Twenty-Four: Whose Dragon?
The steady sounds of hammering were interspersed with bickering and the sounds of things being thrown. Ryder peered through the tiny barred window and watched the twins 'supervising' the troop of soldiers build a pretty sturdy looking gallows stack bang in the centre of the Plaza. It was something that Berk had never previously needed-before the Berserkers and Outcasts, the people of Berk had been ornery and taciturn but never really criminal and since...well, any execution tended to involve gunning someone down in the Plaza. He supposed he should be honoured they were going to the trouble to build it just to hang him but really, it didn't feel like much of privilege.
"Not sure...my sister...would approve..." Leo muttered from his bed in the adjacent cell.
He had been curled up, unresponsive, when Ryder was brought in and the gunslinger had been infuriated by the sight of fresh blood on his battered face. He was certain that the Marshals had questioned Leo and that had gotten a bit...physical. Crouching by the bars and calling worriedly to his Uncle, Ryder had promised he would make them pay: after all, the men were clearly bastards-they'd held Astrid at gunpoint if he needed any other proof. When Leo had finally stirred, the man had cracked open his eyes and groaned. "What is it that you always end up found?" he groaned. Ryder grinned.
"Couldn't let Astrid get shot by those Marshals," he admitted. Leo stiffened.
"They threatened her?" he rasped, lifting his head. Ryder sighed.
"Yeah...after Toothless tried to eat the Major," he admitted and Leo gave a small smile.
"They only eat fish," he murmured.
"He didn't seem to know that," he revealed and sighed, sitting on the floor by the bars, leaning against them. "Mind you, the Colonel with the last troop was crooked and tried to sell Toothless to Eret for a huge chest of gold. Dagur gunned them down...Gobber and I followed them when they sneaked out and we watched the whole thing. Dagur and his men got away with the dragon and we came back and borrowed two of the men to fleece the gangs...and I got the twins to bury them."
"You paid?" Leo asked softly. There was a small pause. Ryder nodded.
"Um...yeah..." he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Slightly defeated the object of trying to get as much money as possible out of the gangs..." Leo painfully sat up and stared at his nephew.
"Hmm...your mother would have been proud of you," he admitted. "Val was a decent woman who would never have abandoned men to rot or be eaten by coyotes or Whispering Deaths..." Then Ryder pressed his head back against the bars, turning away from the older man.
"You know, I don't remember anything about Mom?" he asked softly. "I was taken from her when I was so young and when Dad...Espen...deigned to answer my questions, he said she had died and that was it. He never told me anything...I guess because he didn't know anything..." Leo sighed.
"I'm sorry," he apologised. "I should've found you...but I was out of it for some months...and I couldn't find the trail when I was finally together enough to leave Gothi's..." Ryder turned to stare at the man and shook his head. The inflection reminded him how badly hurt the man had been. It would have been many long months before Leo's mind and body would have been strong enough to seek for the fugitive kidnapper...he really hadn't stood a chance.
"What's done is done," he murmured and he heard the man slump back on the bed.
"But that doesn't make it right..." he groaned.
And it wasn't right now as the soldiers-hindered by the twins-rapidly assembled the gallows in the Plaza. Ryder had done some-rather a lot-of pretty damning things in his life, though only since his wife was raped and murdered and all in his quest to find the men who had killed her. And against all odds, they were all dead, bothering Helheim not Berk. And even more improbably, he had found himself some family, a friend or so...a unique bonded dragon...and Astrid. He closed his eyes. He had finally come out of the hellish nightmare following Heather's murder...and now...he was going to die just as he had found happiness...and love.
"You ready, boy?" Marshal Larson sneered as he sauntered into the cells. Ryder folded his arms across his chest and cast a bored look at the man.
"For what?" he snapped back.
"You're gonna answer to a jury of men from this town," Larsson sneered. "Murder-murder-murder-murder...well, you get the idea. And of course, the murder of a troop of soldiers and theft of government property, namely one Night Fury."
"Toothless is mine!" Ryder growled. "He is my bonded dragon!"
"Proceeds of crime," Larson sneered. "Only yours because you murdered those soldiers..." Ryder's fists clenched but Leo shifted his body painfully on his bunk and glared at the lawman.
"Doesn't sound as if you've got much of an open mind about what happened," he noted gruffly. "Have you even talked to the witnesses? Or inspected the bodies?" Larson stared at him contemptuously.
"Silence, vagrant!" he sneered. Ryder stiffened. "And you, murderer-you're damned lucky. We've gonna give you a fair trial...and then a really first class hanging!"
oOo
Astrid strode across the town, her eyes glittering with fury. She shoved the door of the Dragon Master's shop open, marched into the gloomy space and grabbed Fishlegs by the tunic.
"I need your help," she growled. His blue eyes popped wide and he almost knocked his bowler hat off as he flinched.
"Ma'am?" he squeaked.
"Don't you dare 'Ma'am' me!" she snapped. "Sit!" He couldn't obey quickly enough, almost knocking his chair over and cringing back into the seat.
"How can I help you?" he asked her, his voice still an octave higher than usual. She glared at him.
"You're a Dragon Master," she said sternly. He nodded urgently. "I have a compound full of dragons...and one has been taken that is bonded to my chief stockman and wrangler."
"Hiccup," Fishlegs blurted out. She stared at him and her jaw almost hit the floor.
"What..?" she gaped.
"Hiccup," Fishlegs said with more confidence. "He is the image of Leo Gudmundir, the Sheriff's brother when he was younger...twenty years ago, when the baby was taken. There are enough clues...he is the Sheriff's son!" Astrid blinked.
"Of course he is!" she spat. "But how the Hel did you find out?" The large man gave a shy but satisfied smile.
"I watch, I listen. I research..." he told her with a hint of smugness. "And that older man...was he...Leo?" She nodded.
"Then you are exactly the man we need," she said. "You know all the law about Dragon ownership and bonding. They can't hang Hiccup for stealing Toothless if the dragon is his anyway."
"Hmm...you may need more than that," Fishlegs noted. "I gather they're accusing him of killing everyone...from Baldr to old Mother Silje who died last winter from tuberculosis!" She folded her arms over her chest and gave a triumphant smile.
"Good. You're hired!" she said. "You're their defence attorney!"
"WHAT?" he shrieked. "I-I-I have no training at all..."
"You're about the smartest person in Berk," Astrid told him firmly and her azure eyes smiled. "I believe that you wouldn't let the only Night Fury seen for fifty years be stolen by the army from its bonded rider and enslaved for breeding with gods know what!"
"I-I..."
"And I reckon you could get Leo to help you," she added. "I think he did the Dragon Master training...which is how he survived, by the way. He trained a freaking Whispering Death enough so it let him live!"
"He-he did?"
"And I sure he would be delighted to tell you everything he's picked up over the years...that and of course everything about his Flightmare..."
"Starlight..." Fishlegs murmured and his blue eyes grew rounder. He met her smug gaze and nodded.
"Okay-I'll do it!" he said. "If only because it was very obvious that no matter his faults-and he did ruthlessly gun down four men who scared his dragon halfway to death when it was well on the way anyway-he showed he would do anything to try to save a dying beast that was his friend. I saw him with the dragon...and he really loved it. He deserves his chance because I doubt the Night fury could find a better bonded Rider."
Astrid found herself blinking at the simple assessment of the man she had fallen in love with and nodded. She gave a determined smile, her lips pressed together as she controlled herself.
"Okay-so what do we do next?" she asked. Fishlegs rose, grabbed a notebook and pencil.
"We start by talking to his friends..."
oOo
The Berk Courthouse was packed with practically everyone in town as the jury fidgeted, elbowed each other and grumbled that it was a good day for farming. Marshall Larson stared at them from his seat presiding over the court as acting judge and rolled this eyes. The Sheriff had called for them and though he had explained the two gangs were fled, they had decided to pursue the troublesome gunslinger Ryder anyway. It should've been a simple slam-dunk...except everyone in the town seemed to have a soft spot for the man. And the jury...
Twelve bulky men were squeezed into a jury box designed for twelve average sized men...but there was hardly a man in Berk of normal proportions. Larson decided the town could probably do with a little less feeding...but he was stuck with them. And the men who had come forward...the owner of the hostel, Gobber with his two missing limbs; the crazy male undertaker Tuffnut; the town drunk, Olaf; four men called Sven; a very short hairy man named Mulch; a couple of dirt farmers, Hoark and Ack; a big storekeeper called Lars and a very short old woman with a staff who was introduced as Gothi, the Town Elder...and the constitution of Berk, irrespective of everything else meant Larson had to include her in the jury. The Marshall began to rub his temples, feeling a headache start.
He stared over the room, seeing the Sheriff sitting bolt upright in the front row, along with the female undertaker-who had been furious that women were not allowed on the jury (except Gothi)-and Ryder's female boss, Astrid Hofferson. At her side, a fidgety twelve year old boy with jet hair and grey eyes was nudging her and whispering loudly. At the table for the defendant, the local Dragon Master, Fishlegs Ingerman, had assumed the role of defence attorney. He had demanded that Leo Gudmundir be let out to assist him but the man had been imprisoned until the start of the trial: Larson wasn't having any more wild cards-and he was suspecting that the army Major Haagen wasn't being honest. The man wanted the Night Fury in defiance of all legality...and the Marshal wanted to know what his ulterior motive was. Flicking his his eyes over to his fellow Marshals, Olson and Arvidson, he felt little comfort. Both were tough, hard and uncompromising and wanted to hang the gunfighter...irrespective of the actual evidence...
"Fetch the prisoner!" he commanded.
oOo
Ryder was brought in and stood at the defence table, cuffs tight around his wrist. Leo was escorted in as well, also cuffed and shoved into a seat by Fishlegs. The older man stared up at his nephew as Marshal Larsson flicked his cold gaze across the court.
"The Court of the town of Berk is in session, Marshal Per Larson presiding," he announced. "We are here to try the man known as Ryder for multiple murders including the whole of the the First Troop of the 19th Nadder Cavalry and the theft of government property: to whit, one Night Fury dragon."
"Objection!" Fishlegs announced.
"You can't object!" Larson snapped. "I haven't said anything except the stated purpose of the trial!"
"Withdrawn!"
"Are you taking the...?" Arvidson growled.
"Just practising!" Fishlegs said cheerfully. Leo half covered his mouth to hide his smile. Fishlegs had visited him in the jail when his request for Leo's release had been denied and the younger Dragon Master had proposed the plan, realising none of the Marshals had much control over their tempers.
"Defendant-confirm your identity!" Larson commanded and Ryder stared up at him, green eyes cool and glittering with anger.
"My name is Hiccup Gudmundir Haddock," he announced calmly. There was a pause for about a second...and then all pandemonium broke out again. The jury were all in great excitement-except Gobber, who just stared at the young gunslinger and inspected the lean shape, allowing himself to recognise the image of his friend of twenty years earlier. His eyes drifted to Leo and the man offered the faintest of smiles...and nodded. But the most shocked was Stoick...who finally stared at the lean shape, the tousled auburn hair the exact colour of his lost wife, the brilliant emerald eyes flicking to look back at his friends, his girl...and briefly the man he had tacitly admitted was his real father. The Sheriff swallowed and his eyes widened...as Larson motioned for Ryder-Hiccup-to sit.
"Actually, we need to hear the evidence against my client!" Fishlegs announced officiously.
"I was just getting to that!" Larson snapped. He gave the Dragon Master a fierce glare but Fishlegs merely replied with a happy wave.
"Um, I thought the Judge wasn't allowed to be prosecutor as well," he said, smiling happily. "Federal and State law states there must be a separate prosecutor..."
"Will you stop pointing things out!" Larson snapped.
"Actually, that's my function!" Fishlegs piped up.
"Okay-I'll do the Prosecution!" Marshal Olson snapped. "He is accused of several murders..."
"Names..." Fishlegs insisted.
"The killing of the whole Berserker gang..."
"Who had ambushed, beat and tortured him, torn the town apart of get to him to kill him and captured and tortured his Uncle in the middle of town to get him to give Ryder-Hiccup-up!"
"If yer gonna use that as evidence we'll acquit him now!" Gobber announced.
"Yeah!" They've been terrorising us for years!" two of the Svens agreed.
"Yeah-they really hurt Uncle Hopalong and if Ryder hadn't got in, we would've gone after them!" Tuff added.
"Shut. Up. Now!" Larson shouted.
"And the ambush and murder of the First Troop of the 19th Nadder Cavalry and the theft of a Night Fury..."
"They were killed by Dagur when they went tae try tae sell the dragon tae the Dragon Hunters," Gobber piped up cheerily, nodding to his fellow jurors. "Dagur gunned them down hi'self then Eret and his men took the dragon back tae their compound! I know the laddie bonded tae him there!"
"Good enough for us!" Mulch said happily.
"Yeah-we all agree!" Hoark announced.
"Worksh for me!" Drunken Olaf slurred, waving happily and chugging from his flask of mead.
"RY-der! RY-der! RY-der!" the crowd began to chant, egged on by Astrid and Gustav. Hiccup looked at his Uncle.
"Is this supposed to happen?" he asked Leo. Fishlegs shook his head.
"No one will convict you of killing Outcasts, Berserkers or Snotlout," he said. "C'mon-this is Berk! We al know what they were like! But the fight is about who the Night Fury belongs to..."
"Me," Hiccup growled, his emerald eyes filled with concern. "I-I have never felt anything like the bond I have with Toothless...not even with Red..." Leo glanced across and gently rested his bandaged left hand on the gunslinger's shoulder.
"Red...?"
"Redwing-a Monstrous Nightmare who saved my life as I was about to be shot dead by the trappers who beat me to a pulp then raped and murdered my wife," Hiccup murmured, his voice softer. Stoick inched closer, catching the words and feeling his heart jolt. It seemed the Gods were determined that both father and son suffered the same disasters... He stole a glance at Astrid-the girl his son seemed to be with now-and swore nothing would happen her while he breathed.
"He did everything he could to save him...but he was old and injured," Fishlegs murmured. "He even got Fireworm gel-Gods alone knew how-but it was too late. The dragon passed on peacefully..."
"And when Toothless was still in the cage with the army when they stayed the night at the Berserker Compound, he went to see the poor thing," Astrid added, leaning forward. ""He was muzzled and hadn't been fed or watered. Toothless was pretty grumpy..."
"Almost bit my hand off...at first...until he realised I was as alone as he was and that I meant him no harm," Hiccup commented.
"It was really cute the way he sat next to Hiccup and pressed his nose into his hand," Astrid added. "I heard him apologise that he couldn't let the dragon out...because the soldiers would kill him...but he gave that creature hope and friendship... and when Toothless was brought back after Dagur murdered the soldiers and stole him...they bonded."
"And how...?" Hiccup asked, turning to face her. She smiled.
"You knew I watched you, babe," she murmured.
"Yeah...who doesn't love a beautiful woman watching his every move?" he asked. She blushed.
"Every day you spent time with Toothless, I watched you," she said with a grin. "And I know Dagur wanted to kill him and skin him for his collection of rare dragons..."
"Ah-hem!" Marshal Olson growled, standing by them and folding his arms impatiently. "If you don't mind..."
"Hey-we were just enjoying that!" Mulch protested.
"They seem to be really sweet," one of the Svens added.
"Aye," another agreed, fist-bumping the first Sven. Tuff made a vomiting noise and Gothi whacked him in the head with her staff. Marshal Larson rubbed his temples: his head was pounding now.
"That Night Fury is MINE!" Major Haagen roared, leaping to his feet.
"Heard that before," Hiccup commented.
"Everyone has!" Stoick growled, standing. "Dagur screamed it in front of the whole town as soon as the army arrived with it...and he stole the dragon after killing the soldiers who were so craven they tried to sell it to Trappers! This man bonded with a creature that was being prepared to be slaughtered. He saved that dragon..."
"...and it saved him from Dagur when the man captured him after he rescued Astrid from Alvin's adopted son, Snotlout, who had kidnapped her to rape her..." Leo added, breathing hard.
"Does anyone here actually know how a court case is supposed to work?" Larson growled.
"This is Berk!" Stoick said, walking forward, his booming voice filled with confidence. "We still do things the Viking way here!"
"Yeah...one long argument," Leo grumbled.
"You may be a thousand years out of date!" Marshal Arvidson commented from the doorway.
"Not under Berk law!" Stoick spoke up gruffly. Gothi stood up and whacked Gobber who yelped. Then she scratched a series of symbols on the courtroom floor. Gobber peered at them and frowned.
"I dinnae think he'll like that," he commented. She whacked him again. "Ow, yer old baggage! I'll tell him!"
"Tell him what?" Larson said in a pained voice from the judge's bench. He hammered his gavel without much hope anyone would pay attention to him because the jury were all discussing amongst themselves at the top of their voices and the audience were in uproar. Haagen was fingering the butt of his pistol in a worrying manner as Hiccup leaned closer to Leo.
"Mebbe we can solve this in the old Berk way..." Gobber began.
"And just what is that?" Larson groaned.
"Let the dragon choose..." Gobber explained then paused. "There, yer old witch. I told yer he'd hate it!"
"But I have a cast iron claim!" the Major shouted.
"Actually not," Fishlegs said. "I telegraphed the Federal Dragon Registry and checked. The Government edict stated that 'wild Night Furies represent a vital national resource'. But that Night Fury is not wild. He is bonded with that man-Ryder...sorry, Hiccup Haddock."
The young gunslinger blinked in shock at the name. It was a family name he had never used, never heard of until he arrived in Berk...yet it was his birthright. His eyes flicked to Leo at his side and the man nodded so the younger man lifted his head and stared at the Sheriff. The man was stock-still, his chest puffed out and fists clenched. He was breathing hard in anger at the trial.
"Dragon Registration Laws take primacy over all subsequent declarations," Leo added. "This pair are bonded. That dragon is not wild...so your claim is invalid."
"And what would you know, vagrant?" the Major sneered.
"He's a trained Dragon Master!" Fishlegs growled. "As am I!" The Major glared, then scribbled a few words on a scrap of paper before handing it to his corporal. The man rushed off immediately.
"He doesn't own the dragon," Major Haagen sneered, rising, his wavy chestnut hair dishevelled from where he had removed his hat. "And it's wild in the law without a valid registration, without an owner..." His hand toyed with his small goatee as he scanned the court room.
"No, that would be me," Astrid volunteered. "With the Sheriff and Fishlegs' help, I have assumed ownership of all the dragons in the former Berserker Compound. Including Toothless!"
"You know, I like your way!" the Major said suddenly. "I have asked my man to bring the dragon..." Alarmed, Fishlegs and Hiccup shared a glance: neither believed the man wanted to comply because Toothless would always come to his rider...unless he was planning something... Leo's asymmetrical gaze was locked on the Major's face and he saw him smirk.
"Not in my courtroom," Larson growled, slamming gavel down again. "Plaza! Everyone go there and we will decide..."
There was a movement like a tide as the entire audience rose and walked out, talking at the to of their voices. The jury sped after them...except Gobber. He slowed down to walk alongside Stoick, matching his pace with the big Sheriff. "He's stubborn like ye, yer know," he murmured.
"He's suffered like I did...but there was no one to help," Stoick replied softly, pausing to see Astrid and her brother wait until the two Marshals stood by Hiccup and forced him up, walking sternly alongside. "He seems to have found a girl, a dragon and some reason to stay...maybe...there is a way...perhaps I could at least be a friend..."
"That's the spirit," Gobber said with mad cheerfulness clapping his friend across the back with his normal hand. "I'm sure he'll forget everything and be happy tae see ye, Stoick!" Fishlegs made to follow but Leo grabbed his arm.
"Fish...I don't have a good feeling about this," the older man said softly. "The Major was too quick to accept. He was smiling..." The two men shared a look and Fishlegs hauled him up.
"Hurry..." the younger Dragon Master urged him.
"GO!" Leo shouted, shoving him away. "You have to stop it. He's sabotaged the decision..."
The audience had formed a relatively neat crowd to one side of the Plaza with the jury at one side and the Marshals at the other. The sun was beating down but the wind was gritty and cool and dust was swirling around. The Major was standing, smug and sneering as he faced Hiccup, who stood with the gallows at his back, his wrists still shackled. The officer gave a nasty smile.
"You get the dragon to come to you, to recognise you as a friend, and I will drop the charges," he said. "But if he doesn't, I hang you for dragon theft!" Hiccup nodded and the Marshals all nodded as well.
"Bring the dragon out!" Larson commanded and four men wrestled the Night Fury forward, muzzled and resisting. Hiccup stared and the crowd gasped as the muzzle was removed.
Toothless was growling.
Emerald green eyes widening, the lanky gunslinger took a tiny pace forward. "Hey, it's me-your old pal, Hiccup," he said softly. He held his hands in front of his body, palms forward in an appeasing gesture. Toothless's growl increased in volume. "What is it, bud?" he asked softly.
Fishlegs pushed through the throng and saw the black shape slowly advance on the lean prisoner, the auburn hair ruffled by the breeze. The dragon was growling, his eyes tightly slitted and back arched in hostility. The dragon's mouth was open and giving a faintly red glow.
Red?
Hiccup inched forward, his green gaze locked onto the dragon. His stomach was dancing in anxiety, the bubbling wrongness unsettling him totally. Something had upset Toothless...and the way the dragon was behaving suggested he didn't recognise him. And his life literally depended on getting the dragon to acknowledge him. "Buddy...it's me," he said again softly. Toothless advanced again-and then roared.
"Get him out of there!" Astrid shouted as a red glow filled the dragon's throat and then fired wildly at Hiccup, missing him and blowing half the roof off of Lars' General Store.
"Toothless! Bad dragon! Now CUT IT OUT!" Hiccup shouted.
And then the dragon pounced...
oOo
A/N: No prize but kudos if you can tell me where Larson's line to Hiccup about the quality of his trial and hanging comes from...