Valka

Valka is a Dragon Rider who, in How to Train Your Dragon 2, is Hiccup's long lost mother and wife to Stoick the Vast. She was taken by a dragon and presumed to be dead. She chose to stay away, believing her family would be better off without her. Valka eventually meets Hiccup during his journey to stop Drago Bludvist before reuniting with Stoick much later.

She is loosely based on Valhallarama from the books.

Background
"One night, a dragon broke into our house, finding you in the cradle, I rushed to protect you. But what I saw was proof of everything I believed. This wasn't a vicious beast, but an intelligent, gentle creature, whose soul reflected my own."

- Valka, explaining the truth of her disappearance



During a battle on Berk against the Berserkers under Oswald the Antagonistic, she fought them with only her fists. Following Stoick and Valka celebrate their victory by singing a song. They then married after that and have a son, whom they named Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III. About 15 years prior to the events of the first movie, it was revealed Valka had spent years protesting against the war with the dragons but no one on Berk ever listened to her. During one particular attack, a large four-winged dragon broke into the Haddock house, prompting Valka to rush in to protect an infant Hiccup. When she saw the Stormcutter however, she realized that it was not attacking but was instead merely curious about the human infant, even if accidentally giving him a scar in the process. The dragon then approached Valka and the two appeared to make a connection as she saw that everything she had believed about dragons was true. Stoick burst his way into the room and threw an ax in between the Stormcutter and Valka, thinking the dragon was threatening his family. Most likely thinking that Stoick was actually attacking her, the Stormcutter grabbed Valka and flew off with her in its grasp, leaving Stoick and the rest of Berk to believe she had been killed.

Valka was instead taken to the Dragon Sanctuary, the home to a giant white dragon known as the Bewilderbeast along with thousands of other dragons. Valka decided to stay with the dragons, believing Stoick and Hiccup would be better off without her interference in the war between Viking and Dragon. Accepting the fact that Berk could not make peace with the dragon no matter how she had pleaded, Valka soon made it her life's work to rescue other dragons from Drago Bludvist and his trappers. With the help of the dragon who brought her there, Cloudjumper, Valka spent the next 20 years learning the secrets of every dragon species out there.

Prior to the beginning of the second film, Valka had managed to break into Eret and his trappers' fort where she, Cloudjumper, and her Bewilderbeast destroyed it and freed the trapped dragons.

How to Train Your Dragon (film)
Due to her presumed death, Valka doesn't appear in person during the first film or the subsequent television series, but is mentioned several times.

During the events of the first film, Hiccup is given a helmet made from half of Valka's breastplate armor as a reward for his success in Dragon Training. Stoick's helmet is made from the other half to keep her close. In Gift of the Night Fury, a passing dragon knocks the helmet off Hiccup's head when he and Toothless are out flying. After  Hiccup gives him a new tail that allows him to fly solo,  Toothless flies off for nearly four days looking for it. During Toothless' absence, Stoick tries to comfort Hiccup, saying he knows what it's like to miss someone you love, referring to Valka.

How to Pick Your Dragon
It is revealed Stoick met Gobber after catching him talking to Valka. His first words to him were "That's my wife you're talking to, you one-legged lout!".

Breakneck Bog
It is heavily focused on Valka. Hiccup and his friends search for a lost gift that she allegedly gave her son, a plush dragon toy with Hiccup's name stitched on the sides. When he was very young, Hiccup was afraid of dragons and resented the toy, prompting him to throw it in the sea one day while fishing. As Valka disappeared when Hiccup was still a baby, he later worried that he would forget about his mother, so the toy dragon now meant a lot to him.

Imperfect Harmony
Valka was brought up by Stoick when he and the council were discussing Hiccup's desire for exploring beyond the Archipelago. He mentioned how when she was taken away he never stopped searching for her and no one else stopped him.

Have Dragon Will Travel, Part 2
Stoick briefly mentioned how Valka was willing to feed him to wild boars when she found out that Gobber was making a baby-sized axe for Hiccup right after he was born.

How to Train Your Dragon 2
20 years after her abduction, Valka and Cloudjumper encounter another rider on the back of a Night Fury, mistaking him for one of Drago's men or trappers. Using some of the other dragons that are flying with her, she captures the boy and brings him to a cave at the Sanctuary with the intent to interrogate him. Valka is intrigued by the boy's knowledge of dragons as he gently calms down her own dragons as they approach him. One of her dragons brings in the Night Fury and she is amazed by how close the pair of them are. Valka approaches them both, pacifying the Night Fury in submission before she notices the small scar on the young man's chin. Valka realizes that it is Hiccup, the son she thought she would never see again, questioning how it is possible before revealing her identity to him.

Valka shows Hiccup all the things she's learned about the dragons, including the existence of the Bewilderbeast and her work protecting the dragons. She also reveals the truth of when she disappeared and helps both Hiccup and Toothless learn new skills to aid in their flying. Regretful for how she had not been there for him during his childhood, she asks her son for a chance to start over, a chance that Hiccup happily accepts. However, despite her renewed relationship with Hiccup, she refuses to help him in his quest to find Drago.

Later, Valka is reunited with Stoick and Gobber after the pair of them follow Hiccup in an attempt to bring him home. Expecting Stoick to be mad at her, Valka tries to justify her reasons for not returning home, that the people of Berk could not change and believing Hiccup would be better off without her. But Stoick is only moved to see her again, which causes her to cry. While Valka is still initially uneasy to be around Stoick again, her uncertainty fades when he begins to sing a song from years before. Stoick asks Valka to come home, which she accepts.

However, the family reunion is cut short when Drago and his army attack the Sanctuary. Valka, her family and the den's dragons join her to defend themselves against Drago and save the dragons under his capture. She has a brief skirmish with Drago who reveals that he has a Bewilderbeast of his own. After Valka's Bewilderbeast is killed in the ensuing fight between the two dragons, Drago orders his Bewilderbeast to finish her but she is saved from death after Stoick intervenes. From afar, Valka watches as Drago forces Toothless to turn against Hiccup thanks to the Bewilderbeast and becomes heartbroken when Stoick sacrifices himself to save Hiccup from the dragon's fire. She attempts to quell her son's grief, knowing that Toothless was forced to do the act against his own will. Valka acts as one of the Vikings who perform the traditional ceremony for Stoick, using her bow to set his ship on fire. Even with all the dragons being taken by Drago, as well as her husband's death, Valka still comforts Hiccup, encouraging him that he is the only one who can bring the world of Vikings and dragons together.

Valka, Hiccup and the other dragon riders ride the baby Scuttleclaws to Berk and sees that Drago has frozen most of the island with his Bewilderbeast. She watches with encouragement as Hiccup frees Toothless from Drago's control until the two of them are frozen in the Alpha's ice. Though Valka initially fears her son's death, she watches in astonishment as Toothless breaks Hiccup and himself free from the ice with a unique blast. She is again astonished as Toothless challenges the Alpha to protect Hiccup and eventually triumphs over Drago and his Bewilderbeast. Now reunited with Cloudjumper, Valka fulfills her promise of moving to Berk along with all her dragons from the Sanctuary.

The Serpent’s Heir
Valka then spoke to his son about the tribe's slow acceptance of Hiccup as their new chief. She then went with Hiccup and the other riders to Nepenthe to help it's people with the tremors.

Physical Appearance
Valka has auburn hair kept in three separate braids behind her back and has pale skin. Unlike most Viking women, she has a slim figure. She wears a yellow long sleeve tunic, an orange belt, and brown pants that appear layered. Over her tunic is a chest plate with a large fur collar. It has large round shoulder pads. She has armbands and boots with spikes on the sides. She has a few layers of cloth around her waist, with her right leg exposed.

Valka's "dragon" outfit has a chest armor and large armbands with talons above her hands. She also wears a red, torn cape and strips of fabric around her waist. She occasionally wears a masking helmet with horns and tusks that represent a Bewilderbeast to hide her identity. This disguise is covered in blue and red paint.

In the flashback of her past, Valka was seen wearing a sleeveless green shirt over her tunic, and a fur one over that as well. Her belt was also different and brown armbands that covered her forearms.

Personality
Valka initially comes across as more feral than human, given how she has had more dragon contact than human contact. Her years of isolation and dealing with nothing but dragons has made her very distrusting of humans in general, reaching the point that she feels distant from them. Because of this, she has an absolute and black-and-white, perhaps even fatalistic view about people, believing them incapable of change and that some people are "born different".

Valka is strong and uncompromising in the belief that she can make the world a better place for dragons, treating talk of the trappers and their abusive treatment of the creatures with scorn. Despite her bitterness over her fellow man, Valka's past as a wife and mother allows her to possess overwhelming love for those in her care, succeeding in building good relationships with the dragons she rescues

When flying with Hiccup, Valka reveals a more liberated side of her personality. Without the fear of hurting others, Valka is strong and unafraid, yet with a sense of feeling free. She shows confidence in herself and proves herself be a incredibly daring woman during her feats of agility on the backs of dragons. Valka can be quite sensitive and is very careful not to upset people, as shown when she is afraid that Stoick and Hiccup are angry with her because she chose not to come home. She also acts as a strong pillar of support for those that need it, always the first to provide her son with the confidence he needs to achieve his goals.

Abilities and Skills
For 20yrs in living with tons of dragons, she have learn some of their secrets and new bonding skills for almost every dragon.
 * Dragon Training and Riding: Valka's most notable trait is her skill to connect with dragons after living among them for twenty years. She does not need words to command them and even moves like one at times. She also makes most dragons calm down through simple gestures and most feel comfortable in her prescience. She is a true dragon expert, knowing more about dragons of their behaviors and their abilities than even Hiccup


 * Strength and Fighting skills: Though lacking the strength and combat compare to her family, she have shown to try to face Draco but easily got defeated by her arch enemy.


 * Agility: She is shown to be very athletic, able to easily ride dragons while standing on their wings in a display of great balance.


 * Crafting and Inventing: Valka's other notable trait is her skill of crafting. Like her son, she is capable of building various items for herself like her armor, her home in the sanctuary and Hiccup's stuffed dragon toy. She also invented her own staff that she uses for creating vibrating noise for the dragons.


 * Survival Skills: After being taken by Cloudjumper, Valka has learned to take care of herself outside of Berk. She made a home within the caves in The Dragon Sanctuary.

Dragons Trained

 * Cloudjumper
 * Valka's Bewilderbeast
 * Valka's Mercy
 * Valka's Three Seashockers
 * Rumpus
 * Gruff
 * Lump
 * Thump
 * Thornshade
 * Winged Warden
 * Sailback
 * Incognito
 * Gustnudger
 * Pestbud
 * Snaggletooth

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III
"Every dragon has it's secrets, and I'll show them all to you. We’ll unlock every mystery, find every last species together, as mother and son. This gift we share, it bonds us. This is who you are son, who we are. We will change the world for all dragons, we will make it a better, safer place."

- Valka, to Hiccup

Despite her being distrusting of humans thanks to the trappers and Berk's violent past, Valka's affection to her now grown up son still shines despite 20 years having passed by. She regrets having not been around for most of Hiccup's life and relishes the chance for then to build their relationship anew. After Stoick is killed, she acts as a comforting and encouraging presence for her grief stricken son and watches his synergy with his dragon with pride. When Hiccup and Toothless are encased in the ice by Drago's Bewilderbeast, she breaks down at the fear she has lost him as well but is amazed at the strength Hiccup shows as he and Toothless manage to free the other dragons from Drago's control.

Stoick the Vast
"You're as beautiful as the day I lost you."

- Stoick after finding Valka



Stoick and Valka first fell in love while fighting Oswald's Berserkers. After the battle, they began to dance and sing.

Despite loving Stoick as his wife and mother to their child, Valka had initially believed that he would never change from his dragon hating ways, resulting in her self-exile from Berk. When the two reunite, Valka expects Stoick to be mad at her for not returning home, but instead is overjoyed to see his wife alive, and the two share a kiss after 20 years. Though Valka is happy at the prospect of being able to become a family again on a now changed Berk, the dream is cut short when Stoick is killed in protecting their son. Despite being heartbroken at his death, Valka believes that Stoick would be proud of what Hiccup has accomplished and holds his father in high regard.

Gobber the Belch
Not much is explained about Gobber's relationship with Valka, but it can be assumed that they are good friends. Gobber comments that Valka was a bad cook, claiming that her meatballs can kill more beasts than a battle axe. When Berk is eventually freed from Drago's assault, Valka and Gobber work together in removing the armor worn by the dragons that have been freed from his army, implying that she now helps him.

According to Stoick, he met Gobber when he saw him talking to Valka during their younger days.

Cloudjumper
As Valka's dragon companion for the last 20 years since he abducted her from Berk, Cloudjumper shares a very strong connection with Valka to the point she doesn't even need to talk to command him in flight. She explains to Hiccup that when he took her, he never meant to harm her, he just thought she belonged with him. Together, they began rescuing dragons from dragon trappers and Drago before settling on Berk together.

Toothless
"Oh, he's beautiful! Incredible. He might very well be the last of his kind. And look, he's your age! No wonder you get along so well!"

- Valka takes a liking to Toothless



Though cautious about her at first due to how they meet, and thanks to Valka's years with dragons, Toothless quickly accepts and enjoys Valka's company. She helps Toothless unlock his hidden spike ability, much to his enjoyment. In return, Toothless helps Valka reconnect with Stoick and Hiccup and encourages them all to become a family once again. Even after Toothless fired a fatal blast at Stoick, Valka shows no anger towards him, knowing he was completely under the Alpha's control. Valka is equally amazed and proud of Toothless' connection with Hiccup and finds him to be a perfect new Alpha.

Valka's Bewilderbeast
Valka's long years of saving dragons led her to construct a positive relationship with this king of dragons. She deeply respects the magnificent being since the two of them work together to protect the other dragons from harm, and she was devastated when he was killed by Drago's Bewilderbeast.

Astrid Hofferson
"I can see why Hiccup is so fond of Berk and its dragons... and you, Astrid!"

- Valka Despite not having any direct contact, Valka is shown to be very fond of Astrid's relationship with Hiccup especially when the two kissed right in front of her.

In Rise of Berk, the two interact with each other many times, including training dragons or talking about Hiccup. Valka even says she sees why Hiccup is so fond of her.

In the Burning Midnight, Valka agrees with Stoick about Astrid being the daughter they had always wanted.

Drago Bludvist
Valka and Drago's relationship is very hostile as she despises him for all the horrible things he had done to dragon kind to the point she reacts with noticeable alarm when she hears his name. Like Stoick, she believes Drago is incapable of change and is more of a madman than someone who can be reasoned with. It is unknown how many times the pair crossed each other's paths over the years, but it seems they have quite a bit of history in intervening in each other's affairs.

Similarities to Valhallarama
Valka acts as a replacement to Valhallarama in the films, who is Hiccup's mother in the book series. Both women have a strong love for dragons and have stayed away from their families for long periods of time (though while Valka was was abducted, Valhallarama was off questing for years at a time).

They also have a powerful bond with their dragons. Valka is able to ride on Cloudjumper while standing and Valhallarama is able to steer her dragon, a Silver Phantom, with just using her legs. Even while the Dragon Rebellion is going on in the books, the Silver Phantom still stays by his Rider's side. Another thing they have in common is that Hiccup seems to take more after his mother than Stoick.

How to Train Your Dragon 2
"Hiccup?! Could it be? After all these years . . . How is this possible?"

"No, you were only a babe. But a mother never forgets."

"Well, at least I'm not boring, right?"

"Some of us were just born different."

"I've lived among them for twenty years, discovering their secrets."

"Oh, this is what it is to be a dragon, Hiccup!"

"All this time, you took after me. And where was I? I'm so sorry, Hiccup. Can we start over? Will you give me another chance?"

"Every dragon has its secrets, and I'll show them all to you."

"I know what you're going to say, Stoick. How could I have done this? Stay away all these years and why didn't come back to you? To our son? Well, what sign did I have that you could change, Stoick? That anyone could?! I pleaded so many times to stop the fighting and to find another answer, but did any of you listen?! I know that I left you to raise Hiccup alone, but I thought he'd be better off without me. And I was wrong. I see that now, but-! Oh, stop being so stoic, Stoick! Go on! Shout! Scream! Say something!"

"Good dragons under the control of bad people . . . do bad things."

"You came early into this world. You were such a wee thing. So frail, so fragile. I feared you wouldn't make it. But your father, he never doubted. He always said that you would become the strongest of them all, and he was right. You have the heart of a chief and the soul of a dragon. Only you can bring our worlds together. That is who you are, son."

"Your father would be every bit as proud of you as I am."

Burning Midnight
"My husband may have been wrong about a great many things, but he was certainly right about that, Astrid."

"Stoick had a right cross that would make you weak in the knees—in more ways than one."

"It didn't hurt that he had a pretty good singing voice to boot."

Trivia

 * Valka is physically and mentally similar to Hiccup. Both have the same hair color, body structure, and connection with dragons.
 * The "breastplate armor" Stoick and Hiccup share in their helmets are clearly way too big to fit Valka, and even different sizes, though the incongruity may have been played for comedy.
 * It's also possible the armour was softened and altered by a blacksmith (Gobber) when made into the helmets.
 * Valka's mask resembles the face of the Bewilderbeast, corresponding with Drago's appearance.
 * It also resembles the mask worn by the Witch-king of Angmar from The Lord of the Rings franchise.
 * The blue-green paint, crown-like spikes, and Valka's staff also bear much resemblance to the Statue of Liberty: a fitting analogy, given that Valka seeks the freedom of oppressed and enslaved dragons.
 * While Valka has blue eyes, they appear to be light-green in some scenes. But when next to Stoick or Hiccup, they are clearly blue.
 * Strangely, despite acting as though she has never seen one up close, and that Toothless may be the last of his kind, Valka seems to know about Night Furies in enough detail to be aware of their biology. It is unknown how she acquired this knowledge.
 * In 2014, Dean DeBlois revealed that Valka was originally going be the main antagonist of How To Train Your Dragon 2. This role was later changed to be Drago as DeBlois wanted to make her more redeemable and kind. The initial capture of Hiccup is the last remaining scene from this version of her character.
 * Whilst Valka is voiced by Cate Blachett for the majority of the second film, her singing voice is provided by Mary Jane Wells during "For The Dancing And The Dreaming".