Disclaimer: I don't own HTTYD

Chapter Eight – A New Understanding

Adulfr sat in his hut, at a desk, poring over the diary given to him by Fishlegs. He found himself chewing the end of the charcoal pencil and pulled it away from his mouth; he really ought to break that bad habit. Logs set aflame by Leo crackled in the hearth, filling the room with warmth and light. The little dragon himself was curled up in a makeshift nest, made in an old bowl of all things.

I have been imprisoned on Berk for two years he wrote. Then he paused, frowning. Was he still imprisoned? He was no longer being locked up, after all.

The thought had crossed his mind, now and then, to simply leave. He didn't have to sneak away in the dead of night; the dragons would probably find him and haul him back, all of the…the trust he'd earned broken. If he asked, though, would they let him off the island? Probably not. He was still being punished.

Or so Adulfr had told himself. Then he'd reasoned that it would be extremely foolish to try and sail anywhere in the winter storms, and it wasn't as if he could ride a dragon. He had not ridden one since Hiccup offered to give him a ride on Toothless. That experience had been unsettling, moreso for what came after it, and he'd been struggling to get to grips with what he'd learned ever since.

Really, however, the reason he had not tried to leave was because…he had nowhere else to go. He could not return to Raudabein, even if it wasn't occupied. There was…nothing left for him there, except Skadi, and she deserved to be left to her wilderness. Nor could he try to find where those hunters had skulked off to. He'd betrayed them, and if they had the slightest inkling of that…

I never thought I would have a dragon, yet it seems I do. Leo is – Adulfr paused, debating whether to put 'annoying but tolerable' or 'not as bad as I thought'.

Leo is good company. For a dragon. Speaking of company, his thoughts turned to this past winter. At Yuletide, Fishlegs invited me to the Great Hall. There was a feast, music, dancing. That herald's wife got the children to put on a play about the birth of her God…or his son. The children asked me to tell them what it was like to run with wolves. The dragons did not hiss or growl at me as I passed.

He had been included. It still felt strange; he was used to staying on the fringes. Back home, he'd told himself he didn't need or want to be around all the drunken, raucous, brutish thugs that made up his tribe, especially not his…not Hauke. The Blood Bone tribe didn't celebrate Yule the way the Hooligans did; it was merely an excuse to get far more intoxicated than usual. That wasn't him.

Adulfr began writing some more idle thoughts about what had happened over winter, but nothing stood out. It was just…winter. He was more preoccupied with himself. So much has changed. I have changed. I am not so angry anymore. Indeed, the more time passed, the harder it was to recall how he'd clung on to that anger and bitterness for so long. Looking back, it had been exhausting.

I told myself that there must be a reason for my enemy's success. Nobody could just be that lucky and that kind, or so he'd believed; there had to have been an ulterior motive. How wrong I was. Hiccup Haddock does not crave power. He does not wield his dragons as weapons. He strikes back only when provoked. He does not want to mould the world to his liking. He does not want to be feared.

All of that was him. He had been 'projecting', as Tuffnut said. Turning his enemy into a monster in his mind, because that way he didn't have to look at himself and see the same thing. I am trying to do the right thing. It is working, I think. I have been given things I wanted. A hook, this diary, a place to live. I have been given things I did not know I needed. My mother's forgiveness. And Hiccup's.

It still baffled Adulfr that Hiccup had forgiven him. Even moreso that he'd returned the favour. Adulfr had been convinced that Hiccup would never truly forgive him. That even if they reached an accord, the stain of what they'd done to each other would forever linger. Yet instead his former arch enemy had decided to let go of any grudge, and he had, at last, chosen to do the same.

At least, he was trying to. I have learned that my father was wrong. That his death was not the injustice I convinced myself it was. I never proved myself worthy of his respect but now I know that he was never worthy of mine. Yet for all I am trying to let go of the past, I find that I am still envious of Hiccup.

He pressed his fist to his mouth and frowned. It made no sense. There was nothing for him to be envious of. Hiccup had nothing he wanted. He had no interest in finding a wife or having children. He didn't want a dragon…did he?

Adulfr realised he was chewing his pencil again, and spat it out. A dragon…well, he had one. Sort of. He couldn't ride Leo, of course. As reluctant as he might be to admit it, riding on Toothless had been…exciting. Was that it, then? He was envious of Hiccup because Hiccup had one of the most powerful dragons to ride. He'd been too proud to ask for another ride, but maybe he didn't have to.

Tomorrow he wrote decisively, I will tell him I want a Night Fury. He will probably deny me, but at least I shall have tried. With that done, he closed the diary. His stomach gurgled. Leo perked up. "Why do you only pay attention to me when you think I'm getting food?" Adulfr asked him. The Terror chirruped happily and flew over to perch on his hook. "Let's find something to eat, then."

/

The next day, he went out with Leo and held the dragonet up before his face. "Listen carefully. I need you to go to Hiccup and tell him to come here." Beforehand, Adulfr would have just sent Leo with a written message. Now he knew that dragons could speak, after a fashion, so there was no point in writing what Leo could simply tell him. He tossed the Terror off his wrist like a falcon.

Now all he had to do was wait. It wasn't long before Leo returned, accompanied by Hiccup and Toothless. "He said you wanted to see me. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I wanted to ask you something" Adulfr explained. He hesitated and gestured towards the hut. "Do you…want to come in?" Hiccup nodded slowly, and followed him inside. Toothless squeezed most of his body in as well. Leo perched above the fireplace and chirped smugly at the Night Fury, who glared at him. Before they could start bickering, Adulfr said bluntly "I want a Night Fury."

Toothless stared at him. Hiccup stared at him. Even Leo stared at him, because everyone else was. "You heard me" he said defensively. "I want a Night Fury. To ride. You have one, and the King of Norway has one, so why shouldn't I? Just because he's royalty and you're…you…doesn't make you better than me."

Hiccup blinked. "I never said it did" he protested, "and I can't just give you a dragon, much less a Night Fury. It doesn't work like that. The Furies are private. Some of them are willing to live amongst humans, but most of them aren't, and I can't blame them. Besides" he winced, "don't take this the wrong way, but I kinda doubt they'd be too keen on bonding with a former dragon hunter."

Adulfr frowned. Before he could lose his temper, Hiccup quickly added "but if you really want a dragon, I'd be happy to help you bond with one. How about a Fire-Scale or a, a more exotic dragon, like a Changewing? Wait, no, forget that."

"A Triple Stryke" Adulfr suggested out of the blue, "or a Skrill, perhaps. They're Strike Class, and superior to Night Furies. Don't look at me like that" he said tersely to an indignantly growling Toothless. "Can you summon and redirect lightning? I didn't think so." Toothless narrowed his eyes and grumbled.

"I wouldn't say 'superior', they're just diff – wait" Hiccup frowned. "Is that what this is about? You trying to one up me? Well, we're a bit thin on the ground as far as Skrills and Triple Strykes are concerned, so I'm afraid you're out of luck" he said sarcastically. Adulfr refused to meet his eyes. Hiccup sighed, exasperated, and said "I thought we'd gotten past all this envy nonsense."

"That's just it!" Adulfr exclaimed, frustrated. "I am envious, and I'm not even sure why! You have nothing I want, except power, and I'm…trying not to want that anymore. It doesn't change the fact that you have everything" he declared.

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "So maybe you're not envious. You're jealous" he said. "It's not that you want what I have – you just don't want me to have it."

Toothless snorted in annoyance. "He says that's selfish" Hiccup remarked idly.

"That's it" Adulfr stated. "That's what I'm jealous of! Something – or someone – gave you this ability to hear dragons, and I've gleaned enough from Fishlegs to guess that you were the first. I just…how? Why? Why you? I know you won't tell me, but that doesn't make it any less maddening" he ground out, fist clenched.

"…You still think I'm too lucky" Hiccup realised. He sucked in a breath and let it out slowly. "Okay. You should know the truth" he said solemnly. "The truth is…I am the Chosen One." He fought to keep a straight face. "Thor came down from Asgard on the Bifrost the day I was born, and declared 'this scrawny child shall"-

"Hiccup!" Adulfr snapped, "Don't make fun of me!"

"I'm not!" He was trying – and failing – not to snigger at the ludicrous story, not Adulfr's put-out expression. Well, maybe a little. He wasn't perfect. "Sorry."

"Hmph. I already know you won't tell me the truth. Don't cover it with a lie."

"Okay, okay." Hiccup wondered what to say next. He shouldn't do it, but the thought was tempting nonetheless…Toothless noticed his expression, guessed what it meant, and nudged him. *We need to talk.* Hiccup stood up slowly. "Err, would you excuse us a minute?" he said apologetically, as Toothless backed out of the door. He followed the dragon to the far side of the hut.

*Toothless? What's wrong?*

*You're thinking of telling Adulfr about the heart bind* the dragon said bluntly.

*…Am I really that predictable?*

*To me? Yes. Hiccup, I don't think we should risk it.*

*Why not? I know you don't like Adulfr, but he's changed.*

*It's not him* Toothless huffed, *It's just that too many people know already.*

Hiccup sighed. *You're right…* He still looked doubtful though.

Toothless crooned curiously. *Why do you want to tell him?*

*Because…it might help* Hiccup said slowly. *I mean, look at what happened with Snotlout. Once we talked things out they got better. Maybe if he knows the truth, he'll put the past behind him entirely and we can all move on from this.* He bit his lip, torn between thinking that it wasn't worth the risk, and believing that it was. *Like you said, lots of people know. One more won't change that.*

He did have a point. Maybe it would be worth the risk. Toothless was tired of this envy nonsense as much as Hiccup. If telling the truth made it stop, then…

*Okay* he conceded, trusting his other half's judgement. *If you think it's for the best; but if we're letting him hear thought-speak, I'm going to make sure he knows what will happen if he does betray us* Toothless insisted firmly, gaze fierce. Hiccup just sighed fondly, used to the overprotectiveness, and led the way back to the door of the hut. He had enough presence of mind to knock.

"…Come in" Adulfr called a moment later. Hiccup pushed the door ajar and walked inside again. Adulfr hadn't moved, but Leo was curled up in his nest.

"Right, so…um…can you keep a secret?" Hiccup asked, needing to know.

Adulfr looked taken aback at first. "I kept Skadi's pack and their den a secret for years" he declared. "Does this mean you are going to tell me the truth?"

"I'm going to show you. I can let you understand the dragons" Hiccup replied, holding his hand out as if to shake. With some trepidation, Adulfr reached out and gripped it in his own. "Close your eyes" Hiccup instructed, doing the same as he pressed his other hand to Toothless' forehead. "Okay…if you can see Toothless in your mind's eye, imagine reaching to touch him on the snout."

A moment later, he heard Adulfr gasp. "You feel it, yeah? Like a thread being pulled taut?" he asked, opening his eyes again and letting go of the man's hand.

With his digits free, Adulfr rubbed the back of his skull. "Is that it?" he asked.

*Adulfr* Toothless intoned. He jumped out of his skin. *If you tell anyone about our secret, if you betray us in any way, I will find you and make you regret it.*

With effort, Adulfr tore his eyes away from the dragon's piercing gaze and stared at Hiccup, who merely shrugged. "He does this to everyone. And he isn't even growling at you, you're getting off easy. But yeah…this really does have to stay a secret. I shouldn't be telling you this, I just hoped it would help you let go of any, err, lingering resentment, if you understood" he explained awkwardly.

Adulfr looked between them, and took a deep breath. "Very well. You both have my word" he said at last. "Cross my heart." He made an X over it with his hook.

Hiccup nodded in acknowledgment. "Here goes" he murmured, feeling so much trepidation, as he always did when revealing the secret of the heart bind. Why do I keep doing this to myself? Well, there was no turning back now. "You know how your…how Hauke stabbed me. He did miss my heart, but even Toothless' saliva couldn't have saved me; the wound was too deep. Might've hit a lung."

The thought reminded him of Gobber, and he flinched, holding on to Toothless for reassurance. The dragon crooned. *I can tell him the rest, if you want.*

"No, no. I'm fine." Hiccup continued, "I was dying. To save me, Toothless…see, if two dragons love each other so much they feel they can't live without each other, there's this…ritual they can do. The heart bind. It ties their life forces together. It shouldn't have worked on me, because I'm human, but…it did. Perhaps because I have the soul of a dragon. We're not really sure, honestly."

He met Adulfr's eyes and told him solemnly, "I am going to live as long as Toothless does, and assuming nothing happens to us in the meantime…Swift-Wings can live for three hundred years. Even four hundred, but that's rarer. I'm not…ageing normally anymore. At least not physically. Pretty soon even this", he rubbed his scraggly beard, "won't make me look the same age as my wife."

There was a pause. For a moment Adulfr felt that old envy flare up again; on top of everything else, Hiccup Haddock would stay young for decades? Then he forced himself to stop and think about what he'd been told. The man wasn't ageing. Hiccup would outlive everyone he knew. His friends, his wife, his own children…they'd grow old before his eyes. "You're going to lose everything."

Hiccup shook his head. "Not everything" he insisted, "I'll always have Toothless. He's been there for me since the beginning. Besides, it's not all doom and gloom. If it weren't for this, I wouldn't have the ability to understand dragons, and I wouldn't have realised I could give that amazing gift to others. Not to mention all the time we'll have to explore, find new dragons, learn new things."

"…Did you hope that telling me this would make me less envious?"

"Funny" Hiccup deadpanned, before adding "Wait, you're not still, are you?"

Adulfr considered it. This 'heart bind'…some might see it as a blessing, others as a curse. Or even both. The question remained, however; did he still feel envious? It didn't seem so. He had resented Hiccup for being so uncannily fortunate all the time, but now he knew that the luck came at a price. He'd seen how Hiccup doted on his family. Losing them would be heartbreaking for him.

"No" he said at last. "I thought the gods favour you…but perhaps that is not always a good thing. I doubt I would choose such a fate…would you?" he wondered. "If you knew beforehand what this heart bind meant, what you would lose because of it, would you still do it?" Adulfr asked Hiccup curiously.

Before he could answer, Toothless insisted *I wouldn't ask him to make that choice. If I hadn't needed to save his life, I would never have tried to do it.*

Hiccup explained, "It depends. If it was to save Toothless' life, or to save mine, then yes. Look, if I could have grown old with Astrid, I would. Things just didn't turn out that way. I've come to terms with that and I don't blame Toothless. It's not his fault; if anything it's mine. Or Hauke's, depending on how you look at it."

Adulfr gave a solemn nod, and turned to the Night Fury. "I know you have good reason to not trust me" he remarked, "but for what it's worth, I do regret what I've done. I'm sorry I kept planning to kill you and your rider" he declared. Even though the dragon was a bit reluctant, he could read body language easily and could tell that Adulfr's remorse was genuine. He could forgive but not forget.

Toothless glanced at Hiccup, who nodded encouragingly. *Apology accepted* he replied. *A lot of people try to kill us, I should really be used to it by now.*

Hiccup snickered. Adulfr felt his mouth twitch in amusement as well. "So, uh, anyway, we'd better be going. As for the Furies…I can't make any promises, but next time we go to visit, I'll mention the idea to them. You might get lucky."

Adulfr nodded. "Understood. Thank you, anyway. So, how long will this last?"

"Oh, a couple of hours or so. You can talk to Leo! When…he wakes up again" said Hiccup. It was starting to get awkward, so he and Toothless left them to it.

/

Klaus sighed wistfully. He was sitting on the roof of their little terraced house, looking up at the clouds. They were white and puffy, the sky was a brilliant blue; a beautiful spring day. He wished he could be up there, soaring like an angel above his home, watching over it from above. He and Brannild would find shapes in the clouds not from below, but from above, and make their own.

He missed his dragon friend. Klaus hoped Brannild was okay, back on Berk. His moping was interrupted by a scuffling sound, and huffs of exertion. Confused, he looked over his shoulder to find Edmund determinedly trying to crawl up the roof as well. "Eddie!" he cried, reaching to pull his little brother up to safety.

The younger boy panted, and grinned at Klaus once he'd caught his breath. "What're you doing up here?" he asked curiously. "Whatever it is, can I play?"

Klaus didn't want to talk about it. "I'm not playing" he replied, "just thinking."

"What about?" Edmund inquired. Klaus didn't answer. His brother frowned and poked him in the arm. "You've been really glum ever since your dragon left. You just mope all the time when you're not doing chores, and it's really boring."

The words stung, and Klaus scowled. "I said I'm not playing. Go away, Edmund."

"Not till you tell me what you're doing. Is it a secret? I can keep secrets."

"No, you can't."

"Can too!"

"Boys!" Another voice interrupted their bickering. They looked down over the edge of the roof, to see their mother standing there with hands on her hips. "You two get down from there right now before you break your necks!"

Edmund protested "But I just got here!" Klaus, on the other hand, slid down the slope of the roof and dangled from the gutter, before dropping to the ground. He hadn't been afraid of heights since he got used to flying with Brannild. The roof was nothing. He wiped the dirt on his hands off on the front of his tunic.

"Oi" said Mabel, disapproving, "who d'you think has to scrub those stains out?"

Klaus winced. "Sorry, mother. I can help out on Wash Day" he offered.

"Oh, yes, you most certainly can. Edmund! Get off that roof right now!"

"I can't!" he exclaimed helplessly, clinging to the top of the slope. "I'm stuck!"

The neighbours were staring and pointing. As his mother tried to figure out how to get her youngest son down, Klaus couldn't help thinking that if Brannild were still here, he could have just picked Edmund up and set him on the ground nice and easy. He sighed, then rolled his eyes. "Eddie! Just slide off, I'll catch you!"

"…Okay…here goes…" Edmund slithered off the roof, knocking a few shingles loose on the way, and dropped off the edge. Klaus was braced to catch him, but Edmund was almost his size, and his knees buckled, sending them both crashing to the ground. Most of Edmunds fall was broken by Klaus, who groaned in pain.

Their front door opened and Georgia stuck her head out. Upon seeing her elder siblings sprawled on the ground and trying to untangle their limbs, she innocently inquired "Mama, have Eddie and Klaus been fighting?" With a mischievously hopeful gleam in her eye, she asked "Are they in trouble?"

"Your brothers aren't fighting" her mother said firmly, "and they're not in trouble – yet. Have you finished your sewing, dear?" she asked. Georgia huffed and went back inside. Mabel turned to her sons, who had finally gotten to their feet. "You boys had better have a good reason for making a nuisance of yourselves. What on Earth were you up on the roof for? There's not a leak."

"I just went to see what he was doing!" Edmund protested, pointing at Klaus, "but he wasn't doing anything, he's just sulking again" he declared smugly.

"No I wasn't!" Klaus said hotly, even though he sort of had been. He glared.

"Well, what were you doing up there then?" his mother asked, arms folded.

Klaus frowned, annoyed. "Why does it matter? I was just – er, cloudspotting."

His mother tutted. "Honestly. You've got your head up in the clouds, boy, and here I hoped you'd stop this foolishness once you came to your senses about that dragon" she declared. Frowning, his gaze wandered and suddenly, Klaus ducked past her and ran off down the street. "Klaus! I wasn't finished – where are you going?" she called after him, as the neighbours watched and whispered.

"Sending a message!" he shouted back over his shoulder. In actual fact he'd spotted dragons flying in towards the new Dragon Mail outpost and wanted to catch them before they left again. They could maybe take a message back to Hiccup, asking if he'd found a way to help Klaus reunite with Brannild without risking his soul or anything. He was quite out of breath when he got there.

*Klaus?* a familiar voice asked, and he looked up to see Brannild right there.

"Brannild!" he cried, ignoring the stitch in his side to run over to the Fire-Scale.

"Woah, and here I thought you'd be hard to find" remarked the girl nearby, who had just dismounted from her Spike-Tail and walked over to join them both.

"Magnus, you're here too?" Klaus asked, smiling widely. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, silly. We just came to visit; and I've got some really good news!" she grinned at him. "Hiccup wanted me to tell you, he's going to England with some dragons to help build a castle. Whilst he's there, he'll ask this other archbishop guy who doesn't think dragons are demons anymore for advice on how to convince the archbishop you went to see that you can still ride Brannild."

That was indeed good news; the best that Klaus had heard in ages. "Really? That's great! You'll tell him I said thank you, won't you?" he asked hopefully.

"Duh, of course I will" Magnus replied. "Just let me drop off this mail and then we can…hey, d'you wanna go for a flight?" she suggested brightly. Brannild and Carena perked up at that, but Klaus hesitated. Flying would be nice…only he'd sworn to himself he wouldn't until he knew it was no longer a sin to do so.

"I can't" he admitted, "I – I made a promise. Sorry, Bran." Then he remarked, "Um, but if you want, I can show you around town. You can meet my family."

Magnus was disappointed, but she hid it well. "Sure thing, Klaus. Hang on…"

/

Compared to the journey through the Mediterranean storms, sailing up the coast from France to Norway was far easier and faster than before. Grimmel tied up at the docks and ventured forth into the capital city. He was getting closer to his prey, he could feel it. He'd prayed on board rather than go to a Catholic Mass; instead he remained near the coast, and sought out a tavern.

He had mixed feelings about taverns. On the one hand, they were sinful places, though not nearly as much as the brothels. Full of drunken fools. On the other hand, they provided an opportunity to learn more about what was going on. Drink loosened lips, after all. Besides, in his line of work, one had to make sacrifices for the greater good, and taverns were the haunt of other hunters.

So Grimmel strode into a rough pub, with dirty wooden tables covered in food on trenchers, tankards and a few slumped over drunkards. At the bar people were shouting for more beer, whilst long-suffering tavern wenches were clearing and carrying trays. Nobody paid him the slightest bit of attention, so he took a seat, close enough to overhear but not appearing to be eavesdropping.

There was a half empty tankard on the table he'd chosen; Grimmel wrapped one slender, pale hand around it in pretence. With hearing finely tuned from decades of hunting, he listened to the raucous chatter and dissatisfied murmurs of the other patrons. Most of it was pointless drivel, but finally his patience got rewarded. "…and it's just insulting, those bloody dragons get to live like royalty!"

He listened closer. "Gee, who'd have thought the king's dragons'd get special treatment?" someone else drawled sarcastically; there came a thump of fist on flesh. "Keep your voices down, idiots. We're meant to be lying low, remember?" yet another man intervened, voice low and gravelly with both age and shouting.

"What's the point? It's not like anyone knows who we are" said the first man.

"You keep blabbering and they're gonna know what we are. How you cretins manage to keep your mouths shut before, I'll never know. Good thing you did though, or I wouldn't know we'd been sold out. The whelp's a traitor, damn it."

"I still dun get why it matters. What, has the king outlawed dragon hunting?"

"Yes, you moron. Y'know what'll happen when we take out those Furies? Don't answer that" the man said, "we'd get the Dragon Master on us, that's what."

A different voice chimed in. "Bring it on. I'm gonna gut that dragon of his and use its entrails to hang 'im by his skinny neck. Him and the backstabbing brat."

"Oh yeah, murder the guy with a dragon army, great idea. If you wanna be roasted alive" the sarcastic one remarked. The gutting man threw a punch. It was returned immediately, but Grimmel was interested enough now to interrupt before the ensuing brawl could really get started. 'Furies' were another name for Night Demons, he knew, and he'd come here for them.

So he went over to that table and cleared his throat pointedly. They glanced at him, and then stared as people always did. "Who the heck are you?" the ringleader demanded, "and when was the last time you saw any sunlight?"

Grimmel let his lips curl slightly at the corners, in a smile – or rather a smirk – that never reached his eyes. "On your side" he answered. "A hunter also, but I've only just arrived in the city. Now, what's this about the king's dragons?"

"We ain't s'posed to talk about that" one of the four men informed him blithely.

"Shuddup!" the leader scowled. He eyed Grimmel suspiciously. "You're awful bold to just come over here and say you're one of us. You don't look like it."

"Appearances can be deceiving; but if it puts your mind at ease, my credentials" Grimmel said smoothly, unhooking the four knives at his belt and laying them on the table one by one, still in their sheaths. The sheaths were preserved dragon skin, still black as tar, in varying lengths. Each one was long and rounded at the end. He waited to see if their origins would be recognised by these men.

They stared at the dragonskin knife sheaths, and then at him. They looked impressed. "Pull up a stool" the leader invited. "Name's Galmi. This here's Torfi, Arngrim and Kárr. So where'd you get those?" he asked, nodding at the sheaths Grimmel was reattaching to his belt. "Night Furies have been gone from the mainland for decades now. Or are they still around, wherever you're from?"

"Oh, I'm from far away" Grimmel answered, sitting down, "and no, they're not. The black demons are no more in Europe in part thanks to yours truly" he revealed. The grizzled hunters looked even more impressed. "Of course I don't want to boast" he added, falsely modest, "but I'm probably the best there is."

"You'd have to be, to get away with slaying the Night Furies around here" grunted Arngrim; the one who wanted to gut someone's pet dragon. "Seeing as how two of 'em – three, if you count their spawn – belong to the king and the rest are under the protection of the great and mighty Dragon Master himself."

Grimmel looked intrigued. "Yes, you were just going to tell me about that. I had heard rumours about a man who supposedly conquered dragons the size of mountains, and commanded Night Demons. Night Furies, you call them here."

Torfi insisted "Those rumours are true, swear on me mothers grave. The Dragon Master worked his dark magic on a fricking Bewilderbeast. He's got this huge leviathan at his beck and call ready to breathe ice spears and smash ships."

That's new Grimmel thought; he'd heard about the so-called 'King of Dragons' but never actually seen a specimen, except perhaps once from a distance. "This 'Dragon Master' certainly sounds like a dangerous enemy and worthy foe."

"Aye" said Kárr, "but he ain't impressive to look at. Skinny as you – no offence – with a peg leg and a big mouth. He's from this backwater little tribe in the middle of nowhere, but just cos he figured out how to train dragons suddenly they're getting all high and mighty, allying with kings and having women Chiefs."

"His name's Hiccup Haddock the Third" explained Galmi, "He rides a Night Fury called Toothless, of all things. Lives on an island called Berk. His old man was the Chief, but he was too busy with his precious dragons to take over, so he let his wife do it. Or maybe he's just whipped and she's the mastermind behind it all."

Grimmel sent a silent prayer of thanks to God for sending him to this trove of knowledge. "You say he rides the Fury? He's broken a demon to the saddle?"

"Yeah, they all ride 'em over there. And get this" said Kárr, "there're rumours that 'Toothless', the Fury that the Dragon Master rides, cursed him or summat and now they've got this like, mind link." He moved his fingers back and forth from his temples. "That's how he controls the dragon, or how it controls him."

"I see." It was worse than Grimmel thought. Whether this tribe had made a deal with the Devil to command dragons, or the demons themselves had taken over their minds somehow, it was still his God-sworn duty to play a part in ending their scourge. "How many Night Furies does this 'Hiccup' have, anyway?"

"Four" Arngrim answered, "The one he rides, its mate, and another pair. But it gets worse. There's a whole nest of 'em up north from where we're from, but nobody can find it. When he wants more, he summons 'em from that place."

A nest. A whole nest of Night Demons, like a canker, that he'd had no idea existed. Grimmel knew he'd never be able to slay every Night Demon, much less every dragon, no matter how much he prayed. Yet he had dedicated his life's work to eradicating as many of the devilish creatures as possible. To learn that they were thriving in the godless north and west was a blow to his very soul.

He was a practical man, however, and here was a problem to be rectified. "I do believe it's your lucky day, gentlemen" he said pleasantly, "I have something that might be the key to finding this mysterious hidden nest of Night Furies."