Disclaimer: I do not own How to Train Your Dragon nor anything associated with it.
Chapter 1
Peaceful Birthday
It was the sunlight streaming through the window onto her face that woke Astrid. The woman stirred, her eyes scrunched up in defiance of the bright light. She rolled over out of the light's path, and thought of going to sleep when she realized two things. One, her husband, official Chief-in-training Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III was not in their bed. Two, a very delicious and mouth-watering aroma had wafted into the room from downstairs.
Astrid sat up, her long blonde hair that reached halfway down her back falling haphazardly all over the place. She yawned before walking to the mirror in their room. She glared at what she saw. It was a good thing Hiccup was the only one to ever see her like this, because she would never hear the end of it if one of their friends spotted her in her white nightgown, her hair looking like it had been through a hurricane. The woman swiftly grabbed the brush off of the nearby nightstand and, with a frustrated sigh, began to brush her hair back into order.
A few minutes later, just as the woman started searching for her boots, a soft knock came from the door. The Viking crossed the room and opened it, thinking that it might be Hiccup. So, when there was no one at her eyelevel, she looked down. A five-year-old boy with blonde hair and blue eyes stared up at his mother, a wide grin plastered on his face.
"Hiya Mommy!" The little boy exclaimed happily, "Happy birthday!" He held out a white flower for her to take.
"Thank you, Saber. You know, these are my favorite flowers. Do you know what they're called?" She smiled at her son as he shook his head in anticipation of the answer, "They're called astrids."
"Hey! That's your name Mommy." Saber pointed out happily.
"Yep, I was named after this flower," the Viking mother twirled the flower in her hand before asking Saber what was happening downstairs. Her son gladly grabbed her hand and led her to the kitchen and dining room.
The room was alive with noise. Water boiled in a cauldron over a crackling fire, the Haddocks' eight-year-old daughter Asta was busy chopping up vegetables to be added to the stew with the help of her elder brother Finn, Toothless and Prince hungrily and viciously attacked a pile of fish, and Saber was trying to tell his father that he had given Astrid the flower. Hiccup was at the dinner table entertaining their youngest child, one-year-old Hiccup Horrendous Haddock IV, or Hic for short.
Astrid smiled when she realized where the flower came from. A vase full of astrids now sat on the table. She put the flower back in the vase and looked to the man responsible for the gift. She turned just in time to hear Hiccup grunt in pain while the infant laughed. Hic's hands were full of his father's hair, and the baby was laughing at the sound emitted from the older Viking when he tugged on the hair.
The baby's mother picked him up, causing him to relinquish the painful hold on his father. Hiccup rubbed his head and looked up at Astrid. Their eyes met, and Hiccup gave Astrid his classic, goofy grin.
"Happy birthday," he whispered.
"Thank you," she responded and leaned in.
Their kiss was met with a round of "Bleghs," from the children. The parents separated and chuckled. Hiccup smiled at them and said, "You guys will understand someday, trust me." His children gave them unconvinced looks before returning to their various activities.
Astrid took a seat at the table next to Hiccup, while Saber climbed in the seat beside her. While they waited for breakfast, Hiccup and Astrid discussed their plans for the day. The couple hadn't been able to spend much time together for a while, now that Hiccup was busy training to replace his father as Chief of the tribe. So, Hiccup took the day off. He planned to take Astrid for a flight on Toothless to a prearranged location for lunch between the two of them, and then they could have a sparring match, something Astrid had wanted to do for a long time. That night he planned to take her for a walk and have a small celebration amongst their family and close friends. At least, that's what he told her. Astrid had no idea that Hiccup had a surprise up his sleeve.
Finn and Asta came back, placing breakfast on the table. Hiccup watched as the children took their seats and dug in, admiring the happy family he and Astrid created. Finn had his mother's blonde hair, though he kept it in a style similar to his father's. He had also inherited her blue eyes. His parents' small frames showed themselves in the boy, but they weren't enough to completely block the Viking gene. Already they could tell that he would grow up to be bigger than his father. As the eldest of his siblings and as future leader of the tribe, he was responsible, or tried to be. He, along with his brothers and sister, were benefitting from their parents' skills. Astrid drilled Finn and Asta in hand-to-hand combat, while Hiccup gave them flying lessons. Saber and Hic would each begin their training at eight.
Asta was the spitting image of her mother. She also had her mother's fiery and tomboyish attitude. She was a trouble maker. Sometimes Hiccup felt that she was too attached to Ruffnut, and that the woman was rubbing off on her. But, when she wanted to be, the girl was a princess, sweet and kind.
When they had Finn, Hiccup and Astrid both agreed that the traditional way of naming their children was pretty silly, and decided to give their offspring more 'normal' names. With Saber, the parents relented to Stoic's persistence and met him halfway. Saber was very innocent and playful, and had inherited his father's creativity. The Viking astounded the adults in the village at the places he could get to.
Even at one, Stoic said that Hic was the spitting image of Hiccup, and thus very deserving of his name. The child was awfully attached to the dragons, which were rather overprotective of the young Haddocks. Toothless and Prince had to practically follow the baby everywhere to prevent him from getting into trouble, but Hic was sneaky, and sometimes still escaped.
Together, the four could be a formidable force of mischief. Asta was usually the instigator, coming up with some crazy plan for a stunt of prank. Saber would follow her blindly, while Finn tried to err on the side of caution. But, when his sister proved too stubborn to be swayed, he often gave in and took over, refining Asta's plan to prevent utter disaster and minimize chances of harm. No one could explain how, but Hic always managed to be in the right place at the right time to play a key part in their schemes.
Astrid and Hiccup had changed too in the last twelve years, but only slightly. That was a strange think about the village of Berk, people didn't age normally. The older you were, the slower you aged. The villagers themselves chalked it up to either a blessing from the gods for their triumph over the evil Aries, or some sort of side effect from the spell that had once held them bound in terrible suffering. So, though Hiccup and Astrid were both twenty-seven, they had the bodies of nineteen-year-olds. Astrid looked very much like she once did, just older and, to the unanimous agreement of the village, more beautiful. Hiccup on the other hand grew up quite a bit more. He now stood almost a full head taller than his wife, with a shadow of facial hair growing on his chin. He was also more muscular now than he once was. He wasn't a lumbering hulk like other Vikings, but he was definitely more Viking-ish.
The Viking family finished their meal, and Finn and Asta went to cleaning the dishes. There was a knock at the door, and Hiccup opened it to reveal Stoic, Gobber, and Gobber's Terrible Terror. The children ran to their grandfather, who laughed as he scooped them all up in one big hug. They greeted Gobber and shouted their excitement at seeing his Terror. Saber and Hic especially loved playing with a dragon closer to their size. The Terror, familiar with the four Haddock children, tried to run. He was stopped short as Toothless blocked his path, grinning smugly at him. Prince latched on to the end of his tail, hoisted him up, and dropped the smaller dragon practically in Saber's arms.
Hiccup laughed as the small dragon resigned himself to his fate. He let Toothless out and thanked Stoic and Gobber for helping Prince watch the kids while he and Astrid were on their date. The couple walked outside into the sunlight, where they were eagerly beckoned by the Night Fury, who wanted to fly so bad he couldn't stay still.
"Alright Buddy, be patient," Hiccup said as he and Astrid climbed on. The blonde attached their basket of food to a clip on Toothless' harness while Hiccup slid his prosthetic in place. Toothless spread his wings, and Hiccup leaned forward, waiting for the familiar feel of Astrid's arms around his waist.
"Bye Mom, bye Dad!" Finn called to them.
"Have fun on your date." Asta added. Saber joined them in waving to their parents, who waved back before the Night Fury launched into the sky.
The comforting sound of beating wings and whistling air filled their ears. Despite the increased cold as the wind rushed past them, the heat generated from their bodies was more than enough to keep the Vikings warm. Astrid leaned into Hiccup, her head on his shoulder and her eyes closed, enjoying the mixture of emotions of being on a dragon ride with her husband. Hiccup felt the familiar, and by now almost natural, thrill of flight while enjoying the comforting presence of his wife's heartbeat as she held herself tightly to him. The Viking felt sort of guilty for not being able to spend very much time with her as he used to. His training, as well as teaching his regular flying lessons, was really demanding. He was grateful to be able to take the day off for this day at least.
Toothless banked around, giving the couple a full view of their home. The dragon continued his turn, flying higher towards the clouds. He and Hiccup knew how Astrid loved the feel of the cloud as it flowed through her hand. As they came over the village, the two waved at a couple of other airborne Vikings. Soon, the scenery below turned from streets and buildings to a never-ending stream of trees. The group flew back and forth over the island, enjoying the ride for hours. Then, they flew back out towards the shore, and the dragon and master decided to put on a show for the birthday girl.
They were high above the island now; with random clouds passing in between them and the water. Astrid's eyes were closed again, so she didn't see as Toothless' wings folded tighter and tighter to his body. It wasn't until she began to feel that exhilarating drop in her stomach that the Viking opened her eyes and found herself looking straight at the water below. The sound of the dragon's wings was now replaced by the telltale whistle of the Night Fury diving from the sky. Hiccup and Astrid both whooped as adrenaline pumped within their bodies.
The water was approaching fast, so Hiccup pulled Toothless out of the dive. The black dragon was still moving with incredible speed, so Astrid also got to enjoy the rollercoaster as her husband and their friend moved in and out of the rocks with ease. Once they cleared the rocks, Toothless slowed down and regained altitude.
Now their destination was in sight. Astrid could see the grassy outcrop jutting out from the forest. Toothless landed smoothly on the grass, and waited for the couple to retrieve the basket and their weapons before starting to frolic around the taller blades of greenery.
Hiccup and Astrid laughed at the dragon's antics while they set up lunch. The two watched Toothless pull stunts and odd mimics and impressions of Vikings they knew. Hiccup and Astrid would reward each stunt and impression with a fish, in order to tide the dragon over until they returned. Afterwards, the couple found themselves stretched out on the grass, staring up at the sky. Hiccup was resting his head on one hand, while the other was wrapped around Astrid, whose head was making good use of Hiccup's shoulder as a pillow. For a time, they just laid there, the only sounds being the wind, the water below, and Toothless' snoring.
"What are you thinking about?" Hiccup asked.
Astrid snuggled closer to him before answering, "I was just thinking about the way things were. You know, before you saved the village the first time."
She didn't see Hiccup's face as he wondered what would make her think of that, but he went along with it anyway, "Yeah, I was a toothpick loser back then that couldn't do anything right to save my life."
While Hiccup's words contained some truth, Astrid didn't like her husband's negativity, "But you were still the same person on the inside as you are now, just not as…"
"Old?" Hiccup asked.
"Experienced," Astrid shot back.
Hiccup was silent for a moment as he searched for something clever to say. When he spoke again, his words were accompanied by an air of mock arrogance, "Of course, I'm a lot better now than I was then. I'm stronger, faster, 'experienced'. Heck, I can even beat you in a duel now."
Astrid raised her eyebrows in surprise and lifted her head to look at him, "And since when has that happened?"
Hiccup half chuckled, half scoffed, "It's been that way for years, you know that."
Astrid laughed and sat up, "I don't know who has been filling your head with these fantasies, Hiccup, but it definitely wasn't me."
Hiccup playfully scoffed again, "C'mon, you're just afraid to admit that I would win."
Astrid gave him a look that let him know that she was onto him, "Is that a challenge?"
Hiccup mirrored her look, "That depends, on whether you are willing to accept defeat or not."
"Ohhhoho," Astrid retorted as they rose to their feet, "you've done it know Hiccup! Prepare to be whipped."
"Not if I whip you first!" Hiccup shouted as they raced for their practice weapons. Toothless, who had been watching their wordy contest with an amused and somewhat disinterested look on his face, now gazed intently at the fighters as they took their places.
"Ready Hiccup?" Astrid shouted.
"More than you'll ever be," the man taunted, riling his wife up even further.
The corners of the woman's mouth turned upward in a cocky and devilish grin. "You asked for it," she whispered.
Both warriors let loose their battle cries as they ran forward. The dull blades of Astrid's ax and Hiccup's sword sent showers of sparks raining down on the grass with every impact. They moved with ever increasing speed, both so determined to not give up space that they moved in a very slow circled, their blades flashing in between them.
Toothless had seen this before in their sparring matches. This had two ways of ending: one, the frenzied duel would fizzle out and die, or it would explode into an intense, all-out fight in which bystanders could be endangered by the crossfire.
When both of them suddenly jumped back at the same time, weapons ready, the dragon knew it was going to be the latter. Astrid leapt forward, her ax raised over her head. She brought it down on Hiccup's blade, but her momentum carried her body into him. The two collapsed on the ground, and after a short wrestling match they rolled away to grab their weapons.
Hiccup rolled to one knee and raised his sword in time to deflect Astrid's weak and frantic blow. The male Viking attempted to counter with his own attack, but Astrid parried. They got to their feet and attacked again, their weapons locking in between them. The couple spun away from each other, each preparing their next strike.
Toothless watched with interest as the duel seemed to transform into some sort of weird dance. The fighters were using the exact same moves at the exact same time, constantly canceling each other out. The way they moved slowly began to look more and more elegant as the fight progressed.
The dragon's stomach growled, bringing him out of his intense gaze. The fight may have been excellent, but he was hungry. So, when the fighters drew closer to him, the Night Fury nonchalantly stuck out his tail, causing Astrid to trip and fall over backwards with Hiccup falling on top of her.
Hiccup stopped himself before his face smacked into hers, but they were only centimeters apart. The Vikings froze as they got lost in each other's eyes, unable to tell if their shortness of breath was from the duel or their close proximity.
Astrid smiled up at Hiccup "When did you get so good?"
"Told ya," Hiccup tried to restrain a laugh.
"We'll call it a draw," Astrid said.
This time he had to laugh, "Whatever you say, it is your birthday."
"I love you, Hiccup."
"I love you too, Astrid."
The space between them vanished in an instant as they shared their passionate kiss. Toothless, whose stomach was now having fits, rolled his eyes at the couple. When it was clear that they didn't plan on stopping anytime soon, the dragon gave a sort of bark, reminding them that he was there. The Vikings separated and looked up at the Night Fury in surprise.
"Sorry Toothless," Hiccup said, "I guess we got kind of carried away there."
Toothless growled in agreement and nodded toward the horizon, where the sun was beginning to set. Husband and wife looked at the shrinking sun in shock, it hadn't felt like they had been out there that long. Quickly, they gathered up the weapons and the basket and hopped on the saddle on Toothless' back. The dragon spread his wings, and they took to the sky again.
The sun was almost gone by the time they reached the village. The darkness cast by the buildings' massive shadows was now being filled with light by fires and lit torches. Toothless landed on the grassy hill next to their house. Hiccup got off first and offered Astrid his hand, helping her down. They turned around just in time for Prince, Astrid's parents, Gobber, and the kids to come pouring out of the house.
"Mom! Dad!" The children shouted as they ran into their parents' arms. The group was walking back inside when Snotlout appeared, completely out of breath. It took a minute for the winded Viking to catch his breath before speaking.
"Hiccup! Stoic already left, they said they needed your help to over at the Magus Village."
Hiccup looked surprised and shocked, "Why?"
"I don't know, chief business I guess," Snotlout said.
"But I took the day off."
"I know, I know," Snotlout continued, "but they said it was urgent."
Hiccup and Astrid turned to each other, causing the woman to miss the wink Snotlout gave the other Vikings and the dragons. Hiccup's look told Astrid he needed to go, and hers almost convinced him to stay.
"I'm sorry," Hiccup said sincerely, "I will make it up to you, I promise."
Astrid glared at him, "Fine."
Hiccup jumped on Toothless and swiftly vanished into the night sky. Astrid watched them go; once again missing the excited looks being exchanged between her family and friends. Astrid's mother and father approached the woman, who was obviously hurt.
"C'mon," her mother said, "let's go for a walk. Gobber and Prince can watch the kids."
Astrid reluctantly agreed. The three of them walked down the street, Astrid so miserable that she was oblivious to the lack of other people around and to the fact that Prince and her parents' blue Monstrous Nightmare were following them on the rooftops. So, it makes sense that she didn't catch the signal her mother flashed to them.
There was a sudden beating of wings, and Astrid was swiftly pickup from the ground in the talons of her Nadder. She shouted in surprise as the village rapidly shrank and fell away.
"Prince!" The Viking woman shouted, "Where are you taking me?" No sooner had she said this before her parents flew up alongside her.
"Enjoying the ride?" her father asked jokingly.
"Mom, Dad, do you know what's going on?"
"Sorry Honey," her mother answered, "We can't say."
"What!" Astrid was very confused. Fortunately, they had arrived at their destination. Astrid recognized the pond where Hiccup had first kidnapped her so long ago as they descended towards it.
When they landed, Astrid got to her feet, looking around in bewilderment. Why had they come here? Her question was soon answered as several torches were lit simultaneously, bringing to light a huge crowd that was packed in the shadows. The whole village was there, and with one voice they shouted their congratulations.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY ASTRID!"
Astrid was at a loss for words. She just stared dumbstruck at the Vikings until she felt a hand on her shoulder. Astrid looked up to see Hiccup's smiling face. Suddenly realization dawned on her, and she noticed Stoic, Snotlout, and her family were all gathered at the front of the crowd.
The blonde turned back to her husband and punched him in the arm. The other Viking grimaced and rubbed it while she spoke.
"That's for tricking me." Hiccup opened his mouth to respond, but she cut him off as she wrapped her arms around his neck, "And this is for everything else." She pressed her lips to his, and the "Awe's" of the crowd drowned out their children's "Blegh's." When their lips separated, Hiccup rested his forehead on hers.
"Happy birthday, Astrid." He said.
"Thank you, Hiccup." She replied.
The villagers shouted for joy, and turned to celebrating. The party lasted well into the night. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves as thoughts of the happy and peaceful present filled their minds. None of them were aware of the dark events to come, just as none of them were aware that, at that moment in a place far beyond the realm of Man, all "Hel" had quite literally just broken loose.
Here's the first chapter. I'm not good at being creative with names, so I tried to give the kids traditional Viking names. I still need to name Snotlout and Ruffnut's daughter if anyone has any ideas. I'll update soon. Please review!
Darkguymelef