I'm back baby. Exams were hell and I truly hope it was worth it. Some of you asked me to do more scenes with Stoick and Valka. Well you've got your wish. I did postpone the heavily anticipated fight for it though but don't worry I won't keep you in the dark for much longer. Also I still suck at conversations and fight scenes. Well live and learn they say. Enjoy.

Chapter 7: Calibration errors

(Several days later)

Berk village the Forge, Just after noon, 266 ADF

Over the next few days Hiccup tried to keep himself out of the spotlight, for several reasons. Firstly not to arouse any suspicion by the loyalists, that's what he called the group in favour of Stoick's rule, secondly to silently observe the Jorgenson and lastly to avoid a specific Viking from the latter clan. Snotlout.

Tension has been building up between the two over the past days, mostly because Snotlout is an egocentric bastard and can't have it that a complete 'stranger' got close to 'his' Astrid in such short time.

Tough it was true Hiccup did get closer to Astrid and Hicca in a short time. You could say that Hiccup and Hicca considered each other to be friends. This brought great joy to Hicca because she finally had someone she could call a friend aside from her mother. The relation between Hiccup and Astrid was a bit foggier though. One couldn't really say if they were friends or something more.

Right now Hiccup was right outside the village forge talking with Hicca and Gobber who were working inside. Having worked considerable time in the Draconian workshops himself he knew a bit about forging. And it was nice to have another person around who loved to invent.

"So I made this contraption the other day." Hicca said while wheeling in something that looked like a mix between a wheelbarrow and a chest in the main forge area from out of her little back room. "It's supposed to launch bolas at high speeds through the air. And it has a crosshair for easy aim."

At the sight of the strange contraption Gobber quietly took a few steps back. He knew Hicca's inventions had the tendency to either malfunction and hurt people in the process or just violently explode. "I think the key word here is supposed to." He said wearily whilst giving Hiccup a glance and motioning him to step back.

"That's two words Gobber." Hicca replied with a grin. She was so excited to show het inventions to her new friend that she didn't even think about what usually happens with her inventions.

Meanwhile Hiccup contrary to Gobber's warning didn't move and watched the machine with great interest. This girl definitely had some talent, however seeing the reaction of the blacksmith he quickly realised this talent might not be nurtured around here.

He didn't get any further in his train of thought however since Hicca suddenly spoke again. "Watch this!" She said and pulled a lever on the side of the wheelbarrow. Immediately a crossbow like weapon sprung upwards and fired. Right at him.

Everything seemed to slow down for Hiccup as he saw the newly fired projectile heading straight for him. He turned his head and body backwards to the right to avoid getting smacked in the face, because truthfully it hurts. The bola flew just past his face at high speed. He had avoided it. By pure instinct he reached back with his right hand and snagged the still flying bola out of the air and turned back to Gobber and Hicca in one motion.

"Uh, oops. Minor calibration issue it seems." Hicca said quietly. Embarrassed that she almost hit her new friend in the face with a bola. She desperately hoped he wouldn't hate her now like the rest of the village did.

"Hicca, this is exactly what we talked about. You need to put aside these crazy inventions and all of this…" Gobber said to Hicca.

"But you just gestured at all of me." Hicca replied with a small voice. This was the part she hated most. Getting publically scolded if something went wrong.

"No Gobber, it's like she said. Minor calibration issues." Hiccup then cut in, looking completely calm beneath his hood which would be uncharacteristic for a man who was almost shot in the face. Then he held up the offending bola to which Gobber's and Hicca's jaws dropped because they hadn't noticed he caught.

"Ye caught that bola?" Gobber asked in awe.

"Yes, Yes I did." Hiccup chuckled.

"I'm sorry Ryder. I didn't mean to…" Hicca began but she was silenced when he spoke again.

"Don't be Hicca, it's true that you have a few calibration issues but they can be easily fixed. I advise that you work on the trigger sensitivity, the shock of the weapon extending from its housing is what set it off. Work out that problem and you'll have a weapon that's not to be trifled with. I also think it's quite effective in its purpose, you have the accuracy down quite well and it definitely packs enough force. Some minor modifications to the ammo and would easily be capable to snap the mast of a ship with a single shot." Hiccup advised while pointing to various parts on the weapon and twirling the bola in his right hand.

Gobber was slack jawed. This stranger who had been on Berk for just a week had just given advice on improving one of Hicca's inventions which a minute earlier almost knocked him out. And he hadn't even looked angry, he was laughing about it! Like this happened all the time. An interesting and enigmatic guy indeed.

"Do you really think so?" Hicca asked hopefully.

"I do Hicca, where I come from we have these big workshop's where we produce all kinds of machinery. It wouldn't surprise me if this would roll out of one someday." Hiccup said with an encouraging tone. "I believe this is yours?" He then said to Gobber giving him the bola back. Gobber nodded and took the bola without a word.

"And what would you make in these workshops?" A new voice suddenly asked. Hiccup turned around to see chief Stoick and a woman whom he believed to be his wife standing before him.

"Uh, basically everything sir. Ships, weapons, tools, building machinery and I'm probably forgetting a few things." Hiccup said casually. Trying not to be too intimidated and surprised the chief was there. 'Yeah, things like heavy artillery, airships, grenades and all kinds of weapons for war.' He thought. 'It's better they don't know that.'

"It sounds very big to me when you say it like that." The woman said.

"Well, Draconia is a big nation so it stand to reason everything is bigger there." Hiccup said. "I'm sorry but I don't believe we have met?" He asked.

"My name is Valka Haddock, I'm Stoick's wife as well as Hicca's mother." The woman now known as Valka said. She had a kind voice and didn't seem to be the harsh kind of Viking woman that you found in the rest of the village.

"I'm Ryder, pleased to meet you ma'am." Hiccup greeted whilst extending a hand for a handshake which she took.

"Please call me Valka, there's no need to go all formal on me Ryder." Valka said kindly. "That was quite the inspirational speech tough. My little girl can use all the support she can get." Hicca smiled at this. There was at least one person who supported her.

"Now now Valka, we both know that one day she needs to start thinking more like a Viking and start looking to the future." Stoick said. He then received not one but two death glares, one from his wife which all but said that this was not happening and a second from Ryder who believed that what he said went against all rights of free choice he had learned in Draconia in his youth.

"Well then I guess this is really a society were moral support is given easily. As so far I only encountered one person who actually cared for her ideas and managed to convert a second. The rest just seem hell-bent on turning her down, just like that Snotlout guy on the first day I came here." Hiccup then said with his arm crossed and a disapproving tone in his voice.

Hicca and Gobber cringed. Gobber because the stranger just openly talked back to the chief and Hicca because she doesn't want her parent to know about the bullying because her dad always said that she had to suck it up and deal with her problems head on. Not come crying to her parents.

"What did you say?!" Valka asked with an angry glare. "What did he do to my little girl?!"

"When I arrived here I witnessed Snotlout and two other teens his age bullying and beating Hicca who was sitting on the ground. Because this behaviour goes against any respect for a fellow human being I stepped in and gave him a piece of my mind. And a fist in his face. Afterwards I checked her for injuries and we talked a little." Hiccup said with determination.

Valka's glare hardened for a moment when she looked in the direction of a particular Viking house in the village before settling back on Ryder and Hicca. Her features softened and she spoke. "Well then seems like we're going to have a little talk with a certain Jorgenson Stoick. And afterwards were going to talk. Thank you for helping my daughter Ryder. It's nice to know that there are still good people around in the world." She said while laying a hand on Hiccup's shoulder.

"My pleasure ma'… Valka." Hiccup corrected himself quickly.

"Now I have a question, you never seem to take off your hood and facemask. Why?" Valka asked.

"I like to remain anonymous during my travels. The less people who know my face the better." Hiccup lied. "Now would you excuse me I still promised Astrid a friendly spar. And I believe she will have my head if I break my promise." He said while beginning to walk away.

"On that we can agree." Valka concluded.

"Can I come along?" Hicca quickly asked. She didn't want to be around her parents and Gobber now. The latter being too shocked about the amount of guts the stranger had for saying all those things.

"Sure, fine by me." Hiccup said and he motioned for her to come along. Stoick was about to stop her and say something but he chose to remain silent at the last moment.

Hiccup and Hicca made their way through the village. When they were far enough away Hicca suddenly stopped them and spoke up.

"Thank you for defending me but why would you do such a thing for me?" She asked.

Hiccup decided that now was a good time for some Draconian wisdom. "Hicca, I'm going to say this once and you must promise never to forget it okay?" Hiccup began.

Hicca only nodded.

"There will always be people thinking and speaking different about one another. But just because they say it very loud doesn't make it true. In the end it doesn't matter what others think, the most important thing is what you think. When the time comes you will have to make your own decisions and know what's best for you." Hiccup said while pointing at Hicca. "Never forget it."

"I won't." Hicca said truly inspired by Ryder's speech. "So where are we meeting Astrid?" She asked.

"We're meeting at the edge of the forest behind the great hall." Hiccup said.

"Race ya!" Hicca suddenly proclaimed and she sped off.

'Oh, so that's how it's going to be. You're on pipsqueak!' Hiccup thought to himself chuckling before speeding off as well.

Hicca used her small size to weave around the various stalls and houses in her path towards the forest. Hiccup had taken an alternative route. A stray hay cart and a few wooden beams were enough for him to propel himself onto the rooftops and he was now doing parkour over the various rooftops and for a moment he was back in Draconia doing the same thing with Valentine when they were younger.

Hicca looked behind her to see if he was still following though she was confused not to see anyone a shout of a random Viking and a fast moving shadow caught her attention. She gasped.

There he was, running swiftly along the rooftops at a sprinters pace. She saw him jumping from one roof to the next with trained agility and he startled more than a few Vikings with his stunts. She quickly started running again not having had this much fun in years.

When she got out of the village she thought she was ahead only for Ryder to land right next to her.

She was startled by his sudden appearance but quickly donned a smile on her face this was fun.

"That wasn't bad, you could keep up with me." Hiccup said.

"You've got to teach me what you just did, that looked awesome." Hicca breathed with excitement.

"Maybe someday, now let's get going. Don't want to keep Astrid waiting." Hiccup chuckled.

"Yeah, let's go." Hicca finished. They then walked the rest of the way towards the forest.

Berk forest edge, Just after noon, 266 ADF

Hiccup and Hicca arrived at the forest edge to find that Astrid had already arrived and was waiting with her axe in hand.

"Hey Ryder, ready to get beaten?" She playfully asked. In these days Astrid had adopted a more carefree attitude thanks to Hiccup's presence. Then she noticed Hicca next to him. "Are we having an audience?" She asked him.

"She wanted to come along, how can I say no?" Hiccup replied.

"Apparently you can't. Just keep your distance okay Hicca?" Astrid said to them.

"Sure." Hicca said and she placed herself on a nearby rock to watch.

"So Ryder, draw your weapon and we can begin." Astrid said getting in a fighting position.

"Actually can we do hand-to-hand combat? I'm curious about how Viking fight with their hands." Hiccup replied. 'See if it is any different from a disarmed Norn berserker?' he thought.

"Alright." Astrid said while sheathing her axe on her back again. "Come at me traveller." She challenged.

Hiccup grinned and dropped in his fighting stance as well. You could immediately see that it was very different from Astrid's. Then he just waited for her to make the first move.

And make the first move she did. She raised her fist and charged screaming to punch him. Hard. Hiccup skidded to the left, thus avoiding her fist and began circling her, his eyes never leaving her form. Astrid charged again with her fist raised, when it was about to hit Hiccup raised his arm and batted her fist away. Using her momentum to sin her around and try to put some distance in-between them. But this time Astrid was prepared and used the momentum of her punch which he deflected to go round all the way and sack him on the arm.

'Hmm…not quite like a Norn berserker it seems.' Hiccup thought.

Astrid continued her attack on Hiccup who would either block or evade her blows. He could clearly see she was slowly getting frustrated about the fact that she couldn't land a decent hit on him.

Then Hiccup decided he had waited long enough and started going on the offensive.

Astrid swung again but instead of dodging the blow Hiccup extended his hand and caught her fist mid blow. Astrid was taken aback but she didn't get any time to be surprised when Hiccup grabbed her arm with his other hand and quite literally swung her over his shoulder like a ragdoll. She landed on her back two meters behind him.

Astrid got back up and looked at Ryder with surprise and interest. He definitely has some skills, few have been able to bring her down like that. Snotlout without a doubt couldn't.

Hicca was mesmerised by the spectacle before her. After Astrid got back up the two had been trading blows back and forth with the occasional punch hitting its mark.

Hiccup wasn't giving it his all however. If he did he would have floored her in seconds flat, and that would spark some suspicion about who he was. But that didn't mean he didn't enjoy this little spar.

Their fight went on for a little while when Hiccup finally decided it was time to end it. He couldn't win however since he remembered what Astrid said about him in the Loyalist's meeting. He needed her to think he wasn't a threat. So he made a slight mistake, on purpose.

Hiccup made a slight opening in his defence large enough for Astrid to see it without being suspicions, Astrid took the bait and acted accordingly. She swiped her leg and gave Hiccup a push in his chest which he couldn't or rather didn't block and he went down on his back with Astrid pinning him down on the ground.

"Nice going there Ryder. Unfortunately not good enough." Astrid said slightly smug but still friendly.

"Well I'm not exactly a trained warrior like you are." Hiccup lied when he got up after Astrid released him from her hold.

"You actually did pretty well. It's a fighting style I haven't seen yet. But you come from a faraway place so it's understandable." Astrid said.

"That was amazing! I wish I could fight like that!" Hicca applauded.

"Anyone can learn to fight like that with enough practice." Hiccup said dusting of his clothes.

Hicca took up a sad face hearing this. "That's what everyone says, but no matter how hard I try I just can't fight. I always screw something up. Hell, I can't even hold a weapon properly!" She said sadly.

Hiccup frowned and stepped closer. "Nonsense, everyone can learn. We just need to figure out what method to use. Stand up." He said. Hicca did as she was ordered and stood up next to him.

Astrid was intrigued. So far none have succeeded to teach Hicca any fighting moves. She wanted to tell him it was useless but then she remembered she was going to be a friend for Hicca and she wisely kept her mouth and watched.

Hiccup reached behind his back and unsheathed his collapsible sword. None of the Vikings had seen it yet so these two were in for a surprise.

Astrid and Hicca looked to the sword confused. They thought it would merely be a dagger but this thing had multiple blade parts and looked like it consisted out of layers with gaps in-between. It looked very strange.

"What's up with that dagger? It looks so weird." Astrid asked.

Hiccup grinned under his mask. "This isn't a dagger Astrid. It's something much more." He said and he pressed the release button on the hilt and gave it a good swing.

The sword extended to its full length with several click and lock sounds. About half a second later Hiccup was holding a sleek sword that was more than twice the length of its folded state.

Hicca jumped at the sudden transformation and Astrid took a step back. Hicca then looked at het sword like it was a wonder of nature that something like that was possible.

"Wow, I didn't expect that to happen." Hicca said.

"Few people do." Hiccup laughed. Then he threw the sword around so he was holding with the blade and the hilt was extended towards Hicca. "Hold it please." He said.

Hicca nervously took the blade in her right hand and one could immediately see how unstable it was. She tried to make a swing but she was hopelessly out of balance.

Hiccup analysed her stance and quickly figured out the problem. "Why are you holding it in you right hand?" He asked.

"Because that's how everyone does it. I thought that's how it's supposed to be done?" Hicca answered.

"But you write and draw with your left hand. Try switching." He ordered.

Hicca did as she were told and it immediately felt a lot more stable and controllable. She took a few swing and they came out alright. Luckily the sword wasn't too heavy.

"How did you know?" Astrid asked seeing that when Hicca switched she almost immediately improved.

"Experience. I had the same issue in the past. Her left hand is dominant, but I presume she always tried to wield weapons right-handed. Seeing that Vikings aren't known for their patient teachings, no offence. They likely never thought about switching hands." Hiccup explained.

"So you are dominant left as well?" Hicca asked pausing her practice swings.

Hiccup took his sword back and held it in his left hand and spun it around. "Well, I'm a bit of a special case really. Mostly I'm left handed but my right hand is equally effective." He said while switching his sword from left to right several times. "It's called being ambidextrous."

"That is so cool." Hicca said in awe.

"It is pretty amazing to be able to do that." Astrid agreed.

"If you say so Astrid." Hiccup chuckled as he gazed down her eyes. Astrid tried to hide the forming blush and was marginally successful.

"So now that you know where to hold a weapon you can use a training sword and practice whenever you want." Hiccup said while sheathing his sword. It clicked back into place and shrunk back to its original size. "But I think we should now head back to the village."

Both girls nodded in agreement and all three of them started off towards the village.

Neither of them realized however they were being watched from behind the treeline by a certain black-haired and steaming teen who had witnessed their fight and conversation.

"No one Ryder, no one gets Astrid but me. She's mine!" He seethed. He then made his way toward the village. Ryder would pay for this.

And that's it, chapter done. This chapter in particular was hard to write since it was so long ago since I wrote again. Almost a month. But exams are over now, just waiting for the results. In the meantime I'll just write, watch cartoon series and play games. Particularly Mass effect 3. I can't wait for the newest one, it's bound to be awesome.

Anyways some notes on the story. No-one knows of Hiccup's identity yet. Not even himself. They can't recognize him either because he always wears his hood. Though his mission is going well something is bound to happen soon.

Reviews:

ShadowSpirt020: Hmm, what do you think? I believe I made it quite obvious. (Yes)

assasins death: Thanks man, your review inspired me to postpone the Hiccup(Ryder)/Snotlout fight for some family chatter. I hope it was worth it and now nobody will try to murder me for it.

Grima: Thanks!

TheKingOfAll: Patience is a priceless virtue.

Sara lovelymusic: I'm definitely team Cap. Sorry I just love the Winter Soldier.

AkaDeca: Uhm, ok I will now forget I ever read that. Don't worry I won't. And Valka would indeed recognize Hiccup instantly. (Hint-hint) But she can't when he wears the hood.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing, it really keeps me motivated. As always I've been .

Dismissed.