A/N: Thanks a lot for all the lovely reviews for the last chapter! :)

Chapter 21: The Dragon King

In just a couple of days, the tale of the 'Dragon king' had spread like wildfire throughout the village, and it was all anyone seemed to be talking about.

"So what about this dragon master nonsense eh?" asked Snotlout at breakfast. "Sounds like a load of yak dung if you ask me"

Astrid almost choked on her food but managed to pass it off as a cough.

Hiccup gave her a sideways glance before calmly replying, "Yeah I think someone's imagination got the better of them"

"No way, I swear it's true" said Tuffnut. "Gert and Dogsbreath both saw him climb up on a night fury!"

"They actually saw the night fury?" Fishlegs said excitedly, more interested in the dragon itself.

"Well... it was pretty dark and smoky, but Gert said he could have sworn its tail was weird, like it was two colored" Tuff replied.

"What about the guy though?" Ruffnut interrupted. "Was he hot?"

Astrid bit her cheek to avoid bursting into laughter. Leave it to Ruff to have her priorities straight.

Hiccup was looking visibly uncomfortable, and she discreetly kneed his leg to get him to act normal.

Snotlout laughed and said, "Hot? please. We don't even know if it was a guy. Might just be some weird girl"

Fishlegs shook his head. "From the descriptions I've heard so far, the hypothesis of him being a guy is the most probable"

"Why hide behind a mask then? is he really that ugly?" Snotlout sneered.

Astrid grit her teeth, fuming inside. "He couldn't possibly be uglier than you, snot"

"Huh? why do you care babe?"

Hiccup had to physically restrain Astrid from climbing over the table and beating Snotlout to a pulp then, but she still managed to sock him once in the nose.

Okay, so maybe Hiccup had eased up on his hold a tiny bit to allow her to get that punch in. Snotlout had really been asking for it.

"Don't you see guys?" Fishlegs piped up once Snotlout had stopped grumbling and the steam had stopped coming out of Astrid's ears. "This is a golden opportunity to learn more about the rarest dragon of all! Maybe in the next raid, someone will get an even better look?"

Hiccup smiled at his friend's ever inquisitive outlook. If only everyone on Berk had been like that, life could have been much easier for him. Nevertheless, he did see where he would plant the seed of change in the future. He had succeeded with his wife, and he had no doubt he'd eventually be able to change the minds of his friends too.

They will change. One day.

The more the advisors explained, the deeper Chief Stoick's frown grew.

All his hunches were seeming more and more true. All those centuries of torment... it wasn't just nature. It was deliberate, the work of some devil who had finally shown himself in the flesh.

This expedition had been the latest one in a long line of failed attempts to locate the dragon's nest and put an end to this cursed history.

They had been ambushed by an angry flock in the western mists and had barely escaped with their lives, limping back to Berk on damaged ships. Finally making landfall, the last thing he'd expected to hear was this.

A small consolation had been the surprising news that his son had been doing better in dragon training than ever, and was poised to take the top of the class spot. But even that unexpected burst of fortune couldn't lift his mood at the moment.

The dragon king, the devil himself, out for blood during the raids, riding a night fury. It seemed like a horror that had escaped the pages of some dreaded folk tale and into the real world.

He knew he had to put a stop to it. There wasn't the slightest doubt in his mind that the devil had been behind the raids since who knows when. He might not be human, but that doesn't mean he couldn't be beaten.

I'll avenge you Valka, I'll make sure each and every one of those vicious beasts is dead and buried- beginning with their tyrant king.

The next morning, the 'Dragon King' was officially announced to be an enemy and deemed worthy to be captured on sight, and if that weren't possible, killed.

Not only that, a bounty of a hundred gold pieces was also placed on his head, not that anyone needed the incentive. The fame and glory one might achieve by defeating such a foe was enough reward in itself for a bunch of battle ready, prideful Vikings.

Hiccup had winced as he'd heard the announcement. It wasn't that he hadn't expected something like this, but to hear his own father unknowingly refer to him as a 'devil' and 'the enemy' still stung nevertheless.

Here he had risked his life and limb for his people, the same people who were now out to get him for that crime.

From their perspective though, it was still hard to fault them. They didn't know dragons weren't evil, mindless, and bloodthirsty, and years of prejudice made them willing to pin the blame on anyone they could even faintly surmise to be the cause of their suffering, that being... well... Hiccup.

And now, he had to find the nest on one side while being hunted like some criminal on the other, and he was being stretched like a rubber band in the middle.

Hiccup wasn't a person who enjoyed conflict and violence in the slightest, and he was completely content with a quiet and peaceful life. This whole business might even have been overwhelming for him, if not for her.

Astrid was his rock, she was with him in every way, supported him no matter what the stakes were, no matter how tough it got. Even now, noticing his dismay as the Chief went on about his plan to capture the tyrant while throngs of interested villagers listened, she laced her fingers with his and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze, conveying her unspoken words in that gesture.

You have nothing to be ashamed about Hiccup. I know you are doing the right thing. Even if the whole world turns against you, I'll never leave your side.

"What are you doing?" Astrid asked one evening seeing Hiccup hunched over his desk, making a list.

"We... we need a contingency plan" Hiccup replied.

"Huh?"

"Now that my old man has it in for me, evading capture or discovery won't be a trivial matter anymore"

Astrid looked unconvinced. "What are you worried about? No weapon is fast enough to touch toothless"

"That may be true, but my father isn't considered one of the greatest chiefs of all time for nothing. He'll find a way, one way or another. More guards, more spotters, someone who could catch a glimpse of me and realise I'm just a boy, and it'll all go downhill fast"

"So what will you do?"

"I'll keep doing what I've been doing, but as a safety, I'll need an escape plan. I won't be able to find the nest if I'm locked in a cell while my father is being too hard-headed to listen to reason"

"You mean we'll need an escape plan"

Suddenly Hiccup avoided her gaze, saying quietly, "You'll need to have plausible deniability Astrid. If worse comes to worse, there can't be a shred of evidence linking you to the whole 'dragon king' business. I'll tell them I did all this behind your back, and you'll corroborate that story."

The second those words sunk in, Astrid's anger flared up in an instant. Setting her hands on her hips, she said, "Don't you dare try to pull that with me. You're crazy if you think even for a second that I'll throw you under the boat and let you take all the blame."

Hiccup chuckled quietly. "I have no doubts about your conviction milady, but it would do us no good if we both get locked up. If you're still out there, then there will still be hope"

Astrid frowned. It was hard to argue against logic like that, but it still didn't mean she had to be happy about it. No one was gonna get captured in the first place, as long as she had anything to say about it.

It had been nearly two hours of lying in the darkness, but sleep was still evading Astrid's grasp. She'd been... thinking.

Reflecting on everything, the day, the whole year, her whole life even, how it had turned out so differently than what she'd intended for the longest time, yet it had been far sweeter than her wildest imaginations.

This boy... the one who was snoring quietly with his arms around her waist as he held her to his chest, had turned her whole world upside down and had made her laugh in delight about it.

He was always working, always ready for the next thing to come, the next day, the next goal. Instead of fretting about future troubles, he put his head down and worked hard to solve them, and it was just another one of the million things she loved about him.

His smile, his laugh, his eyes, every single freckle on his face, she was in love with all of them. She was in love with the feeling of safety of being in his arms. She could sleep blissfully every night without a care in the world, knowing that he was there. That he would protect her, no matter what.

She was overflowing with love for him tonight, much as she had been for days, weeks, months now.

It had gotten to a point where it was getting hard for her to live her daily life without expressing her love for him in one way or another. Keeping it all bottled up was downright impossible now. But was there even a way to convey how strongly she felt about him?

Maybe there was.

"Hiccup?"

Nothing.

"Hiccup" she whispered a bit louder.

He mumbled something in his sleep and just pulled her closer like she was a giant stuffed toy of his. She giggled at his childishness and decided to change tactics. Pressing her lips to his warm cheek, she held them there for a few seconds before pulling away.

Nothing.

She did it again, and again, pecking his cheek, ear, jaw, until he was finally roused from his slumber, all drowsy and confused as to who was trying to kiss him this late at night. "Hmm?"

Even though she'd been trying to wake him up all this while, she suddenly had no idea what to say now. This had seemed way easier in her imaginations. "Um... Hi Hiccup?"

"Uh huh" he replied sleepily. "Go to sleep"

Astrid shook her head, her bangs tickling his forehead. "I want to tell you something"

"Mmhhmm?"

"I love you"

She felt him smile lazily at her words, pressing a soft kiss to her lips and chuckling, "You woke me up just to say that? I love you too my angel"

She thanked the darkness for not letting him see the goofy smile plastered on her beet red face right now, and said, "There's more I want to say"

"Yes?"

"I want to... I want to be your wife Hiccup"

She heard him laugh quietly, saying, "I thought we've been married for ages? oh gods, please don't let all of that be some crazy dream"

Astrid blushed again. Not because of his reply, but because of what she was about to say. "That's not what I mean Hiccup. I want to be your wife... in every way possible"

Hiccup was silent for a long moment, his sleep hazed brain presumably working overtime to decipher her meaning.

When he spoke next, he sounded much more awake, his voice a mixture of wonder, hope, nervousness and a smidge of excitement as well. "Do you mean..."

"Yes Hiccup, I do mean that"

She felt his fingers that had been resting on her waist in a whole new light now, the familiar contact carrying a whole new meaning that made her feel light headed.

"I want to be your husband in every way too Astrid, but I want you to know that you don't have to do anything for my sake, I'm willing to wait as long as you want"

Astrid smiled at his expected, yet endearing gentlemanly consideration. "I want this, and I don't want to wait a second longer"

She heard his breath hitch on hearing the determination in her voice, and it gave her just enough courage to lean closer until her lips tickled his earlobe before saying, "I want you Hiccup. Make love to me, and make me yours forever"

Much to her satisfaction, Hiccup didn't argue anymore after that, rolling on top of her and attacking her face with a barrage of kisses, making her squeal in delight as she returned them all with equal ardour.

Her hands tugged at the hem of his shirt while his eager fingers undid the laces of her nightdress and began to slip it off her shoulders.

And thus began the night that passed in long and rapturous bliss, as the young couple joined as one. Two very different yet completely interconnected souls, coming together in the vibrant and heartfelt celebration of love itself.

Ruffnut pulled Astrid aside as they were walking out of the arena after the morning session.

"Go on ahead Hiccup, I'll just be borrowing your wife for a while" she called to Hiccup.

"Uh... sure" he said, eyeing them both slightly confused before walking out with the guys.

"So... how was it?" Ruffnut asked as soon as the others were out of earshot.

Astrid's eyes widened. "How was what?"

Ruffnut rolled her eyes dramatically. "You know, I'm almost beginning to think you're messing with me intentionally. There is no way someone could be this dense"

How on earth had Ruffnut become this perceptive? Astrid half wondered if some sort of sorcery was involved. Given the fact that she gave belly rubs to a night fury on a daily basis, she was willing to believe anything was possible these days.

"How did you... is it that obvious?" Astrid asked sheepishly, twiddling the end of her braid.

"Well... not if you're some knucklehead guy it's not, but if you're a goddess like me with an actual brain in the skull, it's hard to not notice. The way you and Haddock were sharing those looks all this morning, the way you've literally been glowing with this self satisfied aura, it all points to only one conclusion. Not to mention how you two arrived late, and it still looked like you'd just fallen out of bed, hastily dressed with messy hair"

"Oh Freyja" Astrid muttered, shutting her eyes in embarrassment.

"Oh come on! I'd been waiting for this day for ages! don't you get all shy with me now. I'm not letting you out of here till you've spilled every last juicy detail"

"I'm not telling you that-" Astrid blushed. "It's... it's private!"

Ruffnut looked unimpressed. "Uh huh. Real private. Now spill. How was it?"

Astrid bit her bottom lip and looked away all flustered. "It was..." she started, not believing she was actually saying this to her. Ruffnut had given her invaluable advice all these months that had helped her on numerous occasions, so she felt she owed it to her to at least give her a rough idea of how it'd gone. "It was perfect..." she sighed dreamily. "He was great"

Ruffnut raised an interested eyebrow. "Elaborate"

"I was expecting to feel shy or scared... but I didn't really, although maybe that was because of the couple of times we'd bathed together last week..."

"You what?" Ruff whistled appreciatively. "That's my girl!"

Ignoring her dramatics, she continued, "It was a bit awkward at first, but the good kind, you know? It just felt right. Like a natural extension of our hugs and kisses... like it was the most normal thing in the world to be doing with your husband"

Recalling the things he'd said to her last night, she smiled unconsciously. "And after we got the hang of it... it felt even more wonderful than I can possibly explain... and it felt like that not just cause of the pleasure, but the fact that he was giving it to me, and the knowledge that we had finally come together after months of tip-toeing the line, that we would be each other's first and last."

Ruffnut marveled at her friend's heartfelt confession before smiling, "Wow, that's... that's great. You really are fortunate to have enjoyed your first time so much... I'm so happy for you"

Astrid grinned at her genuine tone, and surprised even herself by giving Ruff a grateful hug. "That juicy enough for you?"

Ruffnut laughed. "Oh please. I need way more details. First things first. How many times did you-"

"Twice" Astrid interrupted, looking almost smug about it. "And... once more in the morning..."

Ruffnut stayed silent for a long moment before finally replying, "Woah dude."

A week later, the sky was on fire, yet again.

"Has he been spotted yet?" Stoick asked his war general.

"Not yet sire, but the trap is in place. As soon as we snag a dragon, he'll come runnin' for sure"

Prior to this raid, Chief Stoick had held a secret meeting where he'd outlined the plan to his inner circle.

Ever since the dragon king had appeared, Berkians hadn't managed to capture a single dragon. Each time they had one trapped, the night fury came like clockwork, shot at and destroyed the trap.

Even if some villagers might still have their doubts, Stoick was certain that the devil's allegiance was with the dragons, and not the people. Keeping this in mind, he had formulated a plan to lure him in by putting the life of one of his beloved dragons on the line.

Now all that was left to do was put the plan into motion.

"Sire! A Gronkle has been trapped! Shall we finish it off?" a warrior asked.

"No!" Stoick responded. "We need it alive, surround it with men and don't let anyone near it"

"Understood sire"

Satisfied, the Chief gazed into the blackness, confident that this was all coming to an end, very soon.

Hiccup did a double take through his mask at the extraordinary sight down below him.

A Gronkle had been trapped in a rope trap, and was surrounded by a dozen Vikings guarding it from every angle.

This is what my dad came up with?

He wasn't sure if to feel impressed by the tactical move, or worry how he was gonna get that dragon out of there. Those people were standing way too close, a plasma blast to destroy the trap will definitely end up seriously hurting someone.

Hiccup decided to retreat and let toothless fly overhead, waiting to see if they might move away. A few minutes later, he returned to the same scene.

The Gronkle was really struggling now, and Hiccup had an idea. If he could get close enough to release the muzzle on it's snout, then the dragon should be able to escape on its own.

Putting the plan into action, he and toothless swooped down, and landed right on top of the trapped Gronkle. Hiccup heard cries of alarm from all around, but he calmly ignored them, using his flaming sword to melt through the muzzle until it snapped clean off.

The Gronkle wasted no time, using it's strong jaws to bite a hole in the netting wide enough to escape through. Hiccup clicked the gearshift into take off position, ready to leave, and-

"NOW!"

His father's booming voice resounded through the chilly air, and not one second later, he was knocked down with a much larger and heavier netting on top of him, Toothless's wings flattened against the ground.

Toothless struggled wildly, and tried to shoot plasma blasts at the warriors who tried to charge at them with weapons raised. Inferno, Hiccup's flaming sword, had been knocked out of his hand and was lying on the ground, one foot out of reach.

He groaned in effort as he tried to stretch his arm to grab it, but it rolled away out of reach.

The trap was one with a wooden structure, and would have been child's play for toothless to blow it open, but his neck was pinned down and he couldn't manage to aim it from inside here.

Toothless's tail poked out of one of the holes and he thrashed it wildly at anyone who tried to approach, but as the minutes ticked on, Hiccup knew that they both were tiring and couldn't resist much longer, soon they will be surrounded and captured.

Finally, a couple of them managed to pin down the tail, and through the slits in his mask, Hiccup saw the looming shape of his father, sword raised, approaching closer.

Hiccup gulped in fear. It was clear that the chief wasn't going to attempt to take the dragon alive, and Hiccup's heart thumped in his chest as he resigned himself to using his last possible option, and his hand started going up to lift his faceplate, to reveal his identity, just as Stoick raised the sword for the final blow, and-

BOOOOM

Hiccup's while vision went white as a blinding flash right in front of him sent sparks and debris flying in all directions. The Chief was knocked back from the shockwave, and Hiccup's ears rang as all the sounds around him quietened to a dull roar.

The pressure around him loosened and toothless flapped his wings wildly, managing to stand upright with a triumphant roar. Hiccup had barely managed to stabilize himself in the saddle again before they took off, leaving a horde of stunned Vikings down below.

What happened? The explosion... that wasn't toothless... Hiccup wondered, still dazed from the rapid series of events.

His hearing came back, and he thought he heard a- no, that can't be. But that familiar squawk couldn't have come from any other dragon.

Turning his head to look behind him, he saw the dark yet unmistakable silhouette of a Nadder, it's rider with her braid flying in the wind, too far away to see her expression.

The dragon swooped down behind some trees near the arena and disappeared out of sight, and as the realisation finally sunk in, a relieved smile made its way onto his face.

There is no doubt about it. My wife is the most amazing person in the whole world.

Even after the raid came to a close deep into the night, Hiccup still saw the village crawling with sentries as he hid near the edge of the woods. It was clear that his father had some inkling of knowledge that the 'traitor' might not be as supernatural as he seemed, and still be hiding in the village somewhere.

Deciding it was too risky to make the run to his house, he opted to spend the remainder of the night at the cove, leaning against toothless for warmth. He just hoped Astrid was safe and had managed to get home undetected, and that she wouldn't worry too much about him.

Finally daylight came and he stretched after an restless sleep, he carefully walked back to the edge of the woods and luckily the sentries had gone, figuring the dragon king was probably not gonna show his face in the daytime.

He opened the back door and entered to see his wife in the main room, having fallen asleep while still sitting, presumably while waiting up for him. She was still wearing her battle gear from yesterday and clutching her axe in her arms, and she looked so innocent while sleeping that Hiccup's heart did flips in his chest.

"Astrid, I'm home"

Her eyes snapped open in an instant, and she was in his arms before he knew it, her voice overflowing with relief as she hugged him tightly. "Hiccup, th-they almost got you, I was so scared... I know you said never to let stormfly out during a raid, b-but-"

"Shhh, I know Astrid, I know" he cooed, rubbing her back gently. "You were so incredible, you saved me"

She blushed at the praise when he pulled back to look at her. "Were you actually gonna do it?"

Hiccup nodded. "Giving up my identity is definitely preferable to letting toothless get hurt, and then we would just have to have followed our backup plan"

Astrid raised an eyebrow but didn't enquire any further. Hiccup had been rather scant with the details about this 'contingency plan' if he were to be captured, but Astrid trusted him enough to know he would do the right thing. Whatever it was, she'd find out in due time.

"You must be exhausted" Astrid said as she helped him unbuckle his flight suit. "I'll heat up a bath for you while you have your breakfast"

Hiccup's eyes gleamed with mischief and she almost knew what was coming even before he'd said it. "Okay, but only if you join me"

"Hiccup!" she blushed, wriggling out of his grasp and went to busy herself with getting the fire started.

Hiccup whistled to himself as he moved about in the kitchen, and Astrid just knew that his cheery mood was due to the fact that he knew she wouldn't be able to resist the temptation of a warm and relaxing bath with him.

And later, when she did end up joining him, he smirked knowingly, making her grumble even while she shed her clothes one by one, "Not. one. word."

Hiccup chuckled in reply while pulling off his own tunic. "Whatever milady wishes"

Cleanup from the raid went well into the next day, and Stoick knelt at the site of the trap where the devil had slipped out of his grasp.

His gaze was focused not on the scorch marks or the splintered wood, but on the finely crafted cylinder he held in his hand, the word 'inferno', carved in small letters on the side.

He took the strange device to Gobber later that day, where he noticed the way his friend's face went pale as he inspected the delicate components that seemed to serve no visible purpose, yet seemed deliberate in their complexity.

"So" He began seriously. "What is the meaning of this?"

Gobber's voice was thin and quiet, almost like he'd seen a ghost.

"It's some sort of weapon... but... no- it can't be..."

"What can't be?" Stoick pressed.

"This type of metalwork... it was done on the lathe in my forge... only one person could have been capable of this..."

The unspoken word hung in the air as their shoulders slumped in collective disbelief.

Stoick spoke next, not to covey any new information but just to break this dreadful silence.

"My son... Hiccup"

Hehe, things are definitely progressing, both with the dragons and with their relationship :D

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Do let me know your thoughts!

side note: I really love Ruffnut in this story haha. All the scenes with her just seem to write themselves :p