AN: So I've always wondered what would happen if Astrid and Hiccup told Stoick about Toothless before the Final Exam. Here's my take...

So Let's Show Him

"No, it totally makes sense. It's like a giant beehive. They're the workers, and that's their queen. It controls them. Let's find your Dad."

Astrid jumped from Toothless back and was surprised that her legs held her up. That... that monster at the Nest nearly got them! They needed to tell the chief! But Hiccup's next words froze her in her tracks.

"No, no! Not yet. They'll... kill Toothless. Astrid, we have to think this through carefully."

"Hiccup, wejust discovered the Dragons' Nest. The thingwe've been after since Vikings first sailed here. And you want to keep it a secret?! To protect your pet dragon?! Are you serious?!"

"Yes."

The absolute surety in Hiccup's voice told her exactly how protective he was of Toothless. She could see it in the way he set his shoulders that this was important to him. He must have taken her silence for doubt because he started explaining.

"Listen, Astrid. My Dad... he won't listen to me. Even if I tried to explain to him, as soon as I said the word 'nest' he'd run straight to the boats... You saw the Queen. They'd never stand a chance."

"Okay. He won't listen, so let's show him." She smiled at the incredulous look on his face. "I mean it Hiccup! If he won't listen, then show him. Show him like you showed me."

He stared at the ground for a minute or two and she could see the gears turning. He slowly lifted his eyes to Toothless and chuckled as the 'unholy offspring of lightning and death' proceeded to chase his own tail.

"Maybe... maybe if it's not just me... Astrid, would you be willing to come with me? My Dad will never take me seriously if I tell him there's something he needs to see. He'll be so focused on the Final Exam that I won't be able to get a word in edgewise. But if you're there too..."

"Of course, Hiccup." Before he could say thanks she lashed out, punching him in the arm. "That's for kidnapping me." He rubbed his shoulder and seemed to consult with Toothless - who just shrugged. Her heart was pounding but she gathered her courage and snatched him by the tunic, planting a light kiss on his cheek. "And that's for... everything else. Now let's go find your Dad."

The sun had well and truly set by the time they made it back to the village. Astrid prayed to Odin that the chief was in his hut for once. It would be a disaster to try and make him leave the Hall in front of everyone. Odin was apparently listening because they found him hunkered in front of the fire, roasting three large chickens on a spit.

"Hiccup! There you are, my boy! I thought we'd have a celebratory dinner here, maybe talk a little strategy before they big fight, eh? Oh, hello Astrid. Glad to see you're not taking the loss personally. Is there something I can do for you, lass?"

"Actually, yes Chief. There's something we want to show you... It really can't wait." The Chief looked speculatively from her to his son and back. She gave him the slightest of nods to show she was serious and he straightened up. He really was impressive when he stood to his full height.

"Right. Lead the way then." He hefted his axe onto his back and they each grabbed a lantern.

Hiccup lead the way back into the forest, be he didn't take the route she had followed the day before. Now that she knew the cove they were aiming for, she could tell they were almost circling around it. Suddenly Hiccup stopped and she understood why.

He planted the lantern pole into the ground and pointed to a snapped tree. It was easily as thick as Fishlegs, but it looked like it had broken like a toothpick. Hiccup drew in a shaky breath and she could tell he was nervous. The life of his best friend was riding on this. "Before you left on the last voyage... I really did shoot down a dragon. It landed here." He pointed to the trench leading over the hill. "I found it here that day, tangled in the bola. I thought it was dead..."

Stoick perked up, ready to interrupt, but Astrid laid a hand on his thick forearm and shook her head. He gave her a confused look then turned back to listen.

"Then suddenly it moved. I drew my knife... I wanted so badly to make you proud but... I just... I couldn't do it. I wasn't lying when I told you that night that I couldn't kill dragons. I just.. I don't have it in me." Hiccup was staring resolutely at the ground, almost like he was afraid of what he would see if he looked his dad in the eye. They walked a little further and found the remains of the bola. It didn't take a genius to see that the ropes had been cut. The Chief's eyes grew wide and he turned to Hiccup, hoping for some other explanation.

Stubbornly refusing to meet his father's gaze, Hiccup pointed to a boulder behind them. The next words froze Astrid's blood in her veins. "It had me pinned up against here. I thought for sure I was dead. All I remember thinking is that I hoped you wouldn't think me a coward. Then it roared in my face... and fled."

She wasn't fast enough to stop him this time. "It didn't go for the kill?"

Hiccup let out a humorless chuckle and a half smile. "Yea, surprised me too. I was really confused after our first lesson with Gobber. I just couldn't understand why I was still alive. And I must have a death wish because I came back."

He started leading them further through the forest, suddenly stopping at the ledge above the cove. He staked all three lanterns into the ground so that they hung out over the edge. "I found him here." He pointed back into the shadows and Astrid could just make out the green glow of Toothless' eyes in the dark. Stoick though, didn't know what to look for and had yet to see him. "I'm not sure whether it was the bola or the crash, but half of his tail fin had been ripped clean off. He couldn't even fly high enough to get out of the cove."

"There's a dragon trapped in here?" Stoick reached for his axe but Hiccup and Astrid each grabbed a hand. In the silence, Toothless let out a low growling hiss.

"I promise you, Dad, he's not dangerous!"

Stoick's face reddened but Astrid tugged on his arm, drawing his attention away from his son. "He's telling the truth, Chief. Just... let him show you."

Hiccup nodded in thanks and began to climb down the cliff. Stoick reached out to stop him but stilled when he heard rustling in the shadows. Astrid smirked as one of the shadows peeled away from the darkness and seemingly flowed into the light. There was a reason no one had ever seen a...

"Night Fury." Stoick breathed. "By Odin's beard!"

They watched as Hiccup walked right up to his friend and began to scratch him behind the ears. When his fingers reached a spot below the beast's jaw it suddenly went boneless, rolling over and smiling with its tongue lolling out.

"So that's what you did to that Gronkle!" Astrid couldn't help but laugh and Hiccup shrugged before motioning them to come down.

"Uh... but you might want to leave your weapons up there..." He hesitantly hollered.

Stoick looked ready to refuse but turned to Astrid in shock when she removed her axe AND the knife from her belt without question. He grudgingly removed an assortment of weapons from his furs and leapt down to the floor of the cove. The Chief turned around and suddenly came face to face with a glaring Night Fury.

Toothless' eyes were narrowed, his slit pupils never straying from Stoick's face. His lip curled back into a snarl, showing off his sharp teeth. Astrid was surprised to see that he actually had one massive wing draped over Hiccup as if to protect him.

"Easy there, bud." Hiccup confidently reached out to stroked the dragon's neck, but his eyes were also fixed on his father's face. When he realized that Stoick wasn't going to attack, he continued his story.

"At first I just watched him. But he was trapped here and he didn't seem to have much luck fishing in the inlet." He pointed to the shallow water that ebbed in from a low gap in the rocks. "So I brought him some fish and slowly gained his trust. I also started to learn about them. For one, they hate eels. I think if we painted the storehouses black and yellow the dragons would avoid them like the plague." He shot a sheepish smile at Astrid, "That's how I backed the Zippleback into its cage. I had an eel under my vest."

"Clever... remind me to punch you for that one." She glared at him but couldn't fight down the smile that followed. He grimaced and rubbed his arm where she had hit him earlier.

"I also found a type of grass that they seem to love. They roll around in it and its like they're drunk. And they love shiny things. That Terror followed the sun spot reflected off my shield right back into its pen. And you saw how relaxed Toothless got when I scratched right... here." He hit the sweet spot and Toothless dropped to the ground, though he kept one eye lazily open to watch Stoick.

"So everything in the ring... a trick? A lie?"

"Not tricks, Dad! Things about dragons that we never knew before! They're nothing like we think they are!"

"But they've killed hundreds of us!"

"And we've killed thousands of them! They defend themselves, that's all! They raid us because they have to! If they don't bring enough food back, they'll be eaten themselves. There's something else on their island - "

"Their island! So you've been to the Nest."

Astrid could hear the hunger in Stoick's voice and knew she had to butt in. "Yes. Toothless took us there today. Tell him, Hiccup."

Hiccup sighed and checked to make sure his dad was listening. "After I left the Arena, I came here. I had gathered all my stuff and-"

"You were running away?!" Astrid couldn't keep the shock from her voice. To think that if she hadn't stopped him...

"Come on, Astrid. After meeting Toothless, do you really think I could go in that Arena tomorrow... today... and kill a dragon? And I... I didn't want to face you, Dad. All I've ever wanted was to make you proud... I'd rather never see you again than see that disappointed scowl on your face."

"Oh, son..." The silence stretched on for a long moment before Astrid coughed and urged Hiccup to continue.

"Anyway, Astrid followed me here and saw Toothless. I convinced her to let me take her for a ride."

"Convinced?! You hung me from a tree!"

"Would you have listened otherwise?"

She shrugged but before he could continue Stoick spoke up.

"What do you mean, 'took her for a ride?'"

Hiccup pulled on Toothless so that he rolled over and his back and tail came into the light. Stoick's eyes widened again to see the saddle and leather tail fin attached to the dragon's back.

"Like I said, his tail fin was completely torn off. I felt horrible that I had trapped him here, so I invented something to help him fly again. However he can't control it on his own." He pointed to the pedal on Toothless' left flank. "I have to ride him and control the fin with this. It's the most.. amazing experience. The wind in your hair... what a feeling!"

"Hear, hear." Astrid quietly agreed.

"But... but what about the Nest?"

"I'm getting there. When Toothless finally got over himself - OW!" Hiccup rubbed his head where the dragon had swatted him with his tail. "I mean, accepted Astrid's apology, we were flying through the clouds and accidentally found ourselves over Helheim's Gate. Before we knew what was going on we were in the mist and it was like Toothless couldn't hear me anymore. Something was... pulling him and he didn't respond when I tried to turn him away. I could have disabled the fin, but then we would have crashed.

"All the sudden there were dragons all around us. Each of them carrying a load of food. We came upon a mountain spitting fire and Toothless followed all the other dragons through a split in the side. The mountain was full of smoke and the dragons all dropped their catch down into the depths."

"They weren't eating any of it." Astrid added.

"Then we heard a rumble and it was like the bottom of the mountain opened up... this massive monster launched up and snatched one of the dragons from the air. But it wanted more. We barely got out..." All three of them shuddered and Stoick paled.

"What kind of monster?" He asked quietly.

"It's like nothing we've ever seen before. It could stand on the shore and stick its head through the doors of the Hall. Astrid thinks it's the Queen."

"Like a beehive, sir. The other dragons are like workers. That's why Toothless wasn't listening to Hiccup once we got into the mist. It was controlling him."

"You can't win this one, Dad." Hiccup's voice was barely a whisper. "For once in your life, would you please just listen to me." He begged.

Silence echoed through the cove as they each thought about what they had just heard. Astrid edged over next to Hiccup and took his hand, both to show support and to reassure herself that he was still here. To think that he had been prepared to leave the only home he's ever known to protect his friend... She had truly misjudged him before. He was braver than she ever thought he could be.

"Alright, son. I believe you."

Hiccup's face shot up and his wide eyes searched his father's face, not daring to believe his ears. "What?"

"I believe you. The fact that we are all standing this close to a Night Fury... How can I not?" He sighed. "But we can't just let the dragons steal everything we have! If we don't protect ourselves and our food we'll never survive the winter..." For once Astrid saw the age and stress show on her Chief's face as he ran his hands through his hair.

Hiccup thought for a moment before he perked up. "What if we steal from the Queen?"

Astrid shot him a look of utter disbelief.

"No, no, listen! You saw how massive that monster was! Do you really think it can even get out of that mountain? That's why the dragons hunt for it. It probably can't survive without them. And they only go back there because they're hunted and killed everywhere else they go! So what if we let them stay on Berk?"

"WHAT?!" His father nearly roared but immediately settled down when Toothless jumped back to his feet and stood between the Chief and Hiccup. "Easy, dragon."

"Settle, bud. He's not going to hurt me." Hiccup patted Toothless' head and walked over to sit on a boulder.

"The dragons raid to feed the Queen. So they would need far less food if they were only supporting themselves. If we allow them to live on the far side of the island and show them that we aren't a threat, maybe they'll leave the Nest! And without the dragons to hunt, the Queen will probably just die from hunger."

"Okay, that could work... But how are we going to convince the rest of the village to stop killing dragons?" Astrid asked.

"The same way you convinced me." Stoick smiled. "This is what we're going to do..."

"Well I can show my face out in public again!" Stoick laughed. "If someone had told me that in a few short weeks, Hiccup would go from being, well... Hiccup, to placing first in Dragon Training... Well, I would've tied him to a mast and shipped him off for fear he'd gone mad. Yes! And you know it! But here we are. And no one is more surprised... or more proud than I am. Today, my son becomes a Viking, but he is a Viking like none of us have seen before." Silence fell and the villagers shared confused looks. "You all came here expecting to see my son kill a dragon. But he has something far more surprising to show you. For my son is no dragon killer. He is a Dragon Trainer!"

That was Hiccup's cue. Toothless launched from the head of a massive statue and they started a slow circle around the Arena. Hiccup was sitting tall in the saddle and waving, banking Toothless' wings so that they could all see him on the dragon's back. As they came in for a landing the Vikings closest to the steps backed away quickly and Hiccup heard several shouts of 'Night Fury!' and 'Look out!' They touched down on the steps just below his father's throne. Both he and Toothless bowed to the Chief before turning back to face the villagers.

"Hiccup's success in the ring was not due to killer instinct, but due to careful study of dragons. He has told me many things about these creatures that we never knew before, and made me aware of a threat we didn't know existed. There will be a Council Meeting in the Hall today where we will discuss everything and explain our plans for the future. But for now, I would like to introduce Berk's first ever Dragon Rider and Trainer, my son, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, and his dragon, Toothless the Night Fury!"

AN: So there you go! This is just a one shot so I don't plan on continuing from here, but if you have any questions or would like something clarified I'd be willing to post an "epilogue" of sorts to answer them. Please let me know what you think of this little AU! I love reading and responding to reviews. 3