Chapter 120: From A Mustard Seed

### Story Date

Thursday 21 April AD 1043/6551 ε.Κ/8 Ramadan 434 AH/8 Huai-Yue Huangyou Era Year 1/8 Harpa ÅrO -1

## Appearances

### Locations

Berk
Constantinople
Jīnniú Dào

*Pre-Norse Germanic and Early Norse calendars were highly regional in use, with significant differences in practice and even names for months between different areas, with some using leap days, leap weeks, leap months, pure lunar reckoning with no adjustments for precession, or 12 months of 30 days each, with five or six additional days inserted as needed. Post-Reformation Norse calendars, however, are universally based on the calendar established by the Hooligans of Berk, which was itself restructured eighty years prior to the Reformation by the Jewish teacher Dror ben Ezra. Dror essentially used the Jewish calendar as a direct model, simply renaming the Jewish months for the Norse months, but keeping the general underlying structure of calculations the same, with months beginning with the new crescent phase of the moon.*

*As a result, the modern Norse calendar is a luni-solar calendar, structured around the Mahzor 19-year lunar cycle, with leap months added in the 3rd, 6th, 8th, 11th, 14th, 17th, and 19th years of the cycle, thus keeping the calendar from precessing excessively from the seasons. Like the Jewish calendar, it does have the singular flaw that the lunar Mazhor cycle does not perfectly match up with the mean solar calendar over time, and falls one day behind per 216 years. This is a point of discussion among the Norse on possible methods to compensate, due to the fact that, as the beginning and ending of the months are tied to the natural cycle of the moon, skipping days to bring the calendar in line with the mean solar year, as was done with Julian calendar in the mid-1700s AD, is not practical.*

*The era used for the Norse calendar is År Odin (Year of Odin), abbreviated as ÅrO; as with Anno Mundi (In the Year of the World) or Anno Domini (In The Year of Our Lord), the words or abbreviation should precede the date rather than follow it. The epoch of this era is based on the historical Norse Reformation, beginning with the publication of the Norse holy texts in Harpa ÅrO 0.*

*—Norse Calendar (n.d.) In Wikikenna. Retrieved March 30, 1856*

## Synopsis

* Rolf and Roswynn reunite and reconcile.
* Berk, including William, hear news coming out of Brittany that Duke Conan and his sister had survived Sir Henry's engineered heroics and Henry's father stepped down as duke to be Conan's regent.
* Hiccup, Fishlegs and Astrid agree to allow minors from the annexed Bog Burglar and Meathead tribes to train dragons on previous precedent. They then agree that all future adoptions can only be done by those that are at least fifteen.
* Fishlegs brings to Hiccup's attention that the rookery on Berk is running out of room. Hiccup agrees to build additional rookeries across their territories.
* Sophia shares with Heidrun the idea of having the betrothed of Anna, who is part of the family with blackmail over Sigurd, a position in the dragon tagma to keep watch over him.
* Spitelout and Astrid convince Hiccup to allow the formation of a dedicated standing army for Berk.
* Mulan's crew reach the Shu Roads on their journey. Shang almost falls to his doom, but they manage to save him.

## Characters

### Humans

* Picknose Rolfsson
* Phlegma Snideloutsdóttir
* Mairwen Roswynnsdóttir (first appearance)
* Signy Roswynnsdóttir (first appearance)
* Hensteeth clan Ingerman
* Rolf Snotpoutsson
* Cami Berthasdóttir
* Roswynn
* Catthumbs Axwitsdóttir
* Esther bat Rivkah
* William of Normandy
* Stoick the Vast
* Jacob Rodericksson
* Fishlegs clan Ingerman
* Hiccup clan Haddock
* Astrid Hákonsdóttir clan Haddock
* Dagur mac Oswald
* Sophia Makris
* Gudmund Hallvarsson
* Anna Dalassene (first appearance)
* Spitelout Clodgallsson
* Wulfhild of Norway
* Asta Rhonda Hiccupsdóttir
* Fa Mulan
* Li Shang
* Yao
* Chien-Po
* Ling

### Dragons

* Toothless
* Stormfly
* Meatlug
* Night-Glow

## Analysis

### Other

* The chapter title "From a Mustard Seed" is based on the parable which is themed on how large things can grow from small things. The chapter shows the characters taking small steps to set up large changes or important schemes such as:
	+ Fishlegs convincing Hiccup and Astrid to build more rookeries spread across their territories since the one on Berk is running out of room and having dragons closer to their subjects would reduce the amount of fear of dragons as well as smooth out other logistical issues.
	+ Sophia getting the idea of having the betrothed of an enemy of Sigurd allowed into the dragon tagma to keep an eye on them.
	+ Astrid and Spitelout successfully convincing Hiccup on the merits of Berk having their own standing army.