So, sorry, this is kind of an uninteresting chapter, but WE FIND OUT HICCUP'S ILLNESS. Shhhh...no spoilers yet. :D My finger doesn't want to do the thing...in my last A/N, I said my finger got cut, and it hurts, so any misspelled words in here..BLAME THE FINGER! NOT ME! :D XD Enjoy chapter 11, I'mm update as soon as I can! :D

Valka arrived sooner than later with the healer hot on her heels. The healer was Gothi's apprentice; a young girl named Halima, around Astrid's age with brown hair and a sturdy (not bulky) build. Astrid was sitting on the edge of the bed with her hand holding a cloth to Hiccup's forehead as he slept more or less soundly.

Halima looked from Astrid to Hiccup, and then motioned for Astrid to move over. Astrid did so, sitting at the head of the bed while Halima sat in the middle. She instantly began the regular examination; lifting Hiccup's eyelids, looking inside his mouth (for reasons Valka and Astrid didn't know nor ask about), and checking his temperature.

"What are his biggest symptoms?" Halima asked, looking from Astrid and Valka both. Since Valka was in such a rush to get back to Hiccup, she hadn't said much to the healer.

"His fever is going down, but that was one of the biggest things," Valka said. "He doesn't eat much, and when he does, he normally throws it up later. He said he had a bad headache, and he seems exhausted."

"So, he has been conscious, then?" Halima asked. Valka and Astrid nodded. "But he's also been out of it, sort of?" Nods once again. "Alright," Halima said. "What do you think the cause of it is?"

So, Valka and Astrid told her about the wolves, and Halima listened, speaking only when she had a question. When Astrid and Valka finished their tale, the healer nodded.

"Alright then," she said. "Suppose I'll have to take a look at his wound. Right leg, you said?"

"Yes," Valka answered.

"Alrightee," Halima said. She rolled up Hiccup's pants leg, and then undid the bandages. "It's a bit more swollen than it should be…" the healer said more to herself than anything. From their positions, neither Astrid nor Valka could see the wound itself. She continued to examine the wound, murmuring things to herself as she went, until at length she stepped back, bandaging the wound before she did.

"If you ask me," Halima said, "then it looks like Hiccup has tularemia."

"Tularemia," Valka gasped.

"Tularemia?" Astrid repeated. Halima nodded. "What's that?"

There was a beat of pure silence before Astrid's question was answered. "It's a disease," Valka explained rather hastily. "Most people recover from it, but it takes a few weeks at least before they're back to their normal selves."

"That's right," Halima said. "More than half the people who get tularemia recover."

"Does Hiccup have a chance of recovering from it?" Astrid asked, trying to hide her panic in her voice.

"We'll see," Halima said. "You can expect he'll get more fevers and headaches, and even if he throws up every time he eats, make sure he always has something in his stomach. We don't need his body weakening even more."

"Are there any other symptoms?" Valka asked. "Things we could expect in the near future?"

"Not that you haven't already experienced," Halima said. "He'll have high fevers, and they'll break for a few hours, but then they'll come back. He'll be exhausted most of the time, have severe headaches, and won't be able to stomach much. His fevers will most likely give him chills."

"So, what should we do?" Valka asked.

"Keep him warm, and when he has a fever, keep a cool rag on his forehead," Halima said. "Make sure he eats something…broth should be fine. Keep him hydrated, too. That'll be important. I'll be back in two days to see if there's any improvement. If he has abnormal symptoms, or gets worse, come get me right away. Alright?"

"Alright," Valka and Astrid said in unison, nodding.

"Alight," Halima said. "I'm going to get some medicine from Gothi and then leave it with you. I'll be back in a few minutes." The healer left afterwards, leaving Astrid and Valka alone with Hiccup.

"Tularemia," Astrid said. "I've never heard of that before."

"It's not very common," Valka said.

"It takes weeks for it to run its course?" Astrid asked. "Hiccup will be like this for weeks?"

"Two to three weeks at best," Valka said.

"He'll be alright, though?" Astrid asked. "All around, he'll be fine in the end, right?"

"More than likely," Valka said. "I may not have known Hiccup for a long time like you have, but I know he's stronger than he looks. I'm sure he'll pull through and be back on his feet in no time."

Astrid smiled. "That's good," she said. "I gave Hiccup his second dose of medicine…but I suppose it won't help if what the healer said about him getting frequent fevers is true."

Valka nodded. "But he'll be alright," she said, "so long as we keep the fevers down, at least."

"I'm glad we know what it is now," Astrid said. "I was worried the disease was going to be rabies, or something like that."

Valka stared at her for just a moment. "Me too," she said, "but I'm really glad it wasn't. More people are less likely to recover from rabies then they are from tularemia."

Astrid nodded, putting the back of her hand against Hiccup's cheek. "His fever's still going down for now," she said, pulling her hand away after letting it linger for another few moments. "It's good he's sleeping," she said.

Valka nodded once again as she moved to sit on the other side of the bed, across from Astrid. "He had a rough night," Valka said dolefully. "He'll probably sleep most of today."

"Good," Astrid said. "He needs it."

Both Astrid and Valka continued watching over Hiccup.