Hello my lovelies! Happy 2014, the year of How To Train Your Dragon 2! (And series 3 of Sherlock). :D

This chapter has a little bit of angst, a little bit of Hiccup & Fishlegs bromance and of course more Astrid.

Thank you again for all of the reviews and follows, in particular Foxy'sGirl who's feedback has been constructive and supportive.

At around six, Hiccup had put the finishing touches to the axe, and he carefully lifted it over his shoulder and carried it back to his room. It was incredibly sturdy and heavy, the cold metal lying threateningly by his neck as he climbed up the stairs and snuck through the corridors. Being small and skinny, he was good at not attracting attention, and those he passed barely acknowledged him, too busy or in too much thought to really care. Once he had opened his door, the dampness hit him, and tutting at the mould that was creeping up the ceiling, he laid the weapon down onto his bed before shutting the door.

He was weary enough to have an early nights sleep; his hands stung with fresh cuts and burns and his arms and knees ached. He pulled off his clothes, soaked with sweat and still damp from when he'd hastily washed them earlier. Gobber luckily wasn't observant enough to notice the pale red stains on the grey jacket and trousers, but Hiccup knew he'd have to give them a good soak tonight. Shivering in just his underwear, he went through his bag and pulled out some more casual clothing; a baggy grey t-shirt, emerald green sweater, black skinny jeans, some tattered black trainers and a brown coat. They were the clothes he'd had on his back on the day of the attack, and he'd kept them since, as he didn't have a lot else. Despite how tired he felt, he had made a promise to Astrid that he'd see her tonight and tell her about what had happened. Hiccup didn't really know why he felt the urge to tell her, specifically, as he had never spoken to her before now, but there was something quite whimsical and fierce about her that attracted him. He wondered how he must've looked to her; probably weak and clumsy, he thought, shaking his head at the possibility of any relationship. Hiccup felt as though he needed a friend who hadn't held the same memories as him though; he had been through so much with Fishlegs, Snotlout and the twins, and maybe getting to know somebody who didn't remind him of the bad times would do some good.

After he had gotten changed, Hiccup shuffled over to the makeshift dressing table that he and Fishlegs had put together, with a mirror that had been cobbled with Gobber's help. It sat uncomfortably in the small corner between the bed and the door, but it served a purpose. Leaning over it, Hiccup groaned at his hair, which had grown to his shoulders, and decided to do some small plaits. There was something comforting about it; left strand over the middle strand over the right strand, rinse, repeat. He took a small chunk of hair, plaited it, and moved onto another chunk, until finally he had six small braids around his neck. They looked ridiculous, but they kept the unwanted hair out of the way. One of these days, he grumbled to himself, I'm going to get a knife and Fish can cut it all off for me.

Hiccup took a look at himself, and sighed when he realised that he hated what was staring back at him. Too pale, too thin, too ugly. He hated his buck teeth and boyish freckles and nose that seemed too big for his face, and quite unfortunately for him, he didn't even have the personality to go with it. And then there was the stump that was once his foot, aching whenever the prosthetic was removed and leaving an ugly, round stump in its place. He had spent so much time, especially around his peers, acting as though he didn't care and putting on a brave face, but in reality the disability had made him feel redundant; before the attack he was a good climber and fast on his feet, and now he was a clumsy mess who had to take baby steps and found it physically difficult to get from one place to the other. He rested his legs on Fishlegs bed, waiting for the pain to pass and debating whether to ask somebody at the medical unit to sneak him some painkillers. He found himself laid on his back and before long he had fallen asleep.

Fishlegs finished his work just after 7, and was bemused to find Hiccup fast asleep on his bed. Shaking his friend awake in the same fashion that he was woken himself that morning, Hiccup stirred and suddenly jumped up when he realised what had happened.

"I'm sorry, I was just resting my legs", Hiccup muttered, and Fishlegs laughed and rolled his eyes.

"You know, you can have the bottom bunk if your leg is still giving you trouble. You only have to ask!"

"Oh no, no, Fishlegs, it's fine, honest", Hiccup smiled to his friend, sitting himself up and reattaching the prosthetic, cursing as the stinging returned and leaning against the wall as he tried to stand. Fishlegs put his arms out to steady the boy, giving an expression of concern. He was not convinced that Hiccup was coping as well as he made out to be. Hiccup mouthed a small thank you as he managed to shimmy over to his bed and take the small climb up the bunk, keeping out of the way as Fishlegs got changed. As he leant down, he was careful not to sit on the axe.

"What did you get up to today, anyway?", Hiccup asked Fishlegs, finding himself bored of the silence.

"Some kids in the schoolroom escaped and me and Bucket had to go and round them up. One was in the laundry, fast asleep on some clothes, bless her."

Both boys let out a stifled laugh as Fishlegs swept his bangs back and adjusted his jeans. Hiccup slid down the ladder slightly, being careful not to appear too curious over something as mundane as getting changed.

"What about you? I saw Gobber wandering around so I thought you guys were taking a day off or something."

Hiccup moved to sit on his friends bed and shook his head.

"Nah, he went off for a "coffee break" and didn't come back for ages. I think he was hunting for trolls."

"Trolls, eh?" Fishlegs inquired, not catching on to Hiccup's sarcastic comment. There was a pause, before Hiccup got up, wincing slightly again at his leg, although it wasn't quite as painful now. He climbed his bed again and carefully picked up the axe and rested it over his shoulder. Fishlegs gasped at the weapon, putting his comb down at once and leaning in to get a better look.

"I was working on this today, Fishlegs", Hiccup smiled, feeling quite pleased about his handiwork. Fishlegs didn't look up; he was too focused on the carvings on the handle.

"Isn't this...this is Ilma's axe, right?"

Hiccup nodded, and his friend looked up and grinned.

"I can't believe that you got to fix this up. You do know what this party is for, right? It's for her birthday and i've heard that she's going to hand it down to her daughter..."

"Astrid?"

"Yeah. You know Astrid?". Fishlegs eyed his friend suspiciously. He had never spoken to the authoritarians daughter before; she had been educated privately and had a select few friends.

"She came in to ask me to fix it", Hiccup shrugged. He didn't want it to seem like a big deal, although deep down he knew that being spoken to by Astrid Hofferson was exactly that. He allowed his thoughts to linger over her scent, her blonde hair...

"Hiccup...that's amazing! And this means you have to come tonight!" Fishlegs beamed, clapping his hands.

"Okay, sure." the other boy said calmly, smiling back.

Throwing a party after the attack would seem entirely inappropriate, but most of the bunker were open to the idea of having something to celebrate, no matter how futile the celebration may be. The catering team had cobbled together celebratory food the best they could, serving up tinned fruit and custard and baked bread with preserves. They had even brewed ale in their spare time, and Sindri had invited them to start handing it out to the residents. The electronics team had established some makeshift speakers, tinny and weak and echoed in the mess hall, but in working order, and Sindri was planning on playing his old records that he and Ilma danced to when they were young and without responsibility. He had moved a record player into the bunker when they had first caught wind that an attack was a possibility; it was completely unnecessary, but he was not one to underestimate the power of music. The hall itself was unfortunately bare, and there wasn't a lot that could be done to improve it.

Hiccup and Fishlegs arrived relatively late; the mess hall was full, with every surviving man, women and child eating and drinking and chatting away excitedly at hearing music for the first time in months. Sindri was getting merry with Gobber and a few other men; he had had a few glasses of the homemade brew, and it was repugnant, but he felt that he had an obligation to support the efforts. He was dressed in a grey shirt and a pair of pinstripe trousers, with his thick graying hair tied back in a bobble at his neck. Next to him was Ilma, looking stunning with her hair in a long braid and wearing a long navy dress. Their daughter, however, was nowhere to be seen. Fishlegs took a seat at a table whilst Hiccup, carrying the heavy axe, went to look around for Astrid.

He left the mess hall and found himself on another corridor of accommodation, and as he turned to go back, he was startled by a familiar voice.

"Hey, you finished it!". Hiccup turned and saw Astrid walking towards him, presumably having just left her room. He took a step back, taking in how compelling she looked; her blonde hair was tied in a trademark dutch braid and she looked as though she was wearing makeup, as her eyes glistened in the flickering light above them. She looked pleased and excited to see the boy, who in turn was more than happy to pass the weapon over.

"It's...it's not perfect, but I sharpened it and polished the metal. I..I hope you like it...your mother likes it, I mean." Hiccup cursed himself at his stutter, although Astrid giggled, swinging the axe over her toned shoulders triumphantly.

"Well, thank you Hiccup. And now, I think you need to tell me about what happened earlier."

Hiccup's heart sank. He was trying not to think about earlier and wish he'd just been predictable and told Astrid he'd injured himself. She was eyeing him suspiciously as she watched him sweat a little. Hiccup cleared his throat before he started talking.

"I was working in the forge and I heard a gunshot."

"A gunshot!? But how..."

"Let me finish...I put the fire out and waited and I heard it again, only this time there was a scream...but it wasn't a human scream, it was like an animal. So I went to have a look up the vent and then...then I saw the blood. It was everywhere, Astrid, all down the wall and over my clothes." Hiccup finished with a deep breath and watched Astrid's brain tick, herself confused and trying to take in what she had just heard. Finally she looked straight into the boys eyes.

"If what you say is true, then that means there must be someone...or something up there." Hiccup nodded slowly.

"I know. Question is, who?". Hiccup gave the girl a nervous look, but Astrid returned it with a slight grin.

"You know what? I think we should find out. We should have a look around."

"No. No way." Hiccup said flatly. Astrid sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Come on, you can't say you're not curious. Besides, if we're only gone a few hours..."

"Who's going where?"

Both teens turned around suddenly at the strangers voice, and they breathed a sigh of relief when they saw it was Ruffnut leaning against the door, with an irritated expression. Hiccup gave her a wan smile which she returned.

"Hey Hiccup. Astrid. What are you two up to out here?". It was clear to Hiccup that her friend was annoyed by his absence, her arms folded and her jaw clenched.

"We were talking about something private." Astrid replied to the question surprisingly coldly. Ruffnut gave a look of surprise before resorting back to her usual sulk, and sensing animosity, Hiccup decided to intervene.

"It's nothing Ruff, i'll be with you guys in a sec, okay?". He smiled to his friend again, noticing that Ruffnut looked somewhat...lost. Her long braids were messier than usual and her make-up was smeared, as though she had been crying.

"Actually i'll come now. Astrid, we'll talk later." Hiccup corrected himself, and he started to walk out the door. Before he went to close it, Astrid tugged at his arm and he looked back at the girl.

"Seriously though. Let's go and explore."