As the adrenaline wore off, Hiccup found it harder to stand. The weariness and grief he'd been pushing aside for hours washed over him like the waves that crashed against Berk's many cliffs. The village was safe now that he and Toothless had defeated Drago Bloodfist, the man who had killed his father. Well, technically Toothless had killed his father, but as he limped towards the shadowy comfort of the forest he pushed the thought aside. It wasn't his fault, and he knew it. Still, now that everything had begun to sink in, he found it hard to look at the dragon without re-living the scene all over again. He'd sneaked away from his best friend when he'd run off to the feeding station. He felt bad about leaving without explanation, but he knew Toothless wouldn't have let him wonder off alone otherwise.

The walk to the Cove took longer than it usually did. Granted, everything was quicker on the back of a Night Fury. He finally made it to his destination, a bit of a happy place to the new chief. It was in that same now-deserted cove that he'd bonded with his Night Fury. He'd spent countless hours trying to tame him, working on his tail fin, and learning how to ride him. It was odd coming back without him.

He climbed down, stumbling over the slippery rocks, towards a fallen log where he sat to catch his breath. As his heartbeat returned to normal his mind began to wonder. The events of the past two days came rushing back, overwhelming him. He'd met the mother he'd thought to be dead his entire life. Then his parents had been reunited, giving him hope of a normal, happy family, only to have it taken away from him hours later by Drago. He couldn't help but blame himself for thinking he could change his mind. His father had warned him that there was no convincing Drago, and he hadn't listen. Yes, it was true that if he hadn't run off he never would have found his mother, but it was also true that his father had died defending him from the Night Fury.

He shook his head and kicked aside a pebble. His lip quivered and he felt hot tears running down his cheeks. What a joke. He'd been named chief less than two hours ago and he was already cowering in the forest. How was he supposed to run a village? How could he ever take the place of Stoick the Vast? He stood from his log and kicked at it with his good leg, gritting his teeth and hopping up and down on his prophetic as pain shot up his foot. "Gods," he cried, collapsing on the ground, overwhelmed by his sobs.

He snapped his head sideways towards the sound of rustling leaves. Toothless was crouched behind a bush, his head and torso covered by the foliage, but his wings and tail stuck out conspicuously. "I can see you, Bud," said Hiccup. The Night Fury poked his head up, giving his rider a gummy grin. "What are you doing here, Toothless?" he asked, wiping his face with his shirt's sleeve. The dragon jumped over the bush and knocked him to the ground, licking his rider affectionately. "Stop, Toothless," he begged, rolling to the side.

The Night Fury sat up, hunched forward, confused. While Hiccup didn't love to be covered in dragon saliva, he was usually amused by Toothless' antics. "I'm sorry, Bud, I'm just not in the mood to play around." Toothless seemed to realize then that his rider had been crying; he looked upset. He crawled forward slowly and nudged Hiccup with his snout. The man petted his head sadly, and the dragon curled up around the chief, forcing him into his embrace. Hiccup chuckled and sat against the dragon's side, rubbing his scaly skin absentmindedly.

"I guess there's no hiding from you, is there, Bud?" Toothless perked up at the sound of his nickname and purred happily. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have walked away from you like that."

"He nearly turned the town over looking for you," said Astrid as she descended into the Cove on the back of her Nadder.

"And no hiding from you either," he huffed. She watched him wearily and gave him a sheepish smile.

"We just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Oh, I'm great. I'm on top of the world, Astrid." He gave her a forced smile and leaned back against his dragon.

"Hiccup..." She rolled her eyes at his sarcasm. "No one blames you for being upset. If you need to be alone, I understand."

Astrid was already climbing back on the Nadder's saddle when Hiccup groaned. "No... you can stay if you want." She studied him for a second. He tried to seem indifferent, but the pain in his eyes was unmistakable.

"Yeah, I'd like that. I'm getting a headache from all the celebration going on back there."

Her words seem to bother him. He stood up and took a few steps towards the lagoon. "What is there to celebrate? My father is dead, and the town is destroyed."

"Hiccup, we won. You won. What you did out there was amazing. You saved us."

"Oh, it was mostly Toothless." He shrugged. "Look at him." He sat on the log again, and Astrid joined him swiftly. They watched their dragons as they chased each other around the clearing. When Toothless was catching up to Stormfly, she jumped across the lagoon, flapping her wings a few times to reach the other side. Toothless sprung after the Nadder but was unable to make it across the water without Hiccup working his tailfin. The dragon screeched and flailed before plummeting into the water. Astrid laughed as the Night Fury emerged from the water, glaring at the Nadder and paddling towards the shore.

"He's ridiculous," said Hiccup.

"He saved the village and defeated the Alpha."

"Who would have thought?"

"He's a Night Fury." She laughed. "He's amazing. He also has an amazing master."

"Yeah," he scoffed. Astrid glanced at him, and he quickly averted his gaze. The death of Stoick was hard for the whole village, but it was hardest for Hiccup. She understood what he was going through. Hiccup had been unsure about being chief even before his father's death, and now it seemed like he'd been rushed into it. He wasn't even allowed to mourn properly before he had to rush in and take on all these new responsibilities.

"I'm really sorry," she whispered. He gave her a puzzled look and she sighed, reaching for his hand. "All that's happened. It sucks."

"Yeah, I'll admit I've had better days." He chuckled and pressed her hand to his lips. "I'll be fine, Astrid. It's just a lot to take in."

She brushed her hands through his shaggy hair and started braiding a strand near his ear. "Hiccup, I know you better than anyone else on this island, except maybe Toothless." She laughed softly and shook her head. "I hope you already know this, but I want to say it anyway. You're not alone. We're all here to help. Your mother, Gobber, the other riders... You know that, right?"

He pulled her hands away from his hair and held them in his own. "I... I know that. I count on you more than you know." She smiled and kissed him on the lips gently.

"I'm not going anywhere," she assured him. "Except I actually have to go. I promised your mother I'd be back soon to tell her if you were okay, but you know what I mean."

"What a way to prove a point." He laughed, shaking his head. "You're awful. Go on then. 'I'm not going anywhere'." She laughed and shoved him playfully; glad to see his sense of humor wasn't completely gone.

"Yes, Chief," she teased.

"Oh, no, come on. Don't call me that."

"As you wish, your highness," she joked, jumping back on Stormfly's saddle.

"Oh, I see how it is! You are messing with the wrong Viking!" He jumped on Toothless' back and they sprang up after Astrid.

"Whatever you say, Sir. Mister. Bossman." She laughed and flew away with Hiccup and Toothless at their tail.