Happy Saturday! I'm so so sorry this is a day late. Work is piling up. Anyhoo, here we go! I am posting this from my iPad so tell me if it looks a little wonky.
Chapter Nineteen: No Promises
Rose opted to stay with the free dragons, staying away from Berk's tense villagers, as Hiccup returned to the village to gather his own supplies. Gobber and Snotlout, along with some other broad men, dragged spare metal and wood to the Great Hall, where the sick, old, and young filed in quickly. Cauli's soldiers carried the remainder of the eastern, northern and southern islands' supplies to the Great Hall cellars while various figures helped carry the injured and ill directly to Juniper and her matrons waiting outside the hall.
Hiccup landed outside the hall where Stoick intercepted him.
"Did you find any?" Stoick asked quickly. Hiccup nodded.
"We have a few dozen, I think it will help," Hiccup replied. "They're with Rose."
Stoick twisted his mouth. Hiccup sighed. "What now?"
"I still don't trust her."
Hiccup wasn't surprised. "She found them, dad."
His father groaned. "She still hasn't told us everything. I can see it in her eyes. There's something she's not saying."
"Stoick!" Gobber called from the hall. "The leaders are gathered."
The chief nodded and grabbed Hiccup's arm. They both entered the hall, stepping around scared and terrified clansmen from the other islands. Many were bloody, others bandaged. Some stared at the walls of the hall, vacant and corpse-like. Hiccup swallowed. Many islanders looked at him, murmuring to their neighbors.
"He can talk to dragons…"
"He blew the Red Death out of the clouds…"
"He's skinnier than I thought he would be…"
At the back of the hall, through a heavy door, was a private room with a large wooden table and many chairs, reserved for strategizing attack and defense. There was a heavy layer of dust upon the table, as one of the last times they used it was to plan the attack on the nest all those years ago. A golden dragon hung from the roof with a sword slicing through its belly, and beneath it sat the shaken leaders within the alliance.
Cauli sat in a chair, leaning uncomfortably with a large bandage wrapping around her bicep. Without her armour on, leaving behind a tan leather tunic, she looked relatively harmless. She had wide shoulders, but a built frame that had intriguing curves of lady-like demeanor. Across from Cauli was someone Hiccup did not expect.
Sitting upright with a false sense of bravery, wearing a tattered gown that looked like it could have been gold before, was Barb. The very bubbly and obnoxious girl from the engagement announcement moons before sat traumatized, her hair out of place in wild frizzy brown curls, the paint on her face replaced with dirt and unfortunate memories. Next to her was an older man Hiccup did not recognize. Short black hair framed his war-stricken face, scarred across the nose and cutting through one eye. Tattoos covered his skin and he wore a look of absolute rage upon face, and brown eyes looked around the room.
Hiccup sat next to Stoick, who addressed the new island leaders.
"Barb of the southern lands," Stoick addressed formally. "And Netmug from the north. You have assumed leadership after your parents?"
The man sneered and Hiccup felt immediately threatened. "Obviously. What I'd like to know, though, is where the hell you've been."
"They haven't been receiving any scrolls or messages," Cauli growled. "They don't know, yet."
Stoick pursed his lips behind his beard. Barb straightened her shoulders and breathed a shaky breath.
"Netmug –"
"Shut it!" Netmug growled, glowering at Barb next to him. She shrank in her seat, her body curling onto itself to protect herself.
"You watch your words around your fellow leader!" Cauli barked in Barb's defense. "Stop acting like an animal before I hunt you like one."
"That's enough!" Stoick boomed. "Netmug, be calm. Barb, what were you about to say?"
Barb didn't want to answer. She looked like she had been slapped across the face, or beaten like a small animal just trying to survive. She rubbed her shoulder and Netmug seethed next to her. Cauli pursed her lips and cursed.
"Netmug and Barb married one moon ago, to join the southern and northern lands. Both sets of parents have perished. They assumed leadership jointly over both clans," Cauli stated angrily, not taking her eyes off Netmug. Hiccup didn't like the stare, but he could read her thoughts on her irises as clear as day. She hated Netmug, and she was bloodthirsty.
Stoick flicked a glance between Barb and Netmug, and he took a deep breath. "We had no knowledge of this arrangement."
"That's alright," Barb whispered weakly. Netmug slammed his fist on the table to shut her up. Instantly, Cauli leapt to her feet, a hidden dagger brandished. Hiccup jumped back in his seat and Stoick cried out in protest. Gobber, who had been hovering in the shadows, seized Cauli's knife hand with a hooked arm attachment, wrenching the knife free and shoving her back in her seat. Cauli shrieked.
"Enough!" Stoick barked, silencing the conference room. Cauli hissed through her teeth and Hiccup reminded himself to breathe. "We are here under the alliance, under a truce, and we have a blight on our doorstep!" Stoick paused for a moment before wrinkling his large nose. "If anyone here feels unable to lead their clan, speak now and I will find a replacement."
The tone was more threatening than inviting, so no one spoke. Stoick sat back and rubbed his eyes.
"Now, if you children are done with your prattling, we have further issues to deal with. Cauli has informed me of the latest attacks and advances made by the Berserkers and the Outcasts, and I need to know what the other clans can offer in terms of defense."
Netmug scoffed. "Nothing we can give you would protect you. These bastards have fire power that extends past your dragons. I've seen dragon breath scorch and scar, but the stuff they have has blown bodies apart. Whole houses were leveled in seconds."
"And nets," Cauli added, almost reluctant to add onto any point made by Netmug. "They have these massive nets carried by equally massive dragons. Their made from metal, and riddled with hooks to keep anything trapped from moving."
"And poison," Barb murmured. "Poison that'll rot your insides until there's nothing left…"
Hiccup looked over to her and wanted to cross to her, to… give her a hug, maybe.
"How long until they attacked after they were poisoned?" Hiccup asked. Barb looked up.
"Five or six," she replied.
"Four for us," Cauli added.
"Eight," Nutmeg grunted.
Hiccup swallowed. The Outcasts would have taken out the other clans first to get to Berk, to make it defenseless.
"The pattern…" Hiccup breathed, "would make us next within the next night. Maybe tonight."
"If there was a pattern," Netmug growled. "They didn't kill Stoick."
"They tried to kill my son," Stoick retorted harshly.
"Then how is he alive?" Barb asked. "We tried everything to revive our parents…"
Hiccup squirmed in his chair. "About one week ago, Astrid, my wife, accidentally ingested the poison that was meant for me."
Stoick turned to Cauli as Barb sucked a breath in. "We sent a scout asking about a spoon because that was where the poison had been stored, within a spoon carved in an Eastern fashion."
"And I would have told you all our carvers had been kidnapped by the Outcasts over the years," Cauli said sharply. "And if I'm not mistaken, I saw Astrid today before this meeting."
Hiccup twisted his mouth as they waited for an explanation. He cleared his throat and explained to the leaders about Rose, and how she saved Astrid's life with a bond that burned the poison out of her. Barb was fixated on the story when it lead to how he got his own bond on his wedding night. He concluded with the dragons believing Hiccup was the Saviour. Netmug kept his eyes on the table and Cauli had a hand clenched in a fist.
"This Rose child," Cauli murmured, "is not from Berk, is she?"
Stoick shook his head. "No, but her lands were the first to be razed, long before yours."
Hiccup looked at his father subtly. He wasn't exactly lying, but confessing she was of Outcast origin would not be wise when tensions were so high. It took Stoick effort to stay composed, but the leaders all took the answer and moved onto important conversation.
"This… bond," Netmug said. "Can Rose perform this… ritual on others?"
"I don't know," Hiccup replied. "But we have secured some outside help, some wild dragons willing to defend Berk with us."
The leaders all looked at one another. "I certainly didn't think we would be discussing topics like this when I became leader," Cauli explained tiredly. "I will round up those who can fight."
"Netmug, you will help by reinforcing the Great Hall. I want anyone who can't fight housed there to keep them safe. Barb, I want you in the Hall with the matrons."
The leaders nodded and left, tension still high. Hiccup was the first to leave, the sense of imminent attack pounding on his back. He entered the dim light of the sunset and turned. He watched the people – some familiar, others strangers – and watched as the Great Hall's old walls slowly being covered by sheets of wood, chunks of metal, surrounded by rocks and barricades. The Great Hall always withstood the dragon attacks of old. Hiccup hoped it could stand up against Alvin and Dagur.
It didn't feel real. It couldn't. Yesterday, Astrid was dead. Her body floated away from him and he watched as his best friend burned against the horizon. Today, she was readying the village for a fight, sending throbs of anxiety in his gut. Hiccup clenched his teeth and stomped towards the trees, where he put his hands on his knees and heaved. This was too much. Too much.
His body expelled whatever food he had eaten, flashes of nets and fire and bodies flashing in his memory. He settled himself for a moment, trying to clear his mind, trying to smack the reality into his head.
Hiccup.
Hiccup spun around. Toothless looked up at him, irises wide and mouth contorted into a shape Hiccup was not familiar with. He was terrified. Hiccup softened and dropped to his knees, the same fear clutching at him. Toothless shoved his head against Hiccup's chest and cooed. Hiccup wrapped his arms around his dragon.
Scared. Fear, Toothless trembled.
He took a moment. "Me too, bud…"
Together…
Hiccup smiled and felt his throat close with emotion. "We've been through a lot together."
Saviour.
Hiccup looked down at Toothless. For the past few months, that's what he was told. Saviour. The title given to him by the dragons that had all felt the oppression of the Red Death, and now Alvin and Dagur. But to Toothless… it was something different. He was stranded, alone in blood and in pack, and Hiccup gave him a second chance. Together, they saved each other. Hiccup was truly Toothless' saviour, and vice versa. It was a debt they could never stop repaying, and it made the reason to fight finally clear. There were other dragons out there begging for a second chance, and it was up to Hiccup to fight for that chance.
"The dragons are ready," Rose said quickly, running to join Hiccup as he tweaked his shield at the forge. Hiccup nodded and put his tools away. Rose peered at the shield with interest.
"It's beautiful."
"Thank you," Hiccup said quietly, running a cloth over the shield.
It was designed to be much more than a simple shield. It started off being a simple carpentry project. Since then, it was plated with Gronckle Iron, a picture of Toothless painted on the front. The centre compartment could open and release a grappling line and hook, the rim could split into a small catapult for rocks, the entire body could open into two pieces with a rope for a crossbow and sling shot, and the plating could reflect light and repel dragon fire.
He pulled the shield over his head and secured it across his back. He reached over the table to the side drawer and opened it, revealing another project he hadn't quite finished.
The sword shined against the orange light of the forge. As long as his arm and as wide as three fingers, Hiccup picked up the sword and weighed it in his hand. Rose watched Hiccup look at it closely, running his thumb down the blade. Rose squinted at the metal.
"I never took you for a sword fighter," she noted.
"I'm not," Hiccup said sourly. "I made this as a gift for someone – anyone, really – but I never thought it would be actually used."
He looked at the hilt and saw the button he installed there. Johann had shipped in some sort of oil years ago for Berk's Great Hall to keep the fires burning. Hiccup had nabbed some and found a way to store it in the hilt. The button would release it, and any spark or flame would light it, creating a torch, or a flaming sword. Hiccup pulled an empty sheathe from a bucket and forced the sword into it, securing it around his hips. He didn't like the feel of it. Astrid was always much better with weapons. Hiccup was always better at running around until his attacker got tired or something equivalent.
But he had Toothless. He always had to remind himself that. It made him stand taller.
Hiccup left Rose at the forge to tinker with some scrap metal and looked around his village. The paths were getting scarce with people, most having fled to the Great Hall. The dungeons below the earth would serve as ample protection, and a tunnel to the far side of the island had been reopened earlier that day. Anyone unable to fight would be kept there until the threat was over.
He heard a squeal and snapped around to see Snowdrop wriggling in Astrid's arms, trying to get free. She bit Astrid's arm. Astrid gasped and dropped Snowdrop, who scrambled to Hiccup's legs, grabbing him and sobbing into his pants.
"No!" Snowdrop screamed. "I don't wanna hide in the dark, I don't know what's going on!"
Astrid pulled Snowdrop away and looked at her.
"You need to be brave, and you need to stay hidden," Astrid told her. "There are bad people coming, and they want our land. We have to protect it."
"But you're fighting," Snowdrop sobbed, "and so is Hup, and I'm scared!"
"Hiccup and I will be alright," Astrid said.
"STOP LYING TO ME!" Snowdrop screamed. Astrid stared, dumbfounded, at her sister. "You died last time, and now you're leaving me AGAIN!"
Astrid pulled her body against hers, holding her tightly. She rocked back and forth, trying to breathe, and Hiccup wrapped his arms around the two of them. Astrid wriggled her fingers to clutch at one of Hiccup's sleeves. "We're going to be alright," Hiccup repeated. "We have to be."
"No!" Snowdrop sobbed. "No, no, no no no no no!"
"Snow, listen to me," Astrid said firmly, holding her face still. "You're going to the Great Hall tonight because bad people are coming, okay?"
Snowdrop sobbed again.
"I'm not lying to you anymore, you're a big girl. So what's going to happen is you're going to the Great Hall. Stoick is going to protect the children and the sick and elders, and he's going to lead you through a series of tunnels."
"Tunnels?" Snowdrop sniffed.
"Yes," Astrid replied with a small smile. "And those tunnels are going to lead you to the other side of the island, all the way to a small bay surrounded by cliffs and sand; no one will follow you there, so I need you to go with everyone else."
Astrid grabbed Snowdrop's hand and kissed it three times. "Do this, and I will meet you on the other side, okay? Hiccup and I will fly and meet you there and we will take you home."
"You promise?" Snowdrop choked.
A matron ran over to the family and looked to the sky. "The sun is setting. I need to take her."
The matron grabbed Snowdrop.
"No, wait!" Snowdrop cried. "Promise me! Astrid! Promise me!"
Astrid turned away and pulled away from Hiccup. He stared at her back as she kept her shoulders tense, trying to block out the sound of Snowdrop's cries, knowing she was writhing around, trying to stay out of the Great Hall that would protect her from the looming doom coming her way.
Hiccup closed his eyes for a moment, his stomach flipping, before following her.
They climbed the hill behind the matron and joined the rest of the fighters, who helped close the doors painfully, the Great Hall sealing with a large crash. From the inside, the matrons locked the doors with as many beams as they could, echoing behind Astrid and Hiccup as they returned to their home.
They entered the house silently, both terrified as the darkness swallowed them. They went to their room, to the wardrobes across from their bed, pulling their riding suits and gifted plate armour free from the dust. Astrid didn't say a word as she shakily pulled her clothes off, readying herself for armour that she hadn't worn in years. It had been reinforced with metal plating that Hiccup had initially made as a hobbyist project. Hiccup watched tiredly as Astrid's bare back tensed in the firelight, her muscles moving nervously beneath her new skin. She shivered.
Hiccup wrapped his arms around her waist.
"No matter what… I love you. Forever."
He let the words hang in the air, kissing her ear delicately.
She turned around and kissed him gently, her face damp. He tangled his fingers in her hair as he kissed her harder. She held onto him for dear life as she pulled his shirt over his head, kissing him as if it was the last time she ever would. Her muffled tears turned into gasping moans as they fell onto the bed, trying desperately to forget the ships that were approaching, the men that were arming themselves, the dragons that were stretching their wings.
They searched each other, gave into each other, and came together as one entity, desperate to make time stop, to start a family like they had always wanted to, to stay safe forever. But time went on, and they peeled from each other silently. They slipped into their armour quietly, Hiccup tugging Astrid's buckles and belt tight, their faces flushed. Hiccup handed Astrid her war axe, a replacement for the one last at sea where her body had burned, and Astrid secured Hiccup's multi-tasking shield to his back. She ran her hand over the painting of Toothless.
They looked at each other again, and Astrid's eyes drifted to the Nadder scale around his neck. She touched it gently. Hiccup kissed Astrid's brow as she tucked the scale into the safety of his suit. Hiccup pushed the Night Fury scale around her neck under her shirt, and the two stood silently as the night got darker and darker.
"I love you, too," Astrid whispered to his throat. Hiccup held her close and breathed deeply.
They stood still for what felt like an eternity that wasn't quite long enough. Astrid tore away painfully and climbed the ladder to the dragon door, clambering onto the roof and meeting Stormfly above. Hiccup followed her and entered the night sky. It was dark and quiet, and familiarly peaceful. They breathed it in, those last moments of tranquility, before Toothless crawled towards them, nervous and vibrating. Hiccup leaned towards him and tightened his saddle, tinkering with his buckles pointlessly.
Astrid secured a sack of weapons to Stormfly's leg before the Nadder jerked and twisted their head to the sky, eyes wide. Astrid tensed and pressed her palms to her head. Hiccup jumped and reached out to her before an image slammed into his head. Thousands of ships manned to the teeth, dragons flying towards the island, silent cackles filling the breezy air.
Saviour! an unfamiliar voice screamed, clear in his mind from the mind of another dragon. Fear struck the back of his head, the need to run, his stomach dropping into his feet.
He shook his mind clear and flung an arm out to Astrid, about to warn her, when something hit their house, a deafening sound and terrifying rumble sending the two sprawling towards the edge of the roof. Hiccup began sliding down the roof, and Astrid grabbed his wrist to keep him from tumbling to the ground. It went silent.
"Don't move!" she hissed, her breaths whizzing out of her mouth. Hiccup froze and listened, the night quiet again.
"What was that?" Hiccup whispered as Toothless and Stormfly bared their teeth to the sky, scared. Astrid didn't know, but it wasn't fire. It wasn't above them. It came from below.