This is the result of the combination of a new favorite movie, constantly listening to the soundtrack, and insomnia due to excitement prior to a trip to Monterey CA...I couldn't sleep and started reading a bunch of HtTYD fanfics, and decided "To Hell with it...I'll write one of my own."

I fully intend on turning this one-shot into a full blown story...eventually. When I have the time...subscribe to the story alert for it if you like it so you'll know when I do. It WILL happen. Just not sure when :) Right now, I'm content with it being a one-shot with results left to your imagination.

It's just a quick idea I came up with. Just some Hiccup/Astrid drabble with some Toothless humor thrown in. I know the movie was about how Hiccup just needed to be himself and how all the Vikings just needed to ease up on him and accept him...but I feel that he needs to still find his own inner Viking. Considering the time period he lives in, I have no doubt that there are other Viking tribes who will attack/loot/plunder/go 'a-Viking-ing' about, and he needs to find his inner Viking to grow more as a character.

So enjoy, and PLEASE review! :D

A Challange

"Come on, you overgrown salamander! Is that really the best you've got?"

Astrid's jeer pierced the night's silence that, up until that moment, had only been disturbed by the flapping wings of the Nadder she rode and the Night Fury she called back to.

"Don't let her get to you Toothl-" Hiccup shouted over the rushing air, before a deep growl rumbled below him.

"Oh boy…" He gulped quietly, rolling his eyes.

Then the dragon's wings gave a great lurch forward before shooting backwards, launching forward jerkily into the night. Hiccup only just had time to lean forward and brace himself before he was thrown back once again. Luckily, his prosthetic was latched tightly into its harness, as was his own makeshift 'seat-latch'.

Good thing for that…that water below us is freezing…

His head, however, wasn't so fortunate. It bounced freely and painfully on Toothless's back as the dragon flapped his wings fiercely in a feeble attempt to send them faster towards the blue and white Nadder. But as Hiccup wasn't in a situation to change his tail position, Toothless's violent flapping only set them further back from Astrid, who was smirking atop her own dragon.

With all of his strength, Hiccup pulled himself up against the rushing air and his dragon's unceasing rocky movements, and managed to grab a hold of the steering rail just behind Toothless's head. He took a moment to regain himself (and to rid himself of his newfound headache) and took note of their position.

Berk was just a small smatter of lights on the island far below them. Hiccup's thoughts lingered momentarily on his father, who would probably scream at him until he was deaf when he found out he and Astrid were out for a midnight race to Hellhind's Gate, which was once the dragons' nest. Pushing that horrible (and probably inevitable) idea from his mind, he turned his eyes up to the stars, reserved to believing that Astrid was not below him. And sure enough, there she was, straight ahead...or rather somewhat straight ahead. Quite a distance ahead, and about a hundred more feet above them to be accurate.

"She wants our best, buddy?" He asked his best friend with a grin. "We'll give her our best! We'll win this race yet! To Hellhind's Gate!"

Toothless roared his approval, and with a quick adjustment to his tailfin, the duo shot up and into the starry sky.

The Nadder was growing closer now, and Toothless was quickly closing the gap between them. Each flap of his massive wings brought them closer and closer to Astrid. And then they were next to her and her dragon.

"Nice of you to join the party!" She called over to him, "For a second there, I actually thought this was going to be easy!"

He caught himself unwittingly staring into her clear blue eyes, and for a brief moment was lost in them. She seemed the same with him as well. The moment was consuming Hiccup and he lost track of all else. Only Astrid existed. She smiled, a beautiful gift from the gods...

And suddenly, she turned a sharp left, disappearing into a dense wall of fog.

"Then again, maybe it will be!" Her voice echoed back distantly as Toothless and Hiccup continued moving forward.

"Son of a hairless troll!" Hiccup yelled fiercely, and he pulled the steering rail sharply to the left, which Toothless obeyed instinctively.

"It's all you now buddy!" he yelled through the thick fog, and Toothless growled his understanding below him. Only a dragon could find the nest, and Hiccup was confident in his dragon's speed that they would reach the island before Astrid, despite her slight advantage.

Confidence and reality, sadly, tend to disagree on many occasions.

After a few brief moments of weaving this way and that, through sharp rocks and overhangs, the pebbly beach of Hellhind's Gate came swiftly into view…

…where a spiny Nadder sat waiting, Astrid sitting atop it, a smug grin spread wide across her face.

Hiccup's heart fell at the sight. He closed his eyes as Toothless touched down on the beach, coming to a halt just to Astrid's right.

"Well now, that's the third night in a row that I've bet you here, on clear nights as well." She said through her smile.

"Thank you for summing that up." Hiccup replied flatly, staring at her indifferently. Toothless gave a few guttural chuckles below him.

"What are you laughing at?" He said defiantly, but Toothless merely laid down on the beach, a devious smile on his face.

"It's just like dragon training all over again Hiccup." Astrid said, her smile gone now. Her eyes pierced his own, and her tone was serious. "You're never where you're supposed to be. You need to stay in the moment. Keep your mind clear and focused. Making goo goo eyes at me was your mistake."

Hiccup opened his mouth to protest, but found his face suddenly smacked by Toothless's scaly ear, and his words were suddenly lost.

"You saved the village, and the dragons, and me last month." Astrid continued, grinning briefly at Toothless. "You were focused then because there was so much at stake. What you did was important to you. It mattered to you, and you couldn't afford to lose concentration for even a second then. So why did you let yourself now?"

He said nothing.

"Hiccup." Astrid said expectantly.

"I-I don't know." He replied sheepishly. "It was just a race…there wasn't anything to gain or save or lose…"

"Except your pride." She interjected. "Winning isn't everything, but you are still a Viking. There are still more enemies out there besides dragons. And hero or not, you're still a bit of an outcast. The light of your glory is fading. Slowly, yes, but eventually this…the dragons in the village, you and your victory…all of it will become just normal. It's nothing more than a shiny polish that will wear off. You need to show the village that you are one of us, on some level. So I'm helping you awaken your inner Viking."

Hiccup sat and listened to her speech intently, though he wore a look of disdain. He wished that he could just stay like this forever; the hero of Berk, the uniter of dragon and Viking, the first Viking dragon-rider. But he knew the truth in Astrid's words. Eventually, this all would fade and he would, despite his higher pedestal, still be a weak Viking. His victory would not last forever, and he knew he would need to dig deep to find his inner primitive self.

After a moment thinking on this, he sighed and smiled up at Astrid. "I know." He replied. "I don't know how we're going to do this…but we have to. I have to."

Astrid grinned. "Good. Now, about our deal…"

"Oh please, not again Astrid…"

She raised a hand to stop him from continuing. "The deal was that if you couldn't beat me to Hellhind's Gate, you'd be the one to clean out Floki's pen for the entire week."

She indicated her Nadder, who stared around quite oblivious to the conversation.

"Unless you want me to tell your father about our little excursions these last few nights…" She added devilishly.

"Alright! Alright…fine." Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Geez Astrid, low blow..."

"You know me." She replied, her grin broadening.

Toothless chuckled again beneath him.

"Quiet you." Hiccup said through gritted teeth. Smirking, Toothless swayed his head back and forth mockingly before spreading his wings. Floki did the same beneath Astrid, who still grinned at Hiccup, now making goo goo eyes at him.

As they both took off into the night sky, Hiccup's thoughts lingered on the deal.

Cleaning up dragon dung for an entire week…I suppose it's better than Dad's screaming. But not by much though…

Reviews please! :D