Something Stuck in Your Throat: Set in DOB. After a long, long day at work, the Riders decide to eat dinner at the Great Hall, where they begin to tell jokes. But when Hiccup begins to choke, can they save him? Requested by animalsarepeopletoo

Hiccup burst out laughing.

It was evening out, and the Riders had had a long day of working that day, what with building some of Berk's newest watchtowers, so they had decided to treat themselves to dinner at the Great Hall for a well-deserved break. Everyone was a bit… delirious because of how exhausted they were, and that's when they started to tell the jokes.

Even if the joke that somebody said wasn't funny at all, everyone would still scream with laughter, wiping their eyes and pounding their fists on the table. Astrid herself was doing it too, and Hiccup knew that he had reached her breaking point. Well, he would have known that if he had a clear mind at the moment. Which he didn't.

Snotlout had just told a stupid joke about a barmaid and a dragon, and that had broughten fits of laughter to the group.

"Snotlout," Tuffnut wheezed, trying to get in as much air as he could, which was hard because he was laughing. "You might just be the funniest guy I have ever met!"

Snotlout laughed, and Hiccup, even in his dazed state, could see how tired and blood-shot the other boy's eyes were. "No, I'm not!" Snotlout brushed aside, which was unusual because he wasn't the one to turn down a compliment. Ever. "Astrid is the funniest!"

Astrid brightened, and she smiled at Snotlout. Smiled. Hiccup blinked, trying to figure out what was wrong with the scene. Nothing looked out of the ordinary to him, so he shrugged. It must have been his imagination.

"Aw, you're so sweet!" Astrid giggled, leaning back into her chair. "Okay, here's another one: why didn't the skeleton ask the girl out?"

Fishlegs frowned. "I don't know…" He felt like he should know the answer, yet his addled mind prevented him from remembering.

"Because he didn't have the guts to!" Astrid revealed, and the group howled with laughter, stomping their feet on the floor.

Stoick, sitting at a nearby table with Gobber, raised his brow at the Dragon Riders' explosion. "Is it just me, or are the kids acting a bit.. wilder than usual?"

Gobber bit his lip while trying to pick some wax out of his ears. "Eh, they worked pretty hard today, and they've been up since the middle of the night, working on the new watchtowers. They deserve to let loose, even if it is getting crazy."

Frowning, Stoick rubbed his forehead. "Hiccup's been up that long? No wonder the boy and the others are acting like this. They're delusional!"

Meanwhile, back at the Riders' table, Hiccup then took a large bite down on his chicken leg, forgetting how not-hungry he was. He chewed it as Snotlout continued with his joke.

"...and then I leapt at Hookfang, and I said," the boy paused for dramatic effect, and the Riders' eyes widened, hungry for more. "You may be a dragon with fire, claws, and talons, but you can never say 'oi, oi, oi' as well as me!"

The table erupted into laughter, and Hiccup joined in. Almost immediately, he realized that it was a bad idea. The piece of chicken he was chewing on got stuck in the middle of his throat. All the sudden, Hiccup couldn't breathe.

He was choking.

The other Riders, unaware with Hiccup's dilemma, dabbed at their watering eyes, giving a few last chuckles.

Hiccup panicked, clutching his aching throat. He tried to say something, but it only came out as an unintelligible gurgle. Hiccup stood up, trying to get everyone's attention.

Astrid glanced up at him, smiling. "Oh, is it your turn to tell a joke, Hiccup? I love it when you use the viking-and-his-angry-wife one! That's hilarious!"

Hiccup felt woozy from the lack of oxygen, and he dropped to one knee, trying to gag out the chicken but he was unable to. The boy felt overwhelmed by fear. Was he going to die? No, he couldn't die like this… he wanted to die in battle… not by choking. He couldn't die now...

But as his vision faltered, it became more likely that he would choke to death.

Toothless nudged his hand in worry, and everyone else looked up with concern. Astrid snapped out of her dazed trance, and worry washed through her. "Hiccup?" she gasped, a hand flying to her mouth. "Are you alright? Hiccup?!"

Gesturing to his bulging throat, Hiccup's eyes seemed to be popping. He needed air.

Now.

"Help!" Astrid screamed, dropping next to Hiccup. Toothless licked his rider's hand, desperate to help. "He-he's choking! Please, anybody, do something! I don't know how to handle this!"

Stoick glanced up from his meal, now horrified to his his son kneeling on the floor, clutching his throat. He was choking. "Hiccup!" he boomed, jumping up from his chair and jogging over. "It-it's okay, Hiccup... you're going to be okay!"

Hiccup nodded, but he looked like he might pass out at any moment. Stoick didn't waste any time at all, and he grabbed Hiccup while sitting down on a nearby chair. The chief started to push down on the boy's back in a panicked rhythm- nearly pounding the boy, really-, fearful of what could happen if he failed.

Breathe, Hiccup. Breathe!

Stoick kept on pushing, and the room of vikings silenced in terror.

Hiccup wasn't breathing, but the chief still kept at it.

Push. Push. Push.

Pound!

Hiccup suddenly choked out a large piece of meat, gasping for the air he needed. He collapsed on his father's legs, lightheaded from the experience. Toothless licked Hiccup's cheek, whining.

Stoick cried out in relief, bringing the boy up to his chest for a giant hug. "Oh, Hiccup," he whispered, horrified of what could have happened if he hadn't been there in time. "Shhh… you're okay… you're okay…"

Hiccup panted, his eyes feeling heavy. All he wanted to do now was fall asleep. Everything hurt. His throat, his back, his chest…

But he had to stay awake to comfort his father. He could tell that Stoick needed Hiccup there a lot more than Hiccup needed him.

"I'm… okay," Hiccup choked, fighting to remain conscious. "Just had… something stuck in… my throat… for a minute… there…"

The chief almost let loose a tear, when he realized that all the other Viking men and women in the Great Hall were staring at him, seeing how the chief would react. Stoick cleared his throat, running a hand through Hiccup's bangs. "You're okay, son," he said, but it was more to himself than to Hiccup.

Hiccup groaned, yawning. "Dad… I'm tired." He yawned again, putting his head on Stoick's shoulder. It felt cozy there. Safe. Protected from the world…

"You go to sleep now, son," Stoick urged, bringing the boy into a tighter hug. "Take all the time you need. I…" He stopped, trying to figure out what to say next.

I can't believe I almost lost you, Hiccup.

I love you, Hiccup.

You're the most special person I know, Hiccup.

Stoick the Vast sighed, loosening his grip on Hiccup. "I never would have been able to go on without you, son. Thank you for living."

Though half asleep, Hiccup smiled in a daze. "I love you too, Dad."

Stoick froze, unsure how to reply. True, he didn't just go walking around every day telling people he loved them, but he honestly couldn't remember the last time he told his son that. Perhaps after the Red Death experience- still, that was a long time ago…

The chief swallowed.

He was a terrible father.

Hiccup chuckled, beginning to drift off. "This is… the part where… you say… 'Thank you, Hiccup.'... okay?"

Grunting, Stoick nodded in acknowledgment, and patted the boy on the back. "Thank you, Hiccup. I love you."

And he did.

And Hiccup knew it.

Choke, Hiccup, choke! Mwahaha...

Sorry for the shorter chapter again, but I just wanted to write this as quick as I could! ;) As always, if you have a request for me to write as one of these one-shots, then PM me or leave a review with your request.

Happy reading!

-thepurplewriter333