Mixed emotions! Do I like this or not? I'm not sure, what I do know is that I have made quite a few changes last minute so some sections have not been edited that much, just a small warning.

Now onto another subject and that is that I simply want to thank all of you for being so amazing and sharing your lovely thoughts on what you think of each chapter. I really, really appreciate it and you keep me going! So, much of love to all of you!

Laidyx: Haha I agree, less wedding more Hiccelsa every day ;) Haha I can understand that you would like one with Toothless as well, then you can have one guy on each side ;)

9.

"Fredrik?" Hiccup called to the young boy who was standing next to Astrid, watching her take off Stormfly's saddle in the best way. Hearing his name, he quickly sprinted over to Hiccup with an excited smile on his face.

"Yes?" He said as he skidded into a stop in front of Hiccup who gave the young kid the letter he had brought the Vikings that morning.

"Can you take this back with you?" Hiccup said, Fredrik nodding his head and he was just about to turn back to Astrid when Fishlegs' voice was heard calling for him.

"Fredrik, there's someone here looking for you!" He called loudly as he came walking up the hill towards where Hiccup was sitting outside his cottage, both he and young Fredrik turning to see that a young woman was walking behind him.

The woman had to be a maid from castle, for she was dressed in the usual dark purple dress Hiccup had seen on all the female servants. Her dark brown hair was hidden under a white cap and she was looking around the camp with huge eyes. When her eyes landed on Hiccup, he could see how a small blush spread over her cheeks.

"Can I help you?" He asked kindly when she reached them and her eyes immediately fell on him. At his question, he could hear how Astrid snorted loudly from where she was attending to Stormfly and he saw how Fishlegs was fighting back a smile.

"I just… uhm… it was just that I was told to go look for Fredrik, Chief Haddock. Mr. Karlsson is looking for him." She stammered, her eyes darting between Hiccup, the young boy and Toothless who was sitting next to Hiccup. His dragon was looking at the maid with piercing eyes, but he also noticed that the acceptance Toothless had shown towards the Queen was now only indifference.

"No his not, Mr. Karlsson was the one who…" Fredrik began saying with a frown, stopping when he saw harsh look the maid sent him.

"Well, he is now." She snapped as Fishelgs and Astrid did their best not to laugh, for Fredrik had only been in the camp a few minutes. Hiccup himself mostly felt a bit tired, but he still managed to send the girl a small smile.

"It's a good thing then young Fredrik here was just about to return with my reply. You will make sure the letter reaches Queen Elsa?" Hiccup said to the young lad once again and this time Fredrik did a salute to him before leaning over.

"The maids are all acting strange lately, it's something weird going on, so don't think to much off it." He whispered to Hiccup who chuckled, happy that Fredrik apparently was still too young to fully understand everything that went on in the castle.

"Marley, are you coming or not?" Fredrik then asked the young maid who had stayed rooted in place when he turned to leave, still staring not so subtly on Hiccup.

"What? Of course I am, goodbye Chief Haddock." She said with a nervous smile, blushing fiercely when Hiccup wished her a good day, and she rushed after Fredrik who turned around and rolled his eyes to the Vikings behind her back.

"You know, if you are not careful I think you will have a whole armada of ships following us back to Berk." Astrid said to Hiccup, nudging him in the side with a huge smile.

"They just find us interesting because we are Vikings." Hiccup answered.

"I don't know if you have noticed, but even though I have turned out to be pretty popular with the ladies myself, it's not me they are following around." Fishlegs' said with a grin as Hiccup groaned.

"If you two are ganging up on me on this, I will make sure to put you both on cleaning the dragon pits when we get back to Berk." He said with a small glare.

"I would like to see you try, besides who said anything about ganging up on you? We are just stating the facts and we will do the same when we get back to Berk as well." Astrid said with a laugh, she and Fishlegs both grinning as they walked away to put away their dragons' gear.

"At least you are on my side in this aren't you bud?" Hiccup asked Toothless who shook his head.

"Traitor." Hiccup said with a smile as Toothless nudged him in the side, telling his rider that he wanted to get rid off his gear as well.

"Alright, hold on a second mister bossy." Hiccup said as he started to take off the saddle, Toothless happily rolling around on the ground as soon as he was free from it. "Just a few more days and then we will be on our way back home bud." Hiccup told Toothless, feeling a bit of relief at the fact.

Toothless gave his hand a small lick as an answer before lifting from the ground to fly and find Stormfly and Meatlug.

Hiccup picked up of the equipment and went to store it away in the windshield that was attached to his cottage. He had to admit that the time away from Berk had been, and still was, well needed, but he was already starting to feel the need to return. It wasn't that he didn't trust his mother, Gobber and Eret to take care of Berk, it was just that he was only fully comfortable when he had full control himself.

Still the journey to Arendelle had appeared to be turning out much better than any of them had expected. Princess Anna had been just as open here as she had been on Berk and all three Vikings had found themselves thinking of both Rapunzel and Eugene as friends. Even Queen Elsa had turned out to be very different from what Hiccup had imagined.

Thinking back to last night, Hiccup once again couldn't help to feel some wonder at how extremely easy it turned out to be to interact with the Queen as soon as she allowed him in. It was clear that she was highly intelligent, her mind quick and calculating, and Hiccup had gotten the feeling that she had enjoyed their battle of wits just as much as he had. For Hiccup, it had been a very welcome change that anyone, for once, had not only been able to follow his train of thought, but come with new comebacks easily as well.

On Berk, most of his people had a tendency of either not understanding him or taking things far too literally. Queen Elsa on the other hand had no problem at all to keep up with him and she challenged him in a new way he found both very entertaining and very intriguing.

It also pleased him that the Queen had chosen to let him in, even if it had been just a little bit. If it had anything to do with the conversation they had shared when he had introduced her to the dragons he didn't know, but he felt a little privileged that she had chosen to let him when it came to her powers. He had felt the Queen was not comfortable with the subject, which had surprised him slightly, but he had also noticed how she had not seemed to regret her choice afterwards.

One other thing that had surprised him as well had been her offer to give him a dance lesson. At first, he really had thought she was just trying to trick him, but when she had insisted that she wasn't joking he had soon found out that he liked the more playful side of her, for he had not believed there was once.

In the end she had been a very good, very professional teacher and Hiccup had to admit that he was a little happy that he had accepted the challenge since it had been quite entertaining for both of them. The memory of her cold skin though, was still lingering in his mind for her strange temperature clashed with his own in a way that sent cold tingles into his skin. It had been the same the first time he had shook her hand, but then he hadn't thought much about it, thinking she had just been cold that day.

Now though, he had come to draw the conclusion that the Queen's power had to affect her body temperature, making her colder than a human normally was.

His decision not follow her into the party once more was one he had pondered over afterwards. In the moment he had felt how he needed some time alone to think over everything that Queen Elsa had told him, but there had also been something else. He had felt that he almost needed some room to breathe, as if he had been lost in a moment outside of the real world during the time they had spent in the gardens.

When he finally had returned back to camp, Astrid had already been there, telling him how she had felt that she needed some distance from the political life of Arendelle. Joining her by the fire she had built, they had been up for another hour, talking about all of the impressions they had gotten since arriving to this strange land. But, as if by some silent agreement, they had never more than a few times mentioned the Queen at all.

"Hiccup, are you ready to go already?" Astrid shouted at him from the other side of the windshield and Hiccup smiled as he walked out and saw her standing there waiting for him, her axe over her shoulder and a smile on her face.

"A little impatient Astrid? Where is Fishlegs?" Hiccup asked as the man in question appeared.

"I am here, wait for me guys!" He called, running down the hill from his cottage with his own axe and maze with him.

"Finally! You two have no idea how much I have wanted to bury my axe into something since we got here." Astrid said as they started to walk down towards the castle grounds once more, their destination the guards training area.

When Elsa woke up in the morning, all she wanted to do was go back to sleep, but after a few moments of mentally hitting herself she finally managed to get out of bed, not even bothering to call on Brigitte since she saw an opportunity to cherish a few moments of solitude after having been surrounded by people for the last few weeks.

With quick hands she braided her hair in her usual braid before putting on one of her simpler dresses that had the beautiful teal color she loved very much. With one last look to see that she was presentable she then left her room to go and have breakfast.

When she reached the dining room, she was a little surprised to see that she was the last to join in, Rapunzel, Eugene, Anna and Kristoff already sitting by the table eating and chatting lively. Walking over to Mr. Karlsson, she gave him a letter to send to Chief Haddock before sitting down.

"I didn't expect to see you two up so early this morning even though you disappeared early last night; have the wedded bliss already been chased away?" Elsa asked with a smile towards her sister and new brother who were both glowing as they smiled back at her, completely unfazed by her teasing.

"Actually, I think it is even better today." Anna said, looking at Kristoff with glowing eyes as Elsa did her best to not roll her eyes at the couple, knowing she would have to live with this for quite some time to come.

"And it should be! The ceremony and the feast was beautiful last night, and the ball was simply wonderful! I heard so many praising it!" Rapunzel said with a huge smile as Eugene sent her a curious look. It was not that he was surprised that Rapunzel complemented the wedding, it was the fact that she was looking at Elsa while doing so.

"Oh how lovey to hear! I am so happy nothing went wrong! I mean it would have been just our luck for a disaster to happen." Anna said.

"Especially considering someone is accident prone." Kristoff said with a smile in Anna's direction that caused the rest of the table to laugh as she sent him a small glare.

"I am not accident prone! I simply have a tendency of misjudging the areas around me." She replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

"In other words prone to cause accidents." Eugene said, Anna throwing her napkin at him. It didn't reach him though, and only managed to hit his glass instead. Luckily there was nothing left in it.

"What did I say?" Kristoff laughed putting hos arm around Anna as she pouted.

"I'm just happy everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, despite the somewhat crowded ballroom." Anna said, smiling again.

"Yes, I actually think everyone did enjoy themselves last night, at least I did not see anyone who was looking gloom." Rapunzel said as she caught Anna's eyes across the table, nodding her head in Elsa's direction as Anna gasped quietly and gave her cousin an excited smile when she figured out what she was insinuating.

Before either one had the chance to enquire deeper though, the doors opened as a young boy walked in, his face extremely nervous as he sent a look at Mr. Karlsson. The elderly butler gave the kid a slightly scolding look, but nodded to him and the young boy walked up to Elsa and gave her a badly folded letter with shaking hands.

"A letter for you, your majesty." He said with small voice as Elsa sent him a warm smile.

"Thank you Fredrik, that was really fast." She said and the young boy bowed before rushing out of the room.

As Elsa opened the letter and read it, Eugene and Kristoff shared a confused look over the table, for their wives had suddenly turned very quiet and was watching Elsa's behavior intensely. They got even more suspicious when both women looked disappointed at the simply pleased look that appeared on Elsa's face as she put the letter down.

Looking up, Elsa finally noticed their odd behavior.

"You know, I thought I would be happy when you two stopped looking at your husbands all the time, but now I only wish you would do it again." She said with a slighty annoyed expression.

"Who was the letter from? Anna asked as a look of understanding appeared in Elsa's ice blue eyes and an amused smile spread over her face.

"You usually never ask that." She answered, taking a sip of her coffee.

"I'm just… curios?" Anna said, sharing a look with Rapunzel across the table.

"Then why do I get the feeling that you and Rapunzel are simply asking because you wish that it's a certain Chief who sent it?" At their sheepish looks, Kristoff and Eugene both sent Elsa a grin, finding it quite funny how fast she had figured out the two other women.

"So was it?" Rapunzel asked excitedly.

"It was, but before you start cheering, he simply replied that he and his friends will attend the meeting about our future partnership later today."

At her reply, Anna looked a little disappointed while Rapunzel got an innocent look on her face.

"Oh… so he didn't mention anything about last night?" She asked casually as the whole room turned silent, except for a coughing Kristoff who had taken a sip of water just as Rapunzel spoke.

"What?" Both sisters then exclaimed in perfect sync, though Elsa was calm and sounded slightly confused while Anna gave a shout, grinning from ear to ear as she clasped her hands together.

"Wait, slow down!" Elsa said to her sister as Anna turned to her and Elsa could see that she was about to burst into a million questions. "What are you talking about?" She asked Rapunzel, sounding just as confused as she felt.

"I saw you two disappearing into the gardens last night. Sure you didn't leave together but you were both gone for quite some time and I saw when you returned together, so don't try to tell me that you didn't meet!" She said, her eyes glowing while Anna gave a squeal. Eugene and Kristoff both stayed silent, having decided that staying out of the conversation was the safest option for now.

To everyone's surprise though, Elsa didn't get upset, instead she started laughing.

"I wasn't going to, but I am sorry to break your bubble for it was hardly as romantic as you both seem to think. Chief Haddock and I both needed to get away from the party and we ran into each other in the gardens. Then, like any other normal person, we greeted each other and we talked." Elsa said simply, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Oh…" The two women said while Kristoff and Eugene shared a look of relief at the fact that it all seemed to be over.

"So you two just talked for over one and a half hour?" Rapunzel asked, Kristoff noticing how a mischievous look appeared in Elsa's eyes and he put down his fork once again, knowing it was the safest option for now.

"Don't be ridiculous, I taught him to dance." Elsa said casually and this time, it was Eugene's turn to cough loudly as he had taken a bite of his food. At her words Mr. Karlsson looked shocked and the footmen smiled happily at each other, hardly believing their luck to hear all the gossip.

"But you never dance with anyone!" Anna exclaimed with surprise, staring at Elsa with disbelief as her sister sent her tired look.

"No I don't, and it's because I find the whole ordeal to be incredibly silly. Also I have no need for rumors to start flying around that I will marry every man I dance with." At this Elsa threw a harsh look at the footmen who stopped smiling and swallowed nervously.

"Now, however, it turned out that my distaste of dancing had been pointed out to Chief Haddock by someone" Here Elsa sent Rapunzel a pointed look. "And so when he doubted my ability to dance, and admitted that he himself didn't know how to, I choose to deafened my honor and do the right thing by teaching him some basic steps. After all, it was stupid of me to forget that the Vikings have no idea how to dance here. So the whole ordeal was highly platonic and not at all interesting I can assure you." Elsa said, her voice clearly telling everyone that this was the end of the conversation.

At her explanation Mr. Karlsson looked very pleased while Anna and Rapunzel felt a little disappointed, but no matter what Elsa said, she had danced with Chief Hiccup and that was something out of the ordinary, no matter how much she tried to pretend that it wasn't.

Any further enquiries were interrupted though when a young servant rushed into the room with a stressed look and panted out: "Your majesty, you have to come with me!"

"She is amazing!"

"Outstanding!"

Hiccup smiled as the guards, young and old, stared in awe at Astrid who was facing one of the men that had volunteered to train with her, being the first not to underestimate her.

The first three men who had challenged her earlier had all been cautious about fighting a woman, it didn't really matter if she was a Viking or not, but they had all quickly learned that they were no match for her at all as she had brought them down a matter of seconds. Now, for the first time, she was facing some opposition and Hiccup could see how much she enjoyed the fight. Watching her, it was clear she was fully in her element, and she looked like a Valkyrie who had just stepped down from Valhalla.

Fishlegs had also been practicing with some of the guards, and even though he was not as agile or quick as Astrid, he had still easily defeated his opponents, knowing how to turn his force and weight around to give him the upper hand.

Watching his friends face off the guards, Hiccup had noticed how incredibly clear it was that they had been trained to master all of their strengths from the day they had learned to walk, for no matter how skilled the guards were, the Vikings were a step ahead, using every weapon with the same extreme skill. But then again, Vikings were not known to be some of the most feared and skilled warriors in the world for nothing.

With a howl of pain, the guard Astrid was facing fell to the ground, for she had gotten in a full hit with the training swords they used so no one would get seriously injured. At her victory, the men who had been watching the fight started clapping their hands at the performance.

"I must admit; you are an extremely skilled fighter Astrid." Her opponent said as she helped him up from the ground.

"I would not live up to my name if I wasn't." She grinned back at him before the two shook hands and parted, Astrid walking over to where Fishlegs and Hiccup was standing.

"You okay? He got in a pretty bad hit on your arm." Hiccup said, taking a careful hold of Astrid's arm to inspect the spot where a new bruise was already forming.

"Will I survive great Chief?" Astrid smiled at him warmly when he let go.

"I do not think they will not accept you into Valhalla just yet." Hiccup smiled back at her.

"So, Fishlegs are you ready to show these softies how real Vikings fight?" Astrid asked their friend with an excited look in her eyes.

"If you promise not to send me to the healer again this time." Fishlegs answered nervously.

"No can do!" Astrid smiled before picking up her axe and a shield, walking back into the training area.

"At least I will know I died protecting my honor. Tell Meatlug I love her!" Fishlegs sighed to Hiccup before following Astrid, the two taking their positions opposite of each other.

When the fight began, Hiccup and everyone watching could immediately see that this fight was on a much higher level than any of the ones before. Each blow was calculated, full of force and brought something to the battle as his friends wielded their weapons as if they had been born with them in their hands.

As the fight went on, Hiccup noticed how more and more men started to gather around to watch the fight. One young man who walked up right next to Hiccup though eyed the battle with an almost bored expression. He was dressed in fine cloths, his hair was combed back and he looked as if he just had smelt something disgusting.

In other words, it was clear he was a nobleman and not a guard.

"So, the great Viking Chief allows women to fight his battles." The man suddenly said with a mocking glare in Hiccup's direction, Hiccup looking at the man with disinterest. He was a head shorter than himself, but of a bulkier build.

But then again, most men were.

"You are free to try and stop her." He simply replied, turning his eyes back to the battle just as Astrid got a hold of Fishleg's shield and forced it from him. The man next to him looked a little startled at her fierceness but quickly hid it behind a new scowl.

"Still, I have not seen you out here. Are you simply trying to show off your little companions' strength or are you too afraid to fight yourself?" He said, the challenge in his voice clear.

"I never thought the day would come when anyone called Fishlegs small, too bad he was not able to hear it, you would have made his day." Hiccup only responded dryly, getting some slight satisfaction as the other man got an irritated look on his face.

"You didn't answer the question." He snapped.

"Because I have no need or desire to sway your view, you are free to believe what you wish to believe." Hiccup simply said, for he truly didn't care the slightest what this man thought of him, it was not as if Hiccup was ever going to see him again.

"What kind of Viking are you? I never thought I'd hear a Viking turn down a fight, especially not a Chief. If you ask me, you appear to be a disgrace to your own people." The man said mockingly, failing to notice how Hiccup's eyes suddenly turned darker.

Not so different words had been spoken by his dad when he was fifteen, and even though Stoick many times afterwards had made it clear that he had been very proud to call Hiccup his son, the words still managed to bring back the dark and painful memories of the shame Hiccup had felt in that moment, especially since Hiccup more and more often after his dad's death had wondered if he still would have been proud over his son.

"That is your opinion." Hiccup replied shortly though, doing his best to sound unaffected by the man's words as he saw how Astrid won the fight. She looked over at him with a huge smile that he only returned half heartedly, signaling to her that he was leaving. In return she sent him a confused look as her eyes darted between him and the man next to him, but she nodded in his direction, telling him that she would ask about it later.

As Hiccup turned to leave though, the other man suddenly placed his hand on Hiccup's shoulder. At the contact, Hiccup felt how his whole body tensed up, the irritation and anger beginning to rise within. Looking back at the other man, he quickly let go of Hiccup's shoulder, seeing the dark look Hiccup sent his way, but surprisingly, or foolishly, he still stood his ground.

"You cannot talk yourself out of this situation, I demand to face you in a duel!" He exclaimed, looking very determined. "I have heard all about the Vikings skill and I am the best fighter in my land." He said, a proud look spreading over his face.

"I will not fight you so you can get your glory." Hiccup said, his irritation finally seeping into his voice and he noticed that the people around them were starting to notice the tension between him and the other man. In the corner of his eye, Hiccup noted how the captain named Kai said something to a young boy and he saw how the kid threw them a look before running into the castle as fast as he could.

"Well won't you look at that, a Viking turning down a challenge." The man in front of him said, his face once more mocking with an evil smirk. "I suppose all the stories about the proud tribes of the north are only false then? That the bravest Vikings aren't really the Chiefs? How did a coward like you even become Chief? I can hardly think any father would have wanted you to take his place, so what did you do, kill him?"

For a moment, the young man almost looked proud of his own insult, but his expression soon turned uncertain and he paled slightly when he saw how the Chief's face had turned dark. His eyes were burning with anger and there was an aura around him that seemed to make the air turn heavy. Suddenly feeling very unsecure, the man swallowed nervously, wondering if he had not just made a mistake.

Inside, Hiccup felt how his body was burning with the raging darkness that was telling him to simply silence the boy for his insults. In front of his eyes, he saw his dad throw himself between himself and Toothless and the anger mixed with the pain and quilt that started to tear into his heart as knives. The young man in front of him had opened up all the wounds he had so carefully closed and the darkness, that promised him a place where he didn't have to feel anything, demanded that the man should punished for undoing his hard work.

An angry cry up in the sky brought Hiccup out of his dark thoughts though as everyone else looked up in fright at the black dragon that shoot down towards the ground and landed growling next to him.

Toothless.

At the impact the ground shook, but Hiccup was completely unfazed by the fact, placing his hand on his friend's side, the storm within calming as his more rational side returned. Still, the man in front of him had far overstepped a line, and even though he hated confrontation, Hiccup had had enough.

"I assume you have not met my dragon, Toothless say hallo." He said with a harsh expression as Toothless gave a roar that made the nobleman to cry out in fright and take a few hasty steps backwards. He didn't get far though, for he managed to trip over his own feet and he fell to ground, looking up at Hiccup and Toothless with a pale face. "Now what were you saying before?" Hiccup asked.

"I… I…" The man stuttered, his eyes fixed with fear on Toothless who was still growling at him.

"What is the meaning of this?" The ice cold voice broke through the tension as a whip, causing everyone to turn towards the place where the Queen had emerged. Her hair was glowing in the sunlight, but her eyes was as cold and hard as the ice she could control as she took in the scene before her. Behind her, Hiccup could see that the rest of the royal family was staring at the scene with huge eyes and slightly scared expressions.

"I do hope there is a very good explanation for what is going on here!" Queen Elsa snapped, her voice icy cold as she stared with piercing eyes at Hiccup and Toothless, Hiccup realizing what the scene must look like to an outsider.

Thankfully the captain, who had sent the young lad for the Queen, rushed to her side. Hiccup could see how he whispered to her, her eyes travelling between Hiccup, Toothless and the man on the ground as they only turned colder.

With a nod, she started walking towards them and for each step she took the warmth in the air seemed to be sucked away, dropping more and more the closer she got. As a response, Toothless moved closer to Hiccup, his eyes locked onto the Queen, but there was only anticipation within them.

When Queen Elsa reached them, she looked down at the man on the ground with such disgust that even the bravest of men would have cowered under her gaze and Hiccup felt how bit more of the darkness fell away, for he knew she had been told what had happened and he could see that she was not going to go easy on the man on the ground.

"Get up!" She said harshly him and he scrambled off the ground as he looked at her with a frightened expression, Queen Elsa giving him a last frosty glare before turning her attention to Hiccup.

As she looked at him, Elsa for the first time felt a little cautious of the man in front of her. The dark expression on his face was a huge contrast to the kind man she had started to get to know. But she could also see that behind the anger, there was something else, something she recognized for she had seen it in her own eyes so many times.

It was the look of a person torn, a person who was battling with himself, and even though Elsa felt a strange compassion and worry for the Chief, she knew this was not the time to address the subject.

"My captain has told me what just took place here and I am sorry for the high offense Prince Harlod have placed upon you Chief Haddock." She said instead, happy that as he looked at her and gave her a small nod, the turmoil in his eyes softened somewhat.

"As for you, sir." She spat out, her anger returning with full force as she turned back to the Prince who was looking at her with fright. "I thought that considering the history with your brother you would have more respect towards me and my guests! I will talk to your oldest brother, King Herman, about your behavior and I expect you to be gone before evening falls." She said, her voice once more cold and harsh.

"But Queen Elsa…" Prince Harold began, a slightly distressed and pleading look upon his face.

"I will not hear it! Your brother was charged for trying not only to overthrow me, but also to murder both me and the princess. He was to be thrown in a dungeon to root when you and your brothers begged me to return him to you, which I kindly did! Now you come here and accuse one of my most valued partners of the highest sin possible and you expect me to not take action?! You should be thanking me for simply sending you back home. Now, I want you out of my kingdom!"

Elsa had not once shouted or raised her voice, but the threatening tone had caused shivers of cold to run down the spines of everyone listening as an uneasy feeling had spread within them since the air seemed to sparkle around the Queen. When, at her last words, frost also spread out like a blast on the ground underneath her feet, they all felt how incredibly grateful they were that her anger wasn't directed at them.

There was one person though who fully ignored all of this, and she was ready to make it known that she wasn't satisfied with the outcome at all.

"Wait! You can't just let him leave!" Astrid shouted, finally breaking free from Fishlegs who had held her back, leaving him with a bloody nose as she ran over the field and came into a stop next to Hiccup, a furious expression on her face. "Do you have any idea what that slimy little scum said?" She shouted at the Queen who looked completely unfazed by her glare.

"I think I know enough." She said coldly and as he looked at them, Hiccup couldn't help to see how different the two women's anger showed itself. While Astrid was like a blazing fire, her blue eyes burning with anger, Queen Elsa was cold and collected, her ice blue eyes containing a storm that looked under control, but if unleashed, could devour anything in a matter of seconds.

They were, in that moment, complete opposites as they stood facing each other.

"Then you have to agree that I have the right to challenge him!" Astrid growled, taking step closer to the Queen, her blazing eyes turning to Prince Harold. "He wanted to fight a Viking and he has highly offended my Chief's honor, I demand to beat the hell out of him!" At her harsh words many of the guards smiled approvingly, still a little surprised at her fierceness.

At first, Hiccup thought that the Queen would turn down Astrid's request, but as he looked at her, he saw how her calculating eyes turned approving and she sent Astrid a small smile. It became even more strange when Astrid grinned back. It was as if the two women were bonding over their equal distaste for the man in front of them.

Eugene was right, women was a mystery he would never understand.

"I see no reason not to fulfill that wish, after all you did wish to fight." Queen Elsa finally said, directing the last part to Prince Harold who still looked frightened, especially when he saw the cold smiles on the two women's faces and the challenge in their eyes.

"I…" The Prince said, his eyes darting between the two women as he looked highly stressed.

The only one Hiccup had eyes for though was Astrid. He knew she could hold herself against anyone much better than himself, but when he looked at her, the memory of his father flashed before his eyes and he felt how a slight amount of panic rose within that anything should happen to her because of him as well. If it did, he would never be able to live with himself.

So no matter how much a better fighter she was, and despite knowing she would never be beaten, Hiccup knew this was a fight he had to take himself, no matter how much he hated violence.

"No need to look so scared, you will fight me just as you wished." He therefore said, his voice filled with the pure distaste he felt for the Prince.

At his declaration, Astrid turned her anger towards him.

"But Hiccup, I want to kill him!" She complained as she sent a look of pure hate at the Prince who swallowed nervously.

"Well, I will simply have to not kill him then." Hiccup answered simply, grinning when he saw the smile that spread over Astrid's face.

"Go get him Chief." She said, giving him a kiss on the cheek, something she always did when she wanted to wish him good luck. The action causing many of the spectators to whistle loudly at the pair.

Someone who was also watching the couple closely, feeling a sting of annoyance at the public display of affection, was Elsa. She had noticed that Chief Haddock and Astrid appeared to be very close, but she had not gotten any indication before that there could be anything between them and it bothered her that she had missed that it might be.

"Toothless, you stay here bud." Chief Haddock told his dragon, who grumbled in response and sat down next to Astrid, a calm look in his green eyes. Fishlegs gave the Chief's shoulder a squeeze of support, Chief Haddock nodding in reply, before the Viking walked out into the training area with an unreadable expression.

Elsa, wanting to see what would happen, took her place next to the Vikings, feeling slightly worried when she saw that Chief Haddock didn't pick up a weapon to defend himself with.

"He is not going to have a weapon?" Elsa asked Astrid, who sent her a small smile.

"He will not need a weapon to defeat that whimp." She answered with conviction, but Elsa could see that her blue eyes was a little worried as well when she looked at the Chief.

"You are not picking up a weapon?" Prince Harold shouted to the Chief when, he too, noticed that Chief Haddock had not picked up a weapon. The only response he got though was an almost bored expression from the Viking.

Looking at the Chief, Prince Harold felt how his unease grew at the other man's emotionless expression and at the fact that he had the same eye color as the bloody dragon did. Realizing that the Chief was not going to make the first move, Prince Harold decided that he had enough and he charged with full force.

As the other man approached, the Chief simply stood rooted in the same place. But when the Prince readied himself for the impact with a victorious expression on his face, Hiccup took a step to the side, evading the charge with ease as the Prince, who had expected an impact, lost his footing. In any other case, the Prince probably would have regained his balance, but this time Hiccup spun around, using the quick reflexes he had developed over the years working with dragons, and kicked the man in the back with his metal leg.

At the added force, Prince Harold could in no way evade the fall and he dropped his sword as he tried to lessen the blow with his hands. Upon his impact with the ground, he felt a sharp piercing pain in his right wrist as something snapped and he gave out a cry of pain.

Around the whole training area, the silence was so thick that you could have cut it with a knife as everyone tried to understand what had just happened. Looking around, Hiccup saw that his friends were the only ones who weren't looking at him with surprise, instead they were grinning while Toothless had a pleased look on his face.

But there was one more who was not looking at him with surprise nor was she looking at him with a smile. Queen Elsa's expression was instead simply calculating and slightly guarded, her ice blue eyes completely void of any emotion. Seeing that her mask was back on, Hiccup was a little surprised at much he had already come to dislike it, but he didn't put much thought into it as he looked down at the Prince who was laying by his feet with a look of utter defeat on his face.

Feeling no amount of compassion for the other man, Hiccup still picked up his sword and offered him his hand to help him stand. With a pained expression, the Prince accepted his offer, but as he tried to let go, Hiccup increased his hold on the other man's hand as he leaned in close.

"And just to set things straight since you asked, my father did die and it was I who killed him." Hiccup said in a low voice to the other man before releasing him, the Prince turning ghostly pale with fear as he only stared after Hiccup as he went to join his friends, Astrid greeting him with a huge smile, a punch on the arm and a new kiss on the cheek while Fishleg's patted him in the back.

After that, it only took only a matter of seconds before they were all surrounded by guards who were praising them for their skills and tried to talk them into training them. At the attention, Hiccup could not help to feel very uneasy, knowing that he was nowhere near the worrier the guards seemed to believe he was, many of the younger men were even looking at him with awe.

"I do think my guests deserves some room to breathe gentlemen." Queen Elsa's voice suddenly was heard behind them and even though it was powerful, it had once again turned warm, the cold nowhere to be found. Turning around, Hiccup was happy to see that Queen Elsa's harsh mask had once again fallen away and that she was looking at him with… relief?

With a last few words of compliment, the guards leaved the Vikings alone, only the Queen and her captain staying with them.

"I am happy that you are still in one-piece Chief Haddock, it was about time someone put Prince Harold in place, he has been up on his high horses for far too long." She said to him, her eyes warm as they looked at him.

"I'm happy that I could could help with something then, Queen Elsa." Hiccup replied, happy that the Queen seemed to understand the joke for she smiled at him with mirth.

"Why did he want to fight us though? I mean, I can understand that one would like to test his skills, but to insist on it? And why insist on Hiccup when he could have just challenged me or Astrid instead?" Fishlegs asked, Queen Elsa's expression turning thoughtful before she gestured for them to follow.

"This is not the right place to discuss this, besides I have someone I want you to meet, follow me." She said, the three Vikings looking at each other before following the Queen, the captain joining them as well.

I am personally not 100 % pleased with this chapter, but sometimes you never are and I think this is the best it can become. So what do you think about Hiccup's darker side? And what about Elsa being in what I think we now can call denial of the fact that she might be attracted to our favorite Viking?

Now onto darkness within, myself had a period in my life when I pretty much judged everything I did extremely harshly and I remember so well how easy it was to just retreat into myself and try to push everyone around me away, it's really is like a dark hole. Thankfully I got over it and today I have come to accept and love who I am. Remember, the ones who often judge us the hardest are ourselves and no matter what anyone says, you are always enough. As the talented Sierra Boggess says:

"You are enough, you are so enough, it is unbelievable how enough you are!"

Now onto a happier note: have you seen that I published a one-shot with our favorite couple named "So - did that just happen?". If not, go and read it! That way you will have something to do between the updates of Like growing frost! ;)

Until next time dear readers!
/Lysistrate