The evening had turned to rain
Watched the water roll down the drain
As we followed him down... to the station
And he would never wave goodbye
You could see it written in his eyes
As the train pulled out of sight, right by
Ah-heya ma ma ma, into the night-ahh
Heya ma ma ma, hey-ay-ay-ay, ah
Life in a northern town

- The Dream Academy

It had been more than two years since Hiccup had driven down the streets of the quaint little town known as Berk and he was somewhat disappointed to find nothing much had changed since his last visit; a few new renovations to several of the older buildings, a new road or two, and some faces he didn't recognise, but apart from that, still same old Berk.

It was both a comforting, yet horribly depressing notion.

'Of course, you would probably have noticed this all a month ago had you been paying attention.' His mind chastised him with a sarcastic drawl, very much like his owner.

That was true, except he had some rather more pressing thoughts at hand at that time than focusing on the decor of his hometown.

Like the death of his father, for example.

Stoick (the Vast, he was nicknamed by his friends and family) Haddock—the largest, bravest, sturdiest man Hiccup had ever known—had sadly died last month in a fatal heart attack which no one saw coming. It had been a shock to everyone, even though he probably could have lost a few pounds and cut down on the alcohol and probably work on his stress levels, he had only just turned fifty and had been expected to live at least another thirty years.

His mother, Valka, had been devastated, to say at the least, and it completely broke Hiccup's heart when he heard her on the phone in a tight voice; sobbing & barely holding it together, before finally mustering the strength and telling him why he needed to come home as soon as possible.

He was on the next flight and in the arms of his grieving mother before daybreak.

The funeral followed soon afterwards, and while it had been a small, private affair, there was also a public service held for him as well, which was really no surprise. After all, he was the Mayor and Chief of the Berk Fire-brigade; he spent most of his free time as a volunteer and was an active member of the community. Many of the citizens looked to him as their leader and respected him fiercely, which, unfortunately, meant for Hiccup that he had to endure accepting many condolences—and, although he deeply appreciate everyone's sympathies, it was still hard.

He and his father had always had difficulty communicating with one another; Valka was always going on conservation expeditions for months at a time, leaving the two of them estranged. Growing up, Stoick would always go on about hoping for his son to one day follow in his footsteps and take him to put out fires, whilst all Hiccup wanted to do was spend his free time in his work shed tinkering with whatever he could get his hands on, or better yet, go with his mother on one of her many adventures and save endangered wildlife.

It wasn't until he was fifteen and he almost lost his leg in an out of control fire during summer that Stoick began to realise that he didn't care whatever path his son chose, as long as he was happy with the choices he made, and Hiccup realised, despite all his sarcasm, sharp words & innate desire to walk his own path, he couldn't deny that deep down all he wanted was just to make his father proud. After that, they came to a mutual understanding and they truly began to bond. So now knowing that his father was gone forever drove a painful wedge deep inside Hiccup's chest and he just simply didn't want to have to deal with it.

He hadn't been able to stay in Berk for very long, he had been involved in the new Women & Children's hospital which had been very close to completion, and he had had to return to the city of Corona after just a few days.

However, now it was completed and Hiccup had all the time in the world; so he decided to move back home, to sort out the legal mumbo-jumbo of his father's estates and allow himself the chance to mourn properly. Maybe.

"So, this is it, Bud, our new home." He said, glancing over to his left, to see his pet cat who was currently snoozing on the passenger seat.

Toothless sluggishly opening one eye and then another, letting out a wide yawn before stretching out its lithe frame and, much to the contractor's dismay, starting clawing the upholstery of the seat.

"Hey! Cut that out," he scolded gently, being used to his cat's antics. "You know that ruins the material."

The black cat glanced over to his owner, with an apathetic look which roughly translated to: Yeah, I know, but what are you going to do about it?

"Useless feline..." he muttered under his breath, before turning his attention to the apartment block he was currently parked in front of.

It had previously been a warehouse back in the 1920s, but due the Great Depression it had quickly fell into bankruptcy and was left abandoned up until the 90s when property developers had purchased it and renovated it into studio apartments. Unfortunately, what they failed to notice was that Berk had a rather small population and unemployment had reached a record high that year, so they had to sell the units for far less than they had hoped to profit. Fortunately for Hiccup, his father wa- had been a very savvy businessman and he had purchased the studio apartment for a reasonable price with the hopes renting it out and making a steady income until his son was old enough to take over the property.

While the contractor was grateful to be living somewhere where he didn't have to pay rent, in all honesty, he would have preferred staying in his family's cabin in the woods, like he had often done when he was still dating Astrid or when he just wanted to be alone, but it was a forty-five minute drive to the middle of nowhere with next to no reception. God knows what could happen if there was an emergency...

'Besides, that place is so old it's nowhere near fit for living conditions.' He mused, remembering how the roof had started to cave in and how the structure of the work-shed next to it had all but collapsed. It might have been okay ten years ago when he was still a teenager and had complete disregard for his safety, however, now that he was older, he could see that it desperately needed a renovation.

'I'll have to go to Uncle Gobber tomorrow and ask him for the keys.' He decided, as he pulled his duffel bag with him upstairs, Toothless following closely behind.

Most people would have thought it was strange of a pet owner to allow their pet to follow them around without a lead or harness, but Toothless was an extremely intelligent & loyal creature and Hiccup trusted him completely.

'Although, I should have asked him when I was there getting these keys.' He realised whilst using said item to open the front door, feeling somewhat irritated by his thoughtlessness.

Pushing the aforementioned door open, the young man stepped into the studio apartment and assessed what was now their new home. It was certainly nice, he would give it that; modern, clean, spacious, and fully furnished, which was great because now he wouldn't have to worry about doing any sort of furniture shopping. But best of all, it had a wide seat right in front of a large window, which would be perfect for him to rest on whilst sketching or drawing and for Toothless to sun-lounge, whom speaking of which, seemed to approve since he instantly bolted over to the window seat, keenly peering through the glass to see what was outside.

Hiccup chuckled, glad to see that his friend was pleased with the new apartment, before closing the door behind them and deciding to explore the unit. There were some stairs that led up to the bedroom right next to the window, but because it was all open, once he got up there he could see the entire studio, leaving no sense of privacy whatsoever, so he would either have to get dressed up there, or in the bathroom which was back downstairs (which would be a real pain if he needed to go during the middle of the night...) Other than that, he had no problems.

'Thanks Dad, even though you're gone, you're still taking care of me.' He reflected, grateful for his father's thoughtfulness, before feeling a pang of sadness & longing. 'I just wish I could have been there for you when you needed me...'

No, stop, he wouldn't do this. He wouldn't let his guilt consume him for something that he had no part of, and Stoick certainly wouldn't want him to blame himself for not being there to hold his hand during in his last few moments. Instead, he would want his son to be strong and be there for his wife.

'Speaking of which, I better give her a call.'

Pulling out his Iphone, Hiccup scrolled down the list of contacts until he reached his mother's name and clicked on dial.

"Hello?" Valka answered after two rings.

"Hey mum, it's me." He replied, feeling at ease from the sound of her voice.

"Hiccup! So you're here? How was the drive? Did you manage to get in contact with Gobber?"

"I'm fine, and yes I got in contact with Uncle Gobber, so now I'm at the apartment. The drive was long, but good—personally, I'm exhausted. I think I might just get some take-away delivered and go straight to bed."

"Would you like me to bring some spaghetti & meatballs? I just made some tonight."

"NO!" He exclaimed, before back-pedalling. He loved his mother dearly, but she had some God-awful culinary skills. Sometimes, he wondered how both him & his father managed to survive on her terrible cooking for so long. "I mean, no thank you. I'm in more of a Chinese mood tonight. Thank you anyway."

"So you'll come visit tomorrow?"

"Yeah, but I've gotta go see Gobber first. Maybe some time after lunch?"

"Okay, I look forward to it. I love you."

Suddenly his throat felt very tight and his eyes became very watery. Valka didn't say those words very often, not to say that she wasn't a very affectionate mother, because she was. It just showed that Stoick's death affected her more than Hiccup had imagined.

"I know," he croaked out. "I love you too. Bye."

And then he hung up.

"Miaow?"

Looking down, he realised that Toothless must have sensed his sadness and had climbed up the stairs looking for him.

"I'm okay, Bud." He said, hoping to appease the feline's concern.

"Mia-ow." Obviously he did not believe his friend.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm not." He admitted and bent over to pick the black cat up.

Toothless obliged with his friend's request and started nuzzling & purring against his owner's chest once Hiccup gathered the creature in his arms. They headed over to the direction of the king size bed and just laid there, doing nothing for the rest of the evening.

Neither felt so hungry anymore.

The next morning Hiccup found himself in better spirits than he had expected. Maybe it was the super comfy mattress, the companionship of a sympathetic Toothless, or just getting to cry it out all until he finally passed out into a dreamless slumber that led to the good night sleep. Whatever it was, it left the young man feeling alert and ready to take on anything coming his way.

'But first thing's first, I better check what time it is.' Pulling out his phone from his pocket (he really should have gotten changed last night...) he was surprised to find out it was a little after nine A.M. and remembering that he called Valka at just a little after 6:00 meant that he almost sleep for fifteen hours straight. 'Shit, guess I was more tired than I thought.'

Although what really surprised him more was that Toothless hadn't woken him up earlier and demanded to be fed. Looking around, he noticed that the black cat was nowhere in sight and quickly concluded that he would most likely be sitting on the window seat, taking in his new surroundings.

Getting up from bed, Hiccup hobbled down the stairs and had his theory proven correct. Toothless, upon hearing footsteps turned his head to his master before jumped from his resting spot and bolted over, all the while miaow-ing his head off.

"Oh sure, now you decide to make yourself known instead of waking me up like you usually do." He drawled sarcastically to the feline, before walking over to the fridge and muttered, "Bloody cat."

He was surprised to find a note attached to the metallic surface; upon closer inspection he realised it was from Gobber, who had been thoughtful enough to pack both the fridge & pantry with the basics necessities, since he wanted to spare his godson the horrors of enduring Valka's cooking, but anything else he would need to purchase himself.

"Remind me to do something nice for Gobber the next time I see him." He thought out loud, whilst rummaging through the fridge to find something suitable for Toothless. He found a carton of milk and some chicken mince; it wasn't much, but it would be enough until he went grocery shopping.

"Here you go, you greedy little runt." He spoke, although it was light & playful. Placing both the food & milk, which were now on saucers, on the ground and he watched in satisfaction as the black cat happily devoured his breakfast. "I guess I better go have a shower."

Twenty minutes later Hiccup was showered, dressed, and out the door. He had been tempted to make some scrambled eggs & toast for breakfast, however, he was running late and he wanted to get the keys off Gobber and head over to the cabin before lunchtime. He needed to assess the state of it before he made any decisions and if it was anything like how he remembered it—it could take a while.

'Good thing I brought my tools with me.' He thought gratefully, as he walked over to his black work ute. Because of his job, Hiccup didn't usually carry much with him during his travels—just the necessities, like his clothes, his sketchbook, his work vehicle, and Toothless. All his personal effects were packaged up in boxes in the basement of his parents' place, which he would now have to collect as well on the accumulating list of tasks he needed to complete over the course of the day.

If worst came to worst, he could always just postpone his trip to the cabin for another day. After all, he did have time up his sleeve.

Fortunately, the trip to Gobber's was a quick one and it was even more fortunate that he was actually home at the time. Since his father's passing, Gobber had had to pick up the slack for his best friend, and was now the Chief of the fire-brigade, which wasn't all too surprising since he had already been Stoick's second-in-command, but he was now also the executor of Stoick's will and in charge with having to deal with all the legal requirements that came with it. Not to mention the fact he had been visiting Valka everyday and ensuring that she was still eating—not because she was depressed, he assured Hiccup—but because she had been trying to block out her thoughts by instead focusing all her attention into her research (a habit the young man was all too familiar with...)

"So apart from that; how's everything else?" Hiccup asked, taking a seat adjacent from his godfather.

"Same old, same old." He replied before taking a sip of coffee he had prepared earlier.

Hiccup followed suit, grateful for the caffeine hit, remembering that he needed to do something nice for the older man's consideration.

"So tell me, young Hiccup. What brings you here today, because it's most certainly not for my barista skills."

'Good old Gobber, tactful as always.' He mused, but decided not to beat around the bush. "The family cabin..." Gobber raised one blonde, bushy eyebrow at that, peaking Hiccup's curiosity. "It's been a while since I last visited, but it surely needs a make-over. I've got plenty of time now that the Corona Hospital project has been completed, and I was wondering if I could get the keys so I could go visit and assess it."

"Ah... yes... about that..." he started vaguely, looking somewhat uncertain. "I don't... actually... have the keys."

"What...? Why...?" Hiccup drawled out, already not looking forward to whatever his godfather had to say. "Oh please tell me that it hasn't been sold!"

"Oh, nothing like that!" He tried to assure the younger man, but it was clear he wasn't buying it. "It's just that the property's been... leased."

"Leased?!" Hiccup exclaimed, wondering if he had heard that correctly. "You're joking, right?! Surely, you must be joking!"

"I kid you not, Hiccup." Gobber said with dead seriousness.

"B-but how?! W-when?!" He stuttered out. "Last time I was there, the roof was ready to cave in and the wood was showing signs of deterioration! It's totally dilapidated! Who in the right mind would live there! It's a friggin' death trap and totally unfit for human living! What the hell was dad thinking leasing it out?!"

"Well... to be fair, your father didn't actually have any plans for leasing it out. But he got a call nine months ago from a woman who offered him a year's worth of rent in cash upfront if he let her live in the property."

"A whole year's worth of rent? Upfront?" Hiccup looked at the older man with disbelief. "Just who is this woman?"

"Don't know. She didn't give him a name, phone or reference of any sort. It was actually one of the conditions of their contract; she would pay the rent upfront as long as Stoick promised not to pry into her personal affairs. Another condition was that he could neither visit or contact her at all during that entire year, nor could he tell anyone else about the contract. Of course, because I was there when the phone call took place, Stoick had to tell me."

"… what? Are you serious?" Obviously he was, but it was still a lot to take in. "Did he at least meet her before making such a crazy deal?"

Gobber shook his head and the young man felt his heart sink. "She left the money in the mailbox of the property and he left the keys in there after he went there to collect it. He tried looking for her, but there wasn't a single car in sight."

"So there's no actual written contract? Just verbal?"

When his godfather nodded his head, Hiccup sighed and rubbed his aching head, wondering briefly what on earth was going through his father's mind when he made such an agreement.

"So... how much did she give him?"

"Now this is the interesting part-"

"Because it hasn't been interesting at all so far, right?"

"-she gave him seventy-eight hundred and a further twenty-two hundred for him as extra."

The contractor did the maths in his head and stared at Gobber stunned. "She gave him ten grand?!"

With that sort of money, Hiccup could renovate the entire cabin without spending a single cent of his own. Seriously, just who was this woman?!

"With the state that cabin's in, it's not worth that much!" He pointed out. "Does anyone else know about this?"

The older man shook his head. "No, he only ever told me and it certainly wasn't my place to tell anyone, so I've haven't said anything. Hell, he didn't even tell Valka."

"Oh, this is just great! So this means she either has a drug laboratory in that cabin and cooking up some hard-core meth like Heisenberg, or she's the next John Bunting!"

"Or... she could be the next Charlotte Brontë." Gobber offered optimistically. "You're thinking too much into this, Hiccup. She's probably just a writer or artist who prefers solitude. You know these arty types; they thrive on isolation, gives them fuel for their next piece of work. They're quirky like that."

"That may be so, but I can't just let someone live there without finding out who they are! Or at least, making sure that they're okay—it's a long way to go for any sort of assistance. Not to mention, if the Housing Tribunal caught wind it would cause a scandal!"

It might have a sounded like he was being over-dramatic, but oh the gossip which would spread around should anyone find out that their Mayor had leased one of his properties under the table to a potential criminal, or worse, if the tenant died while on the property due to gross negligence—it would leave a mark on his father's good name and there was no way in hell Hiccup was going to allow that to happen.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Gobber asked as the contractor rose from his seat.

"I'm going over there to talk to her."

"Are you crazy? There's still another three months to the lease! If you go there you're voiding the contract!" His godfather protested.

"I don't care. If she gets upset and wants to void the lease, then I'll gladly compensate her with three months rent and the extra twenty-two hundred she gave dad." He reasoned calmly. "I know dad would disapprove, since it's close to the end of the lease, but I can't just let some random tenant live in something so decrepit it could fall on their head at any moment. It's my responsibility to make sure that they're okay."

"Just as stubborn as ever, I see." Gobber sighed, knowing he had been defeated. "Alright, you better get going if you want to be back by lunchtime."

"Oh, that's right!" Hiccup realised, pulling out his phone and looked at the time; 10:07 A.M. That meant if he left now he would reach the property just before eleven o'clock. However, with how things were turning out, the young man had a feeling this would take longer than he thought. "Can you let mum know where I'm going and tell her that I might be later than I thought?"

"Sure thing. Good luck, kiddo."

And with that, Hiccup was out of Gobber's house and in his ute in an instant.

'Well, this is certainly not how I expected things to pan out...' he thought as he turned on the ignition and pressed the acceleration, bracing himself for the long drive ride ahead. 'Let's just hope she can be reasoned with.'

After all, what could possibly go wrong?

Author's Notes: And so concludes the first chapter and the only thing I'm thinking right now is;

"What the hell am I doing?! Starting another fanfic when I haven't even completed the other dozen that I've started and haven't updated since God knows when? Oh boy..."

As you can tell, I'm kinda hesitant to put this up now since I don't usually do AUs (I like to stick to cannon), however, I got inspired by a modern AU Hiccelsa video I stumbled across on tumblr called "[AU] Hiccup & Elsa - you're beautiful"which is also on youtube and I fell in love. I've been wanting to do a modern fic for these two for quite some time (and while I have a few more ideas in my head for this cute couple, I will refrain for the sake of your sanity & mine) and hence this came to life.

Now be warned; this story will be very different from "Thaw Slowly" (fingers crossed) and will have swearing and sex scenes (possibly, no actual guarantee) so anyone younger than fifteen, I don't recommend reading this. Then again, with what kids watch & get up to nowadays (God, I sound so old), this would definitely be the lesser of two evils...

Now time for some trivia: When Hiccup mentioned "cooking up some hard-core meth like Heisenberg" that was a reference to "Breaking Bad" if anyone had seen the show. I've only been able to see the first season, so I don't know much more than that. The other line: "she's the next John Bunting," is a reference to one of Australia's worse serial killers. I won't go into too much detail because it's an incredibly gory & grisly tale - however, at the end of his kills, he placed the victims' bodies in barrels and transported them to an empty bank he was renting in a rural town called Snowtown (which is incredibly ironic, because it never actually snows there.) It's a couple of hours away from Adelaide (which is where I live) and unfortunately for the poor town, it's only recognised for its "Bodies in the barrel" scenario which is a shame because the events never actually occurred there.

When Gobber says: "Or... she could be the next Charlotte Brontë." It's a reference to the author, who spent of her life living in isolation. Yeah, you can see I'm going for a theme here...

Anyway, I want to thank Maxaro and TheWritingFactory for once again helping me out with this story. Maxaro always makes my writing way more professional than I ever thought it could be and TheWritingFactory never ceases to come up with amazing suggestions. In all honesty, I wouldn't be able to get far without these two and I'm really grateful you guys are so kind & supportive. Thank you.

I also want to thank you all for taking the time to read not only this story, but for all who are following "Thaw Slowly"- yes, there will be a new chapter out soon. Not sure when exactly, but hopefully until the end of the month. It all really depends on how well this story turns out - so please, please, PLEASE review!

Until next time guys.