Hello everyone! Well… This is not bad for me. This chapter has been done for some time and it only needed some minor adjustments to flow better. I hope you find it alright. It is on the longer side for this story but this is the chapter where stuff start happening. Finally!

Thank you for the reviews and the favorites and alerts. I don't believe I've said that before but I'm very grateful that people are enjoying these stories even with my chaotic update schedule. I'm terribly sorry. I love writing this but it doesn't take a very important spot in my life you know.

I don't own 'How to Train Your Dragon' and I'm not making any profits from this.

Chapter 8: Astrid Goes for a Spin (Or More Like Everyone Does)

Snotlout could feel his patience snapping, one thread at a time, for the past week. There were no more dragon raids since the one when the Vikings captured Hookfang and Snotlout was at least relieved by that. At the same time, his anxiety was reaching a boiling point. Every morning he found himself walking through the village, lazily following the people as they moved around fixing houses, steering animals to the outskirts, hauling wood or water to their homes for the day. Everywhere he looked, everyone was so… busy.

And he was not.

Normally, he would have been ecstatic. With Dragon Training his home chores have been diminished. His grandmother was all too happy to clear out his schedule so that he could focus on his training in the Ring.

Normally, Snotlout would have bragged about that nonstop. The fact that he didn't do it that much or with as much zeal as before made his family raise an eyebrow or two during dinners. That thought made him feel like he was betraying them. Going against them left a sour taste in his mouth and yet… going against Hookfang left him breathless.

He wasn't sure why. He's always known that dragons were, well, kinda scary.

Hookfang was scary. Especially with him being a Monstrous Nightmare. Only the fiercest, most skilled warriors faced them in battle. Snotlout felt good about himself that he had managed to win the trust of such a powerful dragon. Would win. It gave him this odd flutter of pride in his chest just thinking about the two of them, flying in battle in a blaze of fire and glory.

But he had seen the others in the Ring one day after another for a week now. They were on the scrawny side, tired and snappish. The Deadly Nadder – Stormfly, he mentally corrected – was the worst. He didn't dare say it aloud though. She was a ball of spines and fangs and fury every time Gobber pitted them against her. He couldn't imagine how Hookfang would be like once released. The anxiety in his stomach grew claws at the thought of the Nightmare's rage simmering more and more while locked up and denied the outside air for so long.

Every time his mind went there, Snotlout could see the dragon unleashing his fire on him without hesitation. The more Hookfang was locked up, the more he doubted that he would bond with him. That scared him so much his nights were spent staring at the ceiling rather than sleeping.

He wasn't sure if he should bring up his concerns to the others. More like, he wasn't sure if they would take him seriously. Astrid declared no more secrets but she clearly allowed Hiccup to do as he pleased. Even so, each day was the same. Hiccup would take fish to the cove, spend time with Toothless and then return. He recently admitted to trying to ride him but the Night Fury was skittish about it.

In other words, nothing happened.

Snotlout was at the end of his rope. He couldn't stay and do nothing any longer. They had a dragon and Hiccup refused to let them near it and learn how to properly approach it. How were they supposed to save the dragons in the pens when they could burn them to crisps the moment they let them loose?

Stupid grass and stupid petting only worked when you got close. What if the dragons attacked before that? What should they do then? But of course no one listened to him. Fishlegs and Astrid insisted on giving Hiccup time. They insisted that they wait and let Hiccup bond with the Night Fury. They insisted to let Hiccup work out a plan first. Hiccup, Hiccup, Hiccup!

He was getting sick of it! At this rate, Hiccup would be the only one prepared to deal with dragons while the rest of them were left in the dust and in need of ugh… help!

Snotlout hated that! For the first time ever he was disappointed in Astrid. She has always known what she wanted and she went after it without even caring what other might say. He believed that it was the same with Stormfly but to his utter surprise… She allowed Hiccup to take the reins on that front. And now she was passively keeping on the sidelines while that fishbone was expected to solve all their problems.

Snotlout was having none of that. A week of fretting and worrying – something that he has never done, much less over a dragon – was enough for him. It was time for action. Whether Hiccup wanted to or not! When he reached the edge of the forest it was with a determined stride that he joined the others.

/\\\

Gobber and Hiccup worked in the forge in the morning. With their day still free, he didn't get a chance to speak with anyone else, not that he had any plans in mind for that. Afterwards, Hiccup was picking the basket of fish from the docks, ignored the questioning looks of the fishermen, and trekked back into the village and then deeper into the woods. He had noticed during practice lately that Snotlout was glaring at him more than normal, but he figured it must have been frustration peaking. Perhaps showing off his new knowledge was making the others feel bad. He would have to speak to them about this when he came back. For now, he had not one, but two hungry dragons to feed and pamper.

He found Toothless lounging on a rock near the lake. The black dragon raised his head, already licking his lips as he picked up the scent of his breakfast. He leaped down and came running to him, with no hesitation or wariness.

"Hey, it's good to see you too." Hiccup patted his nose and then opened the basket. The dragon was almost skipping with pleasure. Hiccup laughed as he lifted the first fish. Toothless promptly snatched it out of his hand and then pushed him away. "Fine, fine, you greedy reptile."

A chirp came from above as the small, green Terror descended as well. Hiccup managed to swipe another fish, to the Night Fury's ire, and threw it to him. "Here you go, Sharpshot!"

Hiccup let them be and walked to the rocks where he stashed the saddle and his riding gear. After checking for any wear and after Toothless had licked the basket clean, he stood up.

"What do you think? One lap around the coast again? With no disruptions this time around." He eyed the little dragon who looked away.

Toothless narrowed his eyes at him too but he bounded to Hiccup and let the Viking buckle up the saddle. He was putting on his vest when Toothless suddenly spun around towards the entrance. A low growl built in his throat. Hearing that, Hiccup froze on the spot.

"Bud?"

"Do you hear that?"

The fleeting whisper left Hiccup feeling cold. It was a split second later when he put a face to the voice but it was one second too late. The words didn't even leave his mouth before the dragon was roughly pushing him down and covering him from view. The moment the humans came out the Night Fury was in full battle mode.

He roared.

Fishlegs screamed. The twins stopped in their tracks. Snotlout pulled out his hammer on instinct. Through struggling breaths, Hiccup saw the moment when Toothless' eyes narrowed in on the weapon.

He shot at them.

"Wait!"

The blast scorched the wall next to the group. Astrid had already pushed Snotlout down and fell into a trained, ready crouch. Her hand reached back for her own weapon out of sheer practice. It was as her fingers gripped the handle when the realization hit her.

The Night Fury's eyes narrowed to pinpricks. He charged.

"Toothless!"

Hiccup's voice was drowned by the snarls of the dragon as he identified the first and most important threat and then went after it. It just so happened that it was Hiccup's long time crush. To her credit, Astrid didn't let the panic consume her right away. She leaped to the side, away from the others and drew the axe from her back. Toothless was none too pleased about that. With incredible flexibility, he twisted to follow her, swiping his claws at her in warning. It wasn't too close that she couldn't avoid them but seeing such sharp things aimed at her face had a severe intimidating factor. Astrid back flipped. Her grip on her axe tightened. It didn't help calm the dragon down but could she really get rid of it? It was her only weapon after all!

"Astrid! Throw it away!"

Toothless jumped at her again. She put the flat of her blade in front of her as a shield. It worked to parry the next swipe. The dragon easily pushed her off her feet a second later. She winced at the pain in her back.

"Stop it! Toothless! Ruffnut!?"

The dragon was too preoccupied with her to notice the other girl circling his back. Ruffnut threw a rock that bounced off his smooth black head and distracted him from stomping on Astrid. The girl quickly scrambled from underneath him, leaving her axe behind. The dragon turned to his new assailant. He growled. Fangs bared and eyes like needle made for a terrifying sight. When he rushed Ruffnut, Astrid tried to grab on to him.

"No!" Her fingers slipped over smooth scales as he slid away in a graceful lunge. She didn't notice the tail until it smacked her in the side and threw her several feet away, her pained grunt cut off as all the air left her lungs upon impact.

Toothless ran towards Ruffnut. The girl winced, grouching 'Not a good idea' under her breath before the Night Fury released a quick blast of purplish-blue fire. She only had time to put her hands in front of her face before the shot hit her. Ruffnut screamed as she was thrown back. The smack of her hitting the ground was like an icy shower to the young Vikings present.

"Ruffnut!" Cried Fishlegs. He wanted to go to her but Toothless was still coiled and ready to strike at any moment.

Tuffnut had no such reservations. "Hey, only I can hit my sister like that!"

He run at him with his spear ready to swing it. The dragon crouched. And then Hiccup was between them.

"STOP!" Tuffnut stumbled to a halt. "What are you doing!?"

Toothless blinked but didn't relax from his position. Hiccup didn't take his eyes off of the dragon but his fear took some of the tension out of him. "They're my friends! You can't just – you can't just attack people before they even do anything!"

Toothless shifted lower, his pupils widening as he took in the stricken faces around him. He then looked at his friend and faltered. He crooned confused. Suddenly he was surrounded by ice, Hiccup was glaring at him and the human on the ground was bigger with a shocking mane of red hair.

"Toothless?"

The hand slowly coming closer, all of a sudden, was an angry swipe.

"No! Get away from him!"

He flinched back. He wasn't moving, no matter how many times he nudged and pleaded. Why was he so still?

"Go on, get out of here!"

Toothless sniffed in distress. The cold was too much. Everything was cold! He was cold! He wasn't moving! And Hiccup was – His brother was –

"Get away!"

He shook his head. He whimpered and stepped back. It was so unclear, why was Hiccup so angry? Why was he so afraid?

"W-Wait, Toothless!"

He couldn't stay.

"Toothless!"

/\\\

Hiccup was left with his hand reaching out to the fleeing dragon. What had he done? How could he have – Oh! Everything was such a mess! He could only watch as the shape of the Night Fury became smaller and smaller until the black spot was lost in the clouds.

He was… gone.

"Ruffnut! Wake up, Ruffnut!" Fishlegs was lightly shaking the girl's shoulder. She remained unresponsive through the whole thing. Tuffnut dropped his spear to look down at her, a twitching frown on his brow. Fishlegs choked back a sob. "W-We should get her to Gothi… she should know what to do." The male twin said nothing as he bent down and roughly pulled his sister over his back, Fishlegs' hands fluttering around him in case she were to fall off.

Hiccup looked back at them numbly. He didn't think he has seen Tuffnut so serious before. Everyone was aware of the twins' wild nature, and even how they put each other in dangerous, stupid situations and then laughed about it. They were such gluttons for punishment that it was easy to forget that they still cared about each other very much. Ruffnut was unconscious. She was still and pale and her arms were scorched, the scent of burned flesh gradually saturating the air around them. There was a more important task at hand. He would have to think about Toothless and what this meant for their relationship at a later date. Fishlegs was right. If there was anyone who could care for Ruffnut, it was Gothi.

A hand grabbed his shoulder. He was spun around so hard he stumbled to reorient himself. When he did, Snotlout was snarling at him.

"What the Hel was that? Weren't you supposed to train that thing? You told us you were making progress? Where was the progress in it attacking us? This is your fault!"

He shook the smaller boy violently. Hiccup seized up at first but he noticed the trembling in Snotlout's hands and the wild, frightened gleam shining in his eyes. Gods, what did just happen? Toothless attacked them! It was normal for Snotlout to let out his frustrations on the next best thing. And like always, that meant him. The words cut him deep, but that hurt and shame were quickly drowned by disbelief.

His fault? What exactly was his fault in all this? That he wasn't fast enough to match the dragon's stride and get there in time? That he hadn't prepared Toothless for them? Where was he at fault exactly? He was barely making progress by himself! He scowled, gripping Snotlout's wrist with both hands. Letting the anger run through him, he shoved him off.

"And what were you doing, huh? What-What happened with 'let me focus on Toothless' part of the plan? What were you lot even here for? I though we all agreed that I should work on getting closer to him before we would plan our next move! Well, Snotlout, we're back at square one. Toothless is gone! The only reason he kept coming back was because I didn't come at him swinging a freaking weapon! But no! You couldn't hold yourself back, could you? Snotlout Jorgenson had to be the center of attention! You just decided to come here, without me even knowing about it so I can at least tell Toothless, 'hey, bud, a few others will drop by today, don't shoot at them' and now you have the nerve to tell me it's my fault?"

He saw the punch coming. Not that he could do anything about it. He heard Astrid scream as he went down, ears ringing, but he welcomed the pain. In the few seconds when his head was coming back around, he thought he heard the roar of a Night Fury and his heart broke even more. Gods… he couldn't stop screwing up, could he?

Toothless left. He couldn't get his sorrowful eyes out of his mind. That image would haunt him forever. Why hadn't he noticed he was being followed? Why couldn't he take a few minutes to talk to the others? He had noticed Snotlout becoming more and more impatient but he chose to ignore him.

He would take care of it later; he would speak with him at their next meeting; he would make sure it didn't become an issue until it did. Yeah, Snotlout was right, he was the one at fault here. If he had looked closer, he might have noticed that the others weren't very happy with his approach. He could have – should have...

A smaller, gentler hand pulled him up. Astrid kneeled down as he gathered himself, clearly reading the misery on his face.

"Don't do that." She said in a stern tone.

"What? Admit how much of a failure I am?"

"Hiccup!"

"Just leave me."

She didn't listen. Of course, why would she? She continued to tug him on his feet. Snotlout was also nursing a forming bruise on his cheek, but the anger in his eyes diminished, though the fear was ever present now. The twins and Fishlegs were nowhere to be seen.

"Come on, let's go back." She said. Nudging him to move and then glaring at Snotlout, the shield maiden got the two marching towards Berk.

"I – "

"It can wait." She snapped.

Hiccup let his head drop. She was in no mood to deal with his pity party, especially considering she had also suffered some injuries of her own. He had completely brushed aside the fact that it was Astrid who got in the dragon's face the whole time. Toothless had also battered her aside with his tail at the end there and yet the girl wasn't saying anything.

They were back in the village before they knew it. Astrid led them with purpose to Gothi's hut, placed out of the way of the people and on a smaller ledge where the elder could live unperturbed by the noisiness of the tribe. Fishlegs was outside, twiddling his thumbs and pacing. He stopped once they got into view.

"Sorry we didn't wait for you…"

Astrid waved him off, one arm wrapping automatically around her bruised middle. "Don't sweat it. How is it?"

"Ugh, no idea. She hit me with her staff and told, well, pointed for me to wait here." With a sheepish look he turned to Hiccup. "Hey, uh… are you okay?" He motioned to his bruise, at which Hiccup almost laughed.

He had worse, but telling that to the boy felt too insensitive. There was a whole other level of awful he was feeling. "It'll heal." He said plainly.

Fishlegs' smile dropped.

They stayed there in silence, Hiccup wondering just how long until someone cracked under pressure and would talk about what has just happened. He knew he didn't want to. He felt too many things that, if he were to start he wouldn't be able to stop. He was mad, betrayed, confused, guilty and depressed. He wanted to be there and see for himself that Ruffnut was okay but he was so tired. It was hard to believe that thirty minutes ago he was so excited to fly with Toothless. He would probably not get that chance any time soon. Not unless the dragon came back and Hiccup would be able to explain things and apologize.

"Alright, fine! I guess I was… uh… kinda wrong." Snotlout groaned. "But what was I supposed to do, huh? Wait like a good boy until Hiccup came up with something to save us all?"

Letting the hurt roll off, the heir said tiredly. "What I really want to know is why? You know you could have just talked to me."

"Would you have talked to me?"

Hiccup wanted to say 'yes' but stopped himself. What would he have said if Snotlout came to him, expressing his doubts. 'Trust me. I know what I'm doing.' It felt like such a lie that he had to grimace. The entire time with Toothless he felt like the one at a disadvantage. He had no idea what he was doing but somehow, he still got the dragon to trust him. And he made a saddle to ride on his back. Things were progressing much better than Hiccup could have ever imagined, especially considering that Toothless didn't have the glaring weakness that he remedied like the future had implied. The fact that the dragon stayed for this long and allowed Hiccup to fly with him was a miracle. He couldn't say how much it was him and how much it was the fish honestly.

However, Hiccup had no idea what the next part of their plan would have been. Everything stopped after befriending Toothless. What was his big plan? What could he have told the others afterwards? He wasn't even sure how to go about the rest of the dragons, locked in the ring.

"You don't really trust us, do you?" There was something wrong in the world when Snotlout actually made him think.

Hiccup flinched at the accusation. "N-No! That's not it! I just…"

Hiccup looked down at his feet. Did he? Was that why he was so hesitant to tell them about Toothless? After so long, after so much grief that he was put through by his peers, he finally had something. Something unique, something to call his own. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he felt like keeping the Night Fury for himself and that maybe… he didn't want anyone else around in case the dragon would latch on to them. Perhaps he was underestimating Toothless but… He felt like the dragon was the only one who cared about him and actually showed it.

"Well… can you blame me? Up until two weeks ago none of you were even concerned about my existence."

Astrid's eyes widened.

"None of you gave me the time of day and you thought me the lowest of the low. Especially you, Snotlout. So please, excuse me, for a having a hard time breaking away from that way of thinking." He took a deep breath. That might be the case but there was no use in getting worked up over it. He didn't want another fight.

"I'm sorry I wasn't very forthcoming with you guys. I just thought that it was for the best that I solve the issue with Toothless on my own since I kinda already messed it up by not shooting him to begin with. Yes, I had no idea of what to do next. Even with one dragon, how could we possibly take on an entire Nest? So, yeah, you weren't the only one stressed out, Snotlout. Maybe if you would take a second and pay attention you wouldn't jump to conclusion and ruin everything."

"Hey, come on! Ruin is a strong word!" Astrid chastised. Snotlout looked equal parts remorseful and angry.

"And how would you call this?"

"For one, lower you voice!" She hissed. "We may be away from people's ears but that doesn't mean you can blurt out everything so openly. And second… what makes you think Toothless won't return?"

Hiccup wanted to tell her about what he had seen. That soft, betrayed, hurt look in his eyes that spoke to his soul and ripped it to shreds. He didn't know how to put it in words.

"Guys, we have company…" Something in Fishlegs' voice caused a spike of dread to shoot up his spine.

And he had every right to it, because walking towards them was the Chief himself, Stoick the Vast accompanied by the Thorstons and Gobber. There couldn't be a more foreboding image. The children cleared a path to the door for the adults. The twins' parents went inside without a backward glance at them while the other two remained outside.

"What happened?"

No 'hi, I'm back', or 'How are ye, son?', just down to business like always with the Chief. The man looked from one teen to another, until they finally settled on Hiccup. Why he would think he knew anything, it was beyond him.

"Uh, hi dad! It's nice to see you." If it wasn't for the sternness of his gaze, Hiccup might have been warmed at the thought that the man believed him to be in the loop. "Uh, y'know, just the twins doing dangerous… stuff."

"We were in the forest." Jumped Astrid. Gods, she was so calm. Of course, Hiccup could tell by her fidgeting feet that she had no idea what she was doing, but he wasn't convincing so… "And we were, um, training. For the Kill Ring. And they started to fight like usual and Tuffnut lit a branch on fire and threw it at Ruffnut who tripped and hit her head."

Even to his ears that was poor, but she was lying to her Chief so Hiccup gave her a pass. Snotlout shrugged in what he hoped was uncaring but was trying too hard. Fishlegs was nodding but his eyes kept shifting around. Hiccup straightened his spine, ready to back up Astrid when the door to the house opened and the Gothi came out. She motioned for the Chief and Gobber to join them.

"Very well…" It was clear as day that Stoick had a hard time believing them. "Wait here."

"Why are we even making a big deal out of this. It's the twins! They always get hurt…" Hiccup blurted out. If his father went inside and Tuffnut would tell him another story, then they were screwed. Gobber was already suspicious even with the tattoo story. If it turned out they lied about someone getting hurt, there was no way for their secret to remain a secret for long.

The Chief paused and nodded slightly. "That's true. Anything unusual, Gothi?"

The woman tapped her chin and then eyed the group suspiciously. Fishlegs leaned down to, unhelpfully, whisper to Hiccup.

"I think she knows something."

She then started to write on the ground. Hiccup's heart dropped to his feet.

"She says 'There were severe blueberries? – THWACK – Ow! Burn marks, severe burn marks on her arms and her back is bruised. That, and the big boy who brought her was very candid – Ow! Yeesh! – panicked.' Maybe ye need a smaller stick fer this."

The small woman glared before she resumed her writing. Next to him Fishlegs whimpered and Hiccup almost did too.

"Ahem! 'Ah've seen enough blue – uh… burns that ah can tell normal fire from – from dragon fire.'" Gobber frowned, his eyes switching from the sand to the teens, concerned and suspicious.

His reaction was tame next to Stoick's. The Chief huffed with anger. "Dragon? A dragon did that?" He looked at his son, glare demanding answers impatiently. "Were was it? If it's so close ta the village we have ta find it and kill it! Right now!"

"No, no! It wasn't a dragon; it was an accid – hey!" Hiccup had to step back when Gothi swung her staff in his direction.

She puffed and quickly started to scribble on the ground. Gobber groaned.

"She says 'Who do ye think ye are ta question my experience? Ah've been tending dragon burns since before ye were all born.' Ay, the old fossil has a point."

The smith nodded at Stoick who was starting to get red in the face. Hiccup winced when the man turned back to them. "So what was it then? Accident or dragon?"

Hiccup gulped but didn't dare to look at the others. He opened his mouth to answer, his brain working overtime to salvage the situation. He could feel Astrid tensing next to him but it wasn't him that spoke.

"You're right, Chief." Snotlout said. Every pair of eyes fell him causing his confidence to falter, but he pushed on. "Ruffnut was hurt by a dragon."

Hiccup's mouth dropped open in shock.

"We – uh, we were getting a bit tired of facing those lame dragons in the pens, I mean, did you look at them? A breeze can take them down! What would that say about us then? S-So we decided to go out in the forest and find a wild dragon to test our uh, skills on… and yeah! It didn't really work out…"

Stoick looked furious. Gobber was gobsmacked and the Gothi was still scowling at them as if she didn't buy any of it.

"Ye what?" The four teenagers flinched. None of them dared to look up at the Chief. "And whose brilliant idea was it?" Hiccup had a feeling his father was looking at him. But, once again, Snotlout surprised him.

"Mine." He said. "Sir."

Even without seeing it, he knew that his father was pinching his brows in disbelief.

"Gobber! Take them back ta their homes and make sure that their families know about this. I'll take Hiccup and then start gathering people to find that beast."

Hiccup gasped. "But – "

"No! Ah will not be hearing anything from ye until ah get back. Gobber!" Without a word, the blacksmith motioned for them to start walking.

"W-What about the twins?" Fishlegs whimpered. He scurried away when Stoick glared at him. Hiccup patted him on the back as he walked by.

Hiccup glanced at the blacksmith, an unusual stern frown on his face. His mentor briefly caught his eye before turning back to his father. The Chief was seconds away from throwing his axe at the nearest post but one long, silent exchange with Gobber and he shook his head and walked away.

Hiccup took a shuddering breath. He couldn't hope to understand what happened in those few seconds but it left a tight knot in his stomach. In that moment, Hiccup felt that only an act of the Gods could potentially help him make sense of everything. Because he had completely lost control of the situation and he had no clue how to even begin to fix it.