Author's Notes:
I don't own any of the characters or Worlds, this is purely for fun and not profit.
I figured I may as well post up the Hiccup chapter. : )
Hiccup ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. After a month away from home, mostly waiting for a tardy Viking lord by the name of Yngvild, he was tired and looking forward to his own bed.
He adjusted the angle of his metal prosthetic foot to keep the creature he was riding in the correct direction. The dragon rumbled with concern for its rider. Hiccup placed his hand on the warm inky black scales "It's okay Toothless, I'm just frustrated over the council meeting business."
The dragon heaved a sigh and together they drifted higher, passing through clouds until he could see the stars overhead. Hiccup pulled his fur cloak over his chest; despite wearing a thicker tunic the higher altitude still sent a chill right through him. He had grown quite a bit over the years; taller and a bit bigger, he didn't feel as scrawny as he had when he was fourteen.
"Hiccup!" Bellowed the man flying alongside them, Stoick the Vast, he was a large man with a long auburn beard and even more hair pulled back under his helmet. Hiccup twisted around to see his father adjusting his massive size on his blue dragon: Thornado.
"Yeah Dad?" He asked; reining in Toothless to match his father's speed.
Stoick paused for a moment before speaking, looking at his son with a resigned expression. "I'm glad that you are taking your responsibilities more seriously, but honestly son, you are going to have to watch your tongue when you are in Clan meetings."
Hiccup scoffed, rolling his eyes. Part of him knew that his father was right, but when it came to the stubbornness of Vikings: Hiccup had little patience.
After his Clan had learned to befriend dragons instead of fighting them, they had begun solving dragon troubles for many other villages. This meant there was less concern over dragons invading. The new peace drove some of the other Viking Clans to fall back to the old ways of raiding other lands. The various Clans had begun holding meetings during the early spring season to discuss, among other things, their movements and targets for when the summer weather retuned. One particular Viking lord had started rallying the other clans to his cause: Yngvild the Slayer.
He sighed "I know dad, but I can't just stand by silently while they decide that our dragons should be used to kill others! Our village has never taken part in raiding season and I don't see why we should start now!"
"I understand that fighting and raiding aren't for you, but for many it is the Viking way and you can't change everyone with words Hiccup" he said calmly.
Hiccup glared down at the worn; woven; leather saddle. He knew that his father was right. When it came to Vikings it was action that changed minds. Thinking back four years when he first befriended Toothless it hadn't been until they had worked together to defeat the Green Death that the people of his village had changed their views on dragons.
"I just don't want the dragons to be used like that" he ended, his shoulders dropping as he spoke.
"I know son, but if we don't find a way to help the Clans in some form, we risk them showing up on our shores and trying to take our village. In that situation what you are trying to avoid now will be unavoidable." Stoicl looked towards Hiccup for a moment longer before glancing down towards the growing lights of Berk.
Hiccup wanted to run off into the woods, but it was too dark out, he didn't want to risk Toothless' safety just because he was feeling like a child. He thought about going to see Astrid, she was always willing to listen to his rants, but he wasn't sure if she would be back from her trip yet.
Over the years many changes had come to Berk. Astrid had started a dragon squad through the academy, they would ride out along the various Viking settlements aiding with troublesome dragons. Hiccup on the other hand had begun to take his role as chieftain's son more seriously and had started attending more trade meetings and treaty discussions.
Astrid and Hiccup had tried again and again to start a relationship, but after all of the changes in their lives had settled into routine, they found themselves with a strong friendship instead. Hiccup would always consider Astrid his closest friend next to Toothless. Currently she was seeing a Viking on a nearby island. After she had helped them with a rampaging group of Monstrous Nightmares, the two of them had become close and had since started courting each other. As a result she made frequent trips to his village.
He heard his father sound the horn on his hip, announcing to the village their return, and heard the return sound come from the village below. Hiccup guided Toothless to the clearing in the square, making sure to leave room for Thornado to land next to them. As he was landing he scanned the familiar faces of the people of Berk. At least for now he was home, a place where he didn't have to worry about annoying Viking Chieftains. He was about to dismount when he noticed a woman that he had never seen before. She would have blended into the background save for the large mop of flaming red hair glowing in the surrounding fire light. He turned to his father to ask if he had noticed her, but Stoick was already ahead of him, questioning Gobber about her.
"Oh aye, she is a new one, her and her brother-in-law Peadar. We found them ship wrecked off the south west of here; they had been attacked by that dragon roaming the seas." He said glancing at Hiccup. "They've said they're from the mainland, but were heading towards one of the settlements near the Orkney Isles." Gobber finished.
Hiccup frowned "So it is still attacking ships then. Has Astrid sent out any of her riders to look into it?" He asked as he dropped off of Toothless' back. He patted the dragon's side as he looked towards Gobber for an answer.
"Astrid herself went out with me to look into it. We were just returning from questioning some fishermen from the next village over when we passed by the wreckage baring the two." Hiccup looked towards the woman again, but she was already walking away with another man, her brother he assumed, in her wake. The man next to her looked to be about his father's age.
"It is a shame, the woman is mute, and a wee bit daft I won't lie. However, they have been helping out. Peadar is a very talented fisherman and Merida was helping out in the kitchens until Olaf kicked her out. Seems she had a habit of dropping things all the time. We managed to find her a job with Helga though; Merida checks the traps now for game every day. It keeps her out of everyone's hair."
Hiccup grimaced slightly at Gobber's words. He could still recall when that was the villages attitude towards him. He wondered then if Merida was actually slow or just more like him.
Hiccup turned to face his father and Gobber. "Well, I am going to go clean up Toothless; I'll see you at the house Dad. Good night Gobber" he said as he began walking up towards his home. Toothless whined at him, licking his lips and giving him a sad look. Hiccup laughed "Yes, yes, of course I am going to feed you."
It wasn't until he was lying in his bed, listening to Toothless restlessly trying to find a comfortable position, that he questioned the names of the two shipwrecked people. For two Vikings from the mainland, they had very odd names. He recalled Yngvild mentioning almost catching the Bear King, the King of the four clans of Alba, and his fiery haired daughter while scouting. Hiccup stared at the wooden ceiling with a frown growing on his face.
"We couldn't have the princess of Alba on Berk Toothless, that would be a terrible situation, and we both know that terrible situations never come to Berk, right?" He lifted his head and looked at the Nightfury. The dragon stared back at him silently, his green eyes as intense as the day he had first met him.
"Yeah, you're right buddy; who am I kidding; we always attract terrible situations." He commented, dropping his head back on his pillow. He would have to investigate the matter tomorrow; but for now; he just wanted a moment to relax.
The next morning Hiccup walked out of his house on a mission. The chill in the air didn't bite as much, reminding him that summer was on its way. He glanced towards the top of his house searching for Toothless. The creature in question was staring down at him, hindquarters hunched.
"Wow, wait, Toothless-!" The dragon leapt down, sending Hiccup landing on his back. He laughed as he tried to escape his friend. The Viking pushed against the dark dragon, pulling one of the large scaled legs up so that he could roll out from under him. He jumped up and prepared to wrestle when a bit of colour caught his eye. He glanced towards the wooded area behind his house and saw the woman, Merida, watching him.
Toothless prodded him with his muzzle, confused why Hiccup wasn't paying as much attention. The dragon turned its head towards the strange woman and then back at Hiccup. The Viking was looking at him with a smile "C'mon buddy, let's go get some food." Toothless made a sound of contentment: the momentary distraction forgotten as they went back to their usual routine.
While making their way down to the dining hall Hiccup thought about how he was going to glean more information about the two new comers. The girl was apparently mute, but that would make a great cover if you didn't know the language. On the other hand she was able to communicate enough to find work to do, so maybe she really was just mute.
Running his hand through his hair he questioned what he would do if his theory turned out to be true. If this woman was the princess would he tell his father? What would his father do? Stoick might send them packing, in hopes of avoiding any more trouble with the other Clans. However, he might decide to tell Yngvild about her instead, to draw the attention of Viking chieftain away from them.
The idea of telling his father ended right there, Hiccup knew he would never be able to allow either situation to happen. He didn't know much about the woman, but he knew that she had a family and probably friends, he couldn't condemn her to die on the sea, or worse a fate at the hands of Yngvild.
A slap on the shoulder nearly sent him flying forward. Hiccup turned to face his assailant and found himself staring back at Astrid. Her hair was undone and she was wearing a simple loose sky blue tunic and her usual dark breeches.
"Hey Astrid, you look like you just got up" he commented, gesturing to her unusually casual attire. Astrid punched him hard in the arm.
"I did, I was just getting ready when I saw your lazy butt ambling by. You didn't even come to say hello last night when you got back" she growled in mock anger, the twinkle in her eye betraying her true emotions.
"Yeah, I'm sorry. I was so exhausted when we got back I went straight to bed" he said shrugging his shoulders apologetically.
"Alright, I believe you. I do recall attending one of those sessions when they were held here, I don't blame you entirely." She was interrupted by Toothless' restless growl. Astrid smiled "Off to get food I see, Let me get my belt and I'll come with you" she said before jogging back to her house.
Moments later she returned; her hair now pulled back; giving her the usual "no nonsense" appearance he was used to. They walked towards the hall pausing to hail some of the townsfolk who were going about their morning duties. Along the way they attracted Fishlegs, Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Snotlout. It wasn't common that all of them were on the island at the same time anymore, so they took every chance they had to catch up with each other. Once in the hall Hiccup grabbed a plate of food and settled down at the nearest table with his friends.
"So how was the winter snore fest" asked Tuffnut as he picked at his ear. He was sporting a short golden beard now and his long hair was braided making him appear a bit more organized then he used too. Hiccup considered it Astrid's influence since she had become tough on wayward hair after several of her recruits had lost theirs in a training accident with a dragon. His sister, Ruffnut, looked similar to him, minus the beard.
"If only it had been a bit more boring. Yngvild the disturber is back on my dad's case about using the dragon's on this season's raids." Hiccup said taking a sip of his mulled cider; the spices chasing away the chill. "It's odd though, he showed up to the meeting two weeks late and although he pushed the matter, he wasn't as demanding about it as he has been in the past. The other leaders were louder about it then he was" Hiccup finished; staring into his cup for answers.
Fishlegs smiled "Well that isn't so bad then! Maybe if he gives up on it the other leaders will follow!" he surmised cheerfully. Fishlegs hadn't changed that much in appearance.
"Either way, raiding season doesn't start for another two months or so. We have some time to come up with a solution" commented Ruffnut picking at her food.
Hiccup looked up at his friends, they were all staring back. He felt pride in each of them, how much they had all grown over the years. He knew that he could depend on them to be there for him no matter what. Astrid smirked and flicked a piece of potato at him playfully.
"Watch out, he has a sentimental look on his face. What kind of Viking Lord are you going to make when you are such a softy?" She joked. The others laughed and Hiccup smiled. It made him feel good to sit here as though they were still kids, everything normal, or as normal as it could be on an island with Vikings and dragons.
The train of thought brought him back to his question last night. He didn't want to bring his concerns about Merida to everyone. While he trusted them with his life, a lot of them were gossips.
He waited until they were all finished their meals and going their separate ways before dragging Astrid aside. She shot him a questioning glance which he ignored as he scanned the area to make sure they were alone.
"Gobber mentioned you were on the boat when the two Vikings were found at sea. What was your impression of them?" He asked leaning against the wall. Astrid looked confused for a moment, but a smirk quickly grew.
"Look at you, interested in the new girl is it?" She joked. Hiccup's looked at her in shock at the accusation.
"No, no! I just… you didn't think there was anything… odd about them?" He continued to prod. Astrid stopped smiling when she realized he was being serious.
"We found them floating on a flat piece of wood, looked like it belonged to a ship. The man, Peadar, was awake and keeping an eye on the woman." She started, looking up as she focused on remembering. "He hailed us when we were close and we took them on board. He told us that they had gotten caught in a storm before being attacked by a winged beast, which I assumed was the dragon causing trouble in that area."
Hiccup frowned slightly at the last comment, a Viking that didn't recognize a dragon? He allowed Astrid to continue, keeping his questions for after.
"They had been making their way to the new settlement on the Orkney Isles; Peadar was to meet his wife, Merida's sister, there. Merida's father was on the ship as well, as were many others, but they were the only ones we found." She finished looking down sadly.
Hiccup gave her shoulder a squeeze, Astrid had lost her father to the sea years ago as well, so he knew that she was probably seeing her own sadness from that time reflected in Merida.
"I don't think there is anything odd about them Hiccup. Peadar speaks like a Viking and acts like a proper one as well. Merida is a bit more of a mystery I'll admit. She keeps to herself despite my attempts at getting to know her." Astrid stepped towards him and looked at him intensely. "However, she is upset, I'm sure she just wants some time alone. I can respect that and so should you." Astrid said looking at him in challenge. Hiccup realized that she had grown protective over the two lost travelers.
He held back his questions, he knew now that if he was going to figure this out, he was going to have to do it on his own.
"I just wanted to get caught up on what was going on is all. Now tell me more about this wayward dragon, you haven't been able to find it at all?"
Astrid shook her head "Not at all. I've tried looking with Stormfly. After that Gobber and I tried searching by boat. We thought that it would appear if there wasn't another dragon present, but nothing. We keep hearing more and more about it though. We got a message sent along the trade route that Johan won't be coming this way again until the raiding season begins, trusting the safety of other Viking ships to see him through the danger."
Hiccup looked down considering all of these facts. Something was fishy about this whole situation, the two travelers and the troublesome dragon. Knowing he had his work set out for him, he said his farewells to Astrid before going to Toothless. He needed time to think and there was only one place where he could do that: the secluded pond where he had gotten to know his beloved friend years ago.