Part One

Something was off. Hiccup knew it from the moment Astrid woke up much later than usual that morning. Instead of rushing out with her for their daybreak ride, he watched her roll out of bed and shuffle around in a sleepy daze as sunlight came bursting through the windows.

"I'm fine," she snapped before he could open his mouth to ask.

It must have been the way he looked at her that gave him away. He sometimes found it frightening how she could already read him like an open book after only a year and a half of marriage.

"Just a little tired, that's all."

Hiccup wasn't convinced.

After halfheartedly poking at breakfast and pulling her hair into a loose, messy braid, Astrid mumbled something about being ready and they walked, not rushed, out the door.

On the top landing, Hiccup stretched and pulled in a deep, cleansing breath of cool air.

"What a day for flying, huh?"

"Mm," was all Astrid said, stomping down the steps.

Toothless, who had been enjoying a vigorous tug-of-war with Stormfly, ended it abruptly at the sight of the two approaching humans and bounded over to greet them.

"Hey, bud! You ready to…"

Instead of tackling his best friend in a shower of dragon spit as expected, the Night Fury galloped past him, heading straight for Astrid. She flinched at the oncoming mass of wings and muscle, a very un-Astrid-like reaction, but Toothless slowed deliberately, then began nuzzling her, crooning lovingly as Stormfly joined them.

"Toothless," she laughed, giving him a squeeze in return. "What's this about?"

"Good morning to you too," Hiccup said, voice dripping with feigned pouting. "Since when do you like her more than me?"

He took a step forward, then rapidly retreated several in the other direction as both dragons crouched protectively beside Astrid, baring their teeth and growling.

"Whoa, take it easy..." Hiccup held up a hand. "What's with you guys?"

"Stormfly, stop it," Astrid said, rubbing her dragon's snout. "It's just Hiccup. What's wrong with you today?"

With an apologetic squawk, the Nadder relaxed and dipped to the ground to let her rider climb aboard. Toothless, however, remained tense, eyes narrowed and teeth still visible. Thankfully the growl had dissipated somewhat.

Hiccup approached him cautiously, hand outstretched in the familiar dragon-bonding gesture. It had been a while since the last time he'd used it on his own dragon, which was more than a little troubling as he'd hoped he'd never have to again.

"What's the matter?" he pressed as the dragon inched forward and sniffed suspiciously at him, almost as if the two were barely acquainted. "You going feral on me?"

Toothless wasn't about to offer any answers and Hiccup was getting impatient and a bit annoyed with this odd behavior. It took a few tries to get the skittish dragon to stand still long enough for him to hop into the saddle. Even then it was a minute or two before the pair could agree on lifting off into into the sky after Stormfly and Astrid.

….

Only fifteen minutes later, they were back where they'd started. A very flustered Hiccup dismounted a very irritated Toothless and both hurried to Stormfly's side where a very droopy Astrid slid to the ground. It was a rare occurrence that their morning ride ended so soon and so abruptly. Even rarer that Astrid, of all people, should be the one to call it off. It might have had to do with the fact that Toothless had simply refused to fly more than twenty feet away from Stormfly at any time, causing problems for everyone involved, but the nauseated look on Astrid's face suggested another culprit might be at work.

"Ugh, I feel weird," she slurred, wobbling a little. "Kind of sick, I guess. But…I never get sick while flying."

"You're probably coming down with something." Hiccup slipped an arm around her back. "Maybe you should go back to bed."

She pulled away, taking his hands in hers and faking a reassuring smile. "No, I'll be ok—Toothless!"

The dragon forcefully wedged himself between the two, effectively separating them before emitting an odd purring sound and curling around Astrid. Stormfly gave a screech and settled on the ground next to them, raising a wing as if to shield a clutch of hatchlings from the elements.

Astrid threw Hiccup a slightly amused glance. "I…I think they're trying to protect me."

"Protect you?" he blurted, edging closer. "From what?"

At that, Toothless growled again, warning him to stay where he was. Not wanting to test his luck against an agitated Night Fury, Hiccup paused.

"I don't know, from you?" Astrid replied with a shrug, taking a quick sweep of the area and the clear skies above. "I don't see anything else around here that could be threatening to them."

Now that was just insulting. "Hey, I'm not threatening! When in my entire life have I ever been—"

The growl escalated into to a snarl, causing Hiccup to stumble backwards again.

"Oh, c'mon!"

"Toothless," Astrid addressed the dragon directly, laying a hand on his head, "Why don't you and Stormfly go out to the woods for a while, hmm? I'll be fine, I promise."

At the thought of a refreshing (and most likely destructive) run through the trees with a fellow dragon, Toothless's face switched from fierce guardian to happy puppy in half a second. After giving Astrid a gentle lick, he unwound himself and romped away with Stormfly snorting close on his heels.

"Oh, so he listens to you," Hiccup huffed as he resumed his place by his wife's side. "Nice. Very nice."

"Don't take it personally." She leaned into him. "It's just a bad day for everybody, I guess—whoa!"

Hiccup scooped her up in his arms. "Speaking of which," he grunted, "I'm taking you home to rest. Whatever this is, let's nip it in the bud before it gets worse."

"Uunnngh," Astrid groaned. "I don't want to go home. It smells like fish—" She clapped a hand to her mouth, suddenly looking like she was about to be sick.

"Everything on Berk smells like fish. Why are you just noticing this?"

"I have no idea." Astrid squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "Let's go to, uh…to the Great Hall and get something to eat."

"Weren't you just about to throw up like three seconds ago? By the way, if you do, there's a good chance I might drop you."

"But absolutely nothing fishy," Astrid went on. "Something sweet or creamy maybe? No, buttery. Definitely buttery."

"Uh, hate to break it to you, m'lady, but we don't exactly have a five course buffet—"

"Ooh, know! I want yak butter parfait. Yeah, that sounds really good."

"Snotlout's favorite dish?" Hiccup raised an eyebrow as he started toward the steps of the Great Hall. "Okayyy, that's not normal. I thought you hated yak butter parfait specifically for that reason."

With an impatient sigh, Astrid rested her head on his shoulder. "I doesn't make any sense, but I feel sick and hungry at the same time. Only for certain things, though, like yak butter parfait."

Hiccup halted. "Y'know, I'm feeling like a trip to see Gothi in the very immediate future would be beneficial to both of us."

"No, I don't wanna see Gothi, I wanna go to the Great Hall and eat yak butter parfait."

"Astrid—"

"No Gothi," she insisted. "Parfait. Let's go."

"Ok, ok," he sighed, trudging onward. "How are you so confusing sometimes?"

She stuck her tongue out at him. "I'm not confusing, I'm getting sick."

"Right, but sometimes it's hard to tell—" He cringed, unable avoid the flick to the chin. "Ow. Guess I deserved that."

"Yes, you did."

"Still, there are some days where you tend to be a little—OW! Ok, shutting up."