Ruffnut's Wish Chapter 2
It was Týsdagr. (We would call it Tuesday). One of the fishing boats had come back much earlier than usual. The rest of the fleet was still out at sea. Had something gone badly wrong? Stoick met the boat as it docked.
The little ship seemed to be in good shape; there was no visible damage. The only unusual feature was the looks of utter fury on the faces of the captain and crew. Those looks were directed at a good-looking young man and woman with matching goat-horn helmets who stood by themselves in the bow.
As soon as the ship was tied up to the docks, the captain exploded. "Get off my ship, now, and don't ever come back! If it wasn't for the law of the sea, I'd have thrown you back to the fish!" The boy and girl shrugged and stepped over the gunwales onto the dock.
"What's wrong, Captain?" Stoick asked.
"I don't have enough words to tell you what's wrong!" the grizzled old sailor retorted. "We fished these two out of the drink; they said their boat sank, and there was enough flotsam around to make me believe it."
The chief turned to the young man. "Your boat sank?"
"It sprang a leak and we couldn't bail fast enough," he answered. "It went down right under our feet."
"I don't recognize you. What were you doing, sailing a small boat in unfamiliar waters like these?" A small crowd was beginning to gather on the docks and the nearby cliffs to overhear the exchange.
"My sister and I were sailing to Eire, looking for spouses."
"To EIRE?" Stoick burst out. "In a small boat? That's hundreds of miles away, across the North Sea! You're insane!"
"Yeah, we hear that a lot," the girl said. "We're used to it."
"It's the truth!" the captain went on. "No sooner did we get them aboard than they discovered our deck was slippery from water and fish slime. So they started sliding up and down the deck, trying to get from stem to sternpost in one slide! And when they got bored with that, they each started sliding from opposite ends, trying to crash into each other! I can't sail a ship with that kind of nonsense going on, and I certainly can't manage my nets. I brought them back so my crew wouldn't kill them, and if I had my way, they'd have to pay me for making me miss a day's catch!"
"Is this true?" Stoick demanded of the young people.
"We were just having a little fun," the boy replied.
"What are your names, and where are you from?" he scowled.
"I'm Cu Chulainn, and my sister's name is Ferncookie. We're from Kelso Island, to the east of here."
"Your name is Cu Chulainn?" the chief scoffed. "I have to admit, you don't look the part."
"Well, my real name is Flinrider, but no one ever takes that name seriously," he said sheepishly. "I had to do something to get a fake reputation."
Stoick shook his head. "If you're really shipwrecked, then we can't turn you away. But you have to behave better on land than you did on that ship, or... or I shall be very put out. Do I make myself clear, young man, young lady?"
"Clear as crystal, sir," he replied, and she nodded.
"Where are your parents?" the chief asked.
"Mom died of a fever years ago, and Dad was killed on a raid," Ferncookie answered. "We've been on our own ever since, so we've learned to look out for each other."
"You're twins, I assume?"
"No, I'm two years older," Flinrider said. "Everyone makes that assumption. Sometimes we tell people we're twins if we see an advantage to it, but I'm feeling like we ought to be honest with you."
"A wise decision," he nodded. "For now, I'm going to hand you over to the other young people of this island, until I figure out what to do with you. They're all on that cliff up there, desperately trying to overhear what we're saying. Remember, behave!" He stalked away; he had too many things to do to let himself get distracted by minor emergencies like this.
"Thank you for the ride, Captain," Ferncookie said to the ship's captain as they left the docks. The captain was still spitting mad, and didn't answer.
They walked up the ramps to the town's ground level. The chief had just finished explaining things to the teens, and left as the new duo drew near. The six of them spread out, eager to meet someone their own age.
"Hi, I'm Hiccup," said the leader, a thin young man with an artificial leg. "Welcome to Berk. It sounds like you guys made quite an entrance."
"That's nothing compared to some of the stuff we've pulled," Flinrider muttered.
"I'm Astrid," said a pretty blonde in partial armor. "Berk is a nice place, if you follow the rules."
"Maybe we came to the wrong place," Ferncookie said quietly.
"I'm Fishlegs, and I'm pleased to meet you," said a husky boy.
"I am Snotlout son of Spitelout, and I'm the real Viking around here," said a muscular young man.
Ruff and Tuff were just staring at them.
"Uhhh, guys, do you want to introduce yourselves?" Hiccup asked.
The newcomers made eye contact with the twins, and suddenly their faces took on the same expression of astonished disbelief.
"Okay, that's Ruffnut, and that's Tuffnut," Hiccup said. "You guys don't know each other, do you?"
"We've... never... met," Ferncookie said slowly. Her brother nodded, as did Ruff and Tuff.
"Is something wrong?" Astrid asked. These four were acting weird!
"I know we've never met," Flinrider said to Ruff, "but somehow, I feel like I know you."
"Same here," she managed to say.
"Yeah," echoed Tuffnut and Ferncookie.
"What do you guys do for fun around here?" Flinrider asked.
"Oh... we ride dragons," Ruff said.
The newcomers glanced at each other, then back at the twins. "Did I just hear you say you ride dragons?" Ferncookie wondered.
"Yeah," Tuff replied. "The two of us ride a two-headed Zippleback. He's awesome."
Flinrider and Ferncookie turned and chorused, "We came to the right place!" They exchanged a quick head-butt. That made Ruff and Tuff do a quick head-butt as well. They all looked at each other... and Ferncookie butted Tuff. Ruff butted Flinrider, not wanting to be left out.
Astrid turned to Hiccup. "It's like they're all peas from the same pod! I've never seen anything like this."
"It looks like love at first sight to me," Fishlegs sighed. "How romantic!"
Ruffnut spun to face him. "What did you say?"
Fishlegs went pale. "I... I... it was nothing personal, it's none of my business, and if I ever say it again, I'm sorry in advance..."
"What did you say?" she demanded again.
"I... I said it looked like... love at first sight."
The twins and the newcomers glanced at each other, and they all nodded. Ruff wore an expression of pure amazement.
"It's my wish!" she burst out.
"Your what?" everyone else asked at once.
"Yesterday at supper, I pulled a wishbone with my brother, and I won, for the first time ever! My wish is really coming true! I can't believe it!"
"Ruff, what was your wish?" her brother demanded.
"Well, I saw Hiccup and Astrid together, and I was thinking about how happy you two are, and... well, I wished that all of us would find our perfect match before the week was over."
"I don't know about wishes and wishbones," Flinrider shrugged, "but I know a pretty lady when I see one. I don't suppose you could take me for a ride on this dragon of yours?"
"And me!" Ferncookie exclaimed to Tuffnut. His usual hard expression was beginning to soften.
"Follow us!" he said. The four of them trotted away toward the Dragon Training Academy, where Barf and Belch were probably napping.
"Could it be a coincidence?" Hiccup asked the remaining three.
"It has to be luck," Astrid decided.
"What are the chances of another brother-sister pair who are our age and stark raving crazy, just showing up near Berk the day after she pulled the wishbone?" Fishlegs wondered.
"I'll believe it when my dream girl shows up," Snotlout announced, then leered at Astrid. "Of course, my dream girl has been living here all my life; she's just being difficult."
"I was never your dream," she shot back. "You want a girl who worships the ground you walk on, with long wavy hair and a perfect nose and... a lot more developed than I am."
"Ahhh! She knows me too well," he sighed. "But, after all, I am the best, so why shouldn't I want the breast? Best! I meant best! I – OWWW!" She kicked him in the shin and stormed away, leaving him hopping up and down in pain.
"If Ruff's wish comes true, then that means I'll find a girl friend this week!" Fishlegs burst out. "That would be so awesome!"
"Don't hold your breath, Legs," Hiccup advised him. "Wishing on wishbones is an old myth. Chicken bones don't have the magical power to make wishes come true."
"We've seen some strange things," Fishlegs replied. "I can't hold my breath for a week, but it might be interesting to see what happens in the next few days."
"Hey, I'll make you a bet!" Lout exclaimed. He was still limping. "I'll bet you a silver mark I find my perfect girl before you find yours!"
"But if we both don't find one, all bets are off?" Legs suggested.
"Deal," Lout nodded. He clasped hands with Fishlegs; then he turned to Hiccup.
"What do you think, cousin? If you're so sure it's just a coincidence, maybe you'd like to make a little wager, too?"
Hiccup glanced upwards. Barf and Belch were spinning through the sky, with two riders on each neck. The newcomers were shouting and shrieking in obvious joy. He could easily envision the smiles on the twins' faces as their guests clung to them for dear life.
"No bets," he decided. "Legs is right. We've seen too many weird things happen. I'll watch from the sidelines and see how this all plays out."