Author's Note – To the guest reviewer who wanted contact information to be able to send me some fan art – you should make an account and send me a private message.
Wanderlust
Shadowwing smugly purred at the finished Great Hall from the front of the assembly, which was almost everyone in New Haven.
The project of almost three years of work shared by the humans and dragons of New Haven led to this finished monument which would hopefully endure for countless centuries.
It was not very impressive on the outside, not that it needed to be.
The rock wall a couple feet thick and twenty fathoms tall was reinforced on the inside with interlocking timber beams. The wall could withstand direct impact from dragons throwing their full weight at it. There were no windows since they would have been weaknesses. The roof was an arch with polished smooth rock which few dragons could find any grip on. Two large perches of flat rock marked the corner sides of the Hall, places where local dragons could rest or keep watch.
There was nothing to burn on the outside. He and his brother had both flamed at the wall as a test, and they had been pleased to see that their shots and flame spilled off the rock without any damage done. If Night Fury flame could not penetrate the wall, there was no great fear of other dragons being more destructive.
Sustained flame over several minutes could melt the natural cement used in some joints, but he was not worried about that. Natural dragons would not understand construction materials. Further, the masons who carved most of the stones ensured that the rocks would also hold together well just from weight and compression, even absent any cement.
The Hall, for all practical purposes, was impenetrable from the outside, other than at the solid doors.
And now that it was finished, he was not sure how they had completed it in just under three years. Pure force of Nord stubbornness could do wonders, apparently.
Level forests, tame seas, and feats of architecture too! To be fair, the kids helped a lot the last few weeks.
All the grown Fury children had worked tirelessly, helping speed the construction. They were clearly eager to get to go on their adventure as soon as possible.
Valka nudged his shoulder, "Let's go inside."
"Aye, let's get goin'! Tha' wine don't need ta' ferment any longa'!" Gobber agreed.
Shadowwing chuckled, roared softly, and trotted toward the entrance. The tribe followed behind him, eager to see their new Great Hall from the inside. The doors, two fathoms high and forged with melted steel salvaged from the strange ruins on the island above, swung open from the inside. The left door had a nondescript dragon holding out a paw while the right door had a human holding out a hand. The hand and paw would touch when the doors were closed.
That detail had been his brother's suggestion, appropriately enough.
He walked inside, his pace slow as he approached his throne-perch and sat down on the flat rock before the tribe, taking in the sight around him as they entered.
Two rows of stone columns, much like the natural ones in the hidden world, rose to and supported the ceiling twenty fathoms apart from each other and the walls.
Rows of wooden tables, shelves for books, pits for fires, and storage places for other community supplies adorned the inside of the Hall. There were several glowing crystals the Hall had been built to enclose. Those crystals and the ever-present light emitted helped sustain several rows of food-bearing or medicinal plants being grown inside.
In the event that the humans had to take refuge inside, a slight crevice in the rear of the roof would allow someone outside, surely a Fury, to pour water, such as from a bucket, which would then filter into a retention pool inside the Hall. There was also a hidden passage leading to a stream that flowed down into the sunless seas. That passage could be used to get rid of waste.
Behind him near the natural rock wall were additional rooms where supplies could be stored and council taken in private. One of those rooms now held the carved map of the hidden world, the map having been taken from his Chieftain's tent. The last important detail was the natural cave the Hall was built in front of. That cave, while not very deep, could serve as a shelter for livestock in the event of a true attack on the chamber.
He patiently waited as most of the tribe's one hundred and thirty members took their places around tables, sitting in chairs or sitting on the ground with their families. The constant echoing of conversations, muttering, and the patter of feet gradually faded as more people stilled and began waiting. More and more eyes turned to him.
He looked to those at the front tables: Gobber, Eret, Ruffnut-Sifa, Snotlout-Thorvald, Fishlegs-Skald and their respective families.
Alright, time to do this.
"You got this, son," Valka whispered.
He took a deep breath and flamed the firepit at the head of the Hall. The flames caught the kindling and began cooking the meats over the fire.
An impressive silence, considering how many people were present, followed.
"Trribe! Ourr Grreat Hall iss finnisshed! Thiss will be a place of ssafety forr uss all! Let thiss be a ssignn that we arre home herre! Ssoonn we will feasst annd drrinnk!"
A chorus of roars, from the humans, followed that declaration. Going straight from reminding them that they were home in the hidden world to the mention of food and drink was absolutely intentional as a strategy to better encourage everyone. He saw how eyes drifted toward the mugs, the barrels of wine, the large bowls of soup, and the plates of previously cooked meats. There was not much time left to stand... or sit on ceremony.
"But firrsst we rrememberr two passt Chiefss!"
He took a deep breath and nodded to Valka. A hush fell as everyone understood what was happening.
Valka carried two tapestries, two relics saved from Haven. Both tapestries were hung on the wall on the side of the Hall, where they were illuminated from below by glowing crystals.
He could not look away from the tapestries despite knowing them thoroughly. His father, Stoick, had been, for lack of better words, flawed, not knowing how to balance being a single father and Chief. Stoick had let single-minded obsession with an idea, that of getting his son back, of magically changing him back into a human, torture his thoughts and intentions until he betrayed Toothless.
But for all of Stoick's flaws, he had promoted the peace between humans and dragons on Berk, and he had tried to make amends after his betrayal. That the two of them had not truly reconciled before the end was still a faint sore spot, deep in his heart.
And Astrid... Chief, shield-maiden, dragon-whisperer, slayer of Drago Bludvist, and his friend.
Astrid, you'd have loved this hidden dragon world. If only I got to show you it...
He had loved her. Even with him being a dragon, she had a place in his heart all those years. There had not been any physical attraction, obviously. Rather, she had become more of a sister to him, someone he could completely trust and confide in. She had also understood the difficulties of leadership, dealing with people, and the limits of one's own ability far better than he had.
"Rrememberr them and all otherrss nnow in Valhalla!"
He looked away from the tapestries and out to the audience, his tribe, "Let the feasst beginn!"
With that, his part in the ceremony was finished, so he hopped down from his pedestal and waded through the sea of bodies eagerly approaching the food and drink. He could not begrudge them any of that. The tribe had spared little for this feast. Everyone was going to eat and drink all they could.
Having a full-tribe feast was a good way to help keep spirits high and people optimistic. A full belly and supply of ale, mead, or wine tended to help a lot with that goal.
The Great Hall's construction now being finished meant the main project which half the tribe had worked on constantly for almost three years was no more. There were no other major construction projects planned, which meant that boredom could be a problem in the future. People hated idleness almost more than frustrating work.
He, Valka, Thorvald, and Gobber had talked about it and had decided that more people could take up agriculture, farming, and related duties. Those activities wouldn't help with the lacking a sense of adventure, competition, and purpose, but at least they would help with growing more food.
Would a people be content just to subsist like that: surviving and staying the same, more or less, indefinitely?
Problems to think about later... now is time for being with family.
He sat down beside his brother and Luna outside the Hall, "The bonding and food-eating ceremony is started."
Dawn-Singer barked, "We should join them!"
Dawn-Singer, Flies-With-Sun, Aurora, and Rain-Eater trotted off to where their friends were waiting. Moon-Dancer and Hidden-Hope followed after them, probably to mingle, observe, or just be around their family.
Rock-Climber rumbled, "Sire-father, I will watch first, and you can watch after me, fair?"
"Yes, son. We can do that," Was-Grounded answered.
Rock-Climber flew up and perched on one of the flat perches atop the side of the wall. Stormfly was calmly sitting on the other perch, already doing watching of her own. The dragons most closely bonded, and whom decided to stay in this cavern more permanently, understood the need to guard, though sometimes they fell asleep when on guard duty.
Shadowwing sighed, content, as he watched the feast get underway. Conversation, laughter, and stories began echoing as the festival continued on inside.
Flower-Eater eventually awoke at Luna's side, yawned widely, hopped over to him, and pawed at his forelegs.
"Yes, my son? What do you want?"
Flower-Eater blinked rapidly up at him and licked his chops.
"What a surprise! You must be hungry. There is fish for us soon!"
His son's ears flew up at the mention of fish.
"Come, little one," Luna purred, beckoning Flower-Eater to her side.
"Sire-father, dam-mother, what about me? Do I need to come with you?" Night-Light whispered.
"You can go inside the den with your kin if you want," he answered.
"We will be just outside the shared-den if you need us," Luna added, nuzzling Night-Light.
"Okay, I will," Night-Light chirped and trotted inside the Hall, his tail whipping around the corner.
"Think he is ready for all of them?" Luna asked.
Night-Light had been nervous around large crowds before, but the last such one he had been in had been several months ago. He had probably grown enough since then to be comfortable enough on his own for a while.
"I think he is. And if not, he has his family there to reassure him."
Was-Grounded purred and nudged his shoulder, "So, the ground-kin's new great-hall-den is finished. Of all the places and dens that ground-kin make, these big ones are the best! The food-eating ceremonies are part of what I missed about Berk and Haven."
Luna nodded, "I agree. The food-eating and bonding ceremonies before were very liver-warming. I remember eating so many ground-birds and fish that I did not need to eat for many sun-cycles after!"
Shadowwing snorted, "That was because we were sleeping in the cold-season."
"And how much food we ate!" Was-Grounded protested.
"True, that too. Cold-seasons on Berk were very cold and needed much warmth-sharing."
Was-Grounded chuckled, "And you needed to learn your Night Fury sky-kin words. None of my hatchlings were as... difficult as you were."
Shadowwing huffed and rolled his eyes, "Who was I learning from? You were my teacher and flight-guider. I blame you."
"You had rock-head problems."
"It takes one to know one. Who kept licking his tailfin? Not me!"
They amicably growled at each other, ready to pounce in place except that Luna stopped them by stepping between them.
"My love, do you need to do more for the ground-kin as their Alpha?" she asked.
"No, not in this ceremony. Thorvald can be the Alpha for them."
She purred and lay down beside him, "Good, because I want you with me now."
"Do you? How?" he asked.
"Get a cave," Was-Grounded snorted.
Shadowwing stuck his tongue out at him without glancing at Luna.
"I just want you here in peace with me," she said.
"I will not say no to that," he agreed, relaxing at her side.
Privately, he was thankful that the construction was over. There had been a lot of worry about collapse or unknown mistakes or last-minute disasters taking place. None of those had happened though, and everything was soundly completed. He was looking forward to many weeks... months... no, years of peace in which he could get back into the routine.
Secure food and do other work for the tribe, be a father, be Luna's life-mate, be there for the rest of the family, and occasionally do something as a Chief.
Though, the Hall's completion meant that another adventure was imminent.
The food was all eaten, and their parents were with everyone else, dancing in the center of the Hall.
"So, I was thinking-" Alvor began.
"Your first mistake," Safiya muttered.
Aurora and Rain-Eater snorted.
"What are sisters for? Anyway, I was thinking that after we finish our chores next cycle we could try more swimming and high-diving! We gotta be ready for... any adventures," Alvor smirked.
"Sswimminng iss funn! But nno morre belly-ssplasshess inn yourr fallss!" Aurora laughed.
"Yep, want to avoid those. Still hurts from last time," Alvor groaned, remembering his last failures at diving into the deep pools.
"And mother told you not to try that anymore!" Safiya protested.
"Which is why we should do it. You know that da approves of us taking some risks. Ma is just worried because of last time."
She rolled her eyes, though she also looked like she agreed with him. She was trying to be the more responsible child.
Come on, sis, you know you want to.
"Fine. Whatever. Just keep it a secret. Don't want us getting grounded again," she relented.
Aurora and Rain-Eater gasped.
"It's just a saying," Alvor explained.
"Havinng winngss brrokenn iss nnot ssomethinng to teasse about. If I losst my flight, I would... I do nnot knnow what I would do," Rain-Eater grumbled.
Aurora brayed, "I knnow. How could annyonne live onn the grrounnd onnly?"
"Welcome to every-cycle life for us humans!" he added.
Aurora huffed and fondly held him a little tighter with her wing. He wasn't sure whether to be worried or pleased by that little display of affection.
"But you arre nnot life with winngs! We drragonnss arre meannt to fly high inn the ssky with the cloudss annd the ssunn!"
She paused and grumbled, "Ourr ssirre-fatherr wass grrounnded beforre he founnd dam-motherr. How did he ssurvive annd nnot losse hiss minnd?"
Rain-Eater solemnly purred, "Brrokenn winng, yess, he told me. That hurrt healed. It wass a good thinng he did nnot losse a tailfinn orr ssomethinng like that."
How is that familiar?
Alvor snapped his fingers, remembering something he had learned in stories, "Hey, have you heard that there was a dragon like that on Berk?"
Aurora and Rain-Eater looked with curiosity to him.
"Yeah, the story about the first Night Fury we know of. What was its name, Fangless?" Safiya asked.
"Toothless."
"Oh, right," she chuckled.
"Sstupid nname forr a drragonn," Aurora huffed.
"There were worse names for the humans. Not everyone followed that tradition, such as our parents. Thank the gods," Alvor said.
"Annd nno, we have nnot hearrd the sstory. Pleasse tell uss," Rain-Eater asked.
Alvor and Safiya joined their Fury friends on the side of the Hall. There, they sat down and leaned against Aurora's and Rain-Eater's sides before being covered by a wing. There was a very good chance that none of them were moving from there for a while, given how much food everyone had eaten and how tired everyone was after the dancing, contests, and other festive games. Plus, it was enjoyable just to spent time in each other's company.
Alvor started telling the story, or at least everything he could remember of it. Hiccup, the son of the former Chief, Stoick the Vast, had befriended a Night Fury on Berk. However, that Night Fury was wounded and needed help healing before it could fly again. Hiccup had taught other youths what he had learned about dragons. All the warriors in the entire tribe had gone to a secret island where dragons lived, and the tribe fought a battle against a very big dragon.
What happened after that was uncertain. All that he knew was that Hiccup and his Night Fury had both died, and Stoick had brought back a pair of Night Fury eggs found at dragon island. Only Chief Stoick and Elder Gobber had seen the eggs.
Aurora eagerly interrupted, "Wait, I thinnk I knnow! Thosse eggss hatched ourr ssirre-fatherr annd Sshadowwinng!"
"Must have, yeah."
"Sso that meannss the firrsst Nnight Furry wass ourr, what iss the humann worrd, grrannd-ssirre-fatherr!" Rain-Eater proposed.
"Probably. No one ever saw another Night Fury on that island, so the Fury's mate, your grandmother, must not... have lived, or she flew away somewhere else."
He paused in the story as he stared off at the tapestries, "Others didn't live too, though they died much later."
He and his sister had been eager to learn about dragons from Astrid and the other riders whom Hiccup had taught. Astrid had been someone they respected, not only as their eventual Chief but also as a fellow friend to dragons.
"You meann the onness thosse picturress arre of?" Aurora barked.
"Yeah, one of them."
"Ourr oldesst brrotherr met herr whenn he wass a fledglinng. Nnot the male, the Sstoick, though," she added.
Rain-Eater huffed softly, "Iss he the onne who had twissted thinnkinng annd turrnned tail on Sshadowwinng annd ourr ssirre-fatherr?"
"Yes, that was him," Safiya frowned.
Aurora broke the calm by batting at Alvor's face with her tailfins.
"What was that for?" he shouted, defending himself from the attack.
"Sso that you do nnot turrn tail onn uss!"
"Sorry, I've got no tail to turn. And you know I wouldn't do that! We're family!"
"I, unnlike my twissted ssissterr, do nnot doubt my humann frriend!" Rain-Eater smirked.
"Thanks, my friend!" Safiya chuckled.
Aurora barked indignantly and looked like she wanted to flame her brother, but she didn't.
"I nneverr doubted him! I wass teassinng!"
"That's never happened before," Alvor chuckled.
Night-Light really was not sure about this idea anymore.
There were so many ground-kin all around him in this new and very big den that was so different from anything he had seen before.
They... they were talking so loudly and having so much fun and spinning with their kin and his thinking was being twisted by the too much of everything!
Worse, one of them had accidentally stepped on his tail already. That ground-kin had too much of the making-them-want-to-fall-down-drink that also twisted their thinking and made them need to relieve themselves, sometimes without removing their furs.
Worst were all the voices echoing around in this den. He understood when Kin-liver spoke to him in ground-kin words, but these ground-kin were not Kin-liver! They were saying words he had never heard and did not understand.
It was so much! Too much doing! Too much noise!
And he was so small and lost and where were his kin and where was dam-mother and he should run back to his brother and sister and...
He paused, staring in surprise at a new female ground-kin he vaguely recognized as one he had seen from afar. This one was wearing blue furs and had golden head-fur. More interesting was how this ground-kin was young and very small, one of the smallest ones in the entire range! Very like him!
She must have felt that he was looking at her, because she glanced at him and stared. Her wide blue eyes were filled with warmth as she raised a small paw and waved at him. Was that supposed to mean something? He did not know ground-kin signals well yet.
What if she learned how little of the picture-words and speaking he knew? Would she turn tail on him then?
She ran up to him, showing her teeth in the ground-kin way of showing liver-warmth.
"Night-Light! Hello! I am..." she said something he did not understand.
Her voice was different, not Kin-liver, and his knowing of strange ground-kin words was not the best. He had so many problems with learning those words.
"Can you talk?" she asked.
His ears fell. He could not talk well yet.
Maybe my brother can help!
He very carefully, to not hurt her little paw, held her paw with one of his and trotted to his brother and sister. The young ground-kin came with, giggling for some reason. His brother and sister were sitting on their rears by a fireplace. Twistingly, his nestmates looked liver-chilled by something.
"Nestmates, can you talk to this ground-kin for me?" he pleaded.
"What do you want?" Hidden-Hope groaned and shuffled in place.
"I... do not know all the ground-kin words like you two do. Can you please talk for me?"
"All you Moon-Dancer," Hidden-Hope huffed and curled up for sleep.
"Will you?" he asked again.
Moon-Dancer nodded and purred. His older brother was going to help! What an amazing nestmate brother he had!
He let go of the ground-kin's paw and sat down before her, eye to eye with her while Moon-Dancer spoke in ground-kin.
"Her name is Stella," Moon-Dancer said.
Stella. He had no idea what the name meant, but it sounded nice.
"She wants to know if you want to play."
"Play what?" he barely controlled his tail.
Moon-Dancer spoke to Stella to ask her that question, but Stella looked disappointed by something. That was sad.
"She wants to play a ground-kin game that I do not understand."
"What can I do for bonding?" he asked.
Moon-Dancer purred and nodded toward the front of the hall-den.
"Go with her to Kin-liver. She can explain it. I will come with you."
"Okay!" he hopped to his paws as Stella followed him and his brother.
This was going very well! He had found a ground-kin to play with and bond with! True, he had not talked to her and knew nothing more than her name, but they were friends already! Kin-liver would help him and Stella talk more too!
He knew coming to this bonding ceremony was a good idea!
Shadowwing stood beside his brother and all the other Furies just outside the outskirts of New Haven. It was one of the more peaceful locations that was also very open and flat. That made this place perfect for the final preparations.
"Look at them," he purred.
Aurora, Rain-Eater, and Mist-Wings were either wearing or being helped into saddles that strapped around the chest and upper back. The saddles had pouches for storing small items such as knives, canteens, spare clothing, and other supplies. They were also as lightweight and comfortable as possible under the circumstances, though the plan was to take them off whenever allowable to prevent unneeded wear and tear or discomfort.
Rock-Climber and Moon-Dancer, being the ones not burdened with someone, were to carry more of the supplies, mostly dried vegetables and meats. No one knew how long the journey would last. Still, they were not bringing with so much that their flight would be hindered. Valka was going to keep the map they were going to fill in on their journey.
"Yes, ground-kin and sky-kin joining flights," Was-Grounded purred.
Shadowwing chuckled, seeing again the amazing flight suits Valka, Alvor, and Safiya were wearing and taking with them. While their ability to glide was fun, the suits were more to put at ease any other dragons they would meet on the journey. By the time the dragons noticed that the small dragons on the Furies' backs are not truly dragons, there should already have been peaceful introductions made, of a sort.
He had been involved in the flight suits' design and construction, though Valka was the first to build one. He had even been there to give her her first solo-flight on her own wings, which was also the first time he allowed anyone on his back.
He glanced aside to where the youngest were playing. Moon-Pinner and Night-Light were resting from yet another game of 'catch the tail', and the hatchlings were wrestling while being watched over by Green-Wings and Luna. Flies-With-Sun and Dawn-Singer were patiently waiting for the departure.
Hidden-Hope lay beside them all, sulking and fuming a little at not being allowed to go, though she had settled down a lot from how upset she had been at first.
He patiently waited until the last pack of supplies was strapped in and both his son and Mist-Wings had shaken themselves to make sure everything was secure.
Looks like everything is ready!
He took a deep breath, "It is time."
Was-Grounded nodded, stood up, and roared softly, "My children, my little ones, you will fly as a pack and see ranges I have never seen. Remember the rules: trust yourselves, no biting or flaming others in the pack, listen to Aurora and Kin-liver as the flight-leaders, keep safe your ground-kin, and never be alone. Do you hear me?"
Purrs and nods of affirmation followed from his children.
"Good. One more! If you find any Light Furies whom you want to make your mate... bring them back here to this range first! Promise on your wings."
"Why would we want to find mates?" Rock-Climber huffed.
"Okay, you do not. Everyone else?"
"We promise!" they answered.
Shadowwing chuckled. He suspected that his brother wanted to be able to pass judgment on any potential mates, especially ones for Aurora and Mist-Wings. Just as he himself would want to... if he had any authority or input into such a decision. He would for Hidden-Hope, eventually.
Was-Grounded bounded over to his children and rested his chin on their shoulders, one at a time in Fury hugs. Green-Wings followed right behind him, greeting her sons and daughters with Fury hugs and licks. Dawn-Singer did the same, though he greeted his siblings with a headbutt.
I should do that too.
He hugged each of his nephews and nieces. Finally, he came to Moon-Dancer.
"Son, I would like to pounce on you, but..." he whispered.
"But I am wearing stuff already," Moon-Dancer chuckled, shaking his saddle-pack.
"Yes, so this must be enough."
He nuzzled his son's nose and gave him a Fury hug which his son returned. He wanted that moment to never end. But it must. He would need to let go of his son, physically and figuratively. This was just one more step toward letting his son be an adult.
He stepped back, "Son, you are ready for this. Could you do me a favor before you go?"
"Anything, sire-father."
He whispered, "Could you go say warm words to your sister? She wanted to go on the flight very much."
"I will."
Moon-Dancer trotted off to Hidden-Hope. From afar and in secret, he watched as his son and daughter shared words, eventually ending in two pairs of lifted ears, two swaying tails, and a sibling hug that warmed his heart to see.
Satisfied, he trotted to the six humans who were also present, many of whom were sharing family hugs. Alvor, Safiya, and their father and mother were embracing and speaking last minute words to each other. Gobber and Valka were also hugging as old friends, for friends only is what they were and would always be, who would not see each other for a long time.
"Rrready?"
Alvor, Safiya, and Valka put on their helmet-masks, thus showing nothing human except their general outline. Valka also held her weaponized staff.
"Ready, Chief!" Valka chuckled.
He needed to say nothing more, so he trotted over to Luna's side. Valka, Alvor, and Safiya raced over to their respective Furies, were helped onto their backs, and strapped themselves into the saddles.
There was no way to know what they would see: new plants, rock formations, seas, creatures, and dragons, possibly more kinds that had never shown themselves in the above. Alvor, Safiya, and Valka were going to go where no one, no human anyway, had gone before.
The world had so many dangers that his brother's children, whom he thought of as his own in many ways, and his own son had never seen. But they would be together for this, and they could do anything together.
Aurora looked impatient, Rain-Eater was calm as always, Mist-Wings was peaceful, Rock-Climber was bouncing in place, and Moon-Dancer was stretching his limbs.
"May the godss watch overr you annd give you warrm winndss, good hunntss, ssafety, annd ann advennturre!"
He stood tall and held out his wings as wide as he could stretch them. Soon, the other remaining Furies who were old enough to understand were doing the same and stretching their wings wide in display.
A chorus of roars followed. Joyful, eager roars. Solemn, wondering roars. All mixed together like echoed songs.
The five departing Furies took a running start and leaped from the ledge. Their wings flashing in the light from the crystals, they turned for the darker part of the chamber, for the place where the they lived and which had the entrance to the chamber. Beyond lay the known and unknown expanses of the hidden world.
He watched, a cold in his heart at the departure, until the last of the wings were gone from sight. And he remained there, staring off into the distance long after they were gone.
His brother, Green-Wings, Dawn-Singer, Flies-With-Sun, and the remaining children eventually departed to return to their caves, the shared ledge, or some other activity. Only Luna remained with him while holding Flower-Eater.
"My love?" she whispered.
"I do not know. What if we never... see him... them again?"
She snorted and nuzzled his neck, "You twisted life-mate! We will see them again."
"What if they get into trouble?"
"They will! And they will be there to get each other out of trouble. Remember what I told you before we became mates?"
"What was it about?"
"Life and danger," she whispered.
He inhaled, remembering so clearly the words she had shouted at him in her rant.
"Life is danger. Life is not safe. Safe would be to sit on my tail in my den and never fly. I know... it is just different when it is Moon-Dancer or any of the other children. I... want to be there to protect them, but I know I should not. I will not always be there."
She purred softly, "This is the most chilling part of being a sire-father or a dam-mother. If we do these flights well... we help our young not need us."
"True, that is good and chilling at the same time."
A long silence followed until Flower-Eater mewled, chewing on his own tail.
"He looks hungry," he chuckled.
"We should go get fish for him, unless we want him eating his tail," she proposed.
They started on paw for New Haven, barely visible in the distance between the spires.
"You know, so many of the children being gone means the shared-ledge will be emptier more," she chuckled.
"Yes, it probably will."
She stroked his tail with hers.
"What if we had your brother and Green-Wings watch our children for a while? We could have more time to ourselves."
He purred, liking everything spoken and unspoken about that idea, "Good thinking. We should do the same for my brother and Green-Wings since they only have Wind-Dancer here now to watch over."
Oddly, Luna rolled her eyes and huffed, "Giving them time alone is not enough. They are too... practical about their being together."
"What?"
She paused and lifted an eyeridge in amusement, "Wait, do you not talk to your brother about him and Green-Wings as mates?"
"What? No. Why would I? What they do together is not my life-flight," he groaned.
"True, but their shared life-flight could be warmer, more like ours. If you did not know, they do not join as mates except for egg-making, which none of us can do more of."
That was news to him. What his brother and Green-Wings did on their own was not his business, but this was a little surprising to hear. Though, natural dragons were more practical about much of life compared to humans. Maybe Was-Grounded and Green-Wings did not see a reason to be... together without making eggs.
"I see what you mean. What should we do about that?" he asked.
She purred, a glint of amusement in her eyes as he and she started walking again, "We should guide their flights together in secret. Let me work on pushing Green-Wings toward him, and you push Was-Grounded toward her."
I am going to play matchmaker to push my brother and Green-Wings to be together more. Sounds great!
"We are so doing this," he grinned.
"Yes, and they will thank us after..."
He nipped one of her ears, "And what about us?"
"No help needed," she growled.
"Very true."
As they continued on toward New Haven, he settled on thinking about how life would be different for the next few weeks, months possibly. Everything about being Chief would not change, except that Gobber would now be sitting in as the temporary Elder in Valka's place.
Far more significant was how different family life would be. Not having his eldest son, his secret mother, or so many of his nephews and nieces present in his daily life was going to be a change. This was part of growing up and letting go as a parent.
Odin, please watch over them and keep them safe out there.
Was-Grounded joined Green-Wings down by a slowly flowing stream shortly after the departure. This was one of the safe places where hatchlings could swim freely without threat of being swept away or being hunted. Neither could they do much hunting, but it was still fun to swim in play.
They calmly waited while Wind-Dancer swam in circles, diving under the water and jumping out with joyful, soft roars.
Green-Wings shuffled closer to him and even nuzzled his shoulder while faintly purring. She did not usually show such tenderness or vulnerability.
"Yes, my life-mate?" he chuckled.
"Are you chilled for them? For our little ones out there?"
Was he? He was not sure about it. On one paw, they were all trusting of each other and were good hunters who should be safe. On the other paw, the other ranges of the hidden world were dangerous and unknown. What if there were new dangers no one had ever seen before?
"A little, but they can fly this flight on their own. I trust them and how we raised them."
"I do also, but... I know how bad it is to lose a little one," she whined.
He licked her neck, "This might be hard to hear, but fearing for them will not help. They must fly this flight if this shared-range is to live, and if they are to find mates of their own."
As he suspected, that idea of his children, or the older ones anyway, finding their own mates, brought a warmer hum to her. She was always warmed by the promise of new life.
He chuckled, "And we had to fly dangerous flights before our life-flights became one."
"We did. No more though. I only want to live here in peace with our little ones," she whispered.
He pointed with a paw at Wind-Dancer, "She is our only true little one now. Even Rock-Climber is grown enough to have fire and fly from us on the flight."
She paused before answering, staring out at the swimming, splashing hatchling, "I know. She is our last one. I..."
She did not finish her thought. Instead, she bounded into the water to play with Wind-Dancer. He followed her out to join in the play.
Deep in his liver, he was a little relieved that Wind-Dancer would be their last hatchling. They were so much work and the cause of many disturbed nights or cycles of sleep. Making more eggs, if possible, much later after many season-cycles pass was still an option.
For now, he was content to be sire-father to his current children, be Green-Wings's life-mate, be Shadowwing's brother, be kin to all his liver-held Furies, and be a High-Alpha. There was enough in all of those flights to stay busy with.
Valka hadn't appreciated how flying with a Night Fury was very different from flying with Cloudjumper. For one, Night Furies were much smaller, such that she could not stand upright, but she didn't need to do that.
Rather, she lay on Mist-Wings's back, strapped into the saddle. None of the Night Furies objected to a saddle when the occasion justified it. Further, every effort was taken to make sure the saddles were comfortable for the dragon and didn't hinder their movement.
Another, far more heartwarming, difference between this flight and the ones with Cloudjumper was that there were so many more people on the flight, all of whom she could speak with! The Fury siblings frequently grumbled, hissed, or barked at each other in Fury-speak while flying, but they all knew their human words.
Aurora had taken her place as the leader at the front of the flight. Mist-Wings and Rain-Eater flew alongside her, and Moon-Dancer and Rock-Climber brought up the tail of the flight.
They had to have flown from New Haven over a couple hours ago, but it was hard to tell time. Far easier was to know roughly where they were. They were well within the known passages she had flown in before.
After leaving New Haven, they had passed through the first massive chamber beneath the hidden island, down the passage into the crystal throne chamber, and beyond into a forest-like chamber. The trees were very green and massive, but they were also different from the ones above.
Trees like willows had glowing branches that hung down to the ground, the oaks grew three or four times the size as those in the above, and the mushroom-trees glowed in all different colors, all while crystals grew up from the ground at the center of the densest vegetation. Birds, orange micro-dragons, rodents and other scuttling things, and insects were aplenty in these such verdant chambers.
This chamber was very dense with Deadly Nadders that were very defensive and quick to shoot spines or flame. The Alpha, a big and foul-tempered green Nadder, was especially hostile to humans, unsurprisingly given that she had seen a scarring on his wings: that scarring could only have been made by human weapons.
That protectiveness was one of the reasons this chamber had been completely discounted as a possible place for humans to live. But this was not where they were flying anyway. They were flying for the distant unknown, for the undiscovered country beyond the edge of the map.
Author's Note – Cut scenes are in To Fly The Winds Of Life chapter 14.