Table of Kings
First Draft
Sixth Scene

So this is the last "chapter" of this compilation, and honestly, the one I'm most proud of, even as it signaled the complete left turn at Albuquerque I had taken from my plot. Be warned, it contains spoilers of a sort for my actual fic, but the date and manner of the event in question is going to change anyway, so it's really up to you, Reader, if you wish to continue on.

Merida and Elinor were in the library when Maudie announced that Chief Hiccup had returned, and needed to see them straightaway. The two women shared a Look.

"Show him in, Maudie," Elinor commanded. The maid curtsied and waddled out, and within minutes, Chief Hiccup strode in, helmet under his arm, still dressed in his armor.

"Queen Elinor, Princess Merida," he said, nodding sharply. "We found the rest of the invasion force—they're only a few hours away. They'll reach DunBroch Castle by sundown tomorrow at the latest."

Merida felt her heart sink, and heard her mother stifle a gasp. The Queen remained composed, though, and just asked, "How many?"

"Ten ships, so about eight hundred warriors," the Chief replied, green eyes grave. "Just days before Lord Macintosh arrived at Berk, my Riders reported that a party of twenty ships was spotted heading south. If this is the same force, we could be looking at an army of over a thousand, if the Chief sends for the rest of his fleet."

"Mother, e'en wi' th' men frae Macintosh, McGuffin, an' Dingwall, we only hae seven hundred an' fifty warriors!" Merida exclaimed, running the numbers in her head.

"Add in my eighty, and we just barely break even," Chief Hiccup added. "But even if we fight off this force, there's another eight hundred waiting to sail up the lake. They're probably getting ready to sail, if they haven't already. Dyrvaldr's throwing everything he's got at you guys."

Merida watched Elinor pace, feeling sick to her stomach. The last war DunBroch had taken part in had ended before she was born, and there hadn't been a single serious threat until these Vikings arrived. Her people, while still fierce, weren't used to war. She wasn't used to war.

"Chief Hiccup," Elinor began slowly, stopping her pacing and standing tall before the Viking High Chief, "ye said ye would do everythin' in yer power tae aid in our defense. Ah humbly request any warriors ye can provide to supplement our forces."

"Done," the Chief said immediately. "I'll send a message to the nearest Confederation tribe myself, within the hour."

"Mum!" Merida exclaimed, staring at Elinor in shock. "Yer goin' tae ask him tae bring e'en more Vikings here? How dae we know they'll nae just turn on us soon as th' firs' group's gubbed?"

Elinor colored in embarrassment. "Merida! Ah cannae believe ye just said tha'! Apologize tae th' Chief a' once!"

"No need, Queen Elinor, she's got a point," Chief Hiccup drawled. "We do have that reputation, after all. Doesn't matter that everything I've done since becoming Chief of my own tribe has been to reverse that stereotype; we Vikings just can't be trusted, can we?" The man's green eyes flashed as he turned a fierce glare on Merida. "If that's truly how you feel, Princess, then rest assured, as soon as this mess is taken care of, my people and I will ship out, and no Viking of the Dragon Confederation will ever set foot on Alba's shores again. As my word of honor as a Viking isn't enough for you, your Queen can banish us, if that makes you feel better."

He turned back to Elinor. "With your permission, Your Majesty, I'll see about arranging those reinforcements for you."

"Please, wi' all haste, milord," Elinor replied.

The Chief nodded to her, shot a last poisonous glare at Merida, and strode out of the library, his prosthetic foot clicking on the flagstones.

Merida yelped as Elinor's palm connected with the back of her head.

"Ah swear tae Scotia, lass, Ah've never been so ashamed o' me own kin!" The Queen hissed. "Where is yer head, Merida? Ye just insulted th' most powerful man in th' North!"

The princess felt her face heat. "If he's so bloody powerful, why's he nae able tae control his own people?" She snapped. "This whole mess is his fault! We're on th' brink o' war because o' him an' his bloody, Scotia-damned Viking barbarians!"

"Ah know Ah taught ye better than tha', Merida!" The Queen thundered, burying her fingers in her hair. She whipped away from Merida in a twirl of hair and skirts, and through the red haze of anger and fear and the sound of her pulse in her ears, Merida could see her mother visibly trying to calm herself down.

Elinor sighed heavily, and faced Merida again. "We dinnae hae time for this," she said quietly. "Merida, Ah understan' tha' yer frightened—Ah am as well. But ye cannae be takin' it out on our allies! We need whatever warriors Chief Hiccup can give us, be they Vikings or Scots or dragons! Now, go calm yerself doon, an' when ye can conduct yerself like a future Queen should, find Chief Hiccup and apologize fer yer rudeness."

Merida clenched her teeth, biting back a retort. A tiny voice in the back of her mind told her that Elinor was right, but the princess was too incensed to listen. With a snarl of frustration, she stormed out of the library and up to her bedchamber, where she grabbed her sword, bow, and quiver. Still fuming, she stalked back downstairs and out of the keep, passing by the armory and grabbing an archery target as she did so. People gave her a wide berth as she headed down to the Gamesfield, and she paid them no mind, juggling the unwieldy target and muttering to herself. Finding a large, empty patch of field, she shoved the target upright, kicking the back leg into place with a hissed curse. She stomped ninety one paces, strung her bow, yanked an arrow out of her quiver, nocked, drew, aimed, and released.

Nocked, drew, aimed, and released.

By the fifth arrow, her breathing slowed. By the tenth, her ears stopped ringing. Fifteen, and her mind was quiet. After twenty five arrows, her quiver was empty. Sighing heavily, she slung her bow over her shoulder, and began the long trek back to the target.

The wood and straw circle bristled with arrow shafts like an angry hedgehog, and Merida wasn't surprised to see the ground around it littered as well. It wasn't like she was aiming, or anything. She collected the arrows and counted out the paces again, and lost herself in the rhythm of nock, draw, aim, and release.

The princess stayed out in the field for hours, until the failing light made her aim truly awful, and she had to stop before she accidently shot someone. There were far fewer arrows in the target than on the ground, and she began collecting them with a sigh.

"Pretty impressive, Princess."

Merida's spine stiffened at the nasally voice. "Think ye can do better, Chief?" She growled, whirling around to face him.

Green eyes blinked, russet brows rose, and Chief Hiccup held his hands up in an I'm harmless! gesture. "Easy there, Princess Spitfire, I'm giving you a compliment!" He protested. "I can barely hit the broad side of a dragon stable from two faðmr. That you can hit anything at all from thirty faðmr is amazing!"

"Oh. Thank ye." To her horror, Merida felt herself blushing, and made herself busy pulling arrows out of the target and ground. The Chief seemed content to just stand in silence, thumbs hooked into his belt, green eyes studying the wood beyond the Field with a faraway expression.

Finally, curiosity got the better of her. "Where's th' great Lord Dragon?"

"Hmm?" The Chief blinked. "Oh, you mean Toothless? He's napping with Disa. He's nocturnal by nature, so he's a lot less active during the day."

"An' how's yer bairn?" She slid her arrows back into the quiver. Still a few short. "Ah'd imagine she was a wee bit frightened las' nigh', an' then her dad dinnae come back until near noon."

"Eh, she's used to me coming and going," the Chief shrugged, snagging an arrow off the ground and handing it to her. "Perils of being High Chief—everyone seems to want to deal with you personally. She was a bit freaked out at the chaos at the end of the feast, but Eret and Skullcrusher looked after her. They're good babysitters."

"Who'd've thunk?" Merida muttered, shoving the arrow into her quiver.

"I know, right?" The Chief chuckled. "Eret used to be this badass dragon-trapper, and Skullcrusher was my dad's Rumblehorn. When Dad died, Skullcrusher chose Eret to be his new Rider, and they've been together ever since. They pretend that they're these crazy badass warriors, but they turn to slush when they're around Disa, or any little kid or hatchling. It's hilarious to watch."

"Wha' aboot Disa's mother? Yer wife? Shouldnae she be takin' care o' yer bairn?" Merida sneered. She regretted it instantly, as the Chief's green eyes, dancing with mirth just a moment ago, dulled with pain before dropping to the ground.

"She's dead," he mumbled. "Last winter."

"Oh, Ah'm so sorry, Chief," Merida said quietly, clutching an arrow in her hands to keep them from wandering to the Viking's arm.

"Thanks," he whispered, shoulders hunching and arms crossing over his chest. For a second Merida thought he was going to cry, but instead he took a deep, shuddering breath, and straightened his shoulders. "It's okay, though. I tell Disa that her mom's a Valkyrie, one of the shield-maidens of Valhalla. Sometimes I even believe it myself. Astrid would be the most badass Valkyrie in all of the Nine Realms, thrashing Ice Giants and Dark Elves at Freyja's right hand, and helping Dad in Valhalla prepare for Ragnarok."

Something about the tone of the Chief's voice, the obvious love he still held for his dead wife, twisted at Merida's heart.

"Mah dad's goin' tae go any day, now," she said quietly, sliding the arrow in her hands back into her quiver. "His health's been failin' since spring, an' now he cannae even leave his bed. He dosnae recognize me, or me brothers. Mum's been tryin' tae teach me diplomacy, but ye see how well tha's workin' out." She forced herself to meet his eyes squarely, her mother's voice in the back of her mind telling her to straighten yer back, lift yer chin, enunciate. "Ah need tae apologize fer my cruel words earlier, Chief Hiccup. Ah was frightened, an' takin' it out on ye unfairly. 'Twas wrong o' me, an' Ah'm truly sorry."

She forced herself not to bite her lip as the Viking studied her, face impassive. "You've never actually fought a real battle, have you?" He asked suddenly.

Merida didn't see how that was relevant, but answered truthfully anyway. "Nae, Ah havenae."

"You're lucky," Chief Hiccup told her plainly. "I hate fighting. Not very Viking of me, I know, but that's the way it is. Unfortunately, I don't see how we can avoid it in this case."

Merida bit her lip, and stared at the ground.

"Hey, it's getting late," the Chief said suddenly. "Come to our camp and have supper with us. Your mom let us go hunting with some of your guys, and since you put on that nice feast for us, I felt like we should return the favor. Your mom and brothers are gonna be there, too, and you can meet some of my warriors."

Merida wasn't sure she wanted to, but she was getting hungry, and the Chief had been quite kind accepting her apology for her earlier behavior. And she didn't want Elinor even angrier at her for refusing the invitation of a visiting dignitary after she'd already insulted him.

"Alrigh', let's go," she said. "Lemme jus' go put me weapons awa'—"

"Don't worry about it," the Chief interrupted, shrugging. "We've got weapons racks, and my guys tend to eat with their swords on their backs when they're not at home, anyway. You'll fit right in."

"Mum will be appalled," Merida said, smiling at the mental image of the Queen surrounded by armed men stuffing their faces at the table in the castle throne room.

Chief Hiccup laughed.

"My dad would be appalled, too," he said as he led the way to the cluster of tents in the distance. "When I became Chief, I banned weapons from the village Mead Hall, since a lot of people preferred to settle arguments with swords and hammers instead of words. Dad would've had a heart attack if he'd been around to see it, but the number of "accidents" in the Mead Hall has plummeted, so I call that progress."

They reached the camp, and the Chief was immediately set upon by a huge black shadow. Merida's hand flew to the hilt of her sword at her waist, but something stopped her from drawing. It took a second to register that the Chief was laughing.

"Toothless!" He gasped out between snorts of laughter. "Toothless, cut it out! Stop! Get off, you useless reptile!"

"DADDY!" Out of nowhere, the small form of the Chief's daughter flung herself onto the dragon's back, her short arms wrapped around the scaly neck. Merida let out a rather embarrassing squeak of terror at the sight of the tiny wee lass wrestling with the huge beast.

"Oh no, bud, we're under attack!" The Chief exclaimed in a voice full of playful terror. "The Mighty Mite is after your ears! We gotta get her off before she eats them!"

"Rawr! Nom nom nom!" Lady Disa giggled, wriggling up the Lord Dragon's neck and biting on the odd ear-like plates protruding from his head. The Lord Dragon growled and reared back slowly, giving the shrieking girl time to wrap her legs around his neck. Chief Hiccup scrambled out of the way as the reptile came back down on all fours and shook his broad head, trying to dislodge the lass, who was squealing with laughter.

"Hang on, Toothless, I'm coming to help!" The Chief declared. He ran over to the pair, reached up, and started tickling Lady Disa. The girl's playful shrieks took on a new pitch, and the Lord Dragon waited a heartbeat before bucking gently. Lady Disa slid right off of the beast's neck and into her father's arms.

"Hah! I got you, ya little monster!" He crowed, continuing to tickle the wriggling, shrieking little girl. "I'm the Dragon Master, bow before me! ARRRGH!"

"No! Imma Viking! Don't wanna bow!" Lady Disa yelped, giggling. "Toothless, help! Toothless!"

The Lord Dragon roared, and pranced around the two humans, nuzzling them here and there with his broad head.

"Oh no, the little monster's called in reinforcements!" The Chief exclaimed. "The unholy offspring of lightning and death, come to battle the great Dragon Master! The Dragon Peace is over! Oh, the horror! Vikings and dragons, enemies again!"

Both girl and dragon chortled, and Lady Disa landed a nice kick to Chief Hiccup's ribs, causing him to grunt.

"Oh, she got me!" He groaned dramatically, slumping to the ground. "The great Dragon Master is defeated! Dragons have taken over the Archipelago! Oh, what will become of the poor Vikings?" He sprawled out flat on his back on the ground, making the most ridiculous "death" face Merida had ever seen. Lady Disa rolled out of his slack arms, and crawled up to peer into his face. The Lord Dragon sat down on his haunches and leaned over the girl like a great black shadow, huge green eyes curious as a cat as he crooned at his human.

"Daddy?" Lady Disa asked, poking the Chief's nose with a finger. "You're not dead."

A heartbeat, then Merida jumped as he opened his eyes suddenly and reached for the little girl with a hissed "No!"

Lady Disa and the Lord Dragon jumped as well, the wee lass giggling as she scrambled away and raced off into the camp, the great black beast trotting after her like one of Merida's dad's hounds.

"Wash up for supper, Disa!" Chief Hiccup called after her, standing and brushing off his tunic and leggings.

"I got the hatchling covered, Chief!" Hollered a passing Viking warrior. Merida had to do a double-take—that warrior was a woman.

"Thanks, Bulda!" The Chief shouted back.

"Tha' was a lady, righ'?" Merida asked faintly.

"Huh? Yeah, Bulda the Boulder," Chief Hiccup replied absently, beckoning the princess to follow him. "She's a fair hand with a war-hammer."

"Ye hae lady warriors?"

The Chief stopped, and his eyes widened. "Oh," he murmured. "Yes Princess, Berk has female warriors. Have for centuries, now. It's pretty much the norm throughout the Archipelago, since constant attacks by dragons kinda made it necessary for every able body available to protect the villages. Now shieldmaidens are just as respected as men."

"Tha's incredible!" Merida grinned. "How many shieldmaidens do ye hae in yer group righ' now? Can Ah meet 'em? Are any o' 'em archers?"

The Chief grinned as he led her through the camp. "Of the seventy-eight warriors in my band, there's thirty-two shieldmaidens, and of course you can meet them. They'd be thrilled to find a shieldmaiden here. We'll wash up, and I'll go introduce you to Bulda—she'll take you to the rest of them."

After a rather hilarious misunderstanding involving exactly what "washing up" entailed (Merida hadn't known someone's face could get that red), Chief Hiccup took Merida to meet his best shieldmaiden, exchanging the princess for his daughter as though the pair of them were dry goods being bartered. Merida couldn't find it in herself to be offended, since the woman she found herself talking to was so bloody interesting. A discussion about their favorite weapons turned into a debate over the best way to grip a sword, with nearby warriors, male and female, chipping in with their own opinions. Eventually, Merida found herself surrounded with what had to be every shieldmaiden in the Berkian force, clamoring to meet the warrior princess. Bulda declared Merida an honorary shieldmaiden of the Hairy Hooligan tribe of Berk (Merida couldn't help but feel that the name was appropriate), and the women all claimed her as a sister-in-arms, presenting her with a hastily made but gorgeous braided leather headband, which Bulda told her was called a kransen.

"Only shieldmaidens wear these, as a sign of our status as warriors," the large woman told her as she helped Merida fasten it. "With this and your weapons and armor, you'll never be mistaken for a helpless maid."

Merida would've been perfectly happy to spend the entire night with her new sisters, but she had to put in an appearance to Elinor, or the Queen wouldn't let her hear the end of it. Thanking her new friends, she detached herself from the group to find her mother.

The Queen was sitting by the firepit in the center of the camp, deep in conversation with Chief Hiccup, and both looking grave. They both looked up as she approached, and Chief Hiccup grinned when he saw the kransen on her brow.

"I see you've been sucked into the cult," he drawled, raising his tankard to her in salute. "They must really like you."

Merida grinned proudly. "But o' course," she replied, tossing her hair. "Those ladies know quality when they clap eyes on it."

The Chief snickered into his tankard, as Elinor sighed.

For those of you who've made it down here: Yes, I do plan to kill off Astrid in Table of Kings. I love Hiccstrid, especially as portrayed in HTTYD2, but Merricup is my OTP for the Rise of the Brave Tangled Frozen Dragons fandom, and I honestly believe that Hiccup and Merida would be very, very good for each other. However, rest assured that Astrid will go out in a manner completely fitting her awesomeness and badassery, and Hiccup will not get over her quickly or easily.

So, here's the end. I can't wait to start posting Table of Kings in its finished form, and to my loyal readers of my other fandoms: I solemnly swear to do my utmost best to finish Table of Kings in a timely manner. I will point out that I won't do anything to disrupt the hard won equilibrium of my Real Life, but I will do my best within that framework. I thank everyone here on FFN for their patience and understanding, and look forward to hearing what everyone has to say about these First Draft vignettes!

Until then, happy reading!

00AwkwardPenguin00