Did Anybody See That? Chapter 15
Most of the town brushed off Hiccup and Astrid's disappearance with a collective shrug, much like they did when he ran away the first time. The damaged house took less than a day to clean up; there wasn't much there except framing timbers anyway. Gobber complained, loud and long, about his missing apprentice and how Hiccup had left him with an impossible work load, but no one else said much, except for things like "Good riddance to bad garbage. Again."
Stoick spent the next three days with a face so raging red, his friends feared for his health. After everything he'd done to get his son reinstated in the community, that boy had gone and done this! On his wedding day, of all days! Were there any laws he wouldn't break? Did he think he could pull the town's beard like this and get away with it?
Perhaps most importantly, where had he gone?
The Hoffersons missed their daughter terribly, of course. She'd left a note explaining that she was a willing participant in what had happened, that they wouldn't be coming back, and that she expected to be happy with her new husband, whom she already loved very much. That took some of the sting out of her sudden disappearance, but not all of it. Surprisingly, they also missed Hiccup. They'd been getting to know him during the engagement period, and he seemed quite different from the way the rest of the village portrayed him.
"At least they made it legal first," Gunnarr said to Edda. "They've brought no shame on us."
"I wish they'd bring themselves back to us," Edda said sadly.
"Me, too," he nodded, and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
o
Hiccup and Astrid took their sweet time waking up next morning. For the first time since early childhood, there was absolutely nothing they had to do. No chores, no work detail, no schooling or training, nothing.
Even though they had both longed for this, it was still a bit awkward, waking up in the same bed together for the first time, somewhat less than fully dressed. They worked it out the way most newlyweds do. But they had to get up eventually, and eventually, they did.
"Now what?" Astrid wondered as she combed her hair out. He'd never seen her hair except in that tight four-way braid. Her hair was a lot longer than he'd realized. He liked that.
"If you can lay some wood in the fire pit, I'll have Toothless light it, and then I'll take him fishing for our breakfast," Hiccup said lazily. "The coals will be ready by the time we get back. After we eat, we can talk about what happens next."
After a meal of some broiled cod, they carried their plates to the beach and cleaned them off in the ocean. "I'll have to think of an easier way to wash dishes," she said. "This won't work when the storms hit."
"We're going to work out a lot of things as we go along," he nodded. "We're making up our own way of living, right down to the last detail."
"By the way," she smiled, "I thought of a third big no-no we did last night. We skipped out before the presentation of the morning-gift."
"Yeah, we did that," Hiccup yawned. "Do you feel deprived because you didn't get your box of silver and gold coins?"
"No, I don't have much use for coins now. But I thought every bride was supposed to get a morning-gift."
"Mm-hmm," he agreed. "I was thinking about that. If you're ready, let's go for a ride. I'll take you to a place where you can pick out a morning-gift like no Viking queen ever received before."
"That's an intriguing offer," she smiled. "I'm ready." They got Toothless ready to fly, and he took them far away, to the north.
"Where, exactly, are we going?" she asked him.
"It's a surprise," he smiled.
"Can you give me a clue? Or do I have to hit you?"
"Okay, okay!" He pretended to be afraid. "Your clue is, you gave me the idea for this yourself."
Nothing else she could say would get any more information out of him. On they flew. The weather was beginning to look threatening; she hoped they'd land somewhere soon. Finally, a familiar island came into view.
"Hiccup, isn't that the mountain with the dragons' nest inside it?"
"It certainly is," he nodded.
"Why are we here?" she wondered.
"I distinctly recall you saying, 'I thought maybe you could help me train my own dragon some day, and we could all go flying together.' If you're going to be a criminal on the run like me, you'll need to be able to make quick getaways. So we're going to fly in there, you're going to pick out a dragon that you like the looks of, and I'm going to help you train it." She gave him an appreciative hug as they rose to the peak of the cone and spiraled down into the nest.
Toothless landed on a ledge with a good view of the entire nest. It looked very much like it did the first time they were here, except that the oppressive atmosphere of fear was gone. Still, her appreciative hug soon became a case of clinging to him for security.
The cave was still wall-to-wall with dragons of all kinds and colors. Some of them watched Toothless and his passengers with curiosity. The rest were cleaning themselves, feeding their young, or napping. Only a few looked hostile, and those just took up defensive postures; they made no move to attack.
Astrid stared at the scene, open-mouthed. She had never thought of dragons as anything but enemies, except for Toothless, of course. Hiccup seemed completely at ease, even though they were completely surrounded.
"This is just unbelievable!" she finally managed to say.
"I've been here a couple of times, and it's always impressive," he nodded.
"Where do we start?" she asked.
"I guess you'd start by deciding what kind of dragon you'd like to train," he said. "Then we'll look around and find a few of that type, and we'll see if any of them like you."
They heard the rumble of thunder from outside the volcano. Rain began pelting in through the open cone. Their ledge had an overhang that kept them dry, but it sounded like there was quite a storm going on outside.
"I'd say we're going to be stuck here for a while," he observed, "so take your time."
"Okay," she agreed. "Any suggestions?"
"I think it's a personal decision," he said slowly. "Not quite as personal as choosing a husband, but the same kind of thing. I think you can cross the Zipplebacks off your list, since they probably need two riders to control them, and there's only one of you."
"That makes sense." She looked around her.
A Monstrous Nightmare would make a good impression on people, if she ever had to impress anyone. But she'd never fought one in the ring, or done anything at all with one. She didn't know much about them. That's an awfully big animal to trust with your life if you aren't sure about him, she thought.
Perhaps a Gronckle? She probably knew the most about that kind; it was the kind she'd faced most often in the ring. She was sure she could get along with a Gronckle and control it. But Gronckles were slow, and short on endurance. If she meant to go flying alongside Hiccup and Toothless, she needed a dragon that could stay in the air for a while, and put on a burst of speed when needed. And the idea of riding a dragon that might fall asleep in mid-air... No.
How about a Deadly Nadder? She was familiar enough with those. They were smart, they could soar forever, and they could move quickly, both on land and in the air. They could also be vain and demanding. On the other hand, their spines gave them a back-up mode of attack, and their super-hot fire might be useful to a husband who needed to do metalwork without a forge.
"I think I'd like to ride a Deadly Nadder," she decided.
"Good choice," he nodded. "Look around and see if any of the Nadders catch your eye."
She looked. The first thing she noticed was that Nadders came in many colors besides the medium-blue that she was accustomed to. She saw them in aqua, green, magenta, yellow, dark purple, and even one dark-red specimen. Their tail bands came in many different shades as well.
Then she noticed how many of them there were. Nadders were among the most common dragon types, and it showed – this nest, which probably held around a hundred dragons, was home to at least forty Nadders. How could she narrow down such a huge field and choose just one?
She caught motion out of the corner of her eye. Another Nadder – oh, just what she needed – had flown into the nest through the crevice in the side of the volcano. This one was blue, with yellow tail stripes, and it was soaking wet. It landed on a vacant ledge about ninety feet away from them, shook itself dry, and lay down to rest.
"That's not the smartest dragon in the nest," Hiccup commented. "All the others had the sense to stay out of the rain."
"At least it came in out of the rain," Astrid replied. "Wait a second... I think I recognize that one! The color, the stripes... I could swear that's the Nadder I trained against in Dragon Training. We turned them all loose, and I guess they wound up here. I'd like to try that one. I feel like I already know her."
"Astrid, are you sure you want a dragon who thinks it's good to go flying in a thunderstorm?"
"She came in, didn't she? You said I could choose my own morning-gift; I choose that one. If I can't train her, then I'll try a different one."
He shrugged. They climbed back onto Toothless, who flew over to the Nadder's ledge and landed there. The blue dragon rose and watched them suspiciously out of one eye as they dismounted.
"Remember, it's all about trust and respect," Hiccup began. "First, show her that you're not a threat. Keep your hands open, in plain sight. Don't make any sudden moves. Keep your voice smooth and even."
"Okay, Hiccup, I'm doing all those things. What next?"
"Start walking closer to her. Go for the tail end, not the head end. She can defend herself better from the tail, so she'll feel safer with you there."
"Okay," she said, starting to get a little nervous. "How do you know all this?"
"It's all in the Book of Dragons, if you know where to look," he answered. "Keep walking." She did. Suddenly, the dragon's spines snapped upright. Astrid froze in place.
"I think she just recognized you," Hiccup said. "Her tail isn't cocked to strike, so you're in no danger; she's just getting ready in case you turn hostile. Say some nice things to her. That will help calm her down."
"Okay, sure... say nice things to a dragon that's about to kill me," she nodded, and faked a smile. "Hey, there. Do you remember me? I'm the one who tickled you under the chin instead of hitting you. I didn't want to hurt you then, and I don't want to hurt you now. I want us to be friends."
"It's working, Astrid! Her spines are starting to relax. Stroke her tail – be careful not to get scratched by the spines. That should finish the job." Hesitantly, she reached out and stroked the scaly tail. The spines twitched upright, then slowly laid down flat. The dragon craned her neck to keep one eye on Astrid.
"You're there! Now scratch her neck and tell her she's pretty." Astrid didn't need prompting for that; it seemed like the right thing to do. The dragon curled her neck and made a crooning sound, obviously enjoying the touch.
Hiccup turned to Toothless. "What do you think, bud? Did she pick a good one? Will you share our island with another dragon?" Toothless snorted, lay down, and went to sleep.
"I guess he doesn't object," he said. "What I'd like to know is how you're so sure it's a girl dragon. I can't tell the difference."
"It's a girl thing," was all the answer she'd give him. "Maybe I'm wrong, but I just have a feeling. Now I suppose I ought to name her."
"She goes flying in storms, so I'd call her 'Brainless'," Hiccup grinned. "It would go with 'Toothless'."
"I'll hit you for that later," she grinned back, then turned her attention back to the Nadder. "If you hadn't gone flying in the storm, I wouldn't have noticed you, so I'll call you... Stormfly! Do you like that name?" The dragon probably didn't grasp the concept of a name yet, but she was quite happy to let Astrid pet her.
After another two hours or so had passed, the storm moved on. By using gestures, Astrid explained to the dragon that she wanted to ride her. Stormfly bent down and let Astrid climb onto her back. "How do I hang on?" she asked Hiccup.
"For now, just keep your balance. She probably won't let you fall, and if you do, Toothless will catch you. I'll make you a saddle the same way I made one for Toothless – out of scraps and discards from the tannery. I'll pay them a midnight visit in a night or two, and you'll have your saddle before the week is done."
"Could you do it tonight?" she asked.
"Uh-uh," he said with a twinkle in his eye. "I've got some special plans for you and me tonight. I'll be much too tired to go flying after that."
"Pig!" she called.
"I think the word you're looking for is 'husband'," he smiled. "Or did you forget that we're married now?"
"I didn't forget," she answered, a bit embarrassed. "I'm just not used to thinking of you that way."
"We've got the rest of our lives to get it right," he nodded. "Are you ready to see how your new friend can fly?" He jumped into Toothless' saddle, which woke his dragon up.
A minute later, the Haddock dragon team slipped out of the crevice in the side of the volcano, and set out on their homeward-bound flight together. Once Astrid got a "feel" for how to control her dragon, they flew up to the clouds, and she joyously ran her hands through the puffy gray mist.
"Best... morning... gift... ever!" she shouted happily.