A/N: Gods I am so, so, so sorry for not updating in eight months and three days, and I wish I could have finished it sooner, but I have a truly spectacular list of excuses. I did try to write this chapter in February, and I ought to have had it published on the 26th of February, but I got a terrible case of writer's block and it only let up last Friday (16th of October). Added to my terrible writer's block, homework piled up (It was my grade twelve year and the first year I had in public school since grade 7) and in the end I spent two solid weeks working on homework in May and June, away from the computer because I couldn't afford to get distracted at all. Also, my computer spent several months gathering dust in the basement, because my dad decided it would be a grand idea to renovate my room without asking me and I had nowhere to set up my computer for about four months (I have a laptop now as well as a computer, thankfully). On top of all this, my dear Cola died on May 6th this year. She was my cat and my best friend, and I will miss her very, very much. Additionally, I will miss my dog, Frankie, who died in July this year, and my grandpa, who died August 1st.

In short, this has been a terrible year, but I am very excited to be writing again.

"Astrid," Hiccup said a week later as Stormfly and her rider landed behind him. "You're staying here, then?" The blonde Viking slid off her dragon and walked over to stand near Hiccup at the top of the hill, looking down at the village from their place near the Chief's house.

"I- Yeah. But you knew that already, Hiccup. I have a duty to my tribe, and Stormfly is accepted here, now. I have no reason to leave." Astrid shrugged, watching as Hiccup finished tying the last of his provisions to Toothless's saddle, then stood and limped to her side. He was lucky he could stand and walk as well as he did, limp and all.

"What about your parents?" He asked, curious as to whether or not she'd forgiven them yet.

Astrid scowled. "I need time before I can forgive them, I think. What they did was..."

"Yeah, I know." He said quietly, nodding. "I need some time as well."

Astrid gave him a tiny grin. "Haven't you had three years?"

"Oh, yeah, but fifteen years of dad never listening to me... And then he got someone to shoot my leg, and accidentally unleashed the biggest dragon I've ever seen on the whole village..." Hiccup sighed, then smiled. "Even if he is sorry and didn't know it was me at first." He paused. "But, that aside... I understand why you're staying. Berk is your home."

"It's your home, too," Astrid told him.

Hiccup shook his head, smirking slightly. "No it's not. Astrid, this hasn't been my home for nearly four years now. I have my own house, and my own island, and... I miss my home, Astrid. I miss being there. I'm not used to being around so many Vikings any more."

"You're a Viking." Astrid pointed out.

"I was a Viking, sort of," Hiccup countered. "But then I ran away and spent three years living with dragons." He shook his head slowly. "I'm a dragon rider now." He glanced over at Toothless, who'd wandered a short distance away toward the forest and was sniffing at a rabbit hole at the base of a tree.

Astrid huffed, glancing over at Stormfly, who'd joined Toothless near the rabbit hole. "Can't you be both?"

Hiccup shrugged. "I spent so long trying to be a Viking, and, well, it never worked out, did it? I stopped trying to be a Viking when I left, and... I'm happier this way, I think." He glanced over at the dragons again to find they'd disappeared further into the forest.

Astrid shrugged, nodding reluctantly. "If you say so, Hiccup. I'll try to understand." She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt for a moment. "Visit sometimes, alright?"

Hiccup tilted his head a bit. "Course I'll visit, Astrid." He smirked. "Gobber hasn't taught me everything yet, and Berk's always good for supplies..."

Astrid rolled her eyes, grinning. "Oh, so you'll visit for supplies-"

"And," Hiccup interrupted, eyes softening. "I'll visit cause you're here." He paused, blushing, then amended, "And my dad, and Gobber, and... Well, anyway."

Astrid's cheeks heated up. "Okay. I, um, I'll look forward to that, then." She hesitated. "And, I'll visit you, of course."

Hiccup smiled, teasing, "What, for my blacksmithing skills or my dragon-riding skills?"

"Both, actually," Astrid said, cheeks growing redder. "And... Because I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too," Hiccup replied, smiling shyly. "But, you know, dragons on Berk. I bet you'll be busy."

"Oh, yeah. Definitely." Astrid nodded, eyes lighting up. "And Chief Stoick heard Snotlout's opinion on being his successor, and, well... I'm not a traitor any more, so..."

Hiccup beamed. "He's making you his Heir? Astrid, that's wonderful!" He stepped forward and swept her up in a hug.

"Yes! It's such an honour, and- Gods, I'm really a bit... Overwhelmed, I guess." Astrid confessed, hugging him back. "I never thought..."

"I know," Hiccup said, as they separated awkwardly. "It's... It's a lot of pressure. But you'll make a great Chief, Astrid. Far better than I could've been."

Astrid grinned, cheeks going red again. "Um, thanks." She glanced at his face and hesitated, then slugged him on the arm.

"Ow," He cried, clutching his arm dramatically. "What was that for?!"

"Taking me prisoner," Astrid said immediately. "And turning me into a traitor. And almost getting yourself killed. And running away in the first place-"

Hiccup laughed, cutting her off. "Okay, I get it, Astrid." She bit her lip, then leaned up and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips before taking a small step back. "And... What was that for?" He asked, cheeks red and voice lower and a bit rougher than before.

"For everything else," Astrid muttered, blushing.

"Oh, um. Oh- Okay." Hiccup stammered, blinking slowly. "Uh. Maybe we could, um... Do that again, sometime?"

Astrid tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Um... Okay," She agreed, looking down at the village so she could pretend she wasn't blushing. "I'd like that."

Hiccup grinned, and opened his mouth to say something, but Toothless chose that moment to push himself in between them and interrupt. Astrid's Nadder chittered in the background, watching. "~Are we going after the other dragon rider, Hiccup?!~"

Hiccup's eyes widened. In the face of everything else, he'd forgotten about the mysterious dragon and its' rider. "~I- Yeah, of course, Bud!~" He paused, frowning, then glanced at his new prosthetic and amended, "~After I've gotten used to this thing, though, alright?~"

Toothless bounded around him, excited. "~Yes, of course, I'll help you get used to it, of course, and you can make a better, fancy one and it'll match my tail and everything...~"

"What's he saying?" Astrid asked, watching in amusement as Toothless bounced around.

"He wants to go after the other dragon rider," Hiccup explained. "I think he's tired of staying in one place for so long."

"You know, we're dragon riders too, now." Astrid pointed out, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

"Yeah," Hiccup said, looking out over the village at the many dragons perched on rooftops and such. "I guess you are."

The End.

A/N: I seem to be quite talkative in this final chapter, don't I? Anyway, this is the end of Leaving, the final chapter, and it's quite strange thinking of it as done after all this time. I'm still planning a sequel, and most likely a third in the series as well, to match the trilogy of movies, but I don't know if I'll write or publish any of it before the third movie comes out in 2018, because I don't want to end up rewriting it to suit the third movie like I did for Run Away when the second movie came out, however well it turned out. If my unexpected hiatus can prove anything, though, it is that I will not abandon this story. The sequel will happen, and most likely the third as well, however long it takes. I hope you enjoyed this story.