Stay: After the events of Blindsided, Astrid is left with a fear of lightning due to her temporary blindness. When another storm strikes the Edge, Hiccup has his suspicions. Requested by madadavid0605.

This takes place somewhere in the interval of months between Blindsided and Shell-Shocked: Part 1.

Stay

BOOM!

Thunder grumbled in the skies above, arguing with itself as it grew louder and louder. Brief spasms of light flickered in the clouds, which lit up the landscape below. The lightning arched itself down towards both earth and sea, not caring where it hit, but how much damage it would inflict. There was no question that this storm was going to be big. Bigger than Dragon's Edge had seen for quite a while.

The Dragon Riders were all gathered in the Clubhouse, talking quietly. It was late evening, and if not for the storm, it would've been nearly dark, not nearly pitch black with bad weather.

"Okay, gang!" Hiccup called over a roll of thunder. "I think we should call it an early night. The storm is bound to bring down some trees, so we need to be clearing them as early as possible in the morning."

The Riders groaned at the thought of lugging trees around all day, but they dispersed from their groups and slowly went outside into the stormy weather. Only Astrid remained where she was. Hiccup, who was following the others outside, paused to look back at her with a slightly curious, slightly concerned expression.

"Something wrong, Astrid?" he asked.

Astrid was standing near the fire, staring into the flames. She didn't look up to meet Hiccup's eyes, worrying him further. "Nothing," she said. "Everything's fine… you go on, I'm just going to be here a moment longer." She turned her head for a fleeting moment and flashed Hiccup a tiny smile. But there was something wrong… she seemed almost… nervous.

Astrid didn't get nervous.

Hiccup frowned. "You sure you're okay? You seem..."

"Hiccup, I'm fine." There was a sharp edge to Astrid's voice that Hiccup didn't dare disagree with. He had seen his girlfriend's wrath and didn't want to be on the receiving side of it again. However, she softened a little with her next words. "See you tomorrow."

"...okay. Night." Hiccup walked up to Astrid, then lightly kissed her on the forehead. She smirked for a brief moment, but the expression faded into a blank one that was sure to be covering other emotions. And well, too. But Hiccup saw right through her act.

"Goodnight, Hiccup."

Reluctantly, he pivoted his foot around to leave the Clubhouse, Toothless following him out, and was almost right after slammed on by rain. However, his mind was in another place than the storm. It was inside, with Astrid. Something was definitely troubling her, that much was for sure. But what exactly escaped his mind. He had known Astrid well for years now, and he couldn't think of any recent problems she had experienced that may be the cause of her distress. In fact, lately, she had seemed happier, due to the new relationship between her and Hiccup. So he just couldn't fathom why Astrid seemed so unsettled.

As he reached his hut, he muttered to himself, "Maybe it's nothing… Astrid's probably just tired… or maybe she wants to check up on things before going to bed."

He nodded to himself. That sounded reasonable to him.

After letting Toothless slide inside, Hiccup quickly followed him in, then shut the door tight. It was a relief to get out of the rain. Even after only a minute in the downpour, he was soaked to the bone. Toothless was, as well, and unfortunately, he shook the water off of his skin on Hiccup, earning a shout of protest.

He changed out of his wet clothes into ones that were comfortably dry, but he didn't feel like sleeping yet. His rest routine was out of whack—probably from staying one too many nights up late working on projects. So it was no surprise that he found himself sitting up at his desk, inventions that came only from his imagination spilling out onto the paper.

Hiccup spent the rest of the evening scribbling in his notebook. Toothless prowled around, slightly agitated due to the storm, but with a few comforting words from his rider, the two settled into a companionable silence.

Finally, after an hour or two of this, Hiccup blew out the candle Toothless had lit for him and went to go on to bed. He was tired and knew it'd be an early day tomorrow. It'd be better to fall asleep before the storm grew too loud to stay unconscious.

His mind had flitted to Astrid often during his writing and drawing but it wasn't until he was lying prostrate on his bed that he really had time to again ponder what was troubling his girlfriend. Not too many things caused Astrid to be that… quiet. That subdued. That… nervous.

CRASH!

Lightning struck somewhere on Dragon's Edge, shaking the entire island. Hiccup's heart jolted up into his throat for a moment, but when the resounding strike began to fade, he managed to calm himself.

This storm was more intense than most. In fact, it had been long months since the last thunderstorm this huge had come upon the Edge. It was the lightning storm that had nearly burned down the stables… and left Astrid temporarily blind. He almost shuddered at the memory. Hiccup knew that was a beyond difficult time for his girlfriend to get through, but she had made it through better than most, and he was proud of her for it. After Hiccup had been struck by lightning a few years ago, he had been wary of storms, but that fear had faded with time and the knowledge that his family and friends would be there to take care of him. Still, it was not a pleasant experience, and this storm reminded him of the incident a bit...

A thought suddenly hit Hiccup, so jarring, so alarming, it was like the lightning that had just beaten the ground.

What if… what if Astrid was reminded of the past lightning storm that had brought her so much trouble? What if that was why she was nervous tonight? It made sense… it had taken a while for Hiccup to get over his fear, and it had only been two months since Astrid's blindness.

Hiccup sat up in bed, eyes wide. And if Astrid was alone…

She must've been pretty scared.

Of course, Astrid would claim she was never afraid, but that simply wasn't true. Hiccup had seen fleeting fearful expressions cross her face before, and knew that some things troubled her deeply. The fear of lightning storms must've been one of those.

Almost absentmindedly, Hiccup pulled his blanket from him, then slid off the bed. He climbed down the ladder quickly and padded over to the exit of his hut. He nearly opened the door, but then realized he'd need a coat if he was to go out in a storm as harsh as this one. After quickly putting one on, he hurried back over to the door to leave. Toothless, up in the loft, looked like he was going to jump down, but he was pacified with Hiccup's whisper of, "No, Toothless, I'll be back soon. Just need to go… check on something."

Right after he had assured his friend, he ducked outside. The rain ripped at him, and he was suddenly very glad that he had decided to wear a coat. As quickly as he could, he made his way over to Astrid's hut. He was also very glad that it was so close to his, which would allow him to spend less time out in the rain.

Soon enough, he had reached Astrid's place and was ready to go inside. He hesitated at her door for a moment and stood there being soaked by the downpour as he wondered if checking on Astrid was really the right thing to do. What if she was fast asleep? What if she never was scared in the first place? He fretted over these scenarios in his mind. If he was wrong… would Astrid be mad at him for thinking her afraid?

But you'd feel better if you at least checked, a tiny voice in the back of his mind piped up.

Hiccup nodded to himself, squinting. He would. And if his girlfriend wasn't scared of the thunderstorm… well, it was an honest mistake… that Astrid didn't have to know about.

He reached his hand out and knocked on the door slightly, then pushed it open. He was surprised at what he saw when he entered. Astrid was sitting on the edge of her bed, her hands covering her face, and appearing… defeated. He was stunned.

He had never seen Astrid look that way.

"Astrid?" he asked, too astonished to hide it.

Astrid's hands fell away from her face so quickly it was almost as if they were never there. Her face was filled with horror and shock. With her arms gone, Hiccup could see that Astrid's hair was smooth, signifying she hadn't slept. Her bed, too, was still made, giving further proof of her insomnia. "Hiccup. Oh. H-hi. What are you—" She suddenly switched to hardness and whipped up her infamous glare. "What do you think you're doing, sneaking in my hut in the middle of the night?"

"What? No, I wasn't sneaking into your hut!"

"Really? Then what do you call entering someone's house in the middle of the night without letting them know you're there?"

Hiccup scratched the back of his head. "I just… I just thought…"

A sudden flash of lightning that was followed by a roll of thunder echoed against the sky, loud and earth-trembling. A fleeting expression of fear crossed Astrid's face, illuminated in the burst of light, but as the lightning faded out, so did her countenance to a more guarded one. Hiccup's suspicions were confirmed.

"Astrid?" Hiccup prodded in a gentle voice. "You want to tell me why you're still up?" He knew the answer, but he wouldn't be able to help Astrid if she kept denying her anxiety.

"I—" Astrid stammered, at loss for words. "I just…" Her rigid shoulders slumped, and she shook her head. "Hiccup… if I tell you something… do you promise… promise on your life… that you won't tell anyone?"

Hiccup nodded solemnly. "I promise."

Astrid took in a breath, preparing herself to express her fear. "Hiccup… ever since I was blinded in that lightning storm… I… I… I haven't exactly thought the same of thunderstorms. I'm… wary about them. I—I hate them. I'm…" She paused. "Af… afraid…"

Hiccup took a step forward towards Astrid, not minding the raindrops that rolled off of him at the movement. "...alright." He shrugged like it was no big deal. "So you're afraid."

Astrid looked stunned as he sat down next to her, pulling off his coat and piling it on the ground so he wouldn't wet the floor anymore. "I'm never afraid," she said. "Why aren't you… surprised? Why don't you look at me differently? Look shocked, at least?"

"You know," said Hiccup, switching the topic "I don't have too good experiences with lightning, either."

Astrid was a little annoyed at his turn of the conversation, but unwillingly asked, "Oh?"

"Of course. Remember how I took a lightning bolt to the head while trying to save Toothless a few years ago? And being chased by the Skrill multiple times?" Chuckling, Hiccup shook his head. "No. Lightning isn't my friend, either. Especially with a metal leg." He shifted it in emphasis.

"I hadn't forgotten those instances," Astrid began.

"They just slipped your mind," Hiccup said. "I get it."

Astrid nodded, then gave a heavy sigh. "Why am I af-afraid, Hiccup, when you've faced the same thing I'm scared of several times, but you're fine... and I'm not. Why am I so..." She struggled for the right word. "...weak?"

Hiccup suddenly looked almost angry as he turned his head to face his girlfriend. "Astrid Hofferson, you may be many things, but never ever call yourself weak. You are one of the strongest people I know. Never say that." There was an urgency to his tone that Astrid didn't quite understand, but she inclined her head anyways.

"Fine," she agreed. "Maybe I'm not weak... but I am… in a very small way, of course… afraid. Though I hate having to admit it..."

"Everyone gets scared."

"But I'm not supposed to. I'm supposed to be Fearless Astrid Hofferson."

"No, Astrid, you're supposed to be a human being," Hiccup said gently. "Astrid... you're so brave, it amazes me. Maybe because you're not scared of much else, all the fear you're supposed to have is sort of... vented out on one thing. Just a guess. But, Astrid... you have no reason to be ashamed because you fear something."

Astrid's tense figure relaxed a little at Hiccup's comforting words. "I just… up until recently… I really haven't been… afraid before. Maybe I've had little frights, like the twins nearly killing somebody, or almost dying from Odin's Scourge…" Little? thought Hiccup. That experience had been a nightmare for him! "… but this is a fear. A real, horrible, nagging fear that just won't go away." She rubbed her temples. "I think I'm going to try and sleep through the storm. Don't want to be tired tomorrow."

"Are you sure?" said Hiccup anxiously.

"Yeah… I'm sure. You can go. Thanks for… checking up on me." Astrid smiled thinly. Obviously very reluctant, Hiccup stood from the bed, took his coat, then began to make his way over to the door. But he had many doubts. Should he leave? Astrid was always stubborn in saying she was fine. She had claimed she was okay when she was dying from Odin's Scourge, for Thor's sake! But he didn't want to argue with his girlfriend any day… maybe it was the right decision to go… she would be fine…

"I… Wait, Hiccup…"

Astrid's faltering voice froze Hiccup mid-stride. He turned around to glance at Astrid, who was looking more defeated than before. She rubbed her hands together, like she was trying to summon the words she wanted to speak, but couldn't quite get them out.

"Um," she began, sounding like she didn't really know where to start. "Actually… could you… well…"

"Yes?"

"Could you… stay with me? Just until things die down a little…" She seemed very chagrined about having to ask this. "I mean, you don't have to, of course… yeah… just forget it, I'll be fine… I'll just try and sleep…"

But Hiccup was at her side in a heartbeat. "Of course, I'll stay."

Astrid offered Hiccup a grateful smile as he put an arm around her shoulder and let her lean against his chest. It felt nice. For once, she didn't have to be Fearless Astrid Hofferson… she could just relax and let someone else take care of her for a change. Only for a little bit, of course. And she would only let Hiccup do this. He wouldn't tease her or look at her differently because she had one phobia. He would be understanding. And that was one of the many things Astrid loved about the boy she was snuggled up against. Snuggled. Wow. That was something she never thought she'd do.

They sat there for a while in silence, just listening to soft grumbles of thunder and the occasional flash of light. But the storm seemed to be dying down… like Astrid's fears. Now the worst thing was the heavy rain that fell outside.

"It's kind of peaceful, you know," Hiccup said softly.

"What do you mean? It's just rain."

"But the sound of rain falling and hitting the ground… It's assuring, in its own way. Even the scariest, most dangerous of things can be beautiful. Like dragons. Like Vikings… sometimes… I mean, we can sing pretty well, at least."

Astrid laughed quietly, but she was actually pondering Hiccup's words. She decided then that she would listen to the rain for a long moment—not try and block it out so she wasn't reminded of the previous accident. And as she concentrated on the thrumming of the rain outdoors… she was surprised to find it didn't sound so menacing. Maybe it was because she felt safe in Hiccup's embrace, or maybe it was because instead of not facing her fear, she had finally confronted it… but whatever the case, she knew that she wasn't afraid of lightning storms anymore.

A crack of thunder rolled without warning, startling Astrid and making her jolt up. To her surprise, Hiccup began to laugh. And before she knew it, she was too. She felt herself relax, and leaned against Hiccup again, a smile still stretched across her face.

"Thanks, Hiccup," she murmured, yawning. "I… I feel a lot better. Not so… afraid. I think I'm going to sleep now… tired… you can go, if you'd like… I'm truly all better…"

"I'll stay," Hiccup said simply.

As Astrid drifted off, she didn't protest. Even warriors needed a rest. Especially in the arms of the ones they loved.

Special thanks to…

thepurplewriter333, phieillydinyia, Guest (#1), Guest (#2), Lynkia, Plasma Snow, Smoe05, Guest (#3), Guest (#4), Guest (#5), Guest (#6), katurdi, aaaannnndddddddd devufairy! Thanks to everyone who simply read these past one-shots, as well! Writing can be a trying process, but seeing those numbers of views, reviews, faves, and follows go up urges my fingers to get tapping on the keyboard.

Hey, a little fun fact… the fear of lightning storms is actually called Astraphobia. Heheh… Astrid has Astraphobia. *sniggers*

To my pleasure, I get to say SEASON FIVE OF RTTE HAS COME OUT AT LAST! Hoorah! I'm almost done watching the episodes. Have you guys already finished the new season?

I blame all update delays on school… it blindsided me. Alright, until the next, fellow Dragonites!