Okay… so I just came back from watching How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.

And, Holy Shields, do I have a lot of emotions about it.

I know that, for sure, the biggest challenge for me when I make a full-blown adaptation of the third film is how I'm going to treat the relationship between Toothless and the Light Fury since, in my AU, Toothless already has a mate – Stryka, my dragon OC and the dragon of my human OC, Zenna Fiersome.

I've got some ideas forming. Hopefully, I'll be able to write a good dynamic between Toothless, Stryka, and the Light Fury soon… once I've watched the third film a couple more times (I shall wait for a DVD of the third film to be released if I don't get any chances to watch the film again in theaters) and have finished more of my stories with Loki in them.

In the meantime, this here's a collection of one-shots centered around my OC, Zenna, and takes place during the third film, during those in-between moments before some of the big scenes happen. I'm relying on my memory of the third film while it's still fresh from watching it so some of the dialogue may not be the same as in the film.

Enjoy!

NOTE: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING HERE EXCEPT FOR MY OCS!

I Thought I Lost You

(Takes place when Grimmel's Deathgrippers set Hiccup's house on fire.)

Zenna coughed, smoke filling her lungs, as she scrambled to get out of her best friend's house as it went up in flames.

'And I thought Drago Bludvist was bad enough. Now we've got this lunatic who's the reason why Stryka's the only female Night Fury in existence!' she managed to think before another one of Grimmel's Deathgrippers landed right in front of her. The dragon hissed and, like a flash, its scorpion-like tail lashed out at her!

She yelped and dove out of the way, but not far enough. The Deathgripper's stinger still managed to graze her right side. Almost immediately, Zenna felt her whole body go limp and she collapsed with a groan. She could feel the Deathgripper's venom polluting her bloodstream, numbing her entire body and lulling her into unconsciousness.

'No… No! I refuse to die today! I'm not leaving Eret! I don't want to leave him… I can't leave him…' she thought as she willed her body to move. But she couldn't. She was completely paralyzed. And it was getting really hard to breathe…

Through her blurred vision, Zenna could make out the Deathgripper looming before her, its tail raised to deliver another, more lethal, dose of its venom.

"ZENNA!"

Eret came jumping out of the flames, his dragon-scale armor covered in soot. With a roar, he lunged at the Deathgripper, grabbing onto one of its tusks and pulling it down like a rodeo cowboy. He rushed to Zenna's side and scooped her up into his arms then started running.

"Stay with me, love… Stay with me…" he whispered again and again.

The last thing Zenna remembered was Eret's wide and terrified amber eyes gazing into her own before she blacked out…

She woke up to Stryka licking her face. The one-eyed dragoness let out a happy roar and nuzzled Zenna, purring.

"Hey there, girl…" Groaning, Zenna sat up and felt her right side. Bandages covered the spot where the Deathgripper's stinger had grazed her. Flexing her fingers, she silently thanked the gods that the venom hadn't been potent enough to kill her.

'If I'd gotten stung a second time, that would have been the end of me…' she thought before hearing footsteps.

"Loki?" Zenna breathed out upon seeing the God of Mischief.

"I sensed that you and Hiccup were in danger and had Heimdall open the Bifrost." Loki turned his head to the staircase. "She's awake," he announced.

Eret and Hiccup came running up the stairs followed by Zenna's parents, Edgar and Henna, and her little brother, Elias II Stoick Fiersome.

"Oh thank gods…" Eret breathed out, heading over to Zenna's bedside and embracing her.

"My precious little gemstone…" Edgar murmured, going to Zenna as well and gently stroking his daughter's head.

"Zennwa!" little Elias II, El as he was affectionately called, bawled as Henna carried him to his big sister. Upon being placed in Zenna's arms, he started crying in earnest.

"It's okay, El… I'm okay… Your big sis is okay…" murmured Zenna, kissing El's soft black curls.

"How are you feeling, Zen?" Hiccup asked softly, his green eyes filled with worry.

Looking at her family and friends' anxious faces, Zenna could tell that something was wrong.

"Sore… and furious. That Grimmel doesn't know what he just started," she growled and made a move to get up.

"Zen, wait." Eret gently pushed her back down on the bed. "Save your strength," he said gently.

"Eret, I'm fine. I just got grazed. The wound's not too serious," said Zenna, showing him her bandaged side.

"But the Deathgripper's venom was," Hiccup murmured. He clenched his fists. "Their venom can sedate humans and dragons, and they can control its potency. Grimmel, he… he wanted his dragons to kill tonight," he muttered, his face stormy.

"He's right." Loki walked over to Zenna's bedside and crouched down so he was at the Dragon Doctor's eye level. "The venom of the Deathgripper dragon… it was a lot more potent than Gothi originally thought…" The god's eyes became pained. "You stopped breathing for a while, Zen. I used my magic to get the venom out of your system. If I hadn't gone to Heimdall and had him open the Bifrost the moment I felt that something was wrong, you would have…" he trailed off, and looked away, shutting his eyes tightly.

Zenna felt El whimper in her arms and glanced at her parents only to see the same expressions of relief and fear on their faces. She felt Eret tighten his grip on her and looked up to see him fighting back tears.

She almost couldn't believe it. Apart from the mild sting from her wound, she felt completely fine! And yet…

'I almost died…' she thought, her insides turned to lead.

"Well… I'm alive. That's all that matters, right?" she asked quietly, earning relieved chuckles and nods from everyone.

"You get some rest now, sweetheart," Henna said softly as she tried to take El, but the little boy refused.

"Nuh-uh! Wanna stay wid Zennwa and pwotect her!" El protested, wiping his snot-stained nose.

"Don't worry, El. I've got Stryka and Eret here to protect me. I'll be back on my feet in no time," Zenna reassured him, gently kissing his forehead.

"Okay…" El let Henna lift him up off his sister's lap. "Don't cwy now, Uncka Eret. Zennwa's okay. You gots to protect her now," he told Eret, who gave him a watery smile.

"That I will, El, that I will," Eret promised, rubbing his eyes.

Hiccup, Stryka, and Loki were the last to leave. Stryka gave her rider one last nuzzle before going downstairs to let Toothless know that Zenna was alright.

"Grimmel…" Loki's eyes turned blood-red. "Oh, I already have a couple of plans on how to kill him," he seethed, ice forming around his feet.

"We can talk about that later, Loki." Hiccup pushed the angry god forward before he could freeze the room. "Right now, I need some help in making sure those who were also attacked are alright," he said before turning to Zenna and Eret. "I'll gather everybody in the Great Hall in a couple of hours for a meeting. Zen, if you're up for it, you and Eret can attend."

"We'll be there, Hicc," Zenna replied, giving her brother in all but blood a smile and a thumbs-up.

Once her two brothers were gone, Zenna felt Eret shaking. "Eret…?" she said softly.

Eret couldn't stop the sob that tore out of his mouth as he hugged Zenna tightly. "I thought I lost you…" he whimpered, burying his face in Zenna's dark hair.

"But you didn't," said Zenna as she gently cupped Eret's face in her hands. "I'm alive, Eret." She smiled at him.

Eret shook his head. "You don't understand. After we got out, you were already so pale. Then all of a sudden, you let out this rattling gasp and… and you stopped breathing.

"I was terrified, Zen. I was screaming myself hoarse, trying to wake you up, until Hiccup had me get on Toothless with him to take you to Gothi's. She tried every cure, every brew that she knew of, but you still wouldn't take a breath.

"Then Loki burst in, his eyes wild with panic. Once he saw you, he started chanting some spell. I saw this dark purple mist come out of your mouth before you started breathing again. But all the while I-I thought…"

Shutting his eyes, Eret pressed his forehead against Zenna's. "I don't want to lose you, love. My heart won't be able to bear it… I won't be able to bear it. First Mum, then Da… I can't lose you too," he whispered brokenly, tears trickling down his cheeks.

"Oh, Eret…" Zenna gently nuzzled him, wiping his tears away. "It's alright, love. You won't lose me. I promised, remember?" she murmured, gently clasping Eret's hands.

She felt for the smooth gold band around the third finger on Eret's left hand.

"I will love and cherish you all the days of my life. You're mine and I'm yours. I will always have your back no matter what. Your happiness is my happiness. Your sorrow is my sorrow, and I will weather any storm with you until it passes. And if Death tries to take me away from you before it's my time, I'll fight him until I get sent back to the world of the living… because I want to be with you for as long as I can," Zenna couldn't help but cry a little herself, as she repeated her marriage vows. "You are the love of my life… and I love you forever."

Eret let out a sound that was a cross between a laugh and a sob and leaned into Zenna. "Only you would be mad enough to fight Death…" he said hoarsely before looking into her one violet eye.

"I promise to love you and cherish you all the days of my life. I am yours and you are mine. I will protect you with all my heart and all my strength. Whenever you are happy, I will also be happy. Whenever you are sad, I will do my best to comfort you until you feel better. Not even Death will keep me from you, because I want to have as much time as I can to be with you. You are my goddess, my princess… No, my queen… and my everything… And I love you forever," he replied, feeling the same kind of love and devotion he had felt when he said those vows for the first time just one month ago… when he and Zenna finally tied the knot.

And that love and devotion he felt for Zenna, the same love and devotion she felt for him, had never waned. If anything, it had gotten much stronger.

Zenna laughed softly then gently pressed her lips against her husband's in a sweet, loving, kiss. They stayed like that, lost in the feel of each other's lips, for about a minute before separating.

"We're going to make Grimmel pay." Eret's amber eyes blazed with determination, resting his hand on top of Zenna's. "He'll rue the day he tried to separate us."

"We will." Resting her hand on top of her husband's, Zenna looked at her own wedding ring, a gold band identical to Eret's.

"And we'll do it, together."

Yeah… so this is like a "What if?" AU, where Grimmel's first attack on Berk ended with one of the major characters getting injured. In my case, it's Zenna.

And, yes, she and Eret are already married by the time of the third film. For a whole month, actually!

Read and review! More one-shots coming soon!

-GuardianDragon98