Stepping Forward
Chapter Seven
Toothless' two messengers returned late the next afternoon, followed by a large flock of dragons, so many that from a distance, they looked like a huge dark cloud.
"Well, I guess that answers the question of how many dragons are returning," Astrid remarked.
She and Hiccup were flying with Stormfly and Toothless, a little distance away from the other Riders and dragons, following the Sea Shockers as they scouted for schools for fish.
"I guess so," Hiccup agreed. He glanced down at his brother and placed his hand on Toothless' shoulder. "Are you sure you're all right with this, bud?"
Toothless glanced around to make sure no other dragons were within ear shot. /To be honest, I'm relieved. I fought Venn because I had to, but I never particularly wanted to be an alpha. Being responsible for such a large flock is a little scary./
He looked over at Stormfly. /And I'm trusting you not to repeat that. At least not to anyone besides our team./
/Of course./ Stormfly agreed. The Riders and their dragons trusted one another with their lives, and their secrets. /I don't blame you, though. But it looks like all the Sanctuary dragons are returning, so being alpha should easier with just the normal Berk flock. You and Hiccup were already our leaders even if we didn't call you by title./
"Me too?" Hiccup asked in surprise.
"Well, yes." Toothless, Stormfly, and Astrid spoke together, all rolling their eyes at him.
"Hiccup, you know you're the leader of the Dragon Riders. You're the one who taught us all how to work together in the first place." Astrid looked intently at her boyfriend.
Hiccup waved his hand dismissively. "That was just dragon stuff. I didn't-."
"Just dragon stuff?!" Astrid stared. "You do realize that making peace with the dragons has changed our entire world, don't you?"
/It changed the world for all of us./ Stormfly agreed.
"Well, yes, I guess so." Hiccup shook his head. "But that doesn't mean I'm any kind of leader. I just…," his voice trailed off uncertainly.
/Brother, don't belittle yourself or me by making light of our achievements./ Toothless said quietly.
"Toothless, I would never belittle you! You're amazing!" Hiccup cried.
"And you're amazing, too," Astrid told him, while Toothless and Stormfly warbled in agreement.
But Hiccup shook his head. "No, I'm not. I'm just—Hiccup."
Stormfly moved close to Toothless and Astrid reached for Hiccup's hand.
"And Hiccup is an amazing person," she said softly.
He started to protest further, but then the flock of dragons swept by them. Astrid gave his hand a squeeze and then pointed below to the Viking flagship where they could see Cloudjumper land on deck and Stoick once again climb upon his back behind Valka.
"Looks like your parents are going back to the Sanctuary," Astrid remarked. "Want to join them?"
Within minutes, they were flying alongside Stoick, Valka, and Cloudjumper, followed by the other Dragon Riders, who had also noticed what was happening and apparently didn't want to be left out. As everyone approached the spiky ice mountain, Snaer rose from the water with a joyful welcoming cry, echoed loudly by the returning flock. Then every dragon paused, hovering in the air and bowed their heads deeply, first to Toothless and then to Snaer. Then the Sanctuary dragons surrounded their Bewilderbeast, flying in celebratory circles around him, the air filled with their exclamations and questions.
After a moment, Snaer called to Venn to join them as well, and the gray Bewilderbeast cautiously rose to stand beside his mentor. The flock drew back at first, but they had all heard his story and they seemed willing to accept him.
With Snaer's encouragement, Venn spoke hesitantly to the flock, his voice rough with pain. /I—wronged all of you before. I am very sorry, and I ask your forgiveness./
There was a pause, and then a Gronckle named Pebble, one of the older dragons high in the hierarchy, flew close. /We have heard your story, Venn, and we understand. Our alpha has accepted you into our flock. We accept you also. You are one of us now./
/Thank you./ Venn whispered.
Pebble and a few of the other dragons came to greet him, and then more followed until the gray Bewilderbeast was surrounded by new friends.
"Oh, I love happy endings," Fishlegs sniffled.
Snaer called for silence and immediately everyone became quiet. The only sounds to be heard were the rustle of dragon wings beating in the air and the slap of the waves upon the shore below.
The white Bewilderbeast looked to Toothless. /Toothless, Alpha of Berk, I thank you for giving my family the choice to return. We are your friends and allies, forevermore. You and your flock, dragon and human, are always welcome here. Should you ever wish for our help in any matter, you have only to ask and we will be there./ He bowed to the Night Fury, and the Sanctuary dragons bowed again as well.
Toothless nodded. /Thank you, Snaer. We are your friends and allies as well./
Soon after, the dragons flew into the tunnels leading to the inside of the Sanctuary. Snaer and Venn sank back into the ocean to swim through the underwater tunnel, and after a momentary consultation with Valka and Cloudjumper, Stoick motioned to the Riders. "We're going inside for a few minutes too."
Being inside the Sanctuary again reminded Hiccup of the first time he had seen the inner courtyard, with all the dragons flying about and everyone at peace. The Riders dismounted and let their own dragons explore while they gathered together. Toothless spoke briefly with the Nadder and Nightmare that he had sent to Berk and then fluttered back over to his human family, waiting near the pool with the Bewilderbeasts.
/Most of the Sanctuary dragons have returned./ He told them. /Gruff, Thump, Lump, and Mercy want to stay with you, Mom, so they've decided to remain on Berk./
He turned to the red Stormcutter that was never far from Valka's side. /And I'm assuming Cloudjumper will stay as well./
The Stormcutter huffed. /Of course!/
"So we've ended up with only five more dragons," Stoick said. "Well, we've already caught more than enough fish to feed them through the winter."
He looked to the Bewilderbeasts. "Snaer, do you think there are enough fish left to feed your flock?"
/Yes, I'm sure there are./ Snaer replied. /And if we should need to, we can fly a few miles to the south. The fish are plentiful there as well./
"It looks like everyone's in good shape for the winter then," Stoick smiled in relief. "Snaer, I am very glad that you're alive and that we had a chance to meet. Venn, I'm glad you've found a home and friends here." He turned to his son and the other Riders. "Well, I guess we can head back home."
There were several long moments of goodbyes and invitations to return for a visit, but then as the Riders swung onto their dragons' backs, everyone realized that Valka and Cloudjumper had wandered away from the group to stand near a tall rock pillar in the shadows. They all exchanged glances and then Stoick motioned for Hiccup and Toothless to accompany him as he went to his wife.
Astrid cleared her throat. "We'll wait for you on board the ship."
She leaned over to quickly kiss Hiccup's cheek and then she and Stormfly led the Riders back to the outside world.
Hiccup slid off Toothless and they slowly followed Stoick.
"Valka?" Stoick spoke in a low voice as he lightly touched her arm. "I suppose I should have asked if you want to go back to Berk, or if you would rather stay here." He swallowed hard.
Valka looked around at the Sanctuary, her eyes bright. "This was my home for so long," she said softly. "I never thought I would leave."
She turned to smile at Hiccup, Stoick, and Toothless. "But then you showed up, and I realized how much I loved and missed my family-my human family," She added as she reached to give Cloudjumper a reassuring pat.
Valka took a deep breath and took Stoick's hands in her own. "It's hard to leave here again, but now I can't imagine living without you—without all of you."
Stoick took her in his arms and they shared a long kiss before they stepped apart and turned to smile at Hiccup. He went to his parents and the three of them held each other close-laughing a little, crying a little. Then Toothless and Cloudjumper spread their wings, encircling their humans and Hiccup, Valka, and Stoick reached to hug them as well.
"Skullcrusher ought to be here too," Hiccup finally said.
Stoick nodded. "Well, let's go home and share the news with him, shall we?"
Valka and Cloudjumper took one last look around and then nodded to one another. Valka leaped lightly to his back, while Stoick climbed behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Cloudjumper beat his four wings and took off through the tunnel, with Hiccup and Toothless following closely.
A short time later the Hooligan fleet set sail for home, leaving the Dragon Sanctuary behind them. It was already late in the afternoon, so when the sun set a couple hours later, Stoick gave the order that they would anchor for the night and continue the journey in the morning.
The night was cold but clear, so the Riders again slept out on the deck, wrapped in blankets and dragon wings. Hiccup fell asleep to the rumble of Toothless' contented purr and the stars twinkling overhead.
Unfortunately, waking was not so pleasant. Something cold and wet plopped on Hiccup's cheek and trickled down to his chin. Scrunching up his face in displeasure, Hiccup opened his eyes to discover that thick clouds had rolled in sometime during the night and now fat raindrops were falling.
With a sigh, he slid out from under Toothless' wing and jumped to his feet. At home, he usually slept without his prosthetic, but like all the Hooligans, he knew that at sea, things could change in a heartbeat and he had decided it would be prudent to keep it on, just in case he needed to move quickly.
"Hey, guys, wake up! It's raining!"
His warning was unnecessary; the rain had already awakened the others and everyone was grabbing blankets and heading below deck.
"Really, we'll be home this afternoon," Snotlout grumbled. "Couldn't the rain have held off a few hours?"
While their Riders took shelter in the dining hall, the dragons took off to catch breakfast.
"I'll be back in a sec, bud," Hiccup told Toothless. "Just let me get my armor and helmet."
He was back a few minutes later, with his black dragon-scale armor and helmet providing some protection from the rain, which was falling steadily by now. Toothless wasted no time catching fish and soon they were back on board, hurrying downstairs with the others.
Some of the dragons didn't mind flying in the rain, but most of them were happy to take shelter below deck on the ships with the humans. Only those fishermen who had to help to sail the ships ventured above.
At noon, Hiccup threw a cloak over his armor, pulled the hood over his head, and took some meat pies up to Stoick. The weather had worsened, with the rain falling hard in thick sheets of water and strong winds causing tumultuous waves to toss the ships. Even with the cloak and his armor, Hiccup was soaked to the skin immediately.
Between the rain and wind, the slippery floorboards, and the sharply pitching boat, Hiccup could barely keep his feet and he was glad that he had thought to tuck the pies into a pocket of his cloak. He struggled up to the quarterdeck to find both Stoick and Mulch working together to hold the ship's helm steady. The noise was so loud that Hiccup had to shout to tell his father he had brought lunch.
But Stoick shook his head. "Can't leave the helm!" He yelled back.
Hiccup only nodded. He did not bother offering to take his father's place. He was stronger than he looked, courtesy of working in the forge all those years, but they all knew that he did not match Stoick's physical strength, or Mulch's for that matter.
Just then a particularly high wave crashed over the railing, even on the raised quarterdeck, and nearly swept Hiccup overboard. Stoick let go of the ship's wheel to snatch him back to safety. The wheel jerked sharply towards the starboard side, knocking Mulch to his knees in his heroic effort to keep it steady. Stoick and Hiccup both grabbed for it as well, and disaster was averted, at least for the moment.
The next closest ship to them was not as lucky, though. Even above the rain and shrieking wind, they heard a thunderous crack and watched in horror as the main mast broke into two pieces, the wind easily tossing the long top section and sail into the raging sea.
That ship, destabilized without its main sail, turned parallel to the waves. Hiccup, Stoick, and Mulch all cried out as another strong wave hit, and the sideways ship inexorably listed to its port side. The humans and several dragons who had been below deck began frantically scrambling out of doors and towards what safety they could find, either leaping onto the dragons' backs or fighting their way to the highest point of the ship. The dragons quickly helped to scoop humans onto their backs or grabbed them in their claws and took off to transport them to other ships in the fleet.
"They need help!" Stoick shouted to his son, but Hiccup was already on his way, practically falling down the quarterdeck ladder to the main deck and slipping and sliding to the door leading below.
He burst into the dining hall, calling for the Riders and all dragons present. They sprang towards him instantly and Hiccup explained the situation while they hurriedly saddled their mounts.
A few minutes later they were in the air, struggling through the storm to help save people from the capsized ship. Ruffnut and Tuffnut each helped several fishermen onto Barf and Belch. Astrid and Stormfly lifted Brunnhild Larson to safety while Valka and Cloudjumper saved Nozehair. Snotlout and Hookfang swooped down to the water and plucked Erlend Olsen from the waves, while Fishlegs and Meatlug helped Hiccup and Toothless pull open closed doors to try to make sure no one was trapped inside the sinking ship.
The task was difficult because of the storm, but finally they were able to get a head count and determine that everyone was safe. But before they could breathe a sigh of relief, Hiccup noticed a Viking on another ship waving her arms trying to get their attention. The Dragon Riders fought through the storm and as they approached, she pointed frantically towards the mast.
"Not another one," Snotlout groaned. But that mast was also creaking ominously, and Toothless, with his sharp eyesight, confirmed that were several cracks in it.
Hiccup thought furiously. "Toothless, can you tell all the dragons to come out here? Maybe if we could attach ropes to the ships, the dragons could pull them out of the storm."
"Going to be hard to attach ropes in this storm!" Valka yelled over the shrieking wind.
"If the wind is strong enough to snap the masts, won't the ropes break too?" Fishlegs considered, tilting his head. "Maybe if the angle was right…"
"We've got to try something! We could lose the entire fleet, and we may not be able to save everyone!" Astrid shouted.
"Let's go for it!" The twins spoke in unison and then high-fived each other.
Toothless used his alpha powers to send a mental cry to all of the remaining dragons. /We need help! If you will help, come now!/
Within seconds, dragons rushed from the remaining ships to Toothless' side. /We're here! What do we do?/
Hiccup quickly explained his plan. Each Rider led a couple of the riderless dragons to a ship, shouted for the Vikings at the helm to bring as much rope as possible, and began figuring out how to attach it to the sides of the ship. Then the dragons took the other end and began pulling. They used the wind to their advantage, flying with it at their backs, and helping to stabilize the ships.
Hiccup never was certain how long it took to outrace the squall. It seemed a long time before they left the storm behind, the winds died, and the waters grew calm again. But he knew the passage of time could be difficult to judge in the midst of battle—and he felt that they had indeed survived a battle of the elements.
Stoick insisted that they change direction and sail off to the east for some distance, to make certain they were out of the storm's path. The sun was low in the sky when he finally decided they were safe and called for the fleet to gather together as close as possible.
Hiccup, his friends, and all of the dragons collapsed into exhausted heaps on the ships' decks, while Stoick and the other captains took account of their crews, consulted their maps, and shouted questions and reports to one another.
"All right, everyone!" Stoick bellowed. "The good news is there are no serious injuries. Dragons and Dragon Riders, we thank you! You saved our lives."
The Vikings were pale and shaken, but they gave a rousing cheer.
"Hiccup, Toothless, are all of the dragons all right?" Stoick asked.
Toothless nodded wearily. /Yes, Dad. Just tired. But no injuries./
"Well, you've certainly earned your rest." Stoick smiled at him before continuing to address the tribe. "More good news, even with the lost ship, we still have most of our catch, so there should be plenty of fish for the winter."
"The bad news is, of course, we lost one of our ships and several more are damaged. We're well off course now too. It'll be at least another day before we can reach Berk, and we may still need our dragons to help tow the damaged ships. But we're safe now, and we're all exhausted. We'll anchor here for the night and start back in the morning."
Thankfully, it was a quiet night and everyone felt refreshed when the sun rose. The day was peaceful and the sea was calm, the waves soft and gentle. The dragons took turns tugging the impaired boats along, while the others sunned themselves on the decks of the ships they had saved.
Hiccup, Astrid, and their friends spent most of the day sitting with their dragons on the flagship, not talking much, just enjoying being together. Hiccup smiled as he looked up at his parents on the quarterdeck above. As chief and captain, Stoick was determined to be at his post, but he was tired and sore from fighting to keep his ship afloat the day before. So he had some of the others actually man the helm while he sat nearby, next to Valka as they both leaned back against Cloudjumper. Stoick placed his arm around her shoulders, and Valka snuggled close to him.
It was a happy, peaceful day. But the best part was when a familiar island loomed on the horizon. Everyone cheered again as they sailed through the Harbor Guardians.
They were home.
Author's Notes: I apologize for the longer-than-usual time between updates. I plead Holiday Madness.
Also, I know nothing about boats or sailing, except the very meager knowledge I've gleaned from Wikipedia while writing this story. Please forgive any mistakes I make in regards to nautical knowledge or terms.
I hope you've enjoyed reading the chapter! Please review!