Stepping Forward

Chapter Two

Hiccup swung his cloak over his shoulders and fastened the gold clasp, shaped like a Night Fury, before stepping over to the mirror in the corner of his room beside the perpetually cluttered desk.

The young man reflected in the mirror looked every inch the aspiring young chieftain's assistant. He wore a well-tailored gold and brown print tunic, brown trousers and a fur lined boot on his natural right foot. The hooded brown cloak, like the rest of the outfit, was lightweight and soft, but lined for warmth. Perfect for an autumn day on Berk.

His chestnut hair was neatly combed, for once, and although Hiccup would never match his father's height, he had grown a bit over the past couple of years, enough that he could look most of the villagers in the eye instead of having to stare up at them.

Most of them-at least half.

He would always be lean and wiry as well, but he was also strong and agile. No longer the clumsy, accident-prone child he had once been.

Yes, he looked confident and self-assured-except for the open anxiety in his thin face and wide-set green eyes.

Today he would accept a seat on Berk's High Council and his new position as his father's assistant. Even though it was supposed to be only for a six month trial to see how he liked it, Hiccup could already feel the burden of expectation weighing him down. Stoick had been as thrilled as a child at Snoggletog when Hiccup had accepted his offer.

No matter how often Hiccup reminded him that it was only a trial-and Hiccup reminded him almost with every breath-Stoick simply agreed, with great cheer, and then went right on celebrating. Oh, he tried to tone it down, but there was a light in his eyes and a spring in his step and everyone could hear the pride in his voice when he stopped every passing villager to tell them all about how his son was going to be his right-hand man from now on.

And Hiccup had a sinking feeling that he had made a big mistake even before beginning his new duties.

New duties that he was going to be late for, if he didn't get a move on.

As if on cue, Stoick bellowed up the stairs, "Hiccup! We've got to go! "

Hiccup took a deep breath and turned away from the mirror. "Coming."

Stoick was hurriedly drying the breakfast dishes and Hiccup gave him a guilty look as he came downstairs into the spacious main room. "Sorry, Dad. It was my turn."

But Stoick just smiled as he set the last dish away and tossed the washcloth on the shelf.

"No matter, I know you want to look good for the big day." He came over and gently straightened the cloak on his son's shoulders, then nodded approvingly. "You look handsome, son. I'm very proud of you, taking on your new role."

Hiccup started to say again that it might only be for six months, but then he swallowed it. No need to ruin his father's good mood yet. There would be time enough for that in the future, after all.

Instead he just said quietly, "Thanks, Dad."

Stoick must have noticed the hesitation though, because his hand curled around the back of Hiccup's neck and he too spoke seriously, "I know it's a trial, Hiccup, and I meant it when I said I want you to be happy above all else. If you end up not liking it, that's all right. I'll always love you and be proud of you. You know that, right?"

Hiccup nodded and managed a small smile. "I know."

Stoick smiled back, clapped his son on the shoulder, and led the way outside.

The morning sun was bright, the air cool and crisp, and everyone was either headed to the Great Hall or had already gathered there. It was a tradition on Berk that whenever a new Council member was appointed, the chief would make a formal announcement. Then everyone would drink a toast and come by to shake hands and wish their new advisor well. It was not a long ceremony, but Berkians never missed a chance to gather together to talk and share a cup of ale, even if it was at eight o'clock in the morning.

Toothless bounded over to greet them as Hiccup and Stoick came down the hill from the chief's house to the main street of the village. The Night Fury still slept in Hiccup's room, either on his rock slab or sometimes curled up on the bed. But he had always been an early riser and ever since becoming the dragons' alpha a few weeks ago, he made sure to get up in time to speak with the nocturnal dragons before they retired for the day.

Hiccup teased him that he only wanted to get to the feeding station in time to get the best choice of fish, but Toothless just grinned his gummy grin and said that a good alpha made sure to keep in touch with all his flock members, after he had gobbled down all the sole and cod, that is.

"Well, good morning to you, too," Hiccup laughed as Toothless nudged him so enthusiastically that he almost knocked his boy down. "Careful though, bud. Dad paid a lot of money for these clothes and I don't think he'd like me to be covered in dust when he appoints me as his assistant."

Toothless studied Hiccup carefully before crooning admiringly.

"I agree with him," a girl's voice called from behind them.

They had reached the main street of the village and Hiccup spun around to see Astrid, followed by Stormfly, approaching. "You clean up well, Dragon Boy."

He grinned as she came over to kiss him quickly. "You look pretty nice yourself, Milady, but are you and Stormfly going in for the twin look?"

Astrid glanced down at her blue and gold top and skirt and smiled. "Just a coincidence."

Stoick had strode ahead and, as if suddenly realizing that Hiccup and Company had fallen behind, he turned around and called, "Are you lot coming? We're already running late."

Hiccup reached for Astrid's hand as they started walking again.

She looked at him, serious now. "Are you all right?"

"I guess so." Hiccup gave a small shrug. "If you mean feeling like I might hurl my breakfast any second now."

Astrid squeezed his hand sympathetically. "It's okay, Hiccup. I know you dread the ceremony, but it'll be over before you know it. And we're working with the Dragon Riders this afternoon so that'll be something to look forward to."

Hiccup looked down at the ground before sighing and saying softly. "It's not the ceremony, although I'll be happier once it's over, but-" He motioned towards Stoick, who was beaming as he called greetings to the other straggling villagers making their way to the Hall. "Look at him. He's so happy."

Astrid nodded solemnly. "Yes, it's terrible, isn't it?"

Hiccup glared. "When I agreed to all of this, he got so excited he dragged me off to the tailor and had a whole new wardrobe made for me, so I would 'look the part'. He hasn't stopped boasting to everyone he meets. The other day Mulch saw him coming and hid in the apothecary's shop. People used to volunteer for dangerous missions so they wouldn't have to babysit me. Now they do it to get away from Dad's bragging."

She burst out laughing. "Oh, Hiccup, you're exaggerating. I still don't see the problem. So your Dad's proud of you. It's sweet but it's not anything new. He's been proud as punch of you for years now."

"Ever since the Red Death," Hiccup agreed with a sigh. He lowered his voice. "But Astrid, he's going to be so disappointed if I quit this in six months. He says he won't be, but of course he will. I can see it. And then he won't be proud of me anymore."

"Yes, he will," Astrid said firmly. "But Hiccup, you need to go into this assistant chief thing with an open mind. You said you would give it a chance, so give it a chance."

"What do you mean?"

She gently squeezed his hand. "I mean that it's like you've already decided that you're not going to like it and you're just going through the motions. You're already worrying yourself sick about how to tell your dad that you want to quit, when you haven't even begun yet."

She stopped and turned Hiccup to face her, her hands resting on his upper arms. "Don't worry about any of that right now. Just concentrate on learning the job and doing your best with it. When spring comes, then we can talk about what you want to do for the future. You know, you almost lost your dad a few weeks ago. But he's still here. You have this chance to work with him and enjoy spending time together. Make the most of it."

Acknowledgement flashed in Hiccup's eyes as he nodded slowly. "You're right. I am so lucky that Dad's still here. I don't know what I'd do without him." He bit his lip. "That's why it's so hard to think I could lose him again. But yea, I need to keep an open mind and just do my best." But what if my best isn't good enough?

"Hiccup, you will not lose him, no matter what. I can promise you that," Astrid said solemnly.

Hiccup nodded again, trying to believe her. Astrid reached for his hand and the four of them—Hiccup, Astrid, and their dragons—hurried to catch up with Stoick.

When they reached the entrance of the Great Hall, Astrid smiled at both the chief and his son, gave Hiccup a quick kiss on the cheek, and murmured, "Mom and Dad are saving me a seat. I'll see you this afternoon," before slipping off to join her parents.

As cavernous as the Hall was, this morning it was crowded. Every human and quite a few of the dragons were present. The tables and benches had been moved so there was a clear aisle leading to the raised dais at the far end of the hall. The Council members normally sat at the circular table around the fire pit, but that would have had some of them with their backs to the dais so today they were all seated in a row of chairs on the raised platform.

The other villagers sat at the tables or stood behind them, while the dragons stood by the walls. When Astrid left, Stormfly went to join Meatlug, Hookfang, and Barf and Belch. Toothless quickly nuzzled Hiccup's cheek again, for once being careful not to muss his brother's hair. Then the Night Fury walked proudly alongside Hiccup and Stoick as the three of them made their way to the steps leading to the dais, while the humans and dragons of Berk cheered and roared.

Stoick and Hiccup climbed the steps while Toothless veered off to the right. When he stood on stage next to his father, facing the crowd, Hiccup glanced over towards his dragon and then smiled in genuine delight when he saw that Valka and Cloudjumper stood by the wall next to the Night Fury. He had hoped that his mother would come for the ceremony, but hadn't been completely sure that she would. Large crowds made her uneasy. But she was there, smiling proudly at him as their eyes met.

As his eyes scanned the Hall, Hiccup saw his other friends grinning widely at him as well. Snotlout sat with his mother and younger siblings in the front row. Ruffnut, Tuffnut, and Fishlegs sat nearby and Tuffnut was so excited he was wildly waving his tankard around in the air, narrowly missing clonking several people in the head. He stopped though once he realized that he had sloshed out half his ale, and frowned down at the tankard in dismay.

Everyone quieted down when Stoick lifted a hand and stepped forward to speak.

"Good morning, good morning, everyone! Today is a special day for all of us as we welcome a new member to our Council, and it's even more special to me. I know I've probably talked your ears off the past couple weeks—"

Amused chuckles rumbled through the crowd at that and Stoick laughed as well before continuing, "But I am very pleased and proud to appoint my son, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, to Berk's High Council. Even more, over the coming months, he will be working closely with me as my assistant. I know he will continue to work hard for our tribe so I ask you to join me as I toast our new Council member and Assistant Chief!"

Someone brought Stoick and Hiccup each a tankard. Stoick raised his glass and everyone in the Hall followed. Once again everyone called their approval and then downed their ale. When the noise died down somewhat, Hiccup stepped to his father's side to address the crowd. All he had to do was thank everyone and assure them that he would indeed work hard, but he dreaded it.

Reminding himself to speak loudly and confidently, just as he had practiced with Toothless, he called out, "Thank you very much, everyone. I am honored to be the Assistant Chief and on the Council. I will do my best to make you proud."

As people formed a line to shake hands, Hiccup had a moment where it all seemed so surreal that he felt as if the world were spinning. Everything in his life had changed so drastically over the past five years. He had gone from being the village outcast to the village hero, from his father always scolding and scowling in disapproval to his father freely offering affection and beaming with pride. He had gone from being alone to being surrounded by family and friends.

Of course his life was so much better than it had been, and Hiccup thought he was mostly accustomed to the changes by now, but still every once in a while, it could be overwhelming, almost terrifying, because now he had everything to lose.

But the moment passed. He didn't have time to dwell on it because he had to thank everyone who came to offer him congratulations. Astrid smiled proudly at him even as she gave his hand another comforting squeeze. Ruffnut and Tuffnut hugged him so hard that all three of them nearly fell off the dais. Fishlegs looked as happy as if it were he himself being honored and pumped Hiccup's hand up and down with such strength that he thought his fingers might be broken.

Then Snotlout appeared, shaking his head. "Training dragons just wasn't enough for you, was it? You have to go and get yourself appointed Assistant Chief too." Then he softened and gripped Hiccup's shoulder. "Well done, cuz."

As he walked away, he looked back with a brash grin. "But if you get tired of it, you know where to find me."

Gobber didn't say anything at all. He started to shake hands, but then just pulled Hiccup into a bear hug, actually lifting him off his feet. Then he hurried off, swiping at his eyes as he went.

Valka hung back until the last villager had left. Then she took a step towards Hiccup and Stoick.

"Hiccup, I—" But then her face crumpled and she abruptly turned and fled towards the doors.

Hiccup rushed after her. "Mom, wait!"

He didn't think she would, but Valka hesitated, allowing her son to catch up with her.

"What's wrong?" He asked softly.

When she turned to him, he was surprised to see tears in her eyes. "It's just—when you were standing there with your father, I realized that you're all grown up now—and I missed it. And it's my own fault. I left you, and your father, and I shouldn't be here now. I don't deserve to be part of your lives anymore."

Hiccup looked back at her uncertainly, not really sure what to say. He couldn't just tell her that everything was all right, because she had hurt him and his father, and he couldn't pretend that all those years didn't matter. But he was glad she was a part of his life in spite of it. Maybe he could tell her that.

"Mom, it was hard growing up without you, and I wish you'd been here. It's hard for Dad too. We do have a lot of stuff that we need to work through and I don't know how it will all end up. But we invited you to come back to Berk because we want you here. I'm glad that you're here and that we have a chance to get to know each other. You are still my mom and I love you."

She reached out to touch his face lightly with her fingertips. "I love you too, Hiccup. You've grown up to be a fine young man."

Hiccup grinned at her. "I don't know about that. Dad often says that I'm only pretending to be grown up, that I'm still about ten years old on the inside."

He was joking but his mother regarded him seriously. "You do still have a sense of wonder and innocence about you, but you are more mature and responsible than I was at your age." She smiled wryly. "Than I am now, to be honest."

She shook her head and spoke more firmly. "I need to be going. We will talk later. Perhaps at dinner?"

Hiccup had to shake his head. "Actually, we have a Council meeting tonight. I think Dad and I will be eating here."

Valka nodded. "Later then. Cloudjumper!" The Stormcutter was already at her side and they were gone before Hiccup could say more.

He stood still looking after her until a large hand rested gently on his shoulder and Hiccup turned to see his father and Toothless beside him.

"She's right. You are a fine young man."

"Thanks to you. You raised me," Hiccup told him.

Stoick shook his head. "No, not much thanks to me, I'm afraid. I wasn't there for you either, no more than she was, really."

"Yes, you were," Hiccup replied. "It wasn't always great, but you did keep me safe and fed and alive."

Stoick snorted. "That's just the bare minimum. I wasn't a good father, Hiccup. We both know it."

"You are now."

Stoick swallowed hard before saying gruffly, "Thank you, son." He took a deep breath and gripped Hiccup's shoulder harder. "About your mother. She's a good woman and she loves you, but try not to expect more from her than she can give. I don't want to see you hurt again."

He walked towards the double doors leading outside. "Let's go over to the warehouses then. Winter's coming and we need to know how much food we've got stored."

Hiccup and Toothless followed more slowly. Once they were out in the bright sun again, Hiccup turned to the Night Fury.

"I guess that's it then. I'm now officially the Assistant Chief of Berk."

/You did well, Brother./ Toothless told him. /You will be the greatest Assistant Chief in the history of Vikings. With the greatest dragon too, of course./

"Absolutely!" Hiccup slung an arm around Toothless' neck while his dragon nuzzled and licked his hair, leaving it ruffled and spiked. "You were just waiting for your chance to do that, weren't you? Well, I'm off to count sacks of grain and salted hams. What about you?"

/I think I'll go home and take a nap. I was up early./

"Sounds nice. Remember we're working with the team this afternoon though. Be at the Arena by two, okay?"

Toothless warbled his agreement as he wandered off towards the Chief's House.

Hiccup smiled and hurried after his father.

Author's Notes: Thank you for reading! Next chapter will feature some interaction with Hiccup and Gobber, and we'll find out who Gobber's new apprentice is, maybe see the Dragon Riders in action as well.

June: Thank you for the wonderful reviews! I'm so glad you're enjoying Stepping Forward.

Please review!