making this first season happen, guys! Love you!)