So, hey, guys. My finger's feeling a bit better...

BUT NOW I'M SICK. I know, not fair, but yeah, such is life sometimes. :) Hardly slept last night, but nonetheless, I wrote this chapter and a chapter for "What Became of the Raid" earlier this morning. Yeah, I'm a crazy writer, but I HAVE to update my stories, or...or I lose my mind. :) Enjoy chapter 13! :D

"Alright," Astrid said, "but when we're finished, you need to sleep, okay?"

"Sounds like a plan," Valka said. In honesty, she was a bit nervous. Hiccup was never really open to the idea of speaking about his father just yet; the wounds of losing him were too fresh in the young Chief's mind. That lead to Valka not really knowing anything about Hiccup and Stoick's relationship. She had always imagined that they were close, by how Stoick treated Hiccup, and how Hiccup treated him in response in just the short time she saw them together, but now Astrid was saying that it was "interesting", and that really didn't sound all too promising.

"Do tell," Valka said after another instant.

"So, Hiccup and Stoick," Astrid said. "Not really much to write home about for the first fifteen years."

"Why not?" Valka asked. "Weren't they close?"

"Well, it depends on what you mean by 'close'," Astrid responded, making quotation marks with her fingers on the last word she spoke.

"I don't really understand," Valka said.

"Yeah, me neither," Astrid said. "Forget the thing I just said. Hiccup and Stoick were…well…like I said, their relationship was interesting. Not really one way or the other, just sort of…different."

"Define different?" Valka asked.

"Well, consider Hiccup for a moment," Astrid said. "What are his top character traits?"

"He's creative," Valka said. "Uses his brain instead of his brawn…well, he doesn't have brawn…he would rather make peace then fight, doesn't kill without reason, reads in his spare time, doodles…he's sarcastic. Actually…he's mainly sarcastic."

"Besides the sarcasm," Astrid said. "What else?"

"He's stubborn," Valka said. "Isn't very open about his feelings…very quiet normally, talkative when you get to know him…"

"Uh-huh," Astrid said. "Now, consider Stoick. Main character traits. Go."

"He was…a warrior," Valka said. "Fought instead of thought, lead people into battle without having a plan first, fought in his spare time…I don't think he even knew how to read, he was very outspoken, never really stayed quiet…ah, I'm seeing your point, Astrid."

"Yep," Astrid said. "Hiccup and Stoick were father and son, although you would never be able to tell that without taking a closer look. I suppose they share a few traits. They're both stubborn."

"We're all stubborn," Valka said. "We're Vikings."

"True, true," Astrid said. "They both have the hearts of a Chief, excellent leadership, but other than that, really, they're completely different."

"I suppose Hiccup's more like me than he was like his father," Valka said.

"Hiccup is exactly like you in pretty much everything," Astrid said, "which is kind of why he was labeled as 'different'…not that being like you is bad or anything, it's just….it was different then what we were used to, and you know how Vikings are when it comes down to new ways of living. It takes us a while to get the hang of it."

Valka nodded; a silent urge to continue.

"So, the first fifteen years of Hiccup's life," Astrid said, "he and his father weren't exactly 'close.' They lived together, talked a bit sometimes, but they were never really 'close' close, like you would expect a father and son to be. When Hiccup was nearly killed by the Red Death, I guess that gave Stoick a bit of a wake-up call-"

"Wait a minute," Valka said, cutting Astrid off abruptly. "You said fifteen years leading up to the Red Death battle."

"Yes," Astrid said. "Why?"

Valka didn't answer right away. Fifteen. Hiccup had lost his leg when he was fifteen. "He was so young when he lost his leg," Valka said breathlessly.

"It was only five years ago," Astrid said. "I guess I really didn't think about how young he was when it happened very much…he wasn't too much older than me. Four or five months, I think, or something like that. Not one hundred percent sure, and I really don't feel like counting it out right now."

"Right," Valka said. She would think about Hiccup's leg losing later. "Continue?"

"So, since the Red Death, Hiccup and Stoick have been…closer, at least," Astrid said. "Of course, fifteen years is kind of a lot to make up for. But yes, they were a lot closer than they were before."

"And that's it, then?" Valka asked. "That's Hiccup and Stoick's relationship?"

"Pretty much," Astrid said. "Along with a lot of drama thrown in here and there sometimes, depending on the situation they were in. Stoick had a lot to learn about Hiccup."

Valka nodded. "So what about you?" she asked. "Are you and Hiccup close?"

Valka could see the girl fighting away a blush. "I suppose we are," Astrid said after a moment. "Yeah, I guess you could call us close."

"How close?" Valka asked.

"Close enough," Astrid said.

"How long have you known him?" Valka said.

"Well, since he was the Chief's son," Astrid said, "I guess we all kind of knew him. We knew who he was, but we didn't know him specifically. We didn't know his personality…besides his sarcasm. We all knew he was sarcastic. Other than that, we didn't know anything about him. After the Red Death…I guess I've really known him for about five years."

"Five years," Valka repeated. "Long time."

"Not really," Astrid said. "Time flies. It seems just yesterday we were opening the official Berk Dragon Training Academy, starting our D.U.M.B. club, our secret dragon flight club…"

"What?" Valka asked. "Dumb?"

"Yeah, not my idea," Astrid said. "It stood for Dragons United Monitoring Brigade, if you want to know."

"That sounds…well, I'm not going to say clever," Valka said, "but that's kind of what it is."

"You have your son to thank for that," Astrid said. "Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, Chief of Berk, and the stupid club names."

"I bet that was interesting," Valka said.

"It was, very," Astrid said, nodding in confirmation. So, Astrid began telling Valka about everything she remembered, from the day they started the Academy, all the way up to how they ended up making peace with the Outcasts, all because of Hiccup.