Hey! It's emojigal12318 and welcome to the first day of Snoggletog! Thank you all so much for coming to read my story and I do hope you enjoy it!

So, out of the twelve stories, I have so far written two. But hey! That's okay! I knew this was ambitious but I am determined to complete it for you guys.

I have already taken into account one suggestion, but I still have story slots to be filled so any requests would be greatly appreciated!

This story is based on Gobber in the first movie talking to Stoick about the existence of trolls, and how they steal his left socks. It's set between the second movie and the third.

So, enjoy, and I hope to see you tomorrow.

Let the countdown begin!

.oOo.

This is Berk. It's twelve days North of Snoggletog and everyone is a few days South of freezing to death.

The island, a remote, secluded place in the middle of nowhere, where Vikings and Dragons have learned to live in harmony. Yes, it's not perfect, but now that peace had been fulfilled, they actually had the capacity to relax for the biggest holiday of the year for them: Snoggletog.

A blanket of snow lay delicately on the ground, covering the island that Chief Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III was staring out over from the top of the docks.

So much had changed in the past year; he'd fought off one of his most vicious enemies yet, became chief, found his mother, lost his father...

But found himself.

Everything was calm at last, an overwhelming sense of peace which meant he could finally release the breath he didn't realise he'd been holding all of these years.

And now winter was here, and the village was prepared. Lights were strategically strung so that when nightfall arrived, the village was plunged into a stunning, mystical array of colour, so festive it would be impossible for anyone not to want to celebrate. Wreaths had been hung on every door and even the dragons were under a celebratory trance, mixed arrays of holly and mistletoe wound around each of their feeding stations and homes.

He knew he was going to face Snoggletog this year for the first time without his father, but after a few months, he was surprisingly okay with it. Stoick would be proud of him, and one day they would meet again in Valhalla, reunited at last. That was enough.

He sighed, taking in the snow swept surroundings. Everything was finally going to be okay.

He froze, not from the cold but rather an ear-piercing scream coming from his village. One last look and he bolted, flying towards the source of the obvious chaos, still not daring to go too fast and lose his footing due to his metal peg leg scraping against the ice.

.oOo.

It took him a mere two minutes to get from where he was on the docks to the village centre, and on his race, he encountered Astrid, his betrothed and future Chieftess, who was running to the same place as he was; the source of the scream.

"Do you have any idea what that-"

"Nope," He responded quickly. "And I dread to find out."

They came to a halt in a clearing where every house on the island was in view. It was only then the couple noticed Gobber sitting outside of his house, pointing at the door and dancing around as if he had Terrible Terrors is his pants.

"Gobber! What's wrong?!" Panic was within Hiccup's voice as he attempted to comfort the man.

"Trolls I tell you! Trolls! They are in my house stealing my stockings! And not only the left ones this time! I still don't know what was up with that..."

"Trolls?" Hiccup laughed as he pushed the door open. "There is no such thing as trolls."

Astrid and him stepped inside, checking thoroughly for any signs of life.

There was nothing.

The hut was a mess, littered with various weapons and armour. It was physically impossible to see the wooden couch which it all lay upon. The chief grimaced as he even saw a pair of Gobber's dirty underpants left around the arm of a chair.

He went over to an old battered chest which sat in the corner of the room. As he opened it, he jumped backwards in surprise as a Night Terror flew out of it.

"There's nothing here," Astrid said, kicking a random ball she had found across the room. "And who knew Gobber was a hoarder; the forge always looks so tidy!"

"I am not a hoarder, thank you Astrid. I think you'll find I'm a collector, and besides it's worse as I was trying to find the stockings which the trolls stole," Gobber threw his hands up in the air in frustration. "How am I meant to give out Snoggletog gifts without any stockings?!"

"We'll figure it out Gobber, don't worry. We'll call it... 'The Case of Gobber's Missing Stockings.'

.oOo.

"Right, so Gobber last seen them hanging from his fireplace when he turned to get a bauble and saw a troll out of the corner of his eye. That means in the space of time it took fo Astrid and I to get from the docks to his hut, they could only have gone-"

"Are you genuinely taking this seriously?" Snotlout scoffed as he signalled to Hiccups hand-drawn diagram and map of the spot of the crime. "In all due respect, Chief, It's Gobber! He's off his rocker! Surely you don't believe that all of this troll garbage is true?"

"We agree, young Hiccup, for you see, there has been many instances when Gobber has made up ridiculous creatures that could never be real." Tuffnut stated, emphasising it all with hand gestures as per usual.

Ruffnut continued his argument. "There was bed bugs..."

"Unicorns..."

"Kelpies..."

"Witches..."

"And now trolls. It's a load of Yakdung."

"Although," Fishlegs added. "He was right about the Boneknapper so..."

"I agree with Fishlegs. When we were younger and my father would take me out fishing, I'd run off to look for trolls because Gobber spent my whole apprenticeship convincing me they are real. And whilst that belief of mine has come and gone, Gobber's has stayed with him for as long as I can remember. Probably as long as he can remember," Hiccup paused. "After my dad died, and I became chief, I took an oath. An oath to protect every citizen of Berk for as long as I live. If Gobber believes these trolls are a real threat to him, even if it is just his decoration for Snoggletog it will effect, it's my duty to resolve the issue, and you guys are my go-to for assistance. We went to the Edge together, fought off as many people wanted to kill us as we can count. I know it's stupid, but doesn't that mean it will be an easy task? Come on guys. Let's put an end to this sock mystery."

There was silence amongst them for a moment until Astrid spoke up.

"Okay, so what's the plan, Chief?"

.oOo.

"You don't truly believe it was trolls that took Gobber's stockings, do you?" Hiccup and Astrid were walking along the icy pathway leading from the Great Hall where they had held their mini group meeting just moments prior.

They had agreed in the end to split up, the others continuing with the search whilst also completing their usual duties, in attempts to not make it much more of a big deal than it was already being made.

"Of course I don't, but I meant what I said about being the chief. I took an oath, and want to make Snoggletog perfect for the entire village, including Gobber. Actually, especially Gobber. He was my boss and my father's best friend. He's done a lot to shape me to who I am today, so its the least I can do."

"I get it," Astrid grabbed his hand, and clasped it within hers slyly as they walked, Hiccup initially being slightly taken aback before relaxing. It was still foreign to him, and he could never get used to how special it felt everytime. His Astrid.

Crack.

The chief dropped his betrothed hand and spun his head around, eyes darting to the source of the noise. The bush beside them was rustling and twigs were snapping from within. It was eerie, the movements not fluid or uniform in any way, shape or form.

Something was in there. Something that shouldn't be.

Placing a finger on his lip, he inched closer, and took a deep breath.

He rapidly pulled the front branches back to reveal one bickering Tuffnut and Ruffnut Thorston.

"See, look now! You've blown or cover!" Tuff exclaimed, throwing his arms into the air in protest before yelping as his sister pushed him out of their not-so-hidden hiding spot.

"If you hadn't been trying to take over the only peephole, maybe we wouldn't have had to argue in the first place."

"I had enough of sharing with you in the womb. We don't have to do it in real life."

They started hitting each other, with no rhythm, the kind of typical child's squabble seen amongst the younger Berkians.

"What were you even attempting to do in there?" Hiccup inquired, frustration building in his voice.

"We were trying to do an undercover lookout for the trolls until she ruined it."

"I ruined it?! You were the one who-"

"Guys..."

"You-"

"Guys..."

"What were you even thinking-"

"GUYS!" Astrid signalled to the bush just a metre or so away from where they were standing. It was shaking similarly to the one the twins had just been hiding in and the group froze as they watched it move.

"You didn't happen to have any accomplices in your camouflage, did you?" Hiccup asked, a tower of tension growing in his throat.

"Not that we know of..."

"Where are the others?"

As if on cue, Snotlout, Fishlegs and Gobber walked up to them, confusion obvious on their faces as they watched the situation unfold in front of them.

"Hey, what are you guys doing-" Snotlout was cut off by a series of 'shhh!'s from Astrid and Hiccup and they leaned in closer, also watching the bush.

As a precaution, the chief whipped Inferno out from his belt, and inched closer, the fire blazing in his hand.

He sliced the branches open this time, ready for a fight, but lowered the his invention as he saw what was before him before he burst into laughter.

"Guys, you might want to take a look at this!" The others ran closer, and watched as a group of three or four hobgobblers munching away at some red and white socks, playing tug of war with one another. One even had one on as a hat.

"Well Gobber, looks like there were no trolls after all!" The man peered closer before he yelled.

"Ahh! Hobgobblers! They are a bad omen!"

Everyone burst into fun-filled chortling, including Gobber, who was backing slowly away from the creatures as he did.

Once the hysterics had calmed down, Hiccup wiped a tear of laughter away from his eye and spoke up once more.

"So, Gobber, where did you get all of your stockings?"

"They were all of my spare socks. They only come in pairs, and, in case you haven't noticed, I only have one leg," He signalled to the wooden stump at the end of his leg. "So any ones in the pair which I can't wear, I put away as Snoggletog stockings. But now they are ruined," He peered in at the little dragons feasting upon them at that exact moment. "And I do not feel like taking them from those in there anyway."

"Well, Gobber, I think I have a solution. You aren't the only one here with a peg leg..."

.oOo.

"It's perfect! The blacksmith exclaimed as he stood back and looked at his home. The group had tidied it up a little, putting all the clutter away. (Snotlout had had the job of removing Gobber's dirty underwear from the couch, which he had complained a LOT about, if I may add). And most importantly, bright red and deep green coloured stockings hung from the mantelpiece, four in a uniform line, showcasing patterns of various stripes and spots, adding that perfect final touch to the room.

Inconveniently, Hiccup hadn't exactly had those colours of socks just on hand, but he had to admit he did have a lot of spare socks after the events with the Red Death. Him and Astrid had spent the night dyeing them Snoggletog colours with the random pigmented things they had found lying about.

And it had worked. The man's hut looked more festive than ever with a tree in the corner and lights strung all around.

"Thank you, for all of your help."

And just like that, order had been restored. Gobber had had his Snoggletog magic returned to him, the twins had stopped fighting, Snotlout had finally gained the right to say he had touched Gobber's underwear (Eugh!), Fishlegs was content geeking out over the lights, Hiccup and Astrid were together, still holding hands throughout the chaos and Snoggletog was going to be perfect.

Finally, everything was gong to be perfect.

"Hiccup!"

"Chief!"

"Hurry!"

Hiccup ran outsiders Gobber's hut to find almost every villager holding some ripped stockings, or holding none at all.

He sighed. Perhaps not 'perfect', but good, nonetheless.