[He watches the dragon flop onto the ground and begin to purr. Alright, that's it, he wants one.]

That sounds familiar. My father wasn't too happy with having a cripple for a son. Thought I wasn't ever going to be able to do anything worthwhile. And then he took off when I was five for ten years. Went to go find himself, or run away from himself, or some shit like that. [Ivar never had gotten the full story, even when he'd asked. Perhaps Ragnar had thought it all a little too introspective for his youngest son to follow.] But it's all about proving your parents wrong, you know? Show them that you can actually make it on your own.