A/N – Whoo! An update at last! Sorry it's been so long, guys. I'm glad that you're all enjoying this story so much. I'm enjoying this story much more than I thought I would. Thanks for reading! You all make writing worth it.

Hey, by the way, there's some smut in this chapter.

X

Chapter 25

Hiccup landed outside the clubhouse just before dawn with Johann sitting behind him. He clutched the map of Viggo's dragon auction in hand so tightly the paper had wrinkled and his knuckles had gone white. The others had stayed awake waiting, or most of them had. The twins snored in one corner and Snotlout slumped at the table. Heather and Fishlegs, both looking exhausted, met Hiccup at the clubhouse door.

"Well?" Heather asked.

"We got it," Hiccup said, motioning to the map Johann clutched.

"Indeed," Johann said. He handed the map to Hiccup. "I don't see how you handle such harrowing moments, Master Hiccup. I was born for the trade, for the endless seas, not all this spy business. Which reminds of the time I encountered a Numerian spy, he was a strange fellow-"

"Johann, not now," Hiccup said. "We need to start planning our attack on the auction."

Johann made the smallest of sounds. "There might be a hitch to that, Master Hiccup."

"What? Why?"

"You see, unless you are hiding a mass of gold inside your tunic, you won't get close enough to see the auction," Johann said. He quickly retold them what he'd heard at the tavern, that only the richest Vikings dared to show up. Those that came without enough gold were turned away, or killed and tossed to the ocean.

"Viggo will be ready for us," Heather said. She pointed to Hiccup. "And you."

"I agree," Hiccup said.

"But then how do we get in?" Fishlegs asked. "Even if we had enough gold, Viggo isn't going to let us just walk inside."

"It will be well guarded," Heather said. "Viggo won't take this event lightly. He'll be ready for any attack, from us or anyone else."

Snotlout snored like a choking dragon, and coughed, but didn't wake up. The idea took form. From where it came, Hiccup didn't know; like most of his ideas, they seemed to come from nowhere.

"I think we need someone to go in, not all of us," Hiccup said, mind working. "Someone that Viggo won't expect because he doesn't know him. Someone he won't recognize right away because he's never been seen up close."

Heather followed Hiccup's gaze to Snotlout, and her jaw dropped. "Oh, no, Hiccup. That is not a good idea."

"He's the only one who's not been captured by Viggo or Ryker," Hiccup said.

"He's the only one clueless enough to pull it off," Fishlegs said.

Heather looked between the two of them, frowning. "That doesn't mean Viggo doesn't know him. I'd wager that he's taken it upon himself to get to know each of you as well as he can. He needs to know his enemies."

"Then how do you suggest we go in?" Hiccup asked. "You know the hunters better than we do."

Heather crossed her arms, and her frown deepened. "I don't know. We don't have to think of a plan at this very moment. We can all think about it tomorrow and come together tomorrow night. I'm sure we'll think of something."

"Sounds good," Johann said, yawning. "Now, if you will excuse me, I will retire to my mostly empty ship for the night."

Johann walked down the gangplanks, taking each step on the suspended walkways with care, and vanished into the fading night. On the eastern side of the island, the dawn had begun to glow a faint light purple.

Hiccup's stomach grumbled.

"Astrid said she'd be back before dawn," Heather said, looking at him through strained eyes.

Toothless nudged his arm and purred.

"I'm alright," Hiccup said. He laid his hand against Toothless. His snout was warmer than he remembered. "But, I think it's time to head to bed. Good night, guys, or, good morning. You know what I mean."

"We'll try and think of a plan," Fishlegs said.

Hiccup waved goodbye and headed down to his hut, sleep on his mind, when he heard the chitter of a Deadly Nadder. Stormfly, a flash of blue and yellow in the sky, landed on the walkway outside his hut. Astrid slid from the saddle and held two jars. As he came closer to the door, he could smell the blood she carried, and what she'd eaten herself.

He walked through the door and Astrid followed him. She handed him both jars, and while he drank, she said a sweet goodnight to Stormfly, who chirped and nestled her rider.

"She really likes you," Hiccup said. "I can tell. I've seen a lot of dragon and human bonding in the past several years. Sometimes, a dragon immediately takes to a person, but sometimes it can take a while for the dragon to warm up."

"Did Toothless warm up to you fast?"

"Not really," Hiccup said. "It took a while to gain his trust."

"He's a smart dragon," Astrid said. "To understand trust."

"Most dragons do. But it depends on the dragon and on the rider. Nadders are smart, and they can sense a lie a mile away. Stormfly knows you're no threat to her. She can sense your affection and trust in her, and she returns it."

Astrid smiled. "You think she can sense all that?"

"I know she can," Hiccup said.

"How?"

He didn't have an immediate answer. He shrugged, and said, "I guess it's the same way that I do."

She smiled, and a blush came over her pale cheeks. She said a sweet final goodnight to Stormfly, who then stepped out of the hut and took off toward the stables. Astrid shut the hut door, shutting out what pale sunlight had started to glow through the dawn.

The hut suddenly felt refreshing in a way that he hadn't expected. He hadn't felt bad in the dawn light, but as soon as it had left he felt better. Comfortable.

"Did everything go well tonight?" Astrid asked.

"Yes," Hiccup said.

She had wanted to go with him, but he'd made her stay at the Edge. She hadn't been happy about him flying to a salty hunter tavern without her, or anyone, but he'd promised to be careful. Johann had done the dirty work. Hiccup had been the getaway dragon.

Hiccup recapped everything discussed that Astrid had missed, including the auction's pricey entrance fee.

"I'm thinking that since Snotlout is the only one Viggo hasn't seen up close, he won't recognize him. We could put yellow in his hair, and dress him up like a duke, and knowing him he'll start to believe that he is important, and he might just get us inside," Hiccup said.

Astrid sat beside him on the bed, and folded her hands over her knees. "You need gold to get inside? But even if Snotlout plays a duke, how will the rest of us get inside unnoticed?"

Hiccup started to answer, but felt short. "I haven't gotten that far yet. We can't fly straight in. They'd see us. The only safe way to get there would be by ship."

"Doesn't Johann have a ship?"

"That he does."

"He could take us in closer," Astrid said.

"In the bottom of the boat," Hiccup added. "H-he could bring our dragons as gifts to Viggo, and we could sneak inside with them. Viggo wouldn't see us. We'd be on the island without him knowing!"

"Okay," Astrid said. "That's one part figured out. How about the gold?"

Hiccup's face fell. "I-I could ask my dad."

"Does Berk have that kind of gold?"

"It would be all the gold," Hiccup said.

"Hiccup," Astrid started, "that's a huge risk."

"I know, but, think of the dragons we'd save, Astrid."

She bit her lip. "Hiccup, before you go to your father, I have another idea of where we can find that kind of gold."

His brows rose.

"Home."

He frowned. Berk was his home. Then he understood. The other home. The vampire home. "Do they have that kind of gold?"

"You'd be surprised at the wealth one could accumulate in a few hundred years."

"Ah," Hiccup said. "I hadn't thought about that. But would they let us have it for something like this?"

"Gold isn't important to vampires, at least not to us. It's just a way of buying what we need, but most of that we can get ourselves. And since we don't buy that much, the gold accumulates. I'm sure if I asked nicely, and explained the situation, they'd help us out. If we could shut down the dragon hunters, we could start in on shutting down the vampire hunters, too."

"It would help everyone," Hiccup added. "Okay, when do we leave?"

"Tomorrow, if you want," Astrid said. "We'll rest up tonight and head out at last light."

Hiccup finished the blood before it cooled any more, and after a quick wash, he laid down beside Astrid. The light warmed underneath his hut's door until the line turned a burning yellow.

Astrid laid her hand on his chest. Her eyes were open.

"Hm?" he hummed.

"I love you," she whispered.

He couldn't help but smile. "I love you, too, Astrid."

He curled around her, and held onto her as he waited for sleep. He fingered the hem of her shirt, feeling the texture of it between his fingers, and absently touched the smooth skin of her waist. He flattened his hand against her stomach, and found comfort in the way she felt against him.

She aroused in him feelings that he never thought he'd feel, and he never wanted to be without them, or without her.

Astrid took a deeper breath, her body inflated and deflated with the motion, and he hugged her closer. He took in the smell of her, the strange and intoxicating odor that was hers, and kissed the skin below her ear. She made the smallest of erotic sounds, and he kissed her there again, slower and tenderly.

She hummed, and moved slightly, and mumbled with her eyes closed, "I'd stop that unless you're going to finish the job."

"Is that an option?"

"Are you too tired?" She smiled, and pushed her backside into his groin. Instinctively, he grabbed her hip. He didn't hold her away, and she moved her buttocks against him, working his already half-up self all the way erect.

Hiccup maneuvered and Astrid moved with him; she undid the ties of her pants as he worked himself free. He grabbed her hips from behind, and she posed on her hands and knees. In the dark, her pale skin seemed ghostly.

He pushed himself inside of her, and she let out a breathy moan. He heard his own voice filling the darkness with pleasurable sounds, and he made no move to stop them. He held onto her hips as he slowly thrust in and pulled himself out. In the need to be closer to her, he bent over so that his chest flushed with her back. She bent forward, arching her back, to make the angle easier for them both.

Gods, they mated like dragons.

Hiccup placed his hands on the bed on either side of hers, drinking in the moans she let slip out.

"Hiccup," Astrid breathed. She pulled her braided hair from her neck.

Gods.

Hiccup sank his teeth into her neck, drinking the sweet elixir between each thrust, earning him the sound from her throat that drove him past the edge and beyond, into the white-hot abyss of pleasure and euphoria. He pulled his fangs from her neck as he came, and let it spill inside of her.

She'd told him it was difficult for vampires to get pregnant; he hoped it true.

"Hiccup," she breathed, collapsing onto to her back. Her hand went between her legs, to the spot she'd showed him.

Hiccup reached for it, and nudged her hand out of the way. His fingers found the nub at once, and she bucked into his touch. She grabbed his hair with both hands, and pulled his head down to her. His fingers slipped when her teeth found his pulse.

She drank while he worked her; it didn't take long. She pulled from his neck and arched into his chest, a desperate cry on her reddened lips.

He kissed her, and she kissed him back. Her taste and his own mingled between them.

"Goodnight," he said against her lips.

"And here I thought you weren't going to kiss me goodnight," Astrid said, half-laughing.

He kissed her again, against her smiling lips.

X

"Are you sure about this?" Heather asked.

"Yes," Hiccup said, nodding. He'd packed Toothless and Stormfly's saddle bags for the journey north. The sun had nearly vanished behind the west. "It's our best option for getting the gold. I'd rather not have to ask my dad."

"What if they say no?" Heather asked.

"Then Berk's gold is plan B."

"They're more understanding that you think," Astrid said to Heather.

Heather sighed, but didn't argue. Fishlegs stood to the side, twiddling his thumbs. He had wanted to go see this vampire stronghold for himself, but after Astrid had explained to him why, he hadn't put up a fight. She'd talked up how dangerous it would be for a human to be in a stronghold full of vampires. Some had better control that others; that had stirred his panic.

"We'll be back in a few days," Hiccup said. "Hold the Edge while we're gone."

"We will," Fishlegs said.

"Try not to get shot down by hunters this time," Heather said. "If you're not back in five days we're coming to find you."

"Okay," Hiccup said. He didn't blame her. Last time he and Astrid had set out, they'd been gone much longer than a few days, and he'd come back as a vampire.

Toothless and Stormfly took off to the north. The last of the evening light vanished into the west and the stars took over the inky sky. The lights appeared in the sky, bright, dazzling lights of blues and greens and purples, dancing around each other as if the gods danced in Valhalla.

The lights grew brighter and brighter until it reflected off the steely waters below. At last, Shelm's Peak appeared on the northern horizon, and they landed in a clearing close to the mountain cave.

"Look at that," Hiccup said as he dismounted. "I've never seen the lights so bright."

"You should see them at home," Astrid said. She dismounted and came to stand beside him. "They're so bright that you can see for miles. They reflect off the ice. It's…amazing. One of the perks of being what we are."

"I'm starting to like these perks," Hiccup said. He took Astrid's hand in his. She leaned in and he met her, and they kissed for a long moment underneath the lights.

"Before we sleep, we need to do some hunting," Astrid said against his lips. "I'm hungry."

"Me, too," Hiccup said.

They traveled down the mountain on foot with the dragons close behind. While Toothless and Stormfly caught fish in the river, Astrid took Hiccup into the dense forest. With the both of them on the hunt, they had a wild boar within a few minutes. They drank their fill, and when they returned to the river, both dragons were still fishing. Toothless seemed to be playing in the water more than fishing. Stormfly used her tail's spines to pin fish, and then scooped them out.

"Smart dragon," Astrid said.

"That she is," Hiccup said. "Nadders are smart dragons. Playful, too."

"The sun's starting to come up," Astrid said. "Let's leave them to eat. We should get back up to the mountain. I don't want to have to climb that in the sunshine."

They started back toward their cave as the east began to glow. Hiccup hadn't noticed before, but clouds had slowly encroached on the sky. Thick gray clouds accumulated fast, churning in from the west. When they arrived at the small rocky clearing outside their cave, the first snow began to fall.

The sun slid over the eastern horizon, and suddenly each powdery flake had turned to gold. It almost looked like falling stars, tiny glittering dots of sparkling gold. The snow increased, and he held his hand out to catch the stars. They touched is palm, but didn't melt instantly. Without the sun to shine on them, they returned to ice in his hand.

Astrid stood beside him. Snowflakes had landed in her hair and each glimmered like gold. She looked like a goddess.

"This doesn't get old," Astrid said, her voice a breathy sigh, still as strong as steel, as gentle as a baby dragon's coo.

"What doesn't?"

"This," Astrid said, motioned to the falling snow. "I've seen mornings like this, and evenings too. Normal people can't take the cold so they never get to see what it looks like. The ice is beautiful when the sun shines, and under the moon, too."

"I bet it is," Hiccup said, unable to take his eyes of her, his goddess.

She met his gaze, and smiled. She said, "We don't get cold like humans do. The snow and ice doesn't keep us inside. We can walk barefoot through a snowbank. We can exist in this snow-world where humans can't tread. It's…kind of like our world, I guess. It's protection for us."

"I guess it snows a lot back home?"

Astrid nodded. "There's always snow on the ground. It never rains. It's too cold. I, uh, remember the first time I left home as a vampire for the human world, and I saw rain again. It was like stepping into another time, almost. It felt…so foreign to me. It's not as bad anymore, because I'm strong enough to come and go as I please, but I remember that day so well."

Hiccup smiled. He glanced back at the rising sun. It had risen halfway up. The snow clouds hadn't reached it, but soon would. The morning and afternoon would most likely be dreary and gray.

"The sunrise is like a bridge between the two worlds," Astrid said. "The sun is still shining, but it's snowing."

"Like it's trying to stretch," Hiccup said.

Astrid hesitated, then nodding. "You're stretching."

"I know," he said. He squeezed her hand, and laced his fingers with hers. "And I'll stretch until I break, but until then, I'm going to hold onto what I can. I can't just let everything about my human life go. The Edge, my friends, Berk…they all need me. And I need them."

Astrid nodded. "Okay. I'll be here, you know that. I'll help you any way I can, Hiccup. I'll carry you home if you break."

The sun speckled his skin with little pins of exhaustion, but he'd soon be sleeping in Astrid's arms and he didn't mind. The snow kissed his face, but it didn't hurt. It was cold, but it didn't feel like pain. It just felt cold. The sun rose higher and the snow thickened. No wind moved to drift the falling snow, and it covered the rocks and trees and the ground until everything appeared white.

Soon, the only sound came from the dragons as they trotted up the mountain path. Toothless and Stormfly, both flecked with snow, ran into the shelter of the mountain cave. Toothless stood at the mouth, curious eyes on Hiccup, and let out a warble of concern.

"We should get to bed," Astrid said. "We've got another long night ahead of us. Especially if this weather keeps up."

They walked back to the cave, hand in hand, and in the cool shadows between their dragons, they fell asleep in each other's arms.

Hiccup woke before dusk. Astrid still slept in his arms. He laid for a while holding her like had, not wishing to be anywhere else. When Astrid did wake, she rolled over and met his gaze with her sleepy eyes.

"Good morning," she said.

"Hey," he said.

"Are you hungry?" she whispered.

"A little, but I can wait," he said.

"You're doing a lot better than you were."

"I know," he said. He kissed her temple. "I feel better. I don't feel like I might explode if I don't eat something."

"That's good," she said. "It means your body is adjusting. Some of the older vampires eat once a week."

"That's a bit extreme," Hiccup laughed.

"It's a part of growing older, I guess."

"We'll find out eventually," he said. He hugged her. "Together."

"Together," she repeated.