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Bye!
It’s official, Mericcup Month is over!! A great many thanks to @xcandyslice, @veryreblog-muchtumble-wow, @lunaqueenblossom, @frozentothetouch, and @joselinepirada for your hard work!! Your pictures/edits were amazing!! And thank you for helping me keep this ship floating, so glad to know we’re still going strong!! Now it’s time to say goodbye to @mericcupmonth, and start preparing for @jackunzelmonth! Till then, have a great October and a happy Halloween!!
Mericcup taking a shower 7u7
This is the last day of the Mericcup month. :’3 I wanted to share this picture because I've done has been my favorite.
The Alpha is Rising: 9. Placing Them in Order
(Dark is Rising AU)
“Hiccup! Hurry it up! Get the signs to the temple, now!” shouted Gobber as he, Sandy, and Gothi headed towards Drago.
“But how am I supposed to set them up?” Hiccup shouted back.
“Your girlfriend was on the right track!”
“She is not my girlfriend!”
“Seriously? Now is not the time to be arguing your relationship status!” exclaimed Astrid. But Hiccup had already turned to Merida, wondering about the more important issue at hand.
“What right track?” Merida glanced at him quizzically, but her eyes widened in realization.
“There has to be people holding the signs!”
“Yeah, but which people?” asked Eret.
“Well, Hiccup’s one,” replied Merida.
Hiccup gasped, “I know. Merida, Astrid, Eret, Ruffnut, MacIntosh, you’re with me! Snotlout, Fishlegs, Tuffnut, Dingwall, and McGuffin, I need you to cover us! We’re going to have to make this quick!”
“Right!” came the unanimous reply. The teens split up, Snotlout’s group steered their dragons towards Drago’s army, while Hiccup’s group went in low towards the temple.
“Stop them!” shouted Drago. Several of his men aimed for Hiccup’s group, but Snotlout’s group swooped in and engaged them in battle. “No! Stop them, you fools! Stop them! Ah!” Drago and his dragon were sent flying by one of Gothi’s dragon’s fireballs.
“Give it up, Drago, the prophecy states that we shall win,” announced Gobber.
“Never! The Alpha shall awaken, and all dragons will belong to me!”
“Nope, not gonna happen,” stated Gobber before he, Sandy, and Gothi re-engaged Drago in battle, primarily to keep him from getting to the temple. Meanwhile, Hiccup’s group was making their way to the center of the temple. Hiccup’s face was grim as he opened a pouch on his belt and handed out the six signs.
“Hiccup?” asked Merida.
“We, we have to stand around the stone and the tree with the signs.” He glanced at each one with sorrow, “I don’t know if we’ll even make it out alive. If I could do this by myself, I would, but, I need your help.”
“You know we’re here for you, right?” asked Eret, placing a reassuring hand on Hiccup’s shoulder.
“We’re in this together, Hiccup, for good or bad,” remarked Merida.
“But, if we don’t make it . . .”
“If we do make it, Merida officially becomes your girlfriend, you go out with her, no excuses, got it?” blurted Ruffnut.
MacIntosh eyed her, “You wanna help me make sure of that?”
“I like that idea.”
“Ugh, let’s just make it a triple date and be done with it! We’ve got to save the world first!”
“Astrid’s right, and according to the poem, Fire stands between Earth and Lightning, Air is in between Lightning and Water, and Ice is in between Water and Earth.” As he spoke, he situated each person in a place around the tree and the stone before taking his place between Merida and Eret.
“Uh, isn’t something supposed to happen?” asked Ruffnut.
“Uh, yeah, I don’t know what’s wrong, I know I have everyone positioned correctly, Ice, Earth, and Fire are supposed to be in front of the stone, and Air, Water, and Lightning are in front of the tree. Maybe we’re too far back? Everyone, take a step forward.” Everyone did, and waited a bit longer, the temple trembling with the rising alpha. “OK, another step.”
“Uh, Hiccup, I don’t . . . ah!”
“Merida!” Merida was engulfed in flames, but before Hiccup could take a step towards her, each of the other five was quickly enveloped in their elements. “H-hold on, just a bit longer!” shouted Hiccup, though he wasn’t sure if anyone heard him. He had to think fast, the elements weren’t going to harm them, at least, not yet, not while they held the signs. He closed his eyes and calmed himself down, there was a way, there had to be, something was nagging at his brain, begging him to remember. His eyes snapped open, that was it! He glanced down at his hand, it was outstretched, aiming the sign up, in the wrong direction! Hiccup held the sign firmly but gently and moved his hand to make the sign face the stone, the wall of earth moving with it, encircling his hand rather than his whole body. “Everybody, aim your sign towards the tree and the stone!” One by one, the signs were adjusted, and everyone aimed their signs towards the stone and the tree. The rumbling continued, but this time, the tree grew while the stone shrunk.
“I-I think it’s working!” exclaimed MacIntosh.
“You bet it is!” grinned Eret. Hiccup let out a laugh, a laugh that ended in a yelp as the sign flew from his hand. The other signs soon followed, disappearing into the tree. The six stood there for a few minutes before realizing that the rumbling had stopped.
“We, we did it,” began Astrid.
“We did, we did it! We won!” exclaimed Merida as she jumped for joy. There were handshakes, high fives, and hugs all around. When Hiccup got to Merida, he picked her up and spun around. When he put her down, he leaned in, only to be interrupted by someone clearing his throat. The six looked towards the entrance of the temple, there stood Gobber, the witches, and their friends. Gothi picked up her cane and pointed at something. Hiccup looked at the tree, there hung a lone dragon fruit. Hiccup went and plucked it before turning around and walking towards the Dragon Masters to give it to Gothi. Sandy took it from him, and cut it into seven pieces with a pocket knife. She and Gothi handed out six of the pieces to the six holders before Gobber took the last piece and squeezed it over the stone. After the six holders ate the dragon fruit, the three ushered the teens out of the temple and towards the doorway.
“Wait, we’re leaving, now?” Hiccup asked incredulously. “We just got here! What about Drago? And there’s so much I want to know, there’s . . .” Gothi stopped him and beckoned him to kneel. Hiccup knelt, and she dipped her finger in a bottle before placing a sign on Hiccup’s forehead with the thick liquid.
“What’s that?” asked Snotlout.
Gobber explained, “Gothi has marked Hiccup with the sign of the dragon master, it’s official now, he’s one of us. And, if he ever wants to visit, he’ll know how to find us. But, you guys do need to go now, the portal between our worlds can only stay open for so long.”
“I thought you controlled the portals?” asked Eret.
“Not all of them, especially now that we’ve put the Alpha back to sleep, it’s taken a lot of magic to do it. We’ve already sent Drago and his men through, now it’s your turn.”
“And when exactly were you planning on telling us this?” asked Hiccup as he rose.
“Uh, just now.”
Hiccup rolled his eyes, “Of course.”
“Otherwise, it would be harder for you to say goodbye,” remarked Sandy. The teens glanced at them in surprise before glancing towards the dragons.
“Yeah, that it would,” muttered Eret sadly. They approached the dragons they had bonded with in a few days, and tearfully said their goodbyes before being rushed towards the portal by the Dragon Masters.
“What about you?” asked Hiccup.
“We need to stay here and get things back under control. Don’t worry, we’ll get back when we need to,” remarked Sandy as she and Gothi began pushing them through.
“But can’t I help?” asked Hiccup as he fought their pushing.
“Not this time. You may be an official Dragon Master, but there’s still a lot you have to learn,” replied Sandy as she and Gothi finally got him through.
“Remember, we’ll contact Hiccup if we need your help, so stay close to him!” shouted Gobber as the portal closed between them. The teens just stood there for several minutes, staring at what used to be a doorway to another world, but now, there was nothing but trees. The wind blew through their hair, the rustling of the trees seemingly shaking them out of their stupor.
“It’s, it’s over, it’s finally over,” muttered Eret.
“Then why do I wish it wasn’t?” Fishlegs mumbled as he glanced down. The others glanced down, all seemingly feeling the same. It was Hiccup who broke them out of it fully.
Turning to face them, Hiccup spoke, “It is over, for now, only for now. You heard what Gobber said, when they need us again, they’ll contact me.”
“If they need us again,” pointed out Astrid.
‘Which could mean never again,” grumbled Ruffnut.
“Yeah,” agreed Tuffnut.
“How do we know that? They weren’t sure either. Why else would they need a way to contact us?”
“Hiccup’s got a point there,” stated Fishlegs.
“But what now? Things will never be the same,” remarked Eret.
“No, it won’t, but our world hasn’t changed, just us. Come on, there’s still a lot we can do.”
“And a triple date to look forward to,” winked Ruffnut. They laughed as Hiccup and Merida turned beet red.
“Guess some things don’t change after all,” snickered Snotlout.
MacIntosh wrapped his arm around Ruffnut, “Well, then, let’s go plan that date, shall we?” They walked off, followed not long after by the others, Hiccup and Merida hung back for a little while.
“Hiccup?”
Hiccup let out a sigh, “It’s going to be harder for me than the rest of you, I’m one of them, but I want to be with you too.”
Merida smiled as she took his hand, “Then be with me, here, for now, if they call, know I’m answering that call with you.”
Hiccup pecked her cheek, “Thanks, Mer, that means a lot. Come on, let’s go make sure they don’t pick something stupid to do.” Merida laughed as they walked after their friends, their hands intertwined, finally.
The Alpha is Rising: 8. Protecting What Matters
(Dark is Rising AU)
As Gobber predicted, Hiccup found the Ice sign not long after they landed, almost as soon as they landed, in fact. Eret had placed his hand on a piece of the ice, and Hiccup found it there. Hiccup wondered about it for a second before Gobber rushed them on towards the temple.
“I don’t see Drago or his men, maybe you can put the signs in place before they do get here. Guess you won’t need the bell or the apples!” They practically screeched to a halt once within the temple. There, in the very center, stood a large green and brown stone, the dragonstone, next to the same cactus-like tree Hiccup saw in the garden, the dragonfruit tree. But standing in front of them stood a lone figure with a black cloak draped over his shoulder. He turned around when he heard their approach.
“Gobber, Sandy, Gothi! So good to see you again! And I see you’ve brought your new Dragon Master.” He laughed, “Did you think that three old Dragon Masters and elven kids are going to stop me?”
“The prophecy says so,” blurted Sandy.
He laughed again, “Not all prophecies come true. What would you do if your young, precious Dragon Master died?” A group of men entered the temple from the other side, swords and bows drawn. Hiccup and his friends drew their own weapons as their dragons inched closer, growling. Everyone paused as the ground rumbled. “The Alpha is waking up finally, and your little party isn’t going to stop me!”
“Dragons, fire! Everyone, outside!” blurted Gobber. The dragons let loose several fireballs as the group dashed out the door. The dragons joined them at a distance from the temple doors.
“That cloak is made from dragon skin!” growled Toothless to Hiccup.
“What? The cloak is made from dragon skin?”
Sandy’s eyes widened, “It’s just as I feared, Drago no doubt killed a Nightfury to obtain it.”
“A Nightfury? How . . . ah!” An arrow whizzed by Hiccup’s head.
“Alright, this is it! Remember what I said, watch each other’s backs!” Gobber quickly shouted before Drago’s men charged the group. Arrows whizzed across the field as swords clashed. Hiccup glanced at Gobber between his fights, he understood now why the Dragon Master wanted Hiccup to learn sword-fighting. He took a quick glance at his friends before his sword clashed with another, he was glad they all had some kind of experience with weapons, otherwise, it would have been all over. Hiccup dispatched the warrior fairly quickly, and found himself facing his next opponent, Drago.
“For such a puny, inexperienced thing, you’re not half bad.” Drago swung his sword a few times, Hiccup blocking each one.
Hiccup gasped as he glanced beneath the cloak, “Your, your arm!”
Drago smiled, “A small price to pay for this fabulous cloak, made from the skin of your dragon’s kind. Very effective, isn’t it?”
“Why do you want to control the dragons? Why do you want to control the world?”
“Why do you want to be great? Why do you want the attention of a pretty girl?”
“Wh-what are you getting at?”
Drago walked slowly around Hiccup, “Don’t we all want to be great? Your version of greatness would come in the attention of a pretty girl, mine is the control of dragons.”
“But, why? Can’t you find greatness in another way, like, by helping people, or dragons?”
“I am helping someone, myself, and the Alpha. Why was the Alpha put to sleep?”
“Because he’s the last of his kind, and the Dragon Masters didn’t want to kill him.”
“And?”
“And because he was trying to control the dragons for evil intentions.”
“Did you ever think that the Dragon Masters may have been wrong?”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Do you even know what the Alpha’s intentions were?”
“I . . . uh . . .I . . .”
“Of course not, why would they tell you? They were afraid you’d find out the same thing I did, that the Alpha only wanted to protect the dragons.”
“At the cost of them losing control over their minds, their actions?”
“Some things have to be done for the good of all.”
“Not to the point where they lose their ability to choose.”
“Choose what? They’re animals, there’s really nothing for them to choose.” Drago lifted his sword over his head, swung it in circles, and shouted, turning to face the area where the Alpha slept as he did so. Hiccup backed up, frantically trying to pull out the bell.
“Toothless!” he shouted over the link. “I’m ringing the bell!” He finally got out the bell and yanked out the handkerchief.
“What is that?”
“A much more sophisticated way to communicate with the Alpha than that . . . yell you just did,” retorted Hiccup right before he rung the bell. The rumbling stopped.
“No!” Drago charged Hiccup, and was sent sprawling to the ground by a fireball. Hiccup glanced over, Toothless gave him a nod. Hiccup sheathed his sword as he rushed towards Toothless.
“Thanks bud, now let’s give that Alpha these apples!” Toothless roared before taking off, the two racing towards the Alpha’s head. It was partially out of the ground, his mouth partially open. “OK, get me as close as possible!” Toothless nodded and soared closer to the Alpha, getting as close to his mouth as possible. Hiccup pulled out the three apples and tossed them into the mouth one at a time. “Yes!! Let’s get back to the others!” Toothless flew back, Hiccup jumping off his back as soon as he landed.
“Hiccup, are you alright?” asked Merida as he approached the group.
“Yeah, is everyone alright?”
“Doing pretty good, a few scratches here and there, but we’re still alive, that’s all that matters,” reported Eret.
“Hiccup, go put the signs in place!” ordered Sandy.
“But how? There’s nothing to hold them!” Gobber opened his mouth to answer when a yell distracted them. Drago was at it again, waving the blade over his head as he yelled. A few dots on the horizon behind him were getting bigger, and fast.
“The rest of Drago’s army!” blurted Gobber.
“What should we do?”
“We need to cover Hiccup so he can get the signs to the temple!”
“But how am I going to set it up, lay them on the ground?”
“No, they need to be facing the tree and the stone!” stated Sandy. The group glanced at the advancing army.
“Whatever we’re going to do, we need to do it fast!” exclaimed Astrid. A loud bellowing echoed over the island.
“Uh, you gave the Alpha all three apples, right?” asked Gobber.
“Oh no,” gasped Merida. She pointed towards the center of the island, the Alpha was slowly getting up.
“Are you serious? Three apples only gave us, what, three minutes?” blurted Tuffnut. Hiccup gulped, and they had spent it on arguing over what to do.
“We’re too late,” whispered Astrid.
The Alpha is Rising: 7. Pushing Forward
(Dark is Rising AU)
The group flew a ways before needing to stop for the night, but by then, all of the new dragons were named, and Hiccup got the Lightning sign, a copper piece, as the storm passed overhead. That night, around the campfire, everyone began asking questions.
“How did Drago know where I live?”
“How did you know where to find us?” asked Astrid.
“Why is everything happening so fast?” asked Merida.
“Do we really need to be a part of this?” sighed Dingwall.
‘How are the golden apples and the copper bell supposed to help?”
“Good question, Fishlegs,” ginned Hiccup.
“Thanks,” Fishlegs smiled back.
“Can we stay here forever?” came Tuffnut’s question. Everyone glanced at him. “What? It’s nice not having to worry about school and parents.”
“You’ve got a point there,” mumbled his sister as she leaned into MacIntosh.
“I think a better question is, are we going to survive this?” stated Eret.
Gobber sighed as he stood up, “And that is the hardest one to answer, the best I’ve got for you is, I don’t know. We’ll try our very best to keep you all alive, but, there are eleven of you, and only three of us, we can’t keep watching for every arrow or every fireball that come your way. You are going to have to watch each other’s backs. Your dragons will help, there’s no doubt about that, but, when it comes to battle, we’re not going to be able to help you. As for how Drago knew where you lived, Hiccup, it’s not hard, actually. Drago is a smart man, evil, but smart, and observant. He knew about the prophecy, so he was watching for you as much as we were, the only difference is that we found you first. But when he figured it out, he’s had someone keeping an eye on you.”
“OK, that’s creepy,” muttered Tuffnut.
Gobber nodded, “But Drago only needed to know when you were going to start finding the signs so that he could attempt to prevent you from finding them. And it looks like that failed.”
Snotlout raised his hand, “Uh, I hate to be the evil genius here, but, if Drago knew Hiccup was the Dragon Master of the prophecy, wouldn’t it have been easier to kill him?”
“Hey!”
“It would have, but, then Drago would lose his passage to the Dragon World.” Everyone glanced at Gobber questioningly. “Being untrained, Hiccup can call up portals without knowing it and cannot close them at command, and since the rest of us wouldn’t have opened a portal for Drago, he figured that Hiccup was his best bet to entering the world of dragons.”
“So, so basically, I let him in?”
Gobber shook his head, “No, you didn’t.”
“Right, that device those guys had,” pointed out Fishlegs.
“Partially, but, it was mainly us.” Their mouths and eyes widened in shock.
“What? You?”
Sandy sighed, nodding, “Yes, us, we pretty much had to choose between you or a portal. Not long after your family moved from Berk, a large portal opened up, and we had to choose either losing track of you, or letting Drago get through. We figured you were more important, and we let Drago get through.”
“Uh, do you think this could have all been avoided had you closed the portal?” asked Eret.
Gothi and Sandy shook their heads, but Sandy spoke, “No, because Drago would have stuck close to Hiccup to get his chance. But things would have gone a lot more slowly if we had, that’s for sure. The only reason why things are speeding up is because Drago has finally gotten through to the Alpha and is waking him up.”
“Oh, wow, um, OK, well . . . that answers two questions,” stated Hiccup.
“Three, I answered Eret’s first,” remarked Gobber.
“OK, three, out of what, seven?” mentioned Merida.
“Right, well, as for the others, no, you can’t stay here forever, you’re not dragons. Dragons are good at tracking, as good as any bloodhound, so that’s how we found you pretty quick.”
“Oh,” they chorused.
“The six elemental signs must be found; To keep the dragonstone in the ground; The youngest Dragon Master will find them all; And with his friends will create a wall; The signs encircled to prevent a disaster dire; Before the stone stand Earth, Ice, and Fire; Protect the tree with Air, Lightning, and Water; They must be placed in the proper order. Between Earth and Lightning stands a Fire so hot; Almost like what the dragon’s mouth begot; Between Lightning and Water stands the gentle Air; Like the dragon’s flight, graceful and fair; Between Earth and Water stands the royal Ice; All in the hands of the one who rolls the dice. So listen, Dragon Master, listen well; You will also need the copper bell; And the golden apples three; To save the dragons and keep them free,” rambled off Gobber.
Sandy groaned, “Will you please stop repeating the prophecy!”
“What? I need to refresh their memories!”
“Theirs, or yours?”
Gobber ignored the comment and got into it, “According to the prophecy, Hiccup’s friends are supposed to help him create a wall, apparently between Drago and the Alpha.”
“Maybe we have to hold the signs?” suggested Merida.
“Nah, there’s probably some kind of pillar or something the signs are supposed to go on. The copper bell will probably confuse the Alpha, messing up any communications there might be between him and Drago, and the three golden apples are supposed to slow down his waking, giving Hiccup enough time to get the signs in the temple.”
“OK, where are the copper bell and the golden apples?”
“In an enclosed garden we’ll come across tomorrow. Only Hiccup can enter.’
“Oh, great,” muttered Hiccup.
“What? Seriously, you are the only creature who can enter,” stated Gobber.
“Really?”
“Oh, I think I know the garden Gobber speaks of, and he is right. All dragons avoid it, those who attempted to enter got seriously hurt,” Toothless told Hiccup.
Gobber nodded, “Yup, anyone or anything else that tries to enter get hurt.”
“Whoa,” breathed the others.
“Told ya,” smirked Toothless, though Hiccup was the only one who heard him.
Sandy stood up and stretched, “Well, I don’t know about you, but I need my beauty sleep.” The group glanced at her. “What? I was actually beautiful once, you know.”
“Really? Don’t look it now,” scoffed Snotlout. Sandy glared at him.
“I think we should all go to bed, we still have a ways to go, and we still need to stop at the garden.”
Hiccup sighed, “Right. Well, goodnight.” The others echoed goodnights before they turned in for the night. They woke up fairly early the next morning, had a quick breakfast, and were soon on their way. It was a little after lunch when Gobber pointed out the garden and they landed. The outside of the garden was covered in vines, obscuring the door, while magnificent, green trees could be seen just peeking over the wall.
“Wow, I wonder what the inside looks like,” muttered Merida.
“Yeah, well, only Hiccup can see it,” stated Gobber.
“If I could see the door,” muttered Hiccup. Gobber placed a hand on his shoulder and pointed at a part of the wall. Hiccup let out a breath and walked towards the vine-covered wall. As he neared it, the vines parted, and there, visible now, was a door. Letting out another breath, Hiccup opened the door, and walked in. “Wow,” he gasped as he walked further into the garden. There were snapdragons everywhere in various hues with clusters of marigolds dotting the ground here and there. There was a stone path leading through the garden to the center, where a gazebo stood flanked by three trees. The gazebo looked like a mini Stonehenge with a vine-covered, stone roof. The golden apple tree was standing behind it, while two other trees Hiccup had never seen before stood on either side. The tree on the left looked like a palm had met a mushroom with dark orange berries, while the tree on the right looked like a mix of tree and cactus, a much friendlier looking cactus, with spiked, reddish fruit. Curving around the three trees grew a hedge dotted with citrus fruit. Hiccup took a moment to take it all in before walking towards the gazebo, and sure enough, sitting there on the table in the center of the gazebo sat the copper bell. Hiccup went straight to the apple tree and plucked three apples before returning to the gazebo. He stuffed a cloth into the bell before stuffing the bell into his pocket. He walked back to the wall and, taking one more glance around, left the garden. He explained everything he had seen.
“Oh, the tree with the red fruit is a dragonfruit tree, the other tree is a Dragon’s Blood tree, the smaller dragons just love those berries. And that hedge is Flying Dragon orange, a pretty sturdy plant. Oh, and the tree in the prophecy is a dragonfruit tree too.”
“Wow, now I’m beginning to really wish I could see that garden,” muttered Eret as he glanced back.
“Well, you can’t, only Hiccup could enter.”
“Why is that?” asked Hiccup.
“Not long after the Alpha was put to sleep, a spell was put on the garden to keep everyone, and everything, out so that its powers wouldn’t be used for ill.”
“Its powers?”
“Yeah, like longevity, healing, increased abilities, or in the case of the apples, protection from evil. And since the Alpha is evil, three apples will only put him to sleep for a few minutes. You’re going to have to work fast, Hiccup.”
“Right.” Two days later, they flew across the ocean towards an island with ice spiraling into the sky.
“There it is, the ice temple,” announced Gobber. The group glanced at it in awe and solemnity, this was where it would end.
Too soon!
It’s already two days till September ends!! I’m going to keep the blog open until Sunday night, October 2, just in case, but for the most part, we’ll be done by Friday. So, if there’s anything you’d like to submit, please tag it with #mericcupmonth and #mericcupmonth16 before Sunday night!
For the 1950s au 😊
The Alpha is Rising: 6. Putting Friends First
(Dark is Rising AU)
What Hiccup didn’t feel before with his hand, he now felt with his whole body. It almost did feel like he was under water, ice water, with an air bauble covering him and Toothless. It was weird, to say the least, and a bit uncomfortable, but before he said he wasn’t going to that again, he realized he was going to have to, to get back home. He groaned, things were spiralling out of control way too fast for him. He had just found out he was a Dragon Master only a few days ago, and now here he was, riding a dragon as they searched for his friends. Drago apparently wasn’t going to let Hiccup get much further in his search for the signs. Hiccup gritted his teeth, well then, he was going to fight Drago with everything he had to stop him from going through with his plan. He and Toothless glided through the night sky, looking for any kind of a camp, or even a sign of his friends. But when they had traveled for miles with no signs of any kind and sleep threatening to take over, they stopped to rest in a cave, hoping the daylight would bring better results.
“So, what do you say bud, should we circle around and check that area again?” Toothless shook his head. “Why not? We could have missed something.” Hiccup gasped as a voice went through his head.
“I can smell a lot of things from a distance, and I know what your friends smell like. I didn’t smell any of them when we passed over.” Hiccup just opened and closed his mouth. “What? Didn’t you know that Dragon Masters can communicate with their dragons? I’ve heard about it from all the other dragons, and even Gobber!”
“No! I mean, yes! I mean . . . I knew that, but, why didn’t you communicate with me earlier?”
Toothless shrugged, “I don’t know, I tried, but couldn’t get through. I could only sense our connection. Perhaps only here we can communicate?”
Hiccup nodded, “That makes sense. OK, onward then?”
Toothless nodded, “Onward.” Hiccup opened his mouth, only to look down. Another one, but, how? None of his friends were here. “Hiccup?”
“A sign,” he muttered as he knelt to push the dirt around. In a minute, his hand grasped it and pulled it out of the ground. This one was bronze with the rune for earth. “But, how? None of my friends are here!”
“Am I not your friend?
Hiccup glanced at the dragon, “Oh, right, you are, sorry, I’m used to having my other friends nearby.” He placed the copper piece in the pouch around his neck. “Alright, I’m expecting that nose to work well.”
Toothless snorted, “It will, it hasn’t failed me yet, nor will it until I’m fifty years old.”
Hiccup chuckled as he climbed back on Toothless, “Good to know. Let’s go.” Toothless took off, heading in a northwestern direction. The two used their link to communicate tales of their past and family. Toothless kept teasing him about Merida, of course, but for the most part, it was a pleasant conversation. They took a quick break for lunch before continuing on their search, Toothless pointing out a few dragons to Hiccup. The sun was beginning to set when Toothless let out an exclamation.
“There’s one!”
“Really? Who?” Toothless just snickered as he descended.
“Hiccup! I’m so glad to see you!” exclaimed Merida as she approached them.
“Merida! Are you alright? Where’s everyone else?”
Merida shrugged, “I don’t know, I was the last one through. I waited around for Heather, but when she didn’t show, I hightailed it away from the spot in case any of Drago’s men were in the area.”
Hiccup beamed, “Smart. But, uh, where’d you get the bow and quiver?”
Merida grinned sheepishly, “Oh, yeah, about that, I did run into one of Drago’s men, but, uh, well . . .” She turned to the bushes and waved. Another Nightfury approached cautiously. “He was trying to take her to Drago, and since I helped her get free, she’s been walking with me.” Toothless approached the Nightfury, and the two seemed to introduce each other. “I hope she doesn’t mind, but, I named her Morrigan.”
“Morrigan?”
Merida placed her hands on her hips, “And Mum says I’m bad about ignoring the lesson.” Hiccup grinned sheepishly. “Morrigan is the Celtic goddess of the night and death.”
“Really? That totally fits a Nightfury.”
“Yes, and a much better name than Toothless.”
“Hey, what’s wrong with it?”
“Toothless? Really? You couldn’t come up with anything more original than that?”
“And using the name of a Celtic goddess is more original?”
“OK, OK, you have a point.”
“She says she likes Morrigan,” Toothless communicated.
“Toothless says she likes it, though, Morrigan, she likes it.”
“Oh, wonderful!”
“Well, now that we’re all introduced, let’s go find the others, and hopefully Gobber.”
Merida nodded, “Right.” She watched Hiccup climb onto Toothless before glancing at Morrigan. “Um, Morrigan, may I ride you?” The dragon nodded, and with a whoop, Merida climbed on. The two took off, keeping to the same direction as before, the four chatting as best they could with each other, Hiccup having to do a lot of translating. But it worked well for the most part, allowing Merida to get to know her dragon a bit more. They had to stop for the night, and the dragons helped them get together a small fire. The dragons fell asleep almost as soon as dinner was over, but Hiccup and Merida talked long into the night. Early the next morning, they had a quick breakfast before taking off, keeping their eyes peeled for anything.
“Look!” exclaimed Merida as she pointed to the ground. Morrigan had apparently seen it at the same time and let out a yelp before descending to the ground.
“Wait, Merida, Morrigan!” shouted Hiccup as Toothless took off in pursuit. The dragons descended pretty quickly, Toothless touching ground only seconds after Morrigan. Merida alighted and rushed over to the still smouldering campfire. She knelt and looked at the area around the campfire while the dragons sniffed.
“Your friends were here! And so were the other Dragon Masters!” Toothless communicated.
“Really? You think you could find out where they went?”
“Or you could just ask,” blurted Sandy as they emerged from the bushes.
“Gobber, Gothi, Sandy! You’re alright! You’re all here!” exclaimed Hiccup. Merida and Astrid quickly hugged before the questions came out about Morrigan. Merida and Hiccup explained everything before they found out what happened to their friends.
“Well, when we came through, apparently there was supposed to be a convoy waiting to capture us. The convoy was there, but they weren’t waiting, they were dealing with some dragons. We took the opportunity to help the dragons and with their help, sent those men running,” grinned Eret.
“And now we have our own dragons!” Fishlegs exclaimed with joy.
“And you were amazing,” smiled Astrid.
“Why, thank you,” replied Eret before they kissed.
“Yuck!” complained Tuffnut.
“Anyway, when Dagur and Heather came to tell us what had happened, we jumped into action. We had Alvin detain them long enough to close the portal after us so they couldn’t get through,” explained Gobber.
Sandy scoffed, “Yeah, we have to take care of eleven kids already! It’s not like two more are going to make much of a difference.” She turned to Hiccup, “How are you with finding the signs?”
“Four down, two to go,” Hiccup happily reported.
“Four? You found another one?” Asked Fishlegs. Hiccup nodded as he pulled out the signs to show them real quick.
“I found Earth yesterday morning. Here’s Air, Fire, and Water. All that’s left is Lightning and Ice.”
Gobber nodded, “And I’m thinking you’ll find both of them on our way to the temple.”
Hiccup blinked, “What makes you say that?”
Gobber pointed south, “We’ve got rain coming in, which means there’s bound to be lightning, and the temple is surrounded by ice. So there you go, the last two signs.”
“Wow, this has all been so, so quick, so . . . almost easy.”
“Oh, the hard part’s coming, you can count on that,” quipped Sandy.
“Well, getting the signs into the temple and in the right place isn’t exactly as easy as making a cake.”
“Yeah, but, what about the copper bell and the golden apples?” asked Fishlegs.
Hiccup blinked, “What?”
“The six elemental signs must be found; To keep the dragonstone in the ground; The youngest Dragon Master will find them all; And with his friends will create a wall; The signs encircled to prevent a disaster dire; Before the stone stand Earth, Ice, and Fire; Protect the tree with Air, Lightning, and Water; They must be placed in the proper order. Between Earth and Lightning stands a Fire so hot; Almost like what the dragon’s mouth begot; Between Lightning and Water stands the gentle Air; Like the dragon’s flight, graceful and fair; Between Earth and Water stands the royal Ice; All in the hands of the one who rolls the dice. So listen, Dragon Master, listen well; You will also need the copper bell; And the golden apples three; To save the dragons and keep them free,” rambled off Fishlegs.
“Oh yeah, that’s the other hard part,” stated Gobber.
“What? B-but, but, where . . . how . . .”
“Of course you would forget that part!”
“Yes, of course he would, we’ve only been talking about him getting the signs! Why shouldn’t he forget that part?’ asked Gobber. Gothi nodded as Sandy grumbled. Gobber turned to Hiccup, “The copper bell and the golden apples are on the way too, so we’d better get going. It’s going to take a little while.”
“How long is a little while?” asked Astrid.
“Oh, about a week, maybe.”
“A week!”
“Yup, so we’d better get going. Come on!” Gobber, Gothi, and Sandy each climbed onto a dragon. The teens groaned as they followed suit, and the group was soon heading off north, towards an icy temple.
