Festivities
The flash of distant motion far out in the cavern caught Shadowwing's attention, so he hopped to his paws and strolled over to the edge of the ledge. Hearing an occasional beat of wings out in the distance happened several times every waking-cycle. Known dragons would fly out into the wider hidden world, or they would arrive back in New Haven from wherever they had flown off to. Someone was always watching to make sure that the arriving dragons were peaceful or at least not obvious threats.
His eyes narrowed as the beat of wings became clearer. The dragon that appeared had four wings, and that, combined with the timing of the dragon's arrival, meant he knew who was home.
Mom!
He jumped into the sky and raised his voice in a roar of welcome as Cloudjumper and Valka flew home, weaving between the dark spires and columns. The Stormcutter hovered briefly before him, roared back to him, and continued on in flight toward the nearest raised level deeper in the cavern.
Valka stood upright on his back in her full scale-robes and horned helmet. Her curved scythe-like staff that she almost always carried with her was held aloft.
He rolled his eyes and chuffed in amusement as he beheld her.
If I had any doubt where I got my dramatic flair!
He spun up and over the Stormcutter's back, gently brushing Valka's scale-robes with his wingtip. Cloudjumper dove for the rocky level with him following close behind. Valka hooked her staff over one of Cloudjumper's wings once they landed, and the Stormcutter gently lowered her to the ground, an act they were very practiced at with over twenty years of experience.
She removed her helmet and set it aside along with her staff as he walked up to her. Her brown hair was tied up in a bun as she frequently had it for the sake of practicality. Her deep green eyes fixed on his, and she strode up to him and threw her arms around his neck. They hugged and purred comfort to each other, which was a sure sign of how like a dragon she was.
He refrained from licking her face though. Doing that would have been too much. She was his mother, though very few people knew that impossible truth. Further, he just didn't feel like showing happiness so... bluntly.
They finally let go and stepped apart.
"Son."
"Love you too, mom."
"Oh, stop."
Cloudjumper ambled over to him and chuffed with pleasure and respect after bending his head and wings.
Shadowwing purred in acknowledgment to the dear Stormcutter. He could not hear any thoughts from him, though there was no need for him to do that to know what Cloudjumper was usually thinking.
The sharing of thoughts and commands was easiest when he glowed with that mysterious blue light of power, such as when he and his brother had fought the Bewilderbeast and when they led the wild dragons in the armada attack off the coast of Haven. He could sometimes manage a little direct thought-sharing with individual known dragons when interacting with them, but those moments were vague impressions only... more a sharing of general feeling than anything like structured thought.
That direct and clear thought-sharing had only happened with one very special dragon who was almost certainly dead, since he had said he was dying.
Cloudjumper hopped off the ledge and dove for the distant waters far below, whether to drink or bathe in them.
Shadowwing and Valka walked over to the very edge of the large ledge where they sat down. He curled his tail around her as she sat at his side. Her legs and his tailfins hung over the edge above the sheer drop.
They sat there in silence, peacefully observing the entire visible world. The glowing plants far off, the forests of mushrooms and strange fruit trees, the spires connecting the ground and the massive ceiling, the rushing waterfalls, and the occasional flash of wings were all visible.
"So, any news about them?" she giddily asked.
She could only be asking about one thing.
"Nno, they have nnot hatched yet."
"Good. I'm not missing these ones. Any idea how long until they do?"
She had not been there for Moon-Dancer's hatching, which had happened under very tense circumstances, or for the moment when Hidden-Hope broke her egg, but she had been present to welcome little Night-Light into the world and to hold him. Luna had wanted her to do that.
"Maybe a monnth sstill forr my brrotherr'ss egg. Two forr minne... maybe."
"Got it. Anything else happen while we were gone?"
"The Errikssonn'ss Nnadderrss flew away."
She frowned, "Them too. That leaves what, about a dozen dragons here most of the time, other than you Furies?"
"That ssounndss rright," he nodded.
"What do you think about that?"
Everyone understood that the dragons had to be free to come and go as they wished. The best-known dragons, those that first bonded to humans long ago, such as Cloudjumper, Stormfly, Hookedfang, Meatlug, and Jingles the Boneknapper, tended to stay more in New Haven than did the other dragons that had lived peacefully in Haven but had never taken riders. But even the most familiar dragons would fly forth from New Haven on occasion.
"We nneed lessss food with fewerr of them herre, annd that helps everryonne who iss sstill herre."
"True. How is the Hall coming along?"
"Morre ssteady prrogrress. Almosst everryonne iss worrkinng onn that. It givess them ssomethinng good to do."
She nodded, "Is there still complaining?"
He groaned, "Ssome. It'ss nnot the worrk. They'rre upsset to nnot have theirr drragonnss with them, mosstly."
"Yeah, I do."
She looked down to where Cloudjumper was splashing in a deep stream, "And, it's good for the humans to not depend so much on the dragons for everything. We have to be able to live on our own as much as possible here."
"That iss harrderr inn thiss worrld."
"But we both know that some of the tribe were being... lazy."
Hers was a fair point. Some of the villagers had fallen into the habit of taking life too easy and relying on their bonded dragon to fly back with fish or some other catch for them to eat.
The difficult truth was that the hidden world was truly made for creatures that could fly or swim. Entire caverns and ranges were separated by massive crevices and gorges too wide across to build bridges over. Wings were absolutely necessary to move around in this world. While humans with wingsuits could glide across some lengths, those were not a replacement for true wings and flight.
He tapped his tail on the ground as he grumbled, "Yess, ssome of them arre nnot worrking much. They have good rreasson nnot to: the food prroblem."
She laughed, and he wasn't sure why.
"What?" he asked.
"Bet you never thought the tribe would end up looking more like me, or what you used to be."
He chuckled and nudged her side with a paw, "I guessss what we nneeded wass morre of thiss."
They both laughed. Despite their ability to laugh at the problem, the matter of food was a very serious one.
All the humans from Haven had lost a lot of weight in the years since the departure. They almost all resembled Valka's very skinny build, which was in her case the result of over twenty years of living mostly off fish and whatever food she could scavenge from the wild. The ultimate proof of that had come when Gobber looked down and said he could see his remaining toes.
There was enough to live on and sustain themselves indefinitely, as far as he could tell, though the rationing left most people more irritable and weaker than they'd like to be.
He exhaled and held in the growl of anger that almost always followed his thinking about the world above. So much possibility had been shattered and for what? The manic ambition of a lone dragon-hunter? No, it was far more than just Grimmel... the entire world above was responsible for rejecting them! If only the world above had not forced them to disappear into this harsher environment! Loki could take everyone and everything in the above!
Valka shrugged, "How is Rain-Eater's project coming along?"
"Sslowly, but he sshould knnow ssoonn. How wass yourr flight out therre?"
She gazed fondly toward the dark passage, "Like the others before. So many different dragons, chambers, forests, crystals... everything. Saw a Skrill. That was new. We don't see them that often."
He grumbled, not particularly liking that kind of dragon, even though he had only seen one in his life. That one had taken part in the Berserker attack on Berk before Toothless and Astrid killed it together.
"Annythinng elsse?"
"We didn't fly far beyond the edge of the map this time. We weren't feeling it."
He understood that much. While she and Cloudjumper had explored almost all the nearest chambers, they did not fly beyond certain defined boundaries. Everything that was known about every chamber they knew of had been drawn on very detailed maps to help chart this new world.
"Anny luck with nnew cavess we could live inn?"
She shook her head, "No, I'm sure the other caves are either taken or not hospitable. This one is still the best."
He grumbled, "Nnot ssurrprrissinng."
"I know. It's a mess. We just have to make this work, somehow."
A long silence followed between them until she idly reached out and lay a hand on his neck, clearly looking for some reassurance from him.
"Do you think this is meant to work?"
"What?" he asked.
"Everyone was so eager when we first came down here. It was exciting to explore a strange new world together, but I keep thinking this is not really a world for humans."
He said nothing to that. Not because he thought the fears were unwarranted, but rather because he didn't want to hear it. There was no point denying that wings were needed to get around, but it was what that fact implied that was so terrible.
"Nnot a worrld forr humannss alonne. Therre iss a differrennce."
"Right, I know. We can't give up yet, but it feels that we are on the edge of everything going wrong. What happens if the fields fail or the livestock die?"
"It will nnot happenn!" he growled.
She exhaled, "Son, we must think that way as the Chief and the Elder. We have to think about those possibilities, and we must have a plan for if those things happen."
"I guessss sso."
It was so terrible to think about, and yet he knew that she was right. He was the Chief and had a duty to everyone who had trusted him and joined the dragons in hiding, even if that duty required him to think about very unpleasant possibilities. But there was plenty of time to think about that later.
"Inn otherr nnewss, the marrrriage betweenn Tembrra annd Nnygarrd will be nnext cycle."
"First one in this world too. Are you going to talk to them about their family plans?"
He groaned. It was his responsibility as Chief to have such a talk. This was a duty that he really shouldn't delegate to Thorvald. At least this talk was not going to be as awkward as 'The Talk' had been with his son.
"Yess, I musst. Grreat."
"It's not so bad. Everyone understands that some sacrifices must be made so that we can live here."
"Sstill awkwarrd. Nnot that I annd Lunna cann rreally chide them."
She laughed, "Hey, the egg was an accident, and you both learned."
He huffed and rolled his eyes, not even feeling embarrassed about talking about that with her.
There had to be a better solution than just... better timing when a couple could be together. There was always the possibility of error in that plan. Luna and Flies-With-Sun, knowing more about the hidden world than anyone else, had explained that there were plants which supposedly helped make for stronger hatchlings. Maybe there was another plant which could have the opposite effect and would prevent eggs at all for a while. Even better would be if such a plant could help humans with their similar issue.
"Wonn't make that misstake againn. By the way, I had 'The Talk' with Moonn-Danncerr."
She laughed, "Oh, did you? How did that go?"
"Badly. Well, nnot rreally. He unnderrsstood, but it wass sso awkwarrd."
"Why?"
"Jusst havinng to give advice about that parrt of life."
She shrugged, "Maybe it is a little. Would you rather he mess up, get with someone, and become a father without intending to?"
"Nno, that would be worrsse. A little disscomforrt iss finne if it helpss him."
She nodded and looked a little sad, "I wish I had been there to help your father with that talk. It couldn't have gone well with just him."
He barked in amusement, "Why do you ssay that? Arre you ssayinng ssomethinng about me?"
She chuckled, "No, I just know Stoick might not have been helpful. He was so awkward in so many ways. In fact, on our wedding night he..."
She fell silent and said nothing else, for which he was very thankful. He did not need to know anything at all about that!
"Right," she grumbled.
"Thannkss forr nnot ssayinng annythinng."
"You're welcome."
The beat of wings got their attention as Cloudjumper rose from below. The Stormcutter briefly hovered in place, touched down on the ledge at their side, hopped up before them, and then bent his proud head. Cloudjumper crooned sadly as he stared at Valka.
She hopped to her feet, strode over to Cloudjumper, and embraced his head. The two old friends shared a long moment of peace as she nuzzled and scratched his chin while purring in her own way.
"Fly, my friend."
She stepped back and waved a gloved hand toward the distant passage. Cloudjumper hopped from the ledge, turned his flight for the dark passage, and roared, his cry echoing from the cavern walls as he flew.
They watched together until the great Stormcutter was gone from sight. Valka leaned against his side, so he embraced her with a wing over her back.
"It never gets any easier," she eventually whispered.
"Nno, but it iss good forr him. We both wannt him to finnd ssomeonne."
"I just wish I wasn't afraid for him."
"Mom, he will be finne. He iss a Sstorrmcutterr."
"Yeah, but I worry anyway. It's the mom and the friend in me."
He hummed softly and pawed at her shoulder. He knew one thing that would definitely make her feel better about this sad situation.
"Thinnk about baby Sstorrmcutterrss."
She reluctantly grinned, "That would do it. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad he can go searching for his own kind. I'll remember him and be happy for him while he's out there, but..."
"Yess?"
She shrugged, "I... remember something your father said after his father passed away. He said that it hurts to be away from someone you love and won't see again. The best thing you can do is celebrate them, be thankful for what you had, and remember them."
"Trrue."
"Maybe that is true for someone who died and is gone to Valhalla. But memory is not enough if they are alive, somewhere else in the world," she sighed.
She paused, took a deep breath, and stood a little taller, "But I'm sure he'll come back once he finds a mate."
Surely Cloudjumper would want to do precisely that. Find a worthy mate, bring her back here to New Haven, and settle down here. Having another large dragon living here could be another stress on the food situation, but stubbornness had worked so far.
His somber reflection was interrupted when he spotted more approaching wings racing toward him in the distance.
Well, look who it is! Perfect! Just in time too!
"I knnow what cann cheerr you up."
"What?"
"They founnd uss! Look!"
Dawn-Singer, Flies-With-Sun, Moon-Pinner, Aurora, Rain-Eater, Mist-Wings, Rock-Climber, Moon-Dancer, and Hidden-Hope dove with joyful roars onto the ledge and bounded, tails swaying, up to them.
Valka hopped out from under his wing and leapt to greet them. Necks and heads were hugged, chins were scratched, and Valka's face was licked many times.
"Ugh, you know that doesn't wash out!" she protested, wiping her face clean.
They laughed heartily and beat the ground with their tails in their mirth.
Aurora hummed, "How wass yourr flyinng?"
"It was fun as always!"
"Ssee annythinng innterresstinng?" Rain-Eater asked.
"I saw a Skrill. It was just going about its business."
Valka spun on Dawn-Singer, "And how was watching the island?"
Dawn-Singer groaned and fell flat on the ledge while Moon-Pinner pawed at his neck in play, "Borrinng. Nnothinng happenned. But that iss nnot bad."
"No, it is not," Valka quickly agreed.
Shadowwing nodded, glad that no one had yet found the island. There was nothing up there except the strange ruins from the past, grassy plains, the central mountain, and the pine forest on the island's western half. That island's discovery was still possible though. What would happen when someone found the island... they did not know yet.
Aurora preened and stretched her wings, "I will do the watchinng nnext."
Dawn-Singer huffed, "Good, we will finnally have ssome peace arrounnd herre."
Aurora growled at him and lashed her tail. She looked like she wanted to leap on him, but she refrained, probably since Moon-Pinner was with him. Valka noticed Aurora's displeasure.
"When are you leaving for the above?" she asked Aurora.
"Afterr the weddinng cerremonny."
"Good, how about a wrestling contest, just you and me, before you go?"
"Challennge accepted!" Aurora purred.
Shadowwing chuckled, amused. Valka had, once the Fury kids were grown enough to do so, started playing such games with them. Most impressive was that she could hold her own most of the time. Her years of living wild and knowing how dragons moved gave her a distinct advantage, compared to any other humans, in friendly duels and contests.
Mist-Wings hopped over to Valka and gently nudged at her side, "Yourr Cloudjumperr flew away, yess? We ssaw him leavinng."
"Yeah, he did," Valka whispered as she held and gently scratched Mist-Wings's chin.
"That iss ssad. You cann fly with me!" Mist-Wings stepped back and eagerly nodded.
Valka bowed to her, "Thank you. I gladly will."
"Do you wannt to go to the ledge?" Mist-Wings purred, pleased.
"I would, but I probably need to go to New Haven first. They'll be waiting for me."
Shadowwing faced Dawn-Singer, "Iss everryonne elsse sstill at the ledge?"
"Yess, they arre rresstinng with the eggss annd Nnight-Light," Dawn-Singer answered.
Luna and Green-Wings would stay with the eggs, and Night-Light would stay at Luna's side almost always. Shadowwing fully appreciated that having a child nearby could occasionally be frustrating or wearying for the mother. However, Luna embraced that part of life and liked having her children with her. She liked being able to talk to them, tell them stories, and shape their lives. Having been through so much on her own, she wanted to make their lives much better than what she had known.
That was, in his opinion, heroic of her. He still wanted to be there for her and to help her whenever possible.
Dawn-Singer barked toward the deeps of the cavern, "We sshould fly nnow to ourr frrienndss! Cominng with?"
Purrs and growls of agreement followed as everyone got to their paws and started stretching.
"Moon-Dancer, Hidden-Hope," Shadowwing purred.
His son and daughter bounded to him, "Sire-father..."
"Are you going with them to the shared-nest?"
"Yes, I will," Moon-Dancer nodded.
He nodded also and then faced his daughter, "Daughter, you?"
"I want to. Playing is better than sleeping!" she purred.
Oh gods, what are you going to do?
"Okay, do not make problems... either of you! Got it?" he pointed at each of them with a paw.
He had learned the strategy of saying something only one of his two older children needed to hear, but saying it to both of them so that no one felt singled out.
"Yes, sire-father," they both agreed.
"Good, have fun!"
Valka put on her helmet, retrieved her staff, and hopped on Mist-Wings's offered back.
All the children jumped and flew off together in a storm of wings.
He watched with warmth in his heart as they all departed. His brother's kids were surely off to meet their human friends. He had no idea where Moon-Dancer and Hidden-Hope were off to, though they had flown toward New Haven.
Satisfied, he jumped from the ledge and turned his flight back to the shared ledge where his brother, their mates, Night-Light, and the eggs waited.
There was something about that friendship across species that made the relationship special. It was a way of knowing someone else who was very different. Further, both sides gained something that only the other could provide. Dragons could not build complex things because they didn't have hands in the same way that humans did. Humans lacked wings, which was truly terrible to lack, and were not innately great hunters on their own.
But beyond these issues from having different types of bodies were slight differences in their souls, in their minds and ways of thinking. He knew from personal experience on both sides, in a way, that dragons were more practical about most of life, but they also didn't think about the same matters that some humans thought were important. Dragons were more content if basic needs were met, which could mean that they didn't think about things such as the afterlife, engineering, or mathematics.
Having one of the opposite kind in life helped each by reminding the human that other types of life can be just as important as humans, and by reminding the dragon that there was more to life than only hunting, drinking, sleeping, and offspring.
There was also the strange situation that the other kinds of dragons, while capable of being friendly to humans, just didn't think or express themselves the same way Night Furies and Light Furies could. Why was that? Were they really so different, or was the fault just inability to communicate, or was it something deeper? Maybe there was no way to know, but one could speculate that...
He rolled his eyes and huffed at himself.
Gods, am I becoming an Elder already? Am I an Elder dragon? Isn't that a class in one of Fishlegs's games?
He continued on in flight while his thoughts gradually turned to something in particular about his eldest son: Moon-Dancer had no human friend of his own. His son was entirely amicable to all humans in New Haven, but there was no one special whom he enjoyed spending time with. It was a matter that he had asked about indirectly to try to learn what was going on there.
He and his brother had agreed that they were not going to push their children into friendships any more than would be natural. Any friendships that would arise would have to do so of their children's own choice and from spending time together with said human. Something had to be holding Moon-Dancer back from wanting such a friendship. He wished he knew what that obstacle was. It was not his place to pry into his son's life, but... he really wanted his son to have such a friend. It felt like he might have failed his son as a father if Moon-Dancer couldn't find such a friend.
His recent talk with Moon-Dancer also slightly bothered him for a different reason. His son was not an adult yet, but he was almost one... and thus getting to the point of wanting a mate. It was not so different from how he had started noticing Astrid as more than just a shieldmaiden back in another life.
That was a frustrating time for me too. Having new wants to deal with was confusing.
Who could Moon-Dancer even pursue? There was always the possibility that a friendly and single female Light Fury might just happen to fly in, as Flies-With-Sun had done, but that possibility was very unlikely.
There were a pair of obvious choices here in New Haven, awkward though he personally thought of it. Mist-Wings and Aurora were Moon-Dancer's cousins, first cousins even. Pursuing one of them as a mate would absolutely have been frowned upon and deemed unnatural in Norse human life, for most tribes anyway, but they were not humans.
Was-Grounded had assured him that knowing who was appropriate to pursue as a mate was much easier and more natural, less customary, for dragons. His own experience in finding a life-mate, both of their experiences actually, led to unsurprising results because they both had obvious choices in Luna and Green-Wings, neither of whom were in any way related to either of them.
The truth was that it was up to their children to know if those were pairings that should be. All that he and his brother could do was raise their children well to respect each other and themselves, and to know what to look for in a future mate. After that, it was out of their hands or paws.
He arrived at the ledge and landed beside the two fellow Night Furies who were curled up together.
"Kin-liver is back?" Was-Grounded yawned without moving from where he lay.
"Yes, she is. The children flew away into the New-Haven-range with her. She said she might be here later."
"Alright."
He pranced over to Luna, lay down with her, wove his tail around hers, and rested his chin on her neck after glancing at the egg.
"Luna..."
"My love, did I hear them? Is Kin-liver back?" she whispered.
"Yes, she is here now."
"Kin-liver! Where?" Night-Light chirped from under one of her wings.
His son hopped out from hiding and settling down, tail wiggling, on his rear before him.
"Not here, my son. She is flying with our kin to the ground-kin nest."
"Can I play with her?"
"Probably later."
"Okay, I will play with her later!"
"Good. Do you still need sleep?"
"No," Night-Light yawned.
"Yes, you do. You can sleep on my back," he offered.
Night-Light never turned down such an opportunity to sleep on his back. Sure enough, Night-Light hopped onto Luna's back and over onto his where he curled up and fell fast asleep.
Secretly, he liked letting his son doze like that.
He nuzzled Luna's neck and purred very deeply to her. Doing that sparked a little warmth in his heart and stoked memories of times on their own, completely wrapped up together in bliss. Even if their most recent time had been more productive than intended.
"What is next for the range?" Luna whispered.
"Aurora is the next watcher above. Next for us is the mate-making ceremony for two of the ground-kin. That is all. More of normal life is after that."
"Should we be at the ceremony?"
He hummed in thought, "None of us know these two ground-kin very well, but having some of our children there would be good. I will be there at the ceremony as the Alpha and word-speaker."
She purred and glanced at him with a look of interest, "I must stay with the egg. How does the ground-kin mate-making ceremony happen? I have never seen that."
"This is the first one in the hidden ranges. There were none of these ceremonies in the Haven-range either. How does the ceremony happen? The male and female must have already decided to have each other as mates. The ceremony is only for the ground-kin in the range to see them be named as mates."
She warbled and chuffed in confusion, "See? What do you mean? Is the mating done so the whole range can see it done?"
He blinked and froze as his ears went back. He remembered something that would have impacted his life if everything had been normal. There was indeed a custom that the son of the Chief, since he had a special duty to produce an heir for the tribe, had to be with his wife on their wedding night in full view of observers.
"No, that is done on their own where no others can see. The ceremony is only so that all in the range can see the pair be named as mates. That is important."
"Why is that important?"
He grumbled, thinking about that question until he settled on what he thought was the best answer.
"I think it is because all want to know that the two are a pair. Having the males say to the whole pack who their mate is... gives the males a reason to not leave their mate or mistreat them. If they do those bad things, they will be named unworthy of trust by the pack, so they have a very strong reason to be good to their mate."
He started wondering whether or not there should be a marriage ceremony for his and his brother's children and all who would come after them. There had not been a need for one yet, but it might be a good idea to have something official for when it was needed.
Luna hummed, "That is a good ceremony. There is also much food-eating, yes?"
"True. All in the pack celebrate by eating much and drinking much."
"You will lead this ceremony, yes?"
"I will."
She chuffed and nudged his shoulder, "Is drinking happy-water part of the ceremony?"
"Yes! That is a very important part of the ceremony! The happy-water makes the livers of all at the ceremony very warm. It also makes their thinking very twisted," he chuckled.
She rolled her eyes, hummed, and lay her chin on the egg, "Ground-kin are twisted."
He lay his chin on her neck, "Yes, they are."
"But you would know all about that," she added.
He rolled his eyes, "Almost as though I have the liver of a twisted ground-kin?"
"No, always a sky-kin."
They lay there in purring peace until she stirred and faced him.
"We should try the together-feeling-seeing now," she whispered.
His brother had explained that a dragon who deeply cares about someone can instinctively know when that person is in danger, almost as though they share thoughts or sensations without being able to speak from afar. Luna had also confirmed that she heard such stories from her parents.
Naturally, he and she started testing that over a couple years ago to see if they could experience that sharing of feelings, which they surprisingly could. There had not been any great moments of concern for each other yet with which to test if they knew about danger to the other. However, staring into each other's eyes sometimes produced very strange, foreign sensations, though they were still trying to figure out how it worked. It seemed to happen most frequently when they were relaxed and calm. Being mentally disturbed or frustrated prevented it from happening.
"Yes, we should," he agreed.
They stared into each other's eyes. No purring, no talking, no humming, no blinking, no distractions. Forgetting the act of breathing, the sparkle of reflected light, and everything other than each other.
Staring at himself from her eyes. Seeing herself through his eyes. Feeling what he felt. Feeling what she felt.
Amaz...
The moment broke as he recovered his own awareness of himself. So did she, it seemed, as she blinked wildly and shook her head. It was very strange how the moment always broke the first instant either of them became aware of it being there.
Neither of them said anything else. Nothing more needed to be said about that heartwarming instant which they were still learning how to understand.
"How long until the ground-kin mate-making ceremony?" she whispered.
"About half a sun-cycle. They will be preparing the food for the ceremony until then. I will need to be with them before the ceremony happens."
She stretched, "Can you sit the egg for me for a while? I do not need long."
He softly chuckled and gestured at the dozing Night-Light on his back, "Sure. I am not going anywhere else."
She carefully moved the egg to between his paws, and he covered it with his tailfins. Satisfied, she jumped from the ledge and flew off deeper into the chamber.
Alright, a little more of this, some time with the kids, a very pleasant talk with the future couple, and then the wedding feast. What could go wrong?
There were actually a number of things that could go wrong. Usually, if anything went wrong it was a drunken fight. Another wonderful possibility was that of a domestic dispute involving the new couple. He would be entirely satisfied if this wedding went smoothly with nothing unexpected happening. There was certainly going to be plenty of food and drink for everyone, which would help a lot to make for a festive mood.
In the largest clearing within New Haven, Shadowwing walked among the assembled Nords, all of whom were standing for the wedding. Several tents had been put up to the side of the clearing and a platform erected at the front of the assembly. The two most important people of all, Tembra Arnvalddottir and Nygard Hirgonson, walked behind him to the head of the assembly where Valka and Gobber waited.
He recalled the first time he had met Tembra long ago. She had been only a young girl with a Timberjack as a friend back then, not to mention that she was one of the first non-Berk humans to befriend a dragon. Now she was a grown woman about to get married, and hers would be the first marriage performed in the hidden world.
The plan was for a very simple, practical ceremony. No one cared for fancy dresses or wasting time on long speeches. Further, getting the wedding ceremony out of the way left more time for feasting, dancing, and, most importantly, the drinking afterwards.
The food and drink prepared was going to be the highlight of the cycle, possibly even of the month. Mushrooms, potatoes, berries, and various greens were a staple of, well, every meal now, but this one would also include pork. The wedding was important enough that they had slaughtered one of the pigs.
But what everyone really cared about was the berry ale that had been brewing for months under Gobber's oversight. It wasn't the same classic mead that everyone loved in the above and obtained through trade, but Gobber assured him that this was potent stuff, which was all that mattered.
He hopped up onto the platform at the head of the crowd, spun in place and sat down, looking out over all he could see, which was just about all the humans in New Haven. Everyone continued greeting each other with headbutts and clasped arms as they formed their family groups. Behind them all sat Moon-Dancer, Hidden-Hope, Dawn-Singer, Moon-Pinner, Aurora, Rain-Eater, Mist-Wings, and Rock-Climber. They were all here to observe the ceremony that was new to them, none of them having seen a wedding before.
He glanced over his shoulder at the Great Hall, still in-process of construction. Everyone would feel much better and prouder of themselves once that was finished. Not to mention they would feel significantly safer too. The Great Hall was, by design, going to be a fortress that could withstand almost anything from the outside.
Finished greeting their families, Tembra and Nygard stepped up on the platform with him, Valka, and Gobber.
"Are ye ready fer this?" Gobber asked him.
"Yess."
Gobber waved his good hand, "Alright, let's knock 'em dead."
"That iss what the ale iss forr!"
"Aye! And it will! No doubt 'bout that! I should know... done some taste testin' meself... I'd even be worried if I were ya!"
"I'm nnot ssurre of that," he chuckled.
"We'll see," Gobber winked.
Alright, it's go time!
He took a deep breath and roared softly to get the tribe's attention. All the other conversations out in the audience died away as everyone, pulling on their beards and shoving each other out of impatience, looked to those up on the platform.
He stepped aside and nodded at Gobber. Gobber then stepped forward, lifted his arms, and raised his voice, "Dearly belov'd, we're gather'd 'ere today..."
"Get on with it!" "Boring!" "Come on!" "Let's get it over with!" "I'm hungry!" "Drink's waiting!"
"Eh, tough crowd... fine," Gobber mumbled and stepped back.
Shadowwing snorted in amusement and took the lead. He stepped between the couple, sat down, and rested a paw on Nygard's shoulder. Everyone had agreed in advance to use the shortest possible version of the vows.
"Nnygarrd, do you take Tembrra to be yourr wife?"
"I do."
He rested a paw on Tembra's shoulder, "Tembrra, do you take Nnygarrd to be yourr hussbannd?"
"I do."
He rested a paw on both of their shoulders at once, and stepped back with a nod as Valka similarly inclined her head with a bow.
"You are married. You may kiss," Valka said for all to hear.
The newlyweds held each other and kissed to much friendly jeering, laughter, and applause.
While they were busy with each other, he noticed the Fury kids at the back of the gathering. They were standing on their hind legs to get a better view, and he could also tell that they also looked very confused.
The newlyweds finally broke apart and let him step forward to speak. He planned to keep his speech very short.
"We thannk the godss! Nnow we feasst!"
A draconic roar went up from the human crowd as they madly dashed for the tables of food and the barrels of ale in the tents. While their enthusiasm for the food was humorous, it was also very practical of them to want to eat when food was aplenty.
Gobber hobbled over to him and stood beside him, "Short and to tha point. Well done, Chief."
"I trry," he toothlessly grinned.
Gobber glanced around and saw that it was only the two of them and Valka in hearing, "Ta be fair, yer father wasn't tha best with these weddin's either. Probably because he... well, was missin' someone he loved."
As usual whenever the topic of Stoick was brought up, Valka looked very... stoic, oddly enough. In his time knowing her, she had never been very emotional, except for very, very moving events. She never cried about anything anymore. Neither did he for that matter, but he was a Night Fury, and dragons couldn't cry with tears.
"He was. I'm sure of that," Valka whispered.
"Right, we should, eh, probably go and... join 'em," Gobber awkwardly muttered.
Gobber went to Valka, offered his remaining good arm, and the two old friends walked off together toward the feasting.
Shadowwing checked on the Fury kids and saw that they were all either at the festival alongside their friends or had gone off on their own elsewhere. Was-Grounded, Green-Wings, and Luna would not be attending since they had more important duties at home: watching the cavern entrance and sitting with the eggs and his youngest son.
That leaves only me. Well, I am the Chief, so I better be at the wedding feast... at least for a while.
He hopped down from the platform and padded over to the festival that was truly getting underway. People were claiming tables or sitting together on the ground in their family groups. He had no time to do anything before he noticed Gobber beckoning him over to a large barrel and a bucket. It looked obvious what Gobber intended.
Fine. It's my duty as Chief anyway. How strong can it be? There's no way I can get drunk off this stuff.
Aurora gawked, "What are they doing?"
Rock-Climber stared in shock, "Are they eating their mate's face?"
"No, there is no eating. But what are they doing? I do not understand," Mist-Wings hummed in confusion.
Dawn-Singer chuffed, "This is their way of showing mate-bonding. They put their mouths together."
"But why? Are they talking into their mouths? Sharing mouth-water?" Aurora grumbled.
"Are they sharing food? Doing that would have lift," Rock-Climber warbled.
"Yes, it would, but there is no food sharing. I did not say that I understood it. They call it kissing," Dawn-Singer protested.
Aurora rolled her eyes and slapped the ground with her tail, "Kissing? Ground-kin are twisted!"
The nestmates nodded and purred in agreement as they dropped down onto their paws. Shadowwing stepped forward to speak to the entire pack.
"Nnow we feasst!"
All the ground-kin roared in acclaim.
"That is the sign for the food eating and happy-water drinking!" Dawn-Singer hummed.
Sure enough, all the ground-kin started running toward the food and happy-water. Well, most of them did. Several of the ground-kin, Erevan, Helga, Alvor, and Safiya, ran toward them instead.
"Hey there, how are you all?" Erevan asked, scratching under Moon-Pinner's chin.
Dawn-Singer hopped forward and nuzzled Erevan's shoulder, "Well. Therre iss much food forr all of uss!"
"Yeah, everyone has been looking forward to this. Thanks for catching all the extra fish these last few cycles!" Helga added.
Alvor approached Aurora while Safiya did the same for Rain-Eater. Aurora immediately bent down and grumbled, "Alvorr, why do humannss kissss?"
Alvor threw up his paws and stepped back, "You're asking the wrong person. I don't understand it either."
Safiya punched her nestmate brother in the shoulder, "You are so romantic. With an attitude like that... good luck getting a girlfriend."
"Not interested! I'm perfectly happy with Aurora here," Alvor protested.
Erevan, Helga, and Safiya faced him and stared.
"Oh, no! No! No! You know what I meant!" Alvor shouted as his face went red.
Erevan, Helga, and Safiya roared with laughter, holding their bellies as they struggled to breathe.
Confused, Aurora and Rain-Eater glanced at each other and shrugged, not understanding what was happening.
"So, brother, we finally know the truth!" Safiya chuckled.
"I do not need a girlfriend!"
"Good! You're never getting one at this rate!"
Rain-Eater hummed and nodded, "I do nnot nneed onne eitherr. I alrready have onne."
"Huh? Since when and who?" Alvor asked.
"Ssafiya iss my girrlfrriennd," Rain-Eater explained.
Erevan, Helga, and Alvor snickered and tried to cover their laughter with their paws. They failed.
"What?" Rain-Eater asked, confused.
"Rain, that doesn't mean what you think it means," Safiya groaned.
"Nno? Doess it nnot meann that you arre a girrl annd my frriennd?"
"No... it means that the girl, or the woman, is a possible... wife... a mate."
Rain-Eater blinked and stepped back in alarm, "Nno! Nno... nno... nno!"
The laughter resumed, only this time the other nestmates joined in, their tails slapping each other in their amusement.
Alvor roughly shoved Safiya's shoulder once the laughter ended, "So, sister, we finally know the truth!"
"Shut up!"
Mist-Wings and Rock-Climber shook their heads and hopped over to Moon-Dancer and Hidden-Hope. Not having any ground-kin friends of their own, none of them had been in the teasing play.
"Moon, Hope, Rock, we should go eat some food while we can. Our nestmates and their life-bond ground-kin will be playing and teasing much," Mist-Wings proposed.
Moon-Dancer purred and nodded in agreement, "Yes, I am hungry."
Hidden-Hope eagerly hopped to her paws, "I will eat the most food so I can get very big and strong!"
Moon-Dancer huffed, "That will not be a problem for you."
"No, because I will eat more food than you!"
Rock-Climber bounded forward, "I will help you find and eat the food!"
Hidden-Hope and Rock-Climber dashed off together toward the many ground-kin, eventually vanishing into the crowd.
Mist-Wings stood at Moon-Dancer's shoulder, both of them shaking their heads at the twistedness around them. The teasing play between Aurora, Alvor, Rain-Eater, and Safiya had become a play-fight involving roaring, trying to pin tailfins, pouncing on each other, and shouting word-twistings, some of which involved varieties of 'waste'. Meanwhile, Dawn-Singer, Flies-With-Sun, and Moon-Pinner had wandered off with Erevan and Helga.
"Our nestmates are very twisted," Mist-Wings sighed.
"Yes, they are. Their life-bond ground-kin are also, so they deserve each other," Moon-Dancer snorted.
Shadowwing sat on his haunches while overseeing the festival. Everything had settled down into the usual bouts of wrestling and name-calling, drinking contests, wife- and husband-carrying contests, and what could loosely be called dancing.
He also wondered about the berry ale he had earlier. The tribe had done the usual for the Chief: set aside a portion just for him at a major tribe event. Rather than a small bucket of mead, apparently what had been Stoick's preferred portion, Gobber had given him a fifth of a barrel of the berry ale. Refusing the offered gift would have been seen as a slight and wish for bad luck on the marriage the festival was to celebrate.
So he drank it all. He had never tested just how much an adult Night Fury could drink before getting drunk. His previous times drinking had never involved this much or so potent a brew.
There were already a number of Nords who were stumbling about, trying and failing to stay on their feet. Some of them were trying and failing at dancing.
He was not going to protest anything at the party since there was no reason to. They were having fun as a tribe, which was sorely lacking in recent months. They deserved this diversion.
Skald and Vistra were reading to Faen while Moon-Dancer and Mist-Wings listened in. Thorvald and Sifa were keeping a close watch on Ysmir and Theron; the brothers were already troublemakers quite reminiscent of another pair of pranksters. Eret, Gobber, and Valka were sipping berry ales at their own table. The other Night Furies and their human friends were elsewhere.
Hmm, feels like someone is missing.
Who was missing? His daughter was not here, but he had seen her and Rock-Climber wandering away together. They were probably fine. Those two were like Moon-Dancer and Mist-Wings: siblings from different families.
Please don't get in trouble.
He sighed when he saw the family the sight of which always filled his heart with warmth and cold at the same time: Sigurd and Vidarr Hoffir and their four year-old daughter, Stella. Stella looked so similar to someone else dear to his heart. She would have been... Astrid's baby sister if things had been different.
If he had been there in time to... if he had not been completely stupid and gotten himself enthralled by Drago's Bewilderbeast, he could have...
He looked away and hung his head, trying not to dwell too much on the past since that would change nothing.
She may never have been born at all if Astrid had not died a glorious death in battle and thus given her parents a need to heal together. Stella had, naturally, known dragons and the Furies her whole short life. She was naive, outgoing, friendly, and blindly trusting. No one had yet told her the truth about what happened, as far as he was aware.
The only real problem she faced was that she was a lonely child. Being forced from home islands, driven by fear of armies and armadas, and having to rebuild in two different and secret homes, Haven and New Haven, was not conducive to the stability people usually wanted before having children.
He yawned and stretched his wings and limbs.
It was a very warm and pleasant event so far, but he was feeling sleepier, surely after a hard cycle's work. Being Chief was hard work. He should probably sleep. Not here though. There was a much better place to go sleep.
He got to his paws and swayed slightly, definitely from exhaustion, as he trotted over to Valka.
"Drraagonnhearrt," he nuzzled her shoulder.
"Shadowwing, what is it?"
"Yess, nneed ssleep... cann you watch the kidss?"
Valka grinned and chuckled, "Alright, I'll tell the kids that you went back home. Fly safely!"
He hopped away from her, strode out past the crowd, received appreciative nods and pats on the shoulder as he passed, bounded into a clearing, and paused before taking flight.
Fly safely? Safe is my middle name! Or is it Horrendous?
Valka left the ongoing festivities to go find a certain Night Fury whom she had agreed to duel. She was not wearing any of her armor, but there was no need for any. All she had was her walking-staff, not her flight-staff.
Outside the party and in a slight clearing between the densest part of the village and the under-construction Great Hall, she saw the group she had been looking for: Aurora, Rain-Eater, Alvor, Safiya, Rock-Climber, and Hidden-Hope. The youngest two were dozing, leaning against each other.
Granddaughter, what did you get up to this time?
She was sure that Hidden-Hope had committed some kind of mischief, even though nothing had gone wrong or happened at the party. Still, the Dawn Fury had been away for a while.
Aurora and Rain-Eater noticed her and beckoned her over. Alvor and Safiya started in surprise and got to their feet.
"Elder," they both respectfully greeted her.
"Drragonnhearrt, why arre humannss sso sstrrannge?" Aurora barked.
"What?"
"Weddinngss annd kissssinng annd worrdss that do nnot meann what they ssay!"
She glanced at Alvor and Safiya, both of whom rolled their eyes, blushed, and shrugged.
"I fully agree with you that humans can be strange. But we would be boring if we were easy to understand."
Aurora grumbled, "I ssupposse sso."
Alvor punched Aurora's shoulder, "Something biting your tail?"
"Brrotherrss cann be sso annnnoyinng," Aurora huffed.
"I'll second that," Safiya grinned.
Alvor and Rain-Eater rolled their eyes.
"When are you going above?" Avlor asked.
"Afterr thiss."
Valka rolled up her sleeves, "Alright, you ready for the duel?"
Aurora growled, visibly pleased, and got to her paws, "What rruless forr the fight?"
"This'll be good," Alvor chuckled.
Aurora gently hit his head with her tail. Meanwhile, Safiya leaned against Rain-Eater's shoulder, both of them settling down to watch.
"Normal rules. But I don't have any armor, so go gently."
"Finne... if the chinn-tickle iss nnot allowed!"
"That's fair. Let's begin."
After walking a few paces away from everyone else, she faced Aurora and held her staff at the ready. It was both a weapon, capable of dealing out a solid thump on the head, and also a way to reposition herself, change direction, or even vault herself a short distance.
Aurora faced her, slowly circling as she did the same. The Fury appropriately kept her wings tucked away and was slightly coiled, ready to pounce. Still, Aurora was not nearly as polished as Was-Grounded was at these duels. She did not coil her tail to give any additional push, if a pounce was her strategy. She also leaned slightly to her right, which would also make any pounce less fluid than intended. She was not a fighter at all, having never needed to learn those skills.
Aurora also was rather easy to provoke, so she stuck out her tongue.
As expected, Aurora leaped at her, a paw lifted to strike. She sidestepped the strike at the last second with a roll into a wide strike with her staff. Her staff bopped Aurora on the nose, garnering a bark of annoyance.
"Lesson one, don't get provoked!"
"I do nnot!"
Aurora bounded at her in another attack, this time watching her staff. The Fury's attempted strikes were not fast enough, and she blocked each in turn, her staff striking the flat of Aurora's paw. Aurora clearly began getting frustrated with each blocked strike, as she struck faster and wilder every time. It would only take one strike to slip past the staff, knock her breath from her, and end the duel.
She backed away with a flourish to catch her breath as Aurora did the same.
Time to end this!
She ran straight at Aurora while the Fury prepared to strike back. At the last second, she dashed aside and swung the staff, knowing that Aurora would dodge the nose-strike.
"Missssed!"
She growled, visibly frustrated, and ran at Aurora again, dodging aside at the last second with another attempted strike which fell short. Aurora laughed and stuck out her tongue.
Perfect!
She ran at Aurora again, but this time she stumbled and planted her staff in the ground. Aurora saw the falter and jumped to take advantage of the mistake, as she hoped the Fury would.
She vaulted in a twisting leap over the surprised Fury, landed on and tumbled down Aurora's back and tail, and clasped her tailfins. Aurora came to rest, spun in place, and glared at her while also looking shocked.
Satisfied with her win, she let Aurora go and retrieved her staff.
"Amazinng!" "Wow!" "Not a surprise!"
Aurora huffed, "Ssurre... nno firre, nno clawss, nno flyinng, nno teeth, nno crrusshinng. Verry fairr."
"You still lost to a human," Alvor teased.
Aurora rolled her eyes, "Drragonnhearrt iss nnot rreally a humann. Nnot like the otherrss annyway. You wannt to trry?"
Alvor just shrugged, "Nah, I'm okay."
"Whateverr."
She went to Aurora and lifted her chin with a finger, "What did you learn from that?"
"You arre fassterr thann a humann sshould be!"
"Not really. Alvor is fast too, and anyone can be as fast as me. What else did you learn?"
Aurora grunted in confusion.
"Fine. I'll tell you. I planned to jump over you by doing something twice and then pretending to mess up. You assumed that I made a mistake, and you thought you could pin me."
Aurora groaned and hung her head, now understanding the plan, "I guessss sso."
"Lesson one: be careful what you assume."
"Alrright."
There was something else she wanted to tell her, but this was probably best to not let everyone else hear, so she leaned closer and whispered, "And don't let others provoke you. The first to act usually gives away their plan, but the second, the one who responds, has more time to plan their response."
"But... how iss actinng sseconnd differrennt frrom beinng prrovoked?"
"Good question. On the one hand, you do what they want you to do and which they have planned for. But if you react calmly after assessing the situation, then you have the advantage. Got it?"
"I... thinnk sso," Aurora purred.
"Good. Have fun up on the island!"
Aurora snorted, "Yess, it iss sso much funn ssittinng arrounnd doinng nnothinng."
"At least it's some time to yourself."
"Trrue, I like that parrt."
She patted Aurora on the neck and left her, to return to the festival. Thorvald had said something about organizing an arm wrestling contest, which meant she should probably start preparing some pain salves. Someone always managed to sprain something in such drunken contests.
Shadowwing stopped to relieve himself along the way before getting back to the shared ledge, since doing that on the ledge was not allowed. He took flight again, wondered where he was flying to, and remembered that he was going home. Back in the sky, he roared and spun around the crystals just to show off that he could!
He was absolutely correct that he knew how to fly safely. He didn't crash into any of the spires, ledges, or shining crystals at all on the flight home. That felt a very good accomplishment. His success at flying so amazingly was all the more impressive since the light from the crystals seemed to be spinning around him just to make the flying more difficult.
Maybe he was just the best Night Fury ever. That was probably... certainly the truth, now that he thought about it.
He finally arrived at the special ledge that had all his kin, all his dearly-loved kin and family right there right now, except for everyone who wasn't right there right now, which was most of the kids.
Maybe they were lost? No... they were fine, wherever they were. This was the range where nothing ever happened!
He gently and carefully landed, hauled himself to his paws after crashing on his belly, shook his head to stop the spinning, suffered even more spinning, and saw the other three Furies awake and looking at him. There were two pairs of deep green eyes and one pair of light blue eyes.
His heart burned so warmly for them all! First, he bounded over to Was-Grounded and nuzzled his neck, occasionally knocking into him by accident.
"Brother!" he hummed.
"What are you doing?" Was-Grounded grumbled.
"Bonding with you!"
"That is good."
"Not good. Very good!"
He slipped past Was-Grounded, stepped up to Green-Wings, and purred peace to her, to his dear adoptiveish sister, before licking her face.
"How is the egg, dear sister of mine?"
She blinked in confusion while wiping away his licking with a paw, "The egg is good. It is not hatched yet... as you can see."
Yes, he could see that the egg was not hatched yet. Why was it not hatched yet? He bent down and nosed close to the egg safely between her paws. The egg looked like it needed some reassurance.
"Hatchling-to-be! You do not need to hatch now, but this world is good! Hatch when you are ready!"
The egg looked satisfied with his reassurance.
"You should go to Luna," Green-Wings hummed.
He totally agreed with her. He wanted to be with his Luna now, so he strode over to Luna across the ledge, and he lay down at her side. There was nowhere else in the world he would rather be than here with her and little Night-Light under one of her wings and the egg safely at her chest. His egg. Her egg. Their egg. Their perfect, wonderful, surprise egg!
"How did the ceremony go?" she hummed.
Her voice was so beautiful and wonderful and amazing.
"It worked. The two ground-kin are named as mates now. All our other children are at the food-eating ceremony," he answered.
She leaned closer to him and sniffed, surely to smell how good and strong he was. He was very strong and certainly smelled very good.
"Were you drinking the happy-water?" she asked.
"Yes, I had to drink it as part of the ceremony. Not drinking would be to wish bad on the new mates."
"You would not want that," she chuckled.
He smugly grin and purred as he put into words a certain growing warmth in his heart, "No, I would not. You know what happy-water does, true?"
She huffed, "I do! It twists thinking!"
"Yes, but it also makes mates want to be one," he purred and curled his tail around her.
Her light blue eyes went wide as she faced him, "My love, I am sitting with the egg."
Yes, she was sitting with their perfect, wonderful, surprise egg, but she did not need to be!
He nuzzled her head and nipped an ear, "Green-Wings can sit the egg. My brother can sit with Night-Light. I trust them. Do you trust them for this?"
He, she, his brother, and Green-Wings trusted across pairs far more than most probably could. Luna even had her sister Flies-With-Ear-Biter-Sun, or something like that, sit with the perfect, wonderful, surprise egg, which he was totally fine with. They were one big, happy family!
"Well, yes, I do. What about the other children... where are they?" she chuffed.
"All are at the ground-kin mate-making ceremony. They are eating, having fun, and being kin together! We have time."
"Good. So..."
"I want you, my love. Do you want me?" he eagerly whispered.
She leaned into his nuzzling. That was a very good sign!
"It has been long since last time.. and this is a good time for me. If you want me... then I want you too," she purred.
Last time. Was there something important about last time? Did it go well... of course it had to have. Last time didn't matter anyway. All that mattered was making her happy now... or soon.
"Brother!" he barked.
Was-Grounded hopped over to them, and he looked interested in what was happening, "What is it?"
Shadowwing proudly got to his paws and smirked while stretching, "I am flying with my life-mate, and I will be one with her! Will you two protect our egg and Night-Light for us?"
Was-Grounded rolled his eyes and snorted, "Yes, we will. Go fly with her!"
"I will catch her if I have to!"
Luna picked up the egg in her maw. She gently carried the egg over to Green-Wings and carefully placed it with the egg between her paws. Green-Wings covered both eggs with her tailfins while Luna whispered something to her he could not hear.
Meanwhile, Was-Grounded very gently nudged the sleeping Night-Light awake and led him over to Green-Wings's side. His dear Night-Light trusted his uncle implicitly by now and went over with him without question.
Luna jumped with a beckoning call into the sky. He was powerless to resist that beautiful and wonderful roar, so he followed after her through the dark cavern, among the spires, over ledges, between glowing crystals, and along rushing waterfalls.
His warm memories of a long-ago chase through different hidden skies filled his blurry thoughts until nothing remained but her. Chasing after a fleeing white shape that had been begging to be caught so long ago. Breathless pursuit that ended so well for them both, even if he had to cheat a little to catch her. Did he need to cheat now to catch her? Hopefully not. He wasn't even sure he could flame now or stay in the sky!
She suddenly dove for and landed on the smooth, rocky ground along the lake at the base of the dark chamber. It was a mossy place that was almost entirely hidden by mist and the spray from the nearest crashing waterfall.
He roughly landed behind her and hopped up to her in surprise as she strolled to him. This had not gone how he thought it would. He was not sure how he thought it would go, thought was complicated right now, but not this way... some other way.
"What about the chase? Do you want me to catch you?"
She rolled her eyes and stepped to him, nuzzling his neck, "You should not be flying much right now."
She was correct, obviously. Anything she said right now was true. She was that amazing and so beautiful that he just wanted to pounce at her right now... after saying some important words and nuzzling her even more.
"I love you. Did I ever tell you about the first time I knew... I wanted you?" he whispered.
"You have, but you may tell me again. When was that?" she purred and nipped one of his ears.
Well, if she wanted to know... he would gladly tell her that story.
"When I saw you sleeping in the light of a light-rock after we first flew into the hidden world. So beautiful... you were... and the hidden world too."
"It took you that long to see me?" she chuckled.
"I have... rock-head problems."
"Yes, you do. Never change."
"I will not! I promise."
She slyly purred, "Good."
She very gently held a forepaw to his chest, to an old wound that had never truly healed and had been bothering him more recently. Breathless and lost in her wide and caring eyes, he knew, despite the haze in his thoughts, what she meant by this gesture.
Hers was a tender warning, a reminder, before anything else happened. Their last time several months ago had been awkward because the pain that flared in his chest had... been problematic.
Why was that wound hurting more now than it had in the past? That was a problem to consider later. It did not matter now. All that mattered now was being with her and making her happy.
They lay curled up together with their tails wound together and with his wing over her back. He could not hear anything except for their purring and the roar of the crashing waterfall. He did not want to let go of her, ever.
He had done his best for her sake to ignore that deep flare within his chest. She might have noticed something of his pain, but hopefully not. Her not noticing his hurt would make her feel better about this.
"Luna," he breathed, nuzzling her.
"Shadowwing."
"How are you, my love?" he hummed.
"Very liver-warmed," she whispered.
"Truly?"
She chuckled, "My love, I would not be false about this. Are you well? How is your hurt?"
He inwardly winced that she had noticed something, "It only hurts a little. I am fine."
"Good," she whispered.
"Should we fly back to the home-ledge?" he softly asked.
She licked his cheek and yawned, "We can sleep here for now. I do not want to go anywhere."
"Good idea."
He closed his eyes as exhaustion from... several activities caught up to him. All considered, it had been a very good waking-cycle.
Luna stared at him as he slept, deep in sleep after a long waking-cycle of playing with the children, working as the shared-nest Alpha at the ceremony, and being one with her. The last of those was the most welcome because of how little they could usually be together.
Having three children took so much of their time away from each other. She had no idea how Green-Wings endured having five children and her new egg that she was currently sitting. Maybe she could share life-advice and flight-guiding on how not to go thought-twisted as a dam-mother.
His eyes were closed as he slept in peace.
He should drink more happy-water, or maybe I should!
That ground-kin drink was very life-twisting. She had tasted it for the first time in the food-eating ceremony after she and Shadowwing returned as mates to the Haven-range. She had not drunk enough of the happy-water to be unsteady on her paws or very happy, then or any time since. The drink did not taste good. But, if that drink could spark a fire of wanting for her in her life-mate's liver, the drink could not be very bad.
She closed her eyes and snuggled against him for shared rest in peace away from any other duties. They could return to the shared-ledge, the egg, and Night-Light when they woke up. There was no deep fear for or need to constantly be with the egg. She trusted Green-Wings to sit the egg for a time as the Night Fury would her own.
It had been a very good waking-cycle, but...
Sleep did not quickly fly to her. Even in their joy of togetherness, she had seen and known his problem. His chest-hurt still hurt him, and that hurting was getting worse or at least was not going away like a hurt should after much time and healing. This hurting had not been such a problem for them when they made Night-Light's egg.
If only there was something she could do to truly help him with this hurting. He had been there for her when she needed help in the past, but she felt helpless in this.
Author's Note – Cut scenes are in To Fly The Winds Of Life chapter 10.