Author's Notes:
• I do not own any copyrights, but I do have quite a few of the dragons I bought from Wal-Mart
• Copyrights belong to Dreamworks and Cressida Cowell
• This was started after talking with a buddy of mine who is about as obsessed with this movie as I am. I started to wonder just what lead Astrid to seeking out and confronting Hiccup after the Monstrous Nightmare incident. Or, heck, how she even found out that Hiccup had been disowned in the first place. Thus, this idea was born.
• I'm guessing that Astrid's mother's name is Phlegma the Fierce. That name, along with Hoark the Haggard, Ack, and Sarkard are listed in the movie's credits, yet I have no idea who is who/what.

Looking back on it, nobody would be able to tell just why she had gone and done some of the things she had back at the Dragon Training Arena. Nobody would know why she had forced her way into the arena after the Nightmare had snapped and started chasing Berk's least likely Viking around with frantic snaps of its jaws and bursts of fire. Nobody would know why the best Viking of her generation would recklessly charge in, trying to save the worst Viking of her generation (and all of Berk's history for that matter). Most would deny it and claim Astrid had lost her mind, driven by rage after having lost her rank in Dragon Training and her once-in-a-lifetime chance to kill her first dragon before all of Berk.

Or, at least, those who hadn't heard the impulsive blond yell his name at the top of her lungs.

But Astrid knew otherwise. Whether she would admit it to herself or not.

Just why she had charged in there on what she originally judged as pure impulse was what was fueling her into a dead run. She didn't know why, how, or even when it had happened, but Astrid found herself attached and concerned about the well being of the last person on Earth she would have given a crap about merely 48 hours before now. After having Hiccup literally yanked from her arms by his dad, the chief, Astrid had been determined to at least figure out what they were planning on doing with Toothless. At the time, she felt it was the least she could do for him. But her luck had proven to not be on her side that day. She'd somehow lost track of the black dragon (in broad daylight no less!) shortly after being shoved out of the dragon arena. Any attempts Astrid made to get back in there and get to the Night Fury had been barred off by the adults. All she did know was that Gobber had been ordered to fashion a portable prison for the ebony beast, complete with metal bars, chains, wood, and some leather. Though what good wood and leather would do against a creature who could readily breathe fire was beyond her.

During her attempts to get into the arena, word had gotten around of a fight. Now, fights weren't anything out of the ordinary, especially when emotions were so high after the first public opening of a rare and elusive Night Fury. It wasn't uncommon to hear that the chief had been involved in the fight either. What made the story so strange and unheard of was that his son, the lanky and snarky pre-teen, had been on the other end of the argument. Rumors spread like wildfire around the small village of Berk. Some stated the fight had gotten physical, but Astrid highly doubted that. Some said the fight had been about the Night Fury, which everyone knew was connected to Hiccup somehow after it protected him from the Monstrous Nightmare. The only thing Astrid knew for sure was that the fight had been between father and son and that the argument had taken place in the Great Hall of all places.

As much as it pained her to give up on something she was bound and determined to do, Astrid decided she could take a break from trying to break into the arena to get to Toothless in favor of finding out just what had happened.

Of course, her first stop was at the Great Hall. Nothing there other than people milling about, going here and there and everywhere. Something about going after the Dragon's Nest. The news made Astrid's heart sink into her stomach. If they were suddenly choosing to go there, especially now of all times, it could only mean Hiccup had slipped up and said something about finding the place. This, in turn, caused her heart to thump harder in her ribcage and take off running again.

Astrid's next stop was the docks, which were filling up quickly. Vikings were moving cargo, weapons, and shields to the ships. In the middle of it all, Astrid knew she had heard Stoick the Vast barking out orders over the mayhem. She could have sworn she had seen Berk's current chief amongst it all, but she decided against looking for him. Right now she wasn't in the mood nor did she have the right to try and confront the burly man for answers and the whereabouts of his son.

Next up on her lists of places to check had been the Haddock residence. If Stoick was at the docks, maybe his son had taken refuge in the house to avoid any disappointed scowls from the other Vikings? Upon arriving there, Astrid had banged her hand so hard against the door she was positive her ancestors were yelling at her from waking them from their eternal slumber. Swallowing any rules her parents had taught her about etiquette, Astrid slammed the door open and searched the lower floor of the house for Hiccup, the entire time calling his name. She found nothing of him. It was almost like the kid had never lived there at all. There was a flight of stairs, but Astrid got about halfway up them before she decided against risking her skin anymore in the house and ran out the backdoor to avoid being seen.

Astrid turned direction and headed back toward the dragon training arena. It had been over two hours since she had last been to the place after all and maybe Hiccup had taken off for the arena in search of Toothless. But, upon arrival, Astrid found the place eerily quiet and empty. The only thing making any noise there was the occasional outcry from one of the previously captured dragons. Astrid gulped down any fears she might have had and put her ear to each barred wooden door to see if any of the cries sounded anything like Toothless. The Zippleback came close to tricking her, but she decided against it when she heard the cries being echoed by the second head.

Frustrated, Astrid took off back into town. By now, her chest was aching and her brow was coated in beads of sweat. She'd been running around this entire time looking for a kid she should have known she wasn't going to be able to find. Astrid caught herself heading toward the woods, intent on checking that secret cove she had first met Toothless in. But she stopped herself at the edge of the village, determining that if Hiccup had really gone all the way out there, he would want to be left alone. And would he really abandon Toothless like that? Astrid hoped he didn't. She knew she was going to clock him upside the head if he did.

Out of ideas, Astrid had decided to hike it back home. She figured she could at least take a break and attempt to get some answers from her mother before going and looking for the chief's son again. Which, at the moment, found her standing before her own front door. Astrid could hear her mother moving around inside, causing her insides to twist. In all of her years growing up, Astrid had never questioned what she had been told. She accepted things like the good little Viking that she esteemed to be. What questions she did have were small ones that her mother often laughed at when Astrid grew frustrated from not being able to find the answer on her own.

Taking a deep breath, Astrid shoved her front door open, almost startling her mother. Almost.

"I was wondering where you had wondered off to," a woman's voice chastised in a tease.

Astrid's mother was your typical Viking build. She was large, muscled, and had a sharp, unforgiving tongue when crossed. Her blond hair was bleached by the sun from long hours outside. The woman was already wearing her battle armor, her shield and spear strapped across her broad back with leather straps and ties. Phlegma the Fierce was not a force to be reckoned with. Female Vikings were heavily outnumbered by their male counterparts, but Phlegma was stronger than most men her age. She wasn't called "Fierce" for nothing. Her father had been a lucky man indeed to have tamed her mother's wild heart. And while Astrid wasn't as physically powerful as her Phlegma, she was quick and light on her feet, much like a Nadder. Something her mother never failed to point out when talking about her tall and lanky daughter. The only thing her mother ever complained about when it came to Astrid was that her hips weren't very wide, which was not good for bearing sons to her future husband.

Astrid grunted in greeting, heading straight for the kitchen to get herself a bowl to carry some water in. The blond wasn't even halfway to the kitchen when her mother cracked what she would probably thought was a joke. And, two days ago, it would have been. "That Hiccup apparently finally put himself to some real use around here," Phlegma said in a careless tone that implied she was only half joking.

Astrid froze mid-step and slowly turned to face her mother's back as she was bent down packing something. Licking her drying lips, Astrid chose, for normality's sake, to go along with it. "Oh really? And what, pray tell, did he do this time?"

Phlegma the Fierce didn't miss a beat, thinking nothing was wrong since she failed to see her daughter's delayed reaction. "Apparently the squirt found the dragon's nest and told the Chief how to find the place Hence," the woman paused here to turn to face her daughter, slinging her pack over her shoulder, "why I'm packing for another trip so close to the last one."

Oh gods please tell me he isn't going with them!

Forcing herself to roll her eyes, Astrid crossed her arms and pivoted her hip to one side, trying to give her mother the most unamused expression she could muster. "Really? And just how did he manage to pull that off without getting killed?"

Apparently her mother was easily swayed by Astrid's ruse. "I don't really know, but you did see the way that Night Fury acted around him. It would seem the chief's former son must have been out cavorting with Hel's minion right under our noses."

Wait - a - minute . . . FORMER!

Apparently, Astrid had not only thought this, but had said it out loud. She only realized it when she registered her mother crowing with laughter. "Aye, you heard me right! Apparently this was the last straw for Stoick the Vast. Couldn't take having the spawn of Loki for a son any longer!"

Astrid blinked. She was completely dumbfounded. Why would Stoick choose NOW of all times to disown his son! Why couldn't he have done it BEFORE Astrid grew a conscious and gave a rat's ass about Hiccup?

"So . . . So where is he now?"

Phlegma the Fierce blinked in confusion, looking at her daughter with a strange expression. "Thor only knows. Why are you suddenly so concerned about him?" Her mother sounded curious and there wasn't much hinting toward suspicion. Something that both relieved and scared Astrid.

The silence that traveled between them was not unnoticed by her mother. Phlegma the Fierce quirked an eyebrow, looking her daughter up and down like a fresh piece of meat. "And why were you in the arena in the first place? I couldn't find you in the crowd. The next thing I know, you're down there breaking every known rule about the ceremony of letting the best in Dragon Training kill their first dragon. I knew you were upset about not winning, but I didn't think you would go that far."

Astrid wasn't sure how to answer that, but it would seem her mother hadn't heard her scream Hiccup's name. And, if she had, she was clearly being in denial about it. "I was down there because I was trying to stop him from getting killed," she answered in her usual monotone. There was no point in lying her way out of this one. If she did lie, what she had done would lose some meaning.

Her mother seemed even more confused by this. "And why were you so concerned? Hiccup was never your charge. You're always telling me how much he screws up. Why the sudden change in heart?" Phlegma the Fierce careless tone was growing serious. It was a tone Astrid rarely heard and had done whatever she could growing up to never have it directed at her.

Astrid had been raised to stand her ground and stand up to those that opposed her. She just never imagined that the person who would be against her would be her own mother. The blond squared her shoulders, stood up straight, and puffed her chest out. "Because if I hadn't he would have likely been killed in that arena." Astrid felt her chest aching from the newly added strain on top of her earlier marathon running frenzy she still had yet to recover from.

Phlegma crossed her arms, clearly not liking where this conversation was going. "And a lot of good that would have done the village. We would have fewer messes to clean up after at the very least." Astrid felt her chest constrict and her throat dry. The situation was spiraling out of her control and there wasn't a thing she could do about it. "Are you saying you would rather him dead?" Vikings never ran from a fight, even if the chances of their survival were slim to none. "Heavens no!" her mother nearly shouted with conviction. "But, getting disowned should have come a lot sooner than this. At least the kid proved to be of some use in the long run I suppose."

Astrid could barely believe what she was hearing. Then again, she reminded herself, barely a few weeks ago and she didn't even acknowledge Hiccup's very existence outside of the taunts Snotlout and the twins shot his way. Any and all glares she sent the three of them always were conveniently ignored.

"But why do you suddenly care? I remember two nights ago I couldn't get you to stop shouting every oath under the sun and moon to his very name!"

Astrid blinked, having temporarily forgotten where she was and who she was with. The blond lifted her gaze, which had traveled to the floor for some reason, to face her mother. "Because he proved me wrong!" Astrid shouted back, balling her fists at her sides.

Phlegma's face scrunched up, her confusion mixing in with anger. Astrid had never been one to argue with her and rarely ever raised her voice out of anything but frustration. "Proved you wrong? And just what did he do to prove you wrong?"

"What does it matter? You're not going to listen to anything I say and take it seriously!"

The two stood in an uncomfortable silence after that last outburst. Neither knew what to say or just where the words had come from. Astrid did whatever she could to keep her breathing under control and remain standing despite how much her legs screamed at her to sit down. Phlegma, in turn, did whatever she could not to smack some sense into her daughter. This was Hiccup the Horrendous they were talking about here! Astrid never verbally defended anyone other than herself on top of that! Just what lies had the boy woven to make Astrid believe whatever he had told her with such conviction?

Come to think of it, what about that Night Fury? Astrid hadn't seemed ready and willing to fight off the black beast when it had burst into the arena. The dragon paid her no heed either. It could have just as easily been because it was preoccupied with the Nightmare, but even when the dragon had left it didn't hunt down her daughter.

The truth seemed to hit Phlegma the Fierce like a landslide "Don't tell me you knew about the Night Fury before today!"

Astrid flinched. She actually flinched! Her mother's voice was high and sharp. If her mother thought the tone was what had caused Astrid Hofferson, the girl made of stone, to flinch, she was strongly mistaken. Astrid had grown up hearing the voice all of her life. It was the words her mother had used that caught her off guard. So... Astrid had been figured out huh?

Her silence was enough for her mother to put the pieces together. Phlegma stared at her daughter as if she were a stranger in her own home. Her mouth hung open for a moment before she slammed her jaw shut as her brow came together. "You knew and you didn't tell anybody! How long did you know!" The first statement was not a question. Her mother knew Astrid had known longer than anyone outside of Hiccup and Toothless themselves.

Astrid bit her bottom lip, but forced herself to look her mother in the eyes. "Since yesterday. And I promised I wouldn't tell anybody," she said as calmly as she could force herself too. Her voice was still louder and slightly higher than normal despite her best efforts though. The words "I promise" had never actually left her mouth and she never actually said she wouldn't tell anybody about Toothless. But it had been implied. That had been enough for Astrid.

A Viking was always true to their word, even if it was to their worst enemies. But as to why Astrid would willingly forge a promise with Hiccup was beyond her. She knew her daughter wasn't telling her everything either. Phlegma the Fierce shook her head, clearly at a loss for words. Good. Astrid had never been for verbal arguments, but now she thought she might understand why Hiccup chose verbal disputes over physical ones.

"And how did you find out about it?"

'It'? Did her mother seriously just call Toothless an It? And since when did Astrid refer to the dragon as a He?

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Astrid grumbled, dropping her stance. It was a risk on her part to try and change the topic of conversation so openly. Her mother's brow came together once more, but she eventually let out a loud exhausted sigh. Even she knew trying to get answers out of her daughter was like asking a dragon to roll over and submit to your axe without a fight. "This isn't over," Phlegma muttered crossly and massaged the bridge of her nose. "We're continuing this when I get back." It wasn't a suggestion. It was an order. One Astrid wasn't in the mood to question.

Once again, silence prevailed between the two of them. It was eventually broken when Phlegma started to move toward the door, intent on getting to the docks and joining her comrades. But she stopped, turned around, and grabbed another axe that was leaning against the wall next to the door; Astrid's axe. Without saying anything, the woman strapped the handle to her waist before pushing the door open. If Astrid held any remorse for her actions and the loss of her weapon, she didn't show it. Axes were replaceable. Fathers weren't.

"I'm heading out. I expect you'll be here when I get back." Once again, it wasn't a suggestion. But it was a normal way of departing. Phlegma was too stubborn to even consider the idea of never coming home again. After the death of Valhallarama, most Viking women had come to accept that their deaths would greatly affect their spouses and offspring. This fueled Phlegma's desire to come back alive after every trip.

Once her mother was long gone and out of ear-shot, Astrid jerked to attention and practically ran outside. Berk was growing quieter with most of the village heading out to take on the nest. She balled her fists and ran for the docks, her previous desires to take a break and catch her breath lost and forgotten. Most of the ships were already out of sight by the time she even reached them. What few villagers, those too old or young to fight, that had stayed behind were already heading back to their homes.

What was there left for her to do except go home and hope against what she knew to be true that her mother would come back again to have that "talk" she would rather never face? Astrid took a deep, steady breath before turning around to put the ocean behind her. For whatever reason, her gaze traveled upward, following wooden planks that formed a spiraling bridge against a wall of stone. Whether it was a coincidence or not, Astrid spotted him standing there, overlooking the docks.

So that was where Hiccup had run off too huh?

The blond couldn't stop a faint smile from appearing, but it was soon wiped away once the situation weighed heavily her mind again. Why was he just standing up there sulking? Surely he had to be thinking about something he could do to fix their situation. Everyone in Berk knew Hiccup was far more brains than brawn. Then again, if what her mother had said was true, then it was understandable that he would be upset. Maybe he was the spiteful type after all when he thought nobody was paying attention to him. Or maybe he'd finally had it with being knocked down and he was up there swearing every oath known to every one of the gods for losing his best friend so easily.

Whatever his reason, Astrid gulped down several deep breaths of air to try and ease the ache in her chest. Whether she believed that the pain was from running around so much or held a deeper meaning was lost to the sands of time. Mentally preparing herself for something she had never attempted before in her short life, Astrid took off for the umpteenth time that day. She had never tried to cheer somebody up before. But she'd be damned if she sat back and did nothing.

The closer she got, the slower she ran. She did her best to block any signs of fatigue from showing anywhere on her. Astrid was used to long hours training away even on the rare hot day to grace Berk, so she wasn't as tired as most people her age would have been after running around Berk for several hours without extended breaks.

It wasn't long before she saw Hiccup ahead of her on the gangplanks. It didn't look like he had moved much or at all from where she had spotted him from the lower docks. She stopped some ways away, trying to think of just how she was supposed to go about trying to cheer somebody up. Well... she could start with what she knew right? Taking a deep breath and clasping both of her hands in front of her, Astrid took the first few steps toward trying to find a solution to everyone's problems and possible gruesome futures. She hadn't realized just how loud her footsteps sounded against the wooden planks beneath her until Astrid noticed Hiccup stiffen up and visibly turn away from her.

Please let this work . . .

Keeping a comfortable space between them, Astrid decided she might as well wing this as best as she could. At least then she could say she gave her first ever attempt at comforting and talking some sense into somebody her best effort. That and, well, curiosity gets the better of everyone at some point in their lives right? She wouldn't bring up her earlier conversation with her mother. She wasn't going to mention the things she had overheard.

"It's a mess."