This is my first fic ever, as well as my first HTTYD fic to please just hang in there… (NOTE: I don't own the characters, and the story is for entertainment purposes only)

Timeline: Shortly after the second movie, third person POV

Enjoy!

"Hiccup!" Astrid called, running into his house. Hiccup's house…Every now and then, it would occur just how much he had inherited after- after the battle of Drago. It still hurt her to think about.

Not paying attention to where she was going, Astrid bumped into his mom. Valka looked curious, but not at all shocked; she was used to the fact that the excited girl shouldn't be questioned, and Thor forbid if anyone ever tried to get in the way of Astrid seeing the chief. At the lack of a response, she simply shrugged and walked away, leaving Astrid extremely thankful that she didn't have to slow down for interrogation today.

"Hiccup! Open the door!" she yelled upon reaching his room. "You're not gonna believe this; Ruffnut found-" Astrid stopped suddenly. When she entered the room, not even careful enough to knock, she discovered something she would have preferred never having to face. Hiccup had clearly tried to stat his day early, and was sitting at his desk with a pencil in hand and invention blueprints were spread everywhere. Only, he had clearly fallen asleep. She couldn't blame him, it was common knowledge the past months after the battle of the Bewilderbeast had messed up his usual schedule and he hadn't had as much personal time as he clearly needed. She slowly crept in, making sure not to wake him; this took every ounce of patience she had, since she had been so eager to tell him about the hideout Ruff had found earlier that day. To pass her time, rather than just sit down on his bed until he woke, she decided to get a head start on looking through all of his inventions. Hiccup had always ran the ideas by her first, but being chief meant he had had to delay her approvals. A sharp pain tugged at her heart as she saw that he hadn't even had the leisure time to create new pieces to forge. He was too busy.

Turning away from the disappointing scene, Astrid finally got a close look at Hiccup's face. The dark circles expanding from beneath his eyes weren't a new sight, though still sad to see; however, the obvious dampness made it hard to stand. She wasn't sure how long, or why, but he had been crying. Her Hiccup. As if on command, she could see him slowly start to cringe in his slumber. Torment filled the usually handsome, but geeky, face. Astrid could almost feel the terrors inside his head leaking out into the room. It was too much to bear for much longer.

Coming closer, she began to stroke his unruly hair, slowly twisting a new braid into the side of his head. Only then did she really start to take in how much older he had gotten, all in the matter of a few months. She stopped, gasping, as she found the final straw. It couldn't be, could it? Hiccup, in the one week that she hadn't seen him so closely, had gotten gray hairs.

Without missing another beat, Hiccup started to shake, tears streaming. The sight terrified Astrid; such a strong and independent young man in such a weak state. Not just any man, but hers. Tears began to fill her own eyes, as he mumbled something she couldn't quite hear.

"Hiccup…" she whispered, instinctively sending a hand towards his shoulder. She stopped short, however, when she finally understood what he was saying. She had assumed that the terrors were of his new, sudden position as the tribe's leader, or perhaps from the loss of his father. Rather, though, the frightened man was fretting over…her?

"Astr…List'n o'me…I h've a feelin'…I can't be what you need…go 'n'see Gothi…please…"

Astrid, now with a steady stream flowing from her blue eyes, wasn't sure what her love could be rambling about. On their wedding night, only months prior, he had said similar words, promising to be whatever she needed before him own needs. But what was this about Gothi? Was Hiccup sick, or did he think she was? She shook Hiccup awake, finally deciding she could watch no more, quickly leaving the room so as he wouldn't be confused and ask questions. Ruff's discovery could wait; she needed to fix Hiccup.

Landing on the high hill sporting Gothi's isolated hut, Astrid was frantic to get to the old woman. She needed quick answers, though she wasn't sure that's what would be provided.

Uncharacteristically, the old woman seemed almost surprised to see Astrid. She quickly ran about, collecting her stick to translate into the sand what the distraught girl evidently needed to hear.

Taking one look at the ground, Astrid's heart did a leap and she hurriedly thanked the old woman.

Sorry for the long chapter…Reviews are definitely appreciated from a noob like me, so make sure to leave some at the end of the fic. Thanks for reading, and I hope you continue if you liked it!