.~.
"Hiccup, either knock off that twitching or be ready for a punch to the head."
The young male blinked in surprise, turning sheepishly towards the blonde girl frowning at him. "Sorry, it's just, you know. Not used to this kind of thing…" he trailed off, his eyes darting out towards the village square, his mild distress elevating at the number of villagers making their way to the Great Hall near his location.
As the people passed him, they gave him warm smiles and friendly pats on his shoulder or his head. He could still remember the disdain showing clearly in their eyes whenever they saw him, but it seemed so long ago, and almost as if it was a dream. Giving mild waves and short handshakes, he quickly felt the butterflies in his stomach reach Terrible Terror size.
Astrid, who had been watching the interactions, began to notice that the smile on Hiccup's face, once again, seemed a little more strained and fake as more people filed in through the great doors. She crossed her arms, keeping her calm but slowly starting to fume inside. After all that had happened, she was sure he had built at least some small amount of confidence when interacting with the villagers. His confidence with dragons was second to none; even the Monstrous Nightmares, who had at first been mildly stand-offish, flocked around him with their deep rumbling purrs as he stroked their muzzles with a warm smile to each of them.
Her thoughts trailed to the rare Night Fury that never seemed to leave Hiccup's side. Even now, out of the corner of her eye, she could see him perched near one of the torches that lit up the main entrance to the hall, his eyes watching every person and every dragon that came near his rider. He noted her short gaze, and gave a soft croon. She turned her head and gave him a smile, which seemed to spur him to rise and come forward.
She thought Toothless would come to her, but he instead maneuvered his bulk between her and Hiccup, nuzzling the boy on the back of his shoulder. As if on instinct, Hiccup raised his arm and allowed Toothless' head to rest near his hip, a deep, vibrating purr beginning to start from the dragon's chest and work through both of them.
Astrid's eyes widened at the change that occurred in Hiccup the instant Toothless stood next to him. The sudden calm that washed over the boy was almost alarming, as if touching the dark scales stole away any fear he had in his body.
Hiccup closed his eyes, Toothless' purr radiating through him. It seemed that the dragon knew just what he needed to calm down. He slowly opened his eyes, watching the sun setting beyond the many houses and vast ocean beyond. An urge to fly seemed to bloom in his chest, but he kept it down. There was always later, but not at the moment. Not when his father had looked that serious as he called the entire population of older villagers to the Great Hall for a meeting.
He peeked down at Toothless, noting the watchful worry-filled gaze. He smiled assuredly, scratching lightly on the scales on Toothless' nose. As the last of the adults entered through the archway, he finally relaxed off his prosthetic leg, leaning a bit on Toothless.
"So, how long do you think it's going to take?" Astrid murmured. Hiccup sighed and moved his stare to the ground, a frown growing on his face.
"I'm not sure. You know, not everyone has enjoyed our change of lifestyle." Hiccup replied. The Viking equivalent of becoming an adult always used to be killing a dragon. Now, that was quickly becoming obsolete, all thanks to what he had accomplished.
Taming a rare Night Fury, freeing the dragons from the Red Death, saving his entire village; no one seemed to question if Hiccup was a Viking anymore. That kind of bravery, although completely insane and almost downright life-threatening to the extreme even to a Viking, only came once in a few generations. The courage to change your destiny, it seemed, was something easy to the young Viking. He had tried for years to be just like all the others, to do that one thing that would change how everyone saw him. Not some weakling that the village should be ashamed of, but a strong Viking that everyone would respect and be proud of.
Toothless crooned once more, moving his head up from Hiccup's hip to give warm, wet licks to his cheek. Hiccup grinned, laughing a bit as he wiped his face of slime. "Thanks bud."
That small urge to fly that had begun now came back full force, and he couldn't stop himself if he tried. With practiced ease, he swung himself up in the saddle, Toothless now barely able to contain his excitement at being in the air again. He turned his head back to the girl who had stood with him throughout the evening, throwing his hand out towards her.
"Up for some air time?" he grinned. Toothless barked happily, motioning her up on his back as well. Astrid smiled, shaking her head slightly as she took the offered hand-up.
"Don't blame me if my Nadder decides to tag along out of jealousy."
Hiccup laughed, already shifting his controls to open the prosthetic tailfin.
.~.