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A Chance Encounter, Chapter 7
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As is often the case during funerals, it was raining.
Hiccup wrapped his coat closer to his body, not minding the pouring rain. All around him, the officials of Arendelle were using portable, waterproof canopies to protect themselves from the water. Though Hiccup did not have one, he had also refused one when he was offered by a servant. He'd always felt that it was bad form to avoid the rain during funerals. That said, he'd be coming back to take one of these contraptions and see what made them tick. Later.
Ernie had led him to the chapel after Hiccup had changed into the clothes left for him by the servants. A mostly black tunic with silver trimmings and elaborate shapes in a very dark shade of blue. When it became apparent that the weather was turning bad, he was also given a finely crafted fur coat. Though Hiccup was more used to fur than the fabrics Arendelle used, this fur coat was much different than the ones back in Berk. Much more carefully made, less bulky. Made for appearance rather than stopping the cold from seeping into one's bones. Nevertheless, it did its job to a satisfying degree.
The chapel was crowded with people. At its far end was the Queen, dressed in a regal black dress and with the circlet of her station on her head. She stood next to a priest, and to the side stood the council members and three other people Hiccup did not recognize. He was led by Ernie to that side, and he stood next to those three. He was given respectful nods by the three men, each dressed in a different style, which he returned. He guessed that they were foreign dignitaries, like himself, and were stationed here due to their position.
The rest of the chapel was full of row upon row of townsfolk and guardsmen. Between the seats and the officials were three coffins, beautifully decorated with flowers and lit candles. On the front row sat what could only be the families of the fallen, dressed in borrowed black, their faces pale and drawn.
Hiccup did not believe in the God that Arendelle believed in, but he stayed silent and respectful throughout the ceremony. The priest spoke, a strange cross between a speech and a song in a language that he did not understand. Despite himself, Hiccup found his mind drifting away when the ceremony didn't seem to end anytime soon.
He was pulled from his reverie as the priest concluded his blessings. One by one members of the Queensguard that had been silently lining the walls stepped coffinside and shouldered their fallen comrades. Hiccup wondered whether this duty was an honour or a punishment as he followed the procession outside. Three graves were already dug in front of three shiny new marble headstones. Soldiers in ceremonial armor formed two lines for the procession of coffins and people to pass through, swords raised.
The coffins were balanced on wooden beams above their respective graves, at which time the priest stood behind the headstone and spoke some more. A gold-covered book in his hand, his free one moved erratically, forming shapes and gestures Hiccup had never seen before.
Eventually, the coffins were raised, the beams removed, and then the dead were slowly allowed into their graves. The crying from all around intensified. Despite the fact that he had never even seen these three, never mind knowing them, Hiccup found himself drawn by the atmosphere into a decidedly terrible mood.
With the coffins deposited gently on the earth, the people approached, each with a handful of soil. A procession formed, each saying a few soft words as they dropped the soil onto the coffins until they were almost covered. Queen Elsa approached last, going to each grave, taking some dirt in her hand and throwing it in, but not saying a word.
Once she had done this for all three, men with shovels appeared and filled the rest of the looked on morosely at the three uneven mounds of dirt. The graves were completed when marble surfaces were gently allowed to close their upper part, the walls already placed earlier. On the surface of each grave were inscribed the names, ranks and years of life for each of the the reward given to men who died for their country, for their Queen. A grand funeral yes, but ultimately, three forgotten graves.
When all this was done, the Queen stood in front of the graves, and not a soul let out a sound besides the occasional sniff or hiccup.
"I owe my life to these three." She eventually said. She spoke softly, but her voice carried easily to the whole graveyard. "If it were not for their sacrifice, I would be gone from this world. For this, they will have my eternal gratitude."
She paused, her head slowly resting to each grave, in turn.
"They were examples of what a Royal Guard should do and be. Even surprised and ambushed, they managed to take as many enemies with them and cause enough commotion to wake me up and bring more guards to the scene. The attack that caused their deaths was foiled and the mastermind behind it is being investigated. Soon, he will be brought to justice. The sacrifice of these brave men will not be in vain."
Her voice actually broke. It was only for a split second before she stopped speaking but Hiccup was standing almost right next to her and caught it. His heart went out to her. He knew how hard it was to send away people who died for you.
Oh yes, he knew.
Soon, the Queen had collected herself enough to continue. "They were the best of guards, soldiers, and people of Arendelle. Their example has much to teach all of us. I will never forget them."
She took a step back and raised her hands. Her eyes closed in concentration. Slowly, frost creeped out of her palms and floated towards the marble graves. It gathered on top of each, just below the inscriptions. It slowly piled and condensed. Within a minute, every grave had a perfect ice statue on top of it, each about half a meter tall. They depicted what Hiccup could only assume were their respective dead, standing tall and proud, clad in their armor and with their swords in hand. The flawless ice was a deep blue intertwined with white, and practically shone. Suddenly Hiccup felt a warm burst of admiration for Elsa. These men had died for her and she ensured that they would not be forgotten by anyone else, either. It was a beautiful sight.
It was at this point that it'd began to rain, and everyone produced these weird personal canopies.
The people began to sing and it was beautiful; though again Hiccup did not know the words. Hiccup's eyes examined the ice statues. They were so lifelike, even their face were perfectly detailed.
Finally the ceremony seemed to end, and the people began moving away from the graveyard and the chapel.
Hiccup went with the rest of the officials, not sure what went next. His confusion must have shown on his face, because one of three men took pity on him and explained that it was customary that after the funeral itself, the people attended a sort of feast, in celebration of the life the departed had led.
Hiccup could understand that, and he thanked the man, noting that he hadn't caught his name yet. The brown haired man, who Hiccup didn't think could be much older than he was, introduced himself as a prince from the nearby kingdom of Corona. After their introduction, they didn't speak much, because everyone went into the castle and started heading towards the Ballroom.
Hiccup was embarrassed to note that he'd already forgotten the prince's weird name, besides the fact that the first sound was a 'U'.
He hadn't see Ernie yet, so he assumed he wouldn't for the rest of the night.
The ballroom was a far cry from the last time he'd seen it, empty and dark. Now, it shone with the light of a thousand candles, and filled to the brim with round tables that took up most of the space. All the officials were seated on the table on the center, around which the other tables left a wide berth. Closest to the Queen's table were the families, followed by the nobles, and then the rest of the attendees. Servants came and went, delivering delicious food and drinks. At one end of the cavernous room, a group of musicians were playing a variety of instruments, many of which Hiccup had never before seen. The sounds they produced were smooth, gentle and melodious.
Hiccup was seated next to the weird short man with the monocle that he'd seen a few days ago who introduced himself as Andros Candelier, Minister of Finance, and the Queen, herself. Despite that, he didn't talk to the Queen at all. In fact, she had hardly sat down for more than five minutes, going from table to table and talking to her subjects, spending most of her time with the families of the fallen.
Having no particular need to talk to the monocle-wearing man besides a few cordial words of exchanged greetings, Hiccup started poking at his food and observing the others. People didn't seem to notice that he was there, exactly, and he was grateful for that, not feeling up to a questioning session right now. The mood worked in his favor, for it seemed that the others didn't feel like trying to unravel the mystery of dragon tamer right after a funeral.
The brown haired prince with the facial hair that he'd talked to earlier was having a quiet conversation with the other two dignitaries that he didn't know, on his side but across from the Queen's empty seat. The members of the council were having their own slow conversation, over a matter of a financial dispute that didn't interest Hiccup in the slightest. He saw Madam Gertrude, but she was speaking to a dignitary several seats over. He still hadn't spoken to her, and it seemed like he wouldn't tonight, either.
His eyes locked with the bald General, and they exchanged a polite nod, before the older man turned back to his conversation and the dragon rider to his food.
Some hour later, the older of the three foreigners excused himself, citing his age as his reason for leaving relatively early. He wasn't the first one. From the tables around them, people had slowly started to rise and depart.
After Madam Gertrude excused herself, citing duties to attend to, he felt safe enough in rising, himself. He claimed that he wanted to retire a bit early, feeling somewhat under the weather. No one objected, since they'd seen that he hadn't had an umbrella before, and he managed to make his way to the doors of the room without trouble.
As he reached the door, opened by helpful servants stationed there, he felt eyes on his back. He turned, and saw the Queen looking at him directly. They locked eyes for a few seconds. She favored him with what he thought was an apologetic smile. He returned it but shook his head, before proceeding to exit the door. He didn't know if the Queen wanted him to stay or was glad to see him gone or just didn't care, but he didn't feel like staying any longer.
It had already gotten relatively late, the sun having set hours ago, during the ceremony. He decided to head directly for his quarters.
When he reached them, he found Toothless curled up next to the balcony doors, staring at the rain outside with an air of melancholy . Hiccup went to his friend, standing next to the big draconian head. He didn't say a word, just slowly rubbed and scratched the dragon, and followed his example in staring outside.
Eventually, he heard to soft snoring that proved Toothless' departure from the land of wakefulness.
Feeling pretty tired himself, Hiccup forewent a bath, knowing that he'd take one next morning and began to undress, slowly removing the still damp clothing and unlatching his prosthetic next to the bed.
He lay down, and was soon asleep. His dreams were full with the white of snow and the shine of the sun against flawless ice.
~H~
He woke up on the morning of his fourth day in Arendelle feeling refreshed. He was already up by the time Ernie popped in around seven in the morning. He showered, shaved his growing stubble, and got dressed in a light tunic in a shade of green that he particularly liked. At some point last night, his wardrobe had been filled with all sorts of clothes.
After strapping on his leg, he looked at his bags contemplatively. Making up his mind, he took his disassembled bow, his quiver and his sword and bundled them together using a long and wide piece of leather along with some straps. He hefted the bundle on his back and followed Ernie outside the room, leaving Toothless to sleep in.
The young servant raised an eyebrow at the weapons, but didn't ask about them.
They made idle chatter along the walk to the breakfast room, but Hiccup did not fail to note that security was much higher than it had been previously, with guard presence much more frequent. Soon enough, they had reached their destination. Ernie announced him, bowed, and left him at the door.
Shaking his head, Hiccup went in. He saw the Queen and the Princess, dressed in lovely green and white dresses, already seated. But they weren't alone. With them was the black haired woman he'd seen sometimes. He knew she was a part of Queen Elsa's council, but didn't remember catching her name. Her hair was caught in an elegant bun, and she was dressed more conservatively but with equally fine fabrics.
As he moved further into the room, the Queen greeted him.
"Good morning, Chief Hiccup."
"Good morning." He responded cordially. The Princess waved at him enthusiastically, and he smiled at her.
The Queen motioned the woman next to her, who rose respectfully. "This is Elai Marina, Head Courtier and part of my inner council."
She bowed her head at him. "My Lord."
"Well met, Lady Marina. Please, sit." Yesterday's conversation was still fresh in Hiccup's mind, and he wondered if this was one of the people who doubted his word.
She did sit, and Hiccup took a seat next to Anna, who immediately latched onto his arm and started speaking, a wide smile on her face.
"Chief, Kristoff will be coming this morning! You have to meet him. You promised!"
Hiccup couldn't help but smile back at her. She was positively bursting with positive energy and it was contagious.
"I'd love to."
The Queen called out her sister's name sternly, and the Princess turned her head to look at the Queen. As soon as she caught the blonde's glare, she released Hiccup's arm and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.
"Sorry ..." she mumbled. Hiccup laughed, but waved her concerns away.
"I see that you're rather armed this morning." The Queen said, nodding towards the bundle that he'd deposited next to his chair.
"Yes. Ernie mentioned something about a practice range yesterday, and I was hoping to get some exercise."
"It is next to the barracks, my Lord." The lady Marina informed him. He nodded.
"Thanks. It's through the Courtyard, is it not?"
"Indeed."
After a few seconds of silence, the Queen spoke.
"Chief Hiccup, there will be a formal dinner two days from now that I would like you to attend, if at all possible. It is the next scheduled after the one you missed on your first day here. It would be a good opportunity to become acquainted with many important people, and to quell many of the rumors surrounding you."
Hiccup tipped his head. "Thank you for the advanced warning. Yes, I will be glad to attend."
Lady Marina's unflinching gaze unnerved him. He felt like he was being bisected, so he turned to the breakfast table instead.
Even on his third morning here, the food still amazed him. So rich and flavorful the likes of which he'd never tasted. Nevertheless, he minded his manners, reminded himself to use his spoon and to never use his hands for anything other than bread, and to eat slowly.
They ate in relative silence. The Queen and the Lady Marina seemed to still be affected by last night's depressing mood, and the Princess had apparently given up on conversation with them beyond generic talk of castle affairs or the weather.
When they were mostly done, the Queen addressed him, asking him what time he planned to take his flight. He asked her whether this afternoon, two hours after lunch, was okay. She nodded her head, and they agreed to meet on the Courtyard, from where he would take off.
Breakfast was soon finished, and they all rose and exited the door, leaving the servants to clean up. Hiccup hefted his bundle of weapons on his right shoulder. Ernie met them outside and bowed to the royals.
Outside, the Head Courtier bowed to each of them in turn.
"It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Chief Haddock."
"Likewise, Lady Marina."
"My Queen, Princess."
The royal sisters nodded to her, and she turned and walked away, her stride crisp and controlled.
Princess Anna turned to him, grabbed hold of his left hand and all but dragged him down the hallway.
"Come, come, he'll be here soon!"
"Anna!" Elsa admonished, but was summarily ignored by her hyperactive sister. Hiccup looked at the Queen helplessly as he was dragged forward, and she shrugged at him. Even Ernie was fighting to repress a smile. There was no hope.
"Where are we going?" He asked.
"To your quarters."
"Why?"
"To get Toothless, of course!"
The Queen frowned at this.
"Is it wise to bring the dragon near Sven?"
"Naw, he'll be fine. Won't he, Chief?"
Hiccup was confused. "Who is Sven?"
"Kristoff's reindeer friend."
"We are meeting Kristoff and his reindeer?" He asked, incredulity coloring his voice. He looked at the Queen, who only raised a perfect eyebrow at him.
Right, dragon rider. Gotta remember that.
"Yes, yes. You'll love them, I know it!"
"Sven will be safe near Toothless, will he not?" The Queen asked, looking at him. Hiccup shook his head.
"Yeah. Toothless doesn't like reindeer. Last time he tried, he was removing muscles from his teeth for a week."
The Queen's completely blank expression was worth a thousand golden pieces.
She blinked. "That's ... uh ... that's good I suppose."
For the first time today, Anna showed something other than exuberance. She turned her head to look at him, uncertainty in her eyes.
"Sven will be fine, right?" Hiccup fought the urge to roll his eyes.
"Yes, the reindeer will be fine."
The four of them finally reached Hiccup's rooms, and opened the door to find Toothless, sans gear, swallow the remains of something or other that constituted his breakfast. His tongue peeked out to lick around his mouth, his eyes half-closed in contentment.
He noticed them and immediately bounded over to Hiccup. He laughed and accepted his friend's affectionate rubbing, scratching the dragon behind the ears in a place he knew the Night Fury loved.
Toothless noted the rest of the room's occupants who were staring at him in various degrees of wariness.
He approached Ernie, who hesitantly extended his hand. The dragon met him halfway but kept approaching, until Ernie's hand was around the dragon's head and he was rubbing against the servant's chest.
Unused to affection from a dragon, Ernie threw Hiccup a helpless look, but he only smiled and nodded. Taking the hint, Ernie started rubbing, which caused the dragon to only try and snuggle even closer.
"Don't let him lick you!" Hiccup warned.
It was already too late though. Ernie frowned down at his sleeve, now completely soaked with dragon slobber.
"Why?"
"Because it takes ages to wash that stuff out. Trust me."
A snigger from the Princess drew the dragon's attention, making him stop licking Ernie and look at the royal sisters.
Upon catching sight of Queen Elsa, his happy expression evaporated, to be replaced by half-opened mouth and a low growl from deep inside his throat. Still right next to Ernie, the dragon glared at the Queen, who, judging by her tense stance, was becoming alarmed. Ernie's hands landed on the dragon's head gently, rubbing but at the same time coaxing him on the opposite direction from the Queen.
Hiccup frowned. This wasn't supposed to happen. He approached Toothless, standing on the other side of his head than Ernie, and drew his attention by placing an open palm on his snout.
"Woah there, bud, what's this? What are you doing?"
The dragon looked at the Queen sideways and growled. He jerked his head towards her, then shook it a few times.
"I don't think the dragon likes you, Elsa." Princess Anna fake-whispered.
"No, I don't think he does." The Queen deadpanned.
Hiccup turned his frown towards them.
"I don't understand. He didn't seem to mind you a few days ago, and he generally warms up to people, not the other way around. He even agreed to be friendly with you. Did something happen between you two that I don't know about?"
The flash of understanding on the Queen's eyes would have been enough confirmation, even if the Princess hadn't gasped audibly.
The younger girl turned to her sister, but she only received a raised hand in response, halting whatever she wanted to say in its tracks.
"Nothing happened," she lied "I guess he just doesn't like me."
As if to agree with her, Toothless snorted.
Hiccup's frown deepened. He'd known that something happened, two days ago, but figured that it hadn't been a big deal. He'd even gotten the Night Fury to agree to be friendlier with the Queen, before that. What changed?
"I expect you two to be civil, okay?" He said. The Queen nodded, relaxing her stance, and the dragon huffed but stopped growling, the tension leaving his coiled muscles.
"Let's go then!" Hyperactive Princess to the rescue, bless her heart.
They shuffled out of the room, Anna leading the way, Hiccup standing between the Queen and Toothless and Ernie following behind them.
Despite her apparent apprehension about the dragon, the Queen, was close enough to Hiccup that Toothless' wings, if extended a little, would touch her. She didn't seem to mind, as the two exchanged idle chatter. Hiccup expressed how impressed he was at the Queen's display of creating ice sculptures, and she regaled him with the tale of how she started making them to develop better control over her powers, eventually doing it solely for enjoyment.
Hiccup's hand rested on Toothless' neck and was rubbing slowly, so the dragon wouldn't feel ignored.
Their procession gathered some attention from servants and passing visitors, who all bowed out of the way with muttered greetings.
Soon, they were just a hallway away from the Courtyard.
"Kristoff!" With that loud exclamation, the Princess was off, running at full speed towards a figure just turning a corner.
Hiccup looked at the Queen, who had palmed her face and was muttering to herself. The sight caused him to grin.
Turning back to the couple ahead, he saw the Princess being raised off her feet and swung around once, twice, before being set down. While the Princess was busy kissing the living daylights out of the poor bloke, Hiccup got a good look at him as they approached.
Tall, blond, and covered in leather and fur outfit that was half-covered in snow. He vaguely recalled something about his profession having to do with ice.
Behind the couple was a reindeer, one of the biggest reindeers that he had seen to date. He looked at Toothless, but the mighty dragon only looked at the reindeer for a second before snorting and resuming being bored.
The Princess had released the man, and the three of them were now coming closer to Hiccup's group.
"Chief Haddock, meet Kristoff Bjorgman, official Ice Deliverer of Arendelle!"
"Well met, master Bjorgman. How do you do?"
"I'm quite well, Lord Haddock, thank you." He replied, but his eyes were locked on the black beast on Hiccup's side. "Is this the dragon Toothless, then?"
"Indeed. Toothless, say hi." The dragon only snorted, refusing to play the games of silly humans, but it was enough for Kristoff.
"Amazing creature." Kristoff said with awe. He glanced behind him and noticed that the huge reindeer was attempting to hide behind him.
"Sven, what are you doing? Come forward."
Then, he did what had to be the weirdest thing Hiccup had seen since his arrival. He crouched until he was eye level with the animal, turned his head towards them and began speaking in a ridiculous voice.
"But that's a dragon!" He said. "Dragons eat us!" While he spoke, the reindeer was moving his head up and down, as if nodding, and opening and closing his mouth in a weird imitation of human speech.
Then Kristoff stood straight and spoke again. "Oh come on, Sven. Toothless obviously won't hurt you. He is with Chief Haddock."
He pretended to talk for the reindeer again. "But I'm scared. Dragons are scary. You go closer, first." A pause. "Fine! Never had you for such a scaredy cat, Sven. Will you behave for a carrot?"
Saying this, he produced a whole carrot from the folds of his clothes. The reindeer nodded and opened his mouth. Kristoff let him have the carrot, but when Sven had eaten almost all of it snatched it back.
"Share." He admonished, before taking a bite out of the remaining carrot.
Hiccup could not watch any longer, lest his eyes spontaneously combust. Instead, he leveled a despairing look at the Queen, who was looking at him and openly sniggering in amusement.
He knew better than to ask her if what he was seeing was actually happening. He didn't need any more reminders that he had a dragon as his best friend and life companion.
"Please," he begged, voice low enough for only the Queen to hear "please tell me that we don't sound like that." He pointed over his shoulder at the man, who was still arguing with himself while pretending to be arguing with the reindeer.
The Queen's face was split by a wide smile. She must be really enjoying the situation. Hiccup's hopes were dashed.
"Well, at least you only say your own lines. That gives you some extra points."
True enough.
He exchanged an incredulous look with Toothless, who looked away from the weird exchange only to snort at his rider before returning his gaze forward at the spectacle, again.
Their arguments finished, the three of them reached Hiccup and the Queen and the greetings continued. All together, they walked outside, to the Courtyard. There, the Queen excused herself, saying that she still had rounds to make around the castle.
That left Hiccup with the Princess, her beloved, and the two animal companions. Sven the reindeer still seemed to send the Night Fury fearful looks, but after sniffing him once and snorting, Toothless never again bothered with the other animal.
Hiccup and Kristoff talked, with the occasional interjection of Anna. The blond man explained what his profession entailed and why he was often gone for long periods of time, as well as the role Sven played in his business. Hiccup learned that Sven and Kristoff had been friends since childhood, and he was given a less abridged version of the events of four years earlier that lead to his relationship with the Princess than the history books offered.
It was a sobering tale. That prince from the Southern Isles had almost managed to kill both royals and successfully take over Arendelle. He was only slightly surprised to learn that Kristoff played as much a part in saving the day as the two women had. He looked dubious at the 'true love' thing, but in the end he shrugged it off. He did not know anything about magic, really, and he'd seen stranger things.
Anna and Kristoff told him a lot, and they talked for a few hours. Eventually, Kristoff had to go and the Princess decided to go with him. Hiccup promised to meet with them again, thanked them for the company, and told Kristoff how glad he was to have met him and Sven.
He waved one last time at the Princess before the couple turned a corner, finally going out of view.
He slumped against the wall, rubbing his temples and sighing with relief. He had nothing but respect for both of them, but he could only take the Princess' exuberance and Kristoff's reindeer act for so long before developing a headache.
Ernie patiently waited for him to regain his bearings, a smile playing on his lips. Hiccup would have glared at him, but decided it was not worth the effort.
Seeing as they still had some hours before lunch, Hiccup made up his mind to go the practice range.
Ernie led him through the Courtyard and into one of the side doors. It led to another open space, between the walls of courtyard and the outer walls. Several buildings served as barracks, and Hiccup observed soldiers in great numbers performing exercises, receiving lectures, or simply lounging here and there.
Because Toothless could not fit through the door, he had to jump over the low wall separating the two areas. His sudden appearance and subsequent landing from above the wall drew the attention of every single soldier in the area, who looked up in alarm. Some drew swords or aimed crossbows. Thankfully, Hiccup's entry with Ernie could not be missed, and by now everyone recognized the Viking chief.
Ernie had a few quick words with an officer, who nodded and pointed them towards the firing range. Ernie thanked him and the three of them moved from the barracks. As they walked, they were given a wide berth from the soldiers, still the center of attention. Hiccup was pleased to note that while everyone was watching him and the dragon cautiously, there was no actual aggression in their stances, merely uncertainty.
However, while he had made great strides in restraining his reactions, weapons still made Toothless antsy.
"Easy, boy." Hiccup soothed him quietly, running his hand over the dragon's neck mollifying him.
They went through another walled section, and it led into a wide area. On the far side the castle proper began, rising high and with balconies doting its side. It was mostly comprised of a firing range, with one wall lined with targets of varying sizes. In front of the targets, the entire area was clear and separated in lines, each line in front of one target, so as to give each archer a straight shot at whichever distance he desired.
The space that wasn't used in the firing lines was filled with wooden dummies, against which soldiers hacked away with wooden or actual swords. The rest of the walls were lined with weapon caches and workbenches. Several soldiers were here, too. Some were discussing in the sidelines, others were making use of the firing range, and others yet were practising their sword forms. Many were in full armor, others only pieces of and others yet simply with their tunics or regular clothes.
Besides the soldiers, there were several foreigners like himself, as well as city folk, here for their own training.
Their arrival once again drew all heads towards them. Hiccup met their gaze evenly, looking at each of them for a few seconds before proceeding. Among the firing lines, he spotted someone he knew. He raised his hand in greeting.
"Ted, greetings."
It was almost comical how every head turned towards the man. The archer seemed a little startled. He was a blond man, quite a bit older than Hiccup, and one of the soldiers he'd talked to on the trip to Arendelle. He looked warily at Toothless, but approached them nonetheless, setting his bow down on a wooden stand.
"Chief Haddock, greetings."
"How do you do, Ted?"
Ted wasn't his actual name. It was, however, what Hiccup had decided to call him after learning his name, a much longer and confusing one, that he promptly forgot.
"Great, actually. The time off went very well with the family."
By now, Hiccup noted that everyone had returned to what they were previously doing, through some still stole glances at them once in a while.
"Ah. The daughter no longer not so subtly implying a courtship with a certain stableboy, then?"
Ted threw his head back and laughed, an easy barking sound.
"Not quite, no. Elisa seems to have focused her attention towards the inside of castle, lately."
"Indeed?"
"Yes," the man nodded, his wrinkles accented by his wide smile "she and her friends have been talking on and on about the newest addition to the castle's bachelors."
Hiccup was suddenly feeling very uncomfortable.
"Oh?"
"Yes. In fact, they've been pestering me to arrange for them to accidentally meet you."
Hiccup blinked, not able to stop himself from reddening slightly, and took to fiddling with the small braid on his hair in discomfort.
"Well ... um ... that's-"
Ted laughed again, and Hiccup grinned despite himself, realizing he was being foolish.
By now Toothless had confirmed that they were in no danger, and apparently decided that Hiccup's conversation was extremely boring. Instead, he went grumpily over to the side of the wall, where it was shaded, and plopped down for a nap. He drew a few odd looks from the closest soldiers, but it mostly served very well to sort of blend him into the background.
Hiccup talked with Ted, who asked Ernie to go to the Barracks and call for Gregor and Brandon, the other two men Hiccup had gotten to know during the trip.
Soon, they were joined by the other two men, both older than Hiccup but younger than Ted, who would soon be approaching retirement age for a soldier.
They got to talking, with Hiccup explaining his impressions so far, getting a few clarifications and promising to visit their respective households whenever asked.
Eventually, Brandon showed interest in the bundle of weapons on his shoulder, asking him if he'd come to train. Hiccup nodded.
"Yes. I was hoping to get some practise in, to keep my aim sharp."
He released the bundle on a wooden stand, tied the sword to his belt and assembled the bow and its cord. Upon inspecting the bow, Ted whistled.
"This is impressive woodwork."
"Made it myself." Hiccup said. He hd created every single piece of equipment he carried, and was very proud of that fact.
Brandon was looking at him speculatively, fiddling with his own bow.
"How good are you?" He asked. Hiccup grinned.
"Very good."
Ted and Brandon exchanged grins, and then proceeded to challenge Hiccup to a friendly contest, using a game the archers at the castle had devised.
The rules were simple. They would all begin firing at the targets from a specific line drawn on the floor, at close range. Every succesful hit and they would go to the next line, a few meters behind the previous. Bullseye counted double, and one could choose to go to a line with a smaller target if he hit three bullseyes in a row or completely missed twice in a row. They could stay in the same row even if they missed twice, but the lines kept going until such a distance that it was practically impossible to hit near the center of the target, never mind the bullseye. Smaller targets increased each succesful hit's worth. They would fire every thirty seconds, at a signal given to them by the referee.
Gregor, the only swordsman of their group, would judge this one.
It began well enough for all of them, none having trouble landing the shots on close range. Soon, they had reached several lines backwards and hit enough bullseyes to advance to the next target.
Hiccup's mastery over archery became apparent soon, as he was the only one consistently hitting the center of the targets. Ted was the first to get out of the contest, having been left too far behind in points. He took it in good humor, saying that he was too old for this kind of stuff and cheering the two younger men on.
Brandon was extremely accurate at close and mid range, but Hiccup had the upper hand at long range and took brutal advantage of it, scoring more bullseyes and proceeding to smaller targets before his opponent could do the same.
Eventually, Hiccup's lead in points exceeded what Brandon could realistically come back from, and he graciously accepted defeat. The two clasped hands while the soldiers who had gathered around them cheered. Hiccup assumed that good contests always gathered excitement.
"After that display," Ted, who had approached them again, said "I believe that I want to see what else the Chief can do."
This drew cheers from the people around. Hiccup raised his hands and tried to politely decline, but Brandon reminded him that he came here to practice. What better way to do that other than push himself to his limits?
"You're just saying that to see me go all out." Hiccup pointed out.
"True," the man nodded "but what I said still stands."
Hiccup decided that he actually had a point, and since everyone was pestering him he might as well get it over with.
"Alright, fine, I'll do it. What did you have in mind, then?"
"A faraway shot?" Ted ventured.
"How far?" Hiccup asked.
"How far can you shoot?" Ted fired back. Hiccup smiled.
"What's the furthest I can shoot from?"
Ted blinked for a few seconds, and when he realized that Hiccup was not kidding released a laugh, before pointing with his hand at the base of the castle wall, quite a distance away. Brandon and the others had heard the exchange. Hiccup heard some people place bets, even.
He nodded his head, gathered up his bow and quiver and walked to the spot. It was one of the furthest lines, and he'd chosen it specifically because the target was very small. Combined with the incredible distance of basically the entire practise range, it should be a great show for all involved.
If he managed it.
Shaking any such doubts from his mind, he reached his position at the base of stone wall. Thankfully, he was given a wide berth, and people had the decency to at least pretend they weren't staring at him. Toothless was snoring a few meters to his left.
He saw out of the corner of his eye a lot of people look at a spot above him. Was that supposed to be subtle? No matter.
He took his trusty wooden bow in hand and removed a single arrow from his quiver. He readied his stance, spacing his feet evenly, and looked ahead at the wooden target. He took deep breaths, tuning out everyone else around him. A few seconds later, he raised the bow and notched the arrow. He slowly pulled back, aligning with a spot slightly above a tiny bit to the side, taking account of the slight wind.
A few more breaths, some final calculations as he held the arrow back. Then, he let fly. The projectile flew for one, two seconds, before slamming with an audible thud on the wooden post.
The awed cheers from all around him confirmed it before he saw it with his own eyes; a perfect bullseye. Hiccup smiled, feeling relieved despite himself. He'd landed more difficult shots than this in the past, but rarely to such a critical audience.
The cheers stopped, to be replaced by gasps of surprise from many of the onlookers. Hiccup frowned, and was about try to see what was going on when a bolt of white frost flew -almost as fast an arrow- and landed solidly on his arrow, freezing it solid.
Hiccup did not need to look up to know who was on the balcony above him, or who the soldiers were looking at. He only gazed at the frozen arrow in the distance. Was that a challenge?
He could hardly refuse such a direct challenge.
Without turning or acknowledging the ice sorceress above him in any way, Hiccup withdrew two arrows from the quiver on his side. Slowly, he held his bow sideways, so that he could place both arrows amid his fingers.
The soldiers spotted what he was doing, and the cheering began with renewed vigor on the face of such a difficult attempt. Hiccup tuned them out once again. This trick approached the limits of his abilities, but nothing else would suffice.
He held both arrows on the bow, and tilted his head to take aim. He aimed the second arrow at the target right next to the one he'd shot at before. He slowed his breathing once again, emptying his head of anything besides himself, the wind and the targets.
A few seconds of concentration later, he let loose the arrows. The springing sound of the bow's string was the only thing that was heard on the practise range, as everyone else was holding their breaths.
Two seconds later, one of the arrows landed right on top of his first, now frozen one, straight on the bullseye. The other arrow found its way to the center of the target to the left, though it was slightly approaching the edge of the bullseye. Still, two perfect hits.
Hiccup straightened his posture, allowing a smile to appear on his face and his bow to fall on his side. He'd done it. His sense of hearing came back to him in a rush, and he took in the congratulatory remarks and shouts of the soldiers around him. He allowed the satisfaction of his accomplishment to flow through him, knowing that this was the result of almost five years of training.
He was about to turn and address the Queen, when two bolts of frost went over his head simultaneously. He tracked their flight, and saw them strike his arrows perfectly, freezing them over. Apparently the Queen wasn't done, because a second later his three frozen arrows burst, like crystals after being dropped, and fell to the ground in hundreds of pieces.
He blinked one, twice, gettings his thoughts in order. That made quite the statement.
Well, he was nothing if not gracious, even in defeat.
He turned and looked up. On a balcony two floors above him stood the Queen, with the Princess and another woman he didn't know. She was smiling down at him, hand still raised and frost slowly seeping out of it.
"You always manage to upstage me, Queen Elsa." He called up to her, to the cheers of their audience who loved their Queen above all. "Your aim is impeccable."
"As is yours." The Queen replied Hiccup wasn't sure because he was looking from below, but for a second he thought that she'd grimaced, but then it was gone in an instant. Maybe it was a trick of the light.
"You flatter me."
"Merely stating a fact." She paused to listen to something the woman on her side said, then addressed Hiccup again.
"I'll leave you boys to your fun." She said, drawing laughter from the soldiers. "But do keep in mind that it will be lunch-time soon."
"Yes, Queen Elsa."
With that, the Queen nodded, turned, and left, her light blond hair glinting in the sunlight as she did so.
Hiccup turned back towards the soldiers but Ted, Brandon and Gregor had already approached him.
"That was some amazing shooting, lad." Ted said, clapping him on the shoulder. Hiccup was glad that the older man had taken to heart that he didn't want to be treated a certain way merely because of his title.
"I can see why I lost, now." Brandon noted, scratching his bearded chin. "I never would have managed a shot like that."
"Lots and lots of practise." Hiccup observed, drawing chuckles from the men.
With the show over, everyone returned to what they were doing. Hiccup went after some more reasonable exercises, along with Ted and Brandon.
Not long after, everyone started dispersing to the Barracks mess hall for their lunch. He'd hoped to get some sword practise in, but he'd gotten carried away with archery and now it was too late.
Oh well, there's always tomorrow.
He said his goodbyes to everyone, promised to visit them again, extracted promises to show him exactly how the crossbow worked, and went to the door of the practise range after kicking Toothless awake. The lizard grumbled, but followed. Ernie was waiting by the door, sitting on a chair. He got up as soon as Hiccup came close.
"Impressive performance."
"Why thank you, Ernie."
"Lunch?"
"Lunch."
They walked side by side to the mess room that Hiccup was familiar with and left Toothless waiting outside. Hiccup was tired from the exertion, and considered going to his quarters for a refreshing bath, first, but eventually decided against it. He'd get one when he went, later, anyway.
They both ate in silence, Ernie sitting down after only one stern look from Hiccup. After they were done, they headed to his quarters, Ernie insisting on accompanying them even though Hiccup knew the way.
After Hiccup and Toothless went in, they both tended to their hygiene. Hiccup decided to indulge in a bath like the first one he'd had, and filled the tub to the brim with hot water, again experimenting with various soaps. As Hiccup soaked in the tub, Toothless licked himself clean with his tongue, a process that Hiccup found wholly disgusting and was thankful that his slobber evaporated relatively quickly, else he'd never ride the dragon again.
After he was done and clean, he saw that he still had some time until his prearranged meeting with the Queen. He sat on the desk, taking his leather-bound notebook with him. He hadn't written anything yesterday, and he had a lot of stuff to write down. He started with a brief description of the castle, followed by a simple sketch of the building. Then he proceeded to make simple but coherent sketches of the royal sisters and Ernie, and below each he described them. He continued with his general thoughts and impressions about the land so far. He was relatively certain that they couldn't decipher the Berk dialect, even if they decided to go through his stuff for some reason. His notebook should be safe.
He had lost track of time when he heard the knock on his door. He was startled, dropping the quill he was writing with. He thanked Odin that no ink was spilled on the page, and turned the notebook over. The ink wasn't dry yet, but in this way the pages wouldn't be seen.
He went to the door and opened it. To his surprise, he saw the Queen standing outside, hands clasped together and a polite smile on her face. She was wearing a different gown than earlier -when did she have the time to change clothes all the time? This was was mostly white, with touches of blue here and there, and flowed gracefully on the floor behind her.
"Hello Chief Hiccup. I hope I'm not bothering you."
"Queen Elsa, greetings. No, no bother at all." He said, uncertainty coloring his voice. They hadn't agreed that she would meet him here. He turned his head back to look at the clock on his wall, and he saw that he still had a few minutes before he'd have had to go.
"Come in, please." He invited her, moving to the side. She tipped her head and walked in, surveying the room quickly and discreetly, her gaze resting on Toothless' curled form before settling on him.
"I'm early, I know." The Queen said. "But I was finished a little earlier than I expected, and I figured that I could pick you up, as they say."
She was smiling at Hiccup, and he wasn't sure what to make of that. It seemed kind of hopeful to him, but he didn't know if he could trust his reads on her quite yet.
"That's okay, but I wasn't expecting you so soon, so I'm not ready yet."
Her eyes swept from him to Toothless and back again.
"I see a dragon, and I see a rider. What's not ready?"
"Well, yes, but do you see any riding gear?"
He watched her face, and she stared blankly for a second. Then her eyes widened slightly and color rushed to her cheeks Hiccup had to force down a grin.
"Oh," she said, trying to cover her embarrassment with a fake cough "Um ... certainly. I suppose I forgot about that."
Hiccup chuckled. "Don't worry, I don't expect you to be a dragon riding expert quite yet."
She smiled at his humor and the color slowly left her cheeks, leaving the pale, almost white complexion from before.
"I'll just go put on my gear, then, and we'll be right out."
"Alright."
They stared at each other for a minute. Hiccup was growing increasingly uncomfortable and by the looks of things, so was the Queen. So what was she waiting for? She didn't expect him to get ready with her in the room, did she?
The Queen decided to break the awkward silence first. She cleared her throat, before speaking slowly.
"So ..." She drew out the word and let it hang, as if unsure of what to follow it with.
"Well, I'll be out as soon as I put on my gear. Meaning I'll have to change clothes."
Understanding lit her expression, before color was once again rushing through those pale cheeks at the realization that it was she who was holding things up.
"Oh ... change. Of course. I didn't-, I mean, I didn't think that-"
Hiccup cut her off, taking pity on her and giving her a chance to regain her bearings.
"It's okay, it's okay. No harm done. Just wait outside for a minute and me and Toothless will be ready."
She nodded gratefully, and started backing out of the room.
"Outside, yes. I'll just ... wait outside ... then."
Still backing up, she bumped into the half opened door. Cheeks flaming, she threw him another embarrassed glance before practically bolting through it.
Hiccup shook his head. He'd given up trying to understand women a long time ago.
He moved to his baggage, where he'd placed his folded outfit. He kept the tunic but removed the belt, the trousers and the shoe. He wore his own, thicker pants that fit him better, then his insulated shirt with armor pieces. He made sure the rings on his waist were working and checked every strap twice for weak spots. Satisfied, he wore his heavy boot on his right foot. The shoes of Arendelle were nice, but offered minimal protection against the cold or the wind.
He kicked Toothless, who was napping, awake and dodged the instinctive swipe of his tail. The dragon opened his eyes grumbling. Hiccup had no doubt that he was about to be pounced for interrupting the dragon's nap, but the Night Fury's irritation vanished as soon as he saw that Hiccup wore the riding gear. He immediately jumped to his feet and began letting out excited barking sounds.
"Yes bud, we're going flying." The confirmation caused the excited dragon to have a fit of happiness. He started turning on the spot, tail waggling madly as he released his laughing sounds, ear flaps fully erect. He stopped his turning only to give Hiccup a long, drawn out lick from top to bottom.
"Ew, Toothless. I've told you to stop that." He admonished, trying to shake the slobber off his outfit. The dragon wasn't listening, however, and had already moved to the saddlebags, burying his head completely inside one. He emerged, saddle and straps carefully held between his teeth, and bounded back to Hiccup, dropping the kit on his feet and yapping excitedly.
Hiccup felt a pang of guilt. The trip to Arendelle had not been very kind to Toothless, so far. While he was discovering new things and having fun, the poor Night Fury was either bored out of his mind or alarmed by the soldiers, and they couldn't even fly to fix it. Well, no longer.
He set about strapping the equipment on the dragon, which thankfully didn't take more than two minutes. After checking that everything was in place and working correctly, Hiccup nodded to himself and retrieved his helmet from the bags. He left the sword, but kept the dagger, hidden underneath an armor piece of his suit.
He opened the doors to allow Toothless exit, and they joined the Queen who had, it seemed regained her composure and had been waiting for them. She looked both of them over, taking note of their gear.
"Apologies for making you wait."
"Nonsense, it's my fault for arriving early."
They set towards the Courtyard and drew their fair share of looks along the way. Hiccup hadn't walked around in his armor since his first arrival here, and it seemed that plenty of people needed a reminded of who he truly was. The sight of the dragon with his equipment, saddle and red tailfin only added to the whole picture.
Queen Elsa glanced at the helmet held under his armpit.
"Are you expecting to fight people on your flight, Chief Hiccup?"
Hiccup shook his head. "The helmet's not for fighting. Well, not only for fighting."
"Oh? What else, then?"
"It's useful against wind burns and bugs."
The Queen's expression shifted to one of confusion.
"What do you mean, wind burns?"
"It's what happens when your skin is hit with very fast winds. It can happen during heavy storm or blizzards, though I'm not surprised that you don't have a term for it. Wind burns are, not surprisingly, pretty common for a dragon rider."
"Oh, well I suppose that makes sense."
"Quite."
Her brow furrowed in thought. After a few seconds, she spoke again.
"And the bugs?"
Hiccup grimaced.
"You don't want to know about the bugs."
Something in his face must have convinced her, because she did not ask again. Instead, she looked over at Toothless.
"Are all those straps and metals necessary?"
"Well, technically not. But out of the various saddle designs, this is the one we prefer the most."
"I see."
They had reached the doors to the Courtyard, and the two guards stationed there bowed and opened the doors wide. The Courtyard was not empty. Rather, nobles and servants were milling about, walking slowly or talking in small groups by the fountains. Everybody stopped as soon as the dragon became visible.
They walked to the center of the Courtyard, where there was plenty of empty space. Toothless was redistributing his weight, anxious to finally get in the air.
"Where will you go?" The Queen asked.
"I was thinking a few laps around the valley, just to give the townspeople something to talk about. After that, we'll probably head behind that mountain over there or a few miles into the sea, just to be out of sight."
"Why is it necessary to be out of sight?"
"Well, it's not necessary exactly, but we've been grounded for a long time and we'll want to cut loose, you know? I don't think it wise to show these kind of tricks to people unused to the idea of dragon riders."
The 'that includes you' went unsaid. She nodded her head.
"Alright. And when will you be back?"
"Around dusk, I believe."
"I'll see if I can be here. If not, I'll order the Courtyard emptied."
"Thank you, Queen Elsa."
Toothless bumped his head into his back and wailed impatiently, which effectively ended their conversation. Hiccup offered the Queen one last smile before placing the helmet over his head. Surprisingly, the Queen's face twitched and she took an involuntary step back. What was with that?
He was acutely aware that he had the attention of dozens of eyes from all around him as he deftly climbed on Toothless and settled on the saddle, clicking the protective straps on the saddle rings. There were no reigns; Toothless was no horse. Hiccup grabbed the handholds he'd made on the front of the leather saddle. His prosthetic took its place with a soft click, and he tested the functionality of the contraption by extending the fake tailfin this way and that, to avoid mid-air surprises. All standard procedure and Toothless knew it, but he was still shaking impatiently, muscles coiled and ready to spring.
Finally satisfied that everything was in working order, he clicked the tailfin into its starting position, so that it mirrored Toothless' own, and spared the Queen one last look. He could not contain his excitement, and though she could not see it from under his helmet, he was grinning widely. Knowing that it was almost time, the Night Fury slowly extended his wings.
"Stand back, milady" He couldn't help the slight feeling of satisfaction and the equally slight smirk, as Elsa's eyes widened.
"Toothless!" He called, and the dragon sprang. He'd folded himself lower, like a cat ready to pounce, wings fully extended. At Hiccup's order, the dragon leaped, every hat in the courtyard was sent flying as Toothless shot twenty feet straight up.
One moment they were coiled on the ground of the Courtyard, the next they'd almost reached the top of the Queen's tower already. Hiccup was just as excited as Toothless, and the sound of his loud laughter echoed between the walls of the Courtyard and the castle itself as they rocketed upwards. Toothless' let out low happy barks, flapping his wings faster and faster, his limbs following the movement unconsciously.
It was a beautiful day, and they flew as high up as the clouds, before suddenly stopping their ascent and letting themselves fall backwards, entering a controlled freefall, enjoying the feeling of the wind rushing through.
They leveled above the castle, and Hiccup directed Toothless in a fast glide around the main towers of the castle, within the perimeter of the castle walls. On the second lap around the towers, he spotted the tiny form of the Queen, still on the Courtyard along with everybody else. He waved excitedly as they passed. He noticed the scores of people watching them, but paid them no mind.
Toothless led them over the fjord and they dipped low. Low enough that Hiccup could see his reflection if leaned to the side, and Toothless could sink the edge of his claws in the water. The flew over the water's surface, relishing the feeling of freedom that flying always induced. They started climbing again, up and away from the castle, towards the open sea. There, they could indulge in some of their more risky and jerky stunts that would probably scare any onlookers.
When Hiccup had deemed them far away, they began. Simple things at first, such as sudden changes in altitude or weaving between clouds. Warmup done, they escalated to continues barrel rolls, freefalls, flying incredibly high or incredibly low, and to top off the evening Hiccup jumped off of Toothless' back and they both fell side by side, until he once again grabbed hold of the saddle and seated himself.
Before they knew it, hours had passed and the sun was dipping below the horizon.
"Come on bud, let's go back." Hiccup instructed, and the Night Fury complied without a lot of arguments. They were both satisfied but tired. They flew slowly on the way back, simply enjoying the feeling, each other's company, and the sunset to their left.
They arrived back at the castle. As they were flying more slowly this time, Hiccup took some time examining it from above. It was quite impressive, and the city of Arendelle expanded around it. His estimations had been correct, it really wasn't bigger than Berk. Still, it made for quite the lovely view.
Circling the castle as they were, Hiccup noticed the scores of guards lining the walls and patrolling all over the place. Understandable, he supposed, in the wake of an attempt on the Queen's life, but then ... where those war machines on the turrets? He didn't recognize them, but their function was obvious. They weren't trained on him and Toothless currently, but he didn't doubt that they'd be hard-pressed to evade them all if they had to. And he didn't remember seeing war machines on the walls when he arrived here. Where these, too, new security additions in the wake of the attack? Or were they a failsafe against him and Toothless?
He determined to think on this later, not wanting to spoil the mood of the first flight after nearly five days. They circled the castle once again, gliding lower and lower, until Hiccup changed the tailfin's position again and Toothless responded, swiftly diving the rest of the way down to the Courtyard's floor. He leveled a couple meters above the ground touched down lightly.
There were still a lot of people around, some of them not even trying to hide the fact that they were waiting for him. Hiccup paid them no mind. They'd get used to it.
He lightly hopped off the saddle after releasing his prosthetic, and rubbed his friend's long neck.
"That was awesome, bud."
Toothless purred from low in his throat, obviously satisfied with the whole endeavor and agreeing with him.
Hiccup heard her voice from behind him.
"Quite the performance."
He turned, a smile on his face. The Queen was standing with the Princess and Ernie. Though not matching the younger girl's beaming smile, the Queen's expression was pleasant. Or it had been, for as soon as Hiccup turned to look at her she flinched, before composing herself again on a mask of neutrality.
Hiccup wondered about this. What had caused it? Was it the helmet? He reached up and removed the helmet, mechanically running his gloved fingers through his long hair to straighten them somewhat. It must have been the helmet, for in its absence the Queen seemed to relax a bit.
What was wrong with his helmet?
"Pssh, that was nothing." Hiccup waved her off. "Simple gliding and turns. That's just the tip of the proverbial iceberg."
"Still more than anyone else around here has seen, so it was plenty impressive." Princess Anna replied.
"I guess so."
"You must be tired, are you not?"
"Kind of, yes. I'm thinking of going to my quarters and then for dinner."
"We won't keep you then." The Queen said. "It is getting rather late. You remember the banquet I invited you to?"
Hiccup's brow furrowed a little at the unknown word. However, there was only one thing the Queen had invited him to, and it was the feast two days from now. So, he simply nodded. Glancing at Toothless, he saw the dragon cleaning its paws, not caring about them in the slightest.
"Yes, I remember. I won't miss it."
"Good, good. Then we'll let you retire."
"But I have so many questions!" The Princess cut in, a slight whine edging itself into her voice. Hiccup grinned despite himself. It was impossible not to like the exuberant girl.
"Chief Hiccup is tired, and I won't have you pester him now." The Queen scolded her sister, as if to a child. The Princess' face fell, and she mumbled a grudging agreement. Hiccup's smile widened. This was gold. Solid gold.
"Tomorrow, perhaps?" He offered, and received nods. They exchanged pleasantries and separated, the royal sisters heading inside and to the right, while Ernie, Hiccup and Toothless went left. Hiccup chatted with Ernie on the way, asking him about this or that landmark that he'd spotted while airborn, and Ernie asked about pieces of Toothless' harness that he couldn't figure out what they were for.
When they reached his quarters and not two seconds after being divested of his harness, Toothless scratched on the balcony door and crooned at Hiccup until he opened it. Then the Night Fury plopped himself on the balcony and proceeded to nap. Ernie opened a book while waiting for Hiccup to bathe and dress into something more casual than his armor. When the viking had done so, so the two of them headed out, leaving Toothless to his rest.
Dinner was a quiet affair for both of them, Ernie knowing him well enough by now that he knew he preferred comfortable silence to forced conversation. By the end of the meal Hiccup was sated of his hunger but he was just beginning to feel the deep fatigue of a full, active day. His limbs felt sluggish, and his mind even more so.
Ernie followed him until his quarters, at which point he bowed and bid him goodnight. Hiccup did bathe, though he resisted the urge to fill the tub and just melt in it, because he'd much rather avoid falling asleep accidentally. Toothless had eaten while he was at dinner, and the dragon was now out like a light, sprawled on the balcony. Apparently, it was his new sleeping quarters.
Wrapped in a warm robe, courtesy of Ernie, he sat heavily at the desk. He still had some energy left, and he wanted to record his experiences in his notebook and complete his earlier writings. He added a few rough sketches of Arendelle from above. He didn't keep it up for long. He finished writing and prepared for bed.
There was still a lot to be done in the days to come.
~H~
Notes:
i)I swear to god, the wordcount ofthese chapters just reproduces by itself and I'm left with half a chapter that already exceeds 10k words and then I'm forced to split it up, even though it is the already split second part of the previous chapter, so technically it's one fourth of the original. I fail at estimating wordcounts for anything, basically.
ii)Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed. I read and appreciate every single one, and they're very helpful and motivational. However, there is something I want to say. I have a very clear plan for the story and I follow it diligently. I appreciate your reviews, but if I write something that one of you happened to suggest in a previous chapter's review, in no way does this mean that I got my inspiration from you. Sorry, but if I waited for reviews to write my story I would be pretty pathetic.
iii) The full trailer for HTTYD 2 has been released, as well as the first 5 minutes of it. My views on it are mixed. I like a lot of the concepts, but I absolutely hate Hiccup's mother, and I'm pretty sure the second movie will not fit perfectly with what I have planned. Expect to see some, but not all, of HTTYD 2 absorbed into my story. You can be certain that the mother will not be one of them.
For tl;dr's sake, my fic has been canon only until the end of the first HTTYD movie, not the second, though I retain the right to integrate whatever parts of it I see fit.
iv) Each of you must sacrifice their pet cats to the lady Sorrows, AKA Yes Miss Lady. If you don't own a pet cat, buy one. Then sacrifice it.
v) I am not a history buff. I am not an anthropologist, an archeologist, a historian, or a combination of the above. I will do cursory research on topics of interest, but the focus of this fic is not historical accuracy. If that is what you want, go read 'Here Be Dragons' over at the HTTYD fandom, by Dyanne Hellen Sotobod. She writes better than I ever could.
vi) I don't believe in cliffhangers. I think they're a cheap device that says more about the author than about the story.