Happy belated Mother's Day, everyone! And to celebrate, here's the drabble I promised last month – the one where Fishmeat the baby Gronckle from HTTYD: THW is born!
Title: Welcome Fishmeat
Takes Place: Several weeks before the events of HTTYD: THW
Summary: When Meatlug starts acting stangely and feeling under the weather, Fishlegs worriedly sends pleads for help to his friends. As it turns out, Meatlug is about to provide a new addition to Berk's dragon-Viking utopia.
…
Fishlegs Ingerman was woken up to the familiar feelings he woke up to each morning: the gentle pawing of Meatlug's claws against his bedsheets, her warm, steamy breath against his round face and her slimy, warm tongue licking his cheek. Chuckling, he opened his eyes to the sight of his Gronckle's big yellow eyes hovering over him and her tongue hanging out over her sharp teeth.
"Morning, Meaty," he greeted, rubbing his arm against his newly-grown mustache which resembled a shorter version of Gobber's.
The light brown Gronckle wagged her short round tail as she tilted her head out the window.
"I know, I know, girl," Fishlegs said, as he slid out of bed and reached for his boots. "You wanna go flying. But first things first. We need to keep our strength up. Let's go get some breakfast."
The Gronckle nodded excitedly and followed her rider to the kitchen.
After mixing some yak milk and oats in a cauldron and putting it over the hearth to heat up, Fishlegs fixed Meatlug's breakfast and placed it in her dish.
"Here you go, girl," he announced as he held out the dish. "Your favorite rock salad consisting of three granites, two pumices and four shales."
He placed the dish down beside Meatlug's feet. Meatlug sniffed at the rock salad and to Fishlegs' surprise, she snorted and gently shoved the bowl away.
"You don't want rock salad?" Fishlegs asked.
Meatlug grunted in response.
"Well, how about your favorite limestone-and-slate soup?" Fishlegs asked.
Then Meatlug turned towards the cauldron of oatmeal heating over the hearth and began walking towards it.
"Hold on, girl, that's my breakfast," Fishlegs said, gently pulling her away.
The Gronckle whined and looked at him with puppy-dog eyes.
Fishlegs chuckled. "Well, if you wanted oatmeal, you should've just asked. Uh, if you could speak human that is. Well, good thing I've got an extra cauldron to heat up."
Fishlegs grabbed the spare cauldron and placed it on the table. He picked up the pitcher of yak milk and poured it into the cauldron, followed by a few cups of dried oats.
"And once my oatmeal is all finished, I'll heat up yours," Fishlegs said, pointing to the spare cauldron.
Suddenly, Meatlug stood up on her hind legs and placed her front paws on the table. She gripped the rim of the spare cauldron between her teeth, lifted her head up so that the milk and oats slid out of the cauldron and into her mouth. Then she placed the cauldron back onto the table and smacked her lips. Fishlegs watched the entire spectacle with wide eyes and mouth agape.
"Wow, I know some people prefer to eat their oatmeal hot, warm or cold but you're the first dragon I've seen to eat oatmeal raw."
Meatlug just smiled her dragon smile.
"Well, my oatmeal seems to be about done. After I eat, we'll go flying."
…
Just as promised, after breakfast was all over, Fishlegs and Meatlug soared over their continually-growing town. What was once just a small village made up of small, wooden huts for humans was now practically a city of both huts for humans and tall, colorful shelters and stables for all the dragons.
The dragons residing in the shelters and stables came in three groups: the first group consisted of the dragons that had once resided at the nest of the Red Death before Hiccup and Toothless had defeated her. The second group of dragons was made up of the ones that Valka Haddock had rescued during the twenty years she had spent away. And the third group was the dragons that he and the Dragon Riders had been rescuing recently from a trio of Warlords: Griselda the Grevious, Ragnar the Rock and Chaghatai Khan.
Meatlug's wings flapped rapidly as she carried Fishlegs through the crowds of dragons. Fishlegs smiled proudly as he observed their surroundings.
"We sure did a good job building this dragon-Viking utopia and rescuing all those poor helpless dragons, girl," he said proudly. "Well, uh, the utopia was Hiccup's idea of course. We just helped."
Meatlug nodded proudly and flew over to a group of Gronckles.
"Hey, look, girl," Fishlegs said, pointing to a red male Gronckle. "There's Fishlug, the male dragon you've been playing with lately. Hi, Fishlug!"
Fishlug the red Gronckle growled out a greeting. Meatlug growled a greeting back to him. Then suddenly, she groaned.
"Meatlug?" Fishlegs asked worriedly, patting his dragon's head. "What's wrong, girl?"
Meatlug's eyes suddenly widened and she turned away from the Gronckle herd and started flying off towards the ocean.
"Woah! Where are you going girl?!" Fishlegs exclaimed.
Looking as though she was holding her breath, Meatlug just kept flying and flying until they right over the seawater, a good distance away from the town, people and dragons. And then she let it out – a mixture of lava and raw oatmeal streamed out of her mouth and it all fell right into the water. Even from high above, Fishlegs could see the steam rising up from where the lava had it the water.
"Uh, maybe letting you eat that raw oatmeal was a mistake," Fishlegs said uncertainly. "But at least you were smart enough to do that over the ocean and…not…" His face slowly turned green as he tried to finish. "And not…over the people…and the…and the dragons."
His eyes bulged as he placed a hand over his mouth and while clutching the handle of Meatlug's saddle, he leaned over the side of her and vomited as well.
…
Later that evening, Fishlegs went into the barn behind his house carrying a pie dish filled with pebbles. After Meatlug's unexpected vomiting that morning, Fishlegs had insisted that she spent the rest of the day resting which was fine for the Gronckle as she didn't feel herself after that.
"Dinner's ready, Meatlug," he announced as he pushed open the barn door with his foot. "I hope your appetite has returned because I made you another one of your favorites: pebble pie!"
He out out the pie dish with a big smile which immediately faded when he saw Meatlug lying on her belly, her tongue hanging out and groaning.
"Hey, girl," he said, walking over to her. "I thought you'd be feeling better by now. What's wrong?"
He placed the pie dish down and he lifted her eyelids. Her yellow eyes looked bleary and unfocused.
"Uh, how about some pebble pie?" Fishlegs asked, pushing the pie dish towards her.
But Meatlug only groaned and rolled over onto her side.
"Oh, I knew I shouldn't have let you eat that raw oatmeal!" Fishlegs exclaimed, nearly panicking. "What was I thinking?! Okay, Fishlegs, don't panic. Deep breaths." He took said deep breaths. "I'll get Hiccup and his mom and then I'll get Gobber. No, no, no. A sick dragon shouldn't be left alone. I know! I send them messages via Terror Mail."
Running back into his house, he grabbed some pieces of parchment paper and a charcoal stick and hurried back to the barn. Once inside, he placed one parchment on the floor and wrote down the first message in ancient Viking runes:
Dear Hiccup…
Then remembering his manners, Fishlegs scratched out the first two words and wrote…
Dear CHIEF Hiccup, Meatlug is sick. Please come at once and bring your mother with you. She's the best dragon expert there is. Next to you and me of course. Fishlegs.
Then he placed another piece of parchment on the floor and wrote down the second message:
Dear Gobber, Meatlug is sick from eating raw oatmeal. Please come over and make sure it didn't give her a toothache. Thanks, Fishlegs.
He rolled the two small pieces of parchment containing the messages, brought his fingers to his lips and whistled.
"Here, Iggy!" he called.
An orange Terrible Terror fluttered into the barn and landed right beside Fishlegs who hurried handed him the two rolled-up pieces of parchment.
"Take one to Gobber and then the other to Hiccup," he ordered. "You know where they live."
Iggy chirped and clasped the rolled parchments one for both feet and fluttered out the barn.
Meatlug groaned again. Fishlegs approached his Gronckle and patted her head.
"Easy, girl," he said, trying his best to sound reassuring. "Help is coming."
…
Within ten minutes, Gobber, Hiccup, Toothless and Valka, along with Astrid and Stormfly had arrived at Fishlegs' barn. And now the five humans and Night Fury and Deadly Nadder were surrounding the sick Gronckle.
It was no surprise to Fishlegs that Astrid and Stormfly had arrived along with Hiccup, Toothless and Valka. Ever since they started their relationship, Hiccup and Astrid had been doing everything together – flying dragons, having meals, practicing combat and…well, everything else. According to Hiccup, he and Astrid were in the middle of sharing dinner together when Iggy had arrived at his house.
"Plus, she and mom were having some girl time," Hiccup had explained.
"Yeah, ever since she returned to Berk, Valka and I have been getting acquainted with one another," Astrid said. "Weren't we, Valka?"
"Oh, yes," Valka said, nodding. "I just love having talks with my son's wife-to-be."
"Mom!" Hiccup exclaimed, blushing.
"Just kidding," Valka assured her son.
"I hope not," Gobber said. "These two are meant for each other."
"Uh, don't mean to change the subject but can we please focus on my sick dragon, here?" Fishlegs asked.
"Right," Gobber said. "All right, Val, let's get down to business."
So Valka took the business of checking Meatlug's vitals while Gobber examined her teeth and gums. Fishlegs, Hiccup, Astrid, Toothless and Stormfly just watched.
"Well, her eyes are a wee bit bleary and her breathing sounds labored but her pulse is normal," Valka announced.
"And so far I see no rotting teeth or swollen gums," Gobber said, as he gently tapped the tip of his hooked arm against the Gronckle's teeth. "So you're saying that she got sick just from eating raw oatmeal?"
"Yeah," Fishlegs announced. "She refused to eat the rock salad I made her for breakfast. I asked her if she wanted limestone-and-shale soup instead but she didn't want that either."
"Meatlug refusing all of her favorites? That's odd," Hiccup remarked.
"Yeah," Fishlegs agreed. "Then she tried to eat my oatmeal but I pulled her away from it so I decided to make some more. But before I could even heat it up, she swallowed it up – dried oats and milk and all."
"Wow, who ever heard of someone eating raw, unheated oatmeal," Astrid commented.
"And then we went flying and we said hello to some of the Gronckles including Fishlug," Fishlegs went on.
"Who?" Hiccup, Astrid, Valka and Gobber all asked in unison.
"Fishlug, a red male Gronckle Meatlug played with a few days ago," Fishlegs explained. Then he added proudly, "I gave him the name."
"I see," Gobber said.
"And that's when she threw up," Fishlegs continued. "Well, she threw up in the ocean not on any people or dragons."
"Yeah, unlike some wild dragons," Gobber muttered.
"So I brought her back to the barn to let her rest until she was feeling better," Fishlegs continued. "Then I made her a pebble pie and brought it in here and that's when I found her looking so ill. So I grabbed some parchment and a charcoal stick to write…"
"Okay, Fishlegs, we know the rest of the story," Astrid said, holding up a hand.
"Hmm," Valka murmured, pressing a hand against Meatlug's belly.
"What is it, Mom?" Hiccup asked.
"Is it bad?" Fishlegs asked worriedly.
Toothless and Stormfly both grunted curiously.
"I feel something from within Meatlug's abdomen," Valka declared.
"It's probably the remaining oatmeal she didn't vomit," Fishlegs guessed.
"No, not oatmeal," Valka said. "It's something else."
"Like what?" Fishlegs asked anxiously.
"You said she wouldn't eat any of the foods you offered her except the oatmeal," Valka said.
"That's what I said," Fishlegs said.
"And was it still morning when she threw up after that?" Valka asked.
"Yes," Fishlegs answered.
"And she's currently so tired," Gobber said.
"Yes, yes!" Fishlegs said, sweat dripping from his forehead.
Valka and Gobber looked at each other with knowing smiles.
"My memory may not be as sharp as it used to be, Val, but weren't you the same way when…you know?" Gobber pointed out.
"Oh, yes, yes, I was," Valka said.
"Was what?!" Fishlegs asked.
"And I've seen the same kind of behavior with some of the females dragons back at my sanctuary," Valka added.
"What behavior?!" Fishlegs demanded.
"Relax, Legs, it's nothing to worry about," Hiccup said calmly, patting his friend's pudgy shoulder.
"It's not?" Fishlegs asked.
"Of course not," Astrid said.
"I should think not," Gobber said. "You did say that Meatlug's been hanging around a male Gronckle lately, right?"
"Yes, Fishlug, but what does that have to do with anything?" Fishlegs asked.
"Oh, honestly, Fishlegs, I would think that you of all people would put the two and two together," Astrid said, shaking her head. "Especially when Meatlug's been through this phase already."
"Already?" Fishlegs echoed.
He began putting the two and two together as Astrid put it and after a moment his eyes bulged like mini grapefruits.
"You mean…?"
Hiccup and Astrid nodded.
"And she's…?"
Valka and Gobber also nodded.
The color drained from Fishleg's face.
"Oh. My. Thor."
And he fainted.
Startled, Toothless and Stormfly took a few steps back.
"Fishlegs!" Hiccup, Astrid and Valka exclaimed.
In spite of her lethargy, Meatlug let out a concerned grunt.
"All right, calm down, everyone," Gobber said calmly. "I know what he needs."
The blacksmith picked up a bucket full of water that was sitting nearby and poured it over Fishleg's round face. Instantly, Fishlegs sputtered and coughed as he sat up straight.
"Huh? What happened?" he said rapidly.
"We just told you your dragon's having a happy event," Gobber said, matter-of-factly.
Fishlegs' eyes widened and he fainted again.
Gobber groaned in annoyance.
"I'll handle this," Astrid offered. "You all might want to plug your ears."
Nodding, Hiccup, Valka and Gobber put their hands (and/or hook in Gobber's case) over their ears. Toothless lowered his head and put his paws over his ears. Stormfly just stood still watching her Rider, as if she knew what to expect. Then Astrid knelt beside Fishlegs and leaned her head close so that her mouth was close to his ear.
"WAKE UP!"
Again, Fishlegs bolted upright with bulging eyes and a wide open mouth letting out a startled cry. Then he rubbed his ear.
"I think my ears are ringing," he said.
"Good, then you should have some trouble hearing as we announce, for the second time, that your dragon's expecting," said Gobber, deadpan.
"Actually, I still can hear you," Fishlegs said.
"Then I'd better fetch another bucket of water in case you're about to faint again," Gobber said.
"Or I could scream in your ear again," Astrid offered.
"No, no, please," Fishlegs pleaded. Then he smiled. "Meatlug's about to lay eggs? Again."
"Again," Gobber said, still deadpan.
Fishlegs squealed, approached Meatlug and wrapped his arms around her head.
"Oh, girl, I'm sorry I didn't realize before…again," Fishlegs said, half-excited about the upcoming happy event and half-embarrassed of thinking she was a boy from the time they had first met. "You're going to be a mother! Again!"
"Again?" Valka asked, amused.
"Yeah, Mom, remember when we told you about our first Snoggletog with the dragons?" Hiccup reminded her.
"Oh, yes, now I remember," Valka said.
"Yeah, Astrid and the gang found Meatlug's first clutch of eggs and it was her idea to present them as Snoggletog gifts," Hiccup explained.
"Only to have half the village explode into flames," Gobber added.
"Ugh, don't remind me," Astrid said, embarrassed.
"It's all right, Astrid," Fishlegs assured her. "None of us knew back then that dragon eggs hatch by exploding."
"And the ones that Meatlug will lay soon are sure to explode as well," Gobber pointed out.
"Which gives me an idea of what to do about it," Hiccup announced.
"Let's hear it, Chief," Gobber said.
"You got yourself a water trough, Fishlegs?" Hiccup asked.
"Yeah, it's right there in the corner," Fishlegs said, pointing to the metal trough in the corner.
Hiccup approached the trough and ran his fingers against the metal.
"Looks firm enough," he muttered.
"Firm enough for what?" Astrid asked.
"To keep from bursting open when the eggs hatch," Hiccup replied.
Fishlegs looked horrified. "You want to put Meatlug's eggs underwater?!"
"Yeah," Hiccup said, matter-of-factly. "When Meatlug took me to the rookery where our dragons laid their eggs, I watched a mother Gronckle push her eggs into a hot spring where they would hatch without anyone getting blown away."
"A lot of the mother dragons back at my ice cave did the same thing," Valka said. "They too pushed their eggs into the water so they would hatch without anyone getting hurt."
"And none of those baby dragons drowned?" Fishlegs asked anxiously.
"No," Hiccup said.
"Of course not," Valka said at the same time.
"If those baby dragons were smart enough to swim to the surface after hatching, I'm sure Meatlug's babies will be smart enough to do that too, Fishlegs," Astrid said reassuringly.
"Oh, good," Fishlegs sighed in relief. Then he squealed. "Oh, this is so exciting. Meatlug's gonna lay more eggs!"
"Oh yes, even more dragons to clean up after and eat us all out of house and home," Gobber said sarcastically.
"I can do all that," Fishlegs insisted. "The rest of you don't have to lift a finger."
"I should hope not," Gobber said. "They're your baby dragons, not ours."
"Oh, there's so much to do and so little time," Fishlegs said, bouncing with excitement. "I gotta send messages to the rest of the friends and family. I gotta make sure the trough is filled with water for when the eggs hatch. Oh, and I should get warm blankets for when they get cold."
"Why don't you start by washing the pie dish that your dragon is currently emptying?" Gobber said, pointing to Meatlug who was licking up the last of the pebbles from the pie dish.
…
Two nights later, Fishlegs was sitting outside the barn with quite an audience. The audience included Hiccup, Toothless, Astrid, Stormfly, Valka, Gobber, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Barf and Belch, Snotlout, Hookfang and the three Dragon Explorer children, Brenda, Brant and Shrug (who also happened to be his niece and nephews). The whole reason they were all outside the barn and not inside was because Valka insisted that Meatlug needed some privacy as she was getting ready to lay her eggs.
"When's Meatlug gonna lay her eggs, Fishlegs?" Brenda asked excitedly.
"Hopefully tonight, Brenda," Fishlegs answered, also excitedly.
"I hope so," Snotlout said annoyed. "You've been making us wait for hours just to watch your lazy old dragon puke out some eggs like all moms puke out their babies."
"Moms don't puke out their babies," Ruffnut spoke up.
"And how would you know?" Snotlout asked.
"Because I happen to be a woman and though I never had any babies, Mom did explain it to me as soon as I was old enough to understand," Ruffnut said proudly. "All babies obviously come out of their moms through their…"
"Here, have some snacks," Gobber interrupted, handing out a small wooden bowl of berries and nuts. "Can't watch an egg-laying show without snacks."
"But we're not watching eggs being laid," Brant pointed out.
"The kid's right," Tuffnut said. "We're just watching closed barn doors with some light from a lantern shining through it."
"Couldn't we just take a tiny peek, Uncle Fishlegs, please?" Brenda pleaded.
"Please," Shrug muttered through his long blonde hair.
"I wish we could," Fishlegs said. "But as the Chief's mom says, Meatlug needs her privacy and as her Rider, I intend to give her some privacy. Once the eggs had been laid, Meatlug will let us know."
"Well, she'd better let us know soon because Hookfang's started to get cranky," Snotlout said, looking over at the pacing, grumbling red Nightmare.
"Hookfang's always cranky," Astrid pointed out.
"Shut up," Snotlout muttered.
"Well, we're all a bit tired and it is getting late," Hiccup said, stifling a yawn.
Toothless grunted in agreement before letting out his own yawn.
"Why don't we see if anything happens in the morning, Fishlegs?" Valka suggested, putting a hand to his shoulder.
"Wait, look!" Fishlegs announced, pointing at the door.
Everyone looked over towards the door with expected looks. Meatlug pushed the door open with her snout and glanced over at her audience with weariness etched in her yellow eyes but she was wagging her tail and hanging her tongue out in excitement.
"How are you feeling, girl?" Fishlegs asked excitedly.
Meatlug grunted in reply.
"Did you lay your eggs?" Fishlegs continued.
Meatlug gestured to follow and walked back into the barn.
"Come on, everyone," Fishlegs squealed. "Let's all see how many eggs my little princess laid this time!"
"All right, Fishlegs, we're coming," Hiccup said, looking equally excited.
"Aye, Fishlegs, keep your skivvies on," Gobber added.
With Fishlegs in the lead, everyone poured into the barn.
"Now, let's not try to get too close to the eggs, Fishlegs," Valka advised gently. "All mothers are very protective of their young and I made sure to give the mother dragons and their eggs back at my sanctuary a little space."
"All right, Valka, but I'm sure Meatlug won't mind me getting a little close," Fishlegs said, still shaking with anticipation. "I'm her Rider after all." He approached his brown Gronckle who stood near a pile of hay. "All right, girl, let's see them. Let's see them all!"
Meatlug nodded and gently dug through the hay with her paws until she revealed…a single egg. It was twice the size of chicken eggs, oval in shape, bumpy in texture and blue in color.
"Okay, that's egg number one," Fishlegs observed. "Let's see the rest, girl."
But Meatlug just sat upon her haunches looking mighty proud of herself and that egg.
"Uh, girl, can we pretty please see how many more eggs you laid," Fishlegs asked politely.
But Meatlug only glanced at her egg and then glanced back at her Rider.
Smiling uncertainly at his friends, Fishlegs held up a finger. "One second, everyone."
Kneeling down beside the hay, he gently pawed through the straw careful not to touch the single egg. But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn't find another solitary egg in the hay.
"Huh," he muttered. Then looking back at his friends, he shrugged. "I guess she just laid that one egg."
"That's it?!" Snotlout said, throwing his hands up in frustration. "You kept us waiting outside in the freezing cold for six whole hours and being careful around hundreds of flying dragons so that they didn't land their droppings on us only to find that your lazy Gronckle laid one egg?! One…single…egg?!"
"Yeah, and last time, she laid about a hundred eggs!" Ruffnut added.
"Actually, it was thirteen," Fishlegs corrected her. "Definitely thirteen."
"And you know that how?" Ruffnut asked.
"Because I counted them all very, very carefully," Fishlegs replied. He looked back to the single egg. "And that was almost six Snoggletogs ago." He sighed half-heartedly. "I guess the older dragons grow, the less eggs they lay." He cracked a smile at Meatlug. "No offense, of course, girl. You'll always be young to me."
Meatlug growled appreciatively.
Fishlegs' face fell slightly as he looked back at the blue, bumpy egg. As much as he admired that single egg, he was slightly saddened that there weren't more eggs than he had hoped for. Hiccup and Valka approached him with sympathetic looks.
"I know you wished for more baby Gronckles than that Fishlegs," Valka said softly, putting a hand on Fishlegs' pudgy shoulder. "Believe me I know how you feel. Before we had Hiccup, Stoick and I dreamed of having three children…or four." She chuckled slightly before sadness crept into her light green eyes. "But the birth of Hiccup was so difficult that Gothi warned us not to have any more children in order to avoid further complications after that."
"And before Toothless, I spent most of my childhood not only wishing I still had a mom but also brothers and sisters," Hiccup added.
"But Stoick and I were thankful that we had at least one child instead of no children at all and I am still grateful for my only son," Valka said, smiling proudly at her son.
"And I'm thankful that I still have my mom and all of my friends," Hiccup said, gesturing to the rest of the audience.
Astrid blushed at her beau and added, "And if you ask me I think Meatlug looks just as thankful for laying one egg instead of none."
"Indeed," Gobber said. "I'm thankful there's only gonna be one baby dragon to clean up after and eat us out of house and home."
Fishlegs cracked a smile as he stared gratefully at his friends and family. Then he turned to Meatlug. "Well, Meatlug, if you're thankful that you're having only one hatchling, then I guess I'm thankful too." He wrapped his arms around the Gronckle in a tight embrace. "Thank you."
Meatlug licked his face in return.
"Awww!" Brenda and Brant squealed.
Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Snotlout made gagging noises and putting their fingers to their tongues hanging out.
…
Gronckle eggs took about three to four days to hatch. Fishlegs knew that because that was how long the dragons were away that first Snoggletog the Berkians celebrated with them. He had spent the first three days making preparations for the hatching. He had collected and made sure there were enough small, bite-sized pebbles and fish for the new baby Gronckle to eat and he filled Meatlug's metal trough with warm water. And Meatlug had spent those three days guarding and warming up her little egg.
Finally, the fourth day arrived and once again, Fishlegs had invited all his friends and family to watch the rapidly approaching hatching of Meatlug's new baby. And this time, Fishlegs, Hiccup, Toothless, Astrid, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Snotlout, Valka, Gobber, Brenda, Brant and Shrug all stood inside the barn a couple of feet away from Meatlug, the egg in the hay and the water trough. Valka still insisted that the Gronckle mother and child still needed some space.
Snotlout obviously wasn't happy that he had to wait another few hours again for something that he did not want to be around for.
"But anything's better than cleaning out the stables," he admitted. Shooting an annoyed look at Hiccup he added, "And I've been doing more cleaning up in those stables lately thanks to all those dragons you've been making us hoard every week."
"Well at least, they're well protected here from those warlords and their hunters out there," Hiccup insisted.
"Well, he's not half-wrong about more cleaning up in the stables," Gobber said reasonably.
"Shhh! I think something's happening," Brenda whispered enthusiastically
Everyone looked up as Meatlug gingerly picked up her egg between her teeth from the hay and carried it over to the trough. Ever so carefully, she placed the egg in the water before releasing it. From where he stood, Fishlegs watched the egg sink from the surface and stood on his tiptoes hoping to see the egg reach the bottom.
"I can't see the egg anymore," he said. "Maybe I should just take a closer look just to be sure it didn't crack open or anything."
"Fishlegs, relax," Astrid said. "I'm sure the egg is still in one piece."
"And the baby Gronckle is not gonna drown," Tuffnut added. "It's inside the shell all snug and safe."
"Yeah, but it would drown once it's outside the shell," Fishlegs pointed out.
"The baby will swim right up to the surface once it hatches," Valka reassured him.
"But what if the baby turns out to be a poor swimmer and it doesn't find its way to the surface?" Fishlegs fretted. "Then it will drown and it will never get to see the world it was born into and Meatlug will be childless and…"
Gobber stopped Fishlegs' worrying by gently rapping him on the head with the side of his hooked arm.
"I'm sure the baby will be a good swimmer and go up for air," Fishlegs said confidently. "It's in its instincts after all."
"That's better," the blacksmith muttered.
"And now we wait," Hiccup said.
"Well, we better not be waiting for long," Snotlout said. "I have better things to do than sit around and waiting for an egg to hatch."
"Like what? Kissing your own reflection in the mirror?" Ruffnut teased.
"I don't kiss my reflection," Snotlout insisted.
"Sure you do," Astrid said. "I've seen you do it in all the years I've known you."
"I wasn't kissing, I was just…rubbing my lips against the glass," Snotlout said.
"Sure looked like kissing to me," Ruffnut taunted.
"It was not kissing, I'm telling you!" Snotlout shouted.
"Kissy, kissy, kissy," Ruffnut said in a baby voice.
"If you don't stop that, I'll…" Snotlout started.
"Look, everyone! At the trough!" Fishlegs cried, grinning from ear to ear.
Everyone turned to the trough. The water was bubbling like crazy as an orange glow came from the bottom of the trough. Meatlug glanced over a bit to look into the water before stepping back and then…
GUSH!
A small geyser of water splashed out on either side of the metal trough and the orange glow extinguished.
Then the water was still.
Everyone looked expectedly at the trough and Meatlug approached it with wide eyes.
A small clawed paw emerged from the water and clutched the edge of the trough.
Everyone gasped.
Another small paw gripped the edge followed by a pair of pointed ears, a pair of big yellow eyes and a tank-like mouth. The baby Gronckle struggled as it tried to climb out of the trough.
"That's it, that's it," Fishlegs muttered excitedly.
"Come on, little guy, come on," Hiccup also muttered, equally excited.
Meatlug gently placed her teeth at the scruff of her new baby's neck and helped it over the edge. The baby Gronckle fell over and landed on its back with a grunt, waving its stumpy legs in the air. Its scales were light brown in color just like its mother's.
"Awwww!" the humans said, their faces fawning over the newborn baby dragon.
Meatlug nudged the side of her baby with her snout and flipped it onto its belly. The baby Gronckle looked up at its mother with its big yellow eyes and then it stretched out its legs and let out a yawn. Meatlug purred affectionately and nuzzled her baby's snout with her own.
"Awwww," everyone said again.
The tiny Gronckle opened its mouth again and this time it let out…
…a series of shrill, ear-shattering cries.
Everyone minus Valka and Meatlug placed their hands (or paws in Toothless' case) over their ears, shut their eyes tightly and groaned through their clenched teeth.
"Ah, it's louder than your snores, Ruffnut," Tuffnut complained.
"My snores?! It's louder than your snores and my snores combined!" Ruffnut whined.
"Gods! What is wrong with that baby?!" Snotlout grumbled.
"Oh, no!" Fishlegs shouted, suddenly worried. "It must be terribly sick or something just like Hiccup was when he was born."
Taking his hands away from his ears, Fishlegs hurried over and picked up the crying Gronckle baby, cradling it in his arms.
"What's the matter, little fella, huh?" he asked over the shrill cries.
The baby Gronckle only squirmed in his arms and continued crying. Panic rising, Fishlegs approached Hiccup.
"Chief! Chief! We gotta do something!"
"Okay, Fishlegs, try not to panic," Hiccup said, trying to sound calm.
"How can I not panic when there must be something seriously wrong with my dragon's brand new baby?!" He turned to Valka. "Valka, you spent twenty whole years rescuing sick and injured dragons! Do something please!"
"Calm down, Fishlegs," said Valka calmly. "Look, Meatlug's taking care of the whole problem."
"Huh?" Fishlegs said looking over.
Meatlug was scooping some of the pebbles Fishlegs had collected in her mouth and was now approaching him.
"Meatlug, how can you think of food when your newborn baby might be seriously sick?!" Fishlegs asked, flabbergasted.
Meatlug placed the pile of pebbles at Fishlegs feet and then she gently scooped up her new baby with her teeth and placed it down beside the small rock pile. The moment it saw the pebbles laid out before it, the baby Gronckle instantly stopped crying. Its eyes widened and smiled a Gronckle smile and began to lap up the tiny rocks.
"See, Fishlegs? It was just hungry," Valka said with a smile.
"Oh, oh, yeah," Fishlegs smiled. "I forgot that babies cry when they're hungry."
"Yeah, just like Snotlout cries when he's hungry," Astrid said with a smirk.
"I don't cry when I'm hungry," Snotlout said.
"Maybe you don't cry like a baby but you sure whine pretty good when a meal's ten minutes late," Astrid teased.
"Shut up," Snotlout muttered.
"So I guess he's not sick after all," Fishlegs said, watching the baby Gronckle lap up the last few pebbles.
"But let me look over him anyway just to make sure he's not sick," Valka offered as she scooped up the baby brown dragon in her arms.
She gently pried the baby's mouth open with her fingers.
"Hmm, its gums seem to be in good shape judging by how soft and pink they look," she observed.
Then she examined its wings.
"Because its wings are so small, it may not fly such great heights or fight the strongest wind currents until it's at least six months old," she continued. "So Meatlug will have to carry him wherever she takes him until then."
"And I can help with the carrying," Fishlegs offered.
"And one other thing," Valka announced, looking under the baby's short, round tail.
"What?" everyone asked.
"It's a boy," Valka smiled.
"A boy? Oh ho ho ho, did you hear that, Meaty?" Fishlegs squealed. "You have a baby son!" Taking the baby back from Valka, he announced, "And I've already decided the perfect name for him."
"Oh, oh, let me guess!" Tuffnut said, waving his hand. "You're gonna name him Meatlug Junior. No, no, no, I know, it's Fishlegs Junior."
"Tuffnut, be quiet," Hiccup ordered.
"No, neither of those, but you're kind of close," Fishlegs said. "I've decided to combine my first name and Meatlug's first name into one."
"Oh, you're gonna name him Fishlegs-Meatlug?" Tuffnut asked.
"Tuff!" Astrid snapped.
"Sorry," Tuff muttered.
"His name is Fishmeat," Fishlegs announced.
"Fishmeat?" Ruffnut echoed.
"Yes, I think it suits him," Fishlegs said, laughing as Fishmeat pawed at his mustache.
"Yeah, I think so too, Fishlegs," Hiccup said. "All right, Fishmeat it is."
"Uncle Fishlegs, can we play with Fishmeat, please?" Brenda asked with big pleading eyes.
"Certainly," Fishlegs said kindly. "But gently though. He was just born after all."
Fishlegs placed Fishmeat in front of his niece and two nephews.
"Hi, Fishmeat," Brant greeted, holding out his hand.
Fishmeat licked Brant's hand with his short, slimy tongue making Brant laugh. Brenda also laughed as he scratched Fishmeat behind the ears which made him wag his small tail. Even Shrug placed rubbed a hand against Fishmeat's belly.
"You know, he is kind of cute for yet another dragon who'll eat us out of house and home and need cleaning up after," Gobber admitted.
"You got that right," Snotlout muttered. "And I am not gonna be the one who'll clean up after him."
"You won't have to lift a finger, Snotlout," Fishlegs assured his friend. "Because I'm gonna do all of that. I'll wash him, feed him, play with him and I'll even take him with me when we go out rescuing more dragons from those awful Warlords."
"I don't know about that last part, Fishlegs," Hiccup said. "Rescuing dragons can be pretty dangerous. Maybe you should find a babysitter for Fishmeat when we do go out again."
Fishlegs laughed. "Are you kidding, Hiccup? I'm not leaving Fishmeat with anyone else. No one's taking care of him but me!"
Meatlug grunted a reminder to her Rider.
"And you too, girl," Fishlegs said.
"Well, at least think about it," Hiccup advised.
Brenda and Brant laughed as they and Shrug rubbed Fishmeat's belly.
"He looks just like Meatlug, Uncle Fishlegs," Brenda said.
"Uh-huh, he certainly has inherited her eyes and her scales," Fishlegs agreed.
Just then Fishmeat emitted the unforgettable sound of flatulence and everyone covered their mouths and noses.
"Ugh, he also inherited her gas," Snotlout complained.
"Heh, heh heh," Fishlegs chuckled sheepishly.
"Well, welcome to Berk, Fishmeat," Hiccup said.
Fishlegs nodded. "Yeah. Welcome, Fishmeat."
…
P.S. Fishlegs' niece and nephews appear in Race to the Edge episode "Loyal Order of Ingerman."
Stay tuned for June's story! That one will focus on the Haddock children!