Sorry for taking so long on such a short chapter. Work kept me busy and a bit of writer's block hit me with how I wanted to end the chapter. Without further ado chapter eight of Until the Ends of the Earth…
Four Years Later…
It was a beautiful day on the island of Berk, which was rare for the village. The sun was shining, birds were chirping, and there was not a cloud in the sky. For Ingrid Hofferson it was the perfect day for her to do laundry. With a basket in tow, she collected both her and Ivar's laundry before making her way to Astrid's room.
"Astrid dear it's laundry day!" Ingrid called to her daughter.
Ingrid waited for a moment, listening through the door for any sign of movement. After a couple of seconds, Ingrid knocked on the door and tried again.
"Astrid it's laundry day," she repeated to the closed door.
Still no reaction. Ingrid shook her head with a sigh and knocked on the door again, louder this time.
"Astrid Freya Hofferson get your ass up and get me your dirty clothes right now or so help me Odin you'll be doing the laundry by yourself!" she shouted.
Astrid still did not answer. Ingrid grumbled before taking matters into her own hands and opened the door.
"Astrid this is the-" Ingrid began shouting as the door opened to reveal Astrid missing from her room. Confused, Ingrid scanned the room for any evidence of her daughter's whereabouts. Nothing seemed out of place and Ingrid didn't have time for snooping. She groaned and shut the door behind her.
Ivar Hofferson was sitting at the table polishing his axe as Ingrid appeared on the stairs.
"Ivar have you seen Astrid?" Ingrid asked her husband.
"Afraid not, she was gone this morning. I went to ask her if she wanted to get breakfast at the hall. She was long gone by then, wherever she went," Ivar answered not looking from his work.
"Maybe she went to work, Ingrid thought aloud.
"It's possible but I think she's been skipping work. Not even Gobber is up that early," Ivar responded.
"Well then I'll go check with Gobber," Ingrid said.
Ingrid's walk to the forge was quick. As she approached she could hear Gobber shouting at someone.
"Avrid if ye want me ta sharpen yer sword ya have to pay me tha rest of the money ye owe me for makin' the thing in the first place!" Berk's blacksmith shouted at his customer.
"But Gobber what if the dragons come back or we encounter a Scauldron or a Thunderdrum?" Avrid pleaded.
"First off there hasn't been a raid in nearly four years. Second what good is a sword gonna do ya if you're getting boiled alive or forcibly going deaf?"
"But Gobber-"
"But Gobber nothing! Pay me what ye owe me or sharpen the sword yourself."
The short man grumbled before grabbing his weapon from the counter and walking away. Gobber shook his head at the man and quickly returned to work.
"I can see you're off to a lovely morning Gobber," Ingrid greeted.
"Ah the bastard owes me five more coins on tha' sword. Astrid and I made the thing a year ago and he still holding out on me," Gobber responded.
"Speaking of my wayward daughter," Ingrid began. "She wasn't at home this morning. I was wondering if she came to work?"
Gobber shook his head, "She isn't here. Probably off training or something."
"I can't understand why, there's nothing for her to fight. The last dragon we've seen was the Flightmare three years ago."
"Oh I remember tha, the thing got spooked off by the weirdest collection of dragons I'd ever seen. Ya'd think the beastie with such a legend around it would've put up more of a fight?"
"And Astrid was nowhere in sight to defend her honor and avenge her uncle, the dragon she trained for her all her life," Ingrid added.
"Eh perhaps Stoick scarred her off from dragon fighting," Gobber offered. Ingrid scoffed at that, her opinions of the Chief were well-known by Gobber at this point.
"I'll give that bastard of a piece of my mind one of these days," Ingrid told the Blacksmith. Ingrid exhaled slowly, calming herself down. "You sure she isn't here?" Ingrid asked again changing the subject.
"Nope," Gobber replied popping the p. "She'll turn up eventually, don't you worry."
High above the archipelago, a lone blue Deadly Nadder raced across the sky. The dragon was on a mission and was determined to reach its destination. On its back, the Nadder's rider was pressed flush against the dragon's saddle as the duo headed straight for a cluster of sea stacks. The pair easily avoided each rock as the two gained speed within the formation. The Nadder quickly emerged from the other end of the sea stacks and dashed towards a fog bank in front of them.
As the Nadder approached the fog it slowed to a stop. The dragon hovered over the water, its eyes scanning the fog cautiously. The woman on its back sat up straight and pulled back her hood to gather her surroundings.
"Look at that girl," she began as she fixed her braided blonde hair. "Edge of the archipelago and its not even midday yet! That has to be a new record Stormfly!" Astrid exclaimed.
Stormfly chirped in response which made Astrid laugh.
"I know girl, soon. The boys have avoided us for too long now. I just need a good excuse to leave Berk and we can chase after them."
Astrid sighed and looked towards the fog bank. This wasn't the first time the two came across it. Hiccup described it as the edge of what he considered to be the Barbaric Archipelago. Beyond it were uncharted lands for most Vikings. Astrid made it her goal ever since finding out where it was to fly out the fog bank as fast as possible. Sure Astrid might have been abandoning her duties but finding Hiccup was more important in her books.
Astrid adjusted her blue tunic and pulled her hood back over her head. She was close, so tantalizingly close but just like her duties to her tribe, the fog bank kept the pair within the island chain… for now at least.
"Let's go home girl, I bet they'll be missing me soon," Astrid told her dragon dejectedly.
The young woman took one last look at the fog. Astrid sighed and nudged Stormfly back towards Berk.
The flight back home was a quick and quiet affair. Stormfly flew close to the ocean as they approached the island; Astrid made it a habit to fly low every time she approached Berk during the day so the two wouldn't be spotted. Once they made it to the cliffs, Astrid and Stormfly quickly gained altitude before soaring over Berk's forests. The pair descended into the cove, the dragon landing on the shore of the lake. Astrid slid off of Stormfly's back and was quickly approached by Hookfang.
"Easy big guy, did Snotlout feed you today?" she asked the Nightmare.
The dragon grunted which meant no. Astrid groaned and made her way over to a pile of stones. Carefully Astrid lifted each stone with some help from Stormfly, revealing a basket of fish.
"Good thing we keep the extra on hand right girl," Astrid told the Nadder.
Stormfly squawked in agreement and helped Astrid lift the basket from the pit. Hookfang sauntered over to Astrid who tossed the basket of fish onto the ground which the Nightmare happily ate up.
"Snotlout needs to take better care of you. I'm not your rider, he is," Astrid thought aloud.
Hookfang paid her no attention, he was content with the food in front of him. Astrid shook her head and began walking towards the cove's exit. The shieldmaiden passed Meatlug lazily lounging on rock and Barf and Belch fighting over a fish one head caught from the lake. Astrid stifled a laugh at the Zippleback's antics and was about to enter the small passage before something grabbed her hood. She turned around and patted Stormfly on the side of her head.
"I know girl, I'll be back," she told the dragon.
Astrid reached under the dragon's jaw and scratched Stormfly's sweet spot causing the dragon to collapse. Smiling, Astrid turned around and exited the cove.
Astrid calmly entered the forge, hoping Gobber was too distracted by something to berate her for being late for work.
"Oi, where ye've been!?"
Busted.
"Yer late to work again!" Gobber reprimanded Astrid.
"I know," Astrid answered. "I lost track of time I'm sorry."
"'Lost track of time' my ass. You were out flying yer dragon weren't ye?" Gobber pressured.
"And that matters why?" Astrid replied as she put on an apron.
"People are gonna start wondering where ye are during the day. Yer mother came by looking for you and I had to cover for you… again."
"What does it matter Gobber? So I'm gone for a few hours in the morning and at night, big deal. Besides I'm not a kid anymore, I'm almost nineteen years old," Astrid told the blacksmith as she grabbed a dulled sword from a pile of weapons.
"You still have responsibilities, Astrid," Gobber explained. "Not just work but to yer tribe as well. If someone goes out looking for ye, they're bound to find the beasties."
"It's never happened and it never will," Astrid responded.
"And how do ye know that?" Gobber asked.
"It won't Gobber."
"That doesn't answer my question. Gods 'Iccup is starting to rub off ye," Gobber muttered. "So how far did ye make it this time?"
Astrid immediately brightened up, "We made it to the edge of the Archipelago before midday!"
"Impressive."
"It's the fastest we've ever gotten there, I think if we-"
"There you are!"
Astrid winced at the sound of an angry Ingrid Hofferson storming up to the forge.
"Yer turn," Gobber simply told her as he walked away with a whistle.
Astrid pulled the sword off the sharpening wheel and turned to greet her mother.
"Hi Mom, how can-"
"Where were you!?" Ingrid demanded.
"I was training in the woods, then I came to work," Astrid answered.
Ingrid didn't respond, rather she eyed her daughter with mistrust. Astrid simply met her mother's gaze, hoping she wouldn't see through her lie.
"I've been looking all over for you," Ingrid finally said. "When you are done here you can come home and do your laundry."
"I will once Gobber says I can go home," Astrid reasoned.
"Eh it's been slow today lass, go do your chores," Gobber told Astrid.
Astrid sighed before putting the sword on the table and tossing her apron over the rack.
"Thank you Gobber. Let's go, Astrid."
Astrid glared at Gobber and reluctantly followed her mother back to their house.
Miles away from Berk on the other side of Scandinavia, a lone Nightfury darted across the clear blue sky. This kind of joyriding was commonplace for Hiccup and Toothless as they traveled. The pair had just left their overnight stop somewhere on the mainland. Hiccup loved the land, meeting all sorts of people, and becoming a merchant of exotic goods. As Hiccup traveled he added to his book of dragons, a version that didn't involve killing dragons. The book was thicker than the one on Berk. Sure there were the common species like Nadders, Timberjacks, and so on, but there were plenty of dragons Hiccup had never seen before, species Berk never knew existed.
Hiccup also began making a map of all the realms the two came across. It was an expansive map covering what Hiccup thought was a good chunk of Scandinavia. However as he traveled down the mainland, he kept second-guessing himself on how much he had found. Today they continued heading south, further south than Hiccup had ever been.
Toothless dove through the layer of clouds and dropped a significant amount of altitude. The dragon stopped just above the forests, birds dodging the Nightfury as they flew past. Hiccup spotted a small clearing overlooking the forest guiding Toothless towards it. The dragon slowed down and the pair landed on the cliff. Hiccup climbed off of his friend's back and slowly approached the edge. The rider removed his riding helmet and tossed it over to Toothless who caught it and started to play with it.
"You show my mask who's boss bud," Hiccup encouraged Toothless with a laugh.
Hiccup turned back to the never-ending forests and took out his map. He folded it out and inspected the southern portion of the mainland he had most recently charted. Hiccup grabbed a pencil from a strap on his wrist and began extending the landmass further south. He looked up frequently to study the land before adding to the map. As Hiccup worked Toothless walked up next to him and dropped the mask on the map.
"Really bud?!" Hiccup scolded.
Toothless cooed and rubbed his head against Hiccup. He laughed and reached a hand to Toothless' neck. Toothless began to purr as Hiccup scratched him, collapsing to the ground.
"You know if you wanted me to scratch you, you could've just asked," Hiccup told him.
Toothless didn't acknowledge him in his state of bliss, instead rolling onto his back and closing his eyes. Hiccup shook his head with a smile and looked out to the land in front of them. His smile quickly faded as the young man's mind began to wander.
"Whatta you think bud, want to keep going?" Hiccup asked Toothless.
The dragon of course didn't answer, enjoying the spot he had taken.
"Come on don't you want to see what dragons we could find? I'm sure there are Timberjacks out there, maybe even a couple of Changewings! Who knows maybe we'll finally track down another Nightfury," Hiccup tried. "Wouldn't that be something?" he added.
Toothless couldn't care any less about whatever Hiccup was saying. The sun on his scales felt great and he could stay there for hours. Hiccup sighed and pulled out his spyglass, lifting it to his left eye. He scanned the distant treeline, looking for nothing in particular. Turning a bit to his left, Hiccup looked towards the ocean and was immediately greeted by a distant village.
"Well bud going this far south hasn't been a total bust," he told the dragon.
Hiccup lowered his spyglass and approached his lounging friend.
"Come on bud get up, let's go check out that village."
Toothless groaned in response and got up reluctantly. Hiccup laughed at the Nightfury's reaction and quickly jumped onto the saddle. As soon as they had landed they were off again, heading towards the village.
Hiccup urged Toothless to climb higher so they would not be seen by whoever inhabited the land. The rider looked down at the village, it was surrounded by thick forests and cliffs overlooking the bay the village was nestled on. Fishing boats drifted aimlessly in the calm waters. Looking towards the port he noticed several warships docked, which meant an army.
"Easy bud," Hiccup calmly told his friend.
The village wasn't that dense or extensive but it was much larger than Berk. On all sides of the town, a large wooden wall protected its inhabitants. Hiccup could see a lot of activity near the village square which meant a market of some sort, better yet it meant that there was probably a blacksmith's stall.
The two made another pass over the village and Hiccup continued to watch the activity below him. They needed supplies, more specifically parts to keep Toothless's tail rigging in good shape. Beyond that, something in the back of Hiccup's mind was telling him to land and go to that village.
"Alright, bud let's go find somewhere to land," Hiccup finally said, breaking the silence that fell upon the two.
Toothless glanced back up a his friend who seemed out of focus. He gave a concerned warble but Hiccup shook his head and gave Toothless a reassuring pat.
"I'm fine bud, just tired. We'll spend the night nearby and I'll go tomorrow and get supplies," Hiccup told him.
With that Hiccup changed the position of the tailfin and flew the two of them away from the village.
Below them in the village, a man approached a run-down hut far away from most other buildings in town. He pushed past the bones hanging from the deprecated rafters and took a seat on the tree stump. The blonde Viking eyed the black cloak in front of him with indifference as the form began to laugh.
"You don't visit me often Bjorn Ironside," the raspy voice said through his cackling.
"I've come for guidance," the man, Bjorn, told the cloak.
"I've already given too much guidance today. Odin's plan has been set in motion and we are but passengers on his longship," the cloak replied.
"I don't understand."
"He has arrived," the cloak continued, ignoring Bjorn.
"Who has arrived Seer?" Bjorn asked.
The Seer laughed again, turning to look at Bjorn for the first time since he entered.
"The Dragon King."
Astrid rested her head on her desk, flicking her pencil across her table every time it rolled back to her. She was bored, her thoughts flying high with Stormfly who in her mind was trailing right behind a certain Nightfury. Astrid sighed at the thought of Hiccup, not a day went by where he wasn't on her mind.
The letters the two had been sharing over the past four years had molded the idea of Hiccup being some heroic adventure setting off to a new land to stop whatever fighting was taking place. The stories Hiccup would tell her captivated her to no end, her dreams filled with nothing but what she could be up to with Hiccup. Unfortunately for her, her heart and mind twisted those dreams into a whole different meaning. Those simple dreams of the two flying together quickly evolved into moonlit meetings on the water's edge, their bodies entangled with each other and their lips intertwined.
There was no denying it at this point. As much as Astrid hated to admit, she was smitten with the rogue Haddock. No, more than that her mind would tell her. Astrid Hofferson was in love with Hiccup Haddock. As every day passed she wished she could go beyond the fog banks and go after him. Too many times to count Astird nearly threw caution to the wind yet she didn't.
Astrid groaned as she let her pencil fall to the ground. She leaned down to go grab it but as she did, Astrid could hear footsteps approaching her room. Without a second thought, Astrid quickly hid Hiccups letters and unfinished responses before the door could open. Ingrid was the one who opened it and let herself into her daughter's room.
"You ready to tell me where you were this morning?" she asked as Ingrid entered.
"Mom I promise you I was training," Astrid replied.
"Astrid that's not true and you and I both know that."
Astrid sighed and leaned back into her chair. Ingrid raised an eyebrow at her, her blue eyes boring holes into Astrid.
"Fine," Astrid finally said. "I was at the cove."
"Oh?"
"I uh-, I've been going pretty often now. Helps clear my mind and enjoy the silence."
"That's not it, is it?"
"Why is this so important to you?" Astrid asked.
"Because I want to know why my daughter is ignoring her responsibilities."
Astrid was about to reply but decided to hold her breath.
"That cove was where he died," Ingrid stated. She shook her head, "You don't need to lie about going to pay respects to the boy."
Astrid simply nodded her head but looked away from her mother.
"Sometimes losing someone makes you realize how much you care for them," Ingrid continued.
Astrid was biting her tongue, trying to think of something to get off the topic of Hiccup.
"Had we signed that contract with Stoick the two of you would be married now."
That grabbed Astrid's attention, quickly raising her head to look at Ingrid.
"He'd be nineteen now," Ingrid trailed off.
A page from one of Hiccup's letters sticking out from underneath her desk caught her eye. A voice in the back of Astrid's head was telling her to tell her mother the truth. Before she could even make up her mind Ingrid began talking again.
"Well anyhow there is a council meeting tomorrow and a few of the major clans of Berk have been invited, including us. So be up bright and early."
"Yes Mom," Astrid replied.
"Good, see you in the morning."
With that Ingrid turned and left, closing the door behind her.
Again I do apologize for the short chapter. I was gonna write a footnote for something in this chapter but if I did it would give a bit of the story away so I decided against it. Until the next time my friends…
-Dilloncoll