Chaper three

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Where Is My Mommy?

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Life continued on Berk, but for many people it felt like there was something missing. For people like Ingrid Hofferson, Gobber the Belch and Stoick the Vast. It has been two whole years since that tragic day a dragon snatched up Valhallarama. The person known to these people as a friend and as a wife. And for one poor soul a mother.

Hicca was a happy baby as far as anyone could tell. She smiled and cooed at the world around her completely unaware of what her life was surely lacking. Val was and would have been a terrific mother to Hicca but alas such realities will be left unexplored.

Ingrid and Gunmar Hofferson took it upon themselves to raise Hicca in Stoick's stead. With his new aggressive-more aggressive- stance on dragons and running Berk was becoming more tedious than before and he didn't always have the time to take care of Hicca's daily needs throughout the day. He did however always prepare her first meal of the day told her he loved her before handing her off to Ingrid and for him to continue on to his duties as chief. He would return sometime later in the day, the time of day varied from day-to-day but he always did pick her up. He would take her from Ingrid and if she was awake he would ask her how her day went no matter how stressful his own was. Hicca generally only made happy cooing sounds at the chief but that seemed to be all it took to take some tension from the chief's body. He would than proceed to put her to bed and tell her he loved her before retiring to his own bed. Only to repeat the routine all over again.

Hicca and Astrid's relationship continued to grow over their days as toddlers. They would often share a crib hugging one another close in their sleep. They played together constantly which was just them sitting across from each other and laughing for no apparent reason. Babies are weird like that I suppose.

It was however not a perfect system…

Hicca surprisingly began taking her first steps before Astrid. Stoick didn't get to witness this milestone. And when Astrid saw Hicca moving around like an adult Astrid wasn't far behind. Ingrid was as to be expected of a loving mother ecstatic at their development. It didn't last long though. Hicca started grabbing everything she could get her hands on and oddly presented everything she nabbed to Astrid. The floor was getting more and more dangerous to traverse. Gunmar was worried that the two children's death trap was going to be the death of him and not one of the bloody beasts. There was significantly less glory to die falling in your own home than defending your village.

Astrid and Hicca also spoke there first words on the same day. Ingrid had just finished putting away some of the miscellaneous objects Hicca had found away when she turned to address Hicca," Hicca. Stop taking these things from their places and giving them to Astrid."

Hicca had been playing with lochs of Astrids hair but when Ingrid had said her name Hicca turned to her.

Ingrid than continued to speak addressing Astrid," And you Astrid stop encouraging her by pointing at everything."

Hicca seemed to have come to a realization at that point. Hicca's brow furrowed in concentration before pointing at Astrid and half gurgle said," Strid?"

Ingrid was happy at the sudden word and seemed to forget that she was trying to discipline the two girls.

"Yes! That's Astrid and you are Hicca." She said with a smile. Ingrid picked up Astrid and cooed at her happily," You hear that Astrid? Hicca's first word was your name." Ingrid chose to ignore that Hicca was one letter off.

Hicca bounced up and down on the floor smiling at Ingrid and Astrid. Hicca continued to point happily at Astrid while saying 'strid' over and over again. Ingrid continued to coach the girl until she finally added the 'a' in the name.

It was several hours later when Astrid began making her way through the milestone. Astrid was sitting at one end of the room admiring a carved Deadly Nadder figurine on a table. Hicca was on the other side of the room facing away from Astrid and was currently fascinated by her toes. Astrid stood up to reach for the object but was just a little bit out of reach. Astrid turned looking at Hicca while pointing at the figurine as she often did. Hicca didn't see her. In the adjacent room Astrid could hear her mother speaking to her father. Astrid really wanted to have the figurine but she didn't want to go all the way across the room to get Hicca's help.

Astrid opened her mouth several time trying to understand how the strange body parts worked together. It took her quite a while to get a sound out and she probably could have gotten the Nadder if she just went to Hicca in the first place but she was persistent. And her persistence paid off.

"Hic-hic-Hicca." Astrid said with some difficulty. Hicca on the other side of the room heard her voice and turned. Astrid said the name again. Hicca smiled and waddled over putting off her exploration of her toes for now. She would be back again studying the small strange digits or was it pedgits?

Astrid again pointed at the carving. Hicca saw the gesture and understood what Astrid wanted. Hicca stood on the tip of her toes to reach for the carving. Hicca grabbed the tail of the Nadder pulling it closer to get a grip on the legs of avian like carved dragon and presented it to Astrid who began studying the shape of the creature from every angle.

Stoick never got to see these milestones.

Whenever something like this was told to Stoick he would always get a confused face. He didn't know if he should be happy or sad at her growing up. On the one hand she was progressing quickly through the milestones of walking, speaking and even eating by herself but on the other hand he didn't get to be there to see it. He supposed it could be worse though. That night over a year ago could have robbed him of everything he held dear. Stoick didn't think he would have been strong enough to live if he lost both of his girls.

The girls continued to progress through their development. They began picking up more and more words. They got bigger, faster, and even more difficult to take care of. They reached for more things to occupy their time and talked constantly. Some times to each other, to Ingrid, to themselves, and Hicca was quite fond of talking to inanimate objects. The one thing Hicca used her ability to talk the most for was asking questions. Every question was asked that passed through her head. Why do we eat? Why do we wear clothes? Many of these questions were fairly easy to answer in Ingrid's opinion but there was one that gave her significant pause before she had to just say I don't know. Why do we poop? Seriously? Why?

"I would keep that question to yourself if I were you Hicca. People don't… talk about poop." Ingrid informed carefully. Hicca seemed to have accepted that. She didn't particularly like poop herself so talking about it was probably not fun either.

Hicca continued talking and asking plenty of question over the year. She and Astrid were now three years old. Hicca continued to be babysat by Ingrid because the dragon war was still going strong and left Stoick mostly indisposed. It was at this time that Hicca noticed the difference between her family and Astrid's family. She counted the people in the house and knew that Astrid and she were children and Stoick and Gunmar were daddies. And Ingrid was a mommy to Astrid. So, the question was. Who was Hicca's mother?

Stoick had just come to pick up Hicca from the Hofferson home that day. He managed to get through all his duties early because there were so few at the moment, but he knew he would be up to his eye brows in tasks before the week was done because winter was fast approaching.

Hicca had just taken her spot next to Stoick holding his massive or more precisely just one of the massive chieftain's pinkies. When she asked a question that made Ingrid flinch visibly. Stoick mouth opened agape at the inquiry. Astrid who was also at her mother's side just looked confused.

"Can I have a mommy?" Hicca spoke with such innocence that you would think she was asking for a new doll down at the market.

Ingrid looked at Stoick apologetically. She knew something like this would come up eventually. She felt really bad about Stoick having to go through something as difficult as that but some part of her mind she was grateful she wouldn't have to do it herself.

Stoick nodded sadly at Ingrid. He looked down at his daughter who was still holding onto his pinkie quietly waiting for a response.

"We can talk about this at home Hicca." Stoick finally said.

"Okay!" Hicca said happily, this was how her daddy usually behaved when she asked him for something. Although the time she asked for a pet Terrible Terror didn't go particularly well.

The pair began making their way home. Hicca walked alongside her father waving at all the Vikings who smiled at her as they passed. Stoick on the other hand seemed to have lost all hearing because he didn't respond in kind to any of his villager's own greetings.

They eventually reached their home and went inside. Stoick pointed at a chair near the hearth for Hicca to sit in while he got the fire going again. The home was completely empty the entire day so there was no need to maintain the fire except for the nights. It took but a moment for the fire to cast it's orange hued glow around the room. Stoick took a seat on his large and sturdy chair. He poked at the embers coaxing more light and flame from the wood.

He sighed heavily.

Hicca continued to wait patiently.

"Hicca, you want a? a mommy?" Stoick asked using the same word as she did.

"Yup! Where do mommies come from anyway? Can you get me one?" She asked looking up curious at the roof of her home as if it held the answer to her question.

"Mommies don't come from anywhere and I can't just get you one." Stoick answered.

Hicca paused in confusion," Oh. Then how does Astrid have Ingrid as a mommy?"

"Astrid didn't 'get' Ingrid. Ingrid and Gunmar got Astrid. Just like I got you." Stoick informed sadly. He left out Val's name again as if she wasn't a part of this. Stoick knew Hicca was going to connect the dots though. She was going to get the truth out of him any second now.

Hicca stared at her father. She knew he was leaving something out. He had done it before many times. When it was really dark he would sometimes come rushing up to her room taking her, her blankets and anything else near her and run out of the house. He would run across town and deposited her to Astrid and Ingrid. He would always leave with the same statement." Hicca. I have to go take care of of some chief duties right now so stay here with the Hoffersons for the rest of the night." He would begin leaving and turn around to say" Stay put…there…safe." And then he would finally leave to do his 'chiefly duties'. It didn't take long for her to get what he was really doing out of him on those nights.

"Gunmar and Ingrid got Astrid? A daddy and a mommy get a daughter?" Hicca said for clarification.

"or a son." Stoick corrected.

"So where is your Ingrid? My mommy?" Hicca finally asked.

"Your mommy is gone. My Ingrid's actual name was V-Valhallarama." Stoick wheezed out the last word. Stoick had completely avoid saying that name since Hicca began to talk. He didn't want this conversation to happen ever.

"Where is she?"

"Knowing her?" He asked with a chuckle." She probably beat the gates down to Valhalla just so she can challenge Odin and Thor to an arm wrestling match… at the same time!" Stoick's boasting of his late wife made him feel a little bit better but he could see the final dots connecting in Hicca's head on her face. Her mother was dead," she certainly had the name for it."

"Valhalla? Where great warriors go when they die?"

Stoick answered hesitantly," Yes."

Hicca chose to avoid asking if her mother was dead." So I can't have a mommy?"

"No. You can't. I couldn't bear to court another women." Stoick said sadly, he was still very much in love and it felt like it would take an eternity before his feelings could be extinguished. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry daddy? Even though you look sadder than I have ever seen you?" Hicca asked sympathetically. Stoick the Vast didn't look so Vast at the moment. He looked small and weak. He didn't have the imposing aura he seemed to exude in excess in the few times Hicca saw him in the streets from one of the windows at the Hofferson's.

Stoick took a moment to examine his daughter. She looked disappointed but not sad that she didn't have a mother, but this observation seemed to hurt himself even more than seeing her in tears. She had burst into tears over a skinned knee when he came to pick her up. Stoick knew that if Hicca spent even a little bit of time with Val as mother and daughter she would know she was missing something special and in time she would probably realize this from other people's interactions.

"I loved your mommy very much Hicca." Stoick explained.

"It hurts? Doesn't it? To lose something, someone you love very much?" Hicca asked despairingly.

Stoick nodded weakly," No pain imagined rivals what I feel and I pray to the gods in Asgard such pain will never befall you Hicca."

Hicca nodded sadly. She was terrified at what loss would do to her. If losing a wife hurt her daddy as much as it did. She thought the pain would probably kill her.

Stoick stoked the embers again. The discussion while seemingly short was actually very long. The two hadn't noticed each other's long pauses in thought as they each grappled with their conscience. The room had darkened significantly and the evening was upon them already. Everyone was in their homes already. Preparing to get to bed and awake refreshed tomorrow for another day of work. The flames grew again bringing back the warm glow that had vanished from the walls of the home. Stoick took a cursory look out a small window seeing thick darkness.

"it is late Hicca you should get to bed." Stoick said leaning back into his chair with a little less tension.

"Okay daddy…Are you going to be okay?"

"I will, go to sleep. You don't want to be too tired to play with Astrid. Do you?"

Hicca nodded more to do something in a response than in acknowledgement of Stoick's question.

Hicca climbed up the stairs to her loft on her hands and feet. When she reached the top she looked back down at her father. His chair was facing away from her and towards the fire. She couldn't see his face but she could practically feel the sadness radiating off his body. She frowned hoping he would get better. She sat there for a while hoping to see some sort of change but nothing happened for a long time.

She could barely hear him. The quiet words were an odd sound coming from her father. Even in sleep he was not quiet. But the sounds were there. Her father was singing softly.

I'll swim and sail on savage seas

with ne'er a fear of drowning.

And gladly ride the waves of life

if you will marry me.

No scorching sun, nor freezing cold

will stop me on my journey

If you will promise me your heart.

And love...

He stopped. She wanted to hear more of the song but he stopped. She really wanted to go down there and ask him to finish but she decided against it when her father's posture changed. Stoick leaned forward placing his two massive hands against his face. He was still very sad and Hicca pestering him about a song probably wasn't a good idea.

She finished making her way into her room. It was dark and quiet but the hearth downstairs had warmed her loft. She climbed onto her bed and wiggled under her covers. Her mind was abuzz with thoughts and she didn't think she would get a wink of sleep that night and maybe for a few more.

AN

And there it is another chapter. Hopefully i managed to demonstrate some degree skill in writing the last bits. I don't have much experience with loss honestly. So if anyone has some helpful criticisms please leave your thoughts in a review down below :P

Also the chapters should start getting longer now. they will likely triple maybe even quadruple in length and will be spanning anywhere from 3 to four years per chapter. so were looking at( advices awesome color coded outline of awesomeness) five chapters before we get to the movie part :)

*taps desk rhythmically

OKayyyy. I guess i don't have anything else to say...Review,fav, follow or if you are feeling especially generous start a religion in my name, that'd be pretty sweet... on second thought don't do that. very bad idea.