FORTY-TWO: Hope
Hjordis was sitting with Frida Ingerman in keeping the Chief company. The other woman was almost a splitting image of her son, a heavily-built woman with a round face, round blue-green eyes and fair hair pulled into a braided knot at the back of her head. The two women were swapping notes of home management, recipes and knitting patterns as they sat with the sleeping Chief, watching over the dozing Valkana. The child was swaddled warmly and laid comfortably on her side in her crib, the soft sigh of her breaths still audible above the respectful low murmur of the two women. The house was lit by the warm light of the fire, a couple of fat lamps adding a little extra light by the Chief's head.
Both women looked up as the door opened to allow Hiccup and Astrid to enter. Both had heard of the commotion in the Great Hall and had guessed what Spitelout had been agitating about-after all, the man had been boasting that his son was now the Heir. But they had also heard cheers and that usually meant that cooler heads had prevailed. Frida looked up with a smile.
"Any trouble?" she asked, a small smile lifting her lips. There was a pause.
"Not really," Astrid replied. "I mean apart from Spitelout wanting to recklessly attack the Fliers, Snotlout quitting as Heir, Hiccup having his Outcasting overturned and being reinstated as Heir...not much..." The woman stared at the self-conscious young man.
"You're Stoick's Heir again?" she checked and he nodded with an embarrassed rub of the back of his neck.
"Ah...yeah...you see...I was sort of suggested by Snotlout and the Council and..."
"Oh, thank Thor," Frida sighed. "Your cousin is a complete muttonhead!" Astrid stared at her.
"Wow," she commented. "I mean...we all know that you're the hero and he's the muttonhead, Hiccup...but the Tribe never really seemed to get that..."
"I can assure you, we've got that now!" Frida retorted and then her round face cracked into big smile. "Gods bless you, Hiccup. You're the best man to lead us through this-your father excepted, of course..." Nodding, he smiled as Astrid glanced over at her daughter and smiled.
"Was she any trouble?" she asked and Hjordis grinned.
"She's a little diamond," she reassured the blonde as Hiccup moved to take the chair by his father's head. "We'll give you some time." And they quietly got up and left, as Astrid located a stool and sat at Hiccup's side, looking at the Chief and seeing his son devastated. No matter how awkward Hiccup had felt for losing Berk's gold, how guilty he felt for being away or allowing Berk to be attacked during Hiccup's war with Johann, he was close to his father. And sure, their relationship had been pretty awkward until the boy was fifteen, since he slew the Red Death, Hiccup and Stoick had become close. The young man had developed the confidence he so desperately needed and had allowed his leadership abilities, strength of character and bravery to shine forth. And Stoick never wasted a chance to remind Hiccup how proud he was-of the young man as a son and as the future Chief of Berk. It was what had made their estrangement over the betrothal all the more tragic...but it was inevitable that Hiccup would rush back to Berk the moment that his father was injured.
As she watched, Hiccup gently found the bowl of water, laced with herbs that Gothi had carefully bruised into the water to help heal Stoick's wounds. And he was wounded...badly, to render such a powerful and determined warrior unconscious. His face was badly bruised, his eyes swollen and his head bandaged over the contusions from the Flier attack. Quietly, Hiccup bathed his wounds, his green eyes never leaving his father's face.
"I'm sorry, Dad," he said quietly. "I should have been here. This should have been me."
Astrid touched his arm, her eyes widening in concern.
"Babe..." she murmured but he sighed.
"I can't leave his side, Astrid," he sighed, his eyes trailing over the still shape. "I mean-he wouldn't leave me." He swallowed and his voice dropped. "And what if he...you know...and I wasn't here? I-I-I'd never forgive myself..." Her hand found his and she rested against him, relieved as he leaned against her, his eyes closing.
"You know he'll pull through, Hiccup," she reassured him softly. "He's Stoick! The most stubborn, strongest, bravest warrior in the history of the Tribe." She nuzzled against his neck and felt his arm slide around her. "You know you can't blame yourself for this, right?" He gave a shuddering breath.
"Who else can I blame?" he asked her simply. "I should have been here. And I would have been...if I hadn't left. If I hadn't abandoned my position as Heir and my people and left...to go after you." Her eyes snapped open. "And it was my choice-because I love you. And I could never consider marrying anyone else. You and Val are my world. And I tried not to make Dad ashamed. But in the end, I was forced to choose between my duty and my love..."
"Also your duty," Astrid reminded him. He managed a wan smile.
"A Chief protects his own," he admitted. "And you are my own, Milady-just as I am yours."
"And Val is ours," she confirmed.
"But it looks like Berk is mine to protect as well," he sighed and turned back to Stoick, his hand finding his father's huge paw.
"And you protected it by leaving, my love," she reminded him. "Heather told me what Camicazi tried. That her mother and their elder tried to effectively subjugate the Tribe by making you promise to 'obey' her. No Chief can ever make a binding vow to obey the Chief or Heir of another Tribe...because that hands your people to him or her!" She bunched her fists. "I should have stayed and fought for you."
"I should have fought more for you," he admitted, but she turned to look into his concerned face.
"Hiccup-neither of us was in the best place," she admitted. "I was heartbroken and devastated that my father wanted to marry me off to whoever would take soiled goods...and you just seemed scared to upset your Dad. And part of me...didn't believe that you could work this out. So I ran."
"And I went after you," he sighed. "Dad-I found Astrid...eventually. But on the way...oh, Dad...I'm sorry. I found some hunters far more ruthless than Viggo, people who tortured and mutilated and killed for fun. And I let Toothless and I become their prisoners. It was my fault, my carelessness that got us captured. And we nearly died. But when we caught up with where she had been heading...and found that Astrid had gone missing, I was so scared that they had got her, that they would kill her and our child...or both...that I..." He paused and took a shuddering breath. "I did whatever I needed to so they would fear me. So they would know that hurting my wife and my child would carry the highest price. But in the end...I found out they didn't have her after all. I destroyed and-and killed for nothing..."
"Not for nothing," Astrid reminded him. "They were still astonishingly brutal hunters, men who destroyed for fun. And who had harmed you and Toothless." Hiccup's hand tightened around his father's.
"In the end, I found her-in labour, alone," Hiccup said and his voice strengthened. "I helped deliver our child, our daughter." He felt Astrid move, hearing a slight whimper from the infant. "We named her Valkana-after Mom. It was Astrid's idea...but I love it. And you would be so proud of her, Dad. I mean, she's anything but a Hiccup! She's bonny and strong and fierce and has a set of lungs on her! I mean, we can certainly tell she's your granddaughter!" He glanced over and saw Valkana's wide eyes staring at him myopically and he took the baby expertly in his arms. "Right, Princess?"
And he froze as the huge hand raised and gently brushed the soft head, bruised eyes opening a slit.
"'S'my...girl..." Stoick rasped. Breath hitching, his son suddenly smiled.
"Dad!" he exclaimed in delight. "Oh thank Thor!I thought you...you..."
"My head feels...like a Gronckle is chewing rocks in there," Stoick growled roughly. "Keep it down, son..." Hiccup immediately cringed and looked embarrassed.
"Oops. And sorry, Dad," he said quietly as Astrid giggled. Put Hiccup on a dragon or in a crisis and he was awesome but face him with his father, the Chief...even semi-conscious and wounded...and he had a tendency to turn back into the awkward teen she had fallen in love with. Grimacing, Stoick forced his eyes open and inspected his first grandchild, his battered face lifting in a small smile.
"Aye, she's nothing like you...but I can tell she's yours, son," he said haltingly. "And yours, lass. She's beautiful..."
"Thank you, sir," she said respectfully, feeling calm. Hiccup carefully poured his father some water and tenderly helped support his head as he allowed the thirsty Chief to drink. It was a curiously intimate and tender moment that gave the girl a sudden insight into the closeness of the bond between father and son, no matter how each grumbled about the other. Then Stoick sighed, seeing her expression.
"I made a royal mess of it all, didn't I?" he admitted and she nodded.
"Yes, I'm afraid you did, Chief," she confirmed. Green eyes turned on his son.
"We need...to reverse your outcasting..." he said, his voice gaining strength. Faced with something that was important to his family, Stoick put his own pain and weakness aside because he knew he had to atone for his earlier actions, his own failure to stand up for his son and prevent what had happened. Though he hadn't heard everything, he knew that Hiccup and Toothless had suffered after leaving Berk...and he could have prevented it. Hiccup rubbed the back of his neck, self-conscious.
"Um...Gobber already took care of that...well, the Council did..."
"Even Spitelout?" Stoick's voice was suspicious.
"Oh yes, he decided that as the only person who didn't agree initially, he really didn't want to be the Mildew this time," Hiccup admitted.
"And Snotlout resigned as Heir, meaning the Council voted Hiccup back in," Astrid added. "To serious cheering and celebration, I might add." There was a definite smile on Stoick's face now.
"I couldn't be happier," he admitted, his hand gently stroking the baby's downy-soft strawberry hair. Val's eyes had closed and her gentle breathing showed she was back asleep, happy now she was in her father's arms. "About everything..." Astrid raised an eyebrow as Hiccup's face .
"She's definitely a Daddy's girl," she noted dryly as Hiccup gave his sassiest grin.
"Of course, you know she's getting a dragon as soon as she can walk, right?" he teased her.
"Haddock-I am axing your other leg off if you get our daughter barbecued before her second birthday!" Astrid snapped. Playfully, Hiccup gently placed his hands over Val's ears-even though she was still asleep.
"Don't listen to her, Princess," he said in a low voice. "Mommy doesn't mean to mutilate Daddy any further...she's just being overprotective..." Stoick managed a chuckle.
"This brings back memories," he admitted. "I remember getting Gobber to make you the tiniest axe he could-so you could start training as soon as you could walk..." Hiccup blushed, recalling how unimpressive he had been as a specimen when he was small.
"Ah-haha..." he managed unconvincingly. "I remember that...um..." Stoick chuckled again.
"Aye...you used it as a paperweight," he pointed out, causing the young man to blush even more fiercely. And then the Chief's face fell. "But with you being the Heir again, that could pose problems with the Bog Burglars..." The young couple shared a worried look.
"Um...Dad...I may already have sorted that out," Hiccup admitted. "Um...please remember that I was outcast and had only just been reunited with Astrid after months apart and hardships and being frantic about her safety and had nowhere to go except the Edge...and I do have some friends...so I...um..."
"We got married," Astrid finished for him, seeing Stoick's eyes widen.
"W-when?" the Chief asked as Hiccup's shoulders sagged briefly.
"A few days ago...on the Edge," he confessed. "Dagur married us as a Chief and we had Snot, Heather and Mala there." Stoick frowned.
"Two Heirs and two Chiefs present?" he asked, recalling what Hiccup had told him about the Queen of the Defenders of the Wing.
"Um...three actually," Hiccup amended cautiously. "Astrid is now a Chief..."
Stoick stared and she self-consciously rubbed her arm.
"I ended up on Granite Isle," she admitted. "I was close to my time and I was kept prisoner because the bastard half-troll Chief wanted to kill my baby and force me to marry him. So on our 'wedding' day, I challenged him for the Chiefdom-and won. I slew him and his evil spider of an Adviser." Stoick's eyes were saucers now. "So I was Chief-but there were still followers of the old Chief there and it wasn't safe to remain when I was vulnerable in childbirth and just after-so I installed a Regent and left, advising them to elect another Chief if I hadn't returned within a year." Stoick nodded, his battered face thoughtful.
"You did well, lass," he said gravely. "They're a barbaric lot down there. You did well to protect yourself and your child from their heathen ways..." Then he smiled. "You're a warrior, a protector, Astrid. And there is no one else I would want as my daughter in law."
Hiccup sighed, his eyes suddenly filled with self-doubt.
"Thanks, Dad," he sighed. "I mean, I'm not even sure where to start. I'm glad you're happy about Astrid-but why didn't you say this before? And wow-I know I'm not a warrior but..." With a grunt, Stoick reached out and grasped his son's shoulder, stilling his sarcastic voice.
"Son-you aren't a traditional viking warrior," he said carefully. "But you are a leader-and a great one at that. I worried when you were young that you would never be able to lead the Tribe, that they wouldn't listen to you or respect you. But I know now...there is no one else who could lead them. You have proven yourself to be brave, cunning, determined, willing to sacrifice what you hold dearest for what you know is right. And all the way through, you have protected your own. The Tribe insisted on you back. Your own cousin wanted you back-or he wouldn't have relinquished what he craved for so long. You are a remarkable man, a Dragon Master, a leader, a general, a husband and father, a friend. And the best son I could ever have hoped for...not what I envisaged but far, far better. Because you have in you the best qualities of both my beloved Valka and myself."
Hiccup blinked.
"Um...wow," he managed. "I mean, would it have killed you to have said this sooner?"
"I think almost being killed was the only way to get this into my thick skull...well, that and you almost being killed by those bounty hunters..." Stoick admitted.
"Oh Thor...what does that mean for our next father and son heart-to-heart chat...?" Hiccup sassed. "Should I wave goodbye to my other leg?"
"Preferably not," Astrid commented. "It may prove awkward when Val starts walking..."
"You do know Hiccup was into everything and was a tiny cyclone of trouble when he was small?" Stoick asked her. She sniggered.
"Let's hope my daughter takes after me..." she replied.
"Not a hope," Hiccup grinned, his hand squeezing his father's again. "So we are married and Cami can't have me. It was a legal wedding between two consenting adults-one Outcast so no family or Tribe to object and the other a Chief so in total and irrevocable control of her destiny."
"The Tribe will have to offer reparations to the Bog Burglars," Stoick sighed. "Unless she wants to continue and marry Snotlout..."
"I wouldn't," Astrid commented dryly. "But I agree it is better to keep them as allies-especially with Johann and Krogan on the loose and close to finding the last lenses..."
"Time is running out with these fliers," Hiccup said and his father nodded. "We've got to stop Johann and the fliers or none of this will matter. If they get hold of those last lenses and find the King of Dragons...then our dragons will be subjugated and everyone we love, everything we hold dear may well be swept away."
"That's my son," Stoick smiled, his eyes weighing heavy once more.
"So you hold on, Dad," Hiccup said. "Berk needs you. I need you. I'll tell Gothi you woke and she can check you out in the morning...but in the mean time, you rest. Heal. You'll be back on your feet, bellowing at the Tribe in no time..." Smiling, the Chief's eyes closed and Hiccup saw him fall asleep. Quietly, Astrid touched his arm.
"You okay, babe?" she asked him and he nodded.
"Yeah," he admitted. "Dad is going to recover and we're together." Val opened her eyes and began to fret.
"And my daughter is hungry," Astrid pointed out. Hiccup smiled.
"Oh-kay...I will just sit here quietly not looking at all while my amazing wife feeds our child," he commented. "And once we're all done, we should all get some rest. In the morning...I need to speak with everyone here and plan what we can do to stop Johann, once and for all."