Disclaimer: I don't own HTTYD
A/N: In the last chapter I skipped over winter, but this first scene goes back to the day after Adulfr warns Hiccup about the poison. Just so you don't get confused by the back n forth.
Chapter Seven – Coming Together
Finding a ship in the middle of the ocean, even with dragons, was no easy feat. Eventually however, they did manage to track down the hunter's vessel. When there proved to be no dragons to rescue, they destroyed the equipment, leaving the hunters relatively defenceless. For this reason Astrid decided not to try and capture them; no one wanted to have to feed extra prisoners over winter, and she knew executions weren't an option.
The day after being warned about the vial of poison, Hiccup went to find Adulfr sitting on the cliff with Fishlegs. "I talked to Astrid last night" he explained, "and she agrees that after what you did, you deserve a bit of leeway. So we're gonna have a hut built for you over there, and you can come and go as you please. No more cells or chaperones."
He half expected Adulfr to act entitled, and say something like "It's about time." Hiccup felt pleasantly surprised, and a little bit ashamed, when the man simply nodded and replied, "Thank you. And…you're welcome. For the warning." He sounded humble. Hiccup had to give credit where it was due; Adulfr really had come a long way since trying to kill him.
Fishlegs beamed. "Congratulations" he said enthusiastically. "This will make things so much easier for you. It's funny, no-one's lived up here since Mildew was around" Fishlegs mused.
"Since who?"
"He was this old guy who used to live on Berk" Fishlegs shrugged. "Long dead by now. It's just kind of ironic, cos he wasn't too keen on dragons either." That was an understatement.
"Or anyone else, for that matter" Hiccup grinned, "but then again, the feeling was mutual. I think he might have been a draugr." (1)
"I thought you said you didn't believe in that sort of thing?"
"I don't, but in his case I'd be willing to make an exception" Hiccup retorted. He explained to Adulfr, "after he disappeared, we didn't really feel like holding onto the memories, so we got rid of his hut. By 'we' I mean the twins and by 'get rid of' I mean utterly demolish. Oh, that reminds me. I need to get that statue moved to Sparkle's nest" he remarked. The statue in question was a massive metal effigy of the god Thor wielding his hammer Mjolnir.
"Why did you build it out of metal?" Adulfr questioned incredulously. Fishlegs and Hiccup shared a glance and grinned in amusement. "What's so funny?" he demanded.
"Long story short, we put up all these metal perches – for the dragons – but then a storm came and the lightning was striking the village, which had never happened before."
"So we built that" Hiccup continued, gesturing at the statue, "to try and appease Thor's wrath…except it turned out the lightning was attracted to the metal, so it just made things worse!"
They all chuckled at that. It struck Hiccup just how…at ease he was around Adulfr now. Ever since they'd apologised and started trying to put the past behind them, the man had been less sneeringly dismissive and belittling towards him. Also, from what Fishlegs had said, when he wasn't putting on an air of superiority, Adulfr was a lot like, well, him. Hiccup had talked with Toothless as well, and his partner had agreed – just this once – to his idea.
"Adulfr?" he prompted. "I was thinking…I mean, Toothless and I were wondering if maybe, as a thank you for warning us about the poison, we could…take you for a ride?"
When Adulfr just stared at him, Hiccup rambled "I mean you don't have to, but if you want to, it'll be fun…I know it's cold, but the sun's out and the weather's only going to get worse, so now's probably the best time to…" he trailed off when Adulfr held a hand up for silence.
"You want me to ride on your dragon's back" Adulfr said slowly. He frowned doubtfully. "I don't believe it. There's no way you trust me that much. Even if I did tell you the truth."
"But that's just it. You told the truth, you gave me a reason to trust you. It's not the first time I've flown with someone who used to want me dead. You get used to it after a while."
"How do I know your dragon isn't going to just throw me off his back into the ocean?"
"He's not going to do that. Are you, Toothless?" The black dragon shook his head.
*And you're not gonna fly crazily either, okay?*
*You're no fun.*
Adulfr wasn't finished, however. "Is this just your way of trying to make me like dragons?"
Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Okay fine, the thought crossed my mind, but it's no big deal either way. Believe it or not, I'm just trying to do something nice. Still, if you're not interested…"
"Wait" Adulfr said hastily. He swallowed hard, looking between Hiccup and Toothless. "…a ride. Just one ride?" He nudged Leo off his shoulder and firmly said "You stay here. Stay."
"Just the one" Hiccup agreed. Adulfr steeled himself, and nodded in agreement. Hiccup smiled and mounted up, gesturing for him to get on behind. With much trepidation, Adulfr walked over and climbed onto the Fury's back. "Strap this belt around your waist" Hiccup instructed, "and there are handholds there." Once they were both secure, he asked, "You ready?" Adulfr nodded uncertainly. "Okay, Toothless, take off carefully." *I mean it.*
Toothless snorted, but obediently bounded forwards and leapt off the cliff, letting the updrafts catch his outstretched wings. Hiccup winced a bit when Adulfr grabbed around his waist instead, but he'd been expecting that. Once Toothless had gained enough altitude to glide comfortably, he glanced over his shoulder and asked, "You doing okay back there?"
"Y-yeah…"
"Good, good. D'you maybe wanna stop crushing my rib cage?"
"Huh?" Adulfr quickly shifted his grip to Hiccup's shoulders instead. Very close to his neck…stop it he chided himself. He's changed. He's trying. I can…trust him…
"You can see pretty much everything from up here" he remarked. "The village, the Academy, Urchin's nest…"
"Was that a Typhoomerang spiral?"
"Yep. Pretty, isn't it?"
"Mm. If you're into that kind of thing."
Adulfr tensed when he realised they were flying away from Berk. "Where is he going?"
"Who knows? That's what's so great about this; we could go anywhere" Hiccup replied. "Up here, in the sky…all of the things I'm worried about can be left behind. Up here, I'm free."
They flew on, rising in the updrafts towards the clouds. Toothless glided underneath a low one; Hiccup reached out to trail his hand through it, and after a moment Adulfr did the same. He soon pulled his hand back; the cloud was wet and cold. Still, being able to touch one even briefly – in a manner of speaking – was something he never thought he'd do. He'd seen the horizon plenty of times, but it had never looked so wide as from way up here.
The wind buffeted Toothless, trying to tug him this way and that. Adulfr's grip tightened as they flew over a turbulent patch of air, throwing Hiccup and then Toothless off balance. "Whoa! Easy there, bud." Hiccup stroked his grumbling dragon. "How about we go faster?" he suggested. Adulfr looked incredulous at being asked for his permission in the first place.
Still, if he was up here anyway… "Go on." Hiccup grinned in anticipation and let the tail-fin out fully. Toothless launched himself forward with a gleeful roar, beating his wings hard and streaking out across the ocean. Hiccup instinctively hunched down to reduce drag, forcing Adulfr to do the same. The wind whipped past them, a deafening cacophony of rushing air, bitingly cold and exhilarating. It wasn't the fastest he could go, but it was still a good sprint.
Despite everything, Adulfr found he was kind of enjoying the ride. Yet the wind was very cold, and he soon grew uncomfortable. "S-Stop" he begged. "Hiccup, make him stop!"
Hearing this, Hiccup adjusted the tail-fin and tugged back on the saddle, urging Toothless to slow down. "Are you okay?" he asked, when they'd returned to a more sensible speed.
"Yes. Just c-cold" he replied, shivering. Hiccup winced. He was used to it, so he'd forgotten.
"C'mon, bud, let's go back" he prompted. Toothless banked round and headed towards land again. Hiccup couldn't help but ask, "So uh, apart from the cold…what d'you think?"
Adulfr raised an eyebrow, and then sighed. "Fine. I admit, it was…fun. Are you happy now?"
"Yeah, actually. I honestly thought you were going to tell me to go away when I offered."
This time, Adulfr was the one who flinched slightly. "I…suppose I can't blame you for thinking that" he replied. "I probably would have, at one point. I suppose I was curious. I know he can't have been going at full speed; I can only imagine how fast you must go."
Hiccup grinned. "I didn't know how much I loved speed until I met Toothless" he commented cheerfully. "His kind aren't called Swift-Wings for nothing."
"They're called Night Furies."
"You don't say? That's what we call 'em. Swift-Wings are what they call themselves."
Adulfr rolled his eyes. "I'll never understand why you dragon riders insist on doing that."
"Doing what?" Hiccup asked, bewildered.
"Pretending your dragons can talk. They might be able to understand you, but that's it."
"Wait. You believe they can understand us, but not that they can talk?" Hiccup asked.
"Of course not" Adulfr snapped, "it doesn't make any sense."
*Maybe not to you* Toothless answered, despite knowing Adulfr couldn't hear him.
"But they can only understand us because they can talk."
"That's not how it works" Adulfr insisted. "I mean, Fishlegs' son is mute, isn't he? The boy can understand what everyone is saying, he just can't speak. It's the same with dragons."
"…I'm sorry, who's the dragon expert here?"
"Well, it's obviously not you, given that you're deluded enough to think that they talk."
"Just because you don't hear them doesn't mean they can't talk!"
"That's exactly what it means!"
*Stop it* Toothless snarled irritably. *My back is not an arguing spot. I'm going to land.*
Hiccup pet him in apology, and forced himself to calm down. "We're gonna set down and have a proper conversation. Trying to talk to you back there is a literal pain in the neck."
"Set down where? There's nothing but ocean for miles."
"Toothless has good eyes" Hiccup replied confidently. Sure enough, he swooped down towards a lonely sea stack, one of many scattered around. Upon landing, both men dismounted to stretch their legs. Toothless heated the ground up with his flame and lay down, clearly not intending to move until they'd settled the matter at hand. He yawned.
Taking a deep breath, Hiccup turned to Adulfr. "Okay, so why don't you believe that dragons can talk?" he asked. "Maybe they don't talk like us, but they still communicate."
Kicking idly at a rock on the ground, Adulfr replied, "Because it doesn't make sense. I can accept that they seem to understand what we're saying, but sometimes you people act like they're talking even when they're not moving or making a noise or anything! Fishlegs said they 'talk with their minds', but if that's true then how would you ever know?" he demanded. "You wouldn't be able to hear them! It's not like humans can read minds!"
"But we can hear them. You could too, if you…" Hiccup paused. "Hasn't Fishlegs offered to let you hear thought-speak? Or at least prove it can be done?" he questioned.
Adulfr scowled a bit and looked away, seemingly embarrassed. "It…hasn't really come up" he said defensively. "He might have mentioned it, but I didn't believe it could be done…"
"So you didn't try? Adulfr, you can't demand proof and then refuse it when we offer some."
"I know that" he grit out, glaring. "But I was so angry back then…I…okay, fine. I'll play along. Prove to me that your dragon can talk, that you can hear him, and I'll concede" he declared.
Hiccup looked over at said dragon and called, "Toothless, can you come here please?"
Toothless gave him a level look, then put his head down and draped his tail-fins over it.
"Even I can tell what that's supposed to mean."
"You're being very unhelpful, mister" he scolded. "Come on, it'll only take a sec. Please?"
Toothless rose and stretched with the air of a particularly lazy cat, and ambled over to them. Hiccup gave him a grateful scratch under the chin, and he purred. "Okay. I'm gonna go over there, out of earshot, and all you have to do is whisper in Toothless' ear something that I don't know, and that I couldn't guess. Then he'll say it to me, and I'll repeat it to you."
"Right…" Adulfr nodded, still looking sceptical. Hiccup walked over to the other side of the sea stack. He took a moment to think of what to say. It had to be something that he hadn't mentioned to Fishlegs, in case he had told Hiccup, but the man was so easy to talk to… then he thought of something, and hesitantly approached the dragon. Toothless stood still as Adulfr knelt down and whispered the message in his ear, then walked back over to Hiccup.
Hiccup listened to the message, then looked Adulfr in the eye and said, "You were ten years old when you met Skadi." He kept an eye out for the typical reactions. Wide eyes, check. Open mouth, check. Creased brow of disbelief, check. "So, now do you believe me?"
Adulfr closed his mouth, opened it, closed it again. *He looks like a fish* Toothless purred amused. Hiccup cheerfully remarked, "Toothless says you look like a fish. Are you okay?"
"But that's...impossible" Adulfr shook his head, "you couldn't know…" He had told Fishlegs that he'd been a child when he first encountered the wolves, but not his specific age. "Unless…he really does speak? And you can…understand him." He frowned, not in anger but merely confusion as something occurred to him. "Why can't I hear him?" he demanded.
"Because you're not connected" Hiccup replied. "I can sort of link your mind with his, temporarily. Or I guess I could try linking you to Leo…no, that might be permanent, and you won't want that. Do you? I have no idea. But yeah. They talk. You believe me now, right?"
Adulfr swallowed hard. "I'm starting to..." he said slowly, walking aside, mind reeling with the implications. Searching desperately for any hint of falsehood, but finding none. He recalled Isak saying "Hiccup proved to me, in a way even I could not dismiss, that dragons are no mere beasts. They are intelligent as us." Now he knew what that way was. If dragons could truly speak…and think…if they were truly people…then what did that make him?
He tried to tell himself that if dragons could think, they were responsible for the destruction they caused. His own mind betrayed him; dragons could be controlled by their own kind, or by humans…like him. If they're not in their right minds, they can't be held responsible, and if they are… it wasn't like humans were innocent. It wasn't as if he was innocent. He…he was…
"A monster" he murmured aloud.
"….Adulfr?"
"I'm a monster" he repeated, not looking back. "I've done…so much worse than I realised."
Hiccup and Toothless glanced at each other uncomfortably. Of all the reactions they'd expected, this wasn't one of them. Cautiously, Hiccup moved closer to Adulfr, who was shaking his head and staring into space. "You're not a monster" he said carefully.
"A villain, then. I didn't think about the dragons I'd ordered to be abused, or killed…because they weren't people, but now they are and I can't…" Adulfr clutched at his head, groaning.
For a moment Hiccup almost put a hand on his shoulder, but thought better of it. "You're not a monster" he repeated, more firmly. "Or a villain. I mean, you were…but monsters don't try to change. Or try to do what's right. You did do some really bad things, but…that doesn't have to make you a bad person. It just means you made some really bad decisions." Hiccup took a deep breath. "And if I can forgive Dagur, and Viggo…I can forgive you, too."
He held a hand out to shake. Adulfr stared at it, and him, in disbelief. He shrugged and smiled; he almost didn't believe it himself. Adulfr had hurt people he loved, albeit indirectly, but they were safe now, and those that weren't…well, the dead bore no grudges.
Slowly, hesitantly, Adulfr reached out and clasped his hand. "Likewise" he agreed. When they let go, he remarked "There's still one thing I don't understand. You say that to hear the dragons speak, one has to be 'connected' to them…so how did you learn to do that?"
Uh oh. Hiccup froze, caught off guard. Although he really should have seen this coming…
"I...err…I can't tell you."
"Why not?"
"Because…"
"You don't trust me" said Adulfr. He sounded more resigned than insulted, however.
"No. I mean yes. I mean…" Hiccup dragged a hand over his face. "Look, it's not you. It's…in general. I can't tell anyone. Shouldn't. It's not safe. I've been careless before, and…" (2)
"Never mind" Adulfr shook his head, dropping the subject for once. "Let's go back. It really is freezing out here." Hiccup nodded, and they mounted up. The return flight was made in silence, both men thinking about what had just transpired, and trying to make sense of it.
Spring
Winter had come and gone; now Berk's harbour was bustling with trading vessels. A simple one man hut was built for Adulfr up on the cliffs, apart from the villagers; although after word spread that he'd raised the alarm on those hunters, and even ridden on a dragon, the Berkians opinions about him began to shift. Even Snotlout admitted, albeit very reluctantly, that maybe he wasn't so bad…but that didn't mean he liked the guy, or anything. Got it?
By far the most interesting arrival was that of a ship with the royal crest of England on its mainsail. Hiccup received the herald and his retinue at the docks and escorted them to the Great Hall, followed by what seemed like the entire village and many curious dragons too. He sat down besides Astrid, with Toothless and Stormfly standing loyally at their sides.
"Earl Ethelind, welcome to Berk. Or welcome back, I should say" Astrid greeted calmly.
The thin, middle aged man with thinning blond hair bowed deeply. "Thank you for your hospitality, Chief Astrid. My sincerest apologies for arriving unannounced" he replied.
"Don't worry about it. Now, since it appears that all of us are interested in what you have to say", Astrid shot a pointed look at the crowd, who all looked sheepish. "Please, continue."
A servant handed Ethelind his first scroll, which he unfurled and read aloud. "To Lord Hiccup and Lady Astrid, on behalf of his Royal Highness King Harold Godwinson, ruler and protector of England, I hereby cordially invite you and yours to attend the royal wedding of Prince Godwin and Lady Adeliza, at Westminster Abbey in the year of our Lord 1070."
With the announcement made, he let the scroll curl up again and gave it back to the servant. The Hall immediately buzzed with interested whispers and approving – even jealous – murmurs, but by far the most enthusiastic response came from Helena. "A wedding?!" she exclaimed, coming out from behind her father's chair, "We're gonna go to a wedding? Wow! Will there be food? And flowers? Will I get to see Princess Gunhild again?"
She kept bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement. Ethelind took the barrage of questions in stride and smiled warmly. "Yes, indeed. The finest food and most beautiful flowers we can muster. Princess Gunhild will be absolutely thrilled to have you attend."
"We'd be honoured" replied Astrid, "but why tell us now, if the wedding won't be for four years?"
"Four years?!"
"Helena. We're busy right now, so can you please be quiet?" Astrid scolded. The little girl pouted until her father pulled her into his lap to cuddle, looking at Ethelind over her head.
He explained, "Four years to give us time to send invitations and receive replies, as well as give guests from further afield time to make the arrangements to travel to London. We could have waited in your case, of course, but my king has a request for you, Lord Hiccup."
"Oh?"
"Indeed. He and Duke William have agreed to jointly commission a new castle to be built as a wedding present and monument to the alliance. He has found men willing to work alongside dragons, and hoped you could spare some of your fine beasts to help with construction" Ethelind explained. Hiccup rubbed his chin thoughtfully, considering it. Chin-Spikes and Rock-Tails to help with quarrying and digging, Silver-Scales for cutting timber…
"That should be doable. I'm sure many of our dragons and riders would be willing to help."
"Excellent! The Castle of Windsor will be a jewel in the English crown" Ethelind declared happily. His voice was mirthful as he added, "It may amuse you both to know that in your honour, since it was your intervention that led to this auspicious occasion, King Harold chose to build the castle at Windsor because it lies within the county of Berkshire." (3)
The cooks were besides themselves at having to rustle up a meal for unexpected guests, and a royal herald at that, with such short notice. It was actually Mabel and Kalda, both of whom had taken to helping in the kitchens for something to do, who helped the head cook Brunhilda keep everyone on track. They had experience cooking for their husband's guests. "All men really want is a well cooked meal and several flagons of ale" Mabel declared.
During lunch, Hiccup inquired of Ethelind, "Do you think the king would mind if I came for a visit? Err, not to him; to Archbishop Stigand. There's something I need to ask him."
"I don't believe he would; but if you'd rather, I could pass a message on?" Ethelind offered.
"No, I don't want to trouble you having to send someone back with a response. We should really set up some dragon-mail stations – dragons are much faster than ships. No offence."
"None taken. Though to be perfectly honest, the archbishop has been troubled lately. There are those within his own diocese and beyond calling for his resignation from the position."
"Why would they…No, wait, don't tell me. It's because of the dragons, isn't it?"
"I'm afraid so" Ethelind nodded, adding, "But don't worry. You are not to blame. Besides, only King Harold can appoint a new archbishop, and he knows Stigand is loyal to him."
Hiccup sighed heavily. "It's just frustrating" he confessed. "It feels like whenever I take a step forward in getting people to accept dragons, their religion takes them two steps back." He explained to Ethelind about Klaus and Brannild. "I was hoping that Stigand had some advice on how to persuade other members of the…clergy? That dragons can be trusted."
The earl replied, "The castles construction won't need to begin until early summer, so you'll have an opportunity to speak with him when you lead the other dragons there."
"I understand, thank you" Hiccup said gratefully. He had flown out at the first opportunity to try and convince the Norwegian Archbishop to change his mind, but the man remained steadfast in his refusal to consider the dragons as more than strangely tame demons. Nor could he let the man hear thought-speak, for fear of appearing to be practicing occult magic. He now had a chance to change things, and he wouldn't waste the opportunity.
*Do we have to fly much further, dad?* Snowdrop whined, *My wings are tired.* They had been travelling all through the winter, hunkering down in whatever shelter they could find during the fierce storms. Many of the best caves had been claimed by packs of Fur-Scales, who sometimes let them stay on the edges, and sometimes drove them off. Snowdrop longed for a pack of their own, to stand with them against the dark and cold of winter.
Artemis was weary himself. *Just a little more* he reassured his daughter. *Take a deep breath, smell the sea. Soon we will land and be able to eat.* Thinking of devouring tasty fish galvanised her, and she shook out her wings with renewed vigour. Now that spring had come at last, the ocean would be teeming with food. Already they could hear the screaming of gulls, nasty birds that were noisy, smelly and dumb, but easy to catch and good to eat.
At last they reached the shoreline. Artemis and Iceheart landed neatly on a headland coated with grass and gorse bushes. Snowdrop merely collapsed to the ground in a great heap, startling bugs all around. *I'm going to have a nap* she announced, closing her peculiar eyes…only to open them a slit and peek out, just to see if they believed her.
Iceheart purred fondly and nuzzled her daughter. *You can rest, little one. I'll find us all something to eat* she declared, stretching and raising her wings once more.
*Let me* said Artemis, *You wait here with Snowdrop.* He leapt off the cliff and glided down to the water, flying above a bustling, squawking flock of seabirds. They scattered as his shadow fell over them, and beneath the water his keen eyes made out a shoal of fish. He could also see the dark shape that circled the shoal; the long neck and bloated body of a Steam-Spitter. Artemis growled uneasily. If only it had been a dolphin pod instead.
Nevertheless, his hunger – their hunger – drove him to risk diving for the meal. First he beat his wings to take himself much higher, until the birds were just white and brown specks against the slate grey sea. Artemis folded his wings and dived like a falcon, plunging at terrific speed as the wind screamed past his scales. He fired a blast that threw a plume of water and fish into the air, and snapped out his wings, pulling up in the nick of time.
Jaws full of fish, Artemis gulped them whole into his crop and climbed up for another pass. This time, the angered Spitter reared clear of the water to confront him, throat and jowls bulging with boiling water. Artemis was forced to swerve away from the jet of blasted steam, catching no fish. *Stay away, trespasser!* the seadragon screeched at him.
Artemis returned to the headland, and spat out the meagre helping of fish he'd caught. *Here* he crooned, nudging one towards Snowdrop. *I couldn't get any more. I'm sorry.*
Iceheart shook herself vigorously. *Don't be silly* she chided, nuzzling him briefly. *It's not your fault. We'll drive the Steam-Spitter away and take the rest of the fish. Why should they have it all? We're much hungrier than they are. Snowdrop, stay here and eat* she ordered.
*Wait!* Artemis barked in alarm, leaping to intercept her. *It's too dangerous, and we can find more fish* - she snarled at him and dodged aside. *Iceheart, please, just leave it be!*
*I didn't choose you for a mate because you were cowardly, Artemis!* she hissed at him, eyes narrowed. *What happened to the drake brave enough to slaughter a nest of humans to rescue his fellow dragons? To rescue me? We need food, and food is right down there. If we don't hurry, it will all be gone!* Iceheart turned her back and dived without another word, firing upon the Steam-Spitter in the water. Fish were thrown into the air all over.
She snapped them out of it, and from the corner of her eye saw the dark green bloated head surfacing to attack. Iceheart dodged away from the hot steam, that could rip off her tender scales. A fire blast struck the Spitter's head, knocking it about on that snake-like neck. *Leave her alone!* roared Artemis, hovering above the water. Iceheart warbled in delight and hovered on the other side of their foe, glad that her mate had come to help.
The Steam-Spitter drakaina looked between them with anger in her beady eyes. *Thieves!* she hissed. How dare they try to attack her and steal her fish? Well, if they wanted to fight her in her territory, then let the sky dragons only try it. *You want this prey? Come and get it!* she gloated, diving below the waves and gulping up the last of the shoal. A few fish scattered away from her, but she ignored them, and sank back down into the cold depths.
Iceheart growled in frustration. *Wretched greedy selfish nasty…it's not fair!* she snarled.
*Calm down, dear* Artemis implored her, *We'll get more fish. There'll be plenty of them.*
They had to travel further down the coast before they found another shoal, this one being herded into a bait ball by dolphins. Those creatures were far easier to drive away, and at last the small family feasted well. Now that their hunger was sated, the most pressing issue was to find somewhere safe to sleep. After much searching, they came across a nice deep cave in the mountains. However, as with so many safe places, it proved to be already taken.
The Fire-Scale flamed up at the smell of intruders, prompting Artemis and Iceheart to adopt defensive postures in front of Snowdrop. However, when he got a good look at them in the light of his own fire, he doused himself in surprise. Then he relit himself to illuminate the cave once more. *By the blazing sun…a Swift-Wing?* he rumbled curiously. *There hasn't been one of you around here for decades. And I didn't know you could have white scales.*
*We're White-Wings* replied Iceheart, bristling uneasily. The time she'd spent in a fight ring had left her wary and distrusting of other dragons; it was part of the reason they had never tried to settle down in another pack. She didn't like how this one stared at them so.
Artemis was uneasy too, but for a different reason. *There have been Swift-Wings here before?* he asked tentatively. Thinking back, he did remember encountering another pack when he first set out from his own. He and his friends had convinced a few of them to help attack some hunters, but they hadn't wanted to leave their nest and come on his journey.
The Fire-Scale hooded his eyes regret and sighed. *Yes, a pack of them lived in caves not far from here. Humans came, killed many of them and the survivors fled. Nobody knows where they went* he explained. Artemis felt sick. It was his fault; he'd gotten them to draw attention to themselves. The humans might never have found them up here if it wasn't for him. Then the elderly Fire-Scale – a younger one wouldn't be so calm – introduced himself.
*My name is Scorcher, by the way. What are yours?* he asked politely.
Before her parents could stop her, their daughter answered *I'm Snowdrop. Nice to meet you. Can we sleep here tonight, please? We've been flying a long way and we're tired.*
*If you like* Scorcher replied generously. *It will be nice to have company. Where are you flying to? Down south?* he guessed. *I hear there are other Swift-Wings down there, too.*
Even as Snowdrop made herself comfortable, Artemis' ear-flaps pricked up with interest. *Other Swift-Wings?* he repeated. The only Swift-Wing pack he knew that was further south was his own…had some more of them left? Hopefully not for the same reason as him.
Scorcher shrugged, making the shadows waver. *Word on the wing is that some of your kind have been seen further down the coast* he told Artemis. *But I'm not sure if I believe it. There are rumours that dragons down there – and the Swift-Wings too – are carrying humans around on their backs, and living in the humans nests. Can you even imagine?*
Iceheart tensed at the mere thought. *It must be a lie* she insisted, *no dragon would let a human ride on their back. Unless…they were forced to.* It was bad enough that humans had trapped her and made her fight; if they had made her carry them where they wanted to go, a heavy load on her spine, that would be even worse. She hoped it wasn't true, but if it was, they would have to try and help those poor enslaved dragons escape the humans.
*Well, that's the odd thing* replied Scorcher. *Some dragons round here say they've talked to the ones with humans, and those ones say the humans are their friends. Apparently there's a dragon – a Swift-Wing in fact – who found a human with magic, who made his lost tail-fin grow back and made other humans understand us when we think-speak. Some say the human is really a dragon who was turned into a human and got stuck like that.* (4)
Iceheart relaxed a bit more; that all sounded like a hatchling's story. *We should be getting some sleep* she declared, looking over at where Snowdrop had already curled up to doze. She and Artemis settled down nearby, and Scorcher extinguished his flames. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, Iceheart peeked and saw that her mate was still awake. *Tem* she said quietly, so as not to disturb their daughter or host. *I'm sorry about earlier.*
*It's okay* he purred reassuringly. *I'm not mad. I'm worried. Do you think it's true?*
*What's true? Dragons letting humans ride them, or a dragon getting turned into a human?* Iceheart snorted dismissively. *I don't believe that. But if there are dragons down there who are being enslaved by humans, like I was, we must try and help them, Artemis.*
*Yes, of course. If there are Swift-Wings…they might be from my old pack. I must see.*
*We're heading south now anyway* she replied. *We'll find them. Goodnight, Tem.*
*Goodnight, my Heart.*
(1) I'm not saying Mildew is a draugr in the HBS world, but I'm also not not saying that.
(2) The reveal's been delayed till next chapter, cos this one was getting so long.
(3) Windsor Castle was ordered built by William the Conqueror irl, and it really is in a county called Berkshire, which was too amusing a coincidence for me to ignore.
(4) Dragons are just as susceptible to Chinese Whispers as we are, apparently.