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Chapter Text

"You've done it, Hiccup! You get to kill the dragon!"

The crowd roars, and there is a lot of talking around her, but Astrid hears none of it. All her mind can register is that she has spent her entire life training tirelessly for this moment, and it has been stripped away from her by none other than Hiccup Haddock.

As she slowly turns her head to glare at the boy, her vision is flashing red with each beat of her heart. She is mad. She is beyond mad. She cannot even describe how mad she is. All her training, the hours spent sacrificing all relationships with the other teens, had been for nothing. Because of this walking twig who was obviously cheating. And she couldn't stand him.

People shoved her out of the way to get to the heir of Berk. When she looked at him, he had the audacity to look like he didn't want the attention. How could this have happened?

The celebrations began and everyone seemed overjoyed... almost everyone, that is. Astrid sat at a table alone, sulking in the corner. She hear uneven footsteps as a one-legged blacksmith hobbled over to her.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, lass. You almost had it. Next time around, the Nightmare will definitely be your for the taking," Gobber said. 'Yeah, next time for sure,' Astrid thought. she took another sip of her drink, refusing to make eye contact.

She finally mumbled,"I wish he had just stayed the screw up he was and gave up so that he didn't take my glory, my honor, my everything. And he acts like the honor of killing that dragon is the worst thing in the world. He does't even want it. He stole it from me, and he doesn't even want it."

Gobber placed his one hand on her shoulder, saying,"Don't be so hard on yourself. You are still the best warrior of your generation. And Hiccup is just horrible at being the center of attention. I am sure he is thrilled over this whole thing. And please, don't beat him up over it." With that, the man stood and walked away.

'Don't beat him up about it? Yeah right. He was gonna get my axe in his face." Astrid thought.

She looked up and just so happened to catch a glimpse of the source of her problems sneaking through the door with a large basket slung over his shoulder. "Oh you aren't getting away that easy, Hiccup."

Astrid stood and forced her way through the crowd until she reached the door. She pushed it open and walked through, closing it behind her. She scanned the darkness, looking for her target. Where did he go? As she was about to turn back, she saw a blur of movement in the distance as something - or as she hoped someone - entered the wood.

She ran to the area and scanned the woods. There were broken twigs and footprints to follow. 'This has to be Hiccup. Only he would be so careless in covering his tracks." She followed the trail deeper and deeper into the woods. Now this was her forte. Tracking down her prey. This she couldn't be beat at.

She made it to a rocky area off of Raven Point when she finally spotted him. His back was to her, and he was digging through his basket. He seemed to be talking to himself, but she wasn't paying attention to what he was saying. She silently climbed onto the rock right behind him. 'Now it's time for intimidation. Now I can finally get some truth out of him.' She picked up as small rock and began to sharped her axe with it.

"What the-" Hiccup yelped as he jumped up, obviously quite startled. In a vain effort to regain composure, he asked,"What are you doing here?"

Keeping up her intimidating state, she hopped down and replied,"I wanna know what's going on. No one just gets as good as you do. Especially you." She twirled her axe in her hand for good measure. I mean why not have a little fun while you're at it? "Start talking. Are you training with someone? It better not involve this."

Hiccup stuttered through his response. "I know this looked really bad, but, you see, this is, uhhh-"

Before he could finish his excuses, Astrid heard a noise. She looked around. They were out in the middle of the woods with no backup. There was no way Hiccup could do anything about this. She didn't care what happened in training. She knew he was still the least capable in this situation. "Get down," she ordered as she shoved him to the ground. She began walking towards the sound, axe ready.

"AHHHH, you're right. You're right. You're right. Uh, I'm through with the lies. I-I've been making... outfits. Yeah. So, you got me. It's time everyone knew. Drag me back. Go ahead. Here we go"

She continued to walk forward with determination. However, Hiccup kept trying to get in her way and drag her in the opposite direction. 'Coward.' When he reached for her arm, she bent his back until she heard the ligaments snap and he fell backwards.

"Owwww! Why would you do that!" he asked, trying to get back up. Astrid wasn't gonna let that happen.

She kicked him back down. "That's for the lies." She stepped over him and dropped the handle of her axe onto his stomach. This received a grunt from the boy on the ground. "And that's for everything else."

Suddenly, she heard a roar from the direction of the prior movement. She looked up, and her heart almost stopped. A dragon. She was in the woods with a dragon, and the only one near her was Hiccup. Just great. Even though they weren't on good terms, he was still the future chief, so the decided to make sure he wasn't eaten. "Get down!" she exclaimed as she threw herself on top of Hiccup to shield him. "Run, RUN!" she ordered as she rolled into a fighting stance.

Out of nowhere, Hiccup grabbed her axe, slipped it out of her hands, and threw it to the side. He put himself between her and the approaching dragon, and put his hands up in defense. But not to the dragon, to her. He turned to the dragon and said calmly,"She's a friend."

The dragon seemed to relax slightly, but was still ready to attack. Hiccup then turned to Astrid and said,"You just scared him.'

"I scared HIM?!" she yelled. Hiccup must have really lost his mind. Then her brain came to a screeching halt...."Wait. Who is him?"

"Astrid, meet Toothless. Toothless, Astrid." Hiccup gestured between the two of them.

'This isn't happening. This isn't happening. This Isn't Happening!' Astrid screamed internally. "Hiccup had truly gone insane and betrayed the tribe by not only not killing a dragon but befriending it. He is so dead." she thought as she turned and ran towards the village to tell the chief.

But as she ran as hard as she could like her life depended on it - because it sorta did - something terrifying happened. She was suddenly lifted into the air.

Chapter Text

"Oh, Great Odin's ghost! Ahhhh!" Astrid cried as the watched the ground grow farther and farther away from her feet. Fearing she would fall to her death, she began to cling to the very thing that was carrying her through the air. Her heart pounded in her ears to the point she could barely hear her own screams. Soon, the dragon flew to the top of a tree and dropped her on it. She clung to the branch above her for dear life, trying to swing herself on top of it.

"Hiccup, get me down from here!" she screamed as she looked up to see the boy casually sitting on top of this beast.

Hiccup looked down at her, saying,"You have to give me a chance to explain."

"I am not listening to ANYTHING you have to say!" Astrid screamed. This boy had been lying to her and the whole tribe for Thor knows how long, and he expected her to trust anything that came out of his mouth?

She shuffled her hands along the branch in an effort to reach the trunk of the tree. If she could make it to the trunk, she could slide down and maybe - just maybe - she had a shot at making it back to the village.

She then heard Hiccup say,"Then I won't speak. Just let me show you. Please, Astrid." He reached a hand out to pull her up behind him.

Astrid looked below and saw just how slim her chance of getting down without falling or being picked up again by the boy and his pet was. She had two options. One: try to get down and most likely fail and die in the process. Or two: get on the dragon and hope Hiccup would stay true to his Hiccup-y ways and show mercy on her, letting her live. Both options were horrible, but she supposed the wisest course of action was to pick the lesser of the two evils.

She began to pull herself up. It took all her effort, but she managed to position herself on top of the limb. Raising her head, she saw that Hiccup had extended his arm to help her up. She quickly swatted his arm away. Like she, the mighty Astrid Hofferson, needed help.

She pulled herself onto the saddle behind Hiccup and held on the edges of the seat so hard her knuckles began to turn white. She looked around at how high she was, and her stomach rose into her throat. She didn't like this feeling. Not at all.

She watched as Hiccup leaned forward and patted the black reptile's neck. "Toothless, down. Gently."

The dragons wide wings spread outward. Its head dent down. Its body and tail positioned to take flight. Hiccup turned to her and gently stated,"See? Nothing to be afraid of."

But the only thing Astrid could think was,'Oh. No.'

The dragon shot straight upward like an arrow. Its wings pumping hard and fast, gaining momentum. The wind roared in her ears as she was thrown back by the force of the movement. Astrid was faintly aware of the screams being emitted by her throat. She was being pushed farther and farther backwards until she almost fell off. Adrenaline kicked in, and she clutched at the air in front of her till her fingers found something - anything to cling to. She grasped it and pulled herself back upright. She ended up holding onto Hiccup, which she never would have thought she would do. But hey, she never thought she would be on a dragon flying through the air to her death, so it really shouldn't surprise her right now. Hiccup was saying something, probably in an attempt to calm her - or the dragon - but she heard none of it because they were suddenly falling sideways. Down. Down. Straight down. Upside down. Until they hit the water. They began to bounce along the surface of the water upside down in a way that made her fear she would drown. Suddenly, they were flying straight up again and then spinning in a corkscrew motion.

Astrid thought she might throw up. Her head was buried in the shoulder in front of her in a last ditch effort to escape the horror of the world. Her life had flashed before her eyes so many times at this point she had lost count. She took pride in her courage, but right now, she didn't care about any such thing. All she wanted was to be back on the ground on her own two feet. So she begged.

"Ok. I am sorry. I'm sorry. Just get me off of this thing."

As quickly as this terror had began, it ended. She yelped as the dragon smoothed out its violent flying to a peaceful glide. Slowly, warily, she peeked up. What she saw amazed her.

The northern lights had always been one of her favorite views from Berk. She watched them for hours on end many a time. But the view from land was nothing compared to the view from the sky. The colors moved about her as she glided through the air. The light refracted stunningly through the clouds, making the colors even more vibrant. Like a child again, she reached out her hands to try and touch it. To grasp it. To steal some to save for later. This was wonderful.

Astrid felt Hiccup shift in front of her and she looked at him. He turned to her, and she would never forget the look in those green eye. They were full of an understanding that she didn't have. They had seen this before, knew something about it that she didn't, and she wanted more than anything to know what it was.

She didn't know what to think anymore. She didn't know what to feel. She didn't know what to believe. But what she did know was that she never wanted to leave. She wanted to stay up there on that dragon, and yes, even Hiccup, for as long as she could. Because this was magical, and she never wanted to forget it. She never wanted to return to the island after stepping - or rather flying - into this wonderful domain. This wonderland.

She felt so relaxed and at peace in that moment. No responsibilities. No expectations. Just her and the sky. Because of these two being with her. She wanted to show her thanks.

In a moment of pure instinct, acting on her feelings and relaxed state alone, she wrapped her arms around Hiccup and leaned her chin on his shoulder. She couldn't tell you why she did it. Maybe it was to show gratitude. Maybe to show she was comfortable and no longer panicking. Who know? But she did know it felt right somehow. And she wanted it to stay that way.

And so stay like that they did.

Chapter Text

Astrid rode with Hiccup long into the night. In fact, Astrid notices the sun was beginning to rise. She knew they should head back, but she didn't want this feeling to end.

She felt Toothless began to shift under her. She watched in awe as Hiccup and the dragon glided as one towards a sea stack. In the dark and her awe of the moment, she had failed to notice how Hiccup was guiding the dragon. She didn't quite understand how it worked, but the could tell Hiccup was somehow using the saddle to guide the dragon. But it wasn't like he was forcing the winged creature to go where he wanted. It was a mutual thing. It was actually quite extraordinary.

When they hit the ground, Astrid slid off the side before Hiccup could even try to help her down. She might not feel completely the same about the heir of Berk, but she still didn't want his help.

She looked to the sky and saw a splendid sunrise across the sea. This was a completely new view. She had watched the sunrise from just about every area on Berk, but this was different. The same ocean, same sun, same colors, but different view, different mindset, different company.

"This is amazing." she said, more to herself than to anyone in particular. She thought of how she would have never seen this if it wasn't for a dragon - the very thing she had sworn as her enemy since birth.

She turned and looked at the so called beast. But this didn't look like some wild, vicious beast. It sat on its back legs with its wings tucked at its sides. Its ears were up and turned towards her. It's huge green eyes were wide, and she could have sworn she saw the curiosity and playfulness of a child in them. She never would admit it out loud, but he was actually pretty cute. And to think this house-cat-looking thing was so powerful. That it had the ability to shoot through the air with such speed and maneuver with such efficiency.

"He is amazing."

"Well I've always thought so." Hiccup said from beside her. He walked over to a small lake and pulled on a rope. At the end of the rope was a cage full of fish. He turned his head to Astrid, and she must have seemed confused (Because she was. How did that get on this random sea stack?) because he said,"Toothless and I are always hungry after our flights. Eventually, I decided to make it easier to feed us both without going all the way back to Berk, so I created this little thing to catch some fish for us."

He pulled the fish out of the trap and carried them over to a burnt out fireplace. He made a hand motion, and the dragon started the fire back up. Hiccup stuck some fish on a stick and placed it over the fire to cook before tossing the rest in his pet's direction. The winged reptile made a happy - could dragons be happy? - warble sound before eating a fish whole.

"I thought dragons only ate livestock," Astrid said as she walked closer to where the two were.

Hiccup looked up at her with the hint of a grin. "Nope. They actually don't each a lot of land animals unless they are truly desperate. They prefer sea creature. I think it has something to do with the nutrients in it, but I'm not entirely sure. They hate eels though. Not sure why." he said matter-of-fact-ly.

Wow. Astrid knew everything the book of dragons had on the creature. I mean, how are you supposed to take them down if you don't know anything about them. But Hiccup. Wow. He really knew his stuff. And not just about strengths and weaknesses. He knew all around things. And from the look on his face from him sharing his knowledge, he was very passionate about them. And his passion radiated off of him, causing her to want to know more too. She took another step forward.

"So. What kind of dragon is... Toothless, you said?"

Hiccup chuckled. "Yeah. Toothless. I know it might sound weird, but he has retractable teeth. Pretty cool, right? Anyway. He is..." here he made a pause while he shifted himself dramatically. He spread his arms out in a failed attempt to look menacing and deepened his voice. "...the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself, the Night Fury."

Astid's jaw actually dropped. Did he just say Night Fury? "Wait. Seriously? You managed to find a Night Fury? For real?! I mean, you're not faking this time?"

"Yeah. What can I say, I've always had my hopes high." Hiccup replied with a shrug.

"How? When?" She could not believe this. He had to be making this up.

Hiccup began to fidget with his hands and nervously laughed to himself. "Wellll, funny story. You know how I said I shot down that Night Fury in the last raid and no one believed me? Well, actually happened. I found him by the cove you found us in. He was tied up by my bola, and I ended up freeing him. Eventually, we became friends. I injured his tail when I shot him down, so then I made him one that he can fly with as long as I help him control it."

Hiccup had to be lying. But when Astrid looked at the dragon's tail, sure enough, part of it was gone and replaced by some bizarre contraption only Hiccup Haddock could have come up with. And when she thought about it, no one had ever actually seen a Night Fury. So even though it was hard to believe, this cute black creature could actually be the Night Fury.

"Wow. Just..... wow."

"Yup."

Astrid watched as the offspring of lightning and death itself finished gobbling down its fish and rubbed its head against the boy lovingly. Hiccup smiled at it and scratched the chin of the giant pet. It leaned into the touch and rolled over so it could be scratched more easily. Astrid was amazed by the bond these two shared. In such a short time after there meeting, they had gone from enemies to the best of friends. It was incredible. It defied everything she was taught. It made no sense. But watching them, it made perfect sense. Somehow, it just worked.

As she was watching Hiccup and Toothless interact, she felt something moving by her foot. She looked down and saw a Terrible Terror rubbing against her leg, looking up at her as if expecting something. Astrid almost jumped back, but stopped herself. Now that she looked at it, the Terror seemed very friendly. She looked over to Hiccup since he seemed to know a lot about how to handle dragons (She did not just think that.) and saw him grinning at her. He made a petting motion with his hands and pointed to the Terror at her feet. She looked at the dragon, then back to Hiccup, then back to the dragon, then back to Hiccup. She didn't quite like the thought of this. But then again, she hadn't liked the thought of riding a dragon either, and look how that turned out.

She gulped. Slowly, she reached down and began to pet the small dragon. Its scales were warm under her skin. She felt vibrations coming from the Terror. She realized it was purring at her. It laid down on her foot and wrapped its body around her. It laid down its head and started to drift into the realm of sleep. Astrid smiled at the warm feeling coursing through her. She looked up at Hiccup to see him giving her two thumbs up with a dorky, sideways grin on his face.

"Everything we know about them is wrong." she said.

"Yeah. It's sad isn't it. To think that so many people are completely blind to the truth. That we once were ourselves." he said, looking back to his dragon.

Astrid looked down at her own new dragon friend. She was finally beginning to understand what he saw in these beings. But she wanted to know more.

"Teach me."

They ended up spending a good portion of the morning on that sea stack talking about dragons. Astrid finally asked the question that had been pushing at the back of her mind.

"So, Hiccup. What are you gonna do about your final exam? I mean you can't kill it."

Immediately, Hiccup's face sobered. His brow furrowed as he became deep in thought.

"I don't know," he said after a little while.

"Well, you better figure out quick. You only have one week."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." He looked up at the sun and then towards Berk. "We should probably get back before they think we have gone missing."

"Probably," she agreed.

With that, they hopped back on Toothless and headed back to Berk. When they landed, Astrid once again slid off and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Hiccup called as he grabbed her by the arm. He looked her straight in the eyes, his face full of serious determination. "You can't tell anyone about this. Not yet. Not till I have a plan."

Astrid didn't like the thought of hiding something this big, especially from the whole tribe. I mean, she was a horrible liar. But she knew she had no choice. "Ok." Hiccup instantly relaxed. They made eye contact and Astrid started to feel awkward. So she did the only thing she could naturally think of.

She punched him.

"What was that for?!" he cried, rubbing at his arm where he had been punched.

"That was for kidnapping me."

"Oh. Yeah. That."

She felt the slightest, tiniest bit bad about punching him as she saw the look on his face. After all, he had shown her so much. And she really had enjoyed it. She had enjoyed being with him. So she grabbed his collar and pulled him in, kissing him on the cheek. She pulled away, avoiding looking at his face. "That's for everything else," she mumbled.

With that, she ran into the woods to the village.

Chapter Text

Astrid's mind was far away as she reached the village. Her thoughts were racing. How could she have been so blind to the truth? How would people accept it when they found out? Would she and Hiccup get in trouble? What if they were exiled? No. That wouldn't happen. I mean he was the chief's lone heir, and she was the greatest warrior of her generation. They were irreplaceable. The tribe would listen to the and see reason... Right?

"Gahhh!" she exclaimed in frustration. Could her brain just not turn off for one second?!

"Calm down, lass. You look like your head might explode if you think much more," came a voice from behind her. She turned around to see Gobber hobbling along. He looked like he was headed to the forge.

"Sorry," she replied, slightly embarrassed.

"It's quite alright. We all have those time," the blacksmith said as he walked past her. He slowed his gait after a few moments and turned his head to the side. "I don't suppose this has anything to with Hiccup and that dragon does it?"

Astrid breathed out a laugh. "If only you knew." Hiccup and that dragon - although a completely different dragon from the one Gobber was thinking of - was the only thing on her mind, and she had a feeling it would be that way for a while.

"Try not to be so against the boy, Astrid. He might not be the epitome of vikingness, but he is brilliant. He sees things differently than you and I. That's why he won, you know. If you give him the chance, he would probably teach you a lot." With that, he walked off.

Yeah. He definitely could. And Gobber was right. Astrid would have never thought to study a dragon like Hiccup had. 'Kill on sight.' That's what she had always been taught. That's what they'd all been taught. And she - like everyone else - didn't question it. Until Hiccup. He might not be strong or brawny or loud or good at fighting, but he didn't need to be. He used his own tactics. He learned in other ways. Astrid wondered if the whole village could have been saved a lot of destruction and pain if they had listened to him earlier, even on other things. I mean, if he was right about dragons, what about his inventions? The tail he designed for Toothless worked extremely well, so what's to say that some of his other creations couldn't make daily life around the village easier? Or maybe even fighting with other tribes? She decided to ask him about some of his inventions later on.

But for now, she wanted sleep. She had eaten fish with Hiccup on the sea stack, so she wasn't hungry, but she had been up all night. And after dragon training no less. She was exhausted. So she went to her house and fell asleep.

When she woke up, she went about the rest of her day as usual. Granted she was more cautious when people around her began to talk about Hiccup or dragons. After all, she had a huge secret to keep, and she was notorious for her honesty. She was an open book. How on Midgard was she supposed to keep this secret? She had to remind herself it was only for one week. One week, and then Hiccup would handle this whole thing during his final exam. No problem. What could go wrong in one week? Right?

After a particularly tricky run in with some ladies who wanted to know how her feelings on Hiccup beating her and offering encouragement ("You will win next time." "Without doubt, lass." "Just keep training, and you'll be killing Monstrous Nightmares too in no time, dear."), Astrid trekked to her favorite spot on the island. Hiccup had his special cove, and so did Astrid. Although she thought hers was better.

By the cliff a few miles away from the village, there was an area of dense trees and rocks enclosing a space of a few acres. There was one, narrow entrance, which most of the vikings couldn't even fit through if they tried. Inside, there were trees spread through it and a winding stream. Rocks and shrubs darted the area. Astrid had put up a few wooden targets as well. Her grandfather had led her to this place as a child. He said he used to play and train there as a boy, and he hoped she would have as much fun and train just as hard there as he had. It was their secret.

Astrid slid through the entrance and pulled out her axe. She sharpened it before getting into the familiar routine. She threw and swung and chopped and ran and jumped and rolled over and over until she was exhausted. It was what she had always done when she was upset or angry. Or confused. And right now, she was very confused. This was the one thing in her life she was sure about. She was a viking. And a darn good one, too. She didn't know how all that would change with the newfound dragon truth. But she knew she would always defend her people and do what was best for them. And she always wanted to be in tip-top shape to do so to the best of her abilities.

She headed back to the village after her hard hours in the cove, sore and ready for some food. She ambled into the Great Hall. She grabbed a plate with some chicken and bread, and found a mug of yak milk, and walked over to an empty table. As soon as she sat down, she started scarfing down her dinner.

It was growing dark outside. The Great Hall was filled with the sounds of loud, happy vikings. But it was peaceful, and somewhat relaxing. Until she heard it.

"Raid! Raid! Everyone in positions!"

At once, everyone was running in different directions, grabbing weapons as they went. Some went to watch towers, some to protect their family and homes, others to protect supplies and livestock. Astrid stood and ran to find the other teens. Their job was fire patrol. They helped put out as many fires as possible before they could get out of hand.

As she was running, a blast of fire shot beside her. She dove to the right and was back on her feet in an instant. She lifted her axe and pulled it behind her, preparing herself to swing. A Nadder landed in front her, wings spread, tail spiked out and ready to shoot. Astrid was about to swing when she suddenly stopped. She looked into the dragon's eyes and saw something she had never seen before. This wasn't some hostile enemy trying to brutally slaughter her. It was scared. More scared of her than she was of it. It wasn't in an attack position. It was defending itself. She lowered her axe, and the Nadder lowered it's wings and spines. They looked at each other. Astrid was about to reach out and stroke its beak when she heard the woosh of a bola flying through the air. A second later, the Nadder was trapped under the ropes. Stoick the Vast ran forward and slammed the dragon's head into the ground. He turned to Astrid and yelled, "Get out of here! Go find the other teens! Put out these fires!"

Getting ready to do as she was told, Astrid began to back away. She halted as she heard a cry from behind her. She turned around and saw the eye of the Nadder directly on her. In that eye, she saw fear and pain. It called out again, and Astrid realized that it was calling out to her. That it had decided in their brief interaction that she was no enemy. No threat. She was someone to be trusted. Someone who would help it. Someone not to fear. And now it was calling out to her for help.

"Now, Astrid!" Stoick roared.

Astrid backed away, still looking at the Nadder. One last time, the dragon called to her, its voice full of emotion that she hadn't even known a dragon could have. And it broke her heart like nothing had before. But she had to obey orders, so she turned and ran.

She soon found the rest of the teens, who were already putting out fires. Silently, she slipped in with them and did the same. While dumping water on a particularly nasty fire, she heard a roar to her left. She looked up and saw a Gronckle on the ground with a viking above it, ready for the kill. Once again, she saw the fear in this creature's face, and she knew she had to act. She ran by, and she stretched out her foot as she passed, tripping the viking and giving the dragon a chance to escape. "Sorry," she said as the viking yelled at her. She hated that she had just tripped one of her own, but she knew her conscience would never leave her alone if she had done nothing.

She ran to the well to get more water in her bucket. She glanced at the forge while she passed. Inside, Hiccup was expertly sharpening weapons by himself. He had a somber expression on his face. At the last second, he looked up, and the two's eyes met. Astrid saw he was feeling the exact same thing she was. They both wanted to protect Berk, but knew they couldn't hurt the dragons. They were both in quite a predicament. For the first time, Astrid understood why he never used a weapon in dragon training.

Hiccup must have seen the same look in her eyes, because he offered a sad smile. It dawned on Astrid that this was probably the first time someone truly understood him. That someone was feeling the same way and going through the same pain instead of yelling at him and trying to force him to do something he simply wouldn't. Something he couldn't.

She continued to fetch water to pour on the fires. Not too long after, the raid was over, and everyone was cleaning up. All the teens were huddled together near the well. Hiccup walked over to them, and the others began to pick fun at him. He wasn't listening though. He looked to her, and she opened her mouth to say something, anything, but she didn't know what. Before she could think of something, Gobber walked over to them. "Alright. Off to bed you go. Get some rest. You've worked hard enough."

With that, she turned and walked home, exhausted from her training and the raid. She climbed into bed ready for sleep.

But she barely got any cause she tossed and turned all night. Because all night, her mind played the cry from that Deadly Nadder on repeat.

Chapter Text

“Wow. You look horrible! Like you’ve been hit by lightning and fell off a cliff after being rammed by a yak and then crushed by boulders and then poisoned.” stated Tuffnut when Astrid walked into the arena. Ruffnut turned to the girl. “Trust us. We would know. It happened to our Uncle.”

“There is no possible way that happened to your uncle. You make everything up.” Fishlegs retorted. He went on to quote some statistics about death rates and severity of injuries and…. Astrid zoned out. She was too tired for this. And she did look horrible. There were huge, black circles under her eyes. Her lack of sleep was evident. Her feet dragged along the ground as she walked, and her clothes weren’t as neat as usual. But she didn’t care. She didn’t want to be here anyway. Not with her newfound dragon knowledge swimming around in her head.

Astrid zoned back in when she heard someone talking right beside her. “I think you look great Astrid. Like one of the Valkyries themselves.” Snotlout said in his attempt to flirt with her.” She ignored it.

“Seriously though,” Fishlegs began, “What happened to you? Something wrong?”

Astrid thought, ‘Well you know I stalked Hiccup and turns out he has a pet Night Fury and he has been teaching me all about dragons and now I see how nice they are and I don’t want to fight them and I know it throws away everything Berk has been taught for seven generations but I think we should stop fighting them cause they are nice and let’s just hope the village doesn’t burn down because of it so who’s with me?’ But she said, “I just couldn’t sleep.”

“Oh, Babe,” Snotlout began, moving to wrap his arm around her shoulder. “If you need a shoulder to cry on or just someone to talk to, you know I am always here for…”

Before he could finish, Astrid had grabbed his arm and flipped him onto his back. She proceeded to then kick him in the face. “You know what, thanks, Snotlout. That really did make me feel better,” she said, dusting off her hands.

“Always here to help,” the boy said through gritted teeth as he struggled to get off the ground.

There was a clanking sound as the gate to the arena was closed, locking them in. “Welcome to dragon training… again.” Gobber called from above their heads. Like usual, he was safely out of the reach of any dragon that might come into the cage. “Congratulations! You failed. Now, you get to go through this all over again for the next week. After Hiccup, our winner of the last training round, kills the Nightmare, you will all work together as a team and fight the remaining dragons. If you succeed, you will show the rest of the tribe you are ready to be on the front line. If you fail again, well, have fun waiting for the next class.”

Astrid hated being called a failure. She had strived to be the greatest at everything. And she usually succeeded. When she didn’t, she would push herself until she was. This was the one exception. She no longer wanted to be the best dragon fighter. That meant she would have to kill dragons, which she no longer wanted to have anything to do with. Thus, she had no desire to be in this arena. But, unfortunately for her, there was no getting around it.

“Once again, we will start with the Gronckle. Have fun,” Gobber called out as he pushed down a lever. The cage door he was standing above flew open, and the dragon blasted out of it. It flew in circles. Astrid noted that it wasn’t attacking anyone. It was looking around. Probably for an escape route.

“Watch this, Babe,” Snoutlout directed towards her. He picked up a shield and readied his mace. He ran towards the Gronckle, producing an impressive battle cry as he went.

The dragon turned to the charging, viking boy and sent a shot in his general direction. Snotlout screamed and ran out of the way. The dragon began to fly after the other screaming and running teens. And then there was Astrid. Before, she would have run straight to it, axe ready. But now, she just stood there. She wasn’t quite sure what to do at this point. She looked up outside of the cage, hoping to find some clue to fix this situation. To her surprise, she saw Hiccup standing there, smirk on his face. They made eye contact, and he winked at her.

What on Midgard is that supposed to mean? How is a wink going to help her fight without fighting? She rolled her hands and glared at him, silently saying, “Um. What? Continue.”

He must have understood because he pointed to his nose. Then, he reached his hand out in front of him and made a scratching motion. Finally, he pointed to her and then the Gronckle.

Astrid looked back to the dragon, thinking she understood. She might not know why she was supposed to do this, but she accepted the fact that Hiccup knew more about how to properly, kindly handle the creature. She trusted his choice. So when the dragon came straight towards her, she reached out her hand.

It stopped a few inches away from her hand, hesitating, wondering what would happen. Astrid reached forward and scratched its nose. It leaned into the touch, seeming to enjoy it. When she stopped, it looked at her expectantly. She walked over to the cage, and the dragon followed. She pointed inside, and it flew inside without hesitation. Astrid quickly closed the door and fastened the latch.

Feeling pretty proud of herself, she smiled wide. When she looked up again, she saw Hiccup give her that same thumbs up he did after the Terror encounter. This made her chuckle. He could be so predictable, and yet so not.

Astrid became aware of murmurs all around her. Everyone was sending strange looks between her, Hiccup, and the Gronckle cage. Some were gawking while others appeared mad.

“Well. Looks like someone found a new teacher. I told you you could learn a lot from this one, didn’t I lass?” Gobber said, walking away.

Following the whole training ordeal, Astrid needed a break from people. She went back to her cove in the woods. When she got there, she plopped down under a large pine by the stream. She didn’t feel like training at the moment. She simply needed some peace and quiet. She needed to relax. She closed her eyes and began to drift into the realm of sleep. She was almost there, about to lose consciousness….

So naturally, it started to storm. Rain fell so heavily that she could barely see more than a step ahead. Thunder boomed overhead, and lightning flashed. It struck at trees, cracking them and causing them to fall. Astrid was stuck. She pushed her back farther into the tree and curled into herself. Wind and rain bombarded her face, making it impossible to stay warm or dry.

All of a sudden, she heard a cry and a loud thud just across the cove. She squinted, trying to see anything in the downpour.

As she looked, a light – what looked like a fire light – came from the area of the sound. Astrid carefully stood up. She slowly walked towards the light. She soon began to make out a large shape as the source. When she was a few strides away, she recognized it as a Nadder. She shuffled backwards. She could just make out the dragon turning its head to her. It made no move to fight. In fact, it cried out. A cry she recognized very well. After all, it was the same cry she had heard in her head all night.

She rushed forward. She kneeled at its head and began to stroke it. It leaned into her hands, clearly fatigued. Astrid wondered how it had managed to escape from the raid the prior night. She moved her hands along its neck until she reached its wings. Although her hand barely brushed against it, the Nadder shrieked loudly in pain and backed away.

“It’s ok, girl. You’re ok. I won’t hurt you. I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful now,” Astrid soothed.

The large reptile relaxed again, and Astrid leaned closer to its body, trying to catch a better look at its wing. Even through the rain, she spotted a huge gash along the wing. It looked like it was from a sword. The bone was bent at an awkward angle as well.

“Well no wonder you crashed. You were trying to fly with that? And in a storm no less. You should know better than that. Although, you must be pretty stubborn to have made it this far. I guess we have that in common, huh girl.”

Astrid looked up. The sky showed no sign of the storm subsiding any time soon. “It looks like we will be stuck together for a while. I should probably find something to call you then. How about…. Stormfly?”

The dragon cooed at her words. “You like that? Well then, nice to meet you again, Stormfly.”

Astrid shivered in the cold. Stormfly stood up and turned so her good side faced the girl. She sat back down and wrapped her wing around her. She began to make fire in her throat but didn’t shoot. She just warmed her body with it. Comfortable, Astrid snuggled into the embrace and finally fell asleep.

When she awoke, the storm had let up. She wiggled out from the sleeping dragons wing. It woke up and looked at her.

“Well I should probably go, but I promise I’ll be back. And I will help you heal so you can fly again. I promise.” The dragon nudged her fondly before going back to sleep.

Astrid walked to the entrance and headed towards the village. After a few minutes, she heard a trig snap behind her. She turned and spotted a soaked Hiccup trudging along, watching his feet as he walked. She cleared her throat, and he looked up in surprise.

“Ummmmm, hi,” he said slowly.

“Hi.”

“You, uh, you get stuck in the storm too.”

“Yup.”

“Cool….”

With that they fell into an awkward silence as they walked. Astrid began to think about what he was doing out here. She realized he was probably with Toothless. That got her thinking. Hiccup had studied the Fury and helped him heal after he was shot down. Maybe he had studied Nadders too. Maybe he knew how to help her.

She cleared her throat again, and he looked at her. “So, do you know a lot about Nadder?”

“Not too much. My forte is the Night Fury, obviously, but they seem to be similar in a lot of ways, at least from my experiences in training.” he relied. He furrowed his brow. “Why?”

“Just wondering,” she lied. They walked for a few minutes. She knew he knew way more than her, even if it wasn’t for Nadders in particular. She hated to admit it, but she needed his help. This wasn’t about her pride or even her abilities. This was about Stormfly. And Stormfly needed professional help.

“Actually, I was wondering if you could help me with something later.”

Chapter Text

After Astrid explained the whole situation to Hiccup, he seemed very eager to help. He started bouncing around and gesticulating with an enthusiasm she had never seen him use with anything viking related. She had only seen it when he rambled about his inventions – or recently when talking about dragons. She reckoned it was his way of displaying passion. It fascinated her. He had a way of drawing you in with this energy. Made you want to feel passionate too.

“Meet me at the forge at sundown. I have to gather a few things and make sure I have things straight before we get started,” he said as they neared the edge of the forest.

“See you at sundown,” Astrid replied.

“See you, Astrid,” he called, running towards his house.

Astrid couldn’t even begin to imagine what was racing through that boy’s head. He was so smart when it came to solving problems. When something got in her way, she just threw axes or threatened it. Not the best way, but it’s all she knew. She couldn’t truly solve it like Hiccup could. He would come up with solution after solution to fix the problem. Granted his first attempts usually made things drastically worse, but he learned from his mistakes, and he used his discoveries to find better solutions. She wondered how she had missed such a thing before. Everyone picked on him because he didn’t think the same way, but now that she thought about it, that wasn’t a bad thing. It meant things could get done by him that couldn’t be done by anyone else. It was a nice quality really. She decided he would make a good leader one day.

She went to the Great Hall for some breakfast. She was famished. As she was sitting, Stoick walked up to her. He towered over her sitting form. She tilted her head up to look at him and immediately felt like running from the intimidating giant scowling down at her. But she was a viking. She stood her ground. She sat up taller and puffed out her chest in pride.

“Did you decide to simply skip your training today, Astrid?” Stoick questioned.

“Training?” she asked. What training was he talking abo……. “Ohh. You mean dragon training? Was that again today?”

He nodded curtly. His face was devoid of all emotion. She had no idea if he was truly mad and would get her in trouble or would let it slide.

“I’m so sorry, Chief. I completely forgot with the storm and…” she trailed off remembering what she had been doing during and after the storm. She decided it was best not to divulge anything to the man. Better not say anything so there was no chance of slipping up. She stood and climbed off the bunch. “I will go right now.”

“Just don’t let it happen again, Miss Hofferson,” he said.

“Yes, Chief,” she called as she ran towards the arena.

When she got there, Gobber was about to close the gate. “Just in time, lass. I was beginning to think my second star student was going to be absent today.”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” she retorted sarcastically as she ran into the gate.

Gobber closed the gate behind her with a sly grin on his face. “Well, well, well. Looks like someone has been picking up a few things beside just dragon techniques from a certain apprentice of mine. I’d know that sarcasm anywhere.”

Astrid opened her mouth to object. To say she hadn’t been hanging out with Hiccup. To say that it was her natural self. But she knew it was a lie, and she knew he would know it too. He knew the boy too well to be blind to who he hung out with anyway. And besides, there was no reason for her to be ashamed of hanging out with Hiccup around Gobber. The man was practically a second father to Hiccup at this point. And he always seemed worried about trying to get the two of them to spend time together, for some reason. Maybe she would ask Hiccup about the motives behind Gobber’s strange behavior later.

“Yeah. We have spent some time together,” she replied. “I decided it would be best to learn from the best, no offence.”

“None taken. I know talent when I see it. And Hiccup definitely has it.” Gobber began to walk to his post for the training. “Now! We can finally start this lesson. Today, we face the Terrible Terror… again.”

“NO! Not that beast!” Tuffnut cried. “It almost killed my face last time. It brings pain and death with it!”

“All the more reason for you to go for it, Tuff,” chuckled Ruffnut. They began to shove each other around, attempting to throw the other closer to the cage to act as their personal human shield. Typical twins.

“Now, Astrid,” Snoutlout said, strutting towards said girl, “I noticed you weren’t here on time. If you’re feeling under the weather, you can always sit back and let me handle the dragon for you.” He started flexing his muscles – which he obviously thought were much more impressive than they actually were – in front of her.

Astrid shoved him out of the way. “No. I’m fairly certain I can handle this on my own.”

“If you say so. I don’t want you to have to stoop down to Hiccup’s level and take a non-Astrid move like yesterday. That was just weird,” he said, stopping her in her tracks.

She hadn’t really thought about how everyone else saw her new actions. She knew they would see, but she didn’t think about how many red flags that would put up in the tribe’s mind. If she was to keep hers and Hiccup’s secret, she would have to at least try to act normal. So, during the training, she chased the poor Terror around the arena, yelling like a lunatic with her axe raised. She would never actually hurt it – not after everything she had seen. But she did enough to scare it and convince everyone else it was just a normal day on Berk.

The rest of her day went reasonably smooth. All day long, she was eagerly awaiting sundown. She told herself it was so that she could start helping Stormfly. Not because of Hiccup. Why would it have anything to do with seeing Hiccup. It wouldn’t. Yeah. Exactly. Nothing at all.

Right at dusk, she walked to the entrance of the forge. She listened for any sign of someone inside but could hear nothing. “Hello?” she called. No response.

She decided to go inside. She pushed open the curtains and looked around the main room. She saw no one inside. She was about to walk back outside when she saw light from behind a door in the back of the room. She crept forward and slowly opened the door.

Startled, Hiccup looked up from a notebook he was working in. “Hi.”

“Hi.”

“Is it time already?” he asked, head cocking to the side questioningly.

“Yeah. If you want me to come back later if you aren’t ready….”

“No! No. It’s fine,” He rushed to reassure her, sounding scared that she would leave. He stood and took a few steps towards her. He kept spewing words so fast that Astrid wondered how his mouth could keep up with his brain. “It’s just, there are no windows in here and I already have a problem with keeping track of time – it’s why I’m late for everything – But I was just so busy that I guess I didn’t realize the time.”

“Busy with what?” she asked. She started looking around the room. Scattered along the walls were detailed diagrams of his inventions. Some she had seen before, but many of them were new to her. She couldn’t even start to image what they were for. Near his desk, there were some drawings of dragons – mainly Night Furies. A lot of the pictures revolved around the tail and wings and the movement of the dragon. This must have been how he designed the tail for Toothless. The picture on his desk, however, was of a Nadder.

“I’ve been coming up with some things to hopefully help your Nadder. From what you’ve said, it sounds like one of her injuries is a broken wing. That means we have to set it and make sure it heals straight, or she won’t be able to fly properly down the road. I had to do a similar thing with Toothless’s tail. I’ve drawn up some sketches of contraptions that will allow her to still move around comfortably but not bend the injured part of her wing.” He pointed to the picture in his notebook.

“Can you make it?”

He smiled confidently and puffed out his chest. “Why, of course. You’ve looking at the best dragon-helping-blacksmith in the entire Archipelago.”

“You’re the only dragon-helping-blacksmith in the Archipelago.” Astrid rolled her eyes as she retorted.

Hiccup waved her off dismissively. “Minor detail.” He walked out to the main part of the forge, starting up a fire. He started moving things around, gathering materials and messing with various machines. Astrid was completely lost. She knew how to sharpen weapons. That was the extent of her knowledge of the forge. Hiccup, on the other hand, worked with ease. He looked like he was born there. Like he belonged there.

She watched him work for a while, parts of his plan coming together. At least she assumed so. She really had no idea what he was doing, so she couldn’t be sure. Suddenly, a loud voice called her attention to the door.

“Hiccup?! What on earth are you still doing up in the forge at this time of night?! Your father will kill me if you die fighting that Nightmare because you couldn’t keep your eyes open from working in MY forge so late each night…”

Both Astrid and Hiccup looked to the door, wide eyed and stock still in shock, as Gobber walked in. He cut his rant short. His jaw dropped and face contorted as he looked between the two.

“Wellllll, uh, right, um…. fancy seeing you here, lass. Taken a sudden interest in blacksmithing, have we?” The man raised his eyebrows, eyes practically staring into the girl’s soul.

“Not the forge, exactly,” she said, turning her head away, trying to avoid his gaze.

Gobber chuckled, seemingly to himself. Out of the corner of her eye, Astrid saw the man in front of her and the boy beside her share a strange look. Hiccup turned red and turned back to his work, fumbling slightly. This just made Gobber smile more.

He turned back towards Astrid. “Well. I will leave you and your new interest to my manly apprentice here while I go… do important business… somewhere else.” Gobber stumbled over his prosthetic leg as he stuttered, still looking amusedly between the two teens. He was walking through the door when he turned, offering one last, slightly mischievous smile over his shoulder. “Goodnight.” With that, he was gone.

Astrid was confused. “What was he looking so happy about? And why was he making such a big deal about me being in here?” Astrid asked. Were there not supposed to be guests in the forge? She had been in there with Gobber sometimes when he sharpened her axe. But maybe that was only allowed when the blacksmith himself was around.

If it was possible, Hiccup turned even more red at her question. He busied himself with his work, back purposefully turned to her. When he spoke, his voice was at least an octave higher than usual. “Nothing! Absolutely nothing! He knows nothing! Nothing! Natta! Zero secrets there! Don’t worry about it!”

Chapter Text

Hiccup finished up in the forge around midnight. “So,” he directed over his shoulder. She looked up at him, placing the strange contraption she was fiddling with back on the bench. He turned fully around to face her. “Do you want to go ahead and put this on Stormfly, or would you rather wait? I mean I know it’s pretty late and you probably have training to be rested for tomorrow.”

“Actually, dragon training was canceled, thank goodness.” Astrid chuckled. “Apparently, Gobber finally got in over his head with us – what did he call us? Oh yes! ‘No good, disruptive, foolish veslingrs*.’ He decided that if we were gonna die, might as well go out with a bang in a show for the whole tribe.”

“Sounds like Gobber,” Hiccup said, grinning to himself as if looking back on a memory. Astrid thought the master and apprentice probably shared a lot of funny stories.

“Anyway, lets go ahead and patch my girl up. Don’t want to wait any longer than I have to.”

“Okay then. You go ahead and take this to the edge of the forest. I will meet you there once I’ve picked something up.” Hiccup shoved the metal pieces into her hands and ran off. Astrid struggled to maneuver the bulky, awkward beams through the door and to the forest. As she got there, Hiccup came running up to her with a huge basket slung over his shoulder. He panted as he came to a halt before her. She raised an eyebrow and looked between his face and the basket. He must have picked up on her question because he answered her thoughts before she could even voice it.

“It’s some ointments, bandages, food, and my notebook to record any information we discover. Better safe than sorry.”

“Ok. Cool.” She replied.

Hiccup looked into the dark woods. He turned back to her and said, ”I have no idea where we are going.” He waved his arm outward and slightly bowed his head. “After you, Milady.”

She quickly walked into the woods, wanting to hide the blush she felt spreading across her cheeks. She had no idea why his nickname – which was surely meant just as a formal, polite title, right? What more could it be?– made her respond in such a way. She was a warrior. She shouldn’t be blushing. And she definitely couldn’t let him see it.

They walked in a comfortable silence for most of the trip. When they neared the cove Stormfly waited in, Astrid had a realization. This was the first time she was going to show someone her secret place. It had been her and her grandfather’s secret for years. It had meant something special, knowing it was just for the two of them. She was now about to break that. And yet as she looked at Hiccup, she realized if she was going to share it with anyone, she was glad it was him. Any of the other teens would ruin the sweet memories. They wouldn’t understand it’s meaning. But Hiccup saw they beauty in things like this. He wouldn’t take it for granted. Wouldn’t destroy it. He would see just how meaningful it was. But she still wanted to keep it somewhat secret.

She turned abruptly and stepped in front of the boy. He stumbled to a halt, looking up at her confused. Before he could open his mouth, Astrid pointed a finger in his face. “If you tell anyone about this place, there will be consequences,” she threatened.

He held up his hands. “I swear, you can trust me.”

With that, she turned back around and walked up to the entrance. She turned and waved him over. Once she was in the cave, she turned to watch his reaction. For some reason unknown to her, she hoped he would enjoy this place like she did. And she was not disappointed.

His eyes were wide as he scanned the area. He scanned the perimeter of the cove before looking at all the trees and flowers. He followed the stream, lips parting into a smile. He turned to Astrid. She spotted a light in his eyes and knew he saw in this place what she saw. He looked around some more before he finally spoke. “This place is amazing.”

“Think of it as repayment for the view you showed me,” she replied. “Come on. Stormfly was over here when I left.” She beckoned him to follow as she scrambled to the location.

The dragon had moved a little closer to the water but had stayed in the same general area. When she came into view, she heard Hiccup let out a breath of awe behind her. “She’s beautiful.”

He walked carefully towards her, obviously trying not to frighten her. Stormfly lifted her head. She looked at him. To Astrid’s surprise, the boy lowered his head and held out his arm to the dragon. It sniffed his hand before placing its beak in his palm. He began to stroke the creature’s head soothingly, moving his way toward her wing. He truly was a natural with the dragons.

After examining the wing, he reached into his basket which he had set down beside him. He pulled out a bandage and a container of what Astrid guessed was some kind of medicine. He poured some of the liquid onto the cloth and began to gently rub it into the cut on the wing. When he finished, he turned to Astrid. “I’m gonna have to set the broken wing now. She won’t like it. If you can sit by her head and keep her calm, that would help her a lot.”

“Of course.” Astrid scrambled over to the dragon. It nuzzled her stomach as the girl sat down in front of her. She pulled Stormfly’s head into her lap and stroked her horns. “Who’s my good girl? You are. You will be all better soon, and then you will be better than all the other Nadders.”

Astrid heard a crack and immediately felt Stormfly whimper and shift in her lap. “It’s ok girl. You are so strong,” she continued as she scratched the dragon’s chin and neck. She continued to do this until she heard Hiccup stand up and take a few steps towards her. She looked up at him.

“It’s all set. The gash has been cleaned, and I put the bone back in place. My brace should keep her from moving it out of place again. But don’t worry. It’s not tight enough to be to uncomfortable or to keep her from moving. And now, for the part she will enjoy.”

He grabbed the basket and dumped what remained inside in front of the dragon. Stormfly stood and trilled happily as she began to consume the plethora of fish and chicken placed before her.

“Is that chicken?” Astrid asked.

“Yup. It gives dragons more energy. In theory, it should help them heal faster too,” he replied.

“Good to know.” Astrid watched as her dragon friend finished her meal and began to walk around with new-found energy. The two watched the dragon for a while, eventually playing with it some. Astrid was intrigued watching Stormfly and Hiccup interact. Every once and a while, the dragon would do something and they boy would get this look of realization and would reach for his notebook. One time he caught Astrid watching him. He grinned at her, saying, “Hey. You never know when the next chance to study like this might come up. Shouldn’t waste it.”

When it was after noon, the two teens were sitting on some rocks. Hiccup stood abruptly and offered his hand to the girl. She noticed a look of determination in his eyes he always got before he did something great.

“Come on. I want to show something,” he said. Unlike the time she first met him and his Night Fury in the woods, she didn’t swat his hand away. He pulled her up with strength she was not expecting. Although she didn’t know why she was so surprised after watching all the work he did.

He directed her farther into the woods, and she soon recognized it as the way to his cove with Toothless. They soon reached their destination. She followed Hiccup down into the cove. She cried out as a black blur knocked her off her feet. From the ground, she turned and saw the Night Fury bounding around his friend playfully. The boy scratched at its head until it settled down.

He looked over at Astrid and waved her over. “Now that you’ve become more comfortable with dragons, I thought you might like to take to the skies again. Not by force this time though,” he added, a hint of sheepishness in his voice.

“Yeah. I would love that,” she responded. Hiccup lit up and hopped onto Toothless’s back. She ran over in suit.

Unlike last time, the dragon took of smoothly. They steadily rose higher and higher into the sky. She wasn’t scared at all. She felt free, and she loved it. She would never get tired of the thrill. The view. The wind blowing her braid behind her. The chill of the cooler air. The tingle of the water droplets hitting her skin as they passed through the clouds. She couldn’t wait until she could come up here on her own dragon. Then, she could fly whenever she wanted. She could fly beside Hiccup and Toothless – the four of them going on peaceful, sight seeing flights all around the island.

Astrid hadn’t noticed how far they had traveled until Toothless started to jolt to and fro, seemingly out of control.

“What’s up, bud?” Hiccup inquired, leaning closer to the dragon. They suddenly veered off to the side, almost throwing the teens off of the dragon’s back. They went into a dark fog, completely blind to everything around them. “I hope you know where you’re going, bud, cause I can’t see a thing.”

They flew out of the fog and into a dark, ominous maze of sea stacks. All around them were hoards of dragons, weaving in and out of the obstacles. “Get down!” Hiccup whispered, as he did so himself. Knowing this was no time to argue, she pressed herself against his back as far as she could.

“What’s going on?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Toothless, you gotta get us out of here, bud.” Hiccup said. But the dragon made no move to indicate he had heard. They continued to fly towards an unknown destination along side the other dragons. Astrid noticed that all of them seemed to be carrying food of some kind.

“It looks like they’re hauling in their kill,” Hiccup stated, a hint of fear coming through in his voice.

“Uhhh, what does that make us?” Astrid asked.

She received no response. Instead, they were suddenly blinded by red light all around them. They were obviously in some ginormous cave deep in a mountain. Probably a volcano based off how hot the air was. It was almost impossible to breathe. They landed on a ledge not too far from the wall. She heard Hiccup mutter, “What my dad wouldn’t give to find this.”

They watched as the dragons each dumped their food into a vast abyss. “It’s satisfying to know that all our food is being dumped down a hole,” Hiccup retorted in his typical, sarcastic manner.

“They’re not eating any of it,” she stated.

Then, a weak Gronckle flew over the hole and regurgitated a single fish as its offering. Before it could fly away, the entire mountain began to quake. The poor dragon tried to fly away in fear, but a huge head rose out of the pit and swallowed it whole. Throughout the cave, countless dragons began to dart for the exit, desperately trying to escape for their lives. The mouth snatched more dragons out of the air. Huge nostrils began to flare as it sniffed the air.

“Alright, bud. We gotta get out of here,” Hiccup said. Toothless, who had finally seemed to snap out of it, shot into the air straight towards the exit. As his wings pounded the air as fast as they could, the mouth snapped directly behind them.

When they had escaped the cave and cleared the foggy maze, Astrid finally chanced a look behind her. She could not believe what had just happened. She turned to Hiccup, who looked back at her in just as much shock as she was. They shared a worried look.

What had they gotten themselves into?

Chapter Text

They flew as fast as they could back to the island of Berk. As soon as they arrived, Hiccup led Toothless swooping down rapidly into the cove. Astrid hopped off the dragon as soon as its feet touched the ground, turning to look at the boy sliding down after her. She began to pace anxiously while watching Hiccup unclip himself from the saddle, obviously too deep in thought to move any quicker.

“It totally makes sense now!” Astrid began.

Hiccup snapped out of his thoughts at her words. He looked up in confusion. “It does?”

“Yes! It’s like a giant beehive. They’re the workers, and that’s their queen. It controls them.”

Hiccup seemed to think through this information. “Yeah…” he said slowly. He started pacing. Things started to fit together in his mind. “Yeah. It does make sense. I mean, that’s why they always go after just food and never people. And their behavior is always so mechanical. It’s because they aren’t acting as their natural selves. And their eyes are always narrowed during raids, but other times they are wider. It must have something to do with them being controlled.”

Astrid knew with this information they might actually have a shot at stopping the dragon raids. There was no way the two teens and their dragons could do it on their own though. She wouldn’t even know where to start thinking up a plan. She had always been trained to follow orders. To listen to the one with authority. Logically, she should go tell the person with the most power and who always came up with the plans. Surely, he would be able to sort things out with the rest of the tribe backing him up.

“Let’s find your dad,” she said, turning towards the village. She was about to dart for it when a hand encircled her arm and pulled her back.

“No! No. No. Not yet” Hiccup frantically said, trying to persuade her to stop so he didn’t have to continue physically holding her back. He couldn’t control her for long since she was stronger than him. Giving into his wish, she stopped momentarily.

“And why not?” she questioned.

“When they find we’ve been to the nest, they will ask how. And when they ask how, they will find out about the dragons. They will kill Toothless and Stormfly before we even have the chance to explain ourselves.”

Good point. She hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. Good thing he did. But they still had to tell someone with authority something, right? I mean, they couldn’t do all of this on their own, and it was a huge discovery they just made.

“Hiccup. We just discovered the dragon’s nest. The thing we have been after since vikings first sailed here. We can’t just keep it a secret! I mean, we are already keeping the truth about dragons and the ones we have trained secret. I’m not sure I can keep any more. This is huge, Hiccup. We have to tell someone. At the very least to warn them of the danger. Do you know how many members of the tribe have been seriously injured or worse during the searches? And if we don’t tell, more people will get hurt going up against something that powerful and dangerous. And that will be on us.”

“I know. I know,” Hiccup said exasperatedly. He ran his hands down his face and then tugged at his hair. “This is all so messed up.” He began pacing again. “We have to plan this out carefully. Give them irrefutable evidence that the dragons won’t harm them. That we can have peace if we just take out the queen.”

“Are you serious?” Astrid exclaimed. Plan?! He wanted two teens to formulate a plan for a war by themselves that would affect not just their entire tribe but many surrounding islands that were also being raided. And be able to not only have a good one that would work?

Hiccup turned around, standing tall now. He had his jaw set and his eyes were lit with that determined look. “Yes.” He looked into her eyes for a few seconds, looking for a response from her to show she would agree. When she didn’t immediately provide one, he must have thought she would go against him because he turned back to Toothless with a slightly deflated look. Formulating a plan already, he stroked the dragon.

Although he thought he had lost to her, his determination had shown her what she needed to see. She had wanted to tell Stoick, the chief. But when Hiccup stood tall and spoke with such confidence, it reminded her that he was the future chief. By default, he had authority over her. And after everything he had shown her, after all the skills she learned he had, and now this confidence and power, she decided she would proudly follow him into the battle for the dragons – even if it was in a Hiccup fashion and not the run-in-axe-raised way.

“Okay,” she responded.

Hiccup swung around to look at her. The fire grew in his eyes, and she knew she had made the right choice.

“So, what are we gonna do?”

“Just give me the three more days. I’ll figure something out.”

“Okay.” Astrid looked to the sky. Based on the sun’s position, it was nearing supper time. They had been gone almost all day. “We should probably head back,” she directed towards Hiccup.

Said boy looked to the sun, checking the time himself. “Yeah. Probably would be best.” He began messing with Toothless’s saddle, displaying no signs of heading home.

Astrid usually would have just left him – or anyone for that matter. She had no problems being by herself. She could fend for herself and had no problem with directions. In fact, she often enjoyed the solitude of walking alone through the woods. But for some reason, she didn’t want to leave the boy. Maybe it was because they had spent so much time together recently it would feel weird without him. Maybe it was because she hoped he would share whatever he was thinking as a plan and let her add her input. Maybe it was something else entirely. Who knew?

“Ahem,” she cleared her throat to get his attention. It worked. He looked up at her startled, seemingly have forgotten she was still there. “Sooo. You gonna walk back with me, or are you gonna make me walk all the way home by myself?” She couldn’t make it too obvious that she didn’t want to go without him. That might ruin her reputation.

Hiccup hastily stood up, stumbling over his feet and his words. “Well, uh, I mean, yeah, if you want to. I mean, if you want me to come with you, that is. I mean, I know you are fully capable of going by yourself, but you don’t have to if you don’t want to. I mean if you do want to that’s fine. I mean….” Hiccup’s face and ears were turning red at this point as he flustered himself over his tongue.

Astrid cut him off before he could embarrass himself more. “So come on then.” She turned back to the exit point of the cove and began to walk towards it.

Hiccup jogged to her quickly. He settled to walking beside her – not to close though. He matched her stride instead of forcing her to go his own. Astrid thought that was very sweet of him, but she would never say that out loud.

They fell into a comfortable silence for the first part of their walk. Astrid didn’t know when she had become so comfortable with the boy she used to ignore, but she was glad she had. She looked over to him, hoping to see him displaying the same level of comfort.

This was not the case. He was still slightly red in the face. His hands were fidgeting in front of him as he walked. His eyes were cast to the ground before his feet, but she could catch a glimpse of him looking up at her out of the corner of his eye every once and a while.

She figured he must not had enjoyed the silence like she did, so she decided to break it. She had never been the best at conversational skills. Ask anyone on the island and they could tell you that. She was more of the observe and be-observed type. She wasn’t very close to the other teens. She didn’t try to be. She didn’t try to be friendly. That involved opening up and talking to people. She didn’t like that. It made her feel vulnerable, and Astrid Hofferson did not like feeling vulnerable. But in this moment, she decided she would at least try to hold small talk.

She resorted to the thing she knew about most – weapons. She asked Hiccup about his forge work, how he made and sharpened the weapons, how he invented his own, how he started blacksmithing and inventing in the first place. In turn, he asked her questions about how she had started training to be a shield maiden, when she realized her preference of the axe over any other weapon, why she was so attached to her old axe. And for the first time, she opened up and answered. Truthfully. Without holding back, showing her emotions without fear.

Through this, the two connected. Hiccup seemed to grow more comfortable with her, and he began to walk a little closer to her side. When they reached the village, they were laughing and having a great time together. They were half-way through the village before Astrid became aware of the mumbling around her.

She glanced around and saw everyone in sight range staring at the two teens, pointing between them. Many of the women were sighing and looking overjoyed. This confused her.

“Well, I better be off to help Gobber finish up in the forge. He always needs my help around now.” Hiccup said as he began to back away from her. She could tell he mainly just wanted to get out of sight of all the tribe.

“Ok. Well, see you later, Hiccup,” she called.

“Yeah. See you, Astrid.” And with that, he was gone.

Still wondering what everyone was making a fuss about, Astrid began to head towards the Great Hall. She suddenly felt a presence behind her.

Phlegma beamed down at her. “Looks like we might have some romance in this generation after all, huh?” She nudged Astrid playfully and walked away chuckling.

Astrid, the mighty warrior, best of her age, turned bright red at the thought. No way! Absolutely not! That could never happen…… right?

Chapter Text

The next morning, Astrid awoke to her mother shaking her. To her utmost dismay, Stoick had ordered Gobber to round the teens up for another dragon training session. So at the break of dawn, Astrid was trudging towards the arena. All she had wanted to do that day was spend time with Stormfly. She didn’t want to deal with the stress of having to uphold her reputation as the best warrior in Berk while simultaneously not fighting. This whole scenario was far too complicated.

As she neared the entrance, she heard the muted voices of the other teens. Their words became clearer as she drew near.

“Seriously! What are they doing together all day and night!?” That was obviously Snotlout’s voice. Who was he talking about?

Ruffnut replied to both of their questions. “I mean, this is Hiccup we’re talking about. There is no way of telling what that weirdo is doing. But Astrid. She is easy to predict. She is trying to learn from him so she can turn around and beat his butt in dragon fighting. I mean, that’s what I would do anyway.”

“But you aren’t Astrid. It’s quite obvious. You’re far too ugly,” Tuffnut retorted. A moment later, there was a loud thud followed by a cry of pain. Typical twins.

Astrid stopped in her tracks. Was everyone seriously watching her and Hiccup all the time? Why was it such a strange thing? It hit her like a war hammer to the face: no one had ever been Hiccup’s friend. Much less had a girl hung around with him. He was so different and often destructive, so people just shoved him around or paid no attention to him at all. Now, the teen who embodied the very opposite of all things Hiccup-y, was spending as much time as possible with him. If she was in everyone else’s shoes, she would be suspicious too.

This bothered her. For starters, she didn’t like the thought of Hiccup being alone all the time. She knew what it was like to be left out. The other teens did stuff without her all the time, but at least they still invited her periodically. Hiccup never even got that. It must be very lonely.

Second, she didn’t see why it was everyone’s business of who was close to who. Yeah, it was something different, but people grow closer and drift apart all the time. Why were they such a big deal?

Lastly, she didn’t want people to get the wrong impression and think she had gone soft. She had worked so long for her reputation; she didn’t want it to be ruined, even if it was about to be when they revealed the dragon knowledge anyway. But she also didn’t want people to think she was just taking pity on him since he was alone. She wanted people to see just how brilliant he was. She wanted people to start respecting him and being all-around nicer to him.

She decided she was going to fix this. Somehow.

“Well, get going, lass. I don’t have all day. Get in that arena,” Gobber said, startling her out of her thoughts. She jogged into the ring, making the other four stop their conversation and look at her. Gobber closed the gate behind her and walked around to his normal station.

Astrid looked over to the teens and saw they were staring at her. Fishlegs was clearly uncomfortable given the fact they had been discussing her behind her back – or technically in front of her face, but he didn’t know that.

“Astriiiiid,” he drew her name out, solidifying his awkwardness. “Glad you made it. We were wondering if you were gonna show up. I… I mean, we weren’t, like, talking about you or…or anything. Like. That. We… I… I mean I was… well… you know.”

“No, actually, I don’t,” she replied. Fishlegs opened his mouth to try and word it again, but Astrid stopped him before he could embarrass himself further. “It’s fine. I don’t care.” She walked closer to the middle of the arena, hoping Gobber would start quickly so it could end sooner. She couldn’t wait to get out of there.

“I wasn’t wondering at all,” Tuffnut said. “I just assumed you would be off with your new boyfriend.”

Astrid spun around so quickly it was surprising she didn’t get whiplash. She was ready to correct the male twin, but Snotlout somehow beat her to it. “Eww! Tuff! They are not a thing! Astrid and I are obviously the ones with a connection.” He sauntered over to her in his usual flirtatious manner. “I mean, what does Hiccup have that can compare with… this.” He gestured to himself, flexing in the process.

Astrid rolled her eyes. “He has a brain, for starters.”

She realized her words could come across as if she was confirming their speculations. Oh, that would not do. “And if you ever call him my boyfriend again, you will get my axe in your face.”

“Seeeee, guys,” Ruffnut began. “I told you it was all a ruse for her to get information so she could demolish him and show she is the best warrior.”

“Yeah…. Yeah that’s all it is.” Astrid felt a knot tighten in her stomach at the lie. She wanted to tell them that wasn’t true. She wanted to tell them how Hiccup had shown her the amazing truth and that she didn’t want to surpass him in her dragon abilities anymore. She simply wanted to learn from him and explore this new wonderland together. She wanted to say that they should stop being so mean to the boy because he was amazing and better than all of them combined. That he was going to do great things. That he was already doing great things.

But she knew that if she said that, it would only cause more questions and more problems, so she held her tongue.

The turning of gears caught the group’s attention. They all turned to see the cage of the Hideous Zippleback opening. Gas crept out long before the dragon could even walk through the doors. It filled the cage, causing the teens to be nearly blinded to everything around them.

Astrid swung around every time she heard movement. All around her were the cries of the other teens. Usually, they were just running into each other, but every once and a while they would catch a glimpse of the dragon and frantically run the other way.

Astrid racked her brain, trying to find the best – and least harmful on all sides – way to get through this. She knew she could use the thick fog to her advantage. She could help get the dragon back in the cage without anyone seeing her do so. She knew it could be done; after all, Hiccup had done it. She just wished she knew how he did said task. But there was no way for her to ask him at the moment, so she would have to take matters into her own hands. She thought through everything she had seen him do with the dragons. Every minute detail she had picked up on during the training that had confused her at the time. Everything he had said about the creatures. Every motion he had used with Toothless and Stormfly. None of them seemed like they would help…. except maybe one.

She recalled how he had gained Stormfly’s trust enough to get close to her. That motion of extending his hand towards the Nadder’s snout. How he turned his head away to show his trust in the winged reptile, displaying his desire to be trusted in return. And he had been rewarded by a calmed and submissive dragon. Maybe, just maybe, she could do the same with this Zippleback. Now, she just had to find the illusive creature.

Carefully, Astrid strode around the area, whipping her head this way and that, searching for any signs of the dragon. At last, she heard a cry to her left and spotted a long neck and head bobbing near the source. Heart pounding against her ribcage, she strode towards it.

As she got closer, she saw the head turn in her direction. She lost sight of it for a few seconds. Then, both heads appeared on either side of her. The dragon kept drawing closer to her. Its wings were spread and its teeth were bared, trying to intimidate her into fleeing. But she planted her feet and stood her ground. She was a viking.

It drew closer and closer until she could almost touch it. All she could hear was her pulse pounding in her ears. She had no idea if this would work. This could end horribly. But she had to try. Shaking slightly, she bowed her head and slowly reached out her hand in the direction of one of the heads. She held her breath in anticipation. The few seconds that lapsed felt like hours.

Then she felt it. She felt the hot exhale from the nostrils against her skin. And then the scales of a snout worked their way into her palm. She looked up as it pulled away. Its posture had completely changed. There was trust in its eyes. There was no sign of aggression or fear. She turned to the other head and held out her hand to it as well. It did the same thing.

Astrid could not suppress the smile that spread across her face. She had just calmed down this dragon all by herself. The adrenaline rushing through her veins made the whole experience even more enthralling. For a moment, she forgot where she was and what she was supposed to be doing.

She soon remembered her mission. She made a beckoning motion with her hand. The two heads tilted sideways in confusion, obviously trying to figure out what she wanted them to do. She took a few steps back, making the motion again. The Zippleback followed. She continued backing until she found the wall and then worked her way along it until she found the open cage. She pointed into it, and the Zippleback complied. Once inside, it turned to look at her, and she reached her hands out, scratching under both chins. Then, she backed up and closed the doors.

The gas began to dissipate. When it cleared up enough for everyone to see, they all looked stunned at the girl standing before the closed cage.

“You seriously have been spending too much time with Hiccup, Astrid,” Ruffnut said matter-a-factly.

Astrid heard a snicker above her head and looked to the outside of the ring. Standing there was Hiccup, smiling broadly down at her. He pointed to himself, then her, then the entrance to the arena. With that, he disappeared into the crowd of onlookers.

Astrid jogged outside of the gate, searching for the boy. She found him a few yards away. When she walked up to him, he grinned at her and said, “That was some nice dragon training in there. I didn’t realize you’ve been taking such thorough notes from the master.” He rubbed his fingers along his vest and puffed out his chest as he said the last part.

“Oh please. That was practically all me. I simply used you as a basic guide-line.” She did not want him to know just how much he had influenced her actions. Couldn’t let his ego skyrocket.

Hiccup shrugged. “If that’s what you want to believe.”

“Yes, it is.” She then looked at him quizzically. “Shouldn’t you be formulating your grand plan?”

Hiccup suddenly found his feet very interesting. As he began to shuffle around, he said, “I’ve been thinking a lot. I decided I need a break. Besides, my best ideas usually come when I’m not trying to force them.” He looked up at her, and she saw a glint of excitement in his eyes. “I thought we might try something new today.” He cocked his eyebrow and a daring smirk spread across his face. “If you think you’re up to it, that is.”

Astrid Hofferson never backed away from a challenge.

Soon after, the two were in her cove with Stormfly. Hiccup carefully looked over her wing. “From what I can tell, it seems to have healed nicely.”

Astrid looked at him confused. “She couldn’t have possible healed that fast.”

“Actually, dragons seem to heal a lot faster than humans do. Not sure why, just know that’s the way it is,” he directed over his shoulder as he started taking the brace on her wing off.

The second it was detached from her, Stormfly released a trill of joy. She flapped her wings and danced around the cove. She was clearly full of pent up energy from not being able to fly. Astrid understood this, as she always got jittery if she couldn’t have her axe training session for a few days.

“So,” Hiccup rubbed his hands together as he shifted his attention from the Nadder to the girl. “A little, relaxed flight would be good for her right now. It will get everything working properly since their bodies are at their best while flying. So, you ready for your first flight on her?”

Astrid choked on air. “You mean, fly by myself?”

Hiccup nodded.

He had to be insane. There was no way she was ready for this. Was Stormfly even healed enough to carry the extra weight? Would she even accept having a rider on her back? Sure, she had grown very close and comfortable with the girl, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t flip out at the new sensation.

“Don’t worry,” Hiccup said, sensing her anxiety over the matter. He reached out and rested his hand on her shoulder in a comforting manner. “Toothless and I will be right beside you. We will stay close to the ground, and it will only be a short flight. We will make sure you are as safe as possible.”

Astrid took a deep breath. “Okay. Let’s do this.”

Hiccup ran to fetch Toothless. A little while later, Astrid watched as they landed in front of her. He hopped off and started instructing her on the basics of flying. He talked about how to sit, how to balance, how to steer, how not to try and force the dragon to move but to gently guide her – moving as one. She tried her best to listen, but her mind was moving at the speed of lightning, so she mainly just kept nodding, hoping he would go over it all again when they were actually doing in the process. All to soon, he was leading her over to the dragon.

The Nadder was taller than Toothless, so it was going to be a lot harder to get on. Hiccup must have realized this because he offered to give her a leg up. She was too nervous to even try and decline. She reached her hands over Stormfly’s back, and Hiccup grasped her shin. As she jumped, Hiccup pushed her up. The dragon shifted under the new weight, and Astrid began to curl up.

“Make sure to keep your back straight. You want your shoulders, hips, and heels to all line up. That gives you the best stability,” he instructed. She did as instructed and immediately felt better. “See. Not so bad.” He sent her an encouraging smile, which she returned.

Hiccup walked over to his own dragon and mounted. “Okay. So. Make sure to keep your legs tight so you stay in the right position. Now, lean forward, and gently dig our heels in.” She obeyed, and Stormfly shot straight into the air. Astrid screamed. She felt herself sliding sideways. She was certain she was going to fall off. This was it. This was how she died. She tried to grip harder and failed, still sliding. Yup. Dying for sure. She squeezed her eyes as tight as she could, accepting her fate.

Suddenly, she felt warm hands on her arm and side, gently scooting her back into the center. She opened her eyes and saw Hiccup and Toothless right beside her. “See? I told you we wouldn’t let you fall.”

He began to pull his hands away, but she panicked. She felt safe with him holding her up. She had always been fearless, but this was completely out of her element. She felt as if he was the one thing keeping her grounded. So, she grabbed his hand and held it.

His eyes widened for a moment, but he relaxed and helped keep her steady. Feeling safer, Astrid looked around. She was once again in awe of the view. And the Nadder’s movements were so different from the Night Fury’s, and yet so similar at the same time. It was calming. Freeing. Peaceful. And over far too quickly.

They landed in Toothless’s cove this time. Hiccup thought the two dragons might enjoy having each other for company seeing how they got along so well. Astrid let go of Hiccup so the two dragons could safely land far enough apart from each other. Hiccup slid off his saddle and came over to Astrid. He held out his hand to help her off, and she gladly took it. He started to pull back but once again, she held on.

She didn’t know why she felt so safe holding his hand. But she knew she liked it. Her brain screamed at her to be rational. She was a warrior. She didn’t need to listen to this feeling in her stomach. But she decided that for once in her life she was going to ignore her rational side. Because she liked this feeling. And judging by the smile on Hiccup’s face, he liked it too.

So, hand in hand, the two walked back to the village, and they didn’t let go of each other’s hands until they arrived.

Chapter Text

Astrid remained in a state of bliss throughout her dinner. After her thrill of flying with Stormfly and her time with Hiccup, she found herself feeling joyful and bubbly – something she hadn’t felt in ages. She was always so tense about everything. She had to be. With all that was expected of her, she couldn’t relax or take a break. But somehow, her ‘deadly’ dragon friend and the outcast of her age group had caused her to be herself. She didn’t have to uphold an act of toughness and strength with them. And she enjoyed it.

She pondered over this as she ate. How could that boy have such an effect on her? The dragon she understood. It had no comprehension of human society or standards. It wouldn’t judge her. It wouldn’t get mad if she wasn’t perfect. It encouraged her in everything, simply there to support and be supported in return. It was only natural for her to let her guard down with Stormfly.

But Hiccup? He lived in the same world she did. He saw her practically every day. If she did something embarrassing or stupid or anything at all, he would know. He would remember. He could tell the whole tribe of whatever she did when her guard was down, and they could shun her for it. But she knew he would never do such a thing. He was too sweet and considerate. He didn’t tear people down, even though that’s all the world did to him.

It baffled Astrid how he could do this. If people continually picked fun at her, she wouldn’t be able to brush it off so easily. First, she would fight back – physically. But it would also hurt her feelings, even though she would never admit it out loud. And yet Hiccup brushed it off. He didn’t yell or insult back or swing punches. He didn’t hold grudges against those who spoke down to him. Sure, he used sarcasm to disguise how he really felt, but that was about it. And he strove to improve on everything they called him out for, instead of crumpling under the pressure or giving up on it entirely. He genuinely didn’t let their words keep him down. And she admired him for it.

She thought of how he wasn’t tainted by the other teens. How he never exhibited the violent, crude, unpleasant nature everyone else displayed. He showed gentleness while they threatened everyone and everything. He thought things through while they were rash. He found new, better ways to go about things while they always acted upon tradition.

Astrid saw why they always picked on him for being so different. People always feared the unknown. They didn’t know about things that were different, so they tried to avoid it. Astrid had been guilty of this herself. Before Hiccup had opened her eyes to the truth, she had feared the dragons because she didn’t know anything about them. And, in truth, she had avoided Hiccup because she hadn’t understood him.

She was glad she had gotten to know him. His difference from the norm was a nice change from her typical life. It was a necessary change. One that she couldn’t wait to see in the rest of Berk, even if the thought of revealing the truth tightened her chest in anxiety. It was crucial that the truth came out, but the vikings would surely put up a fight against the change. Vikings were always stubborn.

Astrid was deep in her thoughts as she ate. Suddenly, she was snapped out of it by someone clearing their throat beside her.

She looked up. Ruffnut stood before her, hip cocked and arms crossed in front of her chest. Every once and a while, Ruff would get this giddy look about her in contract to her usual tomboy nature. These mood changes always scared Astrid. This was one of those moments. But, to Astrid’s dismay, she could not get away before the female twin spoke out. “You know what I realized?”

Astrid narrowed her eyes, watching the other girl as if she might explode. “What?” she said slowly, cautiously.

Ruffnut dramatically threw her arms down and swayed her shoulders back and forth as she replied. “We haven’t had any girl talk recently with all this training and dragons and stuff.”

Astrid stared at her blankly. “Ruff. We have never had girl talk. Ever.”

“Exaaaactly. We have years’ worth to catch up on.”

“No. I am really, truly good. Maybe next time.” Astrid turned back to her food.

“Nonsense!” Ruffnut exclaimed. “We can give each other tips and talk about stuff without the boys around to ruin everything. I mean they always get in the way.” She leaned closer to Astrid and loudly whispered, “Besides, I neeeeed to get away from Tuff before I claw his face off with my fingernails. He is about to drive me even more insane.”

Astrid sighed. She knew it would be futile to fight it. If Ruffnut really wanted to talk to Astrid, she would follow the girl around the entire village, nagging her and getting in her way until she caved in. To save herself the trouble, she decided to comply before things got out of hand. She nodded slowly and looked up at the other’s eagerly awaiting expression. “Okay, I guess. But just this once.”

Ruffnut literally dragged her out of her seat and pulled her through the door. She kept going on and on about how fun it was going to be. Astrid thought to herself that the two of them must have extremely different definitions of ‘fun’. They wound up sitting at the docks, swinging their legs over the edge.

Since Ruffnut first approached her, Astrid had been wondering what she wanted. The Thorston twins never did anything without some motive, usually of mischievous intent. Obviously, then, the girl wanted something from her. But what could it be?

At first, they stated talking about training and weapons. That made sense. That was one of the few things they shared in common. They both loved to fight and show off their skills. Astrid concluded that Ruffnut probably just wanted to squeeze information out of her so that she could improve her tactics. Not that she would use it in any beneficial way. She would probably just apply such valuable knowledge to better harming her brother. But there was no real harm in that since she would do so whether she got tips or not.

Gradually, the topic shifted to the life of growing up. It was something new and exciting but frightening at the same time. Ruffnut eventually started talking about how she dreamed of marrying some handsome, charming man from far away. Astrid rolled her eyes at the notion. Her whole life, she had been set on being a shield maiden. Key word maiden. Meaning she never planned on marrying anyone. And that never bothered her, especially when she observed the other boys her age. Who would want to be stuck with that?

Ruffnut picked up on her eye roll. “Yeah, yeah. I guess my dream of some mysterious traveler would seem boring to you.” She leaned back against her elbows, a dangerous smirk growing across her face. She shrugged her shoulders. “But not all of us can go after chiefs’ sons.”

So that was what this was about. Of course. She should have known. The whole tribe was gossiping about her and Hiccup. Eventually, someone was bound to bring it up. Ruffnut was just the only one to confront the matter to her face. At moments like this, Astrid truly admired the girl’s character.

“Okay. First off, to set the record straight, there is nothing going on between me and Hiccup. We are just becoming closer friends. That’s all.”

Ruffnut laughed. Her retort was practically dripping in sarcasm. “Yeah, sure. Because friends definitely act and look at each other like you two do.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

Ruff gawked at her. “Oh please don’t tell me you haven’t noticed the way he looks at you. And the way he always tries to impress you. And he always tries to help you with everything.”

“Please! He does that with everyone.” Sure, Astrid had noticed that. She had seen this for a long time, even long before their more recent developments arose. But she had always just attributed that to him being, well, Hiccup. That was just the way he naturally acted. Right?

“No way! He doesn’t do that for anyone else. Anyone. Except you.”

Astrid stared at her. I mean yeah, that might be sorta weird, but there had to be another reason. She had never actively acted out against him like the others. That must have made him automatically act nicer to her. Yeah. That made sense. That had to be it.

“Well, think whatever you want about him. But you can’t deny that you feel something towards him yourself, Hofferson.”

Astrid’s glare towards her could just about shoot fire. “You have got to be insane. I have no such thing!” Ruff was wrong. Utterly wrong. She was Astrid Hofferson. She didn’t have feelings like that. She was a fighter, not a lover. She had no time for anything romantic. It was absurd.

And yet a seed of doubt grew inside of her. So many things were changing about her life. She was doing things she never would have imagined herself doing. And yet she was enjoying them, being more herself than she had ever before.

She thought of how comfortable she was with him. How he made her feel warm inside with how he was so kind to her. How he had helped her all the time. How he never ceased to surprise her. She pictured his dorky smile and the odd hand gestures he always made. She thought of how everything about him changed when he got passionate and determined. How she had been so taken aback and intrigued with that side of him which rose to the surface after their whole dragon nest fiasco.

And then she thought of his deep green eyes… and she knew that somehow, to some extent, Ruffnut was right.

Astrid had no idea what she actually felt. She had never been good with her emotions. But she did know that she did not view him as just a friend. And she didn’t know how to respond to that.

As the sun began to set over the horizon, they two girls walked to their separate homes.

Astrid’s mind would not let her fall asleep easily. She tossed and turned, trying to rationalize what she was feeling. Huffing in exasperation, she rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling. After what felt like an eternity, she finally began to relax…

She woke with a start as a bright light flashed through her room. She bolted up and saw the fire through her window. Without hesitation, she grabbed her axe and ran downstairs to the door. When she stepped outside, she was momentarily shocked by the mayhem surrounding her. Angry Berkians and defensive dragons were fighting each other everywhere.

As was her job, she darted towards the well to get a bucket and start fighting the fires. She tried to ignore the sound of the vikings and dragons crying out as they hurt each other. She wanted them to stop. For them to all put down their weapons and find a way to live in peace. But she couldn’t focus on that right now. She had to focus on the task at hand.

She had quickly joined the other teens in their task. They continued to put out fires all around the village. Things seemed to be going pretty well on their end.

That’s when she saw it. There were two Monstrous Nightmares crawling over the forge, looking very irritated and ready to set everything flammable ablaze. And right under them was Hiccup.

“Hiccup! Look out!” she cried, dropping her bucket and sprinting towards him.

“Wait!” “Astrid, stop!” “You’re gonna get yourself hurt!” She ignored the teens’ desperate cries after her. All she could think about was helping Hiccup.

She got into the forge just as the whole thing went up in flames.

“Astrid?!” She heard Hiccup calling and turned to see a blurred image of the boy through the bright fire light and the smoke. “What are you doing in here?”

“I came to help you. Now let’s get out of here. I would rather not die today, thank you very much.” She grabbed his wrist and started pulling him towards the door. They heard a loud crack, and the beam holding up the ceiling cracked behind them. They ran as fast as they could and escaped through the door.

A stray beam rolled into them, knocking them to the ground. More things began to fall around them, so they started to roll themselves away. Astrid cried out as they went over a steep hill and began to spin out of control.

“Watch out. This will probably hurt.” She found herself being pulled into Hiccups embrace, using himself as a shield for her. Then, they went over the cliff. They fell, down, down, down.

The breath was knocked out of them as they hit the ground. Then, the ground gave way. Astrid clung to Hiccup for dear life as they descended into a dark cave.

The two slowly sat up, moaning as their bodies protested the multiple, jarring impacts. They separated themselves from each other. They appeared to be trapped. They looked at each other, each seeing the fear in the other’s eyes.

How were they going to get out of this one?

Chapter Text

“No. No, no, no. This can’t be happening.” Astrid began searching for any sign of escape. She frantically turned all around, looking for anything – anything at all. But all she found was darkness. Her breathing and heartrate steadily increased as she neared the verge of panic. Normally, she was brave and calm in dangerous scenarios, but if there was one thing she was scared of, it was being trapped. And she was definitely trapped.

“Hey. Hey. Astrid, just breathe. We will find a way out of this.” Hiccup placed a hand on her shoulder as he spoke, trying to bring her out of her fearful state.

She tried to focus on her breathing. With great effort, she inhaled and exhaled slowly until her body had seemed to calm down to some degree. As she began to finally relax, she realized that Hiccup had been rubbing circles on her back. At first, she didn’t know what to think of this. It seemed like a very intimate thing to be doing, and yet it felt so natural for both of them. She decided she didn’t mind it. Actually, she sorta liked it.

Usually, she would hate showing such weakness and seeking comfort from people. Her parents and grandfather were the only ones she had ever sought out when she was scared. She was always afraid someone would judge her and see her as not a good enough viking. Logically, she knew that it was foolish, but she couldn’t help thinking so anyway. If given the option between panicking in front of someone or dying, she would typically pick death. But with Hiccup, she felt like it was okay to show her fear. She knew he wouldn’t judge her, and he wouldn’t hold it against her. Instead of trying to make her feel bad about it, he simply comforted her. Just let her know he was there to support her. And she appreciated that.

Astrid became suddenly aware of how cold it was in this dark, damp cave. She assumed she had been too focused on what was happening inside her head to pay attention to what was going on outside of her. Involuntarily, her body shivered in a futile attempt to keep her warm. She felt Hiccup’s hand, which was still on her back, radiating warmth into her, surging into her very core. In an attempt to keep herself warm – solely for self-preservation; absolutely no other motives; none at all; definitely didn’t have anything to do with the wings seemingly fluttering in her stomach; absolutely no correlation there; totally unrelated – she leaned into him, pressing her back and side into his shoulder and torso.

He sucked in a breath, holding it in. His whole body went rigid, and for a few moments Astrid was scared he would shove her away. Then, slowly, as if he might break her if he moved too quickly, he wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to him.

Neither one could tell how long they stayed like that, finding warmth and comfort in one another in their predicament. Each was lost in their thoughts, trying to formulate some plan but always coming up short. Finally, Hiccup shifted and cleared his throat, causing Astrid to pull away slightly.

“So. Are we gonna try to find a way out of this soon or are we gonna stay here. I mean, not that I’m complaining or anything. I would rather just, you know, survive.”

Astrid sat up straighter. “Yeah. Of course. We should, uh, we should do that. Yes. Sounds good.” She moved to stand up, tearing herself away from the boy. She was surprised when, just before she was completely out of his reach, she felt him grasp her hand. It was still too dark to see it, but she felt him stand up beside her.

“Wouldn’t want to get separated, you know.” He sounded like he was trying to rationalize his actions to himself just as much as he was to her.

“Yeah. Absolutely. Wouldn’t want that. Good thinking.” Astrid was glad for the darkness so he couldn’t see the redness she was sure accompanied the heat spreading across her cheeks.

Why did he have this effect on her? It was completely irrational. She recalled her conversation with Ruffnut earlier on the docks. What was she feeling for Hiccup? Was there really something there? After all, he hadn’t pushed her away. He was always looking out for her. Protecting her. He secured her when they were flying. He had put her first when they were falling. He had held her when she was cold and scared. He seemed to reciprocate… whatever this was. But that didn’t mean that it would lead to anything. Or did it? More importantly, did she want it to?...

No. Snap out of it. Survival. Yeah. Getting out of here. That is what she had to focus on. She could sort all of this out with Hiccup later.

“Since you always seem to be the one with the plan, lead the way, Hiccup.”

She felt him tugging her hand forward, and she followed his lead. They soon found a wall.

Hiccup halted, voicing his thought process. “If we follow the wall, we will end up finding an exit eventually. Unless we are in the middle of a tunnel and end up going deeper in. So how do we know we are going the right way? Hmmm.”

As he paused, there was the sound of a water droplet hitting a puddle by their feet. “Well we know we won’t die of dehydration while waiting to find a way out,” Astrid retorted.

“Water…” Hiccup drew out the word. Astrid could practically hear the gears turning in his head at this point. She waited, trusting his genius side to come into play and solve the puzzle. Her patience was rewarded.

“Water!” he cried, making her jump. “Water flows down. That means the water will flow down farther into the cave, since it will get lower as it gets deeper. So, if we follow the wall and find we are going against the water flow, we know we are going in the right direction. If we are going with the water, then we just have to turn around.”

“Hiccup! That’s genius! Let’s go then. I ready to get back to the surface.”

They began walking along the wall, Hiccup in front with one hand on the wall and the other holding Astrid’s hand. They felt the water in the crevices flowing opposite their chosen trajectory, encouraging them that they were heading the right way. As they progressed, they came to multiple openings in the wall. If they turned and found themselves moving with the flow, they would turn around until they reached the tunnel they were on originally, and they would continue. Obviously, it was a maze of intertwined tunnels that had been forming for a long, long time.

After walking for what felt like forever, Astrid saw a flicker of hope ahead – literally.

“Look!” She pointed – not that either of the teens could really see that she was doing so – at a beam of light ahead of them. They rushed to it and looked up. Through a wide, circular opening, they could see the sun was beginning to rise. With the light, they could see the tunnel they were currently in was a circular shape as well, slightly larger than the hole above them, but not much. It was clearly not created naturally. “What could have done this?” Astrid asked.

“I don’t know. But I have a bad feeling about it.” Hiccup squinted, looking in all the directions the tunnel fanned before them. “That path looks like it slopes more upwards than the rest of them. I saw we try that way.” He turned to Astrid, looking for affirmation.

“Sounds reasonable,” she replied.

With that, they turned and kept moving forward. As they walked, they periodically spotted more beams of light peeking through, although the holes they shone through weren’t nearly as large as the first had been. They took the light as a sign they were nearing the surface and hopefully an exit. Sometimes, they would see tunnels that rose steeply upward. What could have made these tunnels, and what were they used for?

“You know,” Hiccup said, still facing forward as they walked, “I bet this is why we fell through. Parts of these tunnels don’t seem to be very thick, and therefor aren’t as sturdy. With the force of our impact, it probably broke what little stability there was left. On the bright side, at least we now know about them and can warn others to be careful in this area.”

“True. But we have to make it out of here first.”

They continued on until Astrid heard a crunch under their feet. She looked down and saw large, pointed grey triangles scattered along the ground.

“Hiccup, look.”

He turned and looked to her. She pointed down, and he followed her gaze.

“What are they?” she questioned

Hiccup squatted down, examining the strange objects. He cautiously reached out and touched it, picking it up. He picked at it, running his hands along it, turning it around in his grasp, clearly analyzing every aspect of it. Finally, he looked up.

“It seems to be of organic nature. It’s hard like some kind of armor, but slightly flexible. Based on the shape and consistency, my guess would be that it’s a scale.”

Astrid’s eyes grew wide. “Wait. You mean scales like dragon scales?”

Hiccup nodded.

“That is one large dragon. Nothing like I have ever seen before.”

“Me neither. Although, there is something familiar about all of this. Dragons, tunnels underground, grey scales. I know I’ve heard something about this before. I just can’t place my finger on it.”

“Well. if it’s all the same to you, I would rather think about it later when we are back safely home. I would prefer not to find this unknown dragon alone, trapped, and without backup of any kind.”

“Yeah. That would probably be best,” Hiccup replied as he stood up.

They were about to start walking again when they hear it. A faint rumbling behind them, like the grinding of stone. It got nearer and nearer until it stopped. Slowly, afraid of what they might see, the two turned around. They found a pair of white eyes floating in a tunnel that hadn’t been there when they had just passed. They heard the sniffing of nostrils and then saw the glistening of thousands of teeth bared in a now open – and very large – mouth.

Instantly, Hiccup’s hand was on Astrid’s wrist, dragging her behind him as they ran away from the dragon. They heard movement behind them, and they knew they were being chased. They ran as hard as they could, running into tunnels at random since they didn’t dare stop to assess the various routes. When they could no longer hear movement behind them, they stopped and leaned against the wall, attempting to regain their breath.

“Well,” Hiccup panted, “I remembered where I knew this from. The Book of Dragons. The Whispering Death.”

“Yeah. I got that,” Astrid relied. “And if I remember correctly, the words ‘Extremely dangerous’ were written in bold right under it.”

“That was written under all of them,” Hiccup countered.

“Doesn’t make it any less true.”

“Fair point.”

Astrid was about to ask if Hiccup knew what direction they should head when there was a rumbling below them.

“Not again,” she groaned. And they were off again, sprinting down the tunnels at random. Right in front of their feet, their pursuer shot out of the ground, flinging dirt and rock with it. The two teens stumbled backwards, falling to the ground. The dragon roared and began to fly towards them. They scrambled to their feet, running back the way they had come. Once again, they were choosing their path at random. Each time they thought they had lost it, they heard the rumbling near them and started off again.

By some whim of luck or fate, they caught a glimpse of bright light at the end of the tunnel. Hope swelled inside of them, but then they heard the Whispering Death coming up behind them. They sprinted for the exit with everything they had left, seeing the dragon getting closer and closer behind them. At last, they shot out into the open and collapsed, having used all the energy they had left.

They heard the dragon cry out, but it was no longer pursuing them. Rolling on her back, Astrid saw that it was on the edge of the cave, refusing to go further and get in the light. She breathed out a sigh of relief, knowing they were safe at last. She turned and looked at Hiccup, who appeared just as relieved as she was.

“Well,” he chuckled. “Don’t you think Gobber would love to use this one in his training sessions?”

Astrid laughed. “Just make sure the twins never see it. They would love a new means of mass destruction. I mean, it has death in its name. What could possibly go wrong?”

With that, the two laughed, still trying to catch their breath and regain the energy to head home.

Chapter Text

Astrid and Hiccup took their time walking back to the village. A majority of the trip was spent in silence due to the fact that they were both drained – physically, mentally, and emotionally – from their Whispering Death encounter. As they ambled along, Astrid couldn’t help but enjoy the peace in the moment. Although after the night they had had, just about anything would seem relaxing. There was something extra nice about this moment though. She closed her eyes as she walked, listening to the birds in the trees, hearing the waves crash on the cliff in the distance, hearing the sounds of reconstruction ahead in the village, smelling the trees and the grass, feeling the gentle breeze across her skin and in her hair. They were all so familiar. She wished she could stay like that forever.

All too soon, the moment was broken when the tribe came into view. As they walked closer, people began to look up from their work and look at them.

“Astrid!”

Astrid turned to the shout and saw Ruffnut running towards her. Before she could respond, the twin threw herself at the girl, nearly sending them both to the ground. Ruffnut pulled back and looked at her with a relieved smile on her face.

“We were so worried about you! I mean, I was, and a lot of the adults were, but the boys were too stupid to notice. Whatever. Who needs them, right? We saw you rush into the forge and then the whole thing collapsed, and we thought it was on top of you until we heard you scream some distance away, which wasn’t any better because screaming is typically really bad. Unless it is Tuffnut. Then it’s good. Usually fun, too. In fact, I would encourage it if it brings him pain. That’s practically my favorite thing – watching him in pain. Ahhh the good times. Annnyway, back to the point, what on Midgard happened to you?”

Ruffnut started examining Astrid, pulling on her, bending her, looking for any type of injury. With little effort – Astrid was considerably stronger than her friend – she shoved the girl off and held out her hands to stop her from coming any closer.

“I’m fine. Well, as much as I can be. We had a pretty interesting night, didn’t we HIcc…” She looked to her side, expecting Hiccup to still be there. However, the boy had vanished. Typical. Just leave her to deal with everything by herself. Couldn’t possibly help her explain.

When Astrid turned back, a smirk had spread across Ruff’s face. “Soooo. You spent the night with Hiccup then?”

“For Thor’s sake, Ruff, nothing happened…” Astrid realized that something had happened. The way he had comforted her, the way they held each other, the way they protected each other. That definitely wasn’t nothing. She felt a smile twitching at the corners of her mouth as she recalled such occurrences.

“Oooooooooh. Something did happen!” Ruffnut said, starting to bounce in place with anticipation. “Tell me all about it. Leave out nothing.”

“Shut up. I will do no such thing.” Astrid said in as threatening a voice she could, which wasn’t much since she knew she wouldn’t actually do anything. She walked past her friend, heading home.

“Ahhh come on, Hofferson. Just a little bit?”

“Nope.”

“A tiny smidgen?”

“Not happening, Thorston.”

Astrid ate a small meal at home before going to sleep. She woke in the late afternoon. For a while, she debated on whether she should go see Stormfly. She would love to go flying again, and she was sure the dragon would appreciate it too. She decided against it, however, for it would take her such a long time to get to the cove that she would have to head straight back to get home at a reasonable time. That would be pretty pointless. She thought about training but decided against that too.

Finally, she got up and, in a search for Hiccup, headed towards the forge – or rather, the lack of one. If she hadn’t known it was there before, she never would have guessed. It was razed to the ground, almost completely ash apart from a few charred beams embedded deep in the ground.

Astrid herself had not been too attached to the building, but she knew it had a great impact on everyone in the village, and she was sad to see it go. But almost every building on the island had been replaced more times than she could count. They Berkians were quick and efficient at putting up buildings after so much practice. She was sure another one would be up in no time.

She saw two people by the rubble and recognized them as the blacksmith and his apprentice. As she drew closer, she heard them talking.

“It’s okay, Gobber,” Hiccup said. “We will build a new one and we will be back to drowning in work in no time.”

“Aye, it’s just such a pity to see it go. I mean the amount of work we put into it. The memories held inside. Not to mention all the things we were working on. It’s a shame about all your designs, lad.”

“Yeah. It’s okay though. I wouldn’t have used most of them anyway.”

“The main thing is we need to set up a place so that people can come get their tools and weapons fixed while waiting for a new forge. And I’ll need a place to stay.”

That’s right. Astrid had forgotten that Gobber lived above the forge. She felt sorry for the man. He had lost so much in that raid. Not that anyone really went unscathed by it.

“You know you can always come stay with my dad and I, Gobber. There is plenty of room,” Hiccup offered to his mentor.

“Thanks, Hiccup. I might just take you up on that. But first, we still have to recover anything we can from the ashes.”

“Would you two like some help?” Astrid offered. The two looked up at her, noticing her for the first time. Hiccup opened his mouth but closed it silently. Gobber however lit up.

“Well, hello there, lass. Yes. By all means, feel free to join us.” Gobber waved around him as he spoke.

Astrid walked around the rubble slowly, searching for anything that seemed to have remained whole – or at least mostly whole. After a few minutes, Gobber cleared his throat.

“Sooooo. What happened to you two after you escaped from here?”

Astrid opened her mouth to reply, but Hiccup beat her to it.

“We ended up rolling over a cliff and then fell into a Whispering Death tunnel.”

Gobber’s eyes widened, eyebrows raising. “A Whispering Death tunnel, you say? Sounds like you had a thrill.”

“Definitely,” the teens said in unison.

The blacksmith nodded slowly, clearly in thought. “I didn’t realize there were any of those beasts left on the island. Last time I saw one of them, I was your age.”

“Wow. They must be truly ancient,” Hiccup retorted in his typical manner. Astrid chuckled at the comment.

Gobber lightheartedly replied. “Oh, yeah, sure. Thank you. I am glad you think I am so old. It must be my absolute wisdom that makes you think so.”

“Nope. Your old looks.”

“Oh ha ha.” Gobber rolled his eyes, but a smile snuck through his fake, annoyed facade.

The three spent the rest of the afternoon together, looking around the ashes and talking. Astrid enjoyed listening to Hiccup and Gobber interact. They were obviously close and had been for a long time. There was a special bond between the two of them, like family. It was interesting to see Hiccup being so openly himself in front of another person for once instead of just dragons.

They ate together in the Great Hall when the dark started to hinder their vision. Afterwards, they headed in their separate directions – Hiccup and Gobber to the Haddock household and Astrid to her own home.

The next day, Astrid was awakened by her mother. Apparently, Stoick had called for a tribe-wide meeting. The Hofferson’s arrived in the hall early so they could be near the front. After some time and everyone had crowded as close as they could, Stoick stood and cleared his throat.

“As you all know, the dragon raids have become more frequent and more ferocious.”

“Aye!” Spitelout, Snotlout’s father, cried. “There were more buildings destroyed and more injured in the last attack than there have been in ages.”

The hall filled with voices as everyone started voicing their opinions or recalling previous raids. Stoick eventually managed to rein everyone’s attention back in.

“This does not just apply to Berk. Chiefs from the surrounding villages have messaged me sharing similar information. Now, we have been searching for the Nest since Vikings first sailed here to no avail. However, I have received some that should help us pinpoint the location.”

The room filled with murmuring again.

“Tomorrow, the teenagers will prove whether or not they can fight the dragons. After this, all able-bodied vikings plus the new recruits will set sail for the nest to hopefully destroy the dragons, bringing an end to this once and for all. This will be led by myself and the new best dragon fighter of his age, my son, Hiccup.”

There was a mixture of mumbling and cheering throughout the crowd. Astrid looked to the boy and when their eyes met, she knew they were in deep trouble.

“So make preparations!” Stoick roared. “Tomorrow, the training finale, then we fight!”

It was finally time. Everything was about to go down tomorrow, for better or worse. And Odin help them, Astrid hoped things went in their favor for once.

Chapter Text

The next morning, excitement filled the air. The entire tribe of Berk gathered at the training arena to witness this grand event. Every time teens proved themselves to be dragon fighters, it was a cause for celebration. But this time was even more so. This time it was the future chief – and one everyone thought would fail at training for that matter. There was barely any room to breathe outside of the ring as everyone packed tightly. Everyone wanted a good view. Voices filled the air as people talked about this event. How would it go? How quickly would Hiccup defeat the dragon? Would all the other teens succeed after him? They speculated with an enthusiasm and excitement that poured out of ever Berkian….

All but two.

Astrid walked to the entrance of the ring where Hiccup waited for the gate to open. He was pacing back and forth, fidgeting with his helmet in his hands. He was so focused on his thoughts that he didn’t realize she was there until she spoke.

“Be careful with that dragon.”

Hiccup looked up at her, dread evident in his face. “It’s not the dragon I’m worried about,” he said, turning to look up at something.

Astrid walked closer to him and followed his gaze. Immediately, she knew what he meant. Stoick was giving some speech about how proud he was of his son for finally showing his viking side. The man would be broken and shocked when he saw the truth. And there was no telling how he would respond – although it would probably involve some sort of angry, violent outburst. And an angry Stoick the Vast was not someone you wanted to get in the way of. However, there was no getting around it this time. It had to be done. For the good of all.

“So. Do you have your plan all worked out?” Astrid asked.

“Yeah. For the most part,” Hiccup said. He looked into the arena and chuckled solemnly. “But when does anything ever go according to plan? Or in my favor at all for that matter?”

“Well, there’s a first for everything,” Astrid encouraged.

Hiccup didn’t respond.

“What are you gonna do?” she questioned further.

“Put an end to this. I have to try.”

Well that was an awfully vague response. If he was so diligently refusing to answer her questions, she figured he was trying to hide something. It was probably a dangerous plan he knew she wouldn’t approve of. And his next words seemed to further confirm this theory.

He turned to her with that serious, determined look on his face. “Astrid, if all Hel breaks loose, Berk will need someone here who knows and accepts the truth. Maybe, if I can’t convince them with bluntness, they can be persuaded over time. No matter what, don’t let them know you’ve been learning from me about the truth. Don’t let them know you’re on my side.”

“But-“

“No. No buts. If something happens to me, you are the only hope. And you can’t help if you are in the same position as me. You will have to find a different way. Okay?”

Astrid didn’t like what she was hearing. She didn’t like the thought of something happening to Hiccup. She didn’t like the pressure of knowing she could be the last hope for Berk and for the dragons. She wanted to fight against it. But she knew he was right. If Hiccup’s method – whatever it may be – didn’t work, she would have to teach her tribe in a different way after everyone cooled down.

“Okay.” She replied.

Hiccup relaxed some at her acceptance. He nodded slowly, looking back into the crowd while deep in thought. After a while, he started speaking again.

“It’s sorta funny, isn’t it? To think all of this started because I couldn’t kill one dragon when I found it in the woods? Because I couldn’t be like the other vikings?”

“Yup. The rest of us would have done it.” Astrid knew that if she had found a shot down, trapped Night Fury, she would have killed it without a second thought. After all, she had tried to kill Toothless when she first met him. Thank goodness Hiccup had stopped her. Hiccup, on the other hand, had freed and befriended the dragons. She realized she had never heard him say why.

“So why didn’t you?” she asked.

Hiccup hung his head in what looked like defeat at the memory. “I don’t know.”

“That’s not an answer,” she countered.

“I couldn’t.” He turned away from her, obviously hoping she would drop the topic. She was much to stubborn for that, however.

“That’s not an answer.”

Exasperatedly, Hiccup sighed and gesticulated. “Why is this so important to you all of a sudden?”

“Because I wanna remember what you say, right now,” she answered honestly. “I never would have thought I would be standing here today watching you walk into that arena to fight the Monstrous Nightmare instead of me. I never thought I would be dreading seeing someone fight a dragon. I never would have guessed that dragons are kind, gentle, amazing creatures that bring people together. But you showed me that. You. And if you can do that, I know you can do even more great things. And when you do, I wanna be able to look back to this moment and remember how it all started. So, why didn’t you?”

Hiccup looked at her wide eyed, clearly moved by her speech. “I wouldn’t kill him because he looked as frightened as I was. I looked at him, and I saw myself.”

“Well then, make sure that you work as hard as you can to make sure nothing goes wrong in there. For Toothless.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I can do that.” After some silence, he said, “You know, I bet I’m the first Viking in three hundred years to enter this arena that wouldn’t kill a dragon.”

“Hey. You’re the first to ride one though.”

Hiccup chuckled. “I suppose that is true.” He turned to face her again. “Astrid, one more thing. If something goes wrong, just make sure they don’t find Toothless.”

“I will. Just, promise me it won’t go wrong.”

She waited expectantly for him to promise, but he didn’t. Instead, Gobber walked up and opened the gate to allow Hiccup entrance.

“It’s time, Hiccup. Knock ‘em dead.” Gobber stepped aside and moved his hand, guiding Hiccup into the ring. The boy put his helmet and walked forward. Gobber closed the gate behind him.

“Did you wish him luck, lass? He will need it with that beast.”

“You have no idea,” Astrid replied. Gobber simply nodded and walked away to join Stoick.

The whole tribe chanted Hiccup’s name and cheered as he entered the ring. Astrid watched as he walked over to the weapons rack and grabbed a shield, strapping it onto his left arm. He then picked up a small dagger. He took a deep breath, stood tall, and cried out, ”I’m ready.”

With that, the gates slowly opened. Before they were fully ajar, fire shot out of the cage. The Nightmare, currently coated in its’ flaming gel, sprung out of it and began climbing along the chains and walls. It shot fire and thrashed around, extinguishing itself since it was more focused on escaping than attacking. When it realized this was impossible, it looked down and spotted Hiccup. Slowly, it lowered itself, snarling and growling at the boy. It crept closer to him, and Hiccup backed up. As he went, he dropped his shield and dagger to the side and extended his arms towards the dragon. He seemed to be saying something to the dragon, but no one could tell what. That is, until he pulled off his helmet and declared loudly, “I’m not one of them.” He proceeded to toss his helmet to the ground.

The crowd went into an uproar. How dare he?! Anger, confusion, and panic seemed to radiate around the ring. Inside, however, there was an evident change in the Nightmare. It had perked up, seemingly more at ease. It continued to look at Hiccup, but it was now out of curiosity, not wariness of a threat.

With his focus still on the dragon, Hiccup addressed the Berkians. “I need you all to see this. They’re not what we think they are. We don’t have to kill them.”

Above the ring, Stoick yelled in outrage, “I said, stop the fight!” He slammed his hammer into the pole, sending a loud ringing through the air.

This immediately sent the dragon on a rampage. Terrified, it began to shoot flames and chase Hiccup around the arena.

“Hiccup!” Astrid cried. She used her axe to pry open the gate and slip through. She had to help him. She should have known this would end badly. She should have been with him from the beginning. But it was too late for that now. Now, she had to help him.

Astrid sprinted to the weapons rack and picked up the hammer. She threw it at the reptile’s head, catching its’ attention and drawing it away from Hiccup. Unfortunately, that meant its’ attention was now on her. She ran for her life as it charged at her, snapping its’ jaws behind her.

“This way!” she heard Stoick shout. Apparently, he had fully opened the gate and was beckoning them towards it. She ran towards it and safely reached the man’s side. She turned back to Hiccup, but saw he was not so lucky. He had been pinned down under the claws of the dragon.

Before anyone could respond, there was a very familiar whistling through the air above.

“Night Fury!” “Get down!” “Run for your life!”

An explosion in the chain ceiling sent smoke and debris through the arena. No one could see anything, but they could hear it. The two dragons were fighting each other. As the smoke cleared, Astrid saw Toothless standing, wings spread and teeth bared, between Hiccup and the Nightmare. Toothless roared, and the Nightmare backed away.

Astrid wondered how the dragon got there since it couldn’t fly without Hiccup, but she decided that wasn’t important at the moment. What was important was the fact that the Fury was the only thing between Hiccup and the other dragon.

No one else seemed to pick up on this important fact however. They began to charge at both dragons. Easily, they pinned down the Monstrous Nightmare as it had been subdued by Toothless. The Night Fury, on the other hand, was a completely different matter.

Before anyone could get to them, Hiccup had mounted Toothless, and the two were hovering in the air, just out of everyone’s reach. “Stop! Everyone just stop!” Hiccup yelled.

“What in Midgard do you think you are doing?!” Stoick roared, stomping closer to the boy and his companion.

“Dad-“

“How could you betray your people like this?! Not only claim to not be one of us, but to side yourself with the enemy?!”

“But they aren’t the enemy, Dad. Dragons are wonderful, peaceful, loving creatures. They don’t naturally want to harm us. You just have to give them a chance.”

“Have you heard yourself?! You have completely lost your mind! Have you not seen what they have done to us?! For Thor’s sake, look at this island! Look at all the damage they have caused! All the people they have killed! They’ve killed hundreds of us!”

“And we’ve killed thousands of them!” Hiccup snapped. He was finally starting to lose his cool. “They defend themselves, that’s all! They raid us because they have to! If they don’t bring enough food back, they will be eaten themselves.”

“Wait! You mean you’ve been to the nest?” Stoick lit up at this. Hiccup, on the other hand, shrunk into himself, realizing he had said the wrong thing.

“Did I say nest?”

“Hiccup,” Stoick began, almost hopefully. “You can still redeem yourself. Lead us to the nest and help us kill them all, and this can all be fixed.”

“No! I will not help you kill innocent creatures just because you are too stubborn to see the truth!”

“Berk will not accept murderous beasts!”

“Just like Berk doesn’t accept me, huh?”

There were gasps at Hiccup’s words. Stoick stepped back in shock. He opened his mouth to protest but closed it again as he could not find the words.

Astrid panicked. Watching how calm Hiccup seemed at this amazed her. How could he do this?! He wouldn’t seriously leave his home, would he? After all they had been through, after all he had shown her, he couldn’t possibly leave her. She didn’t think she could handle that.

Stoick seemed to snap out of his shock. “Hiccup. Get down here right now.”

“No. I refuse to stay somewhere I am not wanted. You have shunned me for years because I am different. I now know that’s a good thing. Something to be proud of. Toothless is all I have. He is the first friend I have ever had. And I will not stay somewhere he is not welcome. If he leaves, I leave.”

Gobber responded this time. “Hiccup, you can’t be serious.”

“I am. I’m sorry, but it’s the way it must be. Don’t worry. I will do everything in my power to show you the truth. I won’t stop until I succeed. One day, you will learn that the dragons are not the cruel ones. You are.”

Astrid felt her eyes stinging as tears threatened to spill. For the first time, she had felt free. She had had hope. She had opened up to someone. To Hiccup. She had cared for him. And now he was shredding her heart to pieces. He was leaving her to deal with this all on her own. How was she supposed to handle the dragons now? She couldn’t fight them – not after all she had learned – but she couldn’t help them or everyone would know she was on their side. It was an impossible situation. She needed guidance. She needed a hand to hold as she struggled through it. But now she was going to be all on her own.

Tears began to fall as she made eye contact with Hiccup. A flash of sadness spread across his face. He must have realized the affect this would have on her because he mouthed, “I’m sorry.” With that, he guided Toothless through the hole he had blasted and flew up and out of sight.

Astrid was left shaking, watching him fly until he was just a black dot in the distance. For once, she didn’t care that she didn’t look like a strong warrior in front of everyone. She couldn’t bring herself to care about anything. She was lost.

What would she do now?

Chapter Text

Still in shock, the tribe stood around the arena for a while. No one knew what to do. No one wanted to be the first to make a move in fear of it somehow making the situation worse. Everything had gone down so quickly. So they stood there in a trance.

Astrid felt completely disconnected from the world. She was aware of talking and movement, but she didn’t register anything going on. She couldn’t bring herself to pay attention. She was panicking. She was alone. She couldn’t lie well enough to pull off ignorance. They would find out she had sided with the dragons for sure, and they would react just like they had with Hiccup. She couldn’t do this. She didn’t want to do this. She didn’t know what to do.

A large shadow hanging over her snapped her back into reality. She looked up and saw the towering – and livid – form of Stoick the Vast staring down at her.

“Hofferson. Great Hall. Now.”

With that, he stormed towards said destination. She picked up her axe lying a few steps to her side, strapped it to her back, and darted to his side, not wanting to make him any more irritated by her being too far behind him. She nearly had to run to keep up with the man. It was quite clear this was not going to be a pleasant conversation.

When they reached the building, Stoick shoved the door open with great force. Astrid cringed at the loud ‘bang’ that echoed around the room as the door hit the wall. She took a few steps into the building as Stoick stormed across the floor. When he stopped pacing, he turned and pointed a finger at her. The gesture combined with the fire raging in his eyes sent shivers down the girl’s spine.

“You. You have been spending an awful lot of time with him. And you have picked up his strange tactics in fighting the beasts. You are on their side too, aren’t you?”

Well, this was it. No beating around the bush.

“Of course not, Chief.” Maybe using his title would make it more convincing she was loyal to him. “Berk is my home, and these horrid beasts – “ the words burned in her mouth, but she had to make him trust her or there would be no hope – “have attacked my people and my home for far too long. They must be fought. They must be killed.” No, they shouldn’t. They were innocent. They were forced to do it. “I would never side with such an enemy.”

Stoick lowered his finger. He seemed to be relaxing some at her words, but he was still practically shooting fire at her with his glare.

“That doesn’t explain why you started to use… his… techniques. Or why you spent so much time for him.”

“I knew he was somehow cheating. I hoped to learn from his ways so I could fight the dragons more efficiently.” That wasn’t entirely a lie. That was how it started.

“And all the friendliness displayed between you two?”

“A mere ruse to get him to lower his guard so he would tell me his tricks.”

It wasn’t until that moment that Astrid knew what she felt. The entire time she had spent with Hiccup, she had been fighting herself deep down, denying her emotions. That’s what she always did. She always found it easier to suppress her feelings than to deal with them. Although this made it very hard to figure out what she was feeling. And that is what had happened with Hiccup. She had compartmentalized it, telling herself the same thing she had told Stoick: she was just wanting to learn from Hiccup. But now that he was gone, she could see the truth. She cared for him. And not just as a friend. She regretted not accepting it before now. Wished she had acted upon it when Hiccup was still here. But it was too late for that now. He had left her all alone. There could be nothing between them now. It was too late. She wished more than anything that she could change that.

Stoick’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts. “Nothing more than a trick?”

“No.”

“You have no relations with dragons?”

“Only killing them.”

Nodding, Stoick turned away at last. He seemed to be appeased by her words. She had been convincing enough. Thank Thor.

As she watched, her mighty chief began to crumble in defeat. He collapsed onto a bench, shoulders hunched and head bent. Astrid didn’t know what to do. She had never seen her chief like this. After a while he spoke softly, voice cracking with emotion.

“How could this have happened?” The man looked up at her, eyes watering, searching for an answer.

“I don’t know,” she replied.

“I have now lost both my beloved wife and my only son to these dreadful creatures. Can these beasts never be satisfied? Can we never win?”

For the first time in their conversation, Astrid’s response was completely honest. “I promise you, we will end this war.” Just not in the way he thought.

“Aye. Thank you, lass.” Stoick nodded towards the door. “You can leave now.”

“Thank you, Chief.” Without another word, Astrid turned and ran out. She knew the man needed to be alone.

For that matter, she needed to be alone. She ran, and ran, and ran. She paid no attention to where her feet were taking her. She just needed to be alone. To get out all her emotions. After some time, she found herself at her cove. Without thinking, she unstrapped her axe and ran to a tree. With a cry, she threw it into the trunk. It stuck into the wood, and she pulled with all her strength to get it back out. Then, she was swinging again. And again. And again. She let out all of her frustration, her loneliness, her defeat, her fear of the future. She swung and threw and slammed until she no longer could. She fell to her knees, and tears built up in her eyes.

Behind her, there was a worried coo. She felt a beak nudge into her shoulder. Without looking, she knew Stormfly had found her way to her, probably returning to her cove after Toothless had left to get Hiccup.

After Toothless left.

With Hiccup.

Astrid turned and buried her face into her dragon’s neck, hugging her for dear life. She was glad she wasn’t alone. She had Stormfly. But how was she supposed to show Berk that Stormfly and the other dragons weren’t bad. That it wasn’t their fault. She couldn’t think up some grand plan. That was Hiccup’s job. Not hers. She was the rash, act-now-think-later type of girl. She needed someone who was grounded, who could formulate plans and then show you how to go through with them. She needed Hiccup. But he wasn’t there. So, she just stayed there with Stormfly, crying and hugging her until she couldn’t anymore.

When she got back to the village, everyone acted as if nothing had happened that morning. They hadn’t had their heir fly away on a dragon and all of Berk get thrown into mayhem. Nope. Definitely not it. Absolutely nothing had happened.

In a way, Astrid appreciated this. It was easier for her to pretend that she hadn’t known the truth about dragons if no one mentioned them or Hiccup or the arena. She could act as if this was her normal life. After all, this did used to be her normal life. She would just have to adjust and gradually change things when Berk was open to it. She had to be patient – which was something Hoffersons never excelled at.

A few days passed since the arena incident. Astrid was carrying some wood with Ruffnut to be used on the new forge. That was one of the first buildings that burned down that was being reconstructed. After all, it was vital for all their tools and weapons. Thus, all the teens, Gobber, and a few older men were currently rebuilding it.

A horn sounded from the sea, catching everyone’s attention. Astrid rushed with the crowd to the docks, wondering who might be coming.

“Who do you think it is?” Ruffnut questioned as they ran.

“Not a clue. Guess we’ll find out.”

It was very rare that anyone other than trading ships and messengers sailed to Berk. They had a bad habit of pissing off the other tribes. Therefore, they mainly kept to their own, and none of the other tribes sought them out. But every once and a while, someone would come to the island when something big was going on.

Astrid forced her way through people until she was at the front of the docks. At times like this, it was nice to be younger and smaller than the adults. She looked to the waters and spotted three ships. It was clear these were not trading ships. Those were typically smaller, manned by one or two people, and rarely came in groups.

These ships, however, were long and sturdy, obviously manned by many people. She looked to the sail and saw the crest of the Thunderfoot tribe. It was the head of a thunderdrum, mouth opened to send out a shock wave. Behind the head were a crossed axe and sword. It was a simple crest, but Astrid liked it. It clearly displayed the tribe’s reputation: loud, and always ready to fight. She had always liked the Thunderfoot tribe. They were great warriors to be feared and to learn from. Yet they were not overly violent like many other tribes. They enjoyed peace when it was appropriate, and they knew how to have fun. They could make just about anyone laugh.

The first ship pulled into the dock as Stoick reached the front of the crowd.

“Well, what do we have here? What brings to our island, Skorri?”

Skorri was the chief of the Thunderfeet. He was a large man, close to Stoicks size. He had long, dark hair pulled back behind him, and his beard was thick but not too long. He wore the traditional fur cloak of the chieftains, pinned with the symbol of his people. His face was stern and yet comforting. As the man stepped onto the docks in front of Stoick, a smile spread across his face.

“Stoick,” the man boomed. “My old friend. How are you? And can a man not come to visit his ally of a tribe anymore?”

Stoick chuckled as he shook Skorri’s hand. “Why of course. I meant no offense. But you typically have a reason to show up, do you not?”

“Yes, yes. And alas, I do. I heard you son and heir was proving himself a viking a few days back, and I thought I would come and celebrate with you. Where is the boy? I would like to congratulate him.”

Silence.

A thick, heavy silence filled the air. The joyous atmosphere and happy faces caused by the ships’ arrival turned into long, sorrowful faces. Many bowed their heads and shuffled awkwardly. Stoick’s expression was a mixture of anger and pure grief, as if he couldn’t decide which he felt more of.

“Okay then.” Skorri said, stepping back with confusion evident in his stance. “I take it that struck a hard topic?”

Stoick turned his back to his friend. “He’s gone,” he said, voice lacking emotion.

Skorri immediately stepped forward, placing a hand on his fellow chief’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry for your loss. I take it the Nightmare killed your son in the arena?”

Anger flashed through Stoick. He pulled his shoulder out of reach and spun around to face Skorri. Skorri stepped back, taken off guard by the sudden transformation.

“That… traitor… is not my son!”

“Well, don’t you think that’s a little harsh? Just because he didn’t succeed in killing the dragon doesn’t mean – “

“No! He didn’t simply fail in killing it. He refused to. He betrayed his people and sided with the enemy. And then, he had the audacity to hop onto a Night Fury, the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself, the worst of them all, and fly away with it. Willingly! That boy is no longer a part of this tribe, and he is certainly not my son!” With that, Stoick turned and stormed back to the village, everyone making a path for him in fear of being in his way.

Everyone was taken aback by his words. They knew, by law, what he said was true. Hiccup could no longer be a part of the tribe. He betrayed Berk. He was an outcast. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t hard to hear it stated outright. Especially by the boy’s own father.

Skorri turned back to the ship and began helping his people onto the docks. There was no sense in making leaving now. They had come all this way; might as well stay.

The Berkians turned and went their separate ways. They decided to, once again, ignore the whole situation. If they didn’t pay attention to it, it would just go away, right?

Astrid stayed still. After hearing that Hiccup was an outcast, she felt more alone than ever. This meant he couldn’t even step foot on the island, or else he would be killed. She had held up hope that he would come back and help her somehow. That he would still be there for her in the future. But she now realized that was impossible.

She stayed looking at the ground, wrapping her arms around herself, as the Thunderfeet walked across the docks to the shore. None of them seemed to pay any attention to her, and she was fine with that. She was all by herself anyway. That is, until she heard a voice speak up beside her.

“Well, this whole thing is awkard, don’t you think?”

Chapter Text

Astrid turned to see who had spoken. To her left, she saw a boy about a head taller than her. He looked to be a few years older than she was, probably upper teens. His dirty blonde hair was cut raggedly. The large claw scar across his left cheek and sharp, set jaw presented him as fierce, but his dark brown eyes and crooked smile portrayed a feeling of friendliness. He wore traditional viking garb – red tunic, brown pants, leather boots, big belt holding some weapons and pockets. A fur cloak hung over his shoulder, showing he was of higher rank.

Astrid looked at him in confusion. She had never seen him before. Why was this guy talking to her?

“Oh, my apologies,” the stranger said. “I haven’t introduced myself.” He took a step back and in an over-dramatic and showy fashion bowed. “My name is Ossur.” He stood and pointed to the broach that pinned his cloak, clearly displaying the Thunderfoot crest. “I am the son of Skorri. And who might you be? If your beauty says anything, you must be a chieftess.”

Astrid rolled her eyes and turned away from the boy. Oh great. It’s another Snotlout. How wonderful. Just what she needed. Another annoying flirt.

“Astrid,” she replied. She wanted to interact with this guy as little as possible, and she hoped he would take the hint at her shortness. Unfortunately for her, he did not seem that perceptive.

“Ahhh. Astrid. Very fitting. The name divine beauty is perfect for a stunning chieftess as yourself.”

Astrid started walking up the docks towards the village. “I am not a chieftess.”

She heard Ossur following behind her. “What a shame. That can be fixed, however. I mean, I am a future chief.”

Astrid wanted to gag. Her previous assessment was wrong – this guy wasn’t another Snotlout. This guy was worse than Snotlout. She hadn’t even thought that possible, but here Ossur was, the living proof that it was. She could not believe this guy had the audacity to say such a thing right off the bat. Well, seems like she would have to be a little more blunt.

“Actually, I’m on my way to being a shield maiden. Key word: maiden. So, I would have to say no.”

“Oh, what a shame. The prettiest girl in Berk courting no one? How tragic.”

“First off, you haven’t even seen any other girls on Berk yet. Obviously, you are just trying to flatter me. Which is failing considerably, by the way. And even if you had, my relationship status is none of your business.”

She heard Ossur opening his mouth to say something, which she was certain she wouldn’t like to hear and would likely make her angry. So, she sprinted away from him.

Astrid went about her day as usual. She worked briefly on rebuilding the forge, but everyone else was interacting with the guests – who she was actively trying to avoid as long as possible – making it very difficult to do much work. After she gave up on constructing the building by herself, she headed to the woods with her axe. She went to the cove and playing with Stormfly before training with her beloved weapon. Unlike last time, she actually tried to be precise, efficient, and put her time to use in furthering her abilities. This always made her feel relaxed. The way she could see the evidence of her work in the wood and could feel it in her muscles always made her feel like she had accomplished something great.

She stayed in the cove, lying with Stormfly until it was time for supper. Then, she trudged to the great hall. Upon entering, she grabbed a plate of food and a cup. Searching for a friend (or an empty table where she could be alone, but she doubted she would find that based on how crowded the place seemed), she weaved in and out of the tables. Before long, she spotted Ruffnut’s back. Smiling, she headed in that direction.

As she neared, however, she stopped in her tracks, smile faltering. Ruffnut, as well as all the other teens, were crowded around none other than Ossur and two of his friends from his tribe. Astrid backed up and was about to find another table when she heard Ruffnut call her name.

“Come on, Astrid! Come join us! And you have to meet these guys!”

Said girl turned slowly and walked over to the table.

“Oh, the fair lady Astrid and I were acquainted this morning.” He turned to Astrid as she sat down. “A pleasure to see you again.”

Astrid thought it was not a pleasure, but she decided not to voice that opinion – at least not publicly. She sat down, consciously making an effort to avoid looking at the boy. She could feel his intense gaze upon her, which just made her look down at her food more intently. She didn’t care if she seemed rude. She never really had. She already knew she was bad at interacting with others, and she hadn’t even bothered to try doing so until Hiccup. And this arrogant stranger was definitely not her sweet, cautious, quirky Hiccup… with his green eyes and auburn hair, and that smile… and, wait, why was she thinking about him that way, and why was she thinking of him as hers. He was gone. There was no possibility of anything happening between them. And that made her sad. And mad.

And she decided that even though Ossur had no connection whatsoever to Hiccup’s absence, she was going to direct that anger towards him. Because she needed a target, and right now, he seemed like a pretty good one.

While Astrid came to that conclusion, Ruffnut’s voice drew her out of her thoughts.

“Astrid, you came at just the right time. Ossur is sooooo cool, and he was just telling us some epic stories about his life.”

Astrid rolled her eyes. “How wonderful.” She bet that they were all made up, or they were at least blown out of proportion.

“Yeah. And he was just about to tell us how he got the scar on his face!”

“Indeed I was,” said Ossur. “And what a great tale that is.”

“Oh! Oh! It was from a dragon wasn’t it?” Tuffnut questioned. “Most of the scars and wounds around here are from dragons, and they are so cool.”

The other teens agreed to how awesome dragon scars were. Ruffnut turned to Astrid, trying to get her to engage in conversation, and said, “Don’t you want one, Astrid? I’m pretty sure I remember you saying something about that. And the bigger the better.”

Astrid did recall saying something along those lines back at the beginning of dragon training. Wow, that was a long time ago. It felt like ages. And in that time, her view on fighting dragons – and therefore receiving battle scars from them – had changed drastically. She decided to not bring that up so she wouldn’t end up in the same position as Hiccup.

“Yeah. Pain. Love it.”

“Ugh.” Snotlout gestured towards her. “Why do you have to always act like…. HIM.”

Ossur furrowed his brow and looked between the Berkian teens, who all had started fidgeting awkwardly. “Who is ‘him’?”

Astrid didn’t want to speak to Ossur. Especially not about something as personal to her as Hiccup. Fishlegs on the other hand had no problem talking for her.

“Hiccup. Haddock. The boy you came to see fight the dragon. But didn’t.”

“The one that isn’t here?”

“That’s the one.”

Ossur turned to Astrid. “I take it that if you sound just like this boy you two were close?”

Astrid refused to respond.

“I will take that as a yes.” Ossur’s face contorted as if he was putting pieces of a puzzle together. Then he seemed to reach some conclusion. “I take it this boy is why my flattery and flirting are to no avail with you?”

Astrid’s head finally snapped up, and she looked at him, stunned at the audacity of his question. How dare he dig through someone else’s business like that! She opened and closed her mouth several times, but no sound came out.

Ossur seemed satisfied by this response as he leaned back. “You know, you say a lot more through your silence than you could with words.”

“You are obviously confused, my man,” Snotlout butted in. “She only has eyes for me.”

Astrid simply rolled her eyes and diverted her attention back to her food. But Ruffnut would not stand to listen to this when she had seen how Astrid had viewed Hiccup.

“Are you serious, Snotface?” she cried. “You must be blind as well as dumb. Astrid and Hiccup were practically courting. And even if they weren’t, they clearly had a connection a thousand times stronger than you have ever had with any girl.”

Snotlout cried out in protest, but Astrid payed no mind. She was caught on what Ruff had said. Courting. Had they really been courting? Surely not. Sure, they had spent a lot of time together and been nice to each other. And yeah, the entire tribe had thought there was some great romance going on, but were they actually courting? He had never asked her directly. So did it count? Or had he assumed in his head that they were and just never vocalized it? She assumed she would never know what could have been.

“So, is your scar from a dragon or not, Ossur?” Tuffnut questioned.

“No. It is actually from a grizzly bear attack.”

The boy started some long tale of grandeur that Astrid thought was clearly exaggerated. The other teen did not seem to pick up on this. Or they didn’t care. There was honestly no telling which with these guys. Astrid could not have cared less, so she zoned out. Until she heard the topic of dragons pop up again.

“So, I am just curious,” Fishlegs began. “I have always found it fascinating how different tribes fight and strategize. And I was curious how the Thunderfeet fight dragons. Especially during raids. Maybe you could give some advice for how we can handle them. I mean, with all your adventures, you must have fought many dragons.”

The others piped in, expressing their earnestness to hear what he had to say on the topic. Ossur seemed to become awkward over this conversation. He started to fidget with his hands and suddenly found a stone on the floor very fascinating.

When everyone quieted and looked at him expectantly, he said,”Actually, I’ve never fought a dragon.”

“What!?” Snotlout exclaimed. “How is that possible!? If it is because no one will let you, they obviously need to get some sense knocked into him.”

“Yeah, like you,” Tuffnut said before headbutting his friend. Everyone ignored the childish action.

“No,” Ossur said. “They would let me. In fact, they have asked me many times to do so.”

“Then why haven’t you?” asked Ruff.

“It’s complicated.”

Astrid looked up at him, and he met her gaze. For the first time since she had met him, she didn’t feel complete disgust or annoyance towards him. From his expression, she thought she knew why he hadn’t. She suspected it was the same reason she had suddenly stopped doing so well in dragon training. He didn’t want to fight them because he didn’t view them as the enemy.

That baffled her. She couldn’t understand why this guy who so openly bragged about his fights and kills wouldn’t want to fight dragons. Then again, she would have thought she would always be fighting dragons. And here she was.

Astrid stood and picked up her cup. No one besides Ossur noticed her leaving, but he reached for her plate.

“Allow me.” He stood and began to follow her, clearly wanting to talk to her. This time, he didn’t seem to be using a flirtatious persona, but instead he seemed to be more genuine. She supposed if he was going to stop flirting she would let him come with her.

They put away the dishes and left the Great Hall. The two walked for a while in silence. Astrid couldn’t help but notice how awkward this silence was compared to the silence the had grown accustomed to with Hiccup.

Finally, Ossur cleared his throat. “I noticed you didn’t seem too keen on fighting dragons. And then you seemed very interested in why I haven’t fought any myself.”

“Why is that? I mean, I don’t completely disagree, but it seems like such a contrast to everything else I have heard about your lifestyle.”

“It’s complicated,” he stated as he had earlier.

“Okay,” she replied. Honestly, she was dying to know the reason. To see if there was someone else out there who truly thought the same way she did, or if it was just someone who didn’t want to face a dragon. But she wasn’t going to push him. After all, if her suspicions were wrong, she would be heartbroken. It might be better to imagine her own truth anyway.

“Really?” Ossur looked stunned. “You’re not going to interrogate me or try and coax it out of me?”

“No. I respect your privacy. I don’t like when people stick their noses in my business when I don’t want it, so I won’t do that to you. If you don’t want to share something – which seems pretty out of character for you from what I can tell – I won’t push.”

The boy chuckled at her slight insult. “Thanks.” he said.

They reached the docks and sat down. They remained in silence for a while. It was still awkward. After all, Astrid was sitting with practically a stranger she barely knew anything about besides his ability to get into dangerous situations. She turned and looked at him. He seemed far different from the cocky boy who had tried to woo her earlier that day. She thought that this appeared to be much more his natural self. She wondered how often he let this side of him show.

She turned and watched the sun set across the waters. It was a gorgeous sight. By far, it was much better while flying on dragon back, but it was still beautiful from land. She wondered where the guests would be staying over night, whether it was on the island or they were sleeping on their boats.

“You know what?” Ossur said, snapping her attention to him. He was looking over the horizon. “I haven’t really told anyone why I don’t want to fight dragons. I assume they will judge me and then spread the word around until everyone thinks I’m crazy. But from what I’ve seen, I don’t think you will talk to enough people for me to be worried about that.”

Astrid waited as he took a deep breath and began his story.

“It was many years ago. I was nine at the time. As it is here, dragon raids have been common for centuries. On this night, the raid was worse than usual. Everyone was running around, trying to fend off the dragons and protect their homes, livestock, and tribe. I was supposed to run around and help whenever someone asked for it, like putting out fires, carrying equipment, relaying a message, and so forth. I was doing my part when I saw a Monstrous Nightmare crawl over my house, setting it on fire. My two younger siblings were in the building. I panicked and ran to the house. I feared it would be too late, as the fire had spread to the entrance. I could hear them crying out for help, but I was struggling to find a way to get to them.”

Ossur wiped at his watering eyes. It was very clear just how emotional that moment had been. Astrid couldn’t image how she would have felt if it was some member of her family in that situation.

Ossur continued. “I could barely breathe through the smoke. I was shaking so badly out of fear for their lives. I couldn’t imagine life without them. I cried desperately for anyone to come help me. But no one would come. They were all too busy. By this time, their cries had stopped. I guessed they had passed out from the smoke. I kept searching, hoping for a way in, but I knew that I couldn’t do anything on my own.

“That’s when it happened. A Gronckle landed beside me. I was so scared. I had been taught that dragons were vicious and wouldn’t hesitate to kill you on sight. I thought for sure my siblings and I were going to die. But the Gronckle looked at me and then to the building and back to me. For a split second, I could have sworn I saw pity in its eyes. Then, it barreled through the fire. A few seconds later, it returned with the limp forms of my siblings held gently in its mouth. It placed them on the ground and turned to me. In that moment, I didn’t see some beast. I saw a kind, compassionate creature who felt just as we vikings do.

“The Gronckle flew away from the village after that, and I haven’t seen it since. But I have never forgotten. Now, any time I go to fight a dragon, all I can see is that look in the eyes of that Gronckle. All I can see is an innocent creature. They never attack me. They only defend themselves. We are the ones to attack.

“I know it sounds insane, but I just wish we could come to some kind of peace with them. I don’t see why we can’t find a way other than violence.” He turned and looked at Astrid. “Do you think I’m crazy?”

“No. Not in the slightest. I have seen the same thing. Dragons aren’t the enemy. And the raids aren’t even their fault. Their queen makes them do it against their will.”

“Their queen?”

“Yeah. I saw her in their nest.”

Ossur’s eyes widened. “You’ve seen their nest? How?”

“I flew. On a dragon. Hiccup showed me how.”

Ossur laughed in awe. “That is amazing. I wish I could have met this guy.”

Astrid was thrilled. There was someone else who thought the same way as her. She wasn’t alone! For the first time since the kill ring, she felt hope. Maybe Berk wasn’t ready for the truth quite yet, but right in front of her was someone who was. And who knew, maybe he would be able to spread the truth to his people. Maybe Hiccup’s hard work wouldn’t be for vain. She decided she would have to take a step of faith and see what would happen.

“Meet me by the woods at dawn,” she said to Ossur as she stood. “I have something to show you.”

Chapter Text

Just before dawn, Astrid was pacing by the woods. She had been so sure of this the night before, but time was letting her thoughts to run wild. What if he ended up turning on her? What if he told her tribe? What if he ended up getting her expelled from the island? She wouldn’t know where to go. She couldn’t just up and move. She might be a tough warrior and survivor, but she had limits and standards. Maybe she should walk away, say she had changed her mind or forgotten. Yeah. That would be best.

Just as she was about to walk away, Ossur came into view. Well, too late now.

Ossur trudged over to her. As he drew near, he gestured to a satchel slung over his shoulder. “You know, it is quite difficult to prepare for a day when you have no idea where you are going or what you’re doing. Your keeping me in the dark has definitely added a level of difficulty to my stay. And a level of intrigue, if I might add. So, where are we headed?”

Astrid took a deep breath and stood tall. Even though she was nervous and felt way over her head, she refused to let it show.

“Follow me.”

She headed into the woods towards her cove. After a pause, Ossur followed.

Astrid had been tossing and turning all night as she tried to strategize how she would introduce the boy to Stormfly. She didn’t know how she would do this. She had never been good at teaching. She had only been asked to teach the toddlers with Gothi once. She had been the top of the class – as always – and was supposed to teach the kids some history of Berk with the elder. She had been so impatient, unthoughtful, and traumatizing that no one had dared asking her to teach anything ever again.

And yet here she was, about to teach a boy from far away about dragons. At least she had completely understood about Berkian history. She would be straight up lying if she said she knew all about dragons. In reality, she barely knew anything. Hiccup was the one who possessed the knowledge. He was the one who was patient and knew how to word things in a way she learned from. He was the teacher; she was the student.

Unfortunately, Hiccup wasn’t here. She would have to make due. She decided to use Hiccup’s method as a guideline (she had found herself doing that in multiple circumstances). She thought everything would probably go wrong for her, but she would still try. That’s when she realized that everything had gone wrong for him when she first saw Toothless. Things had actually gone more wrong because she had been actively seeking out a way to destroy him. Ossur seemed to be friendly enough. And he wanted to see the truth.

Surely, she could work through this. Even if it didn’t go smoothly, she could still show him the truth. She could introduce him to the nature of dragons when the mind control of the queen was stripped away. She could teach him about dragons. He might be scared at first. He might not like seeing a dragon so close. He might think she was insane. But that would be okay. She would keep trying. And she would keep trying until he either came to see the truth or left Berk. And she would do so with anyone else she could. Even though she felt like she was in way over her head, she would try. For Hiccup.

And if worst came to worst, having a trained Deadly Nadder would add to any threats. Who would dare go up against her knowing she had the loyal Stormfly on her side?

“You seem awfully quiet. You okay?” Ossur inquired. By now, Astrid could see that her first encounter with the boy had been distorted by a façade. He wasn’t nearly as arrogant as she first perceived. Deep down, he cared about people. You just had to get to know him and break down those fake walls. Astrid had no idea why he had done so with her, but she was glad he had. She wasn’t sure she could have handled this if he was still acting so pompous.

“Yeah. Just thinking,” she replied.

“You know, you shouldn’t do too much of that. Wouldn’t want to injure yourself.”

A smile pulled at the corners of Astrid’s lips. She knew he wasn’t truly insulting her. He was just being friendly and trying to cheer her up, which she appreciated.

“We can turn back if you have changed your mind about showing me… whatever it is you wanted to show me.”

“No. It’s too late for that now. Besides, I have to do this. I would never forgive myself if I didn’t at least try.”

“I understand. And sorta relieved cause I think I might have lost my mind from curiosity if I never found out what was waiting for me in the middle of this mysterious, dark woods.”

“Don’t tempt me,” Astrid chuckled teasingly.

“Oh ha ha. Seriously though, are you gonna tell me what you’re gonna show me?”

Astrid thought for a moment about telling him straightforward, but she decided against it. Instead, she said, “The truth.”

“Wow. That is definitely not evasive. But come on. I hate secrets. Give me something.”

“Nope.”

“And why not. I’m gonna see it soon anyway, right?”

“Exactly. And I’m making sure that happens. Cause if you know, you might back out.” Astrid answered honestly. “Besides, it’s much more fun to watch you suffer.”

Ossur’s eyes widened. “Well that doesn’t sound very safe. Should I have said no?”

“Oh no, It’s nothing dangerous. Just, probably not comfortable. And maybe a little intimidating.”

“Oh. Well, now I have to see it just to prove to you how un-intimidated I will be by this. I am fearless, I’ll have you know.”

“Whatever you say.”

After some time, they reached the cove. “Okay. We’re here.” Astrid said as she walked over the entrance.

Ossur was looking around, clearly confused. “I don’t see it. What am I looking at?”

“Well it wouldn’t exactly be a hidden cove if it was all out in the open,” Astrid stated matter-of-factly. She beckoned him to her. “Come on. The entrance is here.” With that, she headed into the cove. When she was on the other side, she was relieved Stormfly didn’t run over immediately. It would be better to introduce the two slowly, unlike her and Toothless.

“I’m guessing if this place is so hard to find, not a lot of people come here. Is that why you wanted me to see this? Because that seems pretty random. Don’t get me wrong. I’m privileged, but…” Ossur stopped as he reached the inside of the cove. Looking around, a smile spread across his face. “This place is very nice. Truly worth the walk.”

Astrid smiled. “Thank you. It’s very special, to me at least. But it’s not the place that I brought you to see. It’s what’s in it.”

Ossur rolled his eyes, gesticulating. “What is this? National ‘Speak in Riddles Just to Confused Poor Unsuspecting Guests’ Day?”

“Trust me. It will all make sense in a second,” Astrid said, choosing to ignore his remark. She decided to warn the boy. “Please, don’t be scared. I promise you, who I am about to call over is my friend. My best friend, actually. She will not hurt you unless you threaten her. Or me, for that matter.”

“You really have that little faith in my courage? Come now, how bad can she be? What is it? A bird? A dog?”

Astrid shot a glare in Ossur’s direction, signaling him to stop talking. He complied. Astrid put her fingers to her lips and whistled, loud and clear. “Stormfly, come girl! I’ve brought a new friend, so be nice!”

“Stormfly? It’s a bird, isn’t it? That is totally a bird name. This will be so easy. I told you, I’m not scared of….”

Before he could finish his sentence, the Nadder burst towards them, bounding playfully and flapping her wings. Astrid knew this was her way of saying she wanted to play. She thought it was cute. Ossur, however, thought he was about to die. Due to his pride, he had paid no attention to any of Astrid’s warnings. He was now paying the consequences for that, and his pride was knocked down a few pegs in the process.

“Ahhhhhh!” He turned and scrambled up some rocks. Astrid rolled her eyes. That wouldn’t have helped him in any way if he was indeed being attacked by a Nadder. Because it was a dragon. And dragons could fly. And shoot fire. But he couldn’t think properly in the moment, so it must have seemed like the most logical thing to do. So she decided to help him out.

“Stormfly. Come here, my beautiful girl.” The Nadder stomped around the girl before trilling. Her friend rubbed against her side before dancing behind her again. “Well, someone is just full of energy today, huh? You need to go flying, don’t you girl? Don’t worry. We’ll get around to it soon. I promise”

Behind her, Astrid could hear Ossur shuffling on the rocks he had climbed. A taunting smile spread across her face. Turning to look at the boy, she said mockingly, “What happened to being fearless and courageous in the face of all? Surely, you aren’t afraid of such a sweet dragon.” She scratched under Stormfly’s chin, receiving a pleased trill of gratitude.

Fear evident in his voice and posture, Ossur pointed to the dragon and shouted, “That is a dragon!”

“Congratulations. What an astute observation. Thank you for making that clear.”

“I thought it was gonna be some pretty landscape or cute animal! Not a dragon!”

“Hey! I think Stormfly is absolutely adorable. And if you don’t want to insult her, you should take that back. Nadders are very particular about their appearance.”

Ossur clearly panicked, thinking the Nadder would attack him at any moment because of his comment. “My apologies. You are very cute. A cute, big dragon. The best-looking dragon of them all. Truly the epitome of beauty. Never seen one nicer.”

Astrid burst out laughing. “Don’t flatter her too much. She doesn’t need an ego boost.” She looked at the Nadder who was prancing, head held high at the boy’s compliments.

“My apologies. I just don’t know what to say or do. I mean, how on Midgard are you so calm?! I understand that dragons aren’t all killers. I have seen that for myself, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t powerful and dangerous.”

“I understand where you are coming from. Believe me, I do. But as I have said, Stormfly is my best friend. She would never hurt me. You are right. Dragons aren’t killing monsters. They are peaceful, loving being. Yes, they are powerful and dangerous, but if they are on your side, you have nothing to fear. Once they see you as a friend and not a threat, they will always be loyal to you. Dragons are far more trustworthy than most people, if I’m honest. They won’t turn their back on you once you form bond.”

Ossur finally seemed to relax some. “So, if I befriend a dragon and show them I won’t hurt them, I can have a friend back home, just like you and Stormfly?”

“Absolutely!” Astrid was thrilled that he wanted to befriend a dragon. Sure, he was scared, but this situation showed promise. Maybe there was hope after all. If this boy could listen to her and train a dragon, maybe others would too. Maybe she would just have to take it slowly. She could do this.

“When I stopped attacking the dragons in the raids, they stopped coming after me. In fact, that is how I befriended Stormfly. I helped her in a raid. I showed her I wouldn’t hurt her. And even though I left her for the moment, she remembered, and when I saw her in this cove again, she trusted me.”

“So as long as I won’t act like a threat, she won’t act like one to me?”

Astrid nodded.

Slowly, Ossur stepped off the rocks and drew closer to the girl and her dragon. Stormfly turned and eyed the boy. He froze. When she didn’t make another move, he cautiously stepped closer and closer until he was beside Astrid.

Trying not to startle the Nadder in any way, Ossur whispered, “So how do I make her trust me?”

“Hold out your hand,” Astrid instructed calmly.

Ossur eyed her. “Are you serious? What if she doesn’t like me? What then? Will she just bite my hand off? I don’t want that. I like having two functioning arms.”

“She isn’t going to do that.”

“You see, you keep saying how friendly she is, but I haven’t really seen any evidence for or against it, so I don’t really know whether to believe it.”

“Have I given you any reason to doubt me? Have I given the impression that I am a liar?”

“Well, no, but…”

“If you can’t trust me, then how are you going to trust any dragons. You just said you wanted to befriend one of your own. How will you do that if you won’t even trust one that I have told you is safe?”

“I know. But she keeps eyeing me weird. It’s sorta creepy. And I know that I am defenseless in this situation, and I don’t like that feeling. Ever.”

“I understand that. I’m the same way. I have been taught my whole life to be fierce and tough and strong in every aspect of life. But just as you do in a fight, you must trust those on your side. You have to believe they have your back just as you have theirs. If you don’t show you trust someone, they won’t trust you. Same thing applies with dragons. Now. Are you going to show you trust her, or are you going to turn around and give up?”

Her words had the desired effect on Ossur. He stood tall, a look of determination washing over him, pride conquering all fear inside of him. Astrid knew how he thought. They were similar in many aspects. Most importantly, they were both warriors. Therefore, she knew how to speak to him.

She realized that gave her an advantage over Hiccup. He wasn’t a warrior. He never had been, and he never really would be. Not like the rest of the vikings were, anyway. Maybe in his own way he would become one. But he still wouldn’t be on the same page mentally as his tribe. Astrid, however, knew how they thought. She had thought the same way for most of her life. That meant she could speak to them in a way they understood better. She could convince them by telling them the advantages they would want. Vikings were stubborn. They wouldn’t just abandon everything they thought they knew because it was right. They would have to see why the truth was more important and beneficial than tradition. She could find a way to do that far easier than Hiccup could have done. Maybe it was a good thing it was on her shoulders now. She could be the buffer between the two vastly different worlds because she grasped how to fit into both.

Ossur cleared his throat. He awkwardly extended his right arm, palm down. “Like this?”

“No.” Astrid pushed his hand upwards so it was open, facing towards Stormfly. “Like this.”

“Okay. Now what?”

“Turn your head away. She must see that you fully trust her. Even if you don’t. Once you both show each other you share trust, that trust will grow.”

Ossur gulped. He turned his head away. After a few moments, he asked, “Am I doing it right? I feel like nothing is happening.”

“Just wait. You’ll know.”

Stormfly looked at the hand and then to Astrid. Astrid nodded to her friend, urging her on. Stormfly took a tentative step towards the boy and looked to her friend again, making sure she was doing the right thing and wasn’t in danger. Once again, Astrid nodded. The Nadder slowly walked towards the boy until she was close enough to touch. She paused. Then, she closed her eyes and stretched out her neck, placing her snout into Ossur’s outstretched hand.

He gasped. His head shot up, and he turned to look at the dragon. Stormfly pulled back her head and opened her eyes. She cooed at the boy, dancing on her feet. A look of awe overcame him. He was amazed at this creature. He was now able to see her clearly for the first time. He took a step closer and stroked her neck, much to the dragon’s pleasure.

“What a magnificent beauty you are.”

Astrid took a step forward, stroking her dragon as well. She turned to Ossur whose focus was completely on the dragon before him. “See? That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

Still looking at the Nadder, he said, “This is amazing.” He turned to Astrid. “Tell me more.”

The two spent hours with Stormfly. Astrid told him everything she could think of about dragons. She told him how she had learned to train the dragons. What different types liked to eat. Everything she knew about flying. She offered to take him for a spin on Stormfly, but he politely denied, saying he would prefer to keep his heart beating, thank you very much.

Ossur was very interested in Gronckles. It made sense. That was the species he had first seen the true nature of. Ossur said he hoped to see the dragon who had saved him and his family again. This time, he wanted to know as much as he could on how to befriend and train it. He hoped they would become as close as Astrid and Stormfly. Astrid told him as much as she could on the species, although that wasn’t nearly enough to satisfy the boy. Gronkles weren’t Astrid’s forte, after all.

As they were walking back to the village, Astrid told Ossur, “If you want to know more about their physiology, diet, behavior, and such, you should talk to this boy from my tribe. His name is Fishlegs. He knows all about that kind of stuff. He is practically a walking book. Just be careful because he still views dragons as the enemy.”

“Why? Have you not told him? Or this Hiccup? Did he not try?”

Astrid looked down at her feet, suddenly feeling awkward. “Well, he did. But that is why he had to leave.”

“Your tribe kicked him out because he showed them the truth?”

“Well, his father didn’t really let him finish. Once he saw that Hiccup wasn’t going to do what he wanted, he ordered the fight to be stopped. Everything went downhill from there. He knew there would be great repercussions for him, and Toothless would have been killed. So, he left to avoid that.”

Ossur looked at her with pity. “That must have been hard for you. You two must have been really close since you were the only ones here who were on the dragons’ side.”

“Yeah. It was.”

Ossur furrowed his brow, deep in thought. He turned back to Astrid. “You said that Hiccup didn’t get to finish showing the truth. Did you see anyone else responding to it that might have listened?”

Astrid thought back. She had been so focused on Hiccup and the Nightmare that she hadn’t paid attention to anyone else apart from Stoick. “I’m not sure,” she replied.

“What about after he left? Did anyone seem not as against him as the rest of the tribe?”

“Gobber. But that is expected by how close the two were.”

“Anyone else?”

Astrid thought back. She had heard adults talking about how sad it was that Hiccup was a traitor. How he had never been right in the head for a viking. But now that she thought about it, she hadn’t heard the other teens say anything about it. They had brought up how that must have been why he excelled in dragon training all of a sudden, but never about how or if he was wrong.

“The other teens don’t seem to be completely against it.”

“That makes sense. In my tribe, none of the adults were even slightly open to the idea of friendly dragons when I brought it up all those years ago. They had been taught in their ways far too long. But the younger generation seemed more open to it as they hadn’t been forced to believe the opposite for such a long time.”

“I suppose that makes sense.” Astrid saw that had been the same with her age group, and not just with dragons.

“Well, I will be leaving tomorrow. After that, you will be the only one here who knows the truth again. From what I can tell, that wasn’t going to well for you before. Maybe you should tell one of them. The one who would be most open.”

Astrid thought. Tuffnut and Snotlout were completely out of the picture. They wouldn’t listen to a word she would say as they would be too focused on goofing off. She was the closest to Ruffnut, but she knew the girl couldn’t keep her mouth shut. If the situation didn’t go well, she would be doomed. That left Fishlegs. He was always open to learning. He wasn’t a typical viking either – more so than Hiccup, but he still didn’t quite fit in. The two had been close as kids because of it. He wouldn’t tell on her either, especially if she threatened him. He wouldn’t really stand up to anyone. He seemed like the best option.

“You know what, I think I might try that.”

“Good. I’m sure you can handle it. Besides, you did well with me.”

Astrid made up her mind. She was going to talk Fishlegs in the morning.

Chapter Text

Astrid waved to the Thunderfoot heir as he sailed home the next morning. She stayed by the docks, watching as the ships sailed towards the horizon until they were mere specs. Slowly, she turned and walked toward the village.

She had tossed and turned all night. Her mind had run wild as she tried to formulate a plan on how to approach Fishlegs. It had to be handled delicately. She couldn’t be blunt – which would be hard for her. But at the same time, she couldn’t be too discreet or else Fishlegs would be oblivious to what she was saying. He wasn’t always the best at seeing social ques, although she couldn’t say anything. She was the same way.

Over and over, she worked through possible ways the conversation could go. They all ended with her making a fool of herself and all Hel breaking loose in one way or another. She knew that Fishlegs would act with reason as long as he didn’t outright panic, but she did not trust her people skills. Especially since she had none.

She had to try though. She had already committed, and a Hofferson never backed down. And more importantly, she had to do something. If she didn’t even try, how would anyone every learn the truth. She had promised Hiccup, and she would not break a promise. She had to start somewhere, and Fishlegs was the best option.

As she walked through the village, she saw the subject of her contemplation. He was staring intently at the woods.

Now seemed as good of a time as any. Better act before she could talk herself out of it. She could do this. She had to do this. She stood tall, setting her shoulders back and lifting her chin. She walked over to the tall blonde boy. He didn’t acknowledge her presence.

Fishlegs had always been a mystery to her. Not quite as much as Hiccup had been, but a mystery none the less. He was always quiet, keeping to himself. When he had been younger, he had hung out with Hiccup a lot. They had similar caring, non-violent personalities that connected them in their viking culture. They both relied on brains rather than brawn, although Fishlegs had grown into a rather large and powerful viking. They both loved to read and had shared their knowledge. But then the other teens had started picking on the two. Hiccup received more of the bullying than Fishlegs, but he never seemed to be affected by it to the same extent Fishlegs had. Thus, the Ingerman child began spending less and less time with his friend and more time with the other teens. He tried to fit in, even though he really didn’t. Before long, the two acted like they had never been close to begin with.

Astrid wondered if Fishlegs regretted this now. Now that Hiccup was gone.

She cleared her throat. Fishlegs jumped at the noise, turning to face her. He clearly hadn’t noticed her there. He looked as if he had been caught committing a crime.

He began babbling in his typical fashion. “A-Astrid. Um. Hi. Hello. What-what are you doing here? I mean, not that you can’t be here. This is a village. It doesn’t belong to anyone in particular or anything.”

Astrid just stared at him. She didn’t really know how to handle babbling, and she knew it would be a bad idea to flat out bring up dragons – it was sort of a sensitive topic on Berk right now. So, she would just wait out this nervous fountain of words he was spewing at her.

Once he noticed she wasn’t answering his questions, he fell into an awkward silence. His eyes darted around nervously, purposefully avoiding eye contact with her. He swayed back and forth. That must have been a nervous tic for him because Astrid noticed he did that a lot in dragon training. Astrid couldn’t tell if he was doing this because he was scared of her or simply didn’t know how to act around her, but she decided to break the ice.

“What were you looking at over there?” she questioned.

“Oh, nothing really. Just the woods. The trees are nice to look at. I’ve been learning how to identify the different species recently. I’ve always found botany very fascinating.”

“That’s interesting.”

“Really?” The boy looked at her, confusion on his face. “I didn’t take you as someone who likes botany.”

“Oh, well, I honestly don’t know a thing about botany. I like trees though. I mean, I mainly appreciate them as I embed an axe into them, but I think it still counts.”

“I guess to each their own.”

“Yeah.”

The two fell back into an awkward silence. Neither dared to move away from the other – Astrid out of pride and determination and Fishlegs out of fear over getting on the girl’s bad side – but they didn’t know how to break the silence. Astrid poked at a rock with her toes. She tried to think of what to stay next. She was beginning to consider swallowing pride and trying again later when Fishlegs broke the silence.

“Sooo, did you have a reason to come over here?”

“Ummm… well…” What is something believable. In the spur of the moment, she stated the only thing that came to her mind. “I wanted to talk to someone with a brain?”

Fishlegs narrowed his eyes at her. “Really?”

“Well yeah. I mean, the other teens act like idiots all the time, and I don’t feel like dealing with that. I would rather spend time with someone with common sense.” It wasn’t a complete lie. Part of the reason she enjoyed spending time with Hiccup had been how didn’t act like a fool all the time. He had acted in ways that led to learning and useful things, not just smashing heads together and destroying everything in sight. And she really couldn’t handle too much stupidity at a time.

“Hanging out by yourself never bothered you before.”

“Well, yeah. I don’t have anything against alone time. Honestly, it is greatly underappreciated.”

“But you got used to hanging out with someone… with Hiccup?”

Astrid looked at Fishlegs. He seemed to be genuinely asking, not trying to pick on her for it like Snotlout or the twins would have done. Because of this, she decided to answer honestly, not covering up all of her feelings like she did with most people. After all, she had learned you had to open up some if you wanted to make a connection.

“Yeah. I guess so.”

They fell into silence again. It was slightly less awkward this time. Fishlegs looked back to the woods, and Astrid followed his gaze.

“I used to watch Hiccup go in there every day,” Fishlegs said. “I always assumed that whatever was making him so good with the dragons was in there. Looks like I was right, huh?”

“Yeah. Looks like you were.”

“I wonder what all he did in there,” the boy confessed. “He obviously trained with that Night Fury he was with in the ring. But I wonder how he managed to tame it. Or how he was able to get close to it in the first place. I wonder if he shot it down when he said he did and nobody believed him. I wonder what all he must have seen that could have changed his mind. It must have been something amazing.”

“Yeah,” Astrid replied. “Something pretty wonderful.”

“I wonder where he is now. If he went to another village where no one would recognize him and where there aren’t any raids. Or maybe he is off on some uninhabited island. Or maybe he went to an island full of dragons, and since he trusts them and they trust him, he has been accepted as one of them.”

This was the perfect opportunity to see what he thought about dragons. To see if he would really be willing to accept the truth like she suspected.

“Do you think the dragons would be capable of doing that, Fishlegs? Of being so nice to a human that they would accept him?”

Fishlegs bit his lip and paused. He was clearly scared of saying something that would deem him as a traitor. He took a deep breath before answering slowly. “I’m not entirely sure what the dragons are capable of. From what I saw from Hiccup, I do believe there is more to it than meets the eye. I don’t think they are always trying to kill everyone, but there must be something that makes them act that way. Some scientific reason. I’m not sure what it is, but I think in the long run, it would be better for us to not ‘kill on sight’ every time as the Book of Dragons says. I think we should study them. See how they work. That way we can better understand how to interact with them.”

Wow. This might actually work. Astrid had believed Fishlegs would be most open to the idea. After all, he had never shown interest in attacking and killing like most viking boys. But he was even more open to the truth than she originally thought. He wasn’t only open to it; he wanted to see it; longed to see it. And she could show it to him.

“Tell me more about how you would study them.”

Fishlegs continued to tell Astrid in detail about how he would love to study dragons and see them as they really are – not as simply a threat. He would love to get close enough to analyze them in their natural habitat. He just didn’t see how it would be possible as of now. As he talked and Astrid listened, they walked to the Great Hall. They got some supper and found a secluded table so they could continue their conversation in private.

With each passing minute she spent with him, Astrid saw more and more hope for Fishlegs accepting the truth. He was so open to it, not caring if it went against tradition. He wanted facts, not superstitions. He wanted to know why the dragons acted like they did, not just accept what little they witnessed during raids.

Astrid zoned out as Fishlegs kept talking, drowning out his words with her own thoughts. Surely this would end well. She had been sure she would fail without Hiccup’s help, but she was starting to be optimistic. She would introduce Fishlegs to Stormfly. He would learn just like she and Hiccup had. And he was so smart and strategic that he might be able to help her open the eyes of others on the island. He could help her learn how to help the dragons and Berk simultaneously. Once everything was sorted out, Hiccup could come back. For the first time since the arena, Astrid felt full of hope.

Astrid was snapped out of her thoughts by a call from behind her.

“Astrid!” Snotlout called out to her while walking over to their table. Astrid rolled her eyes. Now this she was not optimistic about.

“Now, Astrid,” Snotlout continued. “If you wanted company, you should have just said so. No need to stoop and hang out with nerd boy over here.” Fishlegs shifted awkwardly at the insult, but he didn’t confront the other boy.

“Get out of here, Snotlout,” Astrid said. “I actually am having a nice time with Fishlegs here. And I’m not ‘stooping’ to hand out with him. I would be stooping if I hung out with you.”

Snotlout huffed in exasperation, opening and closing his mouth as he lacked a response. Fishlegs didn’t say anything, but she could see he was grateful for her standing up for him.

Cackling was heard from behind him, and Astrid leaned to see the twins, who must have heard her retort.

“Ohhhh, rejected again,” Tuffnut said.

Snotlout puffed out his chest and defended himself. “Astrid has simply been feeling off lately. She is just refusing to admit how much she is attracted to me.”

Astrid rolled her eyes once more. Would he ever learn? He had to learn eventually just how un-attracted to him she was, right? Although the evidence suggested he never learned anything….

“Whatever you say, Snotface.” Ruffnut said. A smirk spread across her face as she turned towards Astrid. “Besides, all evidence suggests that Astrid would never be attracted to you.”

“Thank you! Someone with some sense,” Astrid said. What a second… “Did I just really call Ruffnut the one with sense? Never thought I would say that.”

“Well you did, and it is much appreciated. And it is as clear as day. After all, the caring, brainy boy is clearly your type.”

Astrid spluttered incoherently. She didn’t know how to respond to that. She most definitely did not have a type. Sure, she had felt something for Hiccup, and he might have just so happened to fit into that box, but that didn’t mean that she liked his type. He was just one, unique individual. Fishlegs fit that so-called type, and she felt absolutely nothing of that sort towards him. How dare Ruffnut have the audacity to say such a thing. And she wasn’t the only one who thought such a way.

“Ewwww!” Snotlout cried, scrunching up his face at the thought. “That is so not true!”

“Exactly! Thank you, Snotlout,” Astrid said. “Wait, did I just agree with Snotlout and say Ruffnut has sense in the same conversation? The world must be falling apart today.”

“I will take that as a compliment. I always knew you would side with me. You just didn’t see it yet.” Snotlout said, pride practically radiating from him. Astrid regretted her words. “Now, I’m gonna go. Got a lot to do. Try not to miss me too much, babe.”

With that, he walked away, followed closely by the snickering Thorstons. Astrid faced Fishlegs. His face had turned red, and his eyes darted around nervously. She assumed he thought she would leave him now that the others had called her out on it. But she could care less about her social standing.

“Don’t listen to them. They have no clue what they are talking about. Besides, when do they ever do anything besides causing trouble or try to show off?”

Fishlegs seemed to relax some at her words. “That is true. The twins do worship Loki, after all. And Snotlout thinks he is above everyone else.” He paused. “So, do you want me to continue about my hypothesis on where the dragons go during their absence around Snoggletog season and how we should study it to use it to our advantage?”

“By all means.”

He proceeded to talk about theories and observations he had made and ways he thought they could fight without fighting and studies he had planned out and hoped to someday make. Astrid listened patiently. She didn’t always understand what the boy was saying. She thought that often no one could. But she listened anyway, enjoying his passion and the rare optimism she received from it.

They stayed in the Great Hall well into the night. During a halt in Fishlegs’ speaking, Astrid looked around and saw they were the only ones left. She hadn’t noticed everyone else leaving. She should pay more attention to that.

Suddenly, she heard yelling and loud crashes from outside.

“What was that?” Fishlegs squeaked in panic.

“I hope it’s not what I think it is,” Astrid said as she stood and ran to the door. Fishlegs followed close behind.

Just before they could reach the door, there was a cackling sound and the whole wall was set on fire. Quickly, they jumped back to avoid being burned.

“Looks like it is what I thought it was,” Astrid stated.

“Well, apparently Hiccup didn’t stop the raids,” Fishlegs commented.

“You thought he would have? Just like that?”

“Well, yeah. He seemed to be super close with them, and they seemed to obey him. And if they are as friendly as he said they are, I thought they would have been willing to listen to them and stop attacking us.”

“Hate to say it, Fishlegs, but it’s a little more complicated than that.”

Astrid watched as the fire spread the next wall and up the beams. This wasn’t good. She had thought the Great Hall would be better protected from the flames. It rarely caught fire, and it was such an important building for the tribe she had been sure they had taken extra precautions while building it. But of course the one time it did catch fire, she was inside it.

They needed to find a way out of there. And fast. The fire was continuing to spread. Why did fire follow her everywhere?

She covered her mouth and nose with her elbow to prevent as much smoke as possible from entering her lungs. She walked around, searching for another way out. Nothing. You would think that someone would have built a back door or even window for an emergency in such a communal place, but apparently vikings didn’t think of such things.

Fishlegs started coughing behind her. He must not have blocked out the smoke as well as she had. “What are we gonna do now?” he forced out between coughs.

To their surprise – and Astrid’s delight – they heard a squawk from overhead. Then, there was scratching, fluttering of wings, and more squawking.

“Oh no!” Fishlegs panicked. “What will that dragon do when it digs through to us?”

“Relax, Fishlegs. I would know that call anywhere. Everything will be okay now. You said you wanted to get close to a dragon so you could study them. Well, consider this your chance.” With that, Astrid turned towards the roof and cupped her hands over her mouth. “We’re over here, girl! You’re doing great, Stormfly! Come and get us!”

“What-what are you doing?” Fishlegs stammered.

Before Astrid could reply, there was a loud crack above them. A few seconds later, Stormfly landed in front of them. She chirped and flapped her wings, glad she had found her human.

“Oh! Oh my! This is – she is – I” Fishlegs never finished his sentence. In his shock, he simply fell unconscious.

“Well, girl, looks like you’ll just have to carry him. No time to wake him up. Might actually work better this way since I don’t have to coax him onto you now.”

With that, Astrid climbed onto Stormfly’s back. Her dragon lifted into the air and snatched the boy with her claws before exiting the burning Hall and flying to safety.

Chapter Text

Seeing as Fishlegs was unresponsive for the entire flight over the woods, his first flight went a lot smoother than Astrid’s had. Stormfly carefully laid him on the ground in Hiccup’s cove before landing herself. As Astrid slid off her dragon’s back, she wondered why she had flown back here and not to her own cove.

She hadn’t been back here since Hiccup left. It felt like in some way she was violating him, coming to his place when he wasn’t there. At the same time, it felt sorta nice to be somewhere Hiccup was so connected to. Like she was more connected to him when she was here, even though he wasn’t.

She walked around the cove, taking in the place. She had never done that before. She had always been too focused on learning whatever Hiccup had been teaching her or what Stormfly was doing to take in how nice it was. It didn’t have as many flowers or colors as hers did. It was much rockier. The ground was covered in branches and stones and talon marks. It had more space than hers had. She could see the sky very clearly, as it was a wide, open space rather than covered by the trees. And there was a large lake rather than a stream.

She liked it here. Granted, she liked hers better. It was her special place, after all. But she decided she liked it here too.

She settled herself on a particularly large rock and laid with her arms behind her head, gazing up at the stars. She saw a shooting star flash across the sky. She thought of how Hiccup could wizz by on his Night Fury any time, and they would never see him. She wondered if he had come during the raid, or if he had tried to stop it. She hoped he hadn’t been hurt in trying to do so. They had determined it was more than a two-person job, so on his own, it would be foolish to think he could stop the queen. But this was Hiccup. He always tried to do things that were far-fetched. There was no way he would just sit by and do nothing. She wondered what great plan he was formulating and possibly putting into action already. No matter what it was, she sent up a quick prayer to the gods, asking they watch out for him since she couldn’t.

Behind her, Astrid heard a shifting followed by a moan. She slid off the rock and walked over to where her friend lay on the ground. He was groggily rubbing his eyes, sitting up slowly. He clearly had not recalled what happened before he blacked out yet. Astrid braced herself for his reaction when he put it all together. She didn’t know what that reaction would be, but she figured he would go all out.

Once he stopped rubbing his eyes, Fishlegs, squinted up at her, not able to see in the dark clearly in his still half-asleep state. “Astrid? Is that you?” he asked slowly.

“Yup. It’s me, Fishlegs.”

Still squinting, the boy looked around him. “Are we in the woods?”

“Yup.”

“In the middle of the night?”

“Seems that way.”

“Is anybody else here?”

“No…. well, I guess it depends on how you define ‘anyone’.”

Before Fishlegs could respond, Stormfly trotted over to him from a small cave she formed a temporary nest in. She sniffed him briefly before beginning to gently preen his hair with the tip of her beak, just like she always did with Astrid. She must have felt protective over the boy after rescuing him and now seeing him so out of it. And Nadders were very particular about keeping themselves and those they protected well-preened.

Fishlegs slowly turned to look at the dragon standing directly above him. This was it. This was the moment he would panic, running to her screaming, calling her a lunatic for letting this happen.

He squinted up at the Nadder. Stormfly temporarily halted in her preening, pulling her head away slightly. Fishlegs looked particularly hard at her.

“Nadder,” he said. “Young adult. Speed: eight. Armor: sixteen. Blind spot: in front of the nose. Shoots hardened spines from the tail. Magnesium fire. Quick. Light on their feet.”

Stormfly tilted her head at him. She nudged his shoulder just slightly, but it was still powerful enough to shove him sideways. Once he recovered, he looked back up at the dragon. A wide smile spread across his face.

“And very pretty,” he concluded.

Proudly, the Nadder trilled in response, lifting her head and stomping her feet a few times. Fishlegs watched and he chuckled. He looked slightly reserved, not trying to get closer to the happy dragon, but not pulling away either.

Well, that was a disappointment for a major outburst. Astrid assumed that Fishlegs must still be too out of it to fully grasp what was going on. She walked over to the beaming boy. He turned and looked up at her, a bright gleam in his eye showing his joy at sitting so close to a dragon so he could study it – without it trying to kill him, like in the ring. Astrid sat down beside him and watched her Nadder continue to prance around playfully.

They stayed like that for quite a while. Honestly, Astrid was still waiting for Fishlegs to suddenly jump up screaming when the whole situation finally sunk in all the way. But that never happened.

The dawn was breaking when Fishlegs finally turned to her. Completely calm, he stated more than asked, “This is where Hiccup came when I watched him come into the woods?”

“Yeah. This is where Toothless stayed.”

“Toothless?”

“That was what Hiccup named the Night Fury.”

Fishlegs raised an eyebrow at her. “He named the deadliest dragon known to the Archipelago ‘Toothless’?”

“It has retractable teeth, apparently.”

“Ahhh.” Fishlegs went silent again for a while before continuing. “That actually makes sense if you think about it.”

“What? Retractable teeth?” How in the world could Fishlegs see that as making sense?

“Well, if it can retract its teeth, it can close its mouth tighter. That would help reduce air resistance by narrowing the shape of its head slightly. That would help make it the fastest dragon. Plus, the type of blast it produces is very explosive. I think it’s a plasma blast. Anyway, it would completely destroy any teeth that were in the way. Therefore, it seems reasonable for it to have retractable teeth.”

Astrid stared at the boy blankly. “How is it that you just learned about all this and you are already teaching me?”

“I just know statistics and science. I’m sure you know a lot more practical uses for the knowledge than I do,” Fishlegs reassured.

“True. I mean, you never would fly a dragon without me.”

Fishlegs’ eyes practically shot out of his head. “F-fly? You can fly a dragon?”

“Thanks for the confidence in me. And yes. How do you think you got here?”

“Oh. Good point.”

They went back to watching Stormfly for a while. It was peaceful. Obviously, Fishlegs wasn’t Hiccup, but it was swill nice to have someone to stay here with. To watch the dragons with. To learn with. To talk openly with. As she watched Fishlegs, she knew she had a friend – that she wasn’t alone anymore. He wouldn’t turn against her now. And he would help her learn anything and everything she needed to know to help the dragons and stop the war. She hated to admit it, but she could no longer just wait for Hiccup to fix it. He was goodness knows where by himself. And if the last raid proved anything, it was that they needed a solution quickly. On her own, she wouldn’t have a clue where to start, but with Fishlegs, there was a chance.

“You’re thinking about him, aren’t you?” Fishlegs inquired.

“Yeah. I just…” Astrid didn’t know what to say. She was grateful Fishlegs didn’t push her. Once she organized her thoughts, she spoke again. “He made me promise him I would try to help Berk see the truth. I would protect Berk and the dragons. I didn’t know where to start. I felt so alone, and a didn’t feel confident in my abilities. I mean, winning an axe fight, no sweat. But changing the minds of a tribe that wouldn’t even listen to their future chief? But now, I have you, and somehow, that makes the whole future seem a little bit brighter. And I feel like I’m not gonna let him down now, if that makes sense.”

“Absolutely. That would be really stressful. I don’t know how I could handle that. But I’m glad that I can help now.” Fishlegs smiled at her warmly. Astrid smiled back.

“Soooo. You gonna teach me some of that practical knowledge now?”

They sat there for some time, Astrid answering any questions Fishlegs had to the best of her abilities. Sometimes he would ask things and she would have no idea what he was talking about. Then he would proceed to talk in scientific jargon and suddenly he would get very excited over finding the answer to his own question. Astrid would have no idea what he was talking about through the whole process, so he would have to explain to her what happened once he calmed down. Then, he would go back to asking her questions.

Astrid looked to the sky to see the time. Based on the sun, it was about noon. She saw a very dark cloud in the sky and thought it might rain. But it didn’t look like a rain cloud. She looked closer. It was smoke….

She had completely forgotten about the fire in the village. It must be complete chaos back home. Both she and Fishlegs were supposed to help put out the fires from the raids, but they hadn’t been there. They needed to get back to help clean up and to assure everyone they had not been mauled or roasted or kidnapped.

She jumped up. “We have to go, Fishlegs. We need to see if everyone else is okay from the raid.”

Fishlegs’ eyes widened. “I completely forgot about that. I was so busy and excited I forgot how I ended up here in the first place.”

He stood, and together they walked quickly towards the village. Both were now focused on getting back to the village, so they didn’t talk to avoid any distractions. As they got closer, they could hear lots of commotion from the tribe. They could smell the smoke and ash in the air. Before exiting the woods, Astrid stopped and looked carefully, making sure no one was watching the tree line. If someone saw them come out together, it would raise suspicions. The coast was clear. Astrid walked forward, Fishlegs close behind. They reached the main road and turned onto it.

Astrid gasped at what she saw. There were smoldering remains of buildings all along the road. Barely anything was untouched by the fire. And at the top of the road was what remained of the Great Hall.

The entire front of the Hall had been destroyed along with a majority of the roof. Astrid had been taught to got get sentimental over the buildings. After all, they burned down often. But the Great Hall had been a constant. The one thing the raids never seemed to take away. The place of sanctuary when everything else was falling apart. And now it was falling apart itself. Seeing it in such condition made her much more emotional than she would care to admit.

She walked up the road slowly, trying to take in what had happened over night. She passed a large portion of buildings completely razed. As she looked at it, she realized where she was. This was her house. Her house was gone.

Astrid stumbled backwards, taking in the truth before her. The house she had always known, had grown up in, had so many memories in, was gone. Forever. She couldn’t help but wonder if this could have been prevented if she had come back sooner. Maybe she could have stopped this. Maybe she could have helped prevent it from getting so out of hand. Maybe she should have tried to control the dragons attacking somehow. Sure, that seemed like a long stretch, but if it could possibly be in her power to do something, she should have tried harder.

A hand came to rest on her shoulder. She looked up to see a somber but reassuring Gobber looking down at her. “It’ll be okay, lass. No one was seriously hurt. That’s what really matters. Buildings can be rebuilt.”

“I know, Gobber. Thank you. It’s just….”

“I understand, Astrid. I really do. I’ve had my fair share of homes lost over the years.”

Gobber patted her shoulder and walked up the hill.

Fishlegs came up behind her. “I’m sorry about your home,” he said. “I’m, uh, I’m gonna go check out my place.” He took off down a side road towards the Ingerman residence.

Astrid couldn’t believe the turn her day had taken. She had been so hopeful with Fishlegs and Stormfly. She felt like they were making so much progress towards a better Berk. Like everything would be great. She had let her guard down again. And this was what followed. She should have known better. She should have known the positivity wouldn’t last long. She had never been an optimist, so why should she have suddenly been one now.

“You know, Astrid, if you need anything – a place to stay, a shoulder to cry on, I’m your man,” Snoutlout said flirtatiously behind her.

“Shut up, Snotface,” Ruffnut butted in. She stepped closer to Astrid. “You can stay with me until you have a more permanent place. It can be like an awesome slumber party.”

“Ummm, what about me?” Tuffnut questioned.

“Shut your mutton hole, bro. You can sleep downstairs.”

“What?! Why do I have to sleep downstairs? It’s my room too. You sleep downstairs.”

“Astrid needs a bed more than you. We girls need our beauty sleep.”

“Well, clearly you haven’t gotten any lately. You must have had some ugly sleep.”

That comment earned the male twin a fist to the nose.

“Oh! I am hurt! I am very much hurt!” Tuffnut cried. He held his nose and ran towards the Thorston house.

“I should go get the room ready for us… and make sure he doesn’t lie to mom about his nose.”
Ruffnut ran off after her brother.

That left Astrid and Snotlout alone. Astrid turned away, expecting him to make some flirtatious comment that she was not in the mood for. He took a step closer to her. She whipped around to tell him to back off, but the look on his face stopped her.

His face was serious. He seemed to have – no, it couldn’t be; impossible; not from Snotlout; but it was surely there, clear as day – a gleam of care and compassion in his eyes.

“You know, I meant it. If you need anything, just say so. My uncle being the chief does have a few advantages.” He began to walk away. After a few steps he stopped and looked over his shoulder at her. “There is a meeting in what remains of the Great Hall in about half an hour. Thought you should know.”

Astrid was shocked. Snotlout was the last person on Midgard she would expect to provide genuine condolences and offer help to her. She didn’t even know he was capable of true emotion. And Ruffnut not only offering but actively giving her a place to stay. She didn’t know what to make of all of this.

Had she made actual friends without knowing? What had changed? Maybe she wasn’t alone anymore. Maybe, somehow, her time with Hiccup and Stormfly had changed her for the better. As she walked away from the debris towards the growing crowd by the hall, she felt that spark of hope again.

Chapter Text

Astrid walked up the hill towards the Great Hall. A large crowd had already gathered for the meeting Stoick called together. Most of the village stood on the ashes of the hall while the elder, chief, and higher-ranking men and women stood at the table under the small, still roofed portion of the building. Astrid slipped through the crowd, searching for her parents. Gobber had told her they were unharmed, but she still wanted to see that herself. After a few minutes of searching, she spotted them near the front of the group to the left of the table.

“Mom! Dad!” she called out, catching her parent’s attention and causing them to turn towards her voice. People stepped back, forming a path for her as she sprinted towards them. They opened their arms, and Astrid felt safe and at peace in their tight embrace. Typically, she was not one to display her emotions so openly, but she did not care in that moment.

Her mother pulled back slightly and looked at her daughter. “I was so worried about you,” she said. “I couldn’t find you anywhere, and everyone I asked said they had last seen you in the Great Hall just before it went up in flames.”

“I was. But Fishlegs and I managed to get out before it got too bad.” Astrid replied.

“Fishlegs?” her father questioned. “What were you doing here so late with the Ingerman boy?”

“Oh, hush, dear,” her mother directed towards him. “I’m glad you are finally talking to the other kids your age. I was worried about that for a long time. I’m glad to see I needn’t have been.”

“Really? Why would you be worried about that?”

“A viking’s youth is a crucial part of their life. It is when they learn who they are and their place in the world. It’s when they discover their purpose in life and how they fit in with everyone else. It is imperative that they learn how to develop relationships with those around them so they can function in society and work together. And the developments made in youth can last for the rest of your life, especially on an island like Berk. You were always so determined to be a Shield Maiden, and you are so strong I know you can become whatever you put your mind to. But I’ve always felt you were meant for more than that. That you were meant to do something no one else can. And I feared your withdrawal from all the other kids might somehow hinder you from finding your true passions and purpose. Or worse yet, you would discover it too late, and it would be too late for you to fit in at that point.”

Astrid pondered over her mother’s words. Maybe she was right. Astrid knew there was no way she could become a Shield Maiden now. Their main goal was to protect and destroy any enemies – especially when it came to dragons. She would not be a part of that. But she could do something different. She might not have started the whole dragon friendship thing. That would have been Hiccup. However, she could continue it.

She might have distanced herself from the other youth for a long time, but she was still more connected to society than he had been. And as she continued to get closer to the other youth, she would become more and more integrated with the other Berkians. She would connect with them on an even deeper level. Then, she could influence society – even if it was just the youth – and she could do something that hadn’t been done before. Her success with Ossur and Fishlegs showed that, right?

“Do you really think I can make a different? Do something great?” She looked up at her parents questioningly.

Her father beamed down at her. “Of course, my darling. You are practically a Valkyrie with your power and perseverance. I have full confidence in you.”

Astrid smiled at this, but she also felt a weight spread across her chest. Her parents had such high expectations for her. And she had her own high hopes, but they completely contradicted their way of life. Would they still think the same way of her when she ultimately behaved in the same way that branded Hiccup a traitor?

“What if I don’t live up to your expectations? What if I don’t do all the things you think I will? Or do something you don’t approve?” she asked, looking to the ground. She had to know the consequences of her actions, no matter what.

Her mother’s hand gently lifted her chin. Both her parents’ eyes were filled with love. “You are the strongest, most determined daughter we could have hoped for. You have surpassed any dreams we could have had for you. And we are so proud of that. But even if you didn’t, even if you were weak, never fought, and lived out your life as a simple housewife, we would still be proud to call you our daughter. No matter what, we just want you to find your purpose and to be happy with it. Know that we will always support you, even if we don’t support the decisions you make. You have to do what Odin calls you to do.”

Astrid hugged her parents, overwhelmed by their words that meant so much. She had found her purpose: to stop the war with the dragons. And she knew that her tribe and her parents might not back that decision, but she would always have her parents. She wouldn’t be truly alone, no matter what.

Stoick cleared his throat loudly, calling attention to the meeting at hand. Everyone turned towards him. Astrid noticed a stranger by his side. He was built like an ox, a true viking man. He wore the garb of a trader. Astrid wondered who he might be.

“I know you are all very busy with repairs and similar duties, so I will keep this as short as possible. As we are all aware, the dragon raids have been getting progressively worse for a considerable amount of time. Currently, the situation is the worst it has been in the last three hundred years. We have been trying to find new solutions to this dilemma, and all our efforts have failed. We have decided to try something completely new.”

Astrid’s heart skipped a beat. Does this mean the tribe was opening up to other ideas of handling dragons? This could be great this! This could work perfectly! All she had to do was…

Oh wait. The strange man was stepping forward. She’d better listen.

Stoick gestured to the man. “I proudly present to you Eret, Son of Eret. He is a dragon trapper.”

“Finest dragon trapper alive, actually,” Eret commented. “Not to brag or anything. But I have never met a dragon I couldn’t wrangle.”

A murmur spread through the crowd. What was a dragon trapper doing here? Berk had avoided them. They were proud, self-centered thieves. They never brought anything good with them. And why did they need to trap them? Berk just wanted to get rid of the dragons, not enslave or trade them.

Stoick called everyone’s attention back to him. “I know this might come as a shock to many of you, but we have negotiated a beneficial agreement. He has agreed to help us. He will teach us his method of bringing down dragons. His means are very effective, and they should help us rid ourselves of more dragons than ever before. In return for his teaching, Berk will give him half the dragons we capture for his trading. We can deal with our half as we see fit.”

Numerous members of the tribe cried out in interjection.

“Silence!” Stoick boomed.

Everyone complied

“This decision is final. Eret will start teaching everyone in group rotations starting in the morning. Now, back to work!”

Okay. So maybe this wasn’t as perfect of a situation as Astrid had thought. Actually, it was far from it. Things had gone in the opposite direction she had hoped. But she would find a way around this. She would get through this, and everything would turn out well. It had to. It was her mission. She would not fail.

Her mother’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts. “We had better get back to work. We will see you this evening.” Her parents began to walk away before her mother spun back around. “I almost forgot. We will be spending the night in the arena with some other families until we can build a new house.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“Actually,” a loud voice interrupted, “Astrid has already agreed to stay with me.”

Ruffnut walked up to Astrid and linked arms with her, trying to drag her away. Astrid had forgotten about that invitation. Although she never remembered actually agreeing to it, she supposed the twin took her lack of refusal as acceptance.

Astrid’s mother raised her eyebrow as Astrid sent her somewhat apologetic expression. “Well then. I guess have fun, you two.”

“Oh, we will!” Ruffnut exclaimed. She finally pulled hard enough on Astrid’s arm to throw her off balance. She dragged her towards the Thorston house. “Let me show you inside.”

The house had the same layout as most of the homes on Berk. They entered the living room which connected all the other rooms of the house. “Our room is upstairs. Come on!” Ruffnut sprinted up the stairs and threw open the door at the top.

Astrid was about to begin her ascent when she heard yelling, stopping her.

“Tuff, what are you doing up here, you Buttelf?!”

“It’s my room too, Half-troll!”

There was a loud thud followed by a scream of pain.

“We already agreed that Astrid would be staying here, and you would stay downstairs!”

“Really? We agreed to that? Cause I just remember you saying it and that was it. I never agreed. I think I should have a bigger say in the matter, it being my bed and all.”

“Well, Astrid is here, so suck it up and go downstairs, Munge Bucket. Cause she will beat your butt if you get in her way. And I will help her.”

Astrid heard more thuds, yelps, and shuffling before Tuffnut emerged at the top of the stairs.

“Oh, hi, Astrid. I definitely had no idea you were here.”

Astrid sent him a glare, and he darted down the stairs, past her, and out the door. Shaking her head at the twins’ antics, she climbed up the stairs and entered the room.

“Tada! Welcome to my domain. Here, Loki is given the glory and service he deserves. This here is my bed.” Ruff flopped onto the bed by the window on the far side of the room. “And that is usually Tuff’s, but now it’s yours.” She pointed to a bed by the door.

“Thanks.” Astrid said as she sat down on the bed. She hoped she wouldn’t get some deadly disease from sleeping in Tuffnut’s bed. Was crazy contagious?

The two girls went back outside and helped with reconstruction of one of the lesser burned building. They worked until sundown and then grabbed some supper in the Great Hall ( or as Ruffnut decided to call it, the Now-Not-So-Great Hall). They headed back to the Thorston house and went up to their shared room.

Astrid couldn’t get over how strange this was. Not that she was really complaining. She would much rather be here than sleeping on the hard ground in the arena. And honestly, it was comforting to know she had a friend who would help her out like this.

“So, A,” Ruffnut began. “What do you think of that Eret guy?”

“I’m not sure. I don’t think bringing in a trapper is gonna help this situation. I think we should find a more peaceful and permanent solution rather than learn from someone who is only looking out for his own present benefit.”

“Oh. That’s cool, I guess. But I meant how he looks. I mean, that Son of an Eret is practically the man of my dreams.”

“Oh, for crying out loud, you’ve barely even seen or heard anything about him.”

“Oh, I know all I need to. He is just my type. Strong. Big enough to beat Tuffnut to a pulp at my command. Mysterious. From another land. Totally into it. After all, what other options do I have, really? I mean, Snotlout is a beefcake, but almost too pretty, you know. And there is only room for one beauty in this relationship. But Fishlegs would keep me alive longer if I had to eat one of them stranded alone on some glacier somewhere. Not that I know why I would be alone stranded on a glacier somewhere. If I were, I hope Tuff had come with me and died so that I could eat him first. But then I wouldn’t have anyone to beat up. What else could I do when bored on a glacier? Although I could have lots of fun with the man of my dreams. We could get married, and then he would shower me with love and attention and food. And he would be sooooo much more helpful with planning out pranks. He seems so smart. I mean he does trap dragons. That’s gotta take some serious brain power, right? And he would be great with surviving and stuff, I bet. Especially if we were stranded on a glacier somewhere. Woah. De sha vu. I must be really obsessed with glaciers. Maybe it means something, like when something pops up in a dream over and over again. Speaking of glaciers, have you ever seen one? I haven’t. I’m sure I wouldn’t like it though. I hear they are cold. I don’t like cold. Cold means snow, and snow means I can’t blend in with my surroundings. And how am I supposed to scare Tuffnut if I can’t sneak up on him? Serious problem. Winter is always hard on our pranking sprees. If only I could learn to be super sneaky. Then I could beat Tuff in our prank wars. I bet you’re great with sneaking though. Maybe you could teach me that! It can be a super fun bonding time as we scare the pants off Tuffnut together. That would be awesome. I bet Eret would be really impressed. I bet he will be blown away by my talents when he starts training us tomorrow. I bet he thinks I’m super hot. And fun too. I wonder….”

Astrid drifted to sleep as the twin kept going on and on about who knows what.

Chapter Text

Ruffnut’s mother woke the two girls at dawn. Downstairs, they joined Tuffnut for a quick breakfast before they trudged towards the edge of the village.

“Man, I hope this isn’t gonna be like dragon training. That was horrible,” Tuffnut said as they walked.

“It’s not gonna be anything like that. This will be better,” Ruffnut replied.

Her brother eyed her. “You do know this is work, right? And it required paying attention. How is that going to be better?”

“Because this time we have Eret, Son of Eret,” Ruffnut replied dreamily.

“Ugh, girls…. Oh, thank goodness. Snotlout! Wait up! I must be saved from these crazy women!” He ran towards his friend.

Astrid looked around at the group forming. She was in the first group Eret would be teaching. It was comprised of all the teens, Gobber, Stoick, Spitelout, and the village elders. They stood waiting for a few minutes before their teacher showed up.

“My apologies. I needed to gather a one last thing from my ship before we could begin.” As he said this, he set down a strange, dangerous looking contraption Astrid had never seen before. There were a few other devices scattered around. He must have brought those up earlier.

“No harm done,” Stoick assured. He clapped his hands together. “Now, let us begin.”

“Absolutely. Now. One of the most important things to keep in mind when dealing with a dragon is that, when you are face to face, the dragon is stronger that you. Therefore, you must use any weaknesses it has to your advantage. Trap its mouth closed. Bind its wings and tail. Throw it off balance.”

“Congratulations, laddy. You have confirmed what we have known for years.” Spitelout loudly interjected. “Why is he here, Stoick, if we already know everything he does?”

“Be quiet. Let the man talk.”

“Gah. Fine.”

Eret eyed Spitelout for a moment before he continued his speech. “As I was about to say, one the most efficient ways is to take them down when they don’t expect it. When they are flying above you, they only pay attention to those running around and making noise. This means anyone staying still and quiet will go practically unnoticed. Now, they are most vulnerable when in flight as their bodies cannot be protected by their wings and tails. You can use this to your advantage.”

Astrid didn’t like where this was going. She knew nothing good could come out of this. Faintly, she heard Tuffnut whisper something about words hurting his brain and wanting to leave. She agreed with the latter statement.

“As a dragon flies overhead, remain still. Then you can pull out a fine beauty like this.” Eret lifted the machine he had set down before them. “I made this here myself. I call it a wing binder. You see, you aim it like so.” He lifted it and pointed towards a tree. “Then you pull this here to ready it.” He pulled on some lever and it made a clicking noise. “And you shoot.”

Eret fired the gadget, and a long, thin net propelled out of it. It wrapped itself around the tree, binding the branches to the trunk.

“You hit the dragon right behind its front legs, and bam. Can’t fly. It brings the beast down before it even knows what happened. And it can be done from far enough away where you don’t have to worry about getting hurt. Best of all, the net doesn’t damage the dragon, so you can do whatever you want with the beast once it’s on the ground.”

“Quite impressive,” Stoick said. He seemed very excited over the whole thing. He stepped closer to Eret to get a better look, and all the adults besides Gobber followed. “I must say, I have never seen anything like this.”

Gobber huffed at that. He clearly was not enjoying this new weapon as much as everyone else.

Astrid walked over to him. “Is something wrong Gobber? I would think you would be excited over a new weapon. I mean, building and managing them is a large part of your job description after all.”

Gobber looked as Stoick fired the contraption. He missed his target, but he was clearly still thrilled.

“It is intriguing. And I’m sure I would have a great time taking it apart and messing with it. But….” He grew quiet for a few moments. Astrid waited patiently for him to continue. “I wish Hiccup was here for it.”

Astrid’s eyes grew wide as she gazed up at the blacksmith. This was the first time she could remember him bring up his apprentice since he left. She knew the two shared an extremely close bond, and that meant Hiccup’s absence had affected him more than most of the tribe. Astrid had thought of talking to Gobber about him a few times, but she had stopped herself, not wanting to cause the man any pain. Not that he would show it. But that wouldn’t make the pain of the boy leaving any less real.

“You know, he always wanted to help in the fight for this tribe. He was like his father in that way. He just couldn’t go about it the same way the rest of us could. Soon after I started teaching him in the forge, I started seeing strange drawings scattered around. As more and more showed up, I asked him what they were. He told me they were just some ideas he had for ways to bring down a dragon. After that, I cleared out that back room for him.”

“That was nice of you. And I know he appreciated it.”

“Oh, it wasn’t just for him. I got tired of having to move papers all the time. That boy had so many things swarming around in his head it was taking over my work-space. In his room, he could get out all his ideas without them getting in my way.” He chuckled at the memory.

“Anyway, he soon started building some of those designs. You probably remember seeing some. I have to admit, some of those machines were some of the strangest things I’ve ever seen. And most of them ended in disaster. But he never gave up. He kept creating, even when people made fun of him for it. And that’s why I wish he was here. He spent so much time trying to make things just like what Eret has there. I believe he could have made something just as good, if not better.”

“I bet he could,” Astrid said. “I got to a few things he made before he left. I don’t know how he did it. I couldn’t come up with anything like that no matter how hard I’d try.”

“Aye. And the worst part of all this is the whole tribe was so against everything he made, and yet they seem so open to Eret’s ‘wing binder’. Especially Stoick. All that boy wanted was for his father to appreciate what he created, and now the man gives that attention his son longed for to some trapper. I wish it was Hiccup getting that praise instead. But that will never happen now. Welp, if you’ll excuse me, I think I will go. There is much work to be done.” With that, he hobbled back to the village.

Astrid took in what she had heard. She knew about Hiccup’s inventing skills, and she remembered the tribe ridiculing him whenever one of his inventions caused problems, but she never realized just how hard he was trying to help and to fit in. He was always trying to do what was best for everyone. But how could they expect him to do so when no one would help him. He designed things not just because he couldn’t fight the normal the normal methods but because no one would try to help him find another way. He had to resort to his own abilities.

Astrid knew from recent experience how hard feeling alone could be. How hopeless it was to have no one helping you. To only have yourself to rely on. It was horrible. And he was now doing so more than ever, off in some unknown place with no one he knew.

She looked over to the crowd again. The teens had joined in by now. Eret was showing them the other devices he had brought, and everyone was enthralled with curiosity. It broke her heart as she thought of how Hiccup had longed to be accepted and acknowledged for his achievements, but they had refused to give it to him. They would rather give it to a stranger.

This made Astrid furious. She couldn’t stand to watch it any longer. Wanting to escape, she slipped into the woods. She had her axe with her, so she decided to let out her emotions on some target practice.

As she drew near the cove, she heard a twig snap behind her. She rapidly spun around, axe at the ready.

“Woah! Woah! Please don’t kill me! I’m too young and gorgeous to die!” Ruffnut cried, stepping backwards.

Astrid rolled her eyes. “I’m not gonna kill you, Ruff.”

“Oh yeah? Then why is your axe swill pointed at me?”

Astrid lowered her weapon. “Sorry. I’m just a little on edge.”

“You don’t say.”

“Why did you follow me?” Astrid questioned.

“To figure out what’s wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong.” Astrid turned and walked away. She hoped Ruffnut would leave her be. She had no such luck.

“Look. I don’t mean to brag – okay, maybe just a little – but I am the best investigator on the island. Tuffnut tries to claim the title, but he really just repeats everything I say. Now, I can tell something is wrong, and I will find out what it is. Are we gonna do it the easy way and you just tell me, or will I have to use my skills?”

Sighing, Astrid stopped in her tracks. “You’re not gonna leave me alone, are you?”

“Nope. Not a chance.”

“Fine.” Astrid began to tell her how she had grown close to Hiccup after he was chosen to kill the Nightmare. She left out how she learned to his ways of interacting with dragons as well, not wanting to give too much away, but she said enough to explain why his leaving had hurt her. She then relayed what Gobber just told her and how that had saddened and enraged her.

“You are all trying Hiccup’s way, but he can’t even take the credit for it. You thought it was so horrible then, but now it’s just sooo great.”

“Okay, yeah. But we didn’t know that then. Before now, the way we’ve been fighting for years seemed to still working. I mean, clearly, it wasn’t. But we thought the old way was best.”

“Well, it wasn’t.”

“That’s what I just said. Weren’t you listening?”

“Sorry,” Astrid apologized.

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe we didn’t give Hiccup the chance he deserved, but we can’t change the past. We can use those ways now, though.”

“Why not use all of them, though?” Astrid said in frustration. “I wish Berk was as open to Hiccup’s way of training the dragons as they are to his old way of shooting them down.”

Astrid clapped her hand over her mouth, realizing what she had just said. She hadn’t planned on telling Ruffnut yet. She thought for certain the twin would go tell everyone – intentionally or not – how she was on the side of the dragon. Recently, she had gotten to know Ruff a lot more, however, so maybe it wouldn’t end so bad.

Ruffnut stood silently, looking at her. Astrid expected to see judgment or betrayal or something – anything – besides the gaze she received. Her Thorston friend just stood with an expression as if the solution to a mystery had been confirmed.

“Hiccup taught you how to befriend the dragons like he did with that Night Fury, didn’t he? That’s what you were always doing together. He was teaching you?”

“Yeah.”

“I thought so,” Ruff stated nonchalantly.

“Wha-What? What do you mean, ‘You thought so’?” Astrid spluttered, completely taken aback.

“I told you. I have the best detective skills on the island. Maybe even in the archipelago.”

Astrid stood speechless.

“So,” Ruffnut walked towards her. “Can I see the dragons now?”

Chapter Text

“Really? Just like that?”

Placing her hand on her hip, Ruffnut sent Astrid a pointed look. “Well yeah. I have been waiting forever for you to ask me. I mean, come on now. We’ve already determined I am a genius, and you have no ability to hide things. And now that you know I that know, I want to have some fun.”

Astrid wasn’t convinced. “Are you sure you’re ready? We don’t have to go right now.”

“Absolutely, A. I was born ready. Let’s go.” Ruffnut determinedly stomped away towards where she thought she should be headed.

“Ummm, Ruff.”

“You can’t stop me. I can be just as stubborn as you. Watch me,” the twin replied without looking back.

“Ruff.”

“I’ma train this dragon by myself if I have to. I mean, how hard can it be if both you and Hiccup – and I’m guessing Fishlegs to since you two were gone in the woods for a while – were able to do it.”

“Ruffnut!”

Finally, she spun around, flopping her arms in exasperation. “Whaaat?”

Shaking her head at her friend’s behavior, Astrid said, “It’s that way.” Astrid pointed in the direction opposite her friend’s current path.

“Oh…. Yeeeah, that does look more like a path than this, doesn’t it?.” Ruffnut walked back towards Astrid, who started leading her to the cove.

Astrid was still a little confused on how she got into this situation. A few months ago, she never would have thought she would be leading Ruffnut, who was now probably her closest human friend, towards a cove Hiccup Haddock had showed her a Night Fury in, and which currently contained her best friend, a deadly Nadder. What was her life at this point?

She wouldn’t have thought Ruffnut would be so interested in learning about dragons. During dragon training, the twins had always complained about how much work it was and how learning was hard. Although, now that she thought of it, it had always been Tuffnut who started those complaints. Ruffnut just agreed. Maybe she had wanted to learn for a while and just never got the chance since she was always with her brother. If that was the case, Astrid was glad her friend followed her so she could finally do so.

They soon neared their destination, so Astrid decided to prepare Ruffnut. She didn’t want to deal with another panicked person screaming at the top of their lungs. She knew Stormfly was friendly, but the Nadder could be very energetic when she got playful, and she wanted Ruff to be aware that she was safe.

“So,” she began. “We are almost there.”

“Thank goodness,” Ruffnut replied. “My legs would fall off if I had to go much farther. Couldn’t you have picked a secret, hidden place a little closer.”

Ignoring the comment, Astrid continued. “When we get there, you’re gonna meet a Deadly Nadder I became friends with. Her name is Stormfly. She is really nice. You’ll just have to adjust to her. I know it might be strange to be so close to a dragon without trying to fight it, but it’ll be fine.”

“Oh, I know it will. I am completely ready. I am sure I will be a natural. Bring it on!”

As if on cue, they heard Stormfly squawk as they stepped into the cove. Astrid continued walking forward as Stormfly ran up to her, flapping her wings in delight. She embraced her dragon, who nuzzled her in the stomach.

“Hello, my beautiful girl. I have another friend for you to meet.”

She turned around to see that Ruffnut hadn’t moved from the entrance. She was about to introduce the two to each other when Stormfly started hopping in anticipation and sprinted to the newcomer like a giant toddler. Ruffnut stood stock still.

“I’m not ready! I’m not ready! I’m too young to die!” she cried as the dragon pranced around her, sniffing this new girl.

“You’ll be fine, Ruff. She is just trying to figure out who you are, just like a pet would.”

Ruffnut looked over to Astrid, clearly trying to calm down but still quite frightened. “You mean like Tuffnut’s best friend, Chicken?”

“Yeah, exactly,” Astrid reassured. “Wait, Tuffnut’s best friend is a chicken?”

Ruffnut looked at her like she had stated the most obvious fact on Midgard. “Duh. You didn’t here the two talking this morning? It’s very loud.”

“Why am I surprised? This is your brother we’re talking about. Of course he talks to a chicken. But yes. Think of Stormfly as like a giant, friendly chicken.”

“Ohh. Okay.” Ruffnut reached out her hand and started awkwardly patting the Nadder’s head. “Hello, nice dragon. It’s nice to meet you.”

Astrid smiled at the awkward interaction. Ruffnut was handling the situation pretty well, and she was proud of her for that. Sure, Ruffnut was scared, but she wasn’t overcome by terror, nor was she trying to fight the dragon. Astrid was glad to see that.

She stood and watched the two get to know each other for a few minutes. Stormfly kept circling the her, smelling her, trying to get a look at her new friend. Astrid noticed the girl was purposefully staying in front of the dragon’s nose.

“Why are you staying in front of her like that?” she inquired. “You can move around, you know.”

“But this is the blind spot. Isn’t that where we are always supposed to stay when close to a dragon? That’s what everyone always says.”

“What? Why would you think… Oh, you mean like from dragon training? No. You don’t have to do that. Stormfly wants to see you. That’s why she keeps moving her head so much. Go ahead. It’ll help you bond.”

“Oh. Okay.” Ruffnut stopping moving, and the dragon immediately turned to look at her. The twin took a step back, cringing slightly. She gave a slight wave. Stormfly trilled in delight at finally seeing the girl clearly, which made Ruffnut grin. “Thank you, nice dragon, for not burning my face off.” Stormfly cooed.

The Nadder started to bounce around energetically, and Ruffnut decided to join in. Astrid sat down on a rock and watched the two run around, Ruffnut flailing her arms in an attempt to mimic the dragon’s wing movements. Whenever Stormfly would squawk, Ruff would loudly yell in an impersonation.

Astrid thought the sight was ridiculous. It was the most Thorston type thing she could do. She had no idea how she could possibly teach a lunatic to fly and train dragons. The display before her was very amusing none the less. And she was glad Ruffnut was having fun and no longer scared.

After about an hour, a very out-of-breath Ruffnut flopped onto the ground beside Astrid.

“Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner. This is the most fun I’ve had in ages. Well, besides that time I caught Tuff’s pants on fire. Or that super spectacular prank we pulled.” Ruffnut sat straight up, eyes wide as a huge smirk spread across her face. “Maybe we can train a dragon to help us with pranks. It can roll around in the boar pit with us and help us set fires. It will be mass hysteria. We could make Loki so proud.”

“Or we could not do that. I think the raids cause enough destruction, thank you very much.”

The twin flopped in dismay. “But where’s the fun in that,” she whined.

Astrid rolled her eyes.

Ruffnut tried to get Stormfly to play with her again, but the dragon had apparently played enough and was now intent on taking a nap. Since she had no more entertainment, Ruffnut decided to head back to the village. The two girls walked back, Ruff rambling about nonsense the whole way. When they exited the forest, they saw Snotlout, Tuffnut, and Fishlegs sitting on the ground at the edge of the village.

“What were you two weirdos doing in there all this time?” Tuffnut asked. “You missed all the fun with Eret’s fancy thingy.”

“Ohhh. I am so sorry I had to leave Eret. I’m sure he missed me,” his sister began. “But I had sooooo much more fun with Astrid.”

“Oh yeah? What did you do?”

Astrid waited to see her friend’s response. This was why she hadn’t told Ruffnut originally. She knew the two siblings told each other everything. What was she gonna say now? She hadn’t really thought about it before this moment.

“Oh, just secret girl stuff. You know. Just a bunch of girls messing around. Lots of things we can’t go around telling everyone. But it was awesome.”

Astrid sighed in relief. That was actually a really good way to put it. Not a lie, necessarily, but enough to stop them from further inquiry.

“Eww. Gross. Girl stuff. Bleh.”

The twins kept talking, and Astrid stopping listening. She heard Fishlegs clear his throat. He sent her a questioning look, clearly asking if this ‘girl time’ involved three friends instead of two. Astrid nodded. Fishlegs seemed slightly surprised by this decision, but he didn’t say anything.

“So,” Astrid asked when there was a lull in the twins’ conversation. “What exactly did we miss that was ‘so fun’?”

Tuffnut jumped up animatedly. “It was awesome. Snotlout tried to shoot that thingy thing, and he ended up hitting Gothi. She ended up chasing him around the whole village with her stick. That’s why he’s grumpy now.”

“I’m not grumpy,” Snotlout vocalized in a tone that proved otherwise. He pointed at his friend. “And it was not my fault. It was that stupid machine. Honestly, I don’t see how anyone can manage that thing.”

“Oh, was the trigger too hard for you to understand?” The twins high-fived as they giggled to each other.

“I am a viking. And a Jorgenson, at that,” Snotlout defended. “I don’t need some strange contraption to help me fight. I fight with my hands. Using that thing is insulting. Only someone who can’t fight would use it. It takes someone with strength to go face-to-face with a dragon. I don’t see why my uncle is giving all his attention to some useless trapper just because he has some wood and metal stuck together that can fling a net. Which I can do excellent by hand, by the way.”

“Whatever makes you feel better, man,” Tuffnut said.

The twins started their antics again, and Fishlegs tried to keep it from blowing out of proportion.

Astrid saw Snotlout stand up and walk into the village. Crazily enough, Astrid felt sorry for him. He might be a flirtatious jerk most of the time, but she would hate to be embarrassed like that. She remembered how bad she felt when she had failed in dragon training while Hiccup was winning everything. It stunk. And she understood wanting to fight with one’s hands. Sure, she knew now that there were more ways to win a fight than flat out attacking with an axe, but she would always prefer that method of defense over all others. She was a viking. It was in her blood. And the same went for Snotlout.

She jogged over to the boy. “I agree, you know. I don’t like that machine. Or anything that has to do with Eret, for that matter.”

Snotlout looked at her surprised. “Really?”

“Yeah. I think there are a lot of better solutions out there.”

Snotlout turned, eyeing her warily. “Why did you follow me? We don’t talk. I mean, I talk to you, and then you wave me off, often ending with violence. That’s what we’ve done for years. Why stop now?”

Astrid shrugged. “I don’t know. Just thought I would be nice. Besides, you started it when you were nice to me after my house got destroyed.” She pointed a finger at him. “But if you take this the wrong way and think I am interested in you, you will get punched in the face.”

“What a shame. It’s clearly destiny. But duly noted.”

They stood awkwardly for a few moments, not quite sure what to do next.

“You know, Snotlout, I think things have overall been going pretty well for me. I’ve found a new purpose in life, and I thought it would be a disaster. But I just got proved wrong for the third time, and I feel pretty hopeful.”

Not quite sure what to make of this, Snotlout sent her a strange look. “Good for you, I guess.”

“You said you think we should fight with our strength. You clearly want to prove to your uncle that you’re a powerful, great warrior. What if you could show him in a new way instead of Eret?”

Snotlout raised an eyebrow in curiosity. “What do you mean?”

“What if you showed everyone you were so great and had enough power to – I don’t know – control dragons?”

Astrid knew this move was risky. After all, he was the nephew to the chief. And if he told his uncle about this, she would be screwed. But she knew if she could work with his ego, make him feel powerful by controlling a dragon – even though it was very easy when you knew how – he would be more accepting. So, she took the chance and waited.

Snotlout looked deep in thought, trying to see if this would be worth any risks that came with it. Finally, he turned to Astrid, determination in his eyes, and she knew she had won before he could even say anything.

“Go on.”

Chapter Text

Astrid and Snotlout agreed to meet after sundown. It would seem suspicious if she disappeared twice back to back, and they both had assigned jobs to do around the village helping with the reconstruction anyway. The two went their separate ways for the time being.

Today, Astrid was assigned to help rebuild the Great Hall. Her parents were working on it as well, so she spent most of the time near them. This definitely was not her favorite type of work – all the carrying and hammering and just building in general was something she would rather watch than partake in. She was the only teen assigned to this job. She knew it was because no one trusted the others with any task involving responsibility. She was honored they considered her the most responsible, so she stayed silent over her dislike of the job and did her part for the tribe.

The group working on the hall managed to put a good number of support beams in place, and they attached a bit of roofing. As dusk drew nearer, they spread some tent flaps along the beams and the ceiling, and they moved everyone who slept in the arena the prior night to there. Although it was still far from fully built, it was more desirable than the uncomfortable arena. It provided better shelter from the elements, and it wasn’t surrounded by dragons banging on their cage doors.

At supper time, Ruffnut told her all the Thorstons were dining at their house rather than the demolished hall. Astrid joined them. It was… interesting. The twins’ parents were much more normal than she had expected. She had never gotten to know them, so she assumed crazy just run in the family. Which apparently, it did, if all the stories of distant relatives the twins talked about were any indication. But it somehow missed their parents. She had no idea how they put up with their children for so long without losing their minds.

Their mother cooked chicken as the main course. Needless to say, Tuffnut went insane. He went on and on about how cruel the world was to chickens while cuddling poor Chicken, who wanted nothing more than the be left alone. Ruffnut went on a rant about how they could never eat chicken like everyone else and how all she wanted was to eat what she wanted. Tuffnut started name calling, and Ruffnut tore into the cooked bird like a wild animal. Tuffnut started screaming like he was the one being eaten, and his sister chased him in circles screaming at him to be quiet while beating him with a drumstick.

Astrid walked over to the two parents sitting calmly at the table as if nothing strange was happening – which, for them, it probably wasn’t. She told them she was going to see her parents, and that she might be a while, so they didn’t need to wait up on her. They told her to take all the time she needed and bid her good night.

Astrid knew full well she wasn’t going to see her parents; she was going to meet up with Snotlout. But there was no way she was going to tell the Thorstons that, so she came up with that believable alibi. She knew they wouldn’t question it.

She stepped outside and closed the door behind her. It was strange how quiet it was outside. There were usually groups enjoying themselves in the Great Hall and having fun in their houses. Tonight, everyone was just exhausted from the long day. The only sound to be heard was that of nature and the manic Thorston house behind her.

Astrid strolled through the village, enjoying the quiet. She loved the sounds of the night and being able to look at the sky peacefully. There was always something soothing about it.

Above her, she saw the Northern Lights. She remembered how beautiful they looked when she had flown with Hiccup for that first time. That felt so long ago now. She would give anything to go back to that moment. To be with Hiccup again. Looking at the lights, she somehow felt closer to him. She wondered if Hiccup was watching the same light from far away.

“Where are you, Hiccup?” she whispered.

“What did you say, babe?” Snotlout said from behind her. Astrid turned to face him. “I can’t fully appreciate your beautiful voice when you mumble like that.” He waggled his eyebrows at her.

Astrid rolled her eyes. “Annnd we’re back to this.”

“Well, duh. I never said I would stop trying to win you over. I just agreed to recognize you weren’t interested in me. For now, at least. A man can still have hopes and dreams.”

“Whatever. As long as you listen to me.”

“Sure. As long as we agree.”

“Oh, for Thor’s sake.” Astrid decided to let it slide for the moment. He really wouldn’t have to listen to her too much until they got near Stormfly. “So, you ready to go?”

“Absolutely!” Snotlout punched his fists as if he was in a fight. “Time to kick some butt.”

Astrid facepalmed. “Snotlout, we are not going to fight the dragon. Remember?”

Snotlout huffed. “Yeah, yeah. But I’m still gonna be the best, so I’m still kicking butt.”

“Whatever.”

“So, where are we going?” Snotlout was bouncing around like a giant child. Astrid temporarily questioned her choice to try this with him, but it was too late now.

“There is a cove in the woods. Right past Raven Pointe. It’s where you’ll meet Stormfly.”

“Whoa! Stormfly’s such a cool name. What is she? Another Night Fury like my cousin had? Or something even cooler?” Snotlout was getting more excited by the moment.

“Actually, she is a Nadder. One of the best I’ve ever seen, if I might add.” Astrid said, holding her head high. She was very proud of her Nadder. She thought Stormfly was the best dragon anyone could hope to befriend. Although Toothless was a close rival with his cuteness and charismatic aura.

Snotlout did not seem to share her thoughts. His face contorted. “Seriously? A Nadder? Those things barely get anyone noticed. How am I supposed to impress people with such an easy dragon?”

“Excuse me!” Astrid roared. “My Stormfly is a true fighter. She is incredible! And she is gorgeous! People would be in awe just from seeing her.”

Snotlout crossed his arms. “I truly doubt that, but whatever makes you happy, I am all for.”

Astrid was fuming, but she had decided to take the little victories when it came to Snotlout – seeing as anything bigger would be few and near impossible to attain. Him saying he was for it seemed like a little win. So, she puffed out her chest and started towards the woods. “Good. Let’s go then.”

“Oh, no, no, no. I’m not going.”

Astrid spun on her heels and stomped towards the boy. “What do you mean you’re not going?”

“You seem to not be listening to me. A Nadder might work for you and make you happy, and that’s fine. But I have Jorgenson standards, and so that doesn’t work for me, so I won’t do it.”

Astrid was seeing red at this point. How dare he insult her dragon like that without even meeting her! But, what else should she have expected from him. Why would anything ever go smoothly with Snotlout?

“Well, if you’re so much better than me when it comes to dragons,” Astrid began through gritted teeth. “What would you rather do?”

A smirk spread across his face. “How about a Monstrous Nightmare? That would get me some respect.”

“Are you insane?!” she cried, sending him a death glare. “I don’t have a Monstrous Nightmare. And even if I knew where one was, it would be foolish to try and train one as your first dragon. They are so dangerous.”

“Exactly.”

“Odin help me,” Astrid whispered, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Also, we do know where to find one.”

“No, we don’t. They all leave during the raids.”

“Nope. Not all.”

“Yes, all.”

“One’s still on the island.”

“Oh, really. And where would that be, genius?” Astrid was curious where this idiot thought he would find a Monstrous Nightmare.

“First, I’m flattered you finally recognize my brilliant mind,” Snotlout said, flipping as much of his short hair as her could. Astrid huffed in annoyance. “And second, the training arena. They never got rid of that dragon my cousin was picked to fight.”

“What?! No. Absolutely not. That dragon nearly killed Hiccup when he was in there with it.”

“And now, I can beat my cousin. Like I said. Kick. Butt.”

“Oh. Oh, that’s what this is about. Of course. Look. We are not going to do that. Maybe later, we can work up to that. But for now, I say we go to Stormfly. And you said you would listen to me, so com’mon.” Astrid turned to start walking.

“Wow. You really aren’t listening to me. I said I would listen to you ‘as long as we agree’. Which I don’t. Therefore, I’m not going to. I’ll just do it on my own.”

Astrid glared at him with everything she could muster. Pointing her finger, she threatened, “Snotlout, don’t you dare take one step towards that arena, or else….”

Before she could finish, Snotlout pumped his fists in the air. “Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!” Then, he sprinted away.

“What am I doing with this muttonhead?” Astrid questioned before running after him.

When she reached the arena entrance, it was already wide open. Closing the door behind her, she cautiously stepped inside, not sure what Snotlout had already done. Thank goodness everyone had been moved to the Great Hall. Hopefully, whatever was about to go down wouldn’t draw attention.

Snotlout was pacing between the cage doors in concentration, trying to remember which one held the Nightmare.

“Snotlout,” Astrid hissed at him. “Let’s go before this gets out of hand. Nothing good will come out of this. You don’t have to be some prodigy right from the start. You don’t need to do this.”

He looked her in the eyes. She saw something in them, but she couldn’t quite figure out what.

“Yes. I do,” he said. “I have to prove something to myself.” He gestured to one of the cages to their left. “That’s the right one, isn’t it?” He took a step towards it.

Astrid knew he would not take no for an answer, and she understood wanting to prove something to yourself. She wasn’t sure what he was trying to prove, but she decided it would go better if she was helping him.

“Wait.”

He looked over his shoulder at her. “You’re not going to change my….”

“It’s that one.” She pointed to the cage door in the middle.

Snotlout cleared his throat. “Thanks.” He walked over to it and grabbed the lever that opened it. For a moment, he hesitated. Astrid saw him gulp before pressing down on the lever.

There was a loud click as the door was unlocked. Snotlout ran to the center of the arena where Astrid stood. They waited.

“You know it’s gonna be mad at being cooped up, right?” she stated more than asked.

“Yeah, yeah. I know.”

They heard a thump as the Nightmare slammed against the doors, throwing it wide open. It stayed in place a few seconds more before charging out. Just like last time, it ran around the edge of the arena and climbed the chain ceiling, searching for a way out. When it realized there was none, it fell to ground and stared at the two teens. Slowly, the dragon crept towards them, teeth bared, ready to fight if it came to it.

Astrid had forgotten how much bigger the Nightmare was than Stormfly. To be honest, she was terrified in that moment. However, she knew panicking wouldn’t solve anything. It would only escalate the situation.

She turned to Snotlout, who was on the verge of panic himself. Apparently, he had not mentally prepared himself for this, and he was now regretting it. Figures. He was scanning the ground, and his eyes soon locked onto a stray spear head. He took a step towards it, and Astrid punched him in the shoulder.

He glared at her. “What was that for?” he asked in a harsh whisper.

“We are not going to fight it! You said you wanted to train it, so that is what we will do.”

Astrid searched her mind for the next course of action. The only thing she could think of was to first approach it. Heart pounding in her ears, she took a few careful steps towards the Nightmare.

The dragon took a step back before growling and opening its mouth to fire. Astrid rolled to the side as a small blast of fire shot forth. She watched the dragon try to fire again, but it couldn’t. It was too weak, clearly malnourished. She knew they vikings that ‘cared’ for the dragons they used for training probably didn’t feed it a lot. She felt sorry for it.

She stepped towards it again, and it backed itself into the wall. Feeling trapped, it began snapping its teeth at her. Astrid stopped. All she was doing was scare it. That wouldn’t get them anywhere.

“Why are you stopping? What should we do?” Snotlout asked from behind her.

An idea popped into Astrid’s mind. This might be risky, but she it seemed to be the best option they had. And it was the most Hiccup thing to do, which had to count for something.

“’I’m’ going to do nothing. ‘You’” Astrid poked the boy in the chest. “Are going to go befriend it.”

Snotlout’s eyes practically shot out of his head. “What? Are you insane?”

“Says the guy who thought his first encounter with a dragon being a Monstrous Nightmare would be a good idea.”

“Okay, fine. So how do I do this? Cause I’m out of ideas.”

“Like you had any in the first place.”

“Shut up and tell me what to do.”

“You are going to get as close as you can….”

“That’s a horrible idea.”

“…and you will close your eyes….”

“Even worse.”

“And extent your hand to it.”

“Oh, joy. I’ve always wanted to be an amputee.”

Let the dragon come to you, cause it’s clear us going to it won’t work.”

“You’re a lunatic.” Snotlout told her. “But I guess we don’t have a choice, do we?”

Astrid shook her head.

“Well, here goes nothing.” He slowly, carefully stepped towards the dragon. The boy was visibly shaking, wanting nothing more than to be out of there. But he didn’t back down. He closed his eyes and started to lift his hand. He hesitated a few times before he finally extended it. The dragon stared at it curiously.

“Is it working? I can’t see anything?”

“Shup up and wait.”

The dragon stretched out his neck. It sniffed the air between them and inched closer to the boy. Astrid held her breath, hoping this would work. Once it got close enough, it carefully sniffed his hand.

“What-what is it doing? Is it gonna eat me? Please don’t eat me.”

The Nightmare hesitated. Then, it closed its eyes and placed its snout in Snotlout’s hand, trilling deeply. Astrid sighed in relief. She seemed to have made the right call.

Snotlout’s eyes shot open. His face was a mixture of awe and terror. “Woah.” The dragon opened its eyes. “This is so cool.” The dragon trilled again, and a huge smile spread across the boy’s face. He turned to Astrid in excitement.

“Did you see that? Do you see this? I did that all by myself. I am so awesome!”

Astrid laughed at him. “Yeah. You did do awesome.” She walked over to the boy and his dragon. She extended her hand to the Nightmare once again. Since it now knew she was not a threat, it let her touch it.

“So, Snotlout, what are you gonna name our new dragon friend?”

“Wait,” Snotlout said, smile somehow getting bigger. “I get to name it too?! I-I mean of course I do.” He lifted his chin and puffed out his chest. “Because I am amazing. And I trained it.” He turned to the dragon. “You will need something epic. Fear invoking. I can’t have some lame name for my dragon. People must know how powerful we are when they hear of us in legends.”

Astrid rolled her eyes at Snotlout’s rapidly rising ego, but she was glad he was enjoying it. And this could be definitely in her mission to stop the fight against dragons.

Snotlout clapped his hands together. “Hookfang. You like that name?”

The dragon warbled in agreement.

“Awesome. ‘Cause I would have called you that anyway.”

Hookfang glared at the boy and proceeded to smack him into the wall with his tail.

Grunting, Snotlout got back on his feet. “We’ll have to work on that, Hooky.”

Astrid looked between the boy and his dragon. This was nice. She was glad she gave Snotlout the chance to do this, even though she doubted it throughout the entire process. Snotlout caught her looking at him, and he wiggled his eyebrows at her. Astrid rolled her eyes and turned to walk away.

“Give him some fish. He needs the food. And put him away before you leave. I might not agree with having him caged, but we can’t have the whole village know we let him out.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the boy throw his fists in the air as he yelled, “Snotlout!”

Chapter Text

For the next few weeks, Astrid fell into a steady routine. During the day, she would work around the village and attend some of Eret’s lessons – much to her and the other teens’ dismay. After supper, she would meet up with Ruffnut, Fishlegs, or Snotlout and have some dragon lessons. Originally, she met with them all separately. One night, Ruffnut and Fishlegs accidentally both met her, so the three started met together from then on. It was an interesting dynamic, watching a loud, rash Ruffnut and a quiet, collected Fishlegs try to interact and learn together. Astrid learned to let Ruffnut run around with Stormfly while she talked with Fishlegs. Then, when Ruffnut had calmed down, Astrid could talk to her, and Fishlegs could go hang out with Stormfly on his own.

Since Snotlout only wanted to see Hookfang, she continued to meet with him separately. The boy and his dragon interacted very differently from her and Stormfly. The two girls had a relationship build on trust and respect. The two boys mainly just smacked each other around. Snotlout ended up on fire more times than Astrid could count, but she stopped trying to stop it after a while. As long as he wasn’t hurting anyone else and was bonding with his dragon, she would let them be. She just made sure things didn’t get too out of hand.

Before dawn, Astrid would sneak into the cove and spend time alone with her Nadder. That was always her favorite part of the day. Some mornings, she would just sit and pet the dragon, the two enjoying each other’s presence. Astrid’s favorite mornings, however, were when they would speed through the air, spinning and diving in a beautiful and thrilling display of aerial stunts.

No matter what they did, Astrid always enjoyed the mornings as it gave her time to think. She mostly thought of the best way for her to further her mission. She wanted to get more people involved, but she didn’t know who or how or when. She also wanted to train more dragons. The more there were, the easier it would be to show everyone the dragons as a whole were not their enemy.

Often, her thoughts would turn to Hiccup. She wondered where he and Toothless were. How were they doing? Were they safe? Were they having fun on some grand adventure they could one day come and tell her about? Astrid hoped the rest of the archipelago was treating him better than Berk had.

She missed the boy a lot. It was getting better as time passed. She wasn’t as lonely and hopeless as she had been when he first left. For one thing, she was too busy to be caught up in her emotions like that. Actually having friends now helped a lot too. But she still have moments where she would give anything for him to be back on that island with her. Knowing such thinking wouldn’t get her anywhere, she would brush the feeling aside and continue with her day.

One night, she and Snotlout were heading to the arena when the boy stopped her.

“Wait. Do you hear that?”

Astrid listened. She heard a faint sound of… wind?... no, no. That wasn’t right. It sounded more like….

“Wings. Lots of them.”

“Exactly.”

The two scanned the dark sky, squinting as they tried to locate the source of the noise. Snotlout pointed to the northwest. When she looked, Astrid saw a dark mass blocking out stars. As she looked closer, she saw it was in fact not one mass. It was many. Many winged silhouettes moving towards them.

“Raid.”

“We should warn the others.” Snotlout took off through the village, yelling out “Raid! Raid! A raid is coming!”

Astrid stood and watched as the dragons drew nearer. This was not going to end well. The raids had been progressively worsening for a while now. With Eret’s new weapons, things were sure to get even worse.

When she turned around, the village was already coming alive. Lights shown through the houses, and she could hear people yelling and weapons clattering.

Astrid ran into the village to meet with the other teens by the hall. During the lessons with Eret, said trapper and Stoick had assigned everyone roles for the next raid. She and the other teens were to put out fires – as usual – and to stay near the Great Hall as the last line of defense for those inside. Originally, they were supposed to use some of the long-range weapons Eret brought, but they were so horrible at operating them (they all hated them so much that they missed their targets and made them malfunction on purpose) that they were reassigned.

Just as she reached the hall, she saw a flash of light behind her followed by a scream, a woosh, and a dragon passing overhead. The dragons were here. Astrid grabbed a water bucket, getting ready to put out fires. She turned to make sure the other teens were doing the same, but Tuffnut was the only one doing his job (that was something she never thought she would see).

“What are you guys standing around for? You know there are gonna be a ton of fires, probably more since the dragons will be more pissed at Eret.”

Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Fishlegs looked between each other. They all shuffled awkwardly and avoided meeting her gaze.

“Well?” she asked again.

Ruffnut was the first to speak. “I don’t know about these guys, but I’m not quite sure what to do,” she admitted.

Astrid threw her head back in frustration. “What is that supposed to mean?” She grabbed a bucket and proceeded to shove it at her friend. “You take the bucket, fill it with water, and empty it on a fire. It’s not that complicated. We’ve been doing it for years.”

Fishlegs lifted a finger tentatively, drawing her attention. “If I may, I think what we are all trying to say is, how should we handle all the fighting going on around us?”

“Yeah,” Snotlout continued. “It just doesn’t seem right to go about everything as we normally do. Shouldn’t we try and stop the fighting or something?”

“Guys, we can’t do that much about it at this point. All that will happen is we will make all the angry vikings more angry at us. If you see an opportunity to help a dragon out without being obvious, go for it. But we can’t just go around blatantly helping them. We just have to minimize the destruction on both sides as much as possible from the background. Got it?”

They all nodded their heads… well, almost all of them.

“What are you weirdos talking about?” Tuffnut asked. Suddenly, he gasped overdramatically. “Did you guys start a super-secret teens’ club without me? How dare you! I am hurt. I am very much hurt. Well, now I know. So, let me join! Oh, I probably need a password, right. Let me think of one. Ummm….”

“Shut up, you idiot,” Ruffnut said as she smacked him in the head with her bucket.

The next half hour went routinely. They put out fires when they were needed. As instructed, they stayed as close as they could to the Great Hall. Fishlegs and Snotlout managed to free a Gronckle that got stuck in a trap while no one was looking. Ruffnut chased a Zippleback away from a snare by running at it, flailing her arms wildly. Not knowing what was happening, Tuffnut helped her. He thought it was a game, and he wanted to one-up her, so he ran at it screaming at the top of his lungs.

As the raid was beginning to die down, Astrid saw a bright blue light streak past and disappear behind the corner. Curiosity took the best of her, and she silently crept towards it.

When she looked, she saw a beautiful dragon, like nothing she’d ever seen before. It had a long, slim body, two pairs of short legs, a stubby neck, and a long tail. It was almost like a giant lizard – which technically made sense dragons were giant reptiles. Long, feather-like scales formed a mane around its neck and a ball at the tip of its tail. What really set this dragon apart was the faint blue glow it emitted. She had never seen anything like it before. Astrid decided she would name this new species Stellaris, since it shown like a star in the dark.

Astrid thought it was strange that the dragon wasn’t taking part in the raid alongside the others. Maybe the queen didn’t have as much control over this species as it did the others. That could come in handy. She decided to get a closer look.

Before she could move, she heard a giggle. The dragon spun around facing away from her. It watched as a little girl ran towards it, drawn to the strange bright creature. The creature crouched, preparing to defend itself against the approaching human.

“Watch out!” Astrid shouted, sprinting towards the girl.

The glowing dragon roared, and the light it emitted rapidly intensified. Wide eyed, the girl turned to Astrid and started running. Just as she reached the older girls’ arms, bright blue flames shot out, instantly engulfing everything it touched in flames. Thankfully, the two girls were just out of the line of fire. The dragon then turned to them again. Astrid could see the dragon was just acting in fear, but that was still as dangerous as the dragons acting under the queen’s mind control.

It roared again. Light began to build up as it prepared for another blast. Astrid grabbed the girl’s hand and ran, hoping they wouldn’t be followed. As the light behind her got brighter, she prepared for another blast.

Suddenly, she heard a whistle overhead. That doesn’t make any sense. It was coming from the opposite direction of the other dragons. Maybe one had gotten lost. Maybe it was another Stellaris dragon coming to help its friend.

She knew they should keep running. The dragon could shoot fire at them at any second. But something about that whistle stopped her. It was familiar. Too familiar. It wasn’t like all the other dragons they encountered so often, but she had definitely heard it before. But what was it?

The girl looked up at her, her eyes holding a mix of wonder and fear. Faintly, the girl whispered the answer to Astrid’s silent question. “Nightfury.”

As if on cue, there was an unmistakable purple blast that exploded between them and the Stellaris. Startled, the dragon jumped back. It gave one last cry before taking off into the night, joining the other dragons which appeared to be retreating from the raid.

From around the corner, Astrid heard a frantic woman calling out, “Sigrid? Sigrid? Where did you go, sweetheart?!”

“Momma!” the girl yelled. She let go of Astrid’s hand and ran out of sight to find her mother.

Now alone, Astrid looked up to the sky. Maybe she was foolish to look. Surely, there had to be plenty of Nightfuries out there. After all, they had never seen a Stellaris before, yet it had showed up. It was probably just a chance occurrence that a Nightfury blast had saved her. But a tiny smidgen of hope forced her to look anyway.

She searched but couldn’t see anything. Sighing, she turned around to walk away. Then, she heard a coo and the flapping of wings behind her. She quickly spun around and spotted the outline of a pitch-black dragon hovering not too far away. She walked towards it, hope rising in her chest once again. Surely, she was imagining things. It was just another dragon….

She watched as a dark shape directly above the dragon shifted (curse this darkness; she couldn’t see anything; why weren’t the fires closer when she needed them?). She saw what looked like arms reaching up, followed by a click, and what looked like a helmet being lifted off. Although she couldn’t see any details, she caught those green eyes she was hoping for looking straight at her.

“Hiccup?” Astrid practically whispered.

“Expecting someone else? Cause if there is someone else riding a Nightfury, I would hope someone would tell me.”

At a loss for words, Astrid clapped her hands over her mouth. She would never admit it, but that voice sent a wave of emotion coursing through her in a way she’d never imagined. She was overjoyed, and yet she was saddened because she knew it wouldn’t last.

“Nice job with the other guys. Goodness knows what you said to them, but they seemed to be helping the dragons… even if everyone else was fighting ten times harder than when I last saw them. And who’s that new guy? I don’t like him. His machines are way too harmful. Machines which I made before, just to clarify. Don’t know why mine were so unacceptable but his are so great.”

The boy stopped talking for a moment, waiting on a response. Astrid didn’t know how to reply, so she asked the main question in her mind.

“You’re not back for good, are you?”

Hiccup hung his head. “No. Not yet, anyway. I don’t think Berk would want me back at the moment. I just saw the huge swarm coming here, and I wanted to try and help. I’ve been doing that with some raids on other tribes as well. Trying to gather information on how the whole thing works and how the queen controls them. Might come in handy.”

“Hopefully you’re more sneaky with other tribes. Cause I am not impressed. The plasma blasts and talking thing kind of give your location away.” Astrid felt a smirk tugging at the corner of her lips.

“Oh, ha ha,” Hiccup replied in his typical sarcastic tone. “You know, you couldn’t see me for a long time. I had to make it very clear where I was.”

“Shut up.”

Astid looked into his eyes once again. They stayed in silence for a moment. Astrid wished they could just stay like that. But she heard voices nearing them.

“You should probably go before you get caught.”

“Yeah. Probably.”

Astrid watched as he slid his helmet back on, covering his eyes once more so she just saw the outline of his frame. He leaned forward on Toothless, readying for their ascent.

“Hey, Astrid.” He said, his voice muffled though the mask. “We will win this thing. I don’t care how long it takes. And when we do win, I will come back. Even if it’s just for you.”

Astrid could feel tears forming, but she held them back. “See you later, then, Hiccup.”

“See you, Astrid. And remember, you’re not alone. Even if you can’t see me. I’ll be there if you need me.”

And with that, the boy and his dragon took off into the night.

Chapter Text

Astrid and Ruffnut walked back to the Thorston house. Ruffnut had insisted they spend some quality girl time together since they had not opportunities to recently. Astrid accepted the proposition as she needed a break from the work she had been doing. They enjoyed relaxing in the cove for a few hours. Not doing lessons; just hanging out and talking. Now they were heading back to get some food and sleep.

As they walked through the village, they heard commotion in most of the buildings they passed. The few people they saw were hurriedly gathering supplies and weapons.

“What’s going on?” Ruffnut asked.

“I don’t know. Maybe your parents can tell us something.”

As they reached Ruffnut’s home, they heard shuffling and clattering inside. Opening the door, the girls spotted the twin’s parents packing their travel sacks.

“Mom. Dad. What are you doing? What’s going on?” Ruffnut questioned.

Her mother glanced over her shoulder at them, too busy to stop what she was doing. “Haven’t you heard?”

The two girls shook their heads.

“Stoick has declared all capable vikings prepare to set sail in the morning. Something about attacking the dragon’s nest.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Astrid said. “All the previous attempts have failed. The ships just get destroyed.”

Ruffnut’s father turned to them. “Apparently, another tribe has found it somehow. Many ships will arrive in the morning, so we can try to take the dragons down with a larger, united force.”

Astrid’s head started spinning. This couldn’t be good. Who had found the nest? How had they done it? Did they see the queen and know what they were up against? Surely not, or else they wouldn’t be preparing for a futile battle. So many vikings would die in this attack, and it would probably be for nothing. Larger numbers wouldn’t help against the queen, so having all able bodied vikings….

Her parents were going to the nest. Her parents were going to be in the middle of this.

Astrid ran from the house, heading straight to the hall her parents still stayed at. Their house was one of the last to be rebuilt since they were in the lower ranks of the tribe. After all, her father was a farmer. Sure, he and her mother were excellent fighters. They had raised her, after all. And they were some of the toughest vikings she had ever met, but fighting wasn’t their focus in life. They didn’t train for war; they just defended themselves and their tribe during raids. She had always been the warrior of the family. And that meant her parents were far from ready to engage in such a large-scale attack.

She burst into the hall and immediately spotted them. “Mom. Dad. You can’t go. Please.”

Her father laid down the sword he was sharpening. “My dear, I know this isn’t ideal, but if we have a chance to stop the raids for good….”

“But it won’t. You can’t. They will be too strong. It doesn’t matter how many there are fighting them, more will keep coming.”

“You don’t know that for certain. You must have hope,” her mother interjected.

“But I do know. I do.”

“And how do you know, exactly? How could you know more than the chief on such matters?”

Astrid hung her head. Should she tell them? It wasn’t an ideal scenario to disclose that she went with Hiccup to the nest and tell them everything she had seen and done since then, but if it was the only way to stop her parents from getting hurt…. She knew she would regret if she didn’t try everything in her power to stop it and they ended up getting hurt – or worse – because of that. Eyes closed, she took a deep breath and opened her mouth to tell them she saw the nest with Hiccup….

But her father spoke before she got it out. “Even if we did know for certain nothing good would come out of this, we couldn’t just stay behind. It is a direct order from the chief. And he’s very set on this.”

“Why? Can no one change his mind? Surely, he would listen if enough people spoke against it, right?”

“I truly doubt that,” her mother said solemnly. “If it were just our tribe, there might be a chance he would be persuaded. But it is the other tribes’ involvements and influence that solidified his decision.”

“Why? What have the other tribes got to do with this?”

“Apparently,” her father began, “an heir to another tribe attained the knowledge to control and manipulate dragons. His own people began to fear him, as they had seen nothing like it. He ended up capturing a Gronkle and using it to find the nest. Once he got there, he decided he would come back with backup. He went back to his island and instructed his father to align with other tribes and end the war once and for all.”

Astrid couldn’t believe someone would use such knowledge in a malevolent way. To manipulate people and fight wars. Sure, she wanted to understand the dragons so they could make peace, but she wouldn’t get countless innocent people killed doing so. That was completely unnecessary.

But maybe, if she showed Stoick another way was available with less casualties, he wouldn’t send them to their doom.

“So, if someone showed Stoick Berk could train dragons too then he might be convinced to back out the war, right? Then this other tribe wouldn’t have as much influence over his decisions, cause we could do the same thing ourselves when we are actually ready and know what to do.”

The two parents exchanged a worried glance. Her mother grabbed her hands like she used to when she was scared as a young child. “Astrid, my love, Stoick is a strong, brave chieftain. One of the best we could ever hope for. But many years ago, he encountered a man who had power such as this boy claims to hold, and bad things happened when he disregarded the man and refused to follow him. He fears that will happen again. Whether or not Berk has such power will not change that fear.”

Astrid was confused. She had never heard of this before. What could be so bad that it caused Stoick the Vast to fear resistance.

Her father must have seen the confusion on her face because he sighed and answered the unspoken question.

“There was a great gathering of chieftain to discuss the dragon scourge they faced, and we still face now. Stoick claims a stranger from a strange land entered. He was covered is scars and draped in a cloak of dragon skin. He carried no weapon, but he showed confidence. He said he was Drago Bludvist, and he was a man of the people, devoted to freeing mankind from the tyranny of dragons. He claimed he alone could control the dragons and he alone could keep everyone safe, but only if they chose to bow down and follow him. They laughed at the offer, seeing it as a foolish trick. Then, he wrapped himself in his cloak and cried out, ‘Then see how well you do without me!’ The building burst into flames, and armored dragons barged in, burning the hall to the ground. Stoick alone escaped. And since that day, he has feared anyone who claims to control the dragons.

“He wouldn’t admit it, but I believe that partly why Hiccup’s claims enraged him to such an extent. He knew logically his son wasn’t like Drago, but he still feared the prospect of someone ever trying to control the dragons.

“No matter what is said, at this point Stoick sees it as a better option to fight alongside the other tribes in an attempt to stop this war we’ve been fighting for generations than to risk adding another war against all other tribes on top of our current one.”

Astrid sighed. She knew it was hopeless at this point. She could reveal her side and explain why no one should go, but it would merely result in her being marked a traitor and everyone still heading to the island. All she could do now was go along and hope to minimalize the damage and convince them to flee as soon as possible.

“I guess I will go pack and sharpen by axe then.”

“My dear, you are not going with us, thank the gods.”

“What! Why? I am a strong, capable warrior. He said all who could were going, and I can go.”

“Yes, but the teenagers as a whole have shown they are incapable of fighting dragons at this point. It would be senseless to bring just one. It’s for the best. Now, we must finish preparing for the morning. Go get some rest. We shall say our goodbyes tomorrow before we depart.”

Astrid walked away crushed. She hoped this new dragon controller guy would be convinced brute force wouldn’t work. That there was another way.

She didn’t sleep at all that night. Her mind was racing too much to rest. When dawn arrived, she walked down to the docks with the Thorstons. The docks were packed. Since most of Berk was there, it was hard to move between around. For once, she was glad she wasn’t a full-grown adult. Searching for her parents, she forced her way through the crowds. She bade them farewell, and they told her she must stay strong and pray Odin would protect them all.

Scanning the sea, she saw more ships than ever before in her life. She looked at the tribe crests on the flags. Meatheads. Bog Burglars. Grimbeards. Visithugs. There were more she didn’t recognize. There were even some Berserk and Outcast ships, and they never sided with anyone else. They must be really desperate… or afraid. Then she saw the Thunderfoot fleet. One of their ships was docked. She wondered how Ossur had handled all of this. If he tried to stop this as well.

She turned to head back into the village when she saw Stoick talking to Skorri. Wonder what that’s about. She decided to move closer. As she drew near, she felt a hand on her shoulder.

“Well hello there, Astrid. Come to say farewell and wish luck?”

“Ossur. I’m glad I got the chance to see you. Granted, I wish it were under different circumstances.”

“Indeed,” he said. He was carrying himself in that same cocky fashion he held when they first met. Astrid didn’t like it, but she just assumed he was simply keeping up a persona in public. Right?

Ossur continued. “I hoped we would meet after I returned from leading our people to victory, but I suppose I can see you then too.”

Astrid felt her skull might implode. “What? What are you talking about? Leading them? Didn’t you try and stop it? Or at least not go along with it? I mean, we both agreed that the fighting is wrong. There are other ways to peace. And when I showed you that they could be trained….”

“Yes, yes. We did agree that the way we were going about the war was wrong. And I am extremely grateful you showed me what you did.” The boy rubbed his hands on her arms in a way she would have punched him for if she were processing things properly. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for that. Without you, I never would have caught that Gronkle and made it show me the dragons’ nest.”

Astrid shook her head. “No. No. You’re joking right?”

“Of course not. I am quite sincere. I am truly grateful for what you taught me.”

Snapping out of her trance, Astrid pulled away from him. “If you really listened to anything I said, then you wouldn’t be doing any of this. You wouldn’t be manipulating people and dragons to do your will just to try and gain some glory on the battlefield. You said you saw the good in the dragons too. What happened to that?”

Ossur laughed in a way that sent shivers down her spin. “My dear, you were so naïve. When I first met you, I was enticed by your beauty and confident strength. I thought we could be great beside each other, you bringing me glory and power. You immediately denied me, and I found out it was because you were missing some weak boy who made friends with dragons. You were so lonely and longing for companionship. It was sooo easy for me to convince you to open up to me.

“When I realized you knew so much about dragons, I saw how much power I’d gain if I continued to play along. Then, I could go home, and through what you showed me, I learned to control the dragons like no one there had seen before. I used it to make them fear me. To make them follow me. To give me power. Even my own father now lets me organize such a large attack for he dares not deny me.

“I convinced you to teach the others on your island what you had learned. That would earn you respect and authority, and then I could one day attain power over Berk through you, especially with its true heir gone. We could become the answer to all of Berk’s – maybe even the archipelago’s – problems if we could just align. Honestly, I was surprised you never pieced it all together.”

Astrid turned away, holding her head. She felt lightheaded. This couldn’t be happening. How could she have been so blind? She should have never let her guard down to a stranger. Ashe knew better than that. If she hadn’t been so emotionally caught up over Hiccup’s departure, she would have seen the stupidity in her actions. But she hadn’t. And now people were going to war – people were going to die – because of her.

“Well, if you’ll excuse me,” Ossur said smugly, “I have an armada to lead.” He started walking away but turned around after a few steps. “Now, I hope we can become much closer after I return. You will see my way is much better in the long run, and you will fall for me instead. You’ll see.” With that, he left.

Astrid was in shock. She should have seen this coming. She hadn’t liked him when they first met. Her gut had told her that he was trouble. Her gut always warned her. She knew to listen to it. Why would she ignore it? How had she gotten into this mess?

She stumbled away from the docks, which was much easier than getting down to them since so many people had already boarded the boats. At the top, she assembled with the other teens. All of them wore grieved expressions, knowing the danger those on the ships faced.

Astrid wanted to do something. To stop them. To protect her people. To protect the dragons. There was no way the vikings could take down the queen by brute force. They needed to understand the dragons and how they worked. The only people who knew how to do that were standing at the top of the docks. And what were they supposed to do about it? Everything she had tried to do had failed. Sure, she had taught Fishlegs, Ruffnut, and Snotlout, but what good was that at this point?

Astrid poked at a rock by her feet and listened as her friends spoke.

“What can we do?” Fishlegs asked.

“There’s nothing we can do,” Snotlout replied. “We’re just a few teenagers. And even if we were a whole army, we have no way to get there.”

“Yeah,” Tuffnut said. “What are we gonna do? Sprout wings and fly after them?”

Astrid’s head shot up. She felt like lightning had struck her brain. A plan began to formulate inside her mind. Could it work? Maybe. Would it be dangerous? Most definitely. But was it worth a shot?

“What is it, A?” Ruffnut asked. A grin spread across her face. “You have a plan, don’t you?”

“Maybe.” She turned to look at the four standing by her. “It’ll be dangerous. A lot can go wrong. I wouldn’t blame any of your for staying here.”

“Are you kidding me?!” Snotlout cried. “Danger is my middle name! Where do I sign up?”

“I’ll help in any way I can,” Fishlegs added.

“You know I wouldn’t leave you to all the fun,” Ruffnut said.

“Well I’m not getting left out of the loop this time. No way. I’m coming too,” Tuffnut replied.

“That’s great. Okay. If we all work together, we might have a shot at this.”

“So,” Ruff began. “What is the plan?”

Astrid smiled as everything continued to click in her mind. “Something crazy.” Taking off running, she cried over her shoulder, ”Follow me!”

Chapter Text

The teens followed Astrid into the training arena. Fishlegs, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut seemed wary since they hadn’t been there after the Hiccup and Nightmare incident. Snotlout was much more confident as all his training had been there.

“Ummm, Astrid?” Fishlegs questioned. “I don’t think this is the best time for training how to fight dragons.”

“Well, it’s a good thing we aren’t fighting them then.”

“Well, what exactly are we doing then?” Ruffnut asked.

Astrid spun around, facing the teens who were now Berk’s – and basically the archipelago’s – best hope. A grin spread across her face. They all might be just crazy enough to do this.

“We’re going to ride them.”

“WHAT!” Snotlout cried, eyes nearly shooting out of his skull. “I clearly just heard you wrong.”

“Nope.” Astrid replied calmly. She walked towards Hookfang’s cage. “You have all been learning how to train dragons. Now you will put that knowledge to use. For Berk.”

“Ummmm,” Tuffnut squinted at Astrid in confusion. “Did I miss something? Oh wait. I knew it! You all were forming some super-secret teen’s club without me. You dare exclude the most mischievous, destructive, rule-breaking guy on the island from a scheme this grand? How rude! I am disgusted. I am revolted. I dedicate my entire life to the God of Mischief, Loki Laufeyson, and this is the thanks I get?”

Astrid blinked at the male teen for a few second. She had completely forgotten he hadn’t known. She always assumed his sister would have told him something about it after all this time. Or at least he would have put all the pieces together.

She turned to Ruffnut. “You never told him anything?”

The female twin looked at her in disgust. “Are you serious? You think I wanted this idiot ruining our time together. He would just mess everything up. Besides, I agreed I wouldn’t tell, so I didn’t.”

Astrid turned back to Tuffnut who was looking at her expectantly. “Okay. Well, where do I start?”

“At the beginning.”

Astrid glared at him for a few moments as she gathered her thoughts. “Um. Well. For a while now, I have been teaching Fishlegs, Snotlout, and your sister to befriend and train dragons instead of fighting them. Fishlegs and Ruff have been working with me and my Nadder, Stormfly, who lives in the woods. But Snotlout wanted to work with a Nightmare, so we have been working with the Nightmare here in the arena, who he named Hookfang.”

“So let me get this straight,” Tuffnut began. “You have been betraying the entire tribe and getting other people to do so with you. And now, after everything we know is falling apart, you want to bring me into this mess?”

“Well, yeah.” Astrid said hesitantly. She really should have thought things through a little better. “Look. I understand this is a lot to take in, and you might not want to get near the dragons right now. We have all been trained to believe they are wicked, dangerous killers, but they can be good. And we could use all the help we could get at this point, so….”

“If I train one, can I get it to blow stuff up?”

Astrid furrowed her brow. “What?”

“Well, it would be stupid of me to not come with you at this point. I know all your secrets. And besides, it would be unwise for you to not seek the help from the world’s most deadly weapon. Me.”

Astrid ignored his last remark. “So you’re willing to help?”

“As long as I get to keep it afterwards. Oh, and name it. It can be my new pet. It has to get along with Chicken, though. Cause Chicken came first, and we have a Chicken code to stand by. So if one has to go, bye-bye dragon, you know what I mean?”

“Not in the slightest. But I’ll take what I can get.”

Astrid reached for the lever on Hookfang’s cage and turned to Snotlout. “You ready?”

The boy nodded.

“Everyone one else might want to get back behind Snotlout, just to be safe. And don’t panic. Just stay calm. Don’t act threatening, and he won’t threaten you.”

Once everyone had backed up, Astrid opened the cage and Hookfang ambled out. Now that he was used to getting out of his cage with her and Snotlout and not being immediately attacked, the dragon no longer burst out of the cage in a flaming frenzy. Hookfang stopped when he saw the other teens behind him. His head lowered, nostrils flaring as he crept forward. He circled the teens, who were clearly panicked but did as they were told and did not move or act in any way that could be perceived as threatening. Once the dragon had sniffed and studied the group to his satisfaction, he returned to Snotlout and nudged him in the back.

“Good to see you too, Hooky.” The boy stroked his dragon’s snout, causing a hum of contentment to come from the large reptile’s throat.

While this was happening, Astrid walked over to the pile of supplies and weapons at the edge of the arena. She knew it took her a long time to master balancing and steering when riding Stormfly, and they didn’t have that much time. She rummaged around until she found some long sections of rope coiled up. That could work. She could tie it around the dragons’ necks so everyone would have something to hold on to.

She walked back to others. “Okay, Snotlout. Let’s get this started,” she said as she clapped her hands together.

Astrid walked up to Hookfang, who eyed the ropes in her arms cautiously. She dropped all but one and held the remaining coil out. The dragon sniffed it. Once it was established there was no threat, Hookfang sat down and watched Astrid. She approached the Nightmare. Stroking along his neck, she worked her way to the shoulder. Then, she tossed the rope over his neck, pulled the two ends together, and formed a knot. After she pulled on it to make sure it was secure – and not too tight to be uncomfortable for Hookfang – she stepped back.

“Okay. Now, try and climb onto him. But slowly. Don’t move to quickly. Make sure he knows what you are doing the whole time.”

Snotlout puffed out his chest, trying to seem brave, but Astrid could see he was really scared out of his mind.

“It’ll be fine,” she assured.

Snotlout grabbed the rope. Hookfang turned to look at the boy, head tilted as he tried to figure out what his friend was doing. When Snotlout began pulling himself up, the dragon shifted away. Immediately, the boy let go and backed up.

“Maybe this isn’t a good idea.” He said. “He clearly doesn’t like it.”

“He just wasn’t expecting it. It’s something new. Try again.”

Snotlout shuffled over to the dragon once more and took hold of the rope. Taking a deep breath, he once again hoisted himself up. This time, however, Hookfang didn’t move away. Snotlout pulled himself all the way up until he was straddling the Nightmare’s neck. The dragon gave a snort but showed no signs of retaliation.

Snotlout’s beamed with excitement. “Did you see that? Did. You. See. That?!? I did that! All by myself! Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!” He let go of the rope and pumped his fists in the air. This caused him to lose balance, and he almost fell. He quickly caught himself. “I meant to do that.”

Astrid shook her head. “Good job, Snotlout. Now.” She turned to Fishlegs. “Your turn.”

The boy stepped back. “Wh-what? Me. No, no, no. I-I think the twins should go first.”

“Yeah!” both twins shouted simultaneously.

“Okay then. Guess it’s your turn.”

“Me first! Me first!” Tuffnut screamed and started running towards her.

He was quickly grabbed by the back of his hair and thrown backwards as Ruffnut scrambled to reach Astrid first. “No way! Me first!”

“Nah ah.”

“Yah ha.”

“Since I have been left out for so long, I should go first.”

“That’s exactly why you shouldn’t. I have more experience than you with dragons. You don’t know what you’re doing.”

“Well, it can’t be too hard. If it was, how could you do it?”

The two started throwing punches at each other, gradually progressing towards Astrid, who was wondering how on Midgard she was supposed to work with these two together. Somehow, Tuffnut managed to reach her first.

“Ha! I win! So. I want that Terror. The one we trained with. I have a connection with it. After it tried to bite my nose off, I feel like we bonded. Clearly that shows he liked me better than everyone else since I was the only one he bit.”

Astrid shook her head at the twin’s ludicrous logic. “I’m glad you want to train that little guy, but if we are going to help save Berk, we need a dragon you can ride. Which means a big dragon.”

“Oh.”

Ruffnut grabbed a horn on her brother’s helmet and threw him to the ground behind her. “I want the Zippleback. Those things are awesome.”

“No way! That was my next pick!” Tuffnut cried.

“Well you already made your first pick, so now I get mine.” She stuck her tongue out at her brother.

“But I want it!”

The twins ended up headbutting, trying to knock each other over (or out) as they argued over who would train the Zippleback.

“Oh, for Thor’s sake, we don’t have time for this,” Astrid mumbled. She walked over to the brawling siblings and tore them apart.

“Here’s an idea. A Zippleback has two heads. Just like you two. So why don’t you two shaaaare the dragon. Huh?”

“No!”

“Absolutely not!”

“The two of us – “

“Working together – “

“No way!”

“You really are crazy!”

Astrid pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. “Oh, for Thor’s sake, it’s just one time. You can train separate dragons once this is all over.”

“But I don’t want to.”

“Me neither.”

“Fishlegs!” Astrid spun around to the boy. “Why don’t you pick next.”

“Oh. Okay. Well, what are all my options exactly?” he questioned.

“You have a Nadder, a Gronckle, and a Zippleback.” Astrid replied.

Fishlegs began to pace, deep in thought over which one was his best option. “Well, Zipplebacks scare me most, so that’s out of the question. And Nadders are so fast and energetic. I don’t think I would feel very stable on one. So, I guess I’ll take the Gronckle?”

“Good choice. I think that would be a good fit for you.” Astrid said as she walked over the Gronkle cage. “Everyone, back up again. Fishlegs, you come over here.”

Fishlegs shuffled over to the cage entrance. “Are you sure about this? I mean, I love Stormfly, but she was already trained by you. What if I can’t train one on my own?”

“You’ll do great, Fishlegs. You’re a natural. Just stay calm, and remember everything you’ve learn. I have full trust in your competence.” Astrid smiled at the boy reassuringly, and he smiled back.

Astrid flipped the lever, and the Gronckle flew out. It started circling the arena, taking in its surrounding, clearly expecting an attack. Fishlegs took a few steps forward. He was noticeably shaking in fear, but he persevered.

“Hey boy. Or girl. I have no idea what you are,” he began. “It’s okay. I won’t hurt you. I want to be your friend. If you don’t try to eat me, I would really appreciate it.”

The Gronckle landed and started creeping towards the boy. Slowly, Fishlegs closed his eyes and stretched out a trembling hand. The dragon stared at the extended extremity for a moment. Then, it took a step forward. And then another step. And another step. Soon, it was close enough to touch. The Gronckle sniffed the hand for a moment before leaning into it.

Fishlegs let out a sigh of relief. He opened his eyes and smiled at the dragon, who was now wagging its tail – or rather whole body since the tail was so short – and dangling its tongue at him.

“Well aren’t you a sweet Gronckle. Yes you are.” Fishlegs began to rub the dragon’s chin, which made it even happier.

“Great job, Fishlegs.” Astrid said. She tossed a coil of rope to him. “You keep working while I handle the twins.”

She turned to the two Thorstons, who had miraculously stopped fighting for the time being. “So. Either one of you can ride the Zippleback and the other gets the Nadder, or you can share the Zippleback.”

Ruffnut placed her hands firmly on her hips. “I am not riding the Nadder. No offense to Nadders, of course. I love Stormfly. But I want a Zippleback.”

“Okay. That’s fine. Tuff? What do you have to say?”

Tuffnut contorted his face in thought. “Do Nadders make giant explosions?”

“Not typically. They have a magnesium blast, so it’s very hot and can cause certain elements to explode if you fire at it long enough. But they themselves just shoot fire.”

The male twin huffed and slumped his shoulders. “I guess I’ll share the Zippleback then.”

“Great. Glad that is finally settled.”

Astrid opened the Zippleback cage. Unlike the other dragons who burst forth, this dragon cowered in the corner.

“What is it doing?” Ruffnut questioned.

“It’s probably expecting us to throw an eel at it,” Astrid replied nonchalantly.

“Why would it think we would throw an eel at it?” Tuffnut asked.

“Never mind. Just, wait one second.”

Astrid walked into the cage. The dragon hissed at her, still pushing itself as far into the corner as physically possible. “It’s okay. We won’t hurt you,” she reassured it in a soft voice as she reached out her hands, one to each head. The heads looked at each other, both confirming they were going to act in conjunction. The dragon carefully untangled itself. One head sparked, and the other head hissed out gas in warning, but Astrid stood her ground. She knew she wasn’t provoking it, so it wouldn’t harm her. The Zippleback inched forward.

Before the dragon reached her, Astrid carefully backed out of the cage. As she had hoped, the Zippleback followed. She continued to back until she had the twins on either side of her.

“Okay, Ruffnut, you know what to do,” she said. “Now, Tuffnut, did you see what Fishlegs did with that Gronckle?”

Out of the corner of her eye, Astrid saw Tuffnut nod.

“You are going to do the same thing. It will show that you trust the dragon, which will help it trust you. Okay?”

Tuffnut nodded again.

Astrid stepped behind them, and she watched as each twin extends their hand to the dragon. The Zippleback flapped its wings and coiled its necks together. After it saw it was safe, it uncoiled itself and both heads nuzzled the twins’ hands.

“Woah!” Tuffnut exclaimed. He smirked mischievously. “You are gonna help be bring so much destruction to this Archipelago.”

Astrid tossed the remaining two coils of rope at the twins. “Think you can manage that on your own?”

“Oh yeah.”

“Definitely.”

Astrid wasn’t sure if they would actually be okay on their own, but she decided to let them try. Since they were still inside the arena, things couldn’t get too out of hand, right? She walked over to the Terrible Terror’s cage and let it out. Even though no one could ride it, she didn’t like the idea of it being trapped all by itself. She approached the final cage and pulled on the lever.

The Nadder shot forth from the opening. It was green with hints of pink. Its horns and tail spines were a vibrant yellow. Truly, it was a beautiful creature.

It charged towards Astrid. Before she could even respond, the dragon had stopped. That was strange. But what was stranger was how it was sniffing her and… now hopping around and nuzzling her.

“Well, that was easier than I thought.” Astrid stroked the Nadder, and she received a happy trill in response. She decided to put away the strange behavior for now. She was sure she would find a reason for it later.

Now that everyone had their own dragon – or at least their own head – they could start flying, go get Stormfly, and then hopefully save the day.

Chapter Text

Astrid hoisted herself onto the Nadder, who she had decided to name Sharpshot. During training, he has always had impeccable aim with his tail spins. She hoped that skill would come in handy later on.

She leaned forward and stroked the Nadder’s neck. “So, how well do you think this flying session will go, boy?” she whispered to the dragon.

In response, Sharpshot shook his head and stomped one foot. He trilled in a way that greatly resembled a chuckle.

“Yeah, I’m thinking the same thing.”

Astrid urged Sharpshot forward, and they walked into the center of the group.

“Listen up everyone,” Astrid called. Once she had everyone’s attention, she continued. “Now that you are all on your dragons, we are going to get you off the ground.”

Fishlegs, who was barely staying on his Gronckle’s back, lifted a finger in protest. “Um, are you sure about this? I think we all need a little more time.”

“I agree this is not ideal, but unfortunately we do not have more time. We need to move as quickly as possible. But don’t worry. There is a long flight between here and the nest for everyone to grow accustomed to flying.”

“So we are going to the nest?” Snotlout asked. “I mean, assumed so, but I never actually heard a plan, sooo.”

“Yes,” Astrid answered. “We aren’t much good to anyone from here. That’s why we need to ride the dragons.”

“How do we know where the nest is. Isn’t that crazy Ossur the only one who knows where it is?” Fishlegs interrupted.

“Not exactly. I remember how to get there from when Hiccup and I accidently found it.”

“How convenient,” Snotlout retorted.

“I could be wrong, well probably not cause I am always right,” Tuffnut said, “but do I not recall Hiccy going on and on about how dangerous this dragon queen or whatever it is and how it makes the dragons act against their nature? Or at least something like that.”

They all stared at him. “How do you remember all that?” Ruffnut questioned. “Just listening made my head hurt.”

“I listen sometimes, okay. I pay attention when it involves danger and death,” Tuffnut said in defense.

“Well, for once you are completely right… somehow,” Astrid said. “The queen uses some sort of mind control on them. The closer the dragons are to the nest, the more impact this control has on them. That’s why the dragons here in the arena act differently after the raid they’re captured in is over. Once the queen’s command has been acted out, the dragons are far enough away for her control to have no hold on them. If they don’t return to the nest and let her brainwash them again, their own will takes over. At least that’s what all the evidence points to.”

“So let me get this straight,” Snotlout interrupted. “You want me to ride to the nest on some dragon that is going to lose it’s mind and do whatever this queen wants it to do – which will most likely be attack if not kill me? Yeah, that sounds like a great plan. Way to go, Astrid.”

“That does sound pretty problematic,” Fishlegs said. “I mean, I want to help as much as everyone else, but I don’t see how us being in the exact same position as everyone else is going to help anything.”

Astrid sighed. “Okay. I know it sounds insane, but I think there is a way around that.”

“How?” Ruffnut questioned.

“Well, when Hiccup and I went to the nest, Toothless had been taken over by the mind control.”

Snotlout rolled his eyes. “Oh yes, very convincing argument for our safety.”

“Just shut up and listen,” Astrid snapped at him. He complied.

Astrid continued. “He took us inside the nest, but once he sensed Hiccup and I were in real danger, he snapped out of it. Now, I could be wrong, but it seems the bond between human and dragon allows the dragon to be brought out of this brainwashed trance. So, since you have now all gained the trust of your dragons, I’m hoping you will be able to snap them out of it quickly, and then we can proceed.”

“But we aren’t as close to these dragons as Hiccup was with that Night Fury,” Fishlegs stated. “How do we know if the bond will be strong enough for me to snap Meatlug here out of it?” he asked pointing down at his Gronckle.

“We don’t know for sure,” Astrid answered, “but it’s the best option we have. So.” She looked around at the teens on their dragons around her. “What do you say?”

After a moment of silent contemplation and exchanged glances, Tuffnut threw his hands in the air and screamed, “I’m with her! Who else?!”

The remaining teens nodded their heads, agreeing to this crazy, dangerous plan.

“First things first, I need to get you all off the ground,” Astrid said. “Let’s start with posture. You want to grip with your legs to keep you balanced. Keep your shoulders and hips aligned. Unless you are diving or trying to gain speed. Then you will lean forward, resting your forearms on your dragon’s neck. But we don’t need to worry about speed or fancy maneuvers right now. We just need to make sure you won’t immediately fall off. Now, let me see you all get into flight position.”

Each of the teens shifted themselves – some more naturally than others – into place. Once Astrid was satisfied with their posture, she continued.

“Alright. When taking off, you want to lean forward slightly. This counteracts the momentum of your dragon taking off. Now, you don’t want to lean forward to much, because that can throw you off balance as well. Just stay mindful of it. Okay. When you’re ready, give your dragons a nudge to get them in the air.”

Fishlegs was the only one who understood the meaning of a nudge. Therefore, he and his Gronckle rose into the air smoothly and hovered in place.

Everyone else, however, bashed their heels as hard as possible into their dragons, which did nothing but irritate them. Hookfang retaliated by taking off, flipping sideways, and slamming into the wall so his rider got scraped off. The twins’ Zippleback – apparently they named the heads Barf and Belch since that’s what they started screaming – twisted their necks so Ruffnut and Tufnutt were hanging upside down, clinging on for dear life.

“Oh, for Thor’s sake,” Astrid mumbled to herself as she ran her hands across her face. “I said ‘Nudge’. Not ‘Try to maim with your boots’. Snotlout, get back on Hookfang. Ruff. Tuff. Pull yourselves up. Try this again. Gently this time.”

After a few more tries – and a few more times of being thrown, tossed, and dangled – all dragons and riders hovered in the air.

“Yahooo! First try!” Snotlout exclaimed.

Astrid just rolled her eyes at the boy’s antics.

“Okay, now we will work on steering. When you want to change trajectory, lean in the direction you want to go. Make sure not to shift too much or you’ll fall when the dragon moves. You only need to lean enough for your dragon to feel the shift and shift with you.”

“Can’t we just pull on the ropes? That seems easier. See?” Ruffnut yanked on Barf’s rope. The Zippleback hissed in protest and swung its head around, slamming Ruffnut in the stomach. This threw her the short distance to the ground.

“Okay. Maybe leaning is better,” she said, standing up and brushing the dirt off her clothes.

“Haha, do it again! Do it again!” her brother said.

Ruffnut tried to jump up and grasp the rope on her still hovering dragon, but it was too high up.

“Land the dragon, you mutton head,” she called up to her brother.

“No way!” he replied. “Where’s the fun in that? This is much more entertaining.”

Ruffnut scrunched up her face and pointed at her sibling. “When we are way up high over the ocean, I’m gonna throw you off and not let you back on and see how you like it.”

“You’ll have to get up here first,” Tuffnut said. He leaned forward and nudged Belch onward. The boy and dragon began circling slowly around the arena, just high enough up to be out of Ruffnut’s reach.

“Will! You! Stop! For! One! Second! You! Buttelf!” Ruffnut screamed between jumps. She chased the duo, jumping and falling on her face time and time again. Barf kept reaching his head down to try and help her, but Belch would headbutt him to prevent such.

“Well, at least we know those two are loyal to their riders,” Fishlegs stated.

“Yeah, I suppose that is one take away from this madness,” Astrid replied.

“Shouldn’t you be stopping them so we can move along?” Snotlout asked.

“Eh. At least they are practicing their steering. Or one of them at least.” She turned to Snotlout and Fishlegs who were waiting patiently for further instructions. “You guys can practice to. I would just stay near the center. They don’t seem to be paying the best of attention to their surroundings.”

As she said this, there was a loud thud. The three turned and saw Ruffnut had managed to grab one of the wings and, in her attempt to climb up, prevented it from flapping. The other wing beat wildly, trying to keep the dragon and twins in the air, but the dragon ended up sideways, crashing into the wall. When the poor creature had finally collapsed on the ground, Ruffnut clambered onto Barf.

“Oh yeah. Take that!” She cried and punched her brother to the ground.

When everyone was back on their dragons and had flown around a while, Astrid opened the gate to the arena.

“Yeah! We gonna go kick some butt now?” Snotlout yelled excitedly.

“Not quite yet. We have one stop before we leave the island. Just follow me.”

Astrid and Sharpshot shot out of the arena and turned towards the woods. Astrid looked over her shoulder to make sure the others were doing okay. Right behind her, Snotlout sat on Hookfang, head held high. He had made a lot of quick progress in the arena. Turned out it was easier for him to sit right behind Hookfang’s head and hold onto his horns instead of using the rope at the dragon’s shoulders.

Behind him, the twins flew in a zigzag pattern. They were constantly fighting over who was steering more. At least they were making forward progression and were staying on the dragon now. That had to count for something.

Fishlegs brought up the rear. He held onto the rope around Meatlug’s neck for dear life. Astrid could have sworn she heard him mumbling “I don’t wanna die. I don’t wanna die,” over and over, but there was too much wind to tell for sure. Either way, Meatlug seemed to pick up on his fear and was flying as slowly and smoothly as possible while staying with the group. The boy caught Astrid watching him, and she gave him a thumbs up. He smiled in return and seemed to somewhat relax.

Astrid scanned the woods until she found the cove. She leaned forward and gradually descended towards it. Before they even reached it, she heard Stormfly trilling with joy and spotted her Nadder streaking through the air towards them. On seeing her, Sharpshot cooed in response and picked up speed. When they reached each other, they spun in some intricate pattern around each other, nuzzling and warbling to each other as they did so.

“What are they doing?” Astrid asked more to herself than anyone in particular.

To her surprise, Fishlegs answered. “I believe they are doing some form of mating dance.”

Astrid looked at him startled. “Really? You think they’re mates?”

“Looks like it,” he said.

Astrid looked down at the Nadder she was riding and smiled. Scratching his neck, she said, “Welcome to the club then, Sharpshot.” The dragon cooed in reply. “Now, if you don’t mind, I would like to move to Stormfly, so if you could just get a little closer….”

The two Nadders moved as close to each other as possible while flapping their wings. Astrid leaned over and grabbed one of Stormfly’s crest horns, using it to pull herself onto the dragon.

“Hey, girl. Glad we found your mate.” Stormfly trilled. “Now, we have some business to take care of. Ready to free all your dragon friends for good?” Both Nadders warbled in anticipation.

“Okay everybody. To Dragon Island we go!” She took off in the right direction, and the others followed suit.

After a while, Fishlegs gained more confidence, the twins came to some form of agreement, and Snotlout continued to be… Snotlout.

“Heyyyy, Astrid,” he said, coaxing Hookfang to fly beside Stormfly.

Astrid sighed. She knew that tone. But she knew he would just keep saying her name until she gave him acknowledgement. Besides, he was getting better. Less annoying. Most of the time.

“Yes, Snotlout.”

“You know,” he said, leaning closer to her, “It is so beautiful up here in the clouds, don’t you think.”

“It is a very nice view. I love being way up here.”

“You know what’s even more beautiful than the view?”

She sighed. “What, Snotlout?” She knew where this was going, but she also knew they still had a long flight ahead of them, so she might as well let this progress so he would stop more quickly.

“Those beautiful, sky blue eyes of yours.” He winked at her.

She rolled her eyes and gazed ahead once more.

“Heyyyy, Astrid,” he said once again.

“Yes, Snotlout.”

“Way up here, with your commanding attitude, the wind whipping through your hair, sun beams shine perfectly upon you, I see truly just how much of a perfect pair we are.”

Astrid cocked her eyebrow, still looking ahead. “You don’t say.”

“I do. I mean, just look at how great I look on this dragon. I look like a chieftain, don’t you say?” Astrid turned and saw him flexing all his muscles. He even blew a kiss in her direction. “The Chieftain and the Valkyrie. Whata ya say? Perfect match, right?” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

Astrid was about to completely ignore the whole thing as usual when a thought popped into her head. A sly grin spread across her face as she turned to the flirtatious boy. Why not have a little fun before all Hel broke loose, right?

Putting on the best flirtatious persona she could muster – which wasn’t much, but it worked – she said, “You know what, you’ve won me over, Snotlout.”

His face immediately changed from smug to completely taken aback.

“Let’s do this,” Astrid continued.

“Do what?” Snotlout asked sounding disgusted.

“Be a couple,” Astrid answered in a sing-song voice. “You and me. Together. Forever.” She flew closer to Snotlout, and he actually pulled back. It took everything in her to not bust out laughing, but she continued with her act. “I’m seeing you as if for the first time.”

“Stop it!” he cried. “You’re freaking me out! This isn’t how this process goes!”

“But,” Astrid got so close to the boy she was able to cup his face in her hands. “The clouds are reflected so beautifully in your mud brown eyes.”

“Clouds?” Snotlout screeched. “What clouds?” He was clearly looking for a way out because they were literally surrounded by clouds.

“That one right… look out!” she cried, swerving away from a giant column of rock that had suddenly sprung out of the clouds. Everyone started dodging towering rock formations left and right.

“It looks like we have made it to Helheim’s Gate. That means we are almost there,” Astrid called out. “Everyone, just keep dodging!”

After a few minutes, they were in the clear again. Well, not really clear. The fog was so thick they could barely see a thing. But at least there was nothing they had to avoid crashing into.

“Where is everybody?” Fishlegs shouted. “Did we pass all the ships already?”

“No,” Astrid shouted back. “The wind seems to be pretty strong. The ships would have sailed swiftly. They are probably at the nest by now.”

“Well, that can’t be good,” Fishlegs said. “That means they have already started fighting the dragons.”

“Yeah. We better hurry before things get too bad. Maybe they haven’t woken the queen up.”

As if on cue, there was a deep roar which shook them to the bone. Ahead, they saw a huge blast of fire burst forth from a mountain, illuminating the sky swarming with dragons and the waters dotted with ships. Astrid could faintly make out the screams of vikings.

“Well, too late for that,” she mumbled under her breath as they flew straight towards the chaos.

Chapter Text

As they drew nearer, the unfolding scene grew clearer. Giant rocks and torn apart catapults were evidence that the vikings had tried to blast their way into the mountain. The queen now stood in a vast opening in the side of the volcano. Whether that was from the catapults or the queen’s own demolishing methods Astrid could not decern. Either way, the titan was clearly angered by the attack and has no intentions of letting her nest be taken over without a fight.

About two thirds of the armada was up in flames. Only the outermost ships remained unscathed. That would be a problem with getting everyone off the island, but that was a dilemma for later. A large number of warriors had set foot on land for the attack. Thankfully, it seemed they were evacuating to the opposite end of the island. Astrid hoped this would lessen casualties and allow her and the other riders to deal with the queen without having to worry about innocent bystanders.

The queen was emitting some sort of humming noise that amplified the closer they got. Stormfly started shaking her head, trying to fight off the mind control this sound caused.

“It’s okay, girl. Stay with me,” Astrid said. She reached forward and stroked the Nadder. The physical contact seemed to snap the dragon out of it as her flying steadied once more.

Sharpshot, however, lost control. He became hysterical before transferring into some sort of trance and shooting ahead of the group.

Astrid glanced behind her to make sure the other dragons were fighting off the queen’s will. For now, at least, the dragons’ bond with the teens seemed to be enough to overcome it.

Thick swarms of numerous dragon species orbited the island high in the air. They flew in some sort of daze, completely unresponsive to their surroundings. They seemed to be under the queen’s control, but they were not attacking anyone yet. The group swerved through the flying creatures until they were just above the island.

Now, Astrid could see some of the chieftains and a few warriors had stayed behind in a desperate attempt to keep the queen focused on them. They were yelling, smashing their shields together, throwing spears, anything they could do to provoke the giant creature and keep her attention – and therefore wrath – on them alone. It seemed they realized they could not win, but it had been too late to avoid the battle. This handful of men and women had stayed behind to sacrifice themselves for the rest of the group.

‘Good thing they now have backup,’ Astrid thought to herself.

She sent Stormfly into a dive straight for the roaring queen. “Common guys! It’s go time!”

As she flew over the group of ground fighters, she heard them yelling at each other in confusion. Yeah. Bet this was a surprise.

She signaled Stormfly to send a spineshot at the queen’s face. The spines’ trajectory was perfect, but they had no effect. The skin was too thick. The dragon howled, looking around at the dragons now attacking it, clearly unsure why they were not acting under her command. She opened her mouth wide and snapped at the group of riders.

“Watch your backs, guys!” Astrid called out.

Each of them easily dodged the gaping mouth. The queen was so large, it was almost like she moved in slow motion. The teens and their dragons sped up to Astrid, ready to receive orders. As they did so, Astrid heard Ruffnut gasp and start vigorously waving at the ground.

“Hey, Mom! Dad! It’s me! Your favorite child!” she cried.

Astrid turned to look at the group of vikings on the ground, hoping her own parents would not be with them. She could make out Stoick, Gobber, the Thorstons, Skorri, and a few others she had never seen before. She assumed they were from other tribes. She let out a sigh of relief that her parents were not in the mix. Even though she knew they were still somewhere in this mess, she hadn’t wanted to see them on the front lines. The twins, however, seemed ecstatic that their parents were there.

“Look at us!” Tuffnut yelled. “We’re on dragons! All of us! I know it’s hard to believe, but yes. We are that awesome!”

“Focus, guys, please,” Astrid said, calling their attention back to her.

“Absolutely!” Ruffnut gave a mini salute. “Awaiting orders.”

Astrid turned to Fishlegs. She had no idea what kind of dragon this was or how to fight it, but she knew if anyone could figure it out, it would be him. “Break it down for me,” she said.

Fishlegs looked closely at the dragon. “Okay. Heavily armored skull and tail made for bashing and crushing. Steer clear of both. Small eyes. Large nostrils. Relies heavily on hearing and smell.”

“Okay. I’m thinking since it seems we can’t bring it down directly with our shots, we can force it into the volcano. Then we should be able to manage everything more easily,” Astrid said. “Everyone, aim all you’ve got at her front legs. Try to push her back.”

Astrid dove towards the queen, commanding Stormfly to fire once they were close enough. It was a perfect shot precisely in front of the right foot. Blasts from the others followed it. She swerved upwards to come around for another shot. They did this three times, each round making the queen angrier. With a mighty roar, the queen fired at the band of riders, causing them to disperse. The dragon stomped farther onto the beach, completely counteracting their plan to send her back into the volcano.

Below, the vikings on the land frantically sprinted away from the gargantuan feet threatening to flatten them.

“Wow. This dragon is deadly!” Ruffnut cried.

*

“Yeah. It can kill you with other dragons, its fire, its tail, its head, and its feet,” Tuffnut added.

“All painful, gory deaths.”

Both twins looked at each other and yelled, “Red Death, the dragon!” and high fived each other. “We’re so good with names.”

“It’s not even red,” Snotlout stated.

“But blood and fire are,” Tuffnut countered.

*

“Can we please focus,” Fishlegs said. “I would rather not die.” He turned to Astrid. “So, what do we do now?”

Before she could respond, there was a loud battle cry to their left. They all turned to see many of the retreating vikings had returned and were charging at the Red Death.

“No! No! No!” Astrid cried. “What are they doing? They need to stay out of here. We can’t focus on taking the queen down if we keep having to focus on protecting them.”

“Go,” Fishlegs said. “You get them out of the way. Just tell us what we need to do in the meantime.”

“Okay. Lout. Legs. Hang in its blind spot. Make lots of noise. Keep it confused. Ruff. Tuff. Find out if it has a shot limit. Make it mad.”

“That’s my specialty,” Ruffnut said, practically beaming with excitement.

“Since when?” Tuffnut asked. “Everyone knows I’m more irritating. See?” He leaned over and yodeled in his sister’s face.

“Just do what I told you. I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Astrid said, hoping they would do as instructed for once in their lives. She took off towards the rapidly approaching, reckless mob.

She soon saw the group was being led by none other than Ossur. Of course. She should have known. As she approached him, the boy came to a halt, looking up at her with a sickening smirk.

“Well, well. Look what we have here. Come to save the day, have we?”

Stormfly landed directly in front of the boy. Astrid wanted to make sure he could not pass her. “What are you doing, Ossur? Everyone needs to retreat to the other side of the island.”

The boy waved her off. “Yes, that is the conclusion most of the chiefs reached as well. They, however, are not leading the masses. I am.”

“Well, if you had any sense, you would realize an attack is futile. All that will happen is more people will get hurt. Or worse. If you really are in control of this, tell everyone to turn around.”

“I think it’s a little late for that,” Ossur said, gesturing to the vikings charging past them. They were so intent on attacking the Red Death that they completely ignored the pair standing still. Ossur continued. “I have already convinced them we can bring it down if we all work together.”

“That is extremely unlikely,” Astrid said.

“Maybe so. But it is a win-win scenario for me. If they fail, no one will be left to blame me for the defeat. But on the off chance it does work, they will associate me with the victory since I started it, both here and when we were assembling the armada. All the tribes will be so grateful and view me with such high regards that they will all follow me. I will practically be the chief of the entire known Archipelago.”

“That’s insane!” Astrid cried in exasperation through gritted teeth. “You power-hungry monster! You are willing to let countless, innocent people die just so you can be some mighty tyrant?”

Behind her, Astrid could hear the chaos escalating. She turned to see vikings scrambling to avoid the Red Death’s feet, tail, and fire. In the air, Snotlout, Fishlegs, and the twins were working tirelessly to keep the dragon’s attention on them and not those on the ground. The queen’s mind control hum grew louder, and Hookfang and Meatlug seemed to struggle with resisting. Barf and Belch, who were circling farther up, didn’t seem to be as affected. Still, Astrid knew she was running out of time.

She turned back to Ossur. “Your agenda is revolting, and you will pay for it. But right now, I need you to use whatever manipulative power you have on these people and get as many of them as possible out of here. I don’t care how you manage. Just do it, so my team and I can handle this.”

“Oh, yes,” Ossur laughed. “Because you are doing such a fine job. Infuriating the beast more is working so affectively.”

“Let me make this clear,” Astrid said, scrunching her face in rage and disgust. She pointed her finger at Ossur. “I don’t like you. And I don’t know how I ever could have thought we could be friends. But I don’t want you killed. I don’t want anyone killed. So please. Stop this madness.”

Astrid urged Stormfly into the air and whizzed towards the commotion. She didn’t know if Ossur would listen to her. In fact, she was quite doubtful he would. If he did, it would be solely for his own benefit. But she couldn’t waste any more time trying to convince him to help out. She had to stop the fighting.

Hookfang and Meatlug were barely in control at this point. As they worked harder and harder to stay in control of their own minds, they began losing altitude. Thankfully, Stormfly didn’t seem to be influenced that much. If the Nadder was struggling, she displayed not outward signs.

Astrid and Stormfly darted right in front of the Red Death’s face, firing a blast at her nose. Astrid hoped this would distract her enough to lessen her mind control power. To Astrid’s dismay, it seemed to no avail. If anything, it made it worse.

Hookfang started flailing more than ever. Snotlout screamed as he was thrown off his dragon, who fell to the ground. The boy managed to grab a hold of the queen’s coral-shaped frill, saving himself from the lengthy plummet to the ground. He pulled himself onto the dragon’s head and looked around, thinking of what to do from there.

At the same time, Meatlug started a spinning descent of her own.

“I’ve lost power on the Gronckle!” Fishlegs cried, clinging to his rope. He spotted Snotlout on the giant, and he looked down at the hammer he had been carrying the whole time. “Snotlout! Here!” He tossed the hammer and hoped the other teen would catch it.

He and Meatlug downwards. There was a thud as they collided with the rocky ground. Astrid was still flying with the twins around the queen’s head. She couldn’t see Fishlegs or Meatlug, but she hoped they were okay.

As if in response to her internal question, Fishlegs yelled, “I’m okay,” which was shortly followed by a muffled, “Less okay.”

Snotlout, who had thankfully caught the hammer, looked for something to use it on. He knew the skin was too thick for such a small weapon to have any worthwhile impact. Then, he saw the row of eyes on the side of the dragon’s head. He ran over and started pounding the hammer into each eye with all his strength.

“I can’t miss!” he cried. “What’s wrong, buddy? Got something in your eye?”

The irate queen bellowed and stamped her feet in protest. Everyone and everything below scattered to avoid being trampled.

Astrid was impressed by the boys quick thinking. As she passed by him, she shouted encouragement. “Yeah! You’re the viking!” This received a grin from Snotlout.

Unfortunately for Snotlout, the Red Death had had enough of being banged in the eye. She violently shook her head, and a screaming Snotlout was sent flying through the air. Astrid sped to catch him, but she knew she was too far away to reach him in time. To her relief, she saw the twins were much closer.

“Ruff! Tuff! Get Snotlout!” she ordered.

“I’m on it!” Ruffnut replied.

“No! I’m on it first!” Tuffnut said.

“Let me drive!” Ruffnut yelled, steering the dragon one way.

“No, this way!” Tuffnut veered them in the other direction.

They zigzagged close enough to the queen for Snotlout to jump onto the Zippleback. They turned to confront the Red Death once more.

Suddenly, they were bombarded with stray spears and rocks. The vikings on the ground were trying to attack the queen. They were clearly not succeeding. All they were doing was making the teens job harder. After dodging the projectiles for a while, Barf and Belch had been knock around one to many times. They went crashing to the ground.

“Well, looks like it’s just you and me girl,” Astrid said to Stormfly.

Blood pounded in her ears. She was terrified. She had trained to fight as long as she could remember. But this was different. This was a much larger scale than anything could have prepared her for. And she was scared out of her mind. She didn’t know what to do. Nothing seemed to be working. Where was she supposed to go from here?

She prepared for Stormfly to fire another shot. Although this didn’t seem to be working, this was all they had at the moment. Astrid hoped if they kept firing it would slow the queen down and provide enough time for her to think of a better tactic. When Stormfly opened her mouth to fire, nothing came out. She had passed her shot limit. Astrid’s heart dropped.

The Red Death opened her mouth, preparing to swallow and thus destroy her last major opponent. A vacuum captured the Nadder and her rider, pulling them closer and closer to her throat. Astrid could see giant jaws and sword-like teeth coming around them. Stormfly beat her wings with as much force as she could muster, but it was far from enough to escape.

Astrid took a deep breath and closed her eyes, accepting her defeat. They had nothing left to give. They couldn’t beat this.

Just as she was giving up hope, she heard that wonderful, oh-so-familiar whistle.

“Night Fury.”

Chapter Text

Astrid watched as a black streak zoomed right towards the Red Death. There was a large glowing blast, and the queen’s vacuum breath ceased. Stormfly had been pushing so hard that she flew straight out from under Astrid. The girl went falling to the ground, but she wasn’t worried. She knew she would be caught.

She felt something wrap around her ankle and start pulling her through the air

“Did you get her?”

Oh, that voice was music to her ears. Her overwhelming fear of the queen dragon dissipated. It no longer seemed like in impossible feat to take her down. She had help.

Toothless’s green eyes looked at her. She waved to the Night Fury, and he cooed in reply. He flipped her in the air and grasped her by the arms for a more stable grip.

“Astrid?”

Astrid looked up. She couldn’t really see Hiccup. She could make out his foot planted firmly in the stirrup, but that was about it.

She knew the boy couldn’t see her face, but Astrid smiled up at him anyway. “Hey, Hiccup. Nice of you to stop by.”

“Oh yeah. Wouldn’t have wanted to miss the party.”

“How did you know to come here? Were you watching from afar this whole time?”

“Well, I’ve been keeping an eye on Berk. And all the other tribes nearby. I was trying to help manage raids and study the dragons and stuff like that. I noticed all the tribes were uniting and forming a huge armada, which I thought was strange, but I dismissed it at first. I just thought everyone had finally decided to make a peace or something. Anyway, it wasn’t until dragons from farther out than ever before answered to the queen’s call that I knew what the armada was actually for. I knew things would go downhill quickly, so I came as fast as I could. Looks like I got here in the nick of time too.”

“Yeah. You could say that.”

Toothless dove towards the ground where all the vikings and the other teens had assembled. As they neared the ground, Astrid heard gasps from throughout the group.

Once they were close enough to land, Toothless let go of Astrid, and then the Night Fury landed beside her. Hiccup turned to the girl and flipped open his helmet.

“You stay here. I have a plan. Just keep everyone here. I’ll take care of the queen.”

The boy and his Fury were about to take off when a frantic voice sounded from the crowd. Stoick burst through the group. Sweat and soot coated his body, and tears threatened to spill from his eyes.

“Hiccup.” His voiced cracked so much that it barely came out over a whisper. “You came. You didn’t leave us.”

Hiccup’s face softened as he looked at the man. “Of course I came. I told you I would do everything in my power to end this fighting for good. Now seems like the perfect time, don’t you think?”

He turned to take off once more, but Stoick grabbed his arm. “You don’t have to go up there, you know,” the chieftain said. “No one would blame you for not doing anything. We have all seen how dangerous the queen is, and it’s pretty evident that she controls the others. We have seen that your claims are true. You don’t have to rush straight into this perilous, deadly situation.”

“Eh. We’re vikings. It’s an occupational hazard.”

Stoick’s face emanated a bittersweet pride only a father could have. “I’m proud to call you my son. I was mad before. I didn’t mean what I said.”

Hiccup sat up straighter, more determination on his face than ever. Those words had clearly fueled something deep inside him. “Thanks, Dad. I’ll make you proud.” He leaned forwards to take to the air. “Come on, Toothless. Let’s do this thing.”

The Night Fury shot into the air at a rapid speed. The duo rushed towards the Red Death without hesitation. Toothless shot the dragon in the neck. The plasma blast knocked the queen to her side. Apparently, it was more effective than any other dragon’s shot. It still didn’t keep the queen down for long.

What is did do was cause the giant to unfurl its massive wings. She took to the air, slowly ascending in chase of the little black dragon which was shooting vertically away from the island.

Astrid held her breath. She was sure Hiccup knew what he was doing. He was a lot smarter than she was. And better at planning. She had always been an act first, think later kind of girl. Still, the image of the Red Death following him scared her. It didn’t seem like a good plan. She hoped whatever Hiccup was thinking, he would do it quickly.

Soon, the two dragons were so high up that the clouds completely encased them. Everyone on the ground watched with bated breath, looking for any sign of what was going on. Suddenly, flashes of light could be seen through the clouds, outlining the silhouette of the queen. She roared, and the ground beneath the vikings shook even though she was so far away.

Fire illuminated the clouds. Astrid gasped. It would not be good to be inside of that inferno. Hopefully, Hiccup had been able do dodge it. Apparently he did because a few moments later, she saw the outline of a little black dragon diving straight towards the ground, the gaping mouth of the Red Death right on its tail.

The Night Fury spun around so it was falling backwards. One last purple blast shot from the dragon’s mouth… and went straight down the throat of the queen.

She howled in pain as the gas that had built up in her mouth caught fire. As if the explosion inside of her wasn’t enough to stop her, she was crashing down towards the island at an alarming rate. She tried to slow her descent with outstretched wings, but the skin tore apart due to the force from air resistance. The Red Death collided with the ground, followed by the biggest shock wave Astrid had ever witnessed.

Even though they were so far away from the impact, the girl was thrown back by the force of it. When she got up, there was so much smoke and soot polluting the air that she could barely see a thing. In fact, all she could see was the pillar of fire rising from the impact site.

Astrid could hear everyone around her cheering. She was so excited that this whole thing was over that she joined in. It was over. And not just this fight, but the whole war. Without the queen controlling the other dragons, all raids should stop. That meant the war which had lasted for three hundred years would finally come to its conclusion. They could befriend and train the dragons, learning to live in harmony with them. It would be a happily ever after. Hiccup could return and….

Astrid’s heart sunk. Did Hiccup make it out of there? The blast and explosion were so large. She knew the Night Fury was the fastest dragon alive – at least that they had ever encountered – but they had been right below the queen the last time she had seen them. Were they really that fast?

Stoick seemed to have reached the same conclusion as she heard him scream desperately. She heard his feet pounding the rocky ground as he dashed forward. Astrid found herself stumbling in the same direction. The only thing she could process was the words ‘Please be okay. Please be okay. Please be okay.’ over and over in her mind.

After what felt like an eternity, the debris in the air settled down enough for her to see a large crowd gathered in front of her. She sprinted to it and shoved her way to the front of the group. Hiccup had to be at the center, right? Why else would they all have gathered like this? Why did everyone look so sullen?

When she reached the front, the scene brought her to the verge of tears. She felt her body go numb in shock. Her brain could no longer process anything.

A weeping Stoick knelt on the ground before a limp Night Fury. The saddle and tail Hiccup had so masterfully constructed were completely demolished. The rider was nowhere in sight. Groaning, Toothless lifted his head. He looked at the heartbroken man. The dragon’s eyes widened in recognition. Toothless might not have understood just how his friend and this man were connected, but he could understand there was a strong bond between them. And he knew his rider would be safe and taken care of by this man.

With great effort, the Night Fury shifted and unfurled his wings, displaying a limp Hiccup grasped tightly in his claws.

“Hiccup!” Stoick cried, rushing forward and taking the boy into his arms. He threw his helmet carelessly to the side and checked his son for signs of life. “He’s alive,” he breathed out. He looked up at the dragon before him, tears freely streaming down his face. “You brought him back alive.”

Astrid breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone around her was cheering, clapping each other on the back, ecstatic that the boy was okay. Astrid never let herself cry in public, but right now she didn’t care. She let tears of joy spill from her eyes and a watery smile form on her lips. Hiccup was alive. The Red Death was defeated. Everything would be okay.

Gobber hobbled over to his friend and apprentice as Stoick rested his hand on Toothless’s snout. “Thank you. For saving my son,” he choked out.

“Well,” Gobber said. “Most of him at least.”

This comment caused the blacksmith to receive a fierce glare from his friend.

Astrid found that odd, but she wasn’t going to let it bother her. She was sure she would find out what that meant soon enough. Turning to take in the crowd around her, she was shocked to see countless dragons had landed in the midst of the vikings. For the first time in her lifetime – in seven generations’ lifetimes – the vikings and dragons were not trying to harm each other. They had made peace.

Peace. Oh, what a wonderful word that was. Astrid was so excited to see what the future would hold now that there was peace.

The other chieftains had started trying to restore order to the masses. They were dividing the warriors into the various tribes. The outlying ships that could still sail were landing on the beach. Clearly, it would take more than one trip to get everyone off the island, but there was no rush. They were no longer in imminent danger.

In the distance, Astrid heard yelling, which drew her attention. She walked closer to see what was causing the commotion. Skorri and Ossur were in a full-blown confrontation.

“You know,” Skorri yelled, “I never thought it was a good plan in the first place!”

“Well then why did you go along with it?” Ossur interrogated.

“I was trying to be a supportive father! And to be optimistic of the combined forces of the viking tribes! And I was hoping this would be a good lesson for you on leadership, showing me if you were ready to be the chieftain of the Thunderfoot tribe when the time came. I didn’t want to hold you back on the off chance this ludicrous scheme of yours worked. I wanted to give you free reign. But all you did was show me you’re not ready for power. In fact, I don’t think you will never be ready!”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Occur screamed. “I am so ready! Look how they all followed me! They did everything I told them. I united the Archipelago.”

“Yes. To their doom!”

“But it all turned out okay!”

“Thanks to Stoick’s boy. Not you.”

Ossur started stumbling over his words, seeing just how much trouble he was in. “But. But I started this whole thing. He. He wouldn’t have come here and done all this if I hadn’t led the armada here in the first place!”

“Exactly. He wouldn’t have had to risk his and his dragon friend’s lives if you had just acted rationally. That boy cleaned up the mess you made, and you should thank him for it.”

“Me? Thank that pipsqueak? I refuse. I am much better than him. I will be chieftain, and he will work under me.”

“That boy has displayed tremendous courage, thinking, resourcefulness, and self-control! He has all the making of a great chieftain!” Skorri’s shoulders sagged, and his voice lowered drastically, making the next words all the more powerful. “Greater than you, my son, could even dream of being.”

Ossur opened his mouth to scream something in protest, but he found himself at a loss for words. He watched in horror as his father ordered two of his men to take him out of his sight and put him on a boat so they could deal with him back home.

Astrid grinned as a screaming, flailing Ossur was dragged away. Pride always comes before the fall. She hoped he would be greatly punished for all of this. She wondered if she would ever see him again. She couldn’t care less if she did.

Astrid felt a tap on her shoulder. A beaming Ruffnut wrapped her arms around her. Typically, Astrid would have resisted a hug, but she thought this occasion permitted an exception.

“We did it!” the twin cried as she pulled away from the embrace.

“Yeah. Yeah, we did.”

In the distance, Astrid saw Stoick carry Hiccup onto one of two Berkian vessels that was on the shore. Gobber and over a dozen other warriors boarded behind them.

“They are trying to get Hiccup back to Berk as soon as possible,” Ruffnut said. “Apparently, he is really injured and needs to be treated by Gothi.” She turned to look at Astrid. “I know you will want to be with him. You wanna fly?”

Astrid nodded, and the two headed to find their dragons and head home.

Home. They were going home. All of them. To a peaceful Berk. Where they would no longer have to fight. Where she would no longer have to hide Stormfly. Where they could all learn about the dragons and train them. What were they going to do with all the time and resources they previously invested into fighting the dragons? What wonders did the future hold?

It was hard to believe it was finally over. But it was. And Astrid wouldn’t change this feeling for all of Midgard.

Everything was going to be okay.

Chapter Text

The flight back to Berk was much more enjoyable than the one to Dragon Island. The fog enveloping Helheim’s Gate had lifted, making it easier for both dragon and ship to navigate the waters.

Now, impending dread and doom had been replaced by hope and joy. Astrid felt as if a great weight had been lifted off her. The sun shone a little bit brighter, the clouds looked a little bit nicer, the breeze felt a little bit cooler. Astrid basked in the feeling as she rode Stormfly.

By the time they reached Berk, Hiccup had already been tucked away in Gothi’s hut. The elder and Gobber were working to treat whatever injuries the boy received. As usual, Gothi refused to let anyone else inside. Stoick paced anxiously outside the door, ready to rush in the second he was allowed. When Astrid reached the hut, he turned to look at her.

“Is he gonna be okay?” Astrid asked.

The chief nodded. He looked grieved when he spoke. “Aye. He will live. Though it will take some readjustment on his part.”

“What do you mean?” Astrid questioned, walking over to the bench and plopping herself down. She thought she would be there for a while.

“That Night Fury managed to pull him into his wings and save him from most of the flames. To do that, however, Hiccup had to be out of the saddle. I don’t know if he fell or if the dragon threw him off, but that Night Fury had to grab his foot to catch him. In doing so, his left foot got severely damaged. Between the flames that managed to catch him and the teeth biting into the leg, it is too far gone to ever heal. Gothi said the best option was to amputate it.”

Astrid gasped, her hands flying to cover her mouth. “So, he will only have one leg?”

Stoick nodded.

Astrid gazed into the distance. She wasn’t really looking at anything, though. “I couldn’t imagine. That’s gotta be hard.”

“Aye. He’s a strong boy, though. He will overcome it.”

Astrid fiddled with her hands in her lap. They had won, but at what cost. This entire war with the dragons had cost Hiccup so much. First, he lost the trust of his tribe. His father. His home. Now that he was getting all of that back, he was losing his leg. It didn’t seem fair.

Stoick cleared his throat. “You were on his side the whole time, weren’t you?”

Astrid chuckled. “Yeah. Well, after he was chosen to fight the Nightmare, at least.”

She went on to tell the chieftain how she had followed Hiccup, found Toothless, and been taken on that wonderful flight. She recalled how he had taught her about the dragons and shown her they were good. She told how she found Stormfly, how Hiccup helped nurse her back to health. She confessed how she had ended up teaching the other teens about the dragons behind the tribe’s back.

Stoick sat silently, taking in everything she said. He wasn’t mad. She could tell that much. When she finished, they sat in silence for a while before he finally responded.

“Thank you for sticking by his side. He needed more people to do that in his life.”

The two sat quietly for about an hour. The chief eventually cleared his throat once more.

“They said it would be a while. Even after they’re done, there is no telling when he will wake up. Why don’t you go get some rest. And see your parents. I’m sure they are worried about you.”

Astrid stood. “Yes, sir.”

She walked down the steps leading back to the village. The sight shocked her. Dragons were everywhere. The island was overflowing with Berkians, the dragons, and all the other tribe warriors waiting to start their journey home. As she reached the town square, she saw her parents. They spotted her at the same time, and they ran to each other. Her mother wrapped her arms around her daughter.

“That was you, wasn’t it? On that Nadder?”

“Yeah, Mom. That was me.”

Her mother pulled back, eyes watery. She looked at her husband, who stood behind her, and grasped his hand. “We were both so worried about you. When you were being pulled towards that thing’s mouth….” She couldn’t finish her sentence.

Astrid’s father spoke up. “Astrid. We want you to know we are so proud of you. For being so brave. For putting yourself out there like that to save everyone.” He reached forward and brushed a stray hair behind his daughter’s ear. “You have brought the Hofferson name great honor.”

Astrid pulled both of her parents into a tight embrace. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

“Now,” her mother said, pulling out of the hug. “It seems your friends are busy. They could probably use your assistance.”

“Go ahead. We will catch up with you later,” her father said. He and his wife walked away, hand in hand.

Astrid walked deeper into the village and saw what her parents were talking about. Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Fishlegs, and Snotlout were being bombarded by curious vikings. Everyone wanted to know how to interact with the dragons all around them. They were no longer afraid of being attacked, but they were still scared to get to close to the giant reptiles.

Astrid walked up to a particularly large Nightmare and extended her hand. A hush fell over the crowd as the dragon looked at her and then placed its snout into her palm. An excited murmur swept over the crowd. Astrid grinned. This was going to be interesting. For the first time, it was the younger generation instructing the older vikings how to deal with dragons instead of vice versa. Astrid was thrilled to see how this would turn out.

The other tribes left as soon as they could. Most of them didn’t seem very interested in training the dragons. Maybe it was because they hadn’t had one of their own flying around in the battle. Whatever the reason, no one wanted to push it upon them. Now that the dragons were gone, they didn’t have to interact with them anymore. If they wanted to ignore the flying creatures’ existence, they could.

For the next few days, Berk worked diligently to accommodate the dragons. In addition to the last few buildings being restored, construction on dragon stables began. Dragons had bonded with most of the vikings. Many had been accepted as pets or even family.

People continually approached Astrid and the other teens with questions. What should they feed them? Do they need to groom and bath them? Is it okay to keep them in the house? Should their child be allowed to sleep with a dragon like they beg to? When will they be able to ride them? Can they train them to help with chores around the village? The teens patiently answered each question to the best of their abilities.

Stoick had instructed Astrid to prepare for teaching the tribe in some sort of new dragon training. Once Hiccup was up and able, he would take over, but there was no telling how long it would take for that to happen.

Astrid enjoyed teaching. Now, she would much rather put it into practice. And it didn’t compare to swinging an axe around. Not by a long shot. But it was still fun. Calming even.

Her favorite pupil was Sigrid, the little girl from the Stellaris encounter. She had a knack for it. Such innocence and childish joy was refreshing to watch. The girl had bonded with the Terrible Terror from the arena. Sigrid carried the little dragon around in her arms, even though it was almost the same size as her. The Terror didn’t seem to mind though. It liked the attention.

Astrid walked towards the Great Hall for lunch. As she walked, she passed Gobber.

She smiled at the man. “How is that new tail and saddle coming along?” she inquired.

“I think I’m just about done, lass. It’s been difficult. I’m not sure what half the stuff on that thing does. Thankfully, Hiccup made some pretty detailed plans that I can follow.”

“Well that’s good. I’m sure he will appreciate it. It will be good for him to be able to do something he enjoys as he learns how to adjust.”

“Aye. It’s hard learning to live without a limb.” The blacksmith held up his hook and stuck out his peg leg. “I would know.”

Astrid chuckled. “Yeah. You would. Thankfully for Hiccup, he will have the whole tribe to help him through it. And a very eager Toothless.”

“Oh yes. That dragon won’t leave his side for anything. Not even for food. And I have a feeling it will be like that for a very long time.”

“Me too. Well, see you later, Gobber.”

The man gave a slight wave in the girl’s direction as she continued on her way.

Astrid passed the Haddock house on her way to the Great Hall. Hiccup still lay in a coma inside. She had been to visit him every day. Gothi claimed that he could still hear everything going on around him and said it was helpful for people to talk to coma patients. Astrid would sit and tell him all about what she had done that day, the progress they were making with the dragons, what new prank the twins pulled, anything she could think of. To anyone watching, it would have probably looked foolish, but the girl found comfort in it. Even if he couldn’t respond, his presence was enough for her.

Astrid ate her lunch quickly. She had to get back to work. Stepping outside, she saw a crowd had gathered outside the Haddock house. Squinting, she could see Stoick standing at the center. Maybe he was making an announcement of some kind. She was about to walk in that direction when Stoick moved and she caught a glimpse of an auburn-haired boy.

Astrid sprinted as fast as her legs could carry her. As she reached the crowd, they parted for her. Everyone knew just how much she wanted to see the boy. When she reached the front of the group, Hiccup’s back was turned to her. The boy leaned heavily on Toothless as he listened to his father.

“Turns out all we needed was a little more of this.” Stoick gestured to his son.

“You just gestured to all of me,” Hiccup said.

His father nodded, smiling down at his son.

“Well, most of you,” Gobber said from beside him. He pointed to the contraption that replaced Hiccup’s lower leg. “That bit’s my handywork. With a little bit of ‘Hiccup flare’ thrown in. Think it will do?”

Hiccup looked down at it, moving his leg around to examine it from all angles. He looked up at the blacksmith with a toothy grin. “Eh. I might make a few tweaks,” he shrugged.

Gobber laughed. He looked over and met Astrid’s gaze. Wiggling his eyebrows, he gestured for the girl to come over to Hiccup.

Astrid hesitated. She felt… nervous? No. That’s not right. She was Astrid Hofferson. She would not let this fluttery feeling inside hold her back.

She walked straight up to the boy. He was still examining his leg, completely unaware of her presence behind him. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words formed. So, she reverted to old habits.

She punched him in the shoulder. The unstable boy toppled over onto the Night Fury he was holding on to.

“Wh-what?” he stammered. He looked to see who had punched him. A spark lit in those green eyes of his, and he started grinning. That dorky look made her heart flutter.

“That was for scaring me,” she stated mater-of-fact-ly, trying to ignore the feeling in her chest. She did not want to be seen as one of those teenage girls who swooned over a guy. Even if she really did like him and was overjoyed to see him again.

“What? Oh, come on. Is it always gonna be this way?” he said. He looked at her with that smirk and those eyes again.

Ignore the feeling. Ignore the feeling. Ignore the….

Forget it.

Astrid stepped forward and grabbed him by the shirt collar. She pulled him to her and kissed him. It was short and gentle, but it made her whole body tingle. When she pulled away, he had the dorkiest, dazed face she had ever seen.

Once he could think properly again, he smiled at her. “I guess I could get used to it.”

She smiled back at him.

Gobber, who had walked off, returned and placed the new saddle and tail into Hiccup’s arms. He must have finished it while Astrid was eating lunch.

“How did you…?” Hiccup began to ask.

“I followed your designs. As best I could, anyway. I did make a change to the left stirrup, though. Your foot attaches to it. They fit perfectly together. Just like you and that dragon.”

“Thank you, Gobber. This means a lot.”

“Welcome home, Hiccup,” the boy’s mentor said.

The boy looked between the contraption in his hands and the dragon he leaned against. Beaming with exhilaration, he turned to Astrid.

“So. You wanna go for a ride?”

Chapter Text

Stormfly landed on the tall, rocky island. Astrid slid off her dragon’s back and sauntered towards her betrothed, swaying her hips as she walked.

Hiccup glanced over his shoulder to see who was approaching. “Afternoon, My lady. Where have you been?”

Toothless ran up to her, and she scratched his chin before answering.

“Oh, winning races. What else?”

She chuckled as she recalled today’s dragon racing match. She always loved tearing through the village, catching sheep and dodging the other riders. It was such a thrill. Especially when she won the game. And Snotlout and Fishlegs were still acting like idiots trying to win Ruffnut’s favor. That always added some entertainment to the mix.

Astrid caressed Hiccup on the shoulder and sat down beside him. “The real question is, where have you been?”

Hiccup glanced up from the map he was working on. “Avoiding my dad,” he replied.

Astrid frowned. “Oh no. What happened now?”

“Oh, you’re gonna love this. I wake up. The sun is shining. Terrible Terrors are singing on the rooftops. I saunter down to breakfast and I get…” Hiccup stood up and imitated Stoick’s voice and movements. “Son, we need to talk.”

Astrid, who wanted to have some fun messing with the boy, gave her best mock impression of Hiccup. “Not now, Dad. I’ve got a whole day of goofing off to get started.” She chuckled to herself, satisfied with her delivery.

“Wait, wait, wait. First off, I don’t sound like that. Who? What is this character? And-and second. What is that thing you’re doing with my shoulders?”

Astrid bounced her shoulders up and down in great exaggeration. She laughed freely at the annoyed look on her fiancé’s face.

“Oh, yeah,” he said. “A truly flattering impersonation. Anyway.” He went back to imitating his father. “You’re the pride of Berk, son. And I couldn’t be prouder.”

Using the same voice and wild gesticulations from before, Astrid said, “Aww thanks, Dad. I’m pretty impressed with myself too.”

“When have I ever done that with my hands?” the boy asked, subconsciously making the exact motion she had mimicked with his arms.

“You just did,” she laughed.

“Gahhh, okay. Just. Just hold still. It’s very serious.” He continued relaying what Stoick told him that morning, but this time it was less joking. “You’re all grown up, and since no chief could ask for a better successor, I’ve decided….”

Astrid jumped up, putting the pieces together. “To make you chief! Oh my gods. Hiccup! That’s amazing!” She playfully punched the boy in the stomach, receiving a grunt from him.

Her mind immediately started racing with how this would change everything. “Well, that’s a lot of responsibility. The map will have to wait, for sure. And I’ll need to fly Toothless cause you’ll be too busy, but….” She looked up and noticed the forlorn expression on Hiccup’s face.

“It’s not me, Astrid,” he confessed. “All those speeches and planning and running the village. That’s his thing.”

“I think you’re missing the point. I mean, chief. What an honor. I’d be pretty excited.”

“I’m not like you. You know exactly who you are. You always have, but I’m still looking.” He turned and gazed across the horizon. “I know that I’m not my father, and I never met my mother, so what does that make me?” He sat down and started fiddling with his pencil.

Astrid sat down beside him and started stroking his hair. She wished he would stop doubting himself. He had proved how great of a viking, a fighter, a leader he was time and time again after the Red Death encounter. He had helped reform Berk into the safe haven it was now. Throughout the last five years, he had stopped multiple threats that endangered the dragons and other tribes throughout the Archipelago. And yet he still always thought he wasn’t good enough. Astrid wished she could just show him what she and everyone else saw in him.

“What you’re searching for isn’t out there, Hiccup.” She placed her hand gently on his chest over his heart. “It’s in here. You just don’t see it yet.” She kissed him on the cheek.

“Maybe. But you know, there is something out there.”

Astrid sighed. “Hiccup….”

He directed her gaze to the horizon. Smoke billowed in the distance. That couldn’t be good.

The two mounted their dragons and sped towards the smoke’s origin. As they drew nearer, they saw large deposits of ice scattered everywhere. They were nothing like they had ever seen before. They continued on until they found what looked like some base or port. There was a lone ship at the docks. The swiftly landed on the deck.

Sailors aimed their weapons at the riders. Astrid couldn’t blame them. She would have done the same if someone had landed unexpectedly beside her.

“Who are you? What do you want?” one of them inquired.

Hiccup was about to answer when a voice interrupted. A man stomped onto the deck from quarters below.

“Oh, what now? We have already lost one of our best ports, and now we are being attacked? This day is just getting better and… Astrid?”

Astrid squinted at the man. At first, she didn’t recognize him, but then she saw the sword hanging on his belt. She might not remember people’s names and faces, but she remembered their weapons.

“Eret?”

“Hey! It is you! Fancy seeing you here! And who might you be?” he asked, looking to Hiccup.

“Hiccup Haddock. Nice to meet your acquaintance.”

“Oh, ho. Stoick’s boy. Well, anyone related to Stoick is a friend of mine.” Eret’s brown suddenly furrowed in realization. “Wait. Didn’t you run away from Berk? Something about aligning with the dragons?”

“Didn’t you used to hunt and kill dragons?” Astrid countered.

“Fair point. But I’ll have you know those days are long behind me. I am just your everyday trader now. People change, I suppose.”

Hiccup gestured to the Night Fury below him. “I didn’t.”

“I can tell,” Eret said. He waved around at the demolished port and large ice structures. “I suppose this was your doing? Didn’t like that some traders still sell dragon?”

Astrid narrowed her eyes. “How on Midgard could we have done this?”

“The ice spitting dragon. Controlled by the great dragon rider. There are rumors about this mysterious dragon person controlling the greatest dragon ever seen and using it to free all captured dragons.” He gestured between the two riders. “That isn’t one of you two?”

Both shook their heads.

“Oh. Well, I bet you’d get along with them.”

“Where can we find this rider?” Hiccup asked.

There was a thud as one of the crew members dropped a bucket, spilling its contents everywhere. By his demeanor and attire, it looked like the boy was a swab, the lowest rank possible on a ship like this. Even Astrid, the daughter of a common farmer, would outrank him. Astrid typically didn’t approve of people being treated so lowly, but she knew it wasn’t her place to say anything. Each tribe and society had a right to their own ways.

“Really?” Eret said. He smacked the boy in the back of the head. “Go get something to clean this up.”

As the boy hurried off, Astrid couldn’t help but think there was something strangely familiar about him. She brushed the thought aside. Why would she know someone on a ship like this and with such a low rank?

Eret clapped his hands. “You had a question? Oh! Right! Well. As I said, they are all rumors. But it is said you can find a dragon nest far to the north. It is completely surrounded by ice, just like the ice you see here. It is said the great dragon rider lives as one of the dragons in the nest.”

“Thank you. We might just check that out.”

“Please do,” Eret said earnestly. “And tell that crazy person to stop blowing up all the ports. There are some of us dragon-friendly traders who would like to keep our jobs.”

“We can try,” Hiccup said. He turned to his betrothed. “You ready to go back to Berk?”

Astrid nodded. She turned to Eret once more. “Glad you’ve come to your senses and stopped using those horrid weapons. If you really need more places to trade, I’m sure Stoick would let you come to Berk. We lost out last trader not too long ago.”

“Thank you. I will take that into consideration. Maybe I will see you soon then.”

“Maybe so.”

As Toothless and Stormly ascended into the air, Astrid caught a glimpse of that boy again. There was something so familiar about him, but she just couldn’t place it. The boy accidently made eye contact with her. He sucked in a breath and everted his gaze, trying to hide his face. Before he could do so, she spotted a large scar on his left cheek.

Astrid clapped her hand over her mouth, gasping in recognition. This did not go unnoticed by Hiccup.

“Something wrong?”

“I know that guy!”

“Why would you know a swab on a trader ship?”

“He wasn’t always a swab. That was Ossur, son of Skorri. He is the heir of the Thunderfoot tribe. But what was he doing pretending to be a swab?”

“He probably wasn’t pretending. I remember hearing my dad and Skorri talking one time. Apparently, Ossur was disowned and cast off the island. Something about treason and being a menace to the tribe. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”

“Yeah. Just a little bit.” Astrid chuckled. The bigger the pride, the harder the fall. And oh how Ossur has fallen. Served him right to be put so low after trying to conquer the Archipelago. She wasn’t usually one for revenge, but the image of Eret smacking him in the head like that would be treasured in her memories forever.

When they landed back on Berk, the two went straight to Stoick.

“Ahhh. There you are,” the man boomed. “I was wondering where you had gone.”

“I’d have thought you’d have flown off the edge of the world by now,” Gobber said, walking by the group.

“Yeah, sorry. I know I was supposed to work. But I got held up. And for good reason.” He turned back to his dad. “We just heard of some great dragon rider. Apparently, they live with some huge ice spitting dragon in a nest to the north. They help fight for the dragon’s freedom. Dad, I feel like this chould be worth looking into. Since we are all for the same cause, we could really benefit from each other.”

Stoick nodded slowly. “Aye. It is definitely worth checking out.”

“So I can go?” Hiccup asked eagerly.

“As long as I come with you.”

“What? Dad, you don’t have to do that. I know you’re super busy with all your chiefing duties. I can just take Astrid with me.”

“No, I insist. If this is indeed a new ally, I want to meet them. Besides, I want to watch you negotiate. Maybe give you a few tips since you will have to do so more when you become chief.”

Hiccup sighed. “There’s no talking you out of this, is there?”

“Nope.”

Hiccup, Astrid, and Stoick left within the hour. They spent a good portion of the day searching the north for any signs of the rider or the nest. There was ice everywhere, but none of it resembled that from the ice spitter.

“Maybe we should turn back,” Hiccup suggested. “It’s getting late, and Eret said what he heard was a lot of rumors. There could be nothing out here.”

Just as he finished speaking, their dragons spooked. As the riders worked to calm them down, a strange, four-winged dragon rose out of the clouds. On its back stood a person wearing strange, dragon-like armor, the likes of which none of them had ever seen. After a few second, both dragon and rider vanished into the clouds as gracefully and silently as it had appeared.

“Okay. That was weird,” Hiccup stated.

The next thing they knew, a swarm of dragons glided by, following the strange dragon and its rider.

“I say we follow them. It seems like a good bet they will take us where we want to go,” Hiccup said. With that, he urged Toothless forward. Stormfly and Skullcrusher followed close behind.

After a few minutes, a large formation of ice came into view. The three riders followed the dragons through a maze of ice stacks and later rock formations. They flew through a dark tunnel, and when they emerged, they were in a vast, vibrant chamber full of plant life and every species of dragon imaginable. It was like nothing they had ever seen before. They landed, taking in the wonders of this beautiful place.

Hearing footsteps, Astrid turned to see the dragon rider from the clouds creeping towards them. It was crazy how much this person’s very demeanor resembled a dragon. They must have lived in the nest for a considerable amount of time.

Hiccup stepped forward, extending his hand in greeting. “Hello. My name is Hiccup Haddock. We come from Berk. We heard you fight for the dragons. We do too. We came to see if we could be allies.”

Instead of responding to Hiccup, the stranger looked closely over Stoick and his son. Slowly, the stranger reached up and removed the helmet, revealing the face of a woman. “Stoick? Hiccup? Could it really be you? After all this time?”

Hiccup contorted his face in confusion. “Should I know you?”

Hiccup might not have recognized the voice or the face, but Stoick did. He gasped and took slow, careful steps towards the stranger as if she would disappear if he moved to fast.

“How is this possible?” he whispered. “You were dead. I watched it happen.”

The woman eyed the chieftain sadly. “No. Cloudjumper never meant to hurt me. He simply saw my spirit and believed I did not belong with vikings who fought dragons. So, he brought me here, to the nest, where I could live in harmony with them.” She turned and looked at the dragons the three had ridden. “Although it looks like you have finally managed to do that on Berk as well.”

“Okay, I’m sorry. I clearly missed something,” Hiccup interrupted. “Who are you?”

“This,” Stoick said, cupping the woman’s cheek in his palm, “is the love of my life. Your mother.”

Hiccup eyes widened. He shook his head in confusion. “Wait. What? But she’s – you’re supposed to be dead. Eaten by a dragon. I – how – what – this makes no sense.”

The lady laughed as her son stumbled over his words. “That’s okay, son. Now that we have found each other, we will have plenty of time to explain everything.” She suddenly looked hesitant. “If you’re willing, course.”

Hiccup blinked in shock. “If I’m willing? Of course I’m willing! I just found out my mom is alive and living as some crazy, vigilante, dragon lady who lives in this amazing dragon sanctuary. I have so many questions. I don’t even know where to start!”

The mother smiled longingly at her son. “Well, you could always start with a hug?” She opened her arms wide, hoping he would accept the invitation.

Hiccup barely hesitated for a second before running into them. Astrid watched as the two clung to each other, overwhelmed with emotion. Stoick wrapped his arms around the both of them. Tears of joy filled all of their eyes. They had finally found each other. After almost twenty years, their family was complete once more.

Astrid shuffled awkwardly, unsure of what to do. She didn’t know how to act as she observed such an intimate moment. Hiccup’s mother seemed to pick up on this. She smiled warmly and beckoned the girl with her fingers.

“Join us, dear. I sense you will be part of this family.”

Astrid walked over to the group and wormed her way into the embrace. Over the years, she had learned to accept hugs and other outward displays of emotion without a second thought.

As she stood there, sharing the embrace with the Haddock family, warmth and peace flooded through her. She felt at home. She knew this was her family – forever and always. And she wouldn’t trade it for the world.

She had found love, all because a stubborn boy had taken her on a wild flight and shown her a strange new world – a wonderland – in the sky.