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Chapter Text

As the sea slowly engulfed vessels, the last crashes of catapults faded into silence. Of the dozen ships which had just sailed, four remained and all bore the same insignia. Each sail displayed a dragon with the body of an Eruptodon and the wings and tail of a Skrill. In the place of battle cries came joyous cheers. The four ships sailed off and docked at an island, being met with excited Vikings. Two children were the most ecstatic of the group. The little girl had long, reddish orange braids, the boy had short, strawberry-blond hair, and both were with vibrant, green eyes. They practically were jumping in anticipation. Watching them in amusement was a tall woman with short, blonde hair. As the Vikings began to descend from their ships, the kids moved closer. One with a black braid emerged and she smiled as she saw the kids. They mirrored her expression and waved. 

"Hi, Auntie Heather!" they greeted. 

Their grins grew wider as they saw someone behind her. A muscular Viking with a full red beard, scar over his right eye, and blue bear claw tattoos stood by her. His face broke out into an enormous grin when he saw the trio and rushed down to scoop the children up in his arms.

"How was it?" the young girl asked, eyes gleaming. 

"Was it difficult?" her brother inquired. 

The man pretended to be offended. "You doubt your father? In some tribes it's considered treasonous to not have faith in the chief." 

The two laughed and he playfully squeezed them. 

"Good thing we have a fair queen to rely on too then," Heather joked, poking her brother’s shoulder. 

Mala smiled and Dagur laughed his signature laugh. He set down the children and caught Heather in a gentle headlock. 

"We took them all down and not one of them got a hit on one of us," he beamed. 

Mala handed both he and Heather mugs. "Keira and Espen thought you two might enjoy some celebratory yak nog." 

They thanked her and the five made their way through the island, passing Berserkers and Defenders who were stringing up decorations. Lanterns dangled between trees and snow covered the ground like a chilly blanket. They walked to a large tree in the center of the island and waved at an orange-haired Defender who was overseeing the ornament placement. 

"Hey, Throkman," Dagur said. 

The Defender turned with a small smile until he saw a Viking put a couple wooden ornaments too closely together. 

"To the left," he instructed, exasperatedly. Sighing, he looked at the royals and pulled out a map. "My chief, I believe that our combined records have narrowed down the possibilities so that we know the Berkians' new island is in this area," Throk informed him, pointing to a small cluster of islands. His expression turned regretful. "I fear that this information should have been found far sooner, my lieges." 

The royals shook their heads reassuringly. 

"Throk," Mala started, "we have been kept quite busy by the hunters and flourishing as a combined tribe as it is. Finding where the Berkians relocated was simply not our highest priority." 

The Defender nodded and an unreadable expression passed over Dagur's face. Espen went over to Throk and peeked at the map. 

"It would be nice to finally meet the Berkians after all we've heard about them." 

Keira nodded. "Could we go find them? It could be like a special Snoggletog celebration." 

The four contemplated it. "But what about Windshear and Strykie?" Heather mentioned. "They'll be expecting us to be here." 

Mala tilted her head. "It might not necessarily be an issue. If they come on the night after Snoggletog again, we will be able to see them. We would just need to return before that evening."

Keira and Espen beamed at their mother. 

"Does that mean we're actually going?" Espen asked, bouncing slightly. 

Mala looked at her husband and sister-in-law. Dagur saw the hope in their children's eyes and changed his expression to a smile. 

"I don't see why we can't do a little holiday vacation." 

Heather paused and a tint of red threatened to go over her face. "It might be nice to see them again," she conceded. 

Throk had a look of reminiscence. "Yes, it would be very nice to see how sh-they are doing." 

The siblings high-fived and scurried off to pack. In the morning, the group loaded up the ship, put Captain Vorg in charge, and set sail in search of their friends. Keira and Espen looked out at the water. 

"What do you think they're like?" Keira asked. 

When she got no response, she turned to her brother. The girl stumbled backwards as a snowball hit her. Her eyes widened at her wildly cackling brother. 

"How'd you even get that?" 

Espen took a break from his chuckling. "I made one before we left and it's been cold enough to keep its shape." The boy's face turned thoughtful. "I don't know, though. They made the Berkians seem so extraordinary. I almost don't believe it." 

"But," Keira interjected, "it could be cool to see the first dragon trainer and Fishlegs since Auntie said he's one of the smartest Vikings she's ever met." Keira's eyes twinkled. "And we can't forget the twins."

While the two spoke of how they imagined the Thorston twins would be in real life, Heather had a particular Berkian in mind. She found her brother at the ship's helm. The Berserker opened her mouth several times to speak, but kept closing it. Dagur observed her, though waited for her to decide whether or not she wanted to start. 

"Do you think Fishlegs is doing all right?" she finally blurted out. 

Heather turned to the chief and hoped to see his opinion on the matter in his eyes; however, she could make out nothing. 

"I'm sure Fishy's fine, Sis," he said, a smirk forming. "Plus, what better Snoggletog present could he ask for than having you visit?" 

Heather gave a sad smile. "Thanks. I just wish I could know for certain," she paused. "It's been so many years–ten in fact." 

The Berserker did not notice as her brother's grip tightened around the wheel. It loosened when Mala entered the area. She saw Heather's face and guessed about what their conversation had been. Mala put a caring hand on the younger woman's shoulder. "Which island are we docking at first?" she inquired. 

Only then did Dagur truly realize that they had come up to a string of islands. He steered the ship towards them and looked at one to their right. 

"Let's keep going," he suggested. "These are too small for everyone to live on. There are still a couple options left further east right?" 

Mala nodded. "Just northeast of here." 

Dagur shifted directions. "Then, let's test that out."

After an hour longer, the group saw an island with peaks through fog. Snow shimmered on mountains and made the island resemble a winter wonderland. They docked the ship and climbed down, fully seeing how large the land was. Espen and Keira were kept between their parents as the group proceeded. A row of huts came into view and the group started to see some Vikings. None of them were recognizable, though, so they continued forward. Eventually, they saw a familiar face in a blond-haired man with a missing leg and arm. 

"Gobber!" Heather called happily.

The man turned and his confused expression transformed into one of shock. 

"Heather? Dagur? M-how did you all-how are you-" he stopped and tried to collect his words. The blacksmith gestured for them to follow him, looking excited. "Great Thor, it’s been forever! Come on. They won't be able to believe it." 

The Vikings trailed after Gobber as he led them past a statue. Dagur and Heather quickly noticed that it was of Stoick the Vast. After this, they were led deeper into the island and to what seemed to be a Great Hall. Vikings young and old were inside, decorating the mantles with garlands. A handful of them stood out from the rest. 

"Look who's here," Gobber said, catching their attention. 

The Berkians turned to the man and their eyes opened in shock at the guests. 

Dagur gave a wide smile and offered in a happy tone, "Surprise!"

Chapter Text

The Berkians stared at the Berserkers and Defenders for a few moments longer until Keira and Espen broke the silence. Clearing his throat, Espen began talking.

"Excuse us." 

Keira looked at the auburn-haired Viking with a prosthetic foot. 

"Are you Hiccup Haddock the Third?" 

The chief looked down at the kids and back up at his former foe-turned-friend. Chuckling, he nodded. 

"Yeah, I am." 

Dagur gestured to the two kids next to Astrid-who was going over to give Heather a hug. 

"Ooh, I see you and Astrid have been busy, Brother." 

The parents blushed a little before Dagur pulled Hiccup into a hug. No longer able to take in breaths, Hiccup tapped Dagur's back. 

"Air," he struggled to say. 

The Berserker sheepishly let go and laughed. "Good to know not everything's changed," Dagur commented. 

Hiccup looked at the other children, then knelt down. 

"I'm Keira and this is my little brother, Espen," the girl said, shaking the Berkian's hand. "We've heard a lot of cool things about you all." 

As Snotlout puffed up, Hiccup smiled. 

"It's nice to meet you."

Hiccup got up and turned to his own two kids. "This is Zephyr and Nuffink," he told the visitors. 

Keira and Espen skipped over to them and the small Haddocks moved away. 

"Mom, Dad," Zephyr started, wariness evident in her voice, "who are they?" 

Astrid was still laughing with Heather, but managed to answer. "These are our friends. Remember when we told you about the Berserkers and Defenders?" 

Her children gave small nods of their heads, but looked no more relieved by the information. 

"They are far more shy than I had anticipated," Throk mentioned to Heather. 

She gave an absent-minded nod as her eyes moved to the large Ingerman who had grown a mustache over the years. They locked eyes for an instant and walked up to each other. 

"How have you been?" Fishlegs asked, as nervous as he was happy. 

"Good. It's been nice to be with family...and it's gotten bigger," she replied, looking at her niece and nephew. 

"Yeah, kids," the Berkian noted, quietly. 

Fishlegs's eyes diverted from hers as he thought of how to word what he was trying to ask. 

"I don't have any," Heather assured him. 

A flash of happiness went over his face, but he tried to conceal it. "Oh, I'm sorry." 

Heather fidgeted with her specialized ax. "Don't be. It was my choice. There wasn't anyone I wanted to have kids with on Berserker Island."

Watching, Dagur smiled at how happy his sister looked, though felt something other than joy for her as well. Pushing the unfavorable emotion down, he turned his attention to Keira and Espen who had found their way over to the twins. Tuffnut and Ruffnut, who was frowning at Fishlegs, looked down at the little Vikings. 

"We heard you're kind of fun," Espen admitted. "Well, really wild too, but it sounds mostly fun," he added. 

The twins shone with pride. "Oh, have you now?" Tuff asked, beaming. 

The kids nodded excitedly. "When Barf and Belch come to visit, what kinds of stunts will you two do?" Keira asked. 

The twins stared at them sadly. "They aren't going to come," Tuff said. 

"Why is that?" Throk questioned, having made his path to be next to the Thorston sister. 

"All the dragons are gone. Did you just not notice?" Ruff wondered, half-annoyed and half-suspicious. 

"We noticed," he defended. "Every evening after Snoggletog, we are visited by the dragons we knew best. It only seemed likely that the same would have applied for Berk." 

" New Berk," Snotlout corrected, rolling his eyes. Throk gave him a look. "Hey, if I have to get corrected every time, so do you," the Jorgenson stated, crossing his arms.

Hiccup's mouth gaped at Throk's words. "Wait, a second. You guys get visited?" 

He looked at each of them for the answer. 

"Yeah, H. What happened here?" Dagur asked him. 

The Berkian chief's brows furrowed. 

"We haven't seen them in ten years," Gobber revealed, in a sad tone. 

Dagur looked at him, appalled. "They just left?" 

Snotlout shook his head. "Nope. We just shooed them away." 

Hiccup sent him a mild glare and turned back to his companion. "It was the best option. Dragon hunters were becoming too abundant and with Toothless being the king of dragons-" 

The Berserkers and Defenders all inhaled sharply at that new information. 

"-I decided that if he led all the dragons away, they would be safe. We found a hidden world of dragons. It was amazing, but only dragons deserved to be there. They've been there ever since, I'm guessing." 

Mala looked at him in doubt. "So, you, Hiccup Haddock, the great dragon trainer, sent all of the dragons away?" 

Hiccup rubbed the back of his neck. "It wasn't an exile or anything. That just was the safest alternative for them. We couldn't protect them on Berk." 

There was a bit of silence and the chief could practically see the steam from thinking coming off the Berserkers' and Defenders' heads. A small frown formed on Dagur's face. 

"You had all the dragons leave?" he asked, clarifying in a certain tone Hiccup could not distinguish. 

Astrid wrapped her arm around Hiccup's and nodded. "It was tough, but we've learned to adjust." 

Snotlout grumbled. "Says you. Try explaining to a Wing Maiden that your tribe had all the dragons leave. Minden hasn't spoken to me since," he bemoaned.

Dagur's hands clenched into fists and Mala touched his right hand, causing its tension to ease. They looked at one another for a moment, having a conversation all within their eyes. As soon as it began, it ended and they looked back at the Berkians. 

"Well, it's getting pretty late," Heather said. 

Fishlegs spoke up. "We have a bunch of guest huts I can show you to. The island has a similar design, but we made a lot of improvements too." 

Hiccup smiled. "In the morning, we'll have to catch up more. I feel like we've missed out on so many things and by Thor do we have a lot to tell you all." 

Dagur clasped the Berkian's hand and nodded. "It's a plan then." 

He waved to the others and Fishlegs led them out of the Great Hall, oblivious to the paranoid expression a fellow Berkian was giving him. He walked by Heather and their hands almost touched. Just before they did, Fishlegs put his arms behind his back. The emotion returned to Dagur and he distracted himself from it by looking at decorations and listening to the drunken caroling of who was formerly known as Silent Sven.

Once they reached the huts, Fishlegs wished them all a good evening and went to his own home. The Berserkers and Defenders said good night to each other and went to their huts as well. Keira and Espen grinned while they looked at the hut design. They got ready for bed and plopped down on their father's lap. 

Looking at him and their mother, they said, "Thanks for bringing us here." 

"I think it's going to be really fun," Keira added, grinning. 

They went off and left the adults in solitude. 

"Do you concur?" Mala asked, sliding into a seat near her husband. 

Dagur paused and then shrugged. "That was...something–what we learned today." He sighed and leaned his head back. "I don't know, Malapoo. I'm more than glad they're all fine, but part of me is just.." he trailed off. 

"Angry?" Mala offered. 

He nodded. "Yeah, to be honest." The Berserker's demeanor changed. "It's a shame about Stoick, though. I wonder what happened. There's no way he would've suggested erecting a statue if he were still here." 

Mala rested her head on his shoulder. "I am sure they will tell us tomorrow." She looked at him. "I am also sure that they did not send the dragons away with malice in their hearts." 

Dagur stroked her hair. "I doubt it too." He looked into her eyes. "But it doesn't change what almost happened."

Chapter Text

The next morning, the sun shone on the sparkling snow. Children threw snowballs at one another and Espen greeted his mother with one of his own. The queen met his nervous gaze with an ornery smile and threw one back. Smiling, Espen plopped down next to her. 

"Do you think they'll still be fixing up the tree?" he asked, gesturing for his sister to join them once he saw her. 

The two sat by their mother. 

"I think that they will be,” Mala stated. "Perhaps you two could get to know Zephyr and Nuffink today also." 

The children's faces dropped. 

"But they don't seem fun at all," Espen complained. 

Keira nodded. "We'd rather be there with you and the others. At least they all have done something cool." 

Dagur came around the corner and sucked his teeth. "They're probably fine. Just a bit more like their father. Hiccup wasn't the most outgoing kid either. You just have to get them out of their shells. You'll probably get along." 

"It took you and Hiccup a while to become friends, though," Keira mentioned. 

Dagur tapped his chin. "True." 

"And same for mom," Espen added. 

Heather came by the front of the hut, followed by Throk. "Good morning," they greeted. The greeting was returned. 

"Same goes for Auntie Heather and Uncle Throk too," Espen said. 

The Berserker and Defender stared blankly at the two. 

"What did we just walk into?" Heather asked. 

Mala sighed. "Our family not being the best with quick befriendings, it seems." 

Heather started to defend herself and stopped with a laugh. "Guess you two will have to change that."

The Vikings finally left the hut and met back up with the Berkians at the Great Hall. This time, they noticed two more Vikings present. One was a man with a blue tattoo on his chin and the second was a tall woman with graying hair. Hiccup went over to greet the visitors, smiling. 

"There's someone I want you all to meet." Leading them back to the woman, he began again. "This is Valka, my mother." 

The Berserker siblings' jaws dropped as Hiccup started introducing them. They barely heard him over all their thoughts on how Valka came back into the picture. Heather was snapped back into the matter at hand once her name was called. 

“This is Heather," Hiccup told his mom. 

"It's so great to meet you!" Heather exclaimed, still reeling from her astonishment. 

Valka smiled. "Likewise. I've heard you are quite the determined warrior." 

"And this," Hiccup concluded, "is Dagur." 

Valka stopped for a moment. "This is Dagur the Deranged?" she inquired. 

The Berserker smirked playfully. "It's been a while since I've heard that full moniker. Hope I won't disappoint you, Ma'am." 

The Berkian gave a small smile, but it did not exactly reach her eyes.

"Well, don't leave us hanging, H," Dagur said, poking Hiccup. He gestured to Valka. "How'd you two find each other again?" 

Hiccup looked at his mother with a warm expression and then back at his friends. "Honestly, it was by complete accident. I was flying on Toothless to blow off some steam since everything with Drago was-" 

"Drago?" Heather interjected. 

Hiccup facepalmed. "Right. Forgot. Turns out he was the leader of the dragon flyers and this whole other group of hunters who weren't loyal to the Grimborns." He gestured behind him. "Eret here used to be one of them but changed sides when it mattered." 

Satisfied for the time being, Heather nodded and let the Viking continue. 

"So we were flying, then my mom and Cloudjumper, her dragon at the time, popped up." He started to chuckle. "The way they went through the clouds was almost like they were ghosts or something. All of a sudden, Cloudjumper grabbed me and just began flying off. Nearly gave me a heart attack because the last thing I saw of Toothless was him falling into the icy water. Luckily, some of the dragons brought him to where I was headed and we wound up in this land of more dragons than I'd ever imagined existed. That's when we started talking and I found out she was my mom."

Valka smiled at her son. "It was a miracle that we were reunited. Cloudjumper was the same dragon who had caused us to be separated, but it was only because he believed I was in danger. After I was gone, I realized how different dragons really were from how we had thought them to be. I just couldn't return to Berk-to all the killing. It seemed like my people would never be ready to hear what I knew, so I didn't want to confuse the mind of my son. He had to grow into the chief Berk needed and I thought that meant he couldn't go against traditions that were timeless. I'm more than glad to have been proven wrong." 

Mala, though happy for her friend, could not help the judgmental feeling she had developed towards Valka. As a mother herself, only death or the certainty of Keira's and Espen's safety would keep her away. 

"Was Drago a lot worse than the Grimborns?" Heather inquired. 

Hiccup gave a solemn nod. "I'll at least give them that they always had some form of ethics. There's no hope that Drago will ever be willing to change like Viggo did. He had a Bewilderbeast himself and used it to control the dragons." He hesitated. "Not even Toothless was immune. Drago forced him to.." 

The man stopped and closed his eyes for a moment. He often was shocked at how the passing years did nothing to ease his pain. 

"Toothless was forced to try to kill me and my dad sacrificed himself to save my life," he completed.

Dagur wanted to embrace his friend, but he doubted that it would not have only caused Hiccup more pain, so he opted instead for words. 

"Brother, I am so sorry." 

Heather nodded in agreement. "Stoick was a great man." 

Mala looked at the Berkian chief sadly. "Was Drago the reason that you relocated?" 

Hiccup shook his head. "No, that's actually another person entirely. We defeated Drago after snapping Toothless out of his Bewilderbeast's trance. Toothless ended up taking down the Bewilderbeast and became the new king of dragons. We left Berk a year later when a new villain-Grimmel-came." The visitors could sense a fury coming over Hiccup as he continued. "Grimmel was the reason that Toothless is the only Night Fury left. He hunted them to near extinction and was determined to finish the job when he saw Toothless." 

Gobber came over to the group. "He was relentless. Tried to burn Berk to the ground just to get to Toothless." 

Tuffnut shoved his sister. "And someone led him to us after being released." 

Ruff sheepishly grinned. "Hey, I was busy thinking about getting back to you guys," she said, her gaze falling on Fishlegs. 

Throk frowned. "I wish you had informed us of this. You never would have spent a moment in a cell had I known you had been captured."

Heather nodded. "Yeah, why didn't you all keep in contact? We didn't know you were in danger. There's no way we would have just sat by and done nothing." 

The Berkians went silent. "There just was a lot going on, I guess," Hiccup said unsurely. 

Noticing the change in the room's social climate, Keira and Espen went over to the Berkian kids. 

"Want to go hang out somewhere else while they talk?" Espen asked quietly. 

Nuffink looked at his sister and Zephyr glanced between the young visitors and her father's troubled expression. 

"Okay," she hesitantly agreed. 

Perking up, Keira grabbed her hand and the four headed out of the hall. 

"Where to, Zephyr?" Keira asked excitedly. 

The other girl looked around. “We could go by the statue. It's normally pretty quiet over there and if it isn't, we can make sure no one's throwing snowballs at him." 

The quartet went to the statue and looked up at it. On their first walk through New Berk, Espen and Keira had not realized how large the statue really was. 

"Was he this big in real life?" Espen asked. 

Zephyr shrugged. "I guess. We never got to meet him." 

Espen bit his lip. "Sorry. I thought you might have been al...we don't have any grandfathers around either." 

"Grand mothers either for that matter," Keira added. "Yours seems fun. Nothing like a cool, dragon-riding grandma."

Zephyr scoffed. "That's the only bad thing about her. Her and everyone else here." 

The Berserker-Defender kids looked at her, shocked. 

"What?" they asked in unison. 

"Everyone here loves dragons. I just don't get it. What about a scaly, giant, fire-breathing monster seems so lovable?" Zephyr crossed her arms. 

"I mean, they are pretty great, Z," Keira defended. 

The Berkian grumbled. "I'm not Z ." 

"You just haven't seen any. That's the problem," Espen suggested. "They have a lot of different kinds and apparently there are more than our parents even know about!" 

Zephyr poked at a knife. "It's probably a good thing your parents didn't know about them then," she said, under her breath. 

Keira heard her and frowned. "What do you mean by that?" 

Zephyr kept her eyes on the blade, responding, "I mean that I guess your mother and aunt would have been fine, but Berserkers–your dad–used to force dragons to fight. Even though I don't like them, I don't think they deserved to be forced into battles." 

Feeling a pit of annoyance in her stomach, Keira took a deep breath. "Zephyr," she calmly began, channeling her mother's poise, "I understand that you have learned about the history of dragons and our father's people, but I feel as though you need to consider the present as well. Dragons stopped being a threat to Vikings a long time ago and Dad has more than corrected past faults."

"I think you're just ignoring the past. Both dragons and Dagur are issues," Zephyr pushed. 

Keira and Espen stared at her. Nuffink only listened uncomfortably. 

"There's not enough good in the world that can make up for dead Vikings...and that goes for both problems," the Berkian girl stated. 

Keira lunged at her, her brother still too angry himself to have properly stopped her. In an instant, Zephyr's knife was several feet away from her and in the snow. Keira pinned the Viking to the ground, Berserker blood boiling, and yet, in the coldest voice, she spoke. 

"You and the rest of your Berkians are not in the position to talk about not risking people's lives. If you want to start talking about parents, I could go on about how our father had to find all the Berkian gold that your father lost or all the other times Dad saved the lives of your parents and friends, risking his own in the process." 

She rose up off of the Viking and walked over to her brother. 

"Our dad's not perfect and he definitely made some serious mistakes that he can't make up for, but that doesn't mean he's not trying. I think saving innocent lives is a fine change from taking them." She glared at the other girl. "If you have a point that's not an insult, bring it up and we'll have a conversation. Otherwise, don't ever talk about our family again."

Chapter Text

The Great Hall was filled with an atmosphere so tense that not even the sharpest blade could have penetrated it. Fishlegs looked at Heather sadly. 

"We wanted to stay in touch. It was just that we were worried about anything being traced back to us and being found." 

The Berserker went over to him. "What I really don't get is why it even had to come to all this." She gestured around. "It felt like that after a few months of writing, the letters stopped coming back." 

The Ingerman had a shameful look on his face and glanced at Ruffnut. Heather's brows furrowed and her eyes widened in realization. 

"I didn't know how to tell you," Fishlegs told her. "Time went by and Ruff and I just got close. We had shared so many experiences." 

Hurt, Heather stepped back to rejoin her family. Dagur glared Fishlegs down and the younger man shrunk. Throk, much like Heather, looked as though his heart had been stabbed with a flaming sword. He stared at Ruffnut and had to turn away. Mala put a hand on his shoulder, giving a warm expression. Hiccup looked between Fishlegs and Ruff, then Astrid. 

"Time got away from us," he said. "What started with sending letters back and forth and visiting turned into us starting our new lives back at Berk. Everything seemed to change when we left Dragon's Edge. Even though you all visited, it was different to us. We got more caught up in what we were doing, but I feel like that's natural. After what happened with Drago, it seemed like it would be better for us to handle it ourselves. Same goes for Grimmel. You might not prefer how we did things, but I really do think we did what was best. And that especially goes for the dragons too."

Dagur, who had been seething on and off since their arrival, had finally had enough. 

"What the hell, Hiccup?!" he barked. 

The Vikings all turned to look at him, shocked at the explosion. 

"What?" Hiccup asked, confused. 

The Berserker's blood boiled with anger. "You didn't do what was best. You did what you wanted and left the rest of us to bear it out," Dagur accused. 

Hiccup's eyes narrowed. "What did we do that was so terrible for you all?" 

Mala sighed quietly as her husband began. 

"Oh, I don't know. I'd say that telling all of the dragons to leave was a bit of an inconvenience." 

"It was what needed to be done. We couldn't have protected them," Hiccup said defensively. 

"Yak dung!" Dagur retorted. "You sent them away because you couldn't keep them safe. When we all worked together, we won. It was tough, but we had each other and the dragons too because of our teamwork. We only would've gotten better at that–better at protecting the dragons and one another if you had been willing to give it a chance. All you had to do was just include us." 

The chief's tone changed to one of sadness. He looked at the Berkians. 

"When the replies stopped coming, we thought something was up. That was when we came to visit and saw that nothing had even happened. You weren't in danger. You just didn't want to be bothered with us anymore." His melancholy look turned vicious again. "That wouldn't even have been the issue if your actions weren't still affecting us. Remember the Great Protector, guys?" 

The man paused as he saw the recognition in the Vikings' faces. 

"Yeah," he said, annoyed. "So, when you sent away all the dragons , the lava from the volcano took over the island. We only managed to escape without any lives being lost because we realized what was about to happen in its absence. Losing our dragons was bad enough, but our people were almost killed!"

Valka straightened up. "That was not our intention, but I don't think you can blame my son for thinking more about all the situations he was in. From what I've heard, he didn't have an initially pleasant relationship with any of you. I don't deny the good you all have done in later years, but Hiccup shouldn't be held accountable for focusing on others." 

"That's not what happened," Hiccup interjected quickly. "I guess in the spur of the moment, I just wanted to make sure the dragons would be safe." 

The Berkian raised his head to meet Dagur's glare. 

"I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "We can't change all that happened, but maybe we could visit more too." 

The Berserker's expression softened and he noticed the kids had come back to the Hall. Keira's and Espen's faces were droopy. Lagging behind them were Zephyr and Nuffink. The latter of the two looked pitiful whereas his sister had a combination of embarrassment and anger on her face. Keira gave her father a hug as Hiccup looked questioningly at his children. 

"What happened?" he asked. 

She eyed Keira and shook her head. "Nothing really,” she mumbled. 

The chief looked between her and the other children. Suddenly, Hiccup's eyes lit up. 

"How about we spend Snoggletog Eve with our dragons?" he suggested. 

Snotlout folded his arms. "Looks like somebody hasn't been paying attention. If the dragons are gone, how do we spend tomorrow with them?" 

Hiccup shook his head, exasperated. "We go to them at the Hidden World. I still remember where it is." 

"We can't do that,” Dagur objected. "The dragons are stealthy enough to leave every once in a while and not get caught, but I doubt we'd be as fortunate." 

The Berkians glanced at him questioningly. 

"What are you talking about?" Astrid inquired, "Now is probably the safest time to go. The hunters have been gone for a while and if we just go and return today..." she trailed off, seeing the confused faces of the Berserkers and Defenders. 

"The hunters are not gone,” Mala informed her. 

Heather nodded. "They're getting better every year."

The Berkians visibly tensed. "No, we took out their leaders,” Hiccup stated nervously. "Th-they should be gone." 

"They're still here, Hiccup," Dagur told him, "They find dragons who leave the world apparently and hunt them down relentlessly. It's too risky to go to the dragons with them lurking around." 

The Berkians looked at one another. "No," Hiccup said firmly. "We can make it there and back without being seen. We need to show you that this wasn't just a crazy idea that almost destroyed your home. When you see how wonderful they're all doing, you'll understand why we did what we did." 

The visitors just shook their heads at his words. "If you're determined to go, we'll come too. Have to make sure you guys don't get killed,” Dagur stated, rolling his eyes. 

"Then it's settled?" Astrid commented. 

Her husband nodded. "By this time tomorrow, we'll be in the Hidden World."

Chapter Text

The Vikings went to their huts to prepare for the next day's voyage. Dagur's eyes met Heather's but she hurried past him. Throk followed her absent-mindedly into the New Berk village. The Berserker leaders sadly watched them, but continued on. Once inside their hut, Dagur turned to his and Mala's children. 

"What happened?" he asked kindly but firmly. 

Keira and Espen looked at each other. 

"Zephyr was talking badly about you," Keira admitted. "I got upset and...kind of pinned her in the snow." 

Her head lowered as she saw her mother's disapproving expression. 

"She was acting like Dad was a bad person," Espen added. 

The chief sighed. "That's nice what you were trying to do, but we can't solve everything by attacking." 

Mala nodded. "Unless we are against an actual enemy like the hunters, it is best to vocalize our issues. In a way, I wish you both had stayed in the Hall. Our problems have not necessarily been resolved, but no fighting began either." 

Keira frowned slightly. "But it seems like talking didn't work. We're risking the dragons' safety tomorrow. Zephyr might have been mad, but she did stop her badmouthing." 

Dagur crossed his arms. "Even though the Berkians didn't just go 'Oh, all right. We'll bring back the dragons,' doesn't make it a complete failure. That would have been attacking them and ruining our friendship probably forever." He raised a brow. "And what happened to meditating?" 

Keira slinked over to a chair. "I tried a little, but it didn't work." 

Espen put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "She really did try to talk it out first. Zephyr just kept pushing."

Inwardly heaving a breath, the Defender queen went over to the pitiful-looking siblings. "We're not mad. Just concerned. Go on and get ready for tomorrow,” she stated.

The two went off to gather a few items, chins still on their chests. 

"Not really helping our cause for not being a threat anymore, huh?" Dagur commented, rubbing his temple. 

"One cannot say you are not their father," Mala mentioned, a small smile forming. 

A shortened version of Dagur's laugh sounded, quietly. "Or that you're their mother. Remember, Hiccup was being a knife throwing target with me thinking we were friends . The fact that the worst that happened today was a snowy face proves your genes helped." 

"True," the chieftess noted, chuckling.Her demeanor turned grim. "What if we lead the hunters to the dragons tomorrow?" she inquired worriedly. "We do not know that area and would be on the same level as the hunters as opposed to when we set up traps." 

Her husband looked at her. "I guess just what we've been doing but with a bit more difficulty. Chances are, they have the same ships as before. The biggest issue will be getting all the dragons out of the way and possibly Berkians too if they're rusty." 

The two leaned against another in a large chair and clasped hands. As they did, the Berkians leaders were conversing with their own children.

"What actually was going on?" Astrid asked the still silent Zephyr. 

The young girl looked at her brother, who appeared to be one second away from spontaneously combusting. Hiccup picked up on this and went over to their son. 

"Nuffink," The chief pressed. 

The boy bounced nervously. “Zephyr started talking about their dad and then they got mad and she got pushed into the snow,” he blurted out. Zephyr frowned at the little boy. "Sorry." he finished sadly. 

"What did you say about Dagur?" Hiccup asked. 

Zephyr shrugged, though she could not repress a bit of shame she felt deep down. "Just something like how he used to be such a villain and is dangerous." 

Her parents eyed her unhappily. "Why did you do that?" Hiccup questioned, surprised. 

"Because it's true," the girl defended. 

Her father frowned at her. "What's also true is that we became good friends and he's changed his ways." He shook his head. "You're too judgmental, Zephyr. As soon as you hear anything bad about someone, that's all you see. And that's even if you don't know them. You've never seen a dragon and swear they're evil and you really don't know Dagur either. You've heard about how crazy he used to be but aren't thinking about how he saved my life on that island right before we became close. Or how he found Berk's gold." 

Zephyr's eyes lowered. "Keira mentioned the second one." 

Hiccup nodded. "As much as my dad and I didn't see eye to eye for a while, I wouldn't have wanted someone to talk badly about him. You'd be upset if someone started talking about me and my pre-dragon days. How do you think they felt?" 

Throughout his speech, the girl had felt worse and worse. 

In a small voice, she replied, "Not very good." 

"You'll have to apologize," Her mother stated. "But since we're heading out early, get ready for the trip and speak with them about it tomorrow." 

The girl nodded and went to her room, quickly wiping away a tear.

"What are we going to do about her?" Hiccup asked tiredly. "It sounded like my mom is hardly better." 

Astrid's eyes went to the kids' rooms. "She's a work in progress. I do wish she'd be more open-minded," the chieftess mentioned. She gave Hiccup a kiss on the cheek.b"Even you and I weren't immediately close." 

"Exactly!" the Berkian exclaimed. "That's what I want her to understand. If she only accepts others on first impressions, she's going to miss out on a lot." 

Astrid bobbed her head in agreement. "Hopefully tomorrow will help her realize that too." 

While the leaders talked about this, the Berserker and Defender seconds-in-command spoke. They stood by Sven's sheep and watched as the snow started to fall. 

"I can't believe that Fishlegs didn't tell me," Heather stated unhappily. 

"Neither can I,” Throk agreed sadly. "Though I suppose this is not the first time that Ruffnut has chosen someone over myself; however it was not for a romantic reason." 

Heather sighed. "They don't even seem like they would suit each other." 

"Perhaps we do not know them as well as we believed," the Defender offered. 

“Maybe not." The Berserker straightened up and lifted her head. "But you know what? I wouldn't have changed anything if it meant I wasn't able to be around my family. Being with Dagur, Mala, Espen, Keira, and you has been great. For so long, all I ever wanted was to be part of a family, so I'm happy with or without Fishlegs." 

Throk smiled. "Likewise. And I am honored to have been included in your family." 

For the rest of the evening, the two conversed on happier topics and packed for the next day's trip. The next morning had a sky filled with light gray clouds. The Berkians and visitors piled into a large ship and Keira and Espen watched as New Berk turned into a speck. Zephyr approached them and they greeted her with a mild "hey." 

"Hey," Zephyr returned quietly. "I-I wanted to apologize for what I said yesterday. It wasn't kind or fair." 

The siblings looked at her in mild shock. 

While the Berkian began walking away, Keira called, "What's your favorite kind of fighting move?" 

Zephyr halted. "Choke hold." 

"Good one," Espen complimented. "I like body slams." 

Zephyr pranced back over to the two and they spent the remainder of the trip talking about fighting. After about an hour or so, Hiccup pointed to a wall of fog and steered the ship close, but far enough away to avoid the pull of the rushing water. After a little bit, they saw shapes moving closer to them. A nice-sized dragon with orange and black flew over to the ship. He was followed by a smaller Triple Stryke and several baby dragons. Zephyr and Nuffink leapt out of the way as the dragons swooped to land on the vessel. 

"Strykie!" Dagur called, hugging the dragon. 

Windshear and her family were the next to arrive. Keira and Espen saw how the Berkian kids were frightened and gently led them over to one of Strykie's kids. The little dragon hopped over to the children and locked its big eyes onto them. Zephyr's face scrunched up and Nuffink yelped. 

"Come on," Espen encouraged. 

"You'll like them," Keira promised. 

Taking a breath, Zephyr stood still and allowed the dragon to come up to her. Following the other kids' lead, she extended her hand to its back and petted it. The dragon nuzzled against the girl and Zephyr reluctantly smiled. 

"See?" Keira prompted. "We told ya." 

Zephyr giggled. "I guess they're not the worst things ever. At least we haven't been attacked yet." 

While the Viking and dragon children played, Dagur noticed Hiccup was looking concerned. 

"I'm sure he's fine, brother,” he assured him. 

Hiccup looked away from the fog to his friend and opened his mouth. Before he said anything, he spotted a black form approaching them and his eyes lit up. 

"Toothless," he said, almost in disbelief. 

The Night Fury carefully came up to the ship, encouraged by the Triple Strykes' and Razorwhips' interactions. He looked at the Vikings and stared at the Berkian chief. In an instant, he was nuzzling his head against Hiccup's. The Light Fury was behind him and three little Furies watched their father in amusement. Toothless nudged them over to his old friends. The commotion soon caught the attention of Meatlug, Hookfang, Barf and Belch, and their respective families. Cloudjumper, Grump, Skullcrusher, and Thornado reunited with the Vikings afterwards. Joyous squeals and laughing could be heard from the bottom of the hidden world. A few of the other dragons started to fly up as well to meet the Vikings. Amongst the exultation, one sound rang clear over the others: the sound of a dragon crying out from a dragon root arrow piercing its flesh. The Berkians watched in horror as a barrage of arrows fired overhead at the newly coming reptiles. Too familiar chains were heard starting to haul dragons onto the ships. 

A numbness fell over Hiccup as he thought, "The war really isn't over."

Chapter Text