First Contact Chapter 8
WHAT SHOULD I TELL DAD?
Once more, Valka didn't know what to say. "Do you have to tell him about me at all?" she finally asked. "It might be better to keep me... sort of a secret, until I'm ready to face him."
YOU CAN'T ASK ME TO LIE
TO MY OWN FATHER.
HE CAN ALWAYS TELL
WHEN I'M KEEPING THINGS
FROM HIM ANYWAY
"You're right, of course. All right. Tell him, 'Through all life's sorrows and delights, I'll keep your love beside me.' He'll know what that means. But then tell him, 'Someday soon.' " She sighed deeply and looked at the ground. "I don't know when. It's going to be hard. He's still a human, right? You're the only dragon in the immediate family?" Hiccup laughed his deep Night Fury laugh and nodded.
"There have been so many changes," she went on. "I feel like I'm just the way I was eighteen years ago, but everyone I ever knew has been changing, and I never knew it. And yet... you've somehow become the son I always hoped you would be. You're brave, you're strong, you've made peace with the dragons, and... all this time, you took after me!" She hugged him again. Hiccup was moved, but he really needed an answer to the big issue that was on his mind.
DAD IS GOING TO WANT TO
COME HERE AS SOON AS HE
KNOWS YOU'RE ALIVE
"Yes, I know he will. But how can I explain to him that I can't come home? This is my home now." She gestured at the dragons who were flying all around and above them. "These are my people. They need me. I fit in here better than I ever did at Berk; even more so, once I learn how to talk to the dragons. Can you explain that to him?"
I CAN EXPLAIN IT, BUT
I'LL NEVER CONVINCE HIM
She sighed. "You're right about that, I'm sure. So I should expect a visitor when the next batch of Forge-language instructors arrive? And a big emotional scene, and a confrontation, and lots of Viking-style bellowing and demands and giving orders?"
MOM, WHY WILL IT BE SO HARD
FOR YOU TO COME TO BERK?
IT'S FULL OF DRAGONS NOW,
REMEMBER?
"I keep forgetting that. But it sounds like you and your other Night Furies have things well under control in Berk. You don't actually need me, not like these dragons need me. Shouldn't I stay where I'm needed the most?
YES, AND YOU'RE NEEDED THE MOST
IN BERK. WE CAN BRING IN VIKINGS
TO BREAK UP DRAGON TRAPS; WE
CAN EVEN BRING IN GOTHI TO
"Gothi's still alive?" Valka interrupted excitedly. "She was my midwife when you were born!"
YES, AND SHE'S BECOME A
DRAGON HEALER AS WELL AS A
VIKING HEALER. SHE COULD
DOCTOR THE HURT DRAGONS.
OTHERS CAN DO ALL THAT STUFF.
BUT DAD HAS ONLY ONE WIFE
AND I HAVE ONLY ONE MOTHER
She stared at his runes in silence for nearly a minute. Finally, she looked at him with those eyes that looked so much like his own. "Hiccup... when you're right... you're right. I'm being selfish. I owe a lot to these dragons, but I owe my husband and my son a lot more, especially because of all the time I've lost. But what about Cloudjumper? I don't think he'll want to leave my side, but he plays a big role in this nest as well. The Alpha may not be willing to let him go."
WE'VE ALREADY GOT A ROTATING
NIGHT-FURY SCHEDULE WITH THE
MOUNTAIN-LAKE NEST. WE CAN
DO SOMETHING SIMILAR HERE.
EVERY WEEK, WE'LL SEND A
DIFFERENT NIGHT FURY TO KEEP
ORDER AND HELP THE ALPHA, TO
TAKE CLOUDJUMPER'S PLACE,
AND TEACH FORGE.
WOULD THE KING AGREE TO THAT?
"Hmm... he might. I still can't talk to him, so you'd have to ask him, but it sounds reasonable."
YOU AND CLOUDJUMPER COULD
BE PART OF THAT ROTATION,
YOU KNOW. YOU COULD SPEND
ONE WEEK A MONTH HERE, AND
THE REST OF THE TIME IN BERK
WHILE THE NIGHT FURIES
COVER FOR YOU HERE
"Hiccup, I think you might have figured out the answer! I know I could live with that. But do you have enough Night Furies to take on a project like that?"
ASTRID, TOOTHLESS, GUANA,
AND I ARE FULL ADULTS.
BANG AND SIX ARE ALMOST FULL-
GROWN AND VERY MATURE.
AGMUNDR AND AGNARR TOGETHER
MAKE AN AMAZING PAIR.
FULL-OF-SURPRISES AND THE
EASTERN DRAGONS ARE GROWING
AND LEARNING FAST.
I THINK WE CAN HANDLE IT
"All you can do is ask the King. I've made myself his willing subject, so if he orders me to stay, then I have to stay."
About a minute later, Hiccup was bowing before the King, who was settling down for a nap after the day's feeding. "Great One, may I ask a favor of you?"
The huge eyes opened and focused on him. "I thought you were preparing to leave."
"We were, Great One, but we had a thought. We're asking if my mother and Stormcutter-brown-likes-the-female-human could live in my nest for three weeks out of four, while one or two of our Night Furies take their place here."
"You're suggesting a permanent, rotating exchange of dragons?" the Alpha rumbled. "Why?"
"My mother has realized that her mate will want to see her, once he finds out she's still alive. The Stormcutter will probably want to stay with her. They are close. We understand that they are both important in the running of your kingdom, and we're willing to cover for them while they're away."
"They are, indeed, close," the Alpha said thoughtfully. "One problem with your offer is that it leaves my nest without someone who can open the human snares and free the trapped dragons. I've grown used to the help that she can give. I am unwilling to put my realm in that position."
"I understand, Great One," Hiccup had to agree. "Wait... I know! In addition to one or two Night Furies, we can also send a human who's a dragon-friend and speaks Forge. Will that be acceptable?"
"It might be. Do you have authority over humans, to send them where you want?"
"I don't have that authority, Great One, but my father does. The humans I'm thinking of will be eager for the chance to visit a different nest and learn more about dragons. If they learn about this opportunity, it may be hard to hold them back."
"Indeed? Tell me about them."
"All right. The first one who comes to mind is Agnarr; I spoke of him earlier. His twin brother is now Night-fury-faithful-brother, and he has a close human/dragon bond with my son, Night-fury-makes-one-heck-of-a-bang. I could pair him with either of those dragons, and they'd make an effective team. He's very clever and inventive, and very good with tools.
"The second one is a young man named Fishlegs. He formed a close bond with a Gronckle named Meatlug, and played a big role in integrating the dragons into our village. He loves dragons and lives for dragon lore. To him, the chance to spend time in this nest would be like the human concept of Valhalla.
"The third one is my mate's brother, a young man named Varinn. He and his friends rescued some kidnapped baby Nadders and brought their kidnapper to justice; he's become something of a hero to the dragons in my nest. He's friends with a young dragon, Nadder-blue-needs-much-scrubbing, who is still too small to ride; he's good with his tools, very responsible, and if his parents permit it, he'd be a worthy addition to your nest for a week."
The Alpha looked thoughtful. "I can see the advantages in what you suggest. If it works out, then everyone involved will benefit. But I'm reluctant to let one of my most important subjects go without any guarantees that everything will work out. I'll make you this counter-offer: bring in your pairs of Night Furies and human friends for a week each, while my human female and my Stormcutter remain here. Your people will continue to teach Forge to those who want to learn it, and they will work beside my human as they learn about the traps and snares and the injured dragons. Once I've seen that your people can actually take my human's place, then and only then will I give her and the Stormcutter my permission to go for three weeks out of four. Will you accept this?"
Hiccup suddenly realized that the huge Alpha was negotiating with him as an equal. It took effort to keep talking. "That is acceptable, Great One. I'm leaving my daughter here as a Forge teacher. In four days, the first human/Night Fury pair will arrive, and you can evaluate them as they work and learn. Once you've met them all, I'll return here, and we'll decide if this... alliance... should go forward."
"Alliance?" the big one rumbled. "Yes, it is an alliance, isn't it? Our nests will be knit together by a common threat – the human dragon-trappers."
"If it please you, our nests are already knit together by a blood relationship," Hiccup answered. "I just want to tighten those bonds."
"Whether this alliance succeeds or not, I hope you succeed in tightening those bonds," the Bewilderbeast said kindly. "Fly safely and rule wisely. I look forward to meeting your teams of humans and dragons."
"Thank you, Great One. There is one more thing. My first team will likely be accompanied by my father. I mean my mother's mate. He will be desperate to reunite with her, once he learns that she is still alive. He accepts dragons but is not a dragon-friend; he may cause problems without meaning to. Will you permit this?"
The Alpha thought about it for a few seconds. "Will he listen if someone tries to teach him our ways?"
"I'm not sure, Great One. He has a long history of not listening."
"Then I'll assign him a place with the babies, who also listen to no one. Perhaps they can teach each other something." The Alpha was actually smiling. "As long as he doesn't fill my nest with disorder, I'll allow him to visit his mate here. If our alliance succeeds, he won't have to return after a month, because his mate will dwell with him in his nest for three weeks out of four; am I right?"
"You are, Great One. Thank you." The royal audience was over. They said their goodbyes to the dragons they'd met, explained the proposed new situation to Valka and the Stormcutter, reassured Night-fury-full-of-surprises that her relief would arrive in four days, and prepared to take flight for home.
"Wait!" came a familiar voice. It was Rumblehorn-green-and-red-walks-into-walls. "Is it true that dragons can come and go in your nest without fear of humans? No traps? No nets?"
"As long as we stay away from certain islands, we're perfectly safe, yes," Toothless answered. "Let me guess – you want to come with us?"
"Just for a day or two," the Rumblehorn said hopefully. "This is my home, and I never want to say goodbye to it, but it would be so amazing to live without fear for a day!"
"You'll have to catch your own fish, you know," Astrid warned him.
"Your Alpha doesn't feed you?" the Rumblehorn asked, surprised.
"Only when I'm about to lay an egg," Astrid smiled. At the Rumblehorn's stunned expression, she realized that the other dragons didn't understand how they did things in Berk. "New-night-fury, my mate, is the Alpha of the Berk nest, and Night-fury is the Alpha of the Dragon Island nest. Both of them keep order the Night Fury way, but feeding an entire flock of dragons isn't something they can do. Our nest is smaller than Toothless', and his nest doesn't have humans. Aside from that, you could take your choice. That's assuming your King will let you go, of course."
Another quick royal audience later, their homebound flight was back to four in number. "Let's go, before something else happens!" Toothless exclaimed, and they were on their way home at last.