We are almost at the end of our journey, my friends. I finished writing tonight. Fifty chapters in all and I'm honestly in a bit of a shock. There will be one more chappie after this, and I'll write an author's note to go with it. But let me just say that this adventure was - and still is - amazing to me. Just a final push left to go. Also, How to Train Your Dragon 2 just won Best Animated Feature at the Golden Globes. Overall, I'd say today is a really great day.
Chapter Forty-Nine: The Spirit Weaver
Astrid held onto Valkyrie with Valka's help, her face pale as Stoick pressed fabric into the incision.
"She's so tiny," Astrid mumbled, stroking the side of Valkyrie's face with the tip of her finger. Her little face was pink and beautiful, and she stared up at Astrid with wide, green eyes. She had a head full of brown hair and she yawned, showing off her tiny mouth rimmed with pink gums.
"She's smaller than Hiccup was," Valka chuckled bitter-sweetly. Her eyes flicked up to Astrid's ghostly face, a sadness creeping in her heart. She knew Astrid's time was nearing, but she didn't want to ruin what little time they had together.
Everyone ran around the corner, their faces covered in new smears and trickles of blood. Everyone looked up and didn't breathe for a moment, before they all sighed in tearful relief. Hiccup held his arm to himself as he stumbled towards Astrid. Rose and the twins stayed standing, watching Hiccup slowly stagger to Astrid's side, sinking to his knees weakly, his eyes transfixed upon the tiny being in Astrid's arms. Snowdrop smiled at him as Hiccup reminded himself to breathe, staring.
"Look, Hup! A baby!" Snowdrop giggled.
Ruffnut and Tuffnut both looked at each other, absolutely astonished as they saw their friend cradling her child, a child they knew nothing about.
Hiccup didn't reply. Stoick reached over and clasped his arm, giving him a proud smile as tears soaked Hiccup's battered face. Valkyrie looked up and yawned again, squawking like a baby bird as she did. Hiccup smiled, a sob of happiness shaking through his shoulders. He kissed Astrid's clammy forehead and he looked upon the baby. He reached a finger out and brushed her hair, which was still gummy from the womb.
"Valkyrie," Astrid sighed proudly, blood still streaming out of her mouth. She struggled for another breath but forced one down as the family all huddled together, beaming at the child.
"You didn't say anything about a – you weren't even showing!" Ruffnut blubbered. Astrid smiled.
"She didn't want to be seen," she rasped.
Rose looked over Hiccup's shoulder and couldn't help but smile. She reached over, too, to pull the sweater wrapping her down just a tad, just to see her face clearly.
"She looks like you," Rose noted happily, giving Hiccup a poke. "She's… perfect."
Snowdrop carefully touched her fingertip to the baby's nose, her mouth puckered in thought.
"Can I name her?" she asked loudly.
"She already has a name," Astrid replied quietly. "The dragons… call her Valkyrie."
"Val – Valk –" Snowdrop frowned, unable to get her mouth around the name. Hiccup smiled and tousled her hair.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you can think of a nickname."
Astrid looked up at Hiccup, trying to say his name, the ghost of her smile still on her face.
"Dagur…"
"He will never bother us again," Hiccup replied quickly. The corners of Astrid's mouth quivered.
"I knew… you could do it…"
"It wasn't all me," Hiccup chuckled weakly, wincing at the pain attacking his body. "If Valkyrie didn't have your lungs, I'd have been done for."
The screams of the fighting dragons caught Rose's attention, and she pursed her lips.
"We should get out of here," she said quickly. "If those dragons smell the blood, they're going to come after us."
Hiccup looked to her and nodded. "Okay… once Astrid has had enough time to settle, we'll go."
Valka and Stoick looked up from the baby, and Astrid closed her eyes slowly, her brow pained and wrinkled. Hiccup looked at everyone, confused. But then his eyes widened and he looked down, noticing the shirt remnants covering Astrid's body. He reached down with a shaky hand and grabbed the fabric.
"Don't…" Astrid whispered. Hiccup's hand hovered over her belly, his eyes full of shock and disbelief, as Valka and Stoick looked down. "Don't look…"
"No, no no, did you – I said not to!" Hiccup stammered, looking between the bloody fabric and Astrid's white face. "Astrid, what –"
"I had to…" Astrid murmured. "I had to…"
Valka and Stoick backed away, standing and holding each other. Stoick grabbed Snowdrop gently and pulled her away, murmuring something in her ear. They left Hiccup and Astrid alone with their child, and Rose followed them, tears burning her eyes as Ruffnut and Tuffnut swallowed lumps in their throats.
Hiccup stared into Astrid's half-closed eyes, his face shaking. "We're going to get you out –"
"Hiccup –"
"No!" Hiccup sobbed. "No, I – I just got you back, I'm not letting you give up!"
Astrid shook her head, holding onto Valkyrie gently. "I have to. I… can't feel my legs… and Valkyrie couldn't breathe… I had to… make sure one of us… made it."
Hiccup grabbed her face and looked into her eyes, struggling to breathe.
"No, I'm getting both of you out, I'll find a way to stitch you up and –"
Astrid reached up with one of her hands and she rested a hand on his cheek, her face gentle, but firm.
"You know that won't work…"
Hiccup squeezed his eyes shut, and he rested his forehead on hers. "I already lost you, I won't lose you again… I can't… I won't be able to…"
"You will always have me," she replied. "You will see me in our daughter… in your dreams…"
"It's not good enough, I –"
Astrid's head slumped over slightly, and Hiccup quickly caught her. Astrid groaned and shakily swallowed.
"No, no no no no," Hiccup stuttered, holding onto Astrid's face. "Don't do this!"
Blood streamed out of Astrid's mouth again. She grimaced and coughed meekly, and stared up at him with fear in her eyes. "Just… hold me…"
Hiccup's eyes overflowed with tears, but he gritted his teeth and slipped his arm behind Astrid's head, pulling her limp body close to him. Astrid reached over and grabbed his broken arm, gently resting it under Valkyrie. She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed, shivering under his cheek. Hiccup rocked her back and forth gently.
"Don't let me go," she breathed, her teeth chattering and her body shivering. "I'm so cold…"
Hiccup sobbed and kissed her forehead again. He rubbed her shoulder, his throat too tight to breathe. Astrid closed her eyes, swallowing again.
"Do you remember…" Astrid murmured, "…what the scroll said? The night… we were engaged?"
Hiccup pressed his lips against her forehead and he tangled his fingers her hair as her breaths wheezed in and out through her lips.
"What… did it say?" Astrid asked. "I… want to know…"
Hiccup held her tightly, distraught and broken as Astrid slipped away from him little by little.
"It said… that you had to be the girl – the girl who will punch me across the face when I make her angry and kiss my cheek once she realizes I'm sorry."
Astrid smiled, remembering their meeting in the cove, where she punched him so hard before kissing him. Where she broke his nose and then showed up to the ceremony with bruises all over her face.
Hiccup sucked in a breath, remembering the words as if they were right in front of him. Valka heard him, and tears filled her eyes.
"Keep… going…" Astrid coughed.
Hiccup sucked in another breath. "You're the girl… who laughs at the way I look and the way I speak not because you're making fun of me, but because you adore me."
"She is strong. She is beautiful. She is perfect and maybe you're the only one who thinks so…" Valka murmured under her breath, her back facing the pair. "She's the one you would die for, let a dragon kill you for, risk everything for. It's what I would do for you and if you're reading this now, it means I have done that. So look up and find her, Hiccup."
Rose looked to the head of the Mother dragon, staring at her eye, her heart broken as she heard Hiccup and Valka both say the words, both of them torn apart.
"Find her and kiss her and tell her you love her, that her name was on this scroll. A name won't mean anything to you unless it's hers, so let it be so."
Hiccup held Astrid even tighter. "Life is too short to hesitate," he finished, his chest shaking in sorrow.
"It is…" Astrid replied sadly. "Too short… but… I'm glad at the end of all things… my time was spent with you…"
Rose watched Snowdrop walk away from Stoick, her arms around herself, before she sat next to Hiccup again, curling up into a ball as Astrid smiled.
Astrid looked up to her little sister and held out a hand. Snowdrop took it and cried, but Astrid squeezed it.
"No crying," she told Snowdrop. "No crying…"
"You can't go…"
"Remember what I said…" Astrid whispered, a tear staining her cheek. "I… will always be with you… no matter what happens…"
"You say that, but I don't believe you," Snowdrop hiccupped. Astrid sighed, only able to take in another shallow breath.
"Promise me… promise me you'll be a good aunt… and take care of Hiccup."
Snowdrop shook her head, squirming as her heart twisted in her little chest. Astrid's heart ached at the sight of Snowdrop trying so hard to be brave and failing.
"Snow…"
"No, you can't leave us!" Snowdrop cried.
Rose swallowed but kept her eyes locked on the Mother dragon. The dragon flicked her eye to Rose, a tiny speck of life remaining. Rose clenched her jaw.
"Just hold my hand… it'll be alright…"
Hiccup sobbed again as Snowdrop wept big fat tears all over herself. Valkyrie didn't stir, sleeping soundly upon Astrid's chest.
She felt herself slipping, and she squeezed her eyes shut, fear slowly filling her. She was fading.
"I love you… both… so much," she sobbed weakly, tears falling from her eyes. "And I am so… proud of you…"
Hiccup bit his lip, clutching Astrid as she grew cold.
"The Mother is still alive," Rose said suddenly. Everyone turned and looked at her as she stared at Hiccup and his family, her cheeks wet with tears, her hand clutching the knife Valka used to free Valkyrie. Astrid couldn't open her eyes, and her head was growing heavier by the second as Hiccup looked at the knife in Rose's hand.
"Rose?" Valka asked. Rose didn't look at her. Her gaze was fixed upon Hiccup.
"I'm so sorry for not letting you fight for her that night," Rose forced herself to say. Hiccup blinked, not understanding. "I didn't know what was at stake. I didn't know about the baby. I was so focused on bringing us back together that I didn't think about the other people you loved, and for that, I can never make up for what I've done."
Hiccup gave her an angry look, distraught over Astrid in his arms. "Rose, I… I can talk to you later."
"No, you can't," Rose spat.
Hiccup watched her shake like a leaf in place. But she held her chin up high and took a deep breath.
"I did what I always wanted. I brought the family together, Dagur's dead, the Underground is destroyed… but I didn't think about everything else. I didn't think this would happen…" She painfully looked upon the blood staining the furs under Astrid. "I want to pay penance for everything I've done, now that I've accomplished everything I had set out to do."
Hiccup didn't say anything as Rose looked at the knife in her hand.
"You deserve so much more than this. You deserve the happiness that I have."
She didn't move her head, but she looked at Hiccup.
"Astrid?" Snowdrop asked gently. "Astrid?"
Hiccup's gaze broke from Rose's as he quickly returned to Astrid, her body heavy in his arm, still, no longer shivering. He looked upon her unmoving face, her skin as pale as dry bones, her lips red. Her arm was limp under Valkyrie and her hand lied open, relaxed and lifeless.
"No…" Hiccup breathed. He gave her a squeeze and gave her head a shake. "No, NO!"
Snowdrop burst into tears as Hiccup cried out, frantically trying to get a reaction out of Astrid. The ghost of her smile stained her expression and tears dried on her frigid cheeks.
Rose stepped back slowly, holding the knife. She stiffly turned around and faced Valka and Stoick, who ran to their son as he cried, stepping around Rose. Valka scooped up the baby and Stoick grabbed Hiccup, pulling him back, holding him still as his heart shattered in his chest. Ruffnut and Tuffnut followed them, crying out as Hiccup screamed in agony, losing her all over, his world dark and empty.
No one looked up as Rose walked away, too distracted by Astrid's almost-cold body, and she walked back into the sunshine. She looked up at the sky where a frenzy of mindless, chaotic dragons tore each other apart, screaming and shrieking as the Mother looked up at them, her body letting go as she tried to fight the poison in her blood. Rose stepped over Dagur's corpse, long dead and never-waking, and lifted her hand to the Mother.
A Monstrous Nightmare landed behind her and sniffed Dagur's corpse, at the frozen blood upon the snow. He devoured his body as dragons landed on the Mother's wing, snuffing at the webbing above Hiccup and Astrid. They were after the smell of blood.
Stoick tore Hiccup away from Astrid's body as Snowdrop screamed, the dragons trying to get to them. Hiccup fought against him, trying to reach for Astrid, his voice shrill.
"ASTRID! NO, LET ME GO! I'M NOT LEAVING HER!"
Stoick hauled him back. "Son, we have to move; we can't stay here!"
The Mother looked at Rose, her shallow breaths barely touching her massive lungs, as Rose stared deep into her soul.
"I gave my spirit to the Harbinger," she whispered. "I gave my mind to the Valkyrie and I gave my soul to the Saviour…"
The Monstrous Nightmare swallowed the last of Dagur's body and slowly turned around, growling towards the wing. Tuffnut and Ruffnut grabbed Hiccup and helped push him away as Hiccup tried to fight them, his eyes fixed on Astrid's body in the snow.
"I brought my family back together… I did what I had always wanted…" Rose whispered.
They rounded the corner and Valka froze. Valkyrie screamed and burst into tears as Valka held her to her breast, her eyes wide and locked upon the Nightmare as it stalked her. The dragon twitched his head, licking his lips as smoke smouldered out of his nostrils. The dragon swiped for Valka. She screamed and twisted to the side, running under the Nightmare's wing. She tripped and fell onto her side as the dragon whirled around. Valkyrie wailed even harder, and Hiccup forced himself to turn away, to look for his child as Astrid disappeared around the corner.
"Stoick!" Valka screamed as she pushed herself back with her legs, holding the baby. Hiccup and Stoick, both suddenly distracted by Valka and Valkyrie's screams, cried out and ran for them, seeing the Nightmare in the distance as it chortled, baring its teeth.
"MUM!" Hiccup screamed.
The dragon was in between him and Valka. Valka crawled back on her backside until her back hit the Mother. She huddled as she became cornered, curling herself around Valkyrie, gritting her teeth and squeezing her eyes shut.
"I am the Spirit Weaver," Rose whispered as she brought the knife up. "I am the Spirit Weaver…"
Hiccup saw in the corner of his eye, the movement of Rose's arm, the glint of the blade as she brought it under her jaw. He snapped his gaze over and reached out.
"ROSE, NO!"
"I am the Spirit Weaver…"
And she slashed the knife across her own throat. The world went silent as Hiccup watched, absolutely horrified and frozen inside. Rose dropped the knife and held her neck, cringing and gasping for air as blood spurted forth, coating the snow, her riding suit, everything. She fell to her knees and reached out her bloody hand, pressing it to the Mother's eye.
There was a flash of white light, erupting from Rose's hand as she pressed her hand against the Mother's endless sight. A hot bolt of power surged through her and her eyes burst into light as the wind howled around her, whipping her short red hair about her face. Her back arched and twisted as a ring of energy exploding out of her, white and fiery. Everyone was thrown back as Rose felt the last aspect of herself slink through her body and into her hand, passing through her fingers.
Flashes of her childhood in darkness passed over her eyes as she felt the last of her spirit shatter… Hiccup waking her in the ocean after she burned with Outcast Island, her eyes open to a beautiful, open sky… The remnants of her soul passing out of her body… Valka and Stoick kissing after fourteen years of separation… Her mind fractured and her eyes rolled to the back of her head, one last memory kissing her farewell:
"I'm sorry. My name is Rose."
Rose's mouth went dry as Hiccup smiled gratefully. She stepped back and looked around timidly. "Rose? What does that mean?"
"I'm told it's a lovely flower. Red or white or maybe other colours." Rose smiled softly, her heart racing so fast within her chest, she thought it would break. "And the stem has thorns. But I've never seen one, so I'm not sure if I do the name justice."
"It's nice to meet you, Rose. Who did you come with?"
Rose hesitated before sheepishly looking outward. What was she supposed to say? "I was sent as a representative to one of the clans who couldn't make it." She took a shaky breath and licked her lips, trying to muster her courage. Her bond made her blood hot, and she tried to get the whisperings of other dragons out of her mind. "I have been waiting very long to meet you. You look like him, you know. Your father."
Hiccup hardly heard her, his gaze fixed upon the chest in his hands.
Hiccup motioned to the box. "So your name. It could be here."
"I certainly hope not," she said very quickly. Hiccup raised an eyebrow. Rose blanched. She spoke too soon. But the thought of her being betrothed to her brother made her skin crawl.
"You're the first one to say that," Hiccup murmured.
Rose bit her lip. "It's just… I have someone else. At home. They're waiting for me to come back. I was to come when the marriage was announced and return to them. If it is written, then… that will be an awkward thing to explain."
Especially when the person waiting for me is our mother, she thought.
Hiccup smiled and bowed his head. "Then I hope for your sake that your name isn't on this piece of paper. But I don't understand… you sailed here alone?"
"I sailed with trader Johann from my island. It was a long trip but I feel it'll be worth it."
Hiccup nodded. Rose looked at him and smiled again, but she was also wary. She cocked her head to the side and grinned. "Ah. It seems you didn't want to see my name on the scroll either."
Hiccup stared at her through his eyelashes. "What gave it away?"
"I can see you thinking of another face. My mother does it all the time when she thinks of my father. She stares off and you can see his face behind her eyes. You have the same ghost in your face."
Hiccup blinked at little Rose, who looked straight into his eyes. She wanted him to realize, realize without her telling him outright. But he looked away and looked at the box. Rose smiled and rested her hands on the chest.
"Have you read it, yet?" she asked quietly.
Hiccup looked up, confused. "No."
Rose looked up and beamed. "I can't wait to hear what she says," Rose whispered gently, smiling. Valka had already told her what was upon the scroll, but… she wanted Hiccup to read it for himself. "I hope she's beautiful…"
And I hope she makes you happier than I could ever make you.
The light disappeared. The Monstrous Nightmare didn't move, his eyes looking nowhere.
Hiccup opened his eyes slowly, his body curled up against the wing. Everyone stirred slowly, bewildered and shaken. Valka lifted her head timidly, looking up at the Nightmare, who looked at her, both of them confused and still. Hiccup remembered himself and struggled to his feet, grunting and groaning.
"What happened?" Ruffnut asked. Hiccup stumbled across the patch of snow, running around the back of the Nightmare, slipping as he saw Rose's body.
"Rose?" he choked. He ran to her and fell to his knees, grabbing her frail figure and pulling her over. His eyes fell upon the gash across her throat and he made a strangled sound as his jaw dropped, his gut wrenching and nausea sweeping over him. "Oh-oh gods, no, no no no –"
He almost hurled before he pressed his knuckles to his mouth, trembling in horror.
Her eyes were vacant, staring up at the blue sky above. Hiccup couldn't breathe, he couldn't see or feel. He collapsed and crumpled, resting his forehead on hers, too distraught to cry. Stoick ran to Valka, putting himself in front of the Nightmare. But the dragon stepped back, his snout wrinkled and a confused growl sounding from deep in his belly.
I'm sorry… it had to be this way…
Hiccup jumped and opened his eyes, searching Rose's face as her voice whispered in his mind. Her skin became fragile, little pieces of her cheek flaking away. They floated into the sky, dancing in the air like rose petals.
I hope… you can forgive me for what I've done…
Hiccup stared up in awe as white petals flittered from Rose's body, filling the sky with beautiful dancers. His eyes filled with tears as a petal kissed his nose before flying away, drifting off and twirling in the air slowly, like a butterfly. Stoick looked up, watching the petals sprinkle down like feathers, landing on Valka's hair.
The battle on board the ships stopped as everyone craned their heads, watching as the white petals dotted the ships. So beautiful, so peaceful and pure, so innocent it made all malicious men think of home… think of their families…
Snowdrop reached up with a tiny hand as a petal fell into her palm. She had never seen anything like this before… it was so soft and light and gentle.
Take care of our family for me…
Rose petals flew under the wing, dancing in the air before they gently fell upon Astrid's body, resting on the cold skin of her arms and face.
Tell them that I felt no pain… tell them that I wanted this…
The last of Rose's body disappeared, white fragments of her being falling through Hiccup's fingers into the red soil. Hiccup stared at them, tears swimming in his eyes, as he stared at the dancing petals as they sighed and whispered against his skin.
You've shown me what impossible looks like… and it is beautiful and daunting and endless…
Hiccup looked upon the Mother in front of him, his shoulders sinking as exhaustion overtook him. His wife… his sister… even Dagur's death plagued his mind like dark shadows, like a nightmare he would think of at a random time. Like a heavy blanket in the sun. Suffocating.
A sharp pain hit his broken arm, and he gasped. Crumpling inward, crushing the petals in his hand, fire surged up his arm and into his heart.
I may not have been the best sister… but you were a good brother. A great one. And if you never forgive me again, then… I understand. But I hope this final gift… I hope it brings you a lifetime of adventure. A lifetime of love. A lifetime of happiness.
Hiccup's arm snapped into place and he cried out as the bones fused together as his blood boiled in his skin. His body filled once more with heat and he gasped for a breath as he felt Rose fade from his mind. He squeezed his hand closed and curled his arm up, marvelling as it bent without pain.
Goodbye, Hiccup… I love you… and thank you… for bringing feeling back to my scarred skin… and love back to my heart…
Rose hushed and Hiccup sat in silence. He didn't move. He couldn't feel anything. Nothing but shock… and confusion… and anxiety, his heart fluttering like it had when he first told Astrid he loved her.
The Mother's eye peeled open slowly, revealing a gorgeous, endless eye that seemed to see past dimension, past hatred and death. She gazed upon Hiccup.
Spirit Weaver… the Mother whispered gently. The Spirit Weaver…
"She did it," Hiccup choked while a tear spilled down his nose and dripped into the earth. "She-she actually did it… she…"
The Mother slowly closed her mouth as the pink foam dissolved, the wounds in her mouth healing over. The earth rumbled as the Mother lifted her head off the ground, and everyone stared in wonder as she raised her crown into the empty sky. The sun glinted off her precious skin, and the dragons all stopped fighting, hovering as they all stared at her, their minds returning to them.
"She reversed it… she – she bonded you."
Hiccup's mouth broke into a small smile, an exasperated laugh flying out of his lungs, almost on the verge of sobbing yet again.
Toothless froze in the snow. He blinked and shook his head. He looked behind himself for a moment, looking up at the Mother as she opened her mouth, roaring into the winter air, creating a huge puff of steam. He felt like time had passed, like he had a nap without meaning to.
Hiccup staggered to his feet and looked for his mother. Stoick had helped her to her feet and Valkyrie wriggled her arms about as a petal fell against her mouth. Valka plucked the remnant off her face and stared at it. She furrowed her brow. She locked eyes with Hiccup and Hiccup pursed his lips. She looked up at the Mother, the colour draining out of her face. Hiccup lunged forward as Valka's legs gave out, a cry stuck in her throat. Stoick caught her as Valka pressed a fist to her own mouth.
"N-No, Rose, no!"
She knew. In her heart, she knew. A rose petal fell and brushed Valka's cheek, kissing her softly. Hiccup wrapped his arms around Valka's body from behind, holding her upright, supporting the baby as Valka broke into silent, heart-wrenching tears. Stoick held her and rocked her back and forth as she held the little piece she had left of her daughter against her heart, muffled cries breaking Hiccup's heart.
"She felt nothing, she felt nothing." Hiccup cried, burying his face into Valka's back. "She… just vanished…"
"But why?" Valka whispered painfully. "Why?"
"She saved us…" he replied. "Look, mum. The dragons."
Valka raised her head and tears spilled over her hot cheeks as the dragons all hovered, looking to the Mother as she bowed her head to Hiccup.
The Spirit Weaver…
Valka and Stoick both looked up, their eyes wide and unbelieving as the Mother connected with them softly.
I used to be the messenger… between man and the gods, she said to Valka and Stoick. Hiccup looked up at her in awe. To speak to you is an honour… I will never be able to repay you for the acts of your children. Of your granddaughter.
Valka's jaw quivered. "Where is my Rose?" she asked in a small voice.
She has… transcended this world…
Valka closed her eyes and bowed her head in grief. The Mother looked upon her head as quiet sobs rocked through her, and Stoick's eyes filled with tears.
I know what it feels to grieve, Mother and Father of Spirit Weaver… I have felt it, and I still feel it to this day, ever since I lost my soul mate. I know my words may not console you, and I am not trying to do that. But I must thank you, and pay my respects to you… for Rose's sacrifice ultimately saved my entire world. My children did not call her Spirit Weaver by chance. They knew the heart and knowledge and courage she possessed.
Hiccup swallowed painfully and he felt his heart ache within his chest.
Rose's mind was filled with thoughts of her family before she died. And I know you may feel anger towards her for what she did… but if she didn't… thousands of lives – dragon and man – would have perished. She gave my children their will back. She gave them their freedom… and no god would have ever done the same.
The Mother bowed her head again and Valka lifted her chin, summing her strength for her daughter, even though her heart broke within her.
"Thank you," she softly replied, sucking in a breath.
HICCUP!
Hiccup whirled around, his eyes falling upon Toothless as he bounded towards him in the snow. The Night Fury crashed into Hiccup's body, rolling the pair of them as thousands of words passed through Hiccup's mind in an instant. Everyone smiled and their eyes and noses stung as Toothless rubbed his face on Hiccup's chest. Coos, croaks, and chortles all reverberated out of the dragon's throat, glee filling him. Hiccup wrapped his arms around him as Toothless licked his face.
Oh gods, I am so sorry, I don't know what happened, if I hurt you or –
"You didn't hurt me, bud. I'm so glad you're back."
Dagur?
The Mother growled slightly.
The Defiler… is dead, she told Toothless. Forever. When his dragon died, his tether was partially fractured. When his body died without the bond at his advantage, the damage was rendered permanent. Dagur will never walk this earth again.
Hiccup's smile vanished. "Wait… what?"
When a person travels to Valhalla, they do not come back, Saviour.
Toothless read Hiccup's mind, and sadness overcame him. No… Astrid… she's – she's –
"Astrid didn't make it… she… she died after having our baby…" Hiccup murmured, as if he was just realizing it.
Toothless shook his head, his eyes slowly narrowing into slits.
"I tried, bud," Hiccup coughed, his throat constricting.
Saviour… the Mother whispered. The Harbinger… brought life into this world. A child conceived with bonds in her blood, a powerful creature possessing power that I know not of. That was the Harbinger's purpose.
"You're wrong," Hiccup said coldly. He stared up at the Mother, and even Toothless shrank as Hiccup challenged the ultimate being above him. "Astrid was more than that. She was strong. A fighter. She never gave up, even when she thought she lost our child, she fought. She never had one purpose – she may have been your Harbinger, but she was my wife. She was my everything."
She was your soul mate. And still is, Saviour. She always will be.
Hiccup shook his head and wiped tears from his face. "Then you should know. You should know how I feel."
The Mother was silent for a while. The air was heavy with tension as Hiccup refused to speak. The Mother sighed.
I said Astrid brought life into this world. When Valkyrie was cut from her body… do you think their connection was severed, too?
Hiccup looked up, a frown destroying his complexion as another tear fell down his face. "I'm sorry, but… I don't think I can talk anymore."
Dagur has no children. No one to carry on his legacy. No dragon to bind his blood, to save him. No body intact to return to. And when I said the Harbinger had fulfilled her purpose, I did not say her life was forfeit… did I?
Hiccup blinked, a warm feeling tickling his gut. "Well, no, but –"
Rose didn't sacrifice herself for the dragons, Hiccup, the Mother whispered softly.
"Yes, she did," Hiccup slowly replied. "She-she did to give the dragons their will back, you said –"
She sacrificed herself for her family. For you. Because she believed in the impossible, and put her faith into the bonds we have, the bonds were are born with… the bonds we build to bind ourselves to people and places and silly things. She took a chance, hoping the bond Valkyrie and Astrid shared through parenthood would be strong enough.
The Mother bowed her head again.
And it's those bonds, Saviour, that keep us all alive, through the harshest storms, and through the coldest blizzards… through the bloodiest wars… And the bond between Astrid and the child you bore with her… is the strongest bond of all.
The Mother went silent and Hiccup didn't move for a moment. The words consoled him, only slightly, but something made his heart race within his chest.
"H-Hiccup?" Stoick breathed. "Son?"
"I need a minute, dad…" Hiccup muttered, another tear falling down his face. His father shifted behind him, crunching the snow beneath his boots.
"No, I – I just thought –" Stoick trailed off, fading as his voice broke.
Hiccup turned slowly, sighing angrily, the Mother's words wearing out of his mind like a dream. He rubbed his eyes and shook his head again.
"Hup…" Snowdrop whispered.
"Please! I-I need a moment, a moment to breathe, a moment to –"
Hiccup dropped his hands and opened his eyes. And in an instant, his racing heart stopped. His jaw dropped and his eyes filled with tears again as he looked towards the wing. His entire family, his friends, all stared at him in shock as he stared past them. Astrid couldn't move, her face filled with the same shock as Hiccup. Tears welled in her eyes, hanging behind her eyelashes, her feet bare in the snow and her hand holding her belly. She was standing up right, back straight and perfectly aligned, wearing nothing but the wraps around her breasts and her singed trousers. Her jaw quivered as they stared at each other in suspended disbelief, both of their hearts frozen in bewilderment.
Astrid tried to say something, but no words formed. Hiccup took a step, lifted his hand. Tears spilled forth like waterfalls as he took another step. Astrid blinked quickly, pushing the tears out of her eyes and onto her skin.
"Hiccup?" she squeaked. "Something held me back again – I –"
Her voice made her real. Hiccup gasped and took three quick steps before his knees buckled. He fell into the snow, staring up at Astrid as she ran to him. He couldn't believe it, and the feeling of relief was almost more painful than the grief he had felt only moments before. Hiccup wrapped his arms around her as she sank into his lap, sobs hiccupping out of her mouth, her knees around his waist. She cupped his head and howled, a mixture of relief and joy and gratefulness jumping from her throat into the air. They kissed each other and struggled to breathe, crushing each other in their embraces, as rose petals tumbled across the ground around them.