It was close to 7 pm by the time Hiccup returned from the springs and fully dressed minus his armor, as he walked back he noticed all of them still there and Emma playing on the floor with Astrid again. He smiled lightly watch quietly, they were playing memory, and according to the score sheet, Emma had been winning for a while too. Astrid didn't seem to mind losing, though, it kept Emma entertained. Everyone else was just sitting around and watching or talking among themselves about everything that happened, mainly about him being unconscious for five days and now waking up and instantly building himself a working leg to walk on. Hiccup also noticed that Gobber was over as well and seemed to have a new friend, a Hotburple that was trailing him like a lost puppy.

"Laddie, there ya are!" Gobber made it known that he was there now as everyone turned to face him.

"I didn't go that far; I was just down the tunnel in the hot springs." Hiccup chuckled as Emma got up from the floor and lifted her arms to be picked up, Hiccup smiled and lifted her into his arms then gave her hug.

"You were gone for a while, what did you do? Fall asleep?" Hilda asked.

"Yeah, actually, I did. Easy to with the heat in there, incredibly relaxing. Have you been a good girl for the others?" Hiccup asked Emma now; she nodded her head to him.

"Yes, Papa," Emma replied with a smile. "Does that mean you'll sing to me tonight before I go to bed?"

"Well, I don't know...you gave your aunt, and grandparents a hard time earlier..." Hiccup stated as Emma frowned.

"I didn't want to leave you..." Emma pouted now, and then Hiccup smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Oh, I suppose you've behaved enough. But no more giving anyone trouble, got it? I know you're a daddy's girl, and it was just us for a long time, but we have more family now, and you have to listen to them when I'm not around. Understand?" Hiccup told her.

"Okay, Papa!" Emma smiled wide as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Do I get to pick the song?"

"Don't you always?" Hiccup chuckled a little.

"Then I pick...um...in my heart one," Emma told him happily.

"You got it, kiddo." Hiccup kissed her nose now. "Come stop your crying; it will be alright. Just take my hand, hold it tight." Hiccup began as Emma placed her hand against his, "I will protect you from all around you. I will be here, don't you cry. For one so small, you seem so strong. My arms will hold you, keep you safe and warm. This bond between us, can't be broken. I will be here...Don't you cry..." he smiled wide as Emma leaned her head on chest and relaxing, it was easy to see how much she had missed her father those long five days.

"'Cause you'll be in my heart. Yes, you'll be in my heart. From this day on, now and forever more! You'll be in my heart. No matter what they say, you'll be here in my heart, always..." Emma's hands moved to where his heart was, the same place the wedding rings hang near as Emma grasped them gently in her hand and smiled.

"Why can't they understand the way we feel? They just don't trust, what they can't explain. I know we're different but deep inside us...We're not that different at all...And you'll be in my heart. Yes, you'll be in my heart. From this day on, now and forever more!" Hiccup sang as he danced with her, the daughters of the chieftains and Heather smiled softly, it was adorable. Astrid just stared in admiration, he was an amazing father to her, and these songs were incredible.

"Don't listen to them, 'cause what do they know? We need each other, to have, to hold. They'll see in time, I know. When destiny calls you, you must be strong. I may not be with you, but you've got to hold on. They'll see in time, I know! We'll show them together!" Hiccup kissed Emma's forehead as she closed her eyes while still smiling.

"'Cause you'll be in my heart! Believe me; you'll be in my heart! I'll be there from this day on, now and forever more! Oh, you'll be in my heart. No matter what they say. You'll be here in my heart, always. Always. I'll be with you...I'll be there for you always, always, and always. Just look over your shoulder. Just look over your shoulder. Just look over your shoulder, and I'll be there always..." Hiccup finished as Emma appeared to be asleep, but those assumptions got shot down when she opened her eyes and looked up at him.

"I love you, Papa," she said lightly.

"I love you more baby girl," Hiccup replied as they had shared a hug before he placed her down and she ran off to play with Stingwhip and Windstrike. "Bed in an hour!" he called to her.

"But Daddy!..." Emma whined.

"No buts about it. I know you haven't been sleeping because I was gone. I see it in your eyes, you are getting a full nights sleep tonight," Hiccup told her as she huffed with her arms over her chest trying to be mad, in truth, she just looked adorable.

"Asty will let me stay up..." Emma retorted.

"Watch the tone, Emma. I will ground you for a week from Stingwhip and Windstrike." Hiccup replied calmly. "You get one hour, then bed. I'm not staying up late either."

"Can I stay up tomorrow?" Emma asked.

"That depends on how much grief you give me about cleaning your room, and rounding up your laundry." Hiccup answered.

"But I hate cleaning my room!" Emma stomped her foot down.

"Lose the attitude little girl. I'm your father, and I make the rules," Hiccup warned in a firmer tone, this was new for them to see. Hiccup rarely got angry with his daughter. However, she was defiant right now, and Hiccup did have to be this way for her to know who was in charge.

"Mommy never made me clean my room!" Emma yelled at him.

"I'm not Mommy, am I? I'm Dad and what I say goes. You made the mess so now; you will pick it up. You are cleaning your room tomorrow, and that is final, Emma. Now, go get ready for bed." Hiccup stated.

"You said I had an hour!" Emma whined with tears forming in her eyes.

"That was before you decided to talk back to me," Hiccup crossed his arms over his chest.

"That's not fair!" Emma cried angrily.

"Life isn't fair. Get ready for bed. We can do this the easy way or the hard way, which do you prefer?" Hiccup asked, and Emma didn't talk or move. "No answer? Very well, we do it my way then," he said as he uncrossed his arms and pointed to a corner of the main room. "Corner," he told her.

"I don't want to stand in the corner!" Emma cried with worried eyes now.

"That's a shame. You know the punishment for not listening and talking back to me. Now, you can go to the corner on your own or I will put you there myself. Make your choice," Hiccup told her. "One. Two..." he began counting, Emma put her head down and walked over to the corner. "Face the wall, hands at your sides, no talking or moving for five minutes while you think about what you did," he ordered. Emma did as told while Hiccup leaned against the wall and the room was silent just watching the scene. Emma tried to turn her head to look back once, "You move and I'll add another minute," he warned as she quickly faced the wall again.

"I don't see what this does..." Stoick whispered.

"You'll see," Hiccup told him as the minutes ticked along. After five had passed, Hiccup got off the wall and stood straight with his arms over his chest. "Time is up, you can turn around now," he told her, Emma slowly turned around with her head down as she stood before her father sadly. "What did you do wrong?"

"I didn't listen to you and talked back," Emma replied softly.

"Have you learned your lesson?" he inquired now.

"Yes," Emma nodded to him.

"Are you going to be a good girl?" Hiccup questioned. Emma nodded to him again, "What do you have to do so you don't get in trouble again?"

"Listen to you," Emma told him.

"That's my girl. Now, what do you say to me?" Hiccup crouched down to her level and lifted her chin up.

"I'm sorry for not listening to you Papa, and yelling at you..." Emma said while sniffling some. Hiccup kissed her forehead gently and smiled.

"Good girl. Daddy doesn't like to punish you, Em, but you gotta listen and do what you are told. Okay?" Hiccup said firmly.

"Okay, Papa," Emma replied lightly to him, Hiccup hugged her next before letting go.

"Go get ready for bed," he said as Emma smiled and rushed off to do as told while Hiccup stood up again and faced the others. "Firm and fair," he shrugged seeing their faces, "That's how Reynir raised me and taught me right from wrong as a child."

"I get it. You punished Emma and then made her tell you what she did wrong so she would know not to do it again so she wouldn't get in trouble," Astrid murmured.

"You got it, babe," Hiccup smiled now. "She won't learn the lesson if she doesn't get punished and have to think about what she did to get herself in trouble. Then to make sure she learned, I make her tell me what she did wrong and how to avoid getting punished again, also make her say she's sorry."

"Interesting method, son. And effective too," Valka chuckled a little.

"So, Hiccup...I was wondering if we could talk now that you're awake and she'll be going to sleep?" Astrid inquired lightly, might as well bring up the fact Emma called her Mommy five days ago.

"Something up?" Hiccup asked her.

"Kind of...It...has to do with Emma, you, and me..." Astrid replied nervously. Hiccup got a clear notion she wanted to talk alone, so he looked to his parents and the others in the room.

"Can you give us some privacy?" Hiccup asked.

"Of course son," Stoick nodded as he motioned for the others to get up and head out of the nest to give the two some alone time. "Oh, but we need to talk to you too. Tomorrow after breakfast okay with you?" he added quickly.

"Yeah, that's fine, Dad." Hiccup nodded. It was now that Emma returned and Hiccup picked her up then took her to bed with Astrid and him both tucking her in. Once he closed her door after the dragons were in with her, he sat with Astrid on the couch and held her hands in his. "So what's on your mind?"

"Well...the first night you were gone, Emma asked if I could stay with her until she fell asleep. I tucked her in with me against Stingwhip and...Hiccup, she called me Mommy..." Astrid just blurted out quickly as his eyes widened a bit. "All I...had done was say 'Night Princess,' and she said 'Goodnight Mommy' before falling asleep..."

"Well, I mean...I did tell you that she missed having two parents tucking her in, that's why she likes when you do it with me. Has she said it since?" Hiccup asked.

"No...but she insisted on sleeping with me in the Great Hall the last five days you were gone on that island and always wanted to play with me...I just...feel like she's getting too close, Hiccup and...I don't want to take anyone's place. I know I'm not her mother...I just don't know how to feel about this," Astrid admitted.

"Does it make you uncomfortable?" Hiccup inquired.

"Yes...and no. It's hard to give a single answer, Hiccup. Yes in the sense that we've only been together for two months and I feel like she's...latching on because she misses her mother or that...she wants me to be her Mom, and we're...well, taking things slow right now. At the same time, I-I kind of like it. Knowing she wants to be around me all the time and Gods, you know I love her to pieces. I guess...I'm just conflicted about it and wanted to talk to you about how to handle it..." Astrid looked at him again.

"Well, I do agree that she's latching on pretty easily, but it's because you act like a mother to her, Astrid. Emma gets plagued by nightmares about Drago and her mother being killed. She never saw it, but Emma sees how happy you make me and that's why she wants you saying goodnight to her too. It's a sense of comfort to Emma, and since you started tucking her in, she hasn't gotten the nightmares," Hiccup informed.

"I understand that Hiccup but...what do we do about it? What if she starts calling me Mommy all the time and I feel like I'm expected to be her mother," Astrid sighed.

"Astrid, listen to me. You are not supposed to do anything, okay? Everything you do is your choice, and I greatly appreciate you taking care of her these past five days. It was comforting to her as a mother figure to be in her life while I was gone but that doesn't mean you have to be her Mom. Another thing also, is that yes, she knows we're together, and lovers as Selby and I once were. Emma knows how happy you make me and to her, that means she'll have a Mom again because as our relationship progresses, eventually we'll get engaged and married. Not...rushing that of course, but we all know it can happen, and Emma knows it too." Hiccup crooned.

"But...is it okay that she calls me Mommy even though we aren't...well, in that stage of our relationship yet?" Astrid inquired.

"She only said it the once; I think for now we should just...leave it be and see what happens from here. Now that I'm back and awake, she'll likely gravitate more towards me again. Not...saying you're less important, but while I was gone, she latched onto you because she knows you love me and would offer her comfort while I was away. And you did that, so, I say we just let it play out, and if she starts calling you Mommy more, we'll figure things out." Hiccup smiled.

"Alright, I'm sorry, it just...took me by surprise that night, and you weren't here to talk about it with..." Astrid began, but Hiccup leaned in and kissed her deeply as she closed her eyes and melted into it. After a moment, it broke as he smiled at her.

"Ssh, it's okay. Don't stress about it; we'll watch the situation and decide and based on how it goes. For now, let's just enjoy us with Emma asleep and everyone else gone. Five days without being close to you sucked for me," Hiccup chuckled a little.

"Oh? Well, I guess I'll have to spend the next five days with you as much as we can," Astrid giggled a little. "Or spent the night?" she blushed.

"Are we...allowed to do that?" Hiccup asked.

"We're over eighteen, and it's not like we're making love or anything..." Astrid replied.

"Yeah, but isn't it unbefitting of a woman to spend the night with a man if she isn't married?" Hiccup blinked.

"Only if we share the bed..." Astrid reminded.

"Well, in that case...you can have my bed, and I'll sleep on the floor with Toothless," Hiccup smiled.

"Better idea, we can both sleep on the floor with our dragons. It's not considered sharing a bed if we're not in bed together." Astrid blushed deeper. Hiccup only shook his head but agreed with her idea; it wasn't breaking any rules if they were having sex or sharing the same bed.

"Alright, one night won't hurt anyone," Hiccup told her, Astrid's eyes lit up as she kissed him deeply and he returned in just as lovingly. The two started making out, and then Hiccup heard a noise, it sounded like snickering almost as he pulled away from Astrid and glared towards the home exit which led into the nest. "I know you're watching, come out, and I won't get mad that you're spying on my girlfriend and me..." he warned.

Sure enough, the people he thought had left peeked around the corner to see Hiccup standing there with his arms over his chest with a less than pleased look on his face. "Sorry son, you just woke up a few hours ago...we wanted to spend more time with you is all..." Stoick admitted.

"Uh huh, sure ya did, or you just wanted to watch me and Astrid make out for a while because you're all waiting for me to pop the question, right?" Hiccup remarked as their eyes widened a bit. "That's what I thought. For your information, we've already said we're taking this slow. Alright? Yes, I love her and would do anything for her...but I still have a former wife to avenge because I'm never going to be able to move on until I capture that guy..."

"You mean Drago?" Hilda asked.

"Yes...Drago Bludvist. I vowed to avenge Selby when he put a sword in her heart right in front of me," Hiccup stated as they looked at him sadly, "And if I ever see him again..." he paused pulling a dagger from his right boot with his eyes closed and twirled it in his fingers.

They looked at him worried, never having seen this side of him until now. Hiccup held the blade side at the end and flinging it across the room and hitting the bullseye target that was about ten feet away, "Let's just say I'm gonna give him back what he gave me," he retorted coldly preparing to enter his room. "Sorry, babe. Maybe another night you can stay over with me, my mood just went foul, and I don't want you to see me this ticked off..." he added.

"It's okay, I understand, Hiccup." Astrid smiled a little.

"Thanks. Come on, Toothless. I need to clear my head," Hiccup sighed as he got on Toothless's back and patted his neck as the Night Fury bolted into the sky at top speed, even though they couldn't see him, they heard him yell out as loud as he could angrily.

"We didn't mean to upset him," Valka crooned.

"I know but his wife's murder is a touchy subject, and it's clear now that if he ever sees that guy again...it's going to be a bad day," Astrid said sadly and with worry for her boyfriend. "I think it is best we all just leave that way when he gets back he can get some rest. He only just woke up a few hours ago after all," she added.

"Aye, I agree with the lass." Alvin nodded. Without another word, they cleared out and left the nest. They knew Emma was safe because Stingwhip and Windstrike were watching her, more than anything, they wanted Hiccup to be okay. It had been a long few days for him and now this, they needed to remember not to bring this guy up to him because it was a sensitive subject and clearly got Hiccup riled enough to throw daggers with his eyes closed and make a perfect target. That was a little scary for them to know but who could blame him after have to watch his wife die by this psychopath. The night was calm after that, Hiccup returned to his nest twenty minutes later and went to his room to lay down, he was tired and needed rest now that he was slightly calmer than before. Hiccup's eyes closed and let sleep take over. So ended a very long day.