I know, I know, it's been a while! Not forgotten, I promise!

-HTTYD-

"Mama!"

"Baby boy!"

Astrid held her arms out and Henry charged right in to them, squealing in delight as she picked him up and hugged him close. He squeezed her round the neck in return, and Astrid did her best not to cry a little bit as she held her baby boy tight.

"Mama missed you! Oh yes I did."

Henry giggled, squirmy and excitable but not fighting to get down any time soon as he smiled at her. As much as Astrid knew time apart was good for Henry's development, and as much as she knew Hiccup and Eret deserved some time with him too, she was still so relieved to have him back in her arms, breathing him in and feeling her heart swell with love for her little boy. They were in their own little world for a minute or two, and Hiccup and Eret seemed happy to wait for them to have that.

"So, how was he?"

Astrid eventually turned to the twins, enquiring how their night had gone.

"Great. I mean, damn he's got so much energy, but we had a blast and once he'd finished wearing all three of us out, he went down to sleep pretty fast. He took a bath this morning, and it took about fifteen minutes to finish towel drying the bathroom."

Astrid nodded, chuckling to herself as Henry babbled away at her.

"Sounds about right. Did you have a good time, baby boy?"

"Yeah!"

Henry wriggled to get down, tugging at Astrid's leg until she followed him, so Henry could give her a guided tour of his new room, which he seemed very happy to have. She smiled and responded when he paused for breath; she'd seen the room, but he was so excited to show her that of course Astrid let him have his little moment. And hoped the twins were listening, so they knew Henry appreciated their efforts in crafting a little space just for him.

"Mine!"

Henry held up a bag of brightly coloured balls - Astrid noticed it was tightly sealed, which was a good sign the boys were safety conscious about a toddler that loved sticking everything in his mouth.

"Yeah, you like those?"

"Yeah!"

He grinned, shaking the bag at Astrid.

"You want to play?"

"Yeah!"

Henry continued shaking it at her until Astrid conceded, turning to find they did indeed have an audience.

"You guys wanna take this before I take him home?"

The twins shared a look, and Eret nodded, reaching out to Henry.

"Come on buddy, I'll play!"

"Yay!"

Henry rushed over and handed the bag to Eret, waiting not-so-patiently for them to be opened up.

"No chewing, alright Henry?"

"I'll watch him, don't worry."

Eret reassured, and turned to go entertain the little boy. Hiccup looked a bit uncomfortable once they were alone; Astrid could relate. Things were easier, but there was still an unspoken tension, especially for her and her damned feelings simmering below the surface.

"Something wrong?"

Astrid eventually asked, Henry's giggles ringing in the air as he and Eret played with the brightly coloured balls. Hiccup's mouth tightened, before he nodded and took a step further in to the room. He kept some distance, which Astrid appreciated as a sign he was respecting her personal space.

"Yeah. I... we wanted to ask... we spoke to mom on the phone last night, and she heard Henry here. She wants to see him. Obviously, we could have just let her and not told you, but that doesn't sit right with any of us. So... I'm asking. You don't have to see her if you don't want to, we can have her here when Henry's with us, but the choice is yours."

Well, she hadn't expected that. At least, not so soon - Astrid had expected Valka to want to see her grandson again, but she hadn't expected to be faced with the decision so soon. She chewed her bottom lip, thinking.

"I... I guess I'm not against the idea, but maybe not right away. This is a big change for Henry, give him a little time to settle in to it first? You can send her photos if you want."

"Of course. Henry comes first, for all of us."

Astrid nodded, turning to pluck Henry's favourite chew-toy from where he'd slept. Hiccup looked down at the cushion she'd made from Eret's old t-shirt, but to her relief he said nothing about it. Eret's voice floated in from the next room.

"Oh, you little stinker!"

Astrid had a good idea what had caused such an outburst, and sure enough Eret soon appeared holding a pouting, squirming Henry in need of a fresh nappy. He moved toward the table before Astrid had chance to offer to take on changing him, and supposed they did already know what they were doing. They'd even mastered getting a clean one on to him despite how wriggly Henry could get, unhappy about being stuck on his back. Cami called it his 'angry turtle tantrum', and found herself hilarious for saying it.

"There we go, all clean. Guess it's time for mama to take you home."

Once he'd got Henry's trousers back on, Eret picked him up and held the boy out to Astrid, both she and Henry reaching out to each other until he was settled in her arms, holding his cushion in one chubby little hand.

"Say bye to these guys Henry."

"Bye!"

Henry even gave them a little wave, and both men smiled at him.

"Same time next week?"

Astrid swallowed thickly, but managed to nod.

"Yeah. Come on baby boy, time for a little car ride!"

She didn't quite relax until they were back in the car, Henry strapped in to his car seat and nobody having stopped her to point out how much her son looked like Eret. It was a slightly silly concern, she knew, but the resemblance was definitely there and people knowing meant people who could find out. Though she supposed even if they noticed the similarities, it wasn't like Astrid was wearing a t-shirt identifying Eret as her brother. She kissed Henry's hair, then moved to get in to the drivers seat so she could take them both home.

Henry demanded to be allowed to clamber up the stairs himself to their flat, and Astrid made a mental note to wash his hands as soon as they got in since they kept touching the floor as her son scrambled up the staircases, her right behind him in case Henry slipped. She sighed in relief when they were back in their little space, just about managing to stop Henry sticking his hands in his mouth as she quickly dropped her bag and scooped him up.

"Those steps were dirty baby boy, wash your hands and then we'll get your teething ring."

They'd established clear rules on what was safe for Henry to eat, and though the boys hadn't mentioned any trouble Astrid could see his gums were looking a little red. She hoped teething would be over soon, though there were upsides like him having less teeth to bite her with while nursing. Once Henry was cleaned up and Astrid had gotten him out of his shoes and settled with a nice, cool teething toy out of the fridge, she flicked the kettle on and perched her son on the sofa with some cartoons while she quickly made a drink.

"Did you have a good sleepover?"

"Yeah!"

He definitely seemed quite thrilled about the whole situation, chattering away to Astrid and in a visibly good mood around Hiccup and Eret. Astrid was glad to see it, having been worried about how Henry would react, but it seemed her concerns were unfounded. Once Henry had eaten, he wanted to snuggle for a bit and Astrid was more than happy with that, his hand clutching the blanket Valka had made him as he cuddled up to Astrid while they watched TV.

Was she ready to see her mother again? That, Astrid wasn't sure about, but she did know that Henry seemed to like her, and he liked her little gifts. And Valka hadn't pushed the issue once; she knew when she told the boys where to find Astrid that she was going to upset her daughter. And had given Astrid space accordingly. So it really was up to her whether or not Henry got to see his grandmother again.

Astrid waited until Henry had spent another night over at the twin's place, watching how her son was adjusting to the change. There was a small tantrum when Astrid had to leave, but apparently once he calmed down Henry fell asleep, so that was put down to being cranky before naptime. Otherwise, the toddler seemed nothing but happy about getting to spend time in his second bedroom, and so Astrid didn't really have cause to worry that her son was going to get overwhelmed by meeting someone he'd already met.

"Okay."

She said, and the twins looked up at her in confusion from where they were sat on the floor being used as Henry's personal climbing frame.

"Okay?"

"Yeah. You can invite her over next week to see him. But on the Sunday, so I can take Hen home and see how he feels about it all when it's just the two of us after."

"That seems fair. I'll call mom when you guys go. I think if I got my phone out now Henry would just try to chew it. Oh. What sort of time? Do you want her gone before you come to get him?"

Astrid thought about it for a couple of minutes, then shrugged.

"If she's here, she's here, but she should come earlier cus I don't want to spend the whole afternoon waiting around because she got here just before I did."

"Alright, I'll pass that along."

Hiccup said whilst prying Henry's strong little fingers away from where he'd been pulling at Hiccup's hair. Once they'd gotten their goodbye hugs and drooly smooches, Astrid bent down and picked Henry up, grabbing his cushion from the floor in her other hand and Eret helpfully jumped up to open the front door for her. Henry chattered away happily the whole time, and Astrid half-listened, while the other side of her brain pondered about the possible upcoming interaction with her mother.

Watching Valka interact with Henry definitely made Eret and Hiccup happy, and getting to see her grandson clearly made Valka very happy too. She cuddled him as much as Henry would allow, and he gurgled excitedly at the little gifts she gave him, taking her on a little tour of his bedroom like he had with Astrid and asking her to play with him.

"You've done a beautiful job with his bedroom."

She complimented, and Hiccup smiled bashfully when Eret pointed it out it was mostly his handiwork.

"I couldn't resist making an effort, I wanted it to be somewhere that makes him happy and comfortable."

"Well, I think you definitely managed it, he seems quite enamoured."

Henry seemed to be revelling in getting so much attention, charging around and lapping up the affection the three adults bestowed upon him. Eret once again wondered how Astrid had managed alone with such an energetic little boy, because Henry managed to wear out both him and Hiccup.

Well, now she doesn't have to, he thought to himself, chuckling as Henry squealed and tried to squirm away while Hiccup tickled his belly. He managed to 'escape' and ran to Eret for safety, which Eret was delighted by as he scooped the boy up and ruffed his hair. Henry tapped at his tattooed chin in return, still seemingly amused by the pattern there. Eret wondered if he'd seem Astrid's tattoo and recognised the same inking on Eret's face - it seemed unlikely Henry had never seen it, since Astrid had almost certainly changed in front of him or bathed with him.

Henry had just settled in Valka's lap to drink his bottle when there was a knock at the door, and Eret felt his pulse quicken as he knew who it had to be. Sure enough, when he opened the door, his heart thrummed in his chest at the sight of Astrid.

"Hey."

"Hi."

He invited her in rather than the two standing awkwardly by the front door, and Astrid stilled briefly at the sight of their mother, but there was no room for awkward silence when Henry spotted her, bottle dropping as he cheered.

"Mama!"

Henry rolled out of Valka's lap and she just about managed to help stop him landing heavily on the floor, before the toddler rushed over to Astrid and held his arms up to her. Astrid happily obliged him, lifting Henry up and kissing his forehead.

"Hello baby boy!"

The pure love between Henry and Astrid was very obvious as they greeted each other, and Eret couldn't help smiling as he watched them. He no longer had it in him to resent the time missed by the twins - Henry hadn't suffered for it, and Astrid had clearly done an amazing job managing by herself, plus she was letting them get their time now. She'd even agreed to let Valka see him.

"Have you had fun today?"

"Yeah!"

Astrid smiled, the two snuggling each other before she looked around.

"Go finish your bottle, I don't want you getting cranky cus you're hungry on the way home."

"Kay."

Henry agreed, tottering over to the sofa again when Astrid put him down. He managed to haul himself up, sitting looking completely angelic as he resumed drinking his bottle. Without his cheerful chattering, the adults were left with silence again. Eventually, Astrid braved breaking it.

"How's he been?"

"Good. Running around like he owns the place, he showed mom his room and got very excited when she gave him some little knitted boots. We reminded her he grows fast so they might not fit him for too long, but he thought they were great."

The boots were shaped like traditional nuvttohat, complete with the little curved point up at the end, though not made of reindeer fur and leather as they would be if truly traditional. Reindeer materials weren't exactly easy to come by in the UK, and it would have been a waste to make them out of a pretty limited resource when Henry was still growing so fast they probably wouldn't fit him for longer than a month. Eret was sure they'd get him some when he was older, and they would fit him longer. And their mother had still gone to the effort of adorning the top with traditional patterns, which touched Eret's heart.

Astrid nodded as she listened, then seemed to brace herself before she actually turned to address their mother.

"How are things with you?"

Valka seemed as surprised as anyone, but collected herself quite quickly to respond.

"Oh, same as always. Thank you for agreeing to let me see Henry."

Astrid shrugged.

"Just because I'm upset with you, doesn't mean he shouldn't be able to see you if it makes him happy. I do what's best for Henry."

Hiccup eventually had the presence of mind to offer Astrid a seat, and a drink. Though Eret was sure Astrid was keen to escape sooner rather than later, she did accept. Once he'd finished glugging down his bottle, Henry picked up his little wool nuvttohat and headed over to show them to his mother, looking quite thrilled when Astrid responded positively.

"You want to put them on?"

"Yeah! Help?"

Astrid nodded, taking them from him and swapping Henry's little shoes for the new ones.

"If you want to wear them home, you can, but only if I carry you or they'll get all dirty."

Henry pouted, but seemed to accept his mama's words as fact and got up to go show his new attire off to everybody else. He looked very adorable, and seeing the little boy with Saami clothing made Eret incredibly happy. Hiccup seemed affected too, lifting Henry up and laughing as Henry wiggled his feet to draw more attention.

"Do they feel nice little man?"

"Yeah! Blankie socks!"

He was starting to get more words - Eret wondered if it was because he spoke to more people now he spent time with them, or just part of his natural speech development. They didn't have much experience with kids, and were only a couple of years older than Astrid, so he didn't remember much of Astrid at that age. Henry still preferred to talk to Astrid more than anyone, probably because she understood more of his babbling sounds than anybody else, but he laughed and squealed and cheered all the time. And definitely knew how to say 'no', though it often came out as more of a nuh sound.

Astrid mostly drank her tea quietly while Henry continued to enchant them all, but when the boy started to get a little grizzly and sleepy, Astrid got to her feet.

"I better get him home so he can have his nap. Say bye to everyone baby boy."

He offered everyone hugs and waves, calling out "bye!" from Astrid's arms as she carried him out of the door, still wearing his new boots. The three of them headed to the window to watch as Astrid placed Henry in her car, staying there until the car pulled away before they returned to their seats. Having known about their relationship for a while now, their mother paid little mind to Hiccup sitting next to Eret, their hands entwined and resting on top of Eret's leg.

"I miss him already."

"Me too. But he'll be here again next week."

Hiccup offered, and Eret nodded, though he knew they both still felt bereft with their son gone again. And he knew they both missed Astrid terribly too, but that felt a little stranger to admit in front of their mother. Speaking of... Eret noticed their mother seemed quiet, pensive. He wondered if she was upset by how Astrid had been, but didn't get a chance to ask before she spoke up.

"Do you still love her?"

Her question threw them a little, and it took both men a minute to figure out how to answer.

"Of course."

"She's our sister."

Hiccup tacked on, as though the habit of pretending there was nothing but ordinary sibling affection between the three of them - despite Henry being the very real evidence there had been so much more.

"You know that isn't what I meant, son."

Hiccup looked a tad sheepish, before nodding slowly.

"Yeah."

"Yeah, we do."

"But it doesn't matter. Astrid's been pretty clear she's only interested in having us around because we're Henry's fathers."

Eret watched Valka's face; their mother had always been very perceptive, which was one of the reasons the three had generally been very careful when at home, and even then Eret had always wondered if maybe she saw more than she'd let on, or if she'd truly been surprised to find out about their relationship, once the initial shock her three children had been sleeping together had passed.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, pretty sure. For a while she would barely even be in the room with us."

Hiccup answered, but Eret found his curiosity piqued. Why had their mother even asked?

"Why?"

"Oh, it may be nothing. I just suppose that in hindsight, the way the three of you would look at one another before... you all still look at each other that way."

That wasn't nothing. He and Hiccup had both agreed they would be ecstatic if Astrid wanted them back that way, but they'd also agreed that in the event that ever happened, it had to be because Astrid had made the first move.

It wasn't as though there had been no signs there could have been more... but they were both very aware that letting their own wants colour reality was a bad idea, in case desire overrode sense and they saw things that weren't really there. The last thing either Hiccup or Eret wanted was to scare Astrid away again, especially as it might have scared her away for good.

But maybe... maybe Astrid was waiting for a sign from them. Eret tried to imagine wanting Hiccup and Astrid, after all they had shared together, but seeing them together and in love and not feeling like there was a place left for him anymore. It left a hollow ache in his chest just to think about it. If Astrid did want... more, but she felt as though she had no place there between Hiccup and Eret any longer... yeah, Eret doubted he would have been brave enough to make the first move if he was in her place.

If he was wrong, there was a chance Eret could ruin the tentative peace they had built, crumble the foundations of their slightly mixed up family and they could lose Astrid and Henry all over again. But if he was right... it was a risk, but was it a risk Eret was willing to take?

-HTTYD-

WELL ERET? IS IT?