Boom! Another chapter!

This one really came out easily - I've written almost the entire thing between now and the last chapter I uploaded.

Enjoy!

Chapter Ten: Hope

Hiccup trudged along through the thick forest brush, his right arm slowly growing sorer and sorer with the gargantuan basket of Summer berries that he and Astrid had been out picking. The blond Viking walked lightly beside him, a smile of perfect contentment etched so deep into her beautiful face that Hiccup wished it would never again change. Berries had been merely an excuse, the latest in a string of good reasons for the two of them to be spending time alone...together.

Gunnar had been strangely easy to convince, though this was thanks largely to his lethargic state due to a night of heavy drinking. As Hilda had later said to the two of them, "He just needed some tender, loving care, and a little coaxing – that, and...well..." She had brushed her hair seductively to one side. "I am his wife." Hiccup and Astrid had only laughed.

Stoick had been the next target for the now five of them to convince to throw out the betrothal. Hiccup and Astrid had first pleaded their case of love to the gruff yet subtly grinning chieftain. When the Vast man had requested that Astrid's parents show their support for this course of action, Gunnar and Hilda had done just that. But, ultimately, it had been Snotlout who had barged in with a letter signed by his parents and the speech to match any that the chieftain had ever delivered.

"See, if I'm not going to be chieftain, then your reason for getting Astrid to marry me is gone – the whole point of it all was that Astrid would make a great chieftainess –" Astrid had looked very pleased, but Hiccup had merely muttered "That's not a word..."

"– A fact which has remained unchanged. So now that Hiccup's going to be chief next, a choice, which, Stoick, I do believe to be one of your greatest decisions ever, it makes sense for him and Astrid to be wed, right?" Snotlout had hit just the right part of Stoick's ego, and the chieftain swelled with pride.

"Very well," he had announced at length to the jubilant cries of everyone present, "but we'll be keeping this a secret for just a little while longer – a period of time whose length will remain at my discretion! There are some in the village who would not approve of this decision. That Mildew chap's always on the lookout to question my commands..."

And that had been that.

However, as soon as that issue had been dealt with, Hiccup's mind had turned to worry about another.

Toothless had not been seen since the banquet, and no-one seemed to know where he was.

"Phwah!" exclaimed Astrid suddenly, and Hiccup jumped, almost spilling the entire load of berries, his quiet reverie disrupted.

"Why is it so warm?"

"No idea. Perhaps Odin is pleased that you've made peace with the dragons –"

"For the last time, Hiccup – WE! The peace WE made with the dragons! None of us could have done it without your help!"

"Oh, I don't know..." the young man spoke with a sly smile, and Astrid rounded on him, a perplexed look splattered over her face.

Almost a week had passed since the night of the Peace Banquet, and Hiccup was still trying get used to Astrid's overly apologetic and idolising nature, despite the young man's best attempts to keep such infuriating behaviour in check.

"Hiccup, don't start with that again. Until I met that Nadder on the mountain, I was just as intolerant and brash as any of the other Vikings! And don't you say otherwise –" Astrid stopped dead at the look on Hiccup's face, and her expression began to change.

"Were you?" Hiccup spoke quietly, placing his basket of berries down on the ground. The wind sighed in the eaves and the glowing Sun cast ethereal rays through the forest canopy, illuminating the moist, warm air beneath the pines. The smell of dragons was as thick as the mist.

"Were you really? Remember back to before I was exiled. That day I tried to show everyone a dragon's peaceful nature? Do you remember what happened?" Astrid was staring regretfully at him, her smooth face twisted in anger and a little disgust.

"Hiccup, I don't want you to remind me of that ever again. What I did was shameful, even by a Viking's standards –"

"No, Astrid, you're missing the point." The young woman's glare lifted a little at these words, and she gazed at him in confusion. "You're only seeing the darker side of what happened that day."

"What do you mean...?" It was clear that Astrid had little or no idea what he was talking about. Hiccup felt himself going a little red.

"You may have ratted me out to my father, but you showed afterwards how much it had hurt you to do it. After the fight, once all of the others had been called away, you came to me..."

Now it was Astrid's turn to blush. She tilted her head to one side and gave him a mesmerised look.

"Whatever happens now, it's my fault," she chanted, the words echoing through seven years of longing and hardship.

"I...I guess it was clear then that you weren't like the rest. You were ready to understand a dragon's true nature. You tried to apologise, but I pushed you away." Astrid opened her mouth to interject, but Hiccup held up his hand and continued.

"Don't worry; I no longer focus on the regret for what I did then – I've learned better. But the fact that you then followed me into the forest to try and convince me of your remorse should have told me instantly that you were...different." Astrid was beginning to grin, and this was slightly unnerving.

"Alright, I get the point –"

"Do you? What I'm trying to say here is that the potential for Berk to make peace with the dragons was there all along – inside of you." Astrid's smile faded a little.

"Are you trying to say that –"

"No, no! Gods, no!" Hiccup cut in, seeing the danger in what he had just said. "But you had sensed that there was perhaps some inkling of truth in what I was trying to teach everyone, and you even understood to some degree just how far one much stretch the fabric of society in order to achieve such goals. It was this, I believe, which helped the rest of the gang understand that if we didn't fly against the Red Death, then there was no hope for anyone."

Astrid was quiet for a moment, as though contemplating what he had just said. A slight grin crept slowly over her face, and she peered at Hiccup through suspicious eyes.

"Are you trying to make fun of me again?" Hiccup could only gape.

"No! Astrid, I'm trying to explain that, even without my help, you would have eventually set things right between the Vikings of Berk and their once enemies!" Astrid chuckled. Women, Hiccup reflected, were remarkably good at twisting one's words so that their meaning became nothing but convolution.

"Anyway..." Hiccup sighed, his thoughts returning to darker state, "we all have things we're not proud of." Astrid sighed.

"What is it now?" she spoke with a hint of exasperation, almost justified. Extended conversation showed that Hiccup's emotions were more unstable than a torched longboat.

"Back in the Hollow Bastion –"

"No, Hiccup, not this again," the blond woman cut in angrily, though Hiccup saw a nervous hand go to her neck, as it had many times before. In his anger, the young man had imprinted a measure of unease upon Astrid's perception of him. And, try as he might to dispel it, Hiccup could still see that hint of fear in his lover's eyes when she looked at him.

Tension.

Both Vikings had, by this stage, ceased their plodding back towards the village, and Hiccup had unconsciously placed the basket down by his feet in the small clearing where the two now stood. There was angst in the heart of each human, as each tried to grapple with the emotions troubling them, and bring them out into the light to face scrutiny. Hiccup's gaze had dropped to the thick carpet of pine needles beneath his feet, and there was the faintest hint of tears in Astrid's eyes. The only matters that ever made the young woman cry were those concerning Hiccup.

Jealousy.

"Look," the brown-haired boy spoke at length, taking a step forward and placing a hand upon Astrid's shoulder, "we both have our issues – but the main problem, it seems, is accepting that the other cannot yield and give theirs up as easily as either of us would wish. I'm starting to think that you'll never truly see me as your equal..."

Nor should he.

"No, I don't think I can. I've thought about it, Hiccup, I really have, and I honestly believe that you're simply a better person than me. Don't –" Astrid placed a hand over Hiccup's lips before the latter even had a chance to respond. "– Don't judge me for it, just accept that that's how it's going to be. I can do that...can you?"

In a heartbeat.

Hiccup held her gaze for a few seconds, but then slowly nodded, his right hand taking hers and holding it to his chest.

So close...

"But there's still so much you don't know about me –" Astrid opened her mouth, her sadness vanishing in an instant to be replaced with pure frustration, but Hiccup's left hand now moved to her lips, silencing the young woman. "– And you need to accept that. There will come a time when I'm ready to speak of my past, and believe you me, there is a lot to tell...but not now, not yet." Astrid closed her eyes for a few seconds, clearly thinking deeply, but a moment later she looked back into the green of his, and returned his nod. Now taking his left hand in hers, Astrid took it to her heart, mirroring the boy's own action.

Too close.

And there they stood, Hiccup and Astrid, each one touching the heart of the other in more than just the physical sense. But, as time seemed to stretch out to infinity, something snapped. He couldn't take it anymore.

Leaping out from the scrub with a ferocity he reserved only for the direst of circumstances, Toothless pounded towards the couple, his snarl of anger increasing instantly to a roar of rage. Although unsure of what he hoped to achieve, the black dragon knew this; for the sake of his master's soul, Hiccup and Astrid should not be.

Hiccup's agility, however, was not even diminished by the loss of a leg, and before Toothless was even ten metres from the two humans, the brown-haired boy had pulled Astrid around behind him and drawn his short sword. The Night Fury dug in his claws, coming to a violent halt which sent pine needles skittering off over the forest floor like stones on a mountain slope. Astrid now stood just off to Hiccup's left, her Viking training refusing to let a male shield her from danger; a true warrior.

"Toothless? What the Hel is wrong with you?" Once upon a time, this sentence had carried much humour and joy for the dragon and his boy, but now it was filled with a horrid mixture of anger, fear...and betrayal. Toothless snarled at the two of them, but directed his gaze at Astrid, glaring straight into the blue of hers. Astrid stared right back, her eyes filled with disbelief and confusion.

"Toothless! Bud, where have you –" But Toothless cut him off with a screech of anger, and began to pace in a wide circle around the couple. The message was surely clear.

"Toothless, why would you frighten us like this? What's going on?" The Night Fury paused, incensed that Astrid would speak directly to him. He growled again, still glaring at the young woman.

"You can't be with Hiccup! The boy is better off on his own...with me."

Hiccup's worried gaze had diminished somewhat as soon as he had realised that the black dragon's thoughts were being directed at the two of them. Sheathing his sword in a second, the young man took a few steps forward and held out his hand warily. Why he was at all frightened, Toothless could not tell – surely the two of them had been through enough that the bond of trust between them could not be weakened by something as clear in meaning as this...?

Irrelevant. Hiccup wished to communicate clearly, and Toothless would do nought but oblige. He moved forward and brought his head up to touch his master's hand like so many times before, and the link was created.

"It's Astrid, isn't it?" Hiccup fired off immediately, his anger resonating through Toothless' mind. "Why can't you accept that I want to love again? Why can't you just let me try to live with ordinary humans once more?" A simple question, and a simple answer.

"I will not see you hurt again – Hiccup, every time this happens, a part of you dies inside –"

"So, once again you're insinuating that this love will end like the first? Does this village look like it is in danger of being burnt to the ground?"

"You know as well as I do that there will be retribution for the actions of these Vikings."

"Our actions, Toothless. You and I were just as much a part of this as any of the residents of Berk –"

"Once again, you speak of this village as though you are still not a part of it. Tell me, Hiccup, were does your heart really lie?"

A moment's silence. Hiccup's eyes broke away and stared at the ground, while Astrid stood to one side, her form alert and her face full of concern.

"I don't know." Toothless could sense the truth in the young man's thoughts. "But I do know that I need somewhere to belong, and this place is as good as any. I have friends, family, and loved ones, is that not enough?"

Toothless severed the link so suddenly that event the mentally hardened Hiccup staggered backwards...to be supported by Astrid. Backing away slowly, Toothless tried desperately to crush the rising tide of emotions that sought to swamp his heart and mind with terrible grief.

Ever since his exile from the nest, the black dragon had believed himself to be unique – a single beast who was simply too different, too enlightened, too brave to live with the rest. Then he had met Hiccup, and this had only strengthened his notions of individuality, for they seemed to be true not only for his own species, but for the humans as well. The two of them should have spent the rest of their lives together, too different to live within their own kind, but just right for each other. Over the years, Toothless had become so accustomed to this idea, that the moment it became evident to be based upon fallacy, he couldn't handle it.

But that was just it. If Hiccup could believe in reintegration, in acceptance...in love, then why couldn't he?

Utterly terrified of his own thoughts, Toothless turned and fled.

Several days passed, and Hiccup didn't hear from his best friend. Life went on, though. Vikings and dragons went about their business, formed new bonds and strengthened existing ties. The village of Berk moved slowly onward towards a better future for both of the races that now called it home.

But without his lifelong friend, Hiccup could not be brave.

Even Astrid, who was by his side as often as would appear acceptable, could hardly make his days brighter, and Hiccup caught himself, at times, feeling totally alienated from the world in which he lived.

Then, almost a week after the confrontation in the forest, Hiccup had an idea. A wonderful, perfect idea. How had this not occurred to him before?

After hours and hours of slaving away over the furnace, Hiccup slumped upon the floor, his back resting against the main bench, the exhaustion of hard work mingling in his mind with satisfaction of a job well done – well, so he hoped.

There it was, done. The new tail-fin was as sleek and shiny as the old one, and far more aerodynamic. Despite his numerous earlier epiphanies, Hiccup had, at first, not thought to try to improve Toothless' harness. Then, almost a year ago, the young man had hit upon a remarkable idea, and the new design had immediately gone to paper. Only an incredibly detailed understanding of the Night Fury's flight mechanics had allowed Hiccup to conjure up such a masterpiece...but here it was, complete in its construction, its creator confident in his craft.

This fin required no harness. The prosthesis enabled independent flight, and would allow Toothless to return to the air on his own. And this was precisely why Hiccup had kept the design secret from his best friend.

From the moment Hiccup had stumbled upon this remarkable discovery, the design had been hoarded away from the eyes of its creator's best friend. Hiccup was utterly terrified by the thought that, upon learning of this newfound potential for the rejuvenation of free flight, Toothless would stop at nothing to throw off the burden of his human rider. It were as though the seven long years with the Night Fury by his side had taught the young man nothing.

Through their mutual dependence, the human and his dragon companion had grown past friendship to become closer than family, and now shared a bond stronger than any Hiccup had seen before.

Toothless' actions in the forest one week ago had proved as much.

The sudden scraping of wood upon rock made Hiccup look up, and his eyes traced an arc along the stone floor and up to the open door. The young man's efforts to rise from his slumped position on the floor proved very quickly to be in vain, and he resigned himself to becoming a seat for a very nice –

"Hiccup, what have you been making?" Straight to the point, as ever. "I left you alone all this morning, as I figured it must have been very important. You haven't even taken a single break!" Astrid quickly closed the blacksmith door and crossed the distance between them in only a few rapid strides. However, instead of adopting her usual, intimate approach for when they were alone, the blond Viking lowered herself down onto the warm, hard floor, sat right next to Hiccup, and waited patiently for an answer.

Her patience was both necessary and rewarding, for after almost a minute, Hiccup sighed, and began to speak.

"I've been reconstructing Toothless' fin. It's done now...he'll be able to fly."

"I figured as much," Astrid replied with a smile, her head tilted to one side as she stared at the young man. "But you've only been at it for a day, how is it that you're done so soon? What about the harness?" Her eyes flicked rapidly around the workshop, before coming back to rest upon Hiccup's face, their soft blue bringing soothing to his anguished heart.

"He doesn't need the harness now," Hiccup spoke glumly, "the new design will allow him to fly without burden." Astrid's eyebrows shot up at the revelation of this new technology, but the brown-haired boy saw the suspicion in her gaze at his use of the word 'burden'. He sighed.

"I was going to take it out into the forest, perhaps up a mountain, and wait for him to come to me. I feel like I should, but..." he paused, confirmed his own thoughts, "I'm not sure I really know what he wants."

"You're his best friend, Hiccup, and the closest thing he really has to a family. The way the other dragons talk about Toothless...it's nothing explicit, yet it's so obvious that he's a bit of an outcast."

"Hrm." Hiccup had nothing better to say.

This, however, was something of an affront to the young woman who had turned up at just the right time and with just the right things to say to instil hope into Hiccup's heart once more.

"Hey," Astrid said lightly, her expression filling with that cheeky look that Hiccup knew all too well, "everything will be alright in the end. And if it's not alright, then it's not the end."

"Yeah..." Hiccup replied quietly, a smile of simple happiness creeping over his face. It would be alright. There was hope, now.

Astrid was still looking at him, and out of the corner of his eye, Hiccup saw her brush a wayward strand of hair out of her eyes – he knew exactly what was coming, and would do nothing to prevent it.

Leaning over, Astrid kissed his cheek, as if seeking permission. Was he really alright? Was he ready to –

Yes, he most certainly was.

Hiccup wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling the young woman closer, and took her hands in his. Their lips met, and in no time at all, a full half an hour had passed, with the two simply exploring each others' intimacy boundaries...and discovering that, with one another, there simply weren't any.

"Mmmm..." The blonde flicked her hair out of her face once more, and Hiccup felt his passions rise further. It seemed that Astrid could do almost anything, and Hiccup would be taken by the fires of his desire for her.

"Do you think our parents know we're doing this –?" Astrid began, but was immediately cut off as Hiccup pressed his lips to hers again.

"Do you think our parents care we're doing this?" he replied after a few more moments of pleasure, and Astrid could only laugh.

"Probably not – certainly not my mother, anyway...the last time I checked, she was all for us trying out whatever we wanted..." She ended the sentence with an enticing purr, and it was all he could do to hold himself back. Such shenanigans on this stony, uneven floor had the potential to be quite painful. But then again –

"Guys, what...I don't even..." Hiccup and Astrid both jumped at the sound of another voice. Neither of them had even heard the door open, but there, with the light of the outside world streaming in around him, stood Fishlegs, his mouth gaped wide. The loving couple quickly retrieved their hands, placing their arms back into respectable positions, but the damage was done, and in merely a few painful seconds, Fishlegs' gaze had transformed into a smile of pure joviality.

"Hahaha! I knew it! I KNEW IT!" he screamed, and without another word, turned and fled out of the building.

"Fishlegs! FISHLEGS! GET BACK HERE, YOU SCUMBAG!" Astrid roared, her peaceful nature gone in a flash and replaced by the vicious Viking nature that Hiccup knew so well. In only a second, she had vanished out the door after her quarry. Prising himself up off the floor, Hiccup marched purposefully over to the entrance, wishing to the gods that his strength and speed would return soon. Once by the door, however, he was treated to the hilarious sight of Astrid spear tackling her bulky victim, clamping a firm hand over his blabbering mouth, and dragging him off into an alleyway to one side, pausing only to give Hiccup a grin that said plainly "I'll deal with you later". Hiccup chuckled, closed the door, and returned to his workbench. Fishlegs wouldn't talk, Astrid would see to that.

Everything seemed alright, really. Berk was fast becoming one of the most peaceful and prosperous villages of the north, with Vikings and dragons once more living harmoniously, as they had so long ago...

And he, Hiccup could not be more blessed. With a place of safety within the village, friends and family to take care of him and a loved one to soothe his heart, it seemed that he was finally home.

All that remained was to find his best friend.

To find Toothless.

This doesn't quite conclude the trilogy. I will be writing an epilogue, and the focus should be obvious. I've also tried to lay the foundations for future stories...subtle hints, references to Hiccup's past, and so on and so forth. I have it all planned out, and just need to find the motivation to write it all up.
Wish me luck!

As usual, any critique, ideas, e.t.c. would be greatly appreciated, and I'm really hoping people will have little suggestions for the sequels...it may help me to find that inspiration! I'll be trying to use my own storyline, with entries from some of the other HtTYD media, such as the short films, the T.V. series, and so on.

Cheers,
Lumpyness.