The New Nest Chapter 6
"Tell me about this 'outpost' plan of yours, son."
Hiccup already knew that his son's plan was unconventional and had never been tried before. To Hiccup's way of thinking, that meant that his son's plan had two strong points in its favor. But he wanted to be sure before giving this new idea his blessing.
"We always assume that, when the dragons need to spread out, they need to form a new nest," Bang began. "That means enough dragons so everyone can pair off and make eggs with a reasonable mix of dragons, so the new nest can be self-perpetuating. A nest like that has to be big, because dragons are big and we don't like feeling crowded. Places like that are getting harder and harder to find because people are spreading out and taking all the good land for themselves.
"Instead of that, I'd like to start an outpost on Little Meathead Island. It's a tiny island, not even close to being big enough for a conventional nest. I see eight to twelve dragons living there, sleeping during the day, and fishing and patrolling for the Meatheads at night. One of those dragons will be a Night Fury like me, so the outpost will have proper leadership. We wouldn't even try to be self-perpetuating; we would be a remote branch of Berk's nest, and we'd fly back to Berk to choose mates and lay eggs. But if two dragons live there and decide to pair off, so much the better."
"What if a dragon tries living in this outpost and decides that he doesn't like it?" his mother asked.
"In that case, he can leave the outpost and fly back to Berk, and we'll ask for a volunteer to take his place," Bang answered readily. "In fact, I don't see the outpost as having a permanent population at all. Each of the occupants will stay there for a few weeks, or a few months, depending on his own tastes. Some will try it and not like it because there isn't enough company; others will stay longer because the fishing is easier there. The outpost will probably change its whole population several times a year. Some dragons will come and go several times. Others will try it for a while and like enough to stay for months. Still others will try it for a week or two, say 'Meh,' and go straight back to Berk. As long as I have enough dragons to maintain a night patrol over Meathead Island, the exact membership won't matter."
"This won't do anything for my plan to spread the good word about dragons," Hiccup observed.
"Dad, we've already succeeded at that," Bang smiled. "Thuggory is completely convinced that his island needs dragons. The failure of our nest didn't change that, and when I helped chase the Thunderheads out of his village, that only strengthened his desire to have us around. You've got nothing to fear on that score."
"I've got one more question," his mother said. "Where does Night-fury-cave-flyer fit into this plan of yours?"
"I have to talk to her about that," Bang admitted. "My idea was that we'd both be part of the outpost. Sometimes we'd both be there, sometimes it would just be me, and sometimes it would just be her. That would be her introduction to being the head Night Fury over a group of dragons, with very little at stake if she doesn't master the art immediately."
"So you don't see the two of you staying together all the time?" Hiccup asked pointedly.
Bang squirmed. "Until we've... you know... paired off, there's no reason for both of us to be at the outpost. I like her, and she likes me, but... it just hasn't happened yet."
Hiccup thought for a few seconds. "Well, it sounds like you've got it all thought out. I assume that you'd call to us on Berk for help if the Meatheads got into more trouble than your outpost dragons could rescue them from?" Bang nodded. "In that case, unless your sister Full-of-surprises has an objection, I say, 'Go for it.' I'm sure Toothless won't object to Cave-flyer joining your outpost, either in the short term or over the long haul. Pick some dragons and create an outpost."
"Thanks, Dad!" Bang exclaimed, and flapped away.
Astrid turned to Hiccup. "Did you approve his plan just because it's unconventional, like every plan you ever came up with?"
"A little bit," Hiccup admitted. "My main reason is that his plan keeps him close to Berk. He'll have to return for a visit whenever he needs new dragons to replace the ones who rotate in and out of his outpost. When he left to start his nest, I remember saying I wished there was a way for him to succeed without leaving here. His new idea is the closest I'll ever get to that impossible dream."
"That's true; I never thought of that," she said, surprised. "It shouldn't amaze me that you'd think of an angle like that, but you're right. He will have to maintain ties with Berk. But at the same time, he'll be away from here and safe if some calamity hits our nest, and he's still getting experience at leading dragons, even if it isn't technically in a nest. Our son might have come up with the perfect plan." Then she gave Hiccup a mild swat with her tail. "And don't you even dream of trying to take the credit for it by saying, 'Like father, like son!'"
"Am I that obvious?" Hiccup said, looking guilty.
"After all these years together, I can read you like a Viking scroll," she smiled.
Bang wasted no time in setting a course for Toothless' nest. He'd pick out his dragons for his outpost later. First, he needed to find out where he stood with Cave-flyer.
There was a small flock of dragons fishing in the waters off the island, but there didn't seem to be any Night Furies among them. He circled the island and found some more dragons, and Cave-flyer's two younger brothers, Boy-two and Mama's-boy, were among them. Neither of them knew where their sister was, so Bang gained height and circled down into the crater that served as the nest's main entrance.
"Hey, Bang!" It was Lady-night-fury, resting on a ledge. It wasn't the biggest or flattest ledge in the nest, but it had a good view of most of the other resting places there, so it was a good choice for a ruling Night Fury. Bang glided over and landed. "What brings you here?" she asked him.
"I'm looking for Cave-flyer," he said. "I've come up with a new idea and I need to find out if she'd like to be part of it."
"If you're part of that idea, then I'm sure she'll want to be in on it," she smiled. "Cave-flyer is somewhere down in the mist that covers the bottom of the nest, looking for caves to fly in. She's lived here all her life, but she still hasn't explored all of the hidden places here."
"I've never been down there before," Bang mused. "What's it like?"
"The yellow smoke will sting your eyes if you leave them wide-open," Lady-night-fury warned him. "Cave-flyer says she usually squints the whole time she's down there."
"You can't see very far, either," Toothless added as he joined them. "She loves exploring caves, but when she's flying in those lower caverns, she stays in slow-explore mode, not crazy-zigzag mode, even in the caves that she has already probed. I think she learned something from that accident she had in Berk's sea stacks."
"Thanks for the warnings," he told them. "I'll go slowly." He spread his wings, stepped off the ledge, and glided straight down into the yellow mist. Lady-night-fury was right; it stung his sensitive eyes immediately, and he closed them nearly all the way. He fought back a sneeze. He could never see well enough to find her down here, so he relied on his sensitive ears instead. There was a fast flutter nearly straight in front of him; that had to be a Gronckle, probably a young one. A very faint whisper of air to his left sounded more promising. He turned in that direction and slowly glided forward, desperately trying to see what lay right in front of him. Doing a face-plant into a stone wall wasn't on his list of things to do today.
The faint sound in front of him stopped. He heard a familiar voice mutter, "Another dead end! Darn it!" Then came the sound of her landing on the cave floor and turning around to walk out. He whispered, "Come back this way."
"Who's there?" Cave-flyer exclaimed, startled.
Bang smiled and spoke in a low bass voice. "I… am the spirit… of the Red Death! Why are you trespassing in my domain?"
"Bang?" she burst out. "You're dead!" Evidently, his fake voice didn't fool her. He could hear her flying towards him until she suddenly appeared right in front of him, less than twenty feet away, looking cross. "You scared me"! she complained.
"I'm sorry," he replied.
"Nobody ever comes down here except me and the occasional curious baby dragon," she went on. "What are you doing here?"
"I was looking for you," he explained. "I had an idea and I have to know if you'd like to be part of it."
"Does that idea involve scaring the scales off of me in the darkness?" she asked.
"No, it involves our nest on Meathead Island," he told her.
"Then let's fly out of this yellow cloud so we can see each other," she suggested. They both flew straight up and out of the yellow cloud, then glided side-by-side as they flew in circles inside the nest. He explained his plan for the outpost on Little Meathead Island.
"It sounds like a good idea to me," she decided, "but with a group that small, you won't need two Night Furies. Is there any room for me in your plan?"
"I thought we could take turns running the outpost," he answered. "We could trade off every week or two. You could get some paws-on experience with running a very small nest, with not much at stake if you do something wrong, and with plenty of backup available if you find yourself facing a big problem. It would be a low-pressure way for you to try leading other dragons."
Her face lit up. "You'd do that for me? I could actually be a part-time leader of your outpost?" He nodded.
For her reply, she took off at full speed. He accelerated smoothly and began to catch up with her. Then she pitched up into a vertical spiral climb that took her halfway to the clouds. He matched her moves easily, and felt the beginnings of passion building up inside of him. Was today their day at last?
And then she broke off the dance and flew straight and level, shaking her head.
He flew close beside her. "What's wrong?"
She looked distressed. "Every time I fly crazy with you, I get this weird feeling inside. It scares me. So I stop flying crazy and the feeling goes away."
Bang groaned. "Haven't you had The Talk with your mother?" She looked blank, so he went on. "You know, about... mating flights?"
"Yes, sort of, I think," Cave-flyer admitted. "I mean, we've talked about it, and she told me it's the most wonderful feeling in the world, and she's pointed out other dragons doing their own dances, so I know what to expect… but when I try it, that strange feeling always gets in the way."
Bang rolled his eyes. "That intense feeling is what's supposed to happen! That's what drives us to finish the dance. When we're done, that's when the wonderful feeling takes over. You've been ready for me for months, and you've been holding yourself back!"
Cave-flyer looked stunned. "You're kidding! Please tell me I haven't been ruining our pairing-off because I didn't know any better! I've been making you miserable, I've kept us from becoming a couple…" She shook her head. "I can't believe I've been that stupid!"
"You're not stupid," Bang tried to reassure her. "You're just uninformed."
"Are you sure about this?" she asked. "I mean, you've never done this before, either, right?"
"If you don't believe me, then go ask your parents," Bang said. "Just try to ask the right questions this time."
Without another word, she flipped her tail and dove back toward the nest entrance. He flew in a broad circle around the nest; he didn't think he'd have to wait for long. After about ten minutes, she shot straight up out of the cone, spinning as she went. For a moment, she paused in mid-air and shot him a glance that challenged him to catch her. He needed no challenging. He quickly caught up with her again, and this time, she didn't hold back. Not even a little.
As they flew side-by-side afterwards, she sighed. "Are we officially a couple now?"
"We're now as official as we're ever going to get."
"I'm sorry I made you wait so long," she said.
"You're worth the wait," he answered.
She suddenly looked perturbed. "Are you making a comment about my weight?"
"No!" he burst out. "I said 'wait,' as in… argh!" He shook his head. "You just pulled a Drama Queen line on me!"
"And you fell for it," she grinned. "That's your payback for scaring me, back in the nest."
"I can't believe I was that stupid!" he fussed.
"You're not stupid," she corrected him. "You're just uninformed."
"Didn't I just say that a few minutes ago?"
"Yes, you did," she replied, "and if I can quote the Drama Queen to you, then why can't I quote you to you?"
He didn't have a comeback for that line. "Well," he finally said, "now that we're officially together, maybe we should work together on choosing the dragons for our outpost."
"Our outpost," she mused. "That almost sounds romantic. I'm going to like doing things together with you."
"That's good," he nodded, "because we're going to be doing just about everything together, from now until our day is done." He grinned maliciously. "Unless you're going to hold back on me."
"Me? Hold back on you? Never!" she burst out.
"What? Never?" he asked pointedly.
She smiled. "Well, hardly ever."
They took a long, lazy flight together, side by side. They must have gotten distracted; their plans for the outpost didn't come together until the next day. No one seemed to mind. Everyone was happy for the new couple. The questions about the Romans were set aside for another day.
The End
(of this story arc)