Hiccup walked into the Clubhouse one fairly miserable morning, and addressed the gang in not his usual cheerful, bright tone, but a flat, lifeless one instead. "Morning, guys. I... have some annoying news."
Snotlout snorted. "We already know the twins are alive, Hiccup."
Normally, Hiccup would have laughed with the others, but that day he was not in a good mood. "No," he snapped. "We're going to Berk." He sat down on a stool in the corner of the room, took out a book, and started reading it.
The others' reactions were all the same and spoken in unison: "WHAT?!"
Hiccup sighed, and repeated himself while still reading the book.
"Berk? Seriously, Hiccup? I mean, we went there last week! Why do we need to go again?" Astrid exclaimed incredulously.
"My mum was soooo annoying last week. She told me to stop blowing things up and behave like a proper little lady! I don't wanna go back!"
Tuffnut banged his head on the table to somehow illustrate his sister's point.
"There's nothing to do there except tease Fishface!"
Fishlegs whimpered. "So why are we going there?"
Hiccup looked up from his book. "Because we're going to have a visitor."
"WHAT?!"
Thirty-two hours later, the Riders were soaring through the air to Berk. The only sounds were the dragons communing, and Snotlout occasionally moaning about the lack of food- all of which he had eaten in the first two hours.
"Are we there yet?" Snotlout asked for the millionth time, perhaps not very wisely. Hiccup's head shot up from where he had been reading his book- again. "Yes, Snotlout, we are on the Isle of Berk. Hop off your dragon and there will not be clouds beneath you, but soft, fresh, nonexistent grass. No, we are not there yet!"
This appeared to send the twins and Fishlegs into high-pitched peals of laughter. Astrid, on the other hand, rolled her eyes at Snotlout, who looked extremely confused at Hiccup's self-contradictory statement.
Hiccup looked down, once more totally absorbed in his book.
More hours passed, and finally, they were there.
"YES!" squealed Snotlout as they landed, and practically fell off of Hookfang.
Hiccup dismounted Toothless solemnly, and walked straight to his father's home. "I'll meet you guys in the Great Hall later," he said as he walked away.
"Hiccup!" shouted Astrid, but he either didn't hear, or didn't listen.
Hiccup never listened.
"Ah, son! So glad you could join us!" said Stoick the Vast heartily. Hiccup nodded. "Hi, Dad."
"And...?" prompted Stoick, gesturing to a large woman and a girl who were also in the house.
Hiccup smiled politely, and shook their hands. "H- hi."
The woman smiled. "Pleased to meet you, Hiccup! I've heard all about you."
Hiccup mentally screamed.
On the outside, he forced another fake-but-polite smile onto his face, and looked at the girl. "And you are...?"
The woman looked at Stoick expectantly, who sighed and said:
"Hiccup? Meet your cousin, Eira."
WHAT?!