Somebody to Love

Chapter 11: Another Believer

By: BourbonCowboy

It had been six months since he had returned from Camelot and Hiccup was feeling more than a little antsy. At first, he felt guilty for wanting to leave so soon after returning home despite the fact that only three days had passed since he had left. For Hiccup, he had been gone three months. So, he threw himself into his chief's duties. The Vikings had successfully started the expansion of Berk onto two neighboring islands. One island was cultivated for farming and livestock. The other island focused on producing building materials, weapons, armor, and ship building. Hiccup had spent many days consulting with the shipbuilders on designs for larger, deeper boats that could cross the wide ocean in search of new lands. The shipbuilders laughed amongst themselves when Hiccup was out of earshot. Everyone knows the Earth is flat! There are no more lands beyond the horizon! Despite their personal feelings on the matter, the shipbuilders did as they were told. They had a great amount of respect for Chief Hiccup and all he had accomplished in his short time as their leader. Hiccup may have been an awkward child and a bit of a nuisance, anyone with eyes could now see that he was a visionary – one who's genius could not be understood by simple Vikings. And so the shipbuilders chuckled to themselves as they made their measurements for these new deep water boats and continued on with their tasks.

"I know they laugh at me." Hiccup told Astrid. They were standing at the edge of the ring overlooking Berk's dragon academy.

"Of course they laugh at you," Astrid replied, "Everyone laughs at you. I laugh at you. Frequently."

Hiccup glared at his former fiancé but did otherwise let her attempts at teasing pass. His eyes strayed back to the ring where a handful of young Vikings were being taught how to capture wild dragons without causing them undue harm. It was a necessary skill. While Hiccup stressed that they need not kill dragons, sometimes it was unavoidable. Not every dragon was tamable. There had been occasions where Vikings, out exploring or gathering supplies for the village, had stumbled upon a dragon that attacked mercilessly. Hiccup may have been progressive as far as dragon rights were concerned, but he was still the chief. As chief he had to protect his people. Which meant that he had to equip them with the skills and tools necessary to deal with dangerous dragons if and when they encountered one. Eret was showing the youngsters a special net that he and Hiccup had designed together that would ensnare a dragon long enough for the Viking to escape and then the net would dissolve, and the dragon would not suffer unnecessarily.

"Everyone would have laughed if you told them you could fly Toothless before we saw you in action." Astrid said softly. Hiccup cut his eyes back to her, but the pretty Viking woman was watching the action in the ring and not looking at her chief. "Everyone laughed when you said you could teach Vikings to train dragons. Everyone laughed when you said you could make light weight armor from gronkle iron. We all laughed when you said that there were others out there who wanted to use dragons to conquer the archipelago. It's a good thing that you are so used to ignoring the rest of us when we laugh at you. Because you always end up being the one laughing in the end when you show us that you were right all along."

"That's the nicest thing I think you've ever said to me, Astrid." Hiccup murmured softly, feeling heat rise in his cheeks.

"Don't go getting all big-headed on me." Astrid punctuated this statement with a punch to Hiccup's shoulder. With a pop! A wing sprouted out of the back of his armor. Astrid laughed. Hiccup just glowered at her as he went about resetting the spring mechanism. "We're just simple Vikings, Chief. You can't expect us to understand you. But we, all of us, would follow you right to the edge of the world if that's what you want."

Hiccup cleared his throat. He had not missed how Astrid had reverted back to calling him Chief instead of by his first name. Proof that their relationship was still very much broken. Hiccup watched Eret showing one of the young Vikings a better way to hold the net in order to throw it farther. Hiccup nodded to himself and pushed away from the edge of the ring. "Those nets seem to be working well. Let me know when you have the inventory from the academy." With that, he turned and started back down the path towards his hut. Hiccup pretended not to see the way Astrid covered her swollen belly as he walked by, like she was trying to hide it or protect it…from him?

Toothless looked up from where he was napping when Hiccup banged into the house. "Sorry, bud, didn't mean to wake you." Toothless gave a toothless half grin and then rolled over – immediately going back to sleep.

"And I thought I was chilly." A familiar voice spoke from behind him. Hiccup turned and glared at Jack Frost. The Guardian was perched on the fireplace mantle in Hiccup's living room.

"What are you doing here?" Hiccup grumped, ignoring Jack's comment. He could deduce that the phantom had been observing Hiccup's conversation with Astrid. Hiccup was in no mood to psycho analyze his relationship with his ex.

"What am I doing here? Hmm… There must have been something…" Jack put his chin in his hand and pretended to contemplate. Hiccup just rolled his eyes and stomped over to his kitchen to scrounge up a meat pie for his dinner. "Ah yes! I remember now!" The Guardian proclaimed. "I'm here to take you back."

"Back?"

"To Camelot! I thought that was obvious?" Jack grinned rakishly.

"I can't go back right now, Jack. I'm the chief here. Winter is getting ready to start and we have preparations to make." Hiccup finally located the meat pie that one of the Viking women had brought over for him earlier in the day. He took a large bite and continued to avoid eye contact with Jack.

"You've been saying that." Jack whined, "I've been watching you and all the other big smelly Vikings run around like ants before the rain." Now Hiccup shot Jack a dirty look but otherwise did not comment but continued to eat his dinner. "I must say I am impressed with all you have done here, I really am. And not just me! King Arthur is so impressed with what I have shown him of your work here that he would like to commission you for a special job in Camelot."

Hiccup swallowed the last bite of his meal and took a swig of ale to give himself a moment before he answered. His interest was piqued of course, but he decided he must not appear too eager. Hiccup took another swig of ale, wiped his chin and belched loudly in true Viking fashion. Jack just scowled. Hiccup sighed, "What sort of job does the king want me to do for him?"

"Now I don't know the specifics," Jack pushed off from where he was perched on the mantel and floated over to the counter next to Hiccup. "All I know is that the big anniversary celebration is fast approaching, and King Arthur has need of an engineer. He wants you."

"He wants me to drop everything and come running back to Camelot to help plan a party?" Hiccup threw back his head and laughed. "Jack, you can't be serious! I can't abandon my people for who knows how long just to come help him with a party. There's plenty of other inventors and engineers at the guilds. The king can ask one of them."

"It has to be you!" Jack shouted, losing his temper. An icy wind whipped through the hut. Toothless leapt up, ears flattened back against his skull, teeth bared in a growl. As quickly as the wind had blown up it disappeared. Toothless shoved himself between Hiccup and the Guardian, still growling low in his throat. While not particularly worried, Jack held up his hands in a placating manner. "Whoa, Toothless, easy! I apologize. That was impolite of me." Toothless raised a brow, unimpressed. At least he stopped growling. Hiccup rested his hand on Toothless' head and watched Jack thoughtfully.

"Why does it have to be me, Jack? What's wrong?"

When Jack looked up, Hiccup could see a war raging in the Guardian's icy blue eyes. There was something going on. Some larger plot that Hiccup was unaware of and that the chief was going to need to get to the bottom of. Jack seemed to calm himself and sighed, leaning heavily against his staff.

"The anniversary celebration is extremely important to Camelot, Hiccup. It isn't just some big party. There's plenty of partying that happens, but those details are handled by the party people. Beyond that though, every year on the anniversary of Camelot's founding, all of the magic is renewed."

"I don't understand. What does that mean that the magic is renewed?" Hiccup asked, absentmindedly rubbing Toothless behind the ear.

"When I first brought you to Camelot I explained that it is a deeply magic place. This is because of the great wizard, Merlin, and magic that he waved long ago. I don't know much about how it all began. No one does, and I don't think it's a topic anyone should be too interested in, if you get my drift." Jack paused in his narration to skewer Hiccup and Toothless with an intense look. "But what I do know is that every year certain spells need to be updated."

"What sorts of spells?" Hiccup asked.

"All different kinds. Spells for protection from discovery by the outside world. Spells for the traveling mirrors. Spells to keep the roads clean, the lanterns lit. Spells for the weather. Spells to make the flowers grow. Spells for academic and artistic enlightenment. You name it, they've got it. Usually Merlin assigns tasks to the different guilds and they handle the gathering of materials and constructing the different devices and machines. There is something different though about this year. Maybe it's because it is the five hundredth anniversary? They have to renew one of the big spells – don't ask me." Jack held up his hand to stall Hiccup's question, "I don't know what spell. I probably shouldn't know that it's a big important one, but I happened upon some interesting conversations between the king and his wizard and used my powers of deduction. Either way the king has asked for your help with this. They need the best and brightest."

Hiccup and Toothless exchanged a look. There could be no harm in meeting with King Arthur to discuss this big engineering project, now could there? Time worked differently there anyway. He could go and spend a couple of weeks and be back before it was morning on Berk. Hiccup thought to himself he ought to build a clock tower to help him better with keeping track of time from one place to the next. Before he even realized what he was doing, Hiccup was putting clothes and notebooks into a satchel in preparation to leave. Jack exhaled in relief and offered Toothless a half-smirk. The dragon narrowed his eyes at the guardian. Hiccup grabbed another spare notebook, jotting down a quick note to his mother in the event that he wasn't back in the morning letting her know he was off with Toothless and would be back soon. He left a few quick instructions regarding the meetings he had planned for the next day, mostly to remind himself and then left the note open on his counter. "Okay, Toothless? Let's fly!"

Nothing can describe the exhilaration of flying on one of the fastest dragons alive on a clear moonlit night out over the ocean where the sky and the sea seemed to blend together into one. Jack had given him the magic mirror which they could use to travel back and forth to Camelot. But why use a mirror when you have a dragon? Jack flew alongside dragon and rider seeming much more carefree than he had in the kitchen. The cold night air revitalized the Guardian and washed all of the worries from his youthful face. As they flew, Hiccup became aware of the tinkling sound of many tiny bells. Looking over at Jack, Hiccup saw that the Guardian was surrounded by hundreds of bright twinkling lights from which the bell sounds were emanating. Hiccup raised an eyebrow and Jack laughed. Jack held out a hand and one of the lights perched there. Jack leaned forward and whispered something before gently tossing the light towards Hiccup and Toothless. Toothless made a half-hearted attempt to chomp the light as it sailed past, but it dodged the dragon and alighted on Hiccup's forearm. Hiccup stared and soon he could see that the tiny light was actually a tiny person with tiny wings. "Whoa!" The little person, woman, giggled musically. "That's Periwinkle. She's a Frost Fairy." Jack explained. "They were on their way to bring the first frost of winter to Berk when they saw us leaving and decided to come say hello."

"Can you understand their language?" Hiccup asked, impressed.

"Of course!" the Guardian replied smugly. Periwinkle smiled and waved before flittering away. The rest of the lights took off as well and Hiccup followed them with his eyes as they headed off towards Berk. "I told you, Hiccup, magic is all around you. You just have to open your eyes."

They flew on. Soon, the first pink rays of morning's light began to peek over the horizon. Hiccup and Toothless felt rather than saw the shift from their time to Camelot and suddenly there below them was the city. They made a loop around the perimeter, waving at the guards on the outer wall. Hiccup was grateful that they had spent time with the guards before so that there was no repeat of their first approach to Camelot. Despite being a magical city, there were not a lot of dragon riders. If Jack hadn't been with them the first time, they may have been shot from the sky by the soldiers and mages who guarded the city! Toothless landed in one of the castle's central courtyards and Hiccup slid from his back onto the paved walk. "Horrendous Hiccup!" a familiar deep voice called.

"Kovu! And Kiara! Good morning!" Hiccup smiled easily as his friends strode over to meet them.

"Horrendous Hiccup, who is this amazing creature?" Kiara strode right past Hiccup to Toothless, palm outstretched for the dragon to scent. Kovu clapped Hiccup on the shoulder in greeting. Toothless sniffed at Kiara and glanced at Hiccup with wide, happy eyes. Hiccup just chuckled.

"That's Toothless. My dragon." Kiara cooed over Toothless and rubbed his scales. "He likes you, your majesty."

Kiara waved at Hiccup dismissively, "No need for formality, Horrendous Hiccup. I quite like Toothless too!" She placed her hands on either side of the dragon's mouth, wordlessly asking him to open. Toothless complied, showing off his sharp retractable teeth to Kiara's delight. She continued her inspection of the dragon's strong chest, legs, and paws. "Oh! I can tell you are a strong hunter. Would you like to hunt with me one day, Toothless?"

"What are you two doing here this morning?" Hiccup asked Kovu.

"The King has summoned me for an audience. You as well?" Hiccup nodded. "Excellent! Then we shall go together. Come! Your dragon will be safe with my mate."

Kiara pranced over and gave Kovu a quick, sensual kiss on the lips before dancing away again to chase Toothless. The two appeared quite content in each other's company. Hiccup started to follow Kovu into the palace but stopped and looked back. Where had Jack gone? With a shrug, Hiccup allowed himself to be led inside to see the king. The two young men chatted easily as they wound through the palace. After what seemed a very long walk, the two came upon the King in his throne room where he was holding court. Hiccup watched curiously and noted how similar this was to his own job as chief, whereupon the villagers would come to him to settle disputes, bless unions, request assistance. King Arthur did this on a much larger scale it seemed. The King finished speaking with the three men that stood before his throne and then his blue eyes caught sight of Hiccup and Kovu in the corner. A huge boyish smile split the King's face. He stood up, raising his arms for silence in the hall. "Thank you, everyone, for coming today. I am afraid that I have some pressing business that needs attending. Please see the herald at the door for the next audience dates." With that the King strode away from his court and towards the door out to the hall, inclining his head to Kovu and Hiccup in a silent indication for them to follow. Once outside, the three men hastened around a corner, through a series of lounge rooms, up a flight of stairs and finally stopped in a large ornate study with a large window overlooking the courtyard where Kiara and Toothless were now playing with a group of small children.

"Heavy is the head that wears the crown!" King Arthur quipped with a laugh. Hiccup bent over with his hands on his knees to catch his breath after their mad dash thru the palace and just offered a wheezy sort of chuckle. Kovu of course did not appear winded in the slightest. Catching his breath, King Arthur clapped his hands together and then came over to clap both men on the shoulders. "I'm so glad the two of you could make it! Come! We have much to discuss."

Hiccup and Kovu followed Arthur deeper into the study. The king plopped down onto a dark blue sofa and put a foot up on the low coffee table. Hiccup and Kovu sat opposite the king in a pair of comfortable chairs.

"Now then, boys." The king began, "As you are undoubtedly aware, the 500th anniversary of Camelot is fast approaching. Preparations have been underway for some time now. With any large celebration there are bound to be a number of, forgive my pun, hiccups!"

Hiccup scowled at the king while Kovu laughed. Hiccup wasn't really upset. He and Arthur had spent a lot of time together the last time Hiccup had been in Camelot and he considered the king to be a good friend.

"Joking aside," the king continued, "Merlin informs me that in order to renew one of his spells, we need a machine built that can harness an extremely large amount of magical energy and focus that energy in the right direction. I am no wizard. I do not understand fully how all of the magic works. But I trust Merlin and if he says this is what we need, then I will move heaven and earth to ensure that it is done. That is why I requested that Mr. Frost return you to Camelot, my friend. I need your help."

"I'm flattered, your majesty." Hiccup replied honestly. "You have a ton of great engineers and inventors here in your guilds. I don't know what more I can offer that they can't."

Arthur studied Hiccup silently for a moment. "You are the best." He said simply. "You have an astounding mind. Beyond that you are dedicated. Once you start a task you do not stop until it is done perfectly. Then you do it again, better."

Hiccup flushed at the praise. Kovu smacked him on the back, grinning like a fool. "A great warrior and a great inventor, Horrendous? You must have women throwing themselves at you back home!"

"Err…I wouldn't really say that…" Hiccup blushed harder while his friends guffawed.

"Are you not mated then?" Kovu asked, still chuckling.

"Umm…well…not really…"

"Ahh! So you have too many concubines and cannot choose between them the best one to take as your favorite?" Kovu asked.

"Concubines! No no no no no! I'm too busy running my village to worry about women." Hiccup tried to explain.

"Hiccup, my friend!" Arthur guffawed loudly, "What's this? It is not uncommon for valiant warriors to wait until the itch is out of their feet before settling down to a family. Look how he blushes, Kovu! Did you not spread your wild oats in your misspent youth before taking on the mantle of kingship?"

"No! There was no wild oat spreading!" Hiccup waved his hands about then covered his face. "Oh Thor, why is this happening?"

"I have met many a brave warrior who would rather face down a fearsome enemy than speak with a beautiful woman." Kovu nodded sagely. "We can help you, Horrendous Hiccup! The best way to entice a female is to discover her favorite type of animal to eat. Then you go kill the biggest one that you can find and drag it back to her den as an offering!"

"No, no!" Arthur chimed in, "You must compose an epic love poem to her. Better yet! Set it to music and serenade her from the garden outside her balcony. You may throw her a bouquet of flowers that you have picked for her after the song and she may toss down a token of her affections."

Hiccup wondered how things could have taken such a terribly embarrassing turn. One moment the king is praising his genius, the next the two men are acting like teens, teasing him about his love life – or lack thereof. The ribbing continued for much longer than was really necessary with both Arthur and Kovu taking turns teasing him and offering bad advice on women.

"Aren't we here to discuss the invention?" Hiccup finally steered the conversation back to safer territory. "I need to know more about harnessing magical energies. Are there other machines here that already do that?"

"Yes! The invention! Of course!" Arthur popped up from his seat. "Let us go find Merlin. He can explain this much better than I can. Kovu, I would like for you to assist our friend here with his inventing. Get him anything he needs!" Kovu acquiesced with a silent nod of the head. "And help him out with this female business! I cannot have my best inventor showing up at all of my court functions dateless!"

Hiccup followed the king and Kovu through the palace again. They ended up in the eastern wing of the palace, below ground in a suite of rooms. There was a large room full of glass beakers and burners arranged on high tables. Adjacent to that room was a room full of desks, drawing boards, and drafting tables. Beyond there was a library which the king informed him had been stocked with books relevant to magical energy gathering. There was a kitchen and dining area and past that a hall with several small bedchambers. King Arthur explained that he was quite familiar with inventors and their need to never leave the workroom until the inventing was done. Hiccup was informed that there was a blacksmith's shop located outside the door at the end of the hall but that he should not feel obligated to build things himself. "Use the other guilds to help whenever you can. And before I go, let me introduce you to some of the others who will be helping you with this project."

In the kitchen were several other men and women who smiled and waved when Hiccup was introduced. They were inventors, engineers, scientists from all over and were excited to be a part of the 500th anniversary of Camelot. Many of the men and women he had met before at the guilds or in the libraries of the palace. Amongst these individuals, there would be no one laughing at his plans. Instead it would be a mutual exchange of ideas and theories. He could already feel his brain revving up with nervous excitement at the possibilities. Then Hiccup recognized the head of the inventor's guild, a tall man with blue eyes behind round spectacles and a lot of blonde hair that stuck straight up from his head as though he had been electrocuted. He made his way thru the crowd to greet his friend. "Dr. Robinson!" Hiccup shook the man's hand. "Chief Haddock!" the scientist pumped Hiccup's hand enthusiastically. "It's so nice to have another believer joining our ranks."