A/N: Hi guys, sorry about the delayed update, had to change some things at the last minute. Thanks a lot for sticking with this story and for each and every follow, fav, and review. Enjoy! :)

Song recommendation for this chapter: La da dee by Cody Simpson

Chapter 15: Dresses and Dances

Astrid stopped digging through her trunks and sighed.

Ruffnut's wedding was in just a couple of days, and after fruitlessly searching through everything she owned, she had been forced to admit that she didn't have anything nice to wear.

Throughout her life, Astrid had despised girly and impractical clothing, going as far as to wearing her battle armor even at functions or ceremonies, much to the horror of her parents.

Recently however, something quite drastic had changed within her that she couldn't quite place, for she found herself being more in touch with her feminine side, braiding her hair a bit more attentively than she normally would, or even occasionally wearing the couple of old dresses her mother had forced her to get months ago.

This transformation may or may not have had to do with the fact that Hiccup always turned into a bumbling mess anytime he saw her do any dressing up outside of the norm. And she absolutely loved teasing him like that.

And that was why, she really wanted to wear a nice dress to her friend's wedding. This would also be her first formal public appearance as a married woman, and she didn't really fancy the idea of showing up in her daily outfit, wielding her battle axe.

She'd peeked a glance in Hiccup's things and discovered it bursting with fancy, impractical, and frankly, expensive items of clothing, presumably collected over the years due to him accompanying the Chief to many events.

She couldn't wear the drab and simple dresses that she did have along with him looking all golden and fancy, now could she?

There was a part of her that knew the simple solution to this was just to go and buy a new dress but at the same time she found her mind getting hung up on certain things.

She'd been self sufficient all her life, and hadn't really needed to spend money other than the occasional weapons or armor fixes. Asking her father for money would have been one thing, but asking her husband?

She assumed he wouldn't mind but a small part of her brain was still reluctant. What if he says no, or worse- thinks badly of her for having such frivolous desires?

Hiccup was just so nice to her in every possible way, that she was afraid of appearing to take undue advantage of his kind nature to ask for money. Granted, it was for the dress, but what if he thinks such things as unimportant?

Snap out of it Astrid. Just swallow your pride and ask, what's the worst that could happen?

Casting aside the mental battle within her, she went downstairs where Hiccup was working on some strange looking metal parts, presumably for Toothless. Now that she knew his secret, he didn't have to hide things from her anymore.

"Hi Hiccup" she started, hoping he wouldn't notice her unusual nervousness.

He looked up, and she couldn't help but blush at how his face never failed to brighten whenever he saw her.

"Astrid! Come here" he said, patting the space on the sofa next to him.

She sat down right next to him, and instantly he had an arm around her waist which he used to pull her close, pressing a kiss to her blushing cheek. "I missed you"

"You saw me like ten minutes ago" she said with a small laugh.

"I know, but that's way too long" He said, before looking at her critically. "What's the matter?"

Astrid fidgeted with some loose strands of hair, averting her gaze.

"Well I... you know Ruff and legs' wedding is in two days and..." Why am I so nervous? Just spit it out! "I thought I could buy a new dress to wear to it... the ones I have are plain and simple"

Okay, it is done.

Shutting her eyes to avoid looking at Hiccup's reaction, she heard nothing for a long moment.

Oh gods, he's probably annoyed, or upset, or-

Hiccup's bright laugh made her snap out of her thoughts. Huh?

"And here I was scared half to death wondering what I'd done wrong" he said between more laughter. "Milady, you really are something"

Astrid pouted at the way he was laughing off her serious question.

Still chuckling, he walked over to a drawer and came back with a small velvet pouch, which clinked with the sound of coins. He handed it to her, and said, "this should be enough?"

Astrid peeked inside and stifled a gasp. "T-This is too much, I can't-"

"Of course you can sweetheart, go and buy the nicest dress that exists on Berk, plus anything else you want"

Astrid was speechless. "But Hiccup-"

"Astrid" he chided gently. "All these years I've been saving money with nothing of note that I needed to buy, and now that I have a beautiful wife to spend it for, why should I think twice about it?" He gently tucked a loose strand behind her ear and continued, "Take this and spend every last bit of what's in there. Just do it as a favor to me, please?"

Astrid had gone into this assuming she might have to convince him, but now, unbelievably, he was the one requesting her to spend his money?

"Okay" Astrid said finally, looking for any deceit in his eyes but only seeing unbridled sincerity.

"Good"

He seemed extremely pleased, and Astrid realised he was happy just to have the mere opportunity to make her happy.

Well, two can play at that game, she thought, before pulling him closer to pepper his face with kisses.

When she finally let him go after a solid minute, Hiccup's eyes looked glazed over from sheer bliss.

"Thank you" they both said at the same time, for very different reasons.

"Let me see it at least!" Hiccup cried, but Astrid just laughed and shut the door in his face. "Wait downstairs, let me change and then I'll show you" she called from the other side.

Hiccup slinked down the stairs, cursing his wife's sneakiness. She had entered their home with a large bag under her arm, and hadn't even let him get a peek at its contents.

The wedding was tomorrow and Astrid had been spending a lot of time helping Ruffnut with preparations. As much as he wished he could be with her from sunrise till sunset, it simply wasn't possible, and he was glad she had friends to talk to for the rest of the time.

He did wonder what they gossiped about, and whether or not he was a subject of their conversations. Ever since their marriage, he'd noticed Astrid talking to Ruffnut more often, so it was a definite possibility.

Lost in his thoughts, he heard a stair creak and looked up just in time to see the hem of a green and white ankle-length gown appear, followed by the rest of it, and finally her face, looking shyly back at him, as if awaiting anxiously for his reaction.

All the gears in his head grinded to a halt in an instant, zapped into uselessness at the first glimpse of the blonde goddess standing in front of him.

"How do I look?" Astrid asked, when he didn't say anything for a few moments.

Look... how... I should probably say something. But what? And why the heck is she asking me how she looks? Everyone looks with their eyes... right?

Hiccup maintained his poker face and Astrid narrowed her eyes, hand on her hips.

Why is she looking at me like that? Ohh... she wants me to tell her how she looks in the dress, I get it now. Astrid, you look amazing, he thought.

Astrid's face didn't change a bit.

Wait, did I say that out loud or did I just think it? She didn't seem to hear it, judging by how she is stomping closer, looking mad-

"Pretty Girl!" He announced suddenly, stopping her in her tracks.

"Huh?"

Oh gods, she wants me to explain, in words from my mouth... but how?

"Girl" he tried, gesturing towards all of her. "Look pretty"

That seemed to get through to her, for she finally smiled and stepped into his arms, embracing him and whispering in his ear, "Are you always this articulate?"

"Only when you wear a dress" he replied honestly, making her giggle. Now that she wasn't in his immediate field of view, his brain started up again.

What on earth have I blurted in the last minute? Everything seemed hazy and the soft satin fabric beneath his fingers was extremely distracting.

Astrid stepped away and he took her in again, suddenly realising that the deep green of the dress matched his eyes perfectly.

Astrid seemed to guess the question in his eyes before he even voiced it.

"Did you choose this color-"

"Nope" she interrupted cheekily. "It just happened to be my favorite color"

Hiccup was confused, since he'd never really seen Astrid in green before. If anything, he would have assumed she preferred blue.

"Since when?" He asked coyly, determined to get the answer he wanted out of her.

"Since Thor's day, last month", came the reply.

The day sparked the memory in his brain instantly. The night they'd spent with the storm raging outside... the morning she'd awoken in his arms and stared deep into his eyes before kissing him-

The memory set his face ablaze, making Astrid laugh at him teasingly.

"Oh I almost forgot, I've got something for you" Hiccup said, digging something out of his pocket.

"Hmm?" Astrid peered curiously at the small box, out of which Hiccup pulled out a sparkling white necklace. "It was my mother's"

Astrid couldn't help but marvel at the beautiful and clearly expensive piece of jewellery. "Hiccup... I can't take this"

"Sure you can" he replied, moving behind her to put it on. "I know she would have wanted you to have it" he said softly. After seeing his tone that warranted no refusals, Astrid finally nodded and swept her hair aside, giving him access to her neck. He put it around her neck and spun her around, looking at her adoringly.

"Thank you" she breathed, looking down at it.

"Wait, your hair looks different" Hiccup said, just noticing.

"Oh" Now Astrid was the one blushing, fiddling with her hair. "This is a marriage braid... I asked my mum to teach me how to make it. Now that I'm no longer a maiden, I figured my appearance should reflect that"

"Wow" was all Hiccup could say, as he ran his fingers over her hair. Two smaller braids formed a crown around her head and then joined as they went down her back.

"It looks lovely on you"

Astrid smiled. "Speaking of hair" she ran her fingers through his hair, making it messier than it already was. "You should get this cut, it's getting long"

Hiccup nodded, "Right, I'll go to the barber and-"

"Hey!" she interrupted. "You have me now, so there's no need for that"

"Huh? You know how to cut it?"

She grinned wickedly. "Not really, but I've occasionally cut my own in the past. How hard can it really be?"

It turned out to be harder than she had expected, but after a lot of squirming and laughter from Hiccup, lots of fussing on her part, she managed to get his hair shorter without messing up too badly.

At one point, she'd seriously considered ditching the measly scissors and finishing the job with her axe, as she felt much more confident with that blade. Hiccup had looked at her in sheer terror at that suggestion, and she'd conceded, deciding it was better not to risk accidentally maiming her husband over just a haircut.

After she was done, Hiccup stared at his reflection in the mirror contemplatively. "I look... great!" he said finally, looking as if trying to convince himself.

"I'm sorry!" Astrid cried, although it didn't help her case that she was finding it hard to hold in her laughter at seeing his goofy and uneven hair. "I'm sure it will grow and look better in a few days"

Hiccup shook his head, still smiling. "I guess It's a good haircut considering it didn't cost me anything" he laughed, "You'll get better with practice"

"I hope so!"

"And I'll get you back for this when it's my turn to trim your hair next time" he said with a grin.

Astrid rolled her eyes. "In your dreams, dragon boy"

"Such hypocrisy... I'm hurt, milady" he said, clutching his heart and sighing dramatically.

She took his hand in hers and tugged on it, "Come on now handsome, or we'll be late for the ceremony"

"Flattery will get you nowhere" Hiccup said flatly, but Astrid noticed anyway the smirk he tried to hide.

The ceremony proceeded with just about the amount of chaos expected when the more rambunctious half of the Thorsten twins was the bride.

At least the Great hall hadn't burned down in the end, but the main pillar was distinctly charred from when the twins had attempted to set it on fire before Fishlegs jabbed it with the sword, apparently to make the ritual more 'exciting'.

The people seemed more upbeat than usual, hoping that Ruffnut tying the knot might bring an end to them being tormented by pranks for the rest of their lives.

Hiccup thought they were probably being too optimistic, but who was he to spoil their party?

He'd noticed how many eyes had turned towards Astrid and her dazzling dress when they'd first walked through the door, but his wife had just clung to his arm the whole time as if saying, "You can stare all you want, but see this guy right here? I'm his."

As humble a person as Hiccup was, even he'd had a hard time keeping a smug smile from coming to his face, at the thought of being able to show off his gorgeous wife.

Now that the feast was done and the music had gone from an energetic beat to a peaceful strumming, He found his hand being tugged again.

"Come on Hiccup" Astrid said with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Where?"

Astrid rolled her eyes as if the answer was obvious. "I want you to dance with me!"

"D-Dance?" Hiccup peered nervously at the couples dancing together. "I don't know how to"

"I'll show you how" came the simply reply and she dragged him over despite his weak protests. He did want to dance with her, but he also didn't want to make a fool out of himself. He didn't really consider himself all that coordinated.

Despite having grown much closer to his wife in the recent weeks, he still felt shy holding her like this in public, with his left hand clasped in hers and the other resting on the curve of her waist, his calloused fingers rubbing against the silky material.

He let her take the lead, and focused all his concentration on trying to not step on her toes, and to not get sweaty palms. His metal leg clacked softly on the wooden floor with each step. Astrid noticed his nervousness and gave him a reassuring smile that helped relaxed his nerves.

They swayed together much like the other couples, but he noticed that Astrid stood closer to him, her face filling his vision. She stared at him intently for a moment before blinking in surprise.

"What happened?" he asked curiously.

Astrid bit her bottom lip, a gesture he found ridiculously cute. Brushing aside some stray bangs from her eyes, she said, "Do you notice something different?"

"Huh?"

"About..."-she gestured to him and then herself in the tiny space between them- "Us"

He furrowed his brows in confusion, before suddenly realising what she meant. Now that he paid attention to it, he saw that as close as their faces were, she had tilted her head up the slightest bit to look him in the eyes, while his face was tilted down towards her.

He was taller than her. He couldn't believe it.

He distinctly remembered paying attention to their heights at their wedding and they were basically same, and the difference if any was so slight it hadn't been apparent at all.

He'd assumed that might continue to be the case for a long time, but now he realised his growth spurt, albeit late, was actually happening.

And even better, Astrid didn't look at all jealous or resentful of the fact, despite her overly competitive nature. She just looked extremely happy and proud of him, and the moment he realised that, he closed the few inches gap between them and kissed her, right there on the dance floor.

She gave a squeak of surprise but did kiss him back, and he pulled away a few seconds later, surprised at his own courage for having done that. Someone whistled from the sidelines and he saw Tuffnut smirking and making kissy faces at them while Snotlout crossed his arms and grumbled. Astrid shut them up with a hard glare before returning her gaze onto his. Hiccup just found it amusing rather than embarrassing

This was the first time in his life that he'd taken the initiative to kiss her first. Usually, she was the one more free and uninhibited with her displays of affection, and he'd been happy to walk in her footsteps, content on letting her set the pace and not worry about rushing her.

But here, he had kissed her, in public no less, and he found his hesitance and bashfulness hadn't mattered at all in that moment. They resumed their dance with redder faces than what they'd started with, and he felt the world around them fade away. Only she was left.

And that was all he needed.

The leaves rustled with the late evening breeze as Hiccup and Astrid walked back to their home.

Fall was slowly giving way to winter, and Astrid knew the days would only grow colder from here.

Another gust of cool air made her let go of Hiccup's hand and cross her arms, feeling cold in her dress that was definitely not meant to keep the cold out, as it left her arms and shoulders mostly exposed.

Before she even had time to protest, she felt Hiccup wrap his thick cloak around her, which was still warm from his body. Astrid wanted to give it back, but it just felt so nice, and it even smelled like him, that mixture of the forest-y and metallic scent she'd come to adore, and any ideas of refusal died in her throat.

She clutched it tighter, and it almost felt like his hug wrapped around her, and her brain started hatching plans to 'borrow' more of his clothing in the future.

That's a pretty good idea, she thought with a smirk. I'm sure he wouldn't mind one bit.

It was a cool evening a few days later, and Hiccup walked into the kitchen where his wife was cooking dinner.

"Mmm, this actually smells almost edible" he commented, taking a whiff out of the soup Astrid was making.

"I guess someone is going hungry tonight" Astrid said in a faux angry tone.

"Hey, let's not be too hasty now-" Hiccup chuckled but was interrupted by a distant thud, like a muffled explosion.

"What was that?" Astrid asked, instantly alert.

As if in answer, the ringing of the dreaded alarm confirmed their fears.

"Dragon raid" they said in unison.

Astrid was automatically making a beeline for her axe before Hiccup put her hands on her shoulders to stop her.

"Astrid! I told you- we can't hurt them anymore"

Astrid hesitated, and Hiccup could see the reluctance in her eyes. It was foolish to expect years of deeply ingrained prejudice to evaporate right away, but the fact that Astrid was here right now and not already out the door showed how much she was valuing his ideals and opinion.

"But we can't just sit here and do nothing while they burn down our village!"

She did have a point. "Okay" Hiccup conceded. "Go and help get people to safety, and keep away from the dragons. I'll try to lead them away-"

"What?!" Astrid exclaimed. "You are staying right here! did you forget the Chief's orders?"

"As if I don't sneak away during most raids"

Astrid shook her head. "That doesn't matter! You have to stay here where it's safe!"

"Astrid-"

"No!" She said with finality. "You might think all dragons would be like toothless, but you don't know that. You said yourself that they become aggressive during raids"

"Right, but that doesn't mean-"

There was another boom outside, closer this time. The village was getting into the swing of things by now, the fighters were getting out to fight and the rest were hunkering down.

"Hiccup" Astrid said seriously as she opened the door. "You're staying in here. Promise me you won't leave no matter what."

"Astrid-"

"Promise me! W-What will I do if something happened to you?"

There was an unexpected shakiness in her voice that made Hiccup's heart clench. Was she really that worried for him?

"Okay fine. Go"

She sighed in relief before dashing away outside and into the burning night.

Hiccup knew there was no convincing his wife once she'd made up her mind, but he also knew there was no way he was just gonna sit inside and wait for the carnage to end.

As much as he wanted to keep his village safe, he wanted to keep the dragons from getting hurt or killed too.

He knew Astrid would do her best to help but she couldn't be expected to face wild dragons non-violently, at least not right now. He just hoped she'd keep her distance from the front lines.

Sneaking out the back door, he grabbed his shield, a much more practical tool both for self defense and to appear unthreatening at the same time.

It was all chaos outside. He hid in shadows until he spotted a zippleback cross his path, heading towards the village center.

"Hey!" he called loudly, making both of its heads snap around towards him.

The dragon seemed to be behaving a bit erratically, but nevertheless he managed to lead it away from the village with some careful gesturing and coaxing. He didn't fully understand why these dragons didn't see him as a threat ever since he'd gotten used to toothless.

Was it his behavior, or his 'non-vikingness'? They seemed to have an innate ability to judge intent, which simply reinforced his belief that they were creatures of much higher intelligence then anyone gave them credit for.

Running in no particular direction, he tried to shoo away as many dragons as he could, trying to spread them thin and reduce the chance of them directly confronting people.

Reaching closer to the heart of the conflict, he saw a house burning from one side and flames spreading outward.

A couple of Nadders were trying to get into an adjacent barn, and were being fought off by a group of warriors. His father might have been in there, but it was hard to see from this distance.

The teens were helping douse the flames, passing along buckets of water. He heaved a relieved breath when he spotted Astrid's familiar head of blonde hair among them. Perhaps she had taken his advice seriously, and was helping out with the defense rather than the attack.

As if by some sixth sense, he spotted Astrid turn her head and pick him out, looking at him with an expression he was too far away to see.

Suddenly there was a boom and a lot of smoke, and Hiccup wasn't sure what had happened but he heard a squawking sound which grew louder and louder until one of the Nadders came to a sloppy landing right in front of him, steam rising from its wings. Had one of the oil kegs gone off?

Hiccup took a step back at being face to face with a snarling and angry dragon which was way too close for comfort.

"It's okay, it's okay" he cooed gently, but the Nadder shook its head angrily and narrowed its eyes on the small human in front of it.

Hiccup backed up until he reached a wall, and he knew any sudden movements could provoke the already agitated beast. The roar of the chaos around him dulled as his attention was focused on the creature in front of him, stepping closer... opening its mouth... preparing to...

A lot of things happened suddenly in the next moment.

Someone knocked into his side with so much force it lifted him off his feet and threw him to the ground, just as he felt the intense heat of the explosive fireball fly overhead.

He pushed off the ground to see- Astrid.

She was on her feet in an instant, axe ready to strike. The Nadder attempted to bite at her, but she rolled out of the way at the last second, straight into a corner- and the dragon opened its mouth for another fire blast-

And Hiccup did the only thing that came to his mind in that instant. He threw his shield.

Straight towards the dragon.

It was hardly a strong hit, but it was enough to make the dragon turn around, its spiked tail whipping around close to Astrid.

Hiccup, now empty handed, gulped nervously at his impending doom. He had no weapons and he couldn't fight a dragon with his bare hands like his father, and this Nadder wasn't in a listening mood either.

He just hoped in the back of his mind that Astrid had had enough sense in her to make a run for it, to save herself at least, but of course he should have known better. His wife was just as stubborn as he was.

She launched herself on the dragon's back with a guttural cry, pounding her axe at its weak spots as the dragon spun around frantically, trying to throw her off. It was a frightening and ridiculous sight, and Hiccup wondered if some of his crazy recklessness had rubbed off on her.

With a final roar, the dragon threw Astrid off and took off into the night, and she landed in front of Hiccup with an "Ow!"

"Astrid, are you okay?" He asked, crouching beside her and helping her to her feet.

"Yeah-yeah I'm fine Hiccup." she said dismissively, giving him a once over, looking for any injuries, unaware that Hiccup was doing the same thing for her.

"That was close" Hiccup breathed.

Astrid blinked once, as if remembering. "WHY ARE YOU OUT HERE?" she shouted. "You could've been- could have been..."

She took a shaky step, putting her hands on his shoulders to steady herself.

"Are you okay?"

He followed her gaze down to her knee, where a poison dart from the Nadder's tail had broken off and was stuck though the fabric of her leggings.

"I'm okay" she said, breathlessly. "I'm-"

And then she fell into his arms, eyes closed as if sleeping, oblivious to the still ongoing chaos around them.

Hiccup dropped to his knees, cradling her in his arms and rubbed her cheek. She didn't move. Heart sinking into his stomach, his voice shaky with dread, he asked, almost in a whisper-

"Astrid?"

A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed this fluffy chapter, and aren't too mad about the ending :p

Don't forget to review, and let me know what you think! :)