This is just a bit of fluff, but I already had it written before the accident, so . . . Here goes.

He just sat there in his room, staring down at his little book, which he had taken out and laid on his work table. He didn't even see the page in front of him, his charred stick flicking between his fingers as he thought.

He hadn't meant to scare her like that, but . . . she kind of deserved it. He still felt guilty about that, though. He hoped she wouldn't stay angry at him for long. She was, after all, his only close human friend. Without her, he was completely alone.

His door swung open with an alarming creak and his father ducked through, his helmet banging against the mantel. Hiccup jolted upright, panicking slightly. What was going to happen? Had he finally realized that Hiccup had lied about the story with the evil dragon? That he had cheated in Dragon Training during that horrible year? Oh, gods.

"Oh! Ah, Dad!" He quickly flipped the book close, hoping his dad hadn't seen what was in it. He dragged a few diagrams of new dragon saddle designs towards him, flipping over the top one to hide the ones beneath. "Whaaat are . . . what are you doing . . . here?"

". . . Son, I wanted to talk to you before . . . before tomorrow." The handfasting. He had completely forgotten that it had been scheduled so soon. There was really nothing Hiccup was afraid of . . . now. After getting to know who he was going to marry in the first place, he was not really fearful. Pensive, maybe.

"The fate of our clans rests on you. You're the only son of the clan chieftain," he with a gesture at himself, "and the princess is the only likely heir of her clan. The three younger brothers I've heard are, ah . . . um, not expected to take up the throne." Stoick scratched the back of his neck. "I've been speaking with her father and it was decided that your first child would retain the rights of B-"

"Whoa, whoa. Wait. Hold on. What? My first child? You're already selling off my firstborn?! That's . . . that's years from now!" he spluttered, his arms flailing about. "I'm not even married yet, and you're planning on taking away any kids I might have?!"

Stoick held up a ham-sized hand. "Now, don't get distressed-"

"Distressed?! Why would you . . . what in Odin's name are you even thinking?" He was way beyond distressed. "I'm a week from becoming seventeen! I mean, since you've already tried your best to turn me into . . . you, planned my wedding, and bought me my bride, I suppose you might as well plan out the rest of my life as well!" He flung up his arms in defeat, slumping back into his chair.

Stoick gave him a stern look. "You will have do your duty, Hiccup. Berk needs a chieftain. You are the next in line, son, and must therefore take up the title when it comes to you. But if you are not there when Berk needs you, and become a part of Scotland, Berk will suffer, and your heir will need to take your place."

"Then why did you even marry me off to her?" Hiccup cried in frustration.

He didn't know why that had popped out of his mouth. He sounded like he should have been if he had never known her real personality. If the princess had not been Merida. "For all you know, I could hate her." I don't, though, Hiccup added in his mind, mildly surprised at what was coming out of his mouth. In fact, I probably like her more than I should. "You could have just . . . just married me off to . . . to Astrid or someone from Berk if you wanted to keep me on this gods-forsaken rock!"

True, he had had a crush on her at one point, but when Astrid started targeting him and beating him up in Dragon Training, he had quickly realized his error. Now, after he had escaped that net, he realized that he would have been miserable with such a domineering, forceful wife.

Stoick held up his hand to stop Hiccup's rant. "You know your mother was killed in a dragon attack." Stoick bowed his head for a moment, remembering dark times, then looked at his son. Hiccup blinked, wondering where this was going. His dad never really talked about his mom very much. Just painful, stilted passing references. "When we first met each other, it was at our handfasting ceremony."

Hiccup's eyes widened and his brows shot upward, lost under his uncut hair. "What? You only met her at your . . .How on Odin's green earth did you . . ." He trailed off in disbelief.

"It was an arranged marriage, like yours. But she was a Gaulish chieftain's daughter. We were called upon to do our duty and unite our clans. And we did." His fingers fumbled at the neck of his chain-mail tunic and pulled out a pendant on a leather thong. Hiccup leaned forward, interested despite himself.

"What is it?" He saw that the age-smoothed wood was carved with a sprawling tree, a stream circling its roots.

"A betrothal pendant. Ygdrassil, the Tree of Life. She gave it to me at our handfasting." The massive Viking took a deep breath. "I know that you barely know the Scottish lass, but we Vikings need this treaty much more than you would understand. Politics, ye know. But your mother and I, we grew to love each other." He gave Hiccup what he obviously thought was a reassuring smile. "Who knows? The princess might just be a very nice, engaging person." He pulled his helmet off and scratched his head. "You . . . you do have a bridal gift, don't you?"

Hiccup felt lost. A bridal gift? He was supposed to have a bridal gift? What in Thor's name was he going to do about that? The handfasting was tomorrow! Where in Valhalla was he going to find a bridal gift?

His father understood the panicked look on Hiccup's face and sighed. Stoick slowly pulled the cord from around his neck and placed it over his son's head, the pendant resting against Hiccup's thin chest. He looked down at it, nonplussed.

"Um. Wow. Thanks, Dad. I, uh, well." He took a deep breath and held it, puffing out his cheeks. His eyes darted all over the workroom, resting on anything but his father. His fingers drummed nervously on the cover of his book. The room was filled with an awkward silence that he could practically feel breathing down the back of his neck. Would it always be like this? Hiccup thought uncomfortably, mentally squirming at the picture that presented.

"I should, uh, probably get some, uh, rest," he said eventually. ". . . For tomorrow." His father nodded, obviously relieved about the change of subject.

"Right. Big day tomorrow, you know. Rest up." He rose, his massive shoulders filling the small space of Hiccup's workroom. "See you in the mornin', then." Then his father was gone and Hiccup could hear him stumbling through the forge below in the dark.

But there was no rest for him that night. He lay in his bed, staring up at the ceiling rafters. He knew his outburst earlier was just all the pent-up anxiety from the past three months, but . . . he still felt like all the anger and frustration was pointed at his dad. Not the Scottish chief, or his wife. Definitely not Merida. It was his dad who had agreed to this whole 'unite the clans together' plan, and it was all his fault for keeping things from his own son.

Hiccup groaned and slapped his thin pillow over his eyes.

What would it be like? Everything would change tomorrow. He would become a husband, eventually a father, and he would most likely never see Berk again.

He didn't know if the latter was a blessing or a curse. Never seeing Berk again. No more tough and tasteless food, no more tough and tasteless people. No more being the village outcast. Everything would change.

And he knew, without a doubt, that she was worth it all.

On the eve of seventeen years, and married. Who would have thought?