Somewhere in upstate New York, 30 October 2022, 5:05 PM

The gang met back up in a small dinner in town after approximately three hours of investigating. Everyone was practically starving so they ordered quite a few big meals. There were some surprising factors that caused Astrid to pick at her mashed potatoes.

"You alright?" Hiccup asked as he noticed that she wasn't eating.

"Just thinking," Astrid muttered. "I can't believe the twins agreed with Snotlout." The twins agreeing with each other was rare enough, the twins agreeing with Snotlout was miraculous. Snotlout had been clinging to Astrid like a limp noodle when they got to the basement door where he shouted that he would put his foot down. Only, Snotlout had been dragged over the floor by Astrid and instead of a foot, he had punched the floor with his hand which sent his entire hand and part of his arm into the rotten wood. Snotlout screamed while Astrid and Hiccup rolled their eyes and tried to extricate him. That was when the twins rushed in yelling at them to not touch that door.

It was all surreal basically. They ended up jotting down the runes across the door frame, though the twins showed a clear disdain for being this close to the door. Hiccup wondered why that was. Snotlout was more relieved than ever to get his hand out from the wood that he didn't notice any of this. After taking note of the magical runes they explored what they could of the rest of the mansion. In an upstairs bedroom, they found a flipped-over photo frame. It contained the black and white picture of a woman that Hiccup recognized as the White Lady. There seemed to be a strong connection to this house and Hiccup had his suspicions. He ended up taking the photograph with him.

As Hiccup snapped out of his musings he noticed that Snotlout was gone from the booth they had been seated at. When he asked, Fishlegs indicated towards the outside. There he noticed the shorter figure of his cousin who seemed to be yelling into his phone.

"Can I top any of you guys up?" A young waitress asked as she came by with a coffee pot. Hiccup nodded, he needed coffee to function at this point. Too many things weren't making sense. They were in an area that had been part of the first 13 colonies, they had a haunted Victorian mansion, which actually wasn't that shocking. The shocking part was finding Norse runes in the Victorian mansion. Those were...... anomalies. There was no way the Norse settled this far inland and definitely not during the Victorian era in the colonies. Furthermore, notice of the Viking exploration only happened at the beginning of the 20th century so there should have been no way for anyone to know those symbols. They basically had a conundrum in a conundrum.

"Excuse me, but do you know a lot of the local legends around here?" He asked the young waitress that was refilling their glasses.

"Born and raised," The woman answered. "I grew up with the stories, though they weren't much. Though no one really believes them anymore. You guys aren't from around here are you?"

"Yeah we're from out of town." Hiccup told her. "We're here doing research on the Grisly mansion not far from here before it's torn down. We'd thought we'd look into the local rumors since there is always some truth there."

"Grisly Manor, you mean?" The waitress asked and then laughed. "Oh, that place isn't going to be torn down."

"What makes you say that?" Astrid asked with a frown. "There's a construction crew there already."

"Because if the last few construction crews over the years couldn't do it I doubt this one will," The woman stated. "I've seen two other crews come in to work on that site. They didn't have any luck and just.... Left," She then shrugged.

Fishlegs was shooting Hiccup a look and then said "Two isn't that strange though..... I mean, anything could have happened for them not to complete the project."

"Sure, but around ten is a pattern," The waitress shrugged as if she was used to this already. "I saw two crews come through town when I was growing up. My ma said she saw several and my granny also saw a few in her youth. They seem to come and go every decade or so. The Manor never gets torn down."

"That is....."

"Weird right," The waitress nodded and waved her coffeepot a bit. "I mean if there really is something supernatural going on there then I do wish they would leave poor Elenor alone. The woman should rest in peace."

"Elenor?" The group asked in unison and then Hiccup thought back to the photo he found in one of the bedrooms. "She was Elias Grisly's wife, right?" He asked.

"We couldn't find out much about Elenor Grisly in the archives," Fishlegs said as he pulled out a folder. "We'd appreciate it if you could tell us what you know."

"Yeah sure, I love helping folks. Lemme just finish this coffee round and I'll go tell my boss I'm taking my lunch break." The waitress stated before walking to the other tables.

"You think she has more information for us?" Heather frowned. "I mean, there were a lot of rumors circulating around town but none conclusive." Just as Heather said this Snotlout came back into the diner and slid into the seat next to her. He looked frazzled.

"I take it the call didn't go well?" Hiccup asked.

"Both my night and day crews are refusing to return to the site." Snotlout groaned. "This is the biggest job we got in years and it's going to fail."

"Maybe they shouldn't go back. The land had an evil tint to it," Ruffnut whispered. "I sensed so much blood being spilled."

"The entire alignment was askew as well," Tuffnut nodded just as the waitress came back.

"So you guys still want to know about that mansion's history?" The waitress asked.

He nodded and then thought he'd ask the twins later what they meant. Astrid who was seated next to Hiccup scooted over for the woman who flopped down. She looked at the research Fishlegs had on the table next to his meal and whistled appreciatively. "I see you've been to the archives. They won't tell you much though. The whole thing was covered up."

"What was covered up?" Snotlout asked as he had missed most of the conversation.

"Elenor's death of course." The waitress stated. "Official records said that she died of illness but that isn't true."

"I've heard this story from my grandmother who heard it from her father. He used to be the groundskeeper for that place," The waitress bent forward as if she was going to tell some very juicy story.

"We managed to dig up a marriage certificate," Heather said as she rooted around in the files Fishlegs had on the table. When she found it she showed it to the waitress. Hiccup and Astrid peered at it too and saw the name 'Elenor Beauregard' and 'Elias Grisly' dated 1860. Grisly manor would have been completed six years prior and it was scant a year before the Civil war started. Then Fishlegs pulled up a death certificate that was dated in 1862.

"She'd only been married for two years before she died?" Astrid's brows shot up.

"The story goes that Elenor's family was from the deep South. She was sent to her cousin, by command of her eldest brother, who lived in New York to learn some 'Victorian values' since she seemed to be too free spirited for them to handle after her father passed." Astrid frowned a bit as the waitress told the story. Hiccup supposed she sympathised as she too was from the time periods where women were more bargaining chips than people. "At a social gathering in New York she met Elias Grisly and the two started courting, though her cousin wasn't too fond of him even if he was rich. To Victorian society he was.... Odd... or highly eccentric, at least that is how the story goes. I'm not really sure why though but the story goes on to tell that they hit it off and got married not six months later."

"But two years later she died," Hiccup stated with a frown. "You said that there was another story other than her dying of illness."

"People here believed that in the two years she was married that she had gotten pregnant twice but both babies were stillborn. This infuriated her husband and he strangled her because she couldn't give him an heir." The woman recounted. "Now you see why I said she should just rest in peace. The younger generation here doesn't really believe and could care less about the legend but my granny's generation is sure she is haunting the place. They say that's why all the construction crews over the years failed."

"You think she attacked the construction crews over the years?" Astrid frowned as her eyes narrowed.

"Oh heavens no!" The waitress said quickly. "No one was hurt... I think. I don't think she's a bad ghost. When I was in High School some boys were messing around that area, setting off firecrackers and the likes. They saw her, they claimed, sent them running for the hills. There was this one boy who slipped and swore up and down that the ghost had caught him before he twisted his ankle."

"So there was stil-" Hiccup was interrupted mid-sentence when Tuffnut grabbed his arm and squeezed hard. He winced and then looked at the blonde who said to the whole table, with pupils wide, "We need to go now."

"What why?!" Snotlout asked but Tuffnut was insistent as he made motions for the group to vacate the booth.

"Now! Now!" Tuffnut kept insisting as Astrid shot the waitress an apologetic look like Tuff had done this a couple of times already.

"Hey no worries. I gotta get back to my shift." The woman said before walking away after Fishlegs quickly paid the full tab. Everyone was looking at Tuffnut weirdly, even Ruffnut, as he ushered them out of the diner.

"What is wrong with you?!" Ruffnut grabbed her brother's arm and her eyes widened as she felt goosebumps there. It was warm out, there was no need to have goosebumps.

"We are being watched," Tuffnut whispered to the group and his eyes strayed to the other side of the street where a woman with her hair in a bun and dressed in a dark business suit was looking at them. A car drove past and the woman was gone.

"What the hell was that?!" Ruffnut hissed as they all piled back into the SUV. Hiccup was driving right now and he seemed they were heading for one of the hotels Gobber booked for them last minute.

"I don't know sis?!" Tuffnut exclaimed. "I just had to get out of there! It felt like evil was licking my neck!"

"Ew!" Ruffnut muttered.

"Tuff's always been more attuned to people," Astrid stated. "It helped us in the past but this seems way over the top. I've never seen him act like this."

"That's because this was evil Astrid, pure ancient evil! It's nothing we came across before!" Tuffnut exclaimed. "It felt more like it was trying to caress me and coax me into doing its bidding. I felt it slightly when we spoke to THAT guy but nothing like this,"

"Grisly?" Hiccup asked. "We all saw his secretary there across the street, didn't we? You sure you got that vibe from Grisly and not the woman?"

"Yeah totally. What I felt just now was way off the charts," Tuffnut elaborated. "Way.. WAY.... off the charts. Sis, I'm actually afraid right now,"

Hiccup ended up parking on the lot of a Holiday Inn and the gang exited the van. Tuffnut was still shaken but not as much anymore as before. Check in went rather smoothly since all they needed to get was their keys from the front desk. Gobber had brought their go-bags and equipment in, and paid for the rooms, while they went to work.

As the gang all congregated in the twins' room they watched Tuffnut flop on one of the beds and groan. Fishlegs was pursuing several town maps of the past while Heather set up her laptop. Meanwhile Snotlout was looking at all the other equipment that was still packed.

"What is all this?!" The shorter man then asked as he gestured to several machines.

"Different types of meters," Hiccup explained as he pointed to some. "We usually take temperature readings of a room, magnetic readings....." He then pointed to some other tripods, "Those are for measuring the land and are connected to Landsat. We also have hand drills to check the soil. We didn't know what we were dealing with in your case so we brought it all."

"But why?!" Snotlout asked while looking very confused still. "Aren't you guys supposed to be Paranormal Investigators?"

"Only about 2 percent of our cases are truly paranormal," Astrid stated as she sat down opposite of Hiccup. "Most of the time we are actually disproving the supernatural."

"Yeah, we had this one case where an old building was slowly sinking because the foundation had been built on mud. That accounted for all the random creaking and the spontaneous shutting of doors. All because the ground wasn't staying level." Heather explained. "That's where the soil testing equipment and GPS really came in handy."

Heather then asked Ruffnut if she could see their notes and pictures of the Norse runes. Once those were handed over she perused them and frowned. At Snotlout's questioning look Astrid explained that Heather, besides knowing some spells she had learned from the twins, was better at linguistics and research. "It will take me some time but I might be able to decode it." Heather replied. "I recognize some words but it all looks like a jumbled mess to me."

"What do you mean?" Hiccup asked as he too looked at the notes.

"It's like someone tried to mix two or three spells together. Some of these don't make sense to me." She explained while pointing at a particular section. "This means 'to contain' while this part means 'to provide power'." She then pointed to the lower section of the photograph. "I recognize this word. It reads as Niðafjöll."

"The hell is Niðafjöll?!" Snotlout asked while rubbing his temples. He was starting to develop a headache.

"It's as you said Snot, Hell," Fishlegs answered. "More specifically, Niðafjöll refers to a location in the northern underworld and literally means dark mountains. It's supposed to be where Nidhogg comes from and where the good and virtuous people live in a golden palace after Ragnarok."

"Can we determine how old this writing is?" Hiccup asked.

"Probably old." Astrid replied. "It certainly didn't look like it was etched recently. It was under a thick layer of dust and cobwebs and seemed to have been subjected to a fair share of water damage."

"If it's as old as the mansion then we have a problem," Hiccup stated.

"Why?" Snotlout was even more confused now.

"Snotlout do you know of L'Anse aux Meadows?" Fishlegs asked.

"No?" Snotlout raised his brow and crossed his arms. "Should I?"

"L'Anse aux Meadows is an archeological site on the northernmost tip of Newfoundland. It was discovered in 1960 and is the only confirmed Norse site outside of Greenland that corroborates pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact." Fishlegs explained. "There is more than a century between when Grisly manor was built and the site was first discovered. Thus people living in the Victorian era in America should have had no knowledge of Norse runes."

"Oh,"

"Yes, Oh, Snot. This is the concept we are struggling with." Hiccup frowned. "It's like trying to explain how a statue of a Roman emperor could have ended up in a Mayan temple. Just to give an example."

"There are some interesting things to note about L'Anse aux Meadows," Fishlegs continued. "Did you know that it is notable for its possible connection with Leif Erikson,"

"Who?" Snotlout grumbled.

"Leif Erikson was a Norse explorer hailing from Iceland. He is thought to have been the first known European to have set foot on continental North America," Fishlegs explained. "According to sagas, he established a Norse settlement at Vinland, which is now called Newfoundland."

"Funny story," Fishlegs continued rambling. "Newfoundland's name actually isn't derived from Vinland but from the name Terra Nov-"

"Alright, alright, I get it!" Snotlout interrupted. "This guy was important and someone else named Newfoundland. How exactly does this help us?"

"Well.... It doesn't," Fishlegs muttered. "Though it should be noted that when the Vikings landed, Vinland had been inhabited by a Paleo-Eskimo culture known as the Dorset. There is still a debate going on if these cultures interacted. And it doesn't seem like the Vikings traveled further inland."

"That we know of," Astrid responded while tapping the armrest of the couch. "No one actually knows how far their influence reached."

"But all the way to the Victorian era, 800 years later?" Ruffnut questioned while looking over a map on the bed with her brother. "Come on, even that's farfetched."

"Basically there are too many unknown variables." Heather stated as she was working on the translation. "The only person who could give us any answers is a ghost."

"So let's ask the ghost," Hiccup decided.

"WHAT?!" Was exclaimed in the room. He had expected a backlash but everyone screaming that at once did surprise him.

"Halloween starts tonight. At the Witching hour the veil between worlds will be the thinnest. It may be the only chance we have to communicate fully with this entity." He stated. "You guys know I'm right. We are making little headway with this case. If we have the chance to question someone directly involved it might shed light on some things."

"If you're proposing one of us becomes a Medium to channel that ghost then you're insane," Astrid grumbled.

"It didn't look like she meant any harm," Hiccup reasoned. "The lady still seemed sentient enough to understand my question and lead us to that basement door."

Astrid's eyes narrowed and she pursed her lips but she had to admit Hiccup had a good point. They were at a dead end and the only one that could give them a clue right now was a dead woman.

Grisly Manor, 31 October 2022, 1:47 AM

It was now Halloween and the Witching hour would officially start in less than 15 minutes. The gang piled out of the SUV they had parked at the gate and made their way onto the property. They couldn't drive up all the way to the house because most of the demolition equipment was parked on the front lawn.

"Why did I have to come with you guys again?" Snotlout asked as he looked left and right nervously. The darkness of the area was quite imposing. "I could have stayed behind with Heather and Fishlegs,"

"You'd rather stare at Norse runes all night?" Ruffnut asked with a raised brow. "Come on man, even I know you'd get bored quickly."

"Being bored is better than getting a heart attack hairs from a spectre." Snotlout huffed.

"I don't think the White lady means us any harm," Hiccup replied.

"But something does," Tuffnut stated as he had a pendulum with a large amethyst at the end swaying. "The negative energies this thing is picking up are off the charts. The witching hour peaks at 3AM. I don't suggest being in that house by then. Not with this thing going off."

"Gotcha," Hiccup said as he hefted his backpack onto his shoulder. "I want you two to stay outside and monitor the situation.

"I'll stay outside too!" Snotlout quickly said just as Hiccup was about to suggest Astrid and him head inside.

"Fine," Hiccup said as he looked to Astrid. She'd come heavily armed to say the least. Dressed in dark blue leather pants, a black shirt that was partially covered by a red leather jacket with several spikes on the shoulders. Hiccup had no doubt that there were at least five hidden knives in that jacket. The belt she had donned also folded out into a sword. It was a weapon that she had become enamored with over the years as it could easily hold a small vial of holy water in the hilt. 'Great for demon hunting' Astrid had commented one night. But her signature piece was the large double bladed axe on her back.

"I'm not in agreement with this method," Astrid stated as the two walked towards the front door of the mansion. "If there is even a hint of hostility....."

"You'll axe it, I know.I wish you'd have more faith in me though." Hiccup replied.

"I do have faith in you Hiccup. It's the supernatural I don't trust. I've been a headless horsewoman for more than a century. These beings operate by their own set of rules at times." She said as the door opened automatically with an ominous creak.

The front door slammed shut behind them and an icy chill immediately enveloped the foyer they were now standing in. It was just like last time but the only difference was that this time the White lady didn't materialize.

"Elenor?" Hiccup called. "Elenor Grisly?" That got a reply but not in the way the two were expecting. Instead of the ghost materializing a harsh cold wind swept past them. It felt angry and hurt.

"Okay okay, so you don't like being called that," Hiccup realized as he looked at the still empty foyer. "Elenor Beauregard then?" He tried. "Would you tell us your story? We'd like to help you cross over," There was no need for things like ouija boards or candles and although Tuffnut preferred to use quartz it wasn't needed in this instance. The veil between living and death was the thinnest and when Elenor finally manifested, on the fourth step of the staircase again, she looked a lot more solid than last time. "We don't understand what is happening here," Hiccup said and then gestured towards the corridor that led to the closed off basement. "We don't know what that is. What is keeping your spirit here?"

Elenor reached out her hand towards Astrid and Hiccup as white flocks reminiscent of snow started to envelop them. Their bodies felt the chill of the dead as the White lady manifested her memories.

AN: This story ended up getting bigger and bigger. Adding all of what I wrote into this chapter would just overwhelm the readers so I decided to split it up a bit further.