Chapter Six: Adventure Time! Again…

"This was where you've been living for the last few weeks?" Auger asked, walking with his sister down one of Berk's roads. Watching the villagers bustle around them, he shook his head as he recalled her tale of how Ukiah saved her and brought her here.

"And working with them." She answered with a smile. Grabbing his arm, she began to pull him towards the Dragon Arena. "Ukiah taught me how to hunt and skin animals; Heather and Astrid are teaching me how to fight better with an axe; and their blacksmith, Gobber, taught me a little bit about working a forge!"

"Heh, guess you'll enjoy returning home as a princess. Seems like they used you for slave labor."

Lydia shook her head. "Not really. I actually enjoyed it. It was fun to learn how things are made, and the skills to actually obtain food, instead of expecting it on the table."

"I guess you've always been like that. Too much energy to stay content with what our home offers." He commented with a smile. "Seems you've been busy since arriving here. You'll have to introduce me to your friends, now that we have a second to breathe. Who is Matt again? He's the one that was frozen by Darien, right?"

"No. That was Hiccup. He's Matt's brother and the leader of the Riders. Matt was the one that dove in after him. He rides the Skrill and wears those different clothes."

"The…Skrill?"

Laughing, she shook her head with a wide smile. "The dragon that shot lightning. The one that was fighting high in the sky! Apparently his other Skrill is really hurt, so he's resting at another island."

"I see…" He whispered, stroking his short beard that was growing on him since they left on their trip. "I…I'm just glad your safe. Dad and I were racking our heads trying to think of a way to find and save you."

"I'm sure you were, but it all worked out in the end, didn't it?" She replied with a wide smile. "I'm glad dad didn't want you stay with him when he talked with Chief Stoick. I really wanted to show you the friends I made and the things I did."

"Dad said that he wanted to visit with Stoick alone. So that's why I'm able to be with you. And speaking of your friends, from the short-time I've been able to visit with them, I can see why you say they can be trusted."

As the two trekked to the arena, they could hear Hiccup talking out loud as they approached the gateway: "I'm glad we were able to send them retreating, and that we're all safe…but we all know that the fight isn't over yet. Especially for Ukiah."

"I know, Hiccup. I'm just saying you should slow down a little before we decide to go dragons blazing again. We just finished fighting Viggo and Ryker, and now we finished a battle involving our home. We almost lost you and Toothless. Again!"

"That's Astrid. She's quite the warrior." Lydia explained, smiling as they entered the arena. "I'll let you get to know everyone."

"Lydia! Good to see you!" Snotlout chimed in, making everyone in the arena turn to see her and Auger. "I'm sure you saw how mighty and fierce Hookfang and I were during the battle. Whose bravery was unmatched!"

"It was…it was something!" She partially lied, forcing a smile on her face. Turning to Hiccup, she then asked "Are you feeling better?"

"The paralysis wore off a while ago. Thanks for letting me and Matt recover on your ship." He explained with a soft smile. Walking up to Auger, he extended his hand and introduced himself. "Hiccup Haddock. The Rider you picked out of the ocean."

"Prince Auger. Lydia's brother." He replied cordially, shaking the hand with a firm grasp. "I understand you're one of Chief Stoick's sons. Thank you for letting Lydia stay with your people."

"Sons. Pphh…" Snotlout coughed while rolling his eyes.

"Ah, that's Ukiah's doing." Astrid piped up, sharpening her axe with a stone.

"Ah, I briefly met him. Before we turned on Zekir and his fleet." He commented, studying her and how she skillfully maintained her weapon. Lydia was right, she was a warrior.

"Where is he anyways?" Lydia asked, looking around.

Hiccup pointed to one of the arena's stalls, being half open. "In there. Lasher took an arrow in his shoulder during the battle, and now Ukiah's busy trying to get it out. Thankfully it wasn't poisoned with dragon root."

"I thought I heard Lydia. Oh! And her brother to boot!" A voice shouted behind the group.

Everyone turned around, revealing Matt, Heather, and Fishlegs flying through the gate. Smiling at her and her brother, he jumped off Wasatch and limped towards them. "Figured you'd beat us here. Had to pick something up for Ukiah."

"What'd you need to get him?" Astrid asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

Heather kept on walking past the group, holding up a container of some kind of putty. "Something Gothi makes for the purpose of removing arrows. Ukiah said he swears by the stuff."

"Oh, that's because she used it to pull an arrow out of him a couple of years ago." Hiccup explained, realizing what it was.

Auger then whispered into Lydia's ear. "By the gods…who is that?"

"Who? Matt?"

"No. The girl that flew with him. The one that rides that silver dragon?"

"Ah! That's Heather! She rides Windshear, a Razorwhip." She answered, smiling at her. "She's not from here, she's a Berserker."

Auger just nodded, watching her walk into the stall where Ukiah was supposedly at.

"I'm just glad it wasn't Ukiah that took the arrow." Astrid huffed, sitting on a crate to resume sharpening her axe. "That'd be frustrating if he had to rest his only arm."

"I really need to visit with this Ukiah." Auger said aloud, hearing another tale about Lydia's mysterious savior. "Who is this…man? Does he really have one arm?"

Matt pulled down his goggles, revealing a somber face. "He's…gone through a lot with his life. I'll let him tell you the rest."

"That's an understatement." Fishlegs commented, walking Meatlug to a tub full of water. "The places he's been, the fights he won, and th-"

"And the fights he lost!" Ruffnut added loudly, making Auger and Lydia cringe at the sound of her voice. Whirling around, Auger stared at the…twins, who were lounging around on some barrels.

"Yes, we don't try to focus on that, Ruffnut!" Astrid growled, glaring at her in anger.

"Why? It's a cool scar!" Tuffnut replied with a smile. "Hey, maybe I should lose my arm too. It'd be easier to tell who is who! Right, sis?"

"Unless I lose an arm too!"

"Ooooh…that'd be even crazier than just being twins!"

"Wait…that's…a girl?" Auger whispered in shock.

Before Lydia could reply, a loud clang sounded off, with Ruffnut lying on the stone ground in a daze with her helmet spinning next to her. Alongside was Astrid's rock that she was using to sharpen her axe.

"Whoo hoo hoo!" Tuffnut laughed "Nice shot, A!"

"Ugh…Thor's beard…" Astrid huffed, walking up to Auger. Extending her hand, she smiled as she introduced herself. "Astrid Hofferson."

"Prince Auger." He replied with a cordial smile. One thing he couldn't shake was that she was beautiful; as was the one named Heather.

"So…what are our dad's talking about?" Matt asked while taking a seat on a table scattered with ropes and other crafting materials.

"Don't know, though it sounded like they wanted to talk about what we should do in regards to Zekir and Thariin. We'll have to be leaving tomorrow, given that we still have a kingdom to defend." Auger replied, seeing Matt push a lever of what looked like a brace on his leg.

"Welp, guess I'm going too." He huffed, stretching his arms and legs.

"What? What do you mean?" Hiccup cried out in shock.

Matt's face hardened, knowing he was going to have to tell his exact reason. "Darien. That's what I mean. Hiccup, she rides a dragon! And she's still pissed at us! Especially since we beat Viggo and Ryker. While she still lives, she's still a threat to us." Gesturing to Auger and Lydia, he added "Not to mention our new friends here. I can't relax until we stop her!"

"And I'm not resting until Arrow is avenged."

Everyone turned to see Ukiah walk out of the cage, with Lasher behind him. The arrow was out, and Ukiah was holding it in his hand. Heather was holding Arrow, who was clinging to her armor like a magnet. He even tried gnawing on the Razorwhip scales, which he quickly gave up on.

Handing the arrow to the twins, given they liked that kind of stuff, he continued to say "I can't rest until Zekir is gone."

"It seems we have similar goals…" Auger commented, walking up to Ukiah. "First things first, I need to express my gratitude. Thank you. For what you did for my sister. I've been looking forward to meeting with her savior."

Staring at Auger, Ukiah slowly took his hand, shaking it. "Anyone would have done it if they were in my position."

"Still, thank you."

"So, what are you talking about?" Heather asked, taking a seat next to Matt. "I heard Hiccup sound shocked about something. Which means you said something, didn't you?"

"You know me well…" He huffed in annoyance, rolling his eyes. "Ukiah and I are going to leave with Lydia and Auger. I'm going to help them fight Zekir."

"Why?!"

"I'll give you three guesses and a hint. Her name starts with a D."

Heather closed her eyes and nodded. "Yeah…I figured you'd go after her. I was just hoping you wouldn't though."

"After what she did to the twins, Hiccup, and Stoick today, not to mention everyone else previously, including you and me; it's a wonder why I'm not flying after her right now."

"Matt, I think it might surprise you that I'm ready to go with you too." Hiccup said aloud, making everyone turn to stare at him in shock. Walking to Toothless, he began to stroke his friend's head. "I…I almost lost Toothless…almost my dad too. Darien made it clear that she doesn't plan on fighting us with boundaries. She's going to do what she needs to do in order to get even."

Matt got up from his seat, walking to Hiccup with a quizzical expression. "Are you saying…?"

"I'm saying I'm going with you and Ukiah. She was already a threat that couldn't be ignored, but now she made it personal to me." Then, a lot quieter so that only Matt would hear, he muttered "It'll only be a matter of time before she goes for Astrid."

"Then the three brothers will go with Bruvos." Ukiah said aloud, walking up to Matt and Hiccup. "We'll stop our nightmares from harming others."

"Ugh, you guys are stupid." Snotlout growled, making everyone turn to glare at him. "If you want to go to war with the same people that took Ukiah's arm and became Viggo's apprentice, then be my guests!"

"I may not be a leader like my brother or father." Lydia spoke up, walking up to Ukiah. "But I'm ready to help you as well. From what you and the others have taught me, I should be at least some help to you with the layout of the land, even the culture of the people."

"I mean, you know, you will need someone who knows how to fight to help you guys out." Snotlout quickly added, his entire demeanor changing. Walking up to Lydia, he smiled at her as he said "Besides, can't let anything else happen to our princess here."

"Ugh!" She huffed, rolling her eyes and shaking her head.

"Your concern is noted…" Auger growled, butting in between him and Lydia. Though he wasn't much older than any of the Riders, his silvered armor plates made him look like a tower over Snotlout.

"You think I'm going to let you go on your own?" Heather spoke up, marching in between Matt and Hiccup. Getting into Matt's face, she growled "Weeks ago, I thought I lost you. I thought I'd never see you again! At least alive…"

"But what about Dagur? Your home, Berserker Island?"

"What about you?" She quickly countered. "Matt, you keep counting yourself out! You're a significant part of my life too!"

Auger's face fell as she spoke, realizing that she was already seeing a guy, being Matt.

"And you're a mutton head if you think I'm staying here." Astrid shouted, spinning her axe in her hand. Marching up to Hiccup, she held the axe head to his face, as if daring him to tell her to stay. "I'm going with you, whether you like it or not. Besides, I promised Ukiah I'd help him. I'm going to keep my word."

"I figured that'd be your response." He replied with a wry smile.

Fishlegs then stepped up, loudly adding his opinion. "Meatlug and I are in too! We don't let our friends do things by themselves!"

"As long as we get to blow something up, get some cool scars, and find something for Chicken; we'll come as well." Tuffnut followed up with.

"We will?" Ruffnut groaned, finally recovering from Astrid's rock.

"Uh, yeah! Scars! Need I say more?"

"Good point…uhhh…" She agreed, falling on her back.

"Chicken?" Auger whispered to Lydia, who simply shrugged in confusion.

"Matt, Ukiah, let's go tell my dad." Hiccup announced, climbing on Toothless. "Astrid, can you be in charge of preparing our supplies?"

"You got it." She acknowledged, grabbing Snotlout to help her.

"Auger- er, Prince Auger, you can ride with me."

Auger swallowed, realizing he was going to be actually riding a dragon! Turning to Lydia, he was shocked to see her casually walk up to Ukiah and his dragon. After watching Ukiah help her on, he simply forced himself to step towards Hiccup. "Anything I need to…be aware of?"

"Hold on tight. Don't look down." Matt teased, strapping himself in.

"Alright…" He huffed nervously. Toothless looked at his new passenger curiously, sending an inquisitive growl.

"Easy, bud. He's a friend." Hiccup replied with a smile.

As Auger sat himself behind Hiccup, he wrapped his arms around him. "Alright, I think I'm ready."

"We'll be back in a bit!" Hiccup shouted, letting Toothless launch into the air.

"Whoa-aaggghhh!" Auger shouted, taken back by the speed.

"Geez, brother, didn't think your voice could go that high." Lydia teased as Lasher flew alongside Toothless.

"Shut up! I'm sure you screamed when you first rode with them!" He shouted, looking down below him with a paling face. The height was something he never experienced before, neither was the fact that he was riding a dragon!

"Actually, she handled it like she's done it before." Ukiah commented, keeping his face looking ahead. "She only held me with a death grip when we first took off."

Auger stared at Lydia, who simply smirked at him.

"I keep saying we should teach her how to train her own dragon." Matt added casually, carving in the air behind the two. "She's a natural. Wasatch had no problem with her when they first met. Neither did Stormfly."

"Well, Stormfly has no issue making new friends." Hiccup called out. "But Wasatch was always cautious with new faces. It was relieving to see him take to her so well."

"Same with Lasher and Arro- Arrow!"

Matt and Hiccup watched as Lasher banked hard right, turning back to the arena.

"Well, guess he's still getting used to having a baby dragon to take care of." Matt laughed, shaking his head at the comedic scene.

"Yeah. To be fair, I forget that he has another Sand Wraith." Hiccup commented, smiling at the thought. "Come on, the sooner we tell my dad, the sooner we can get ourselves ready for the trip."

"Listen, Zekir will only come back to fight us when he rebuilds." Hiccup argued, standing in front of his dad and Bruvos. "And we know he will!"

Stoick simply sat at his chair, stroking his beard as he continued to listen to his son.

"We know he'll come back to finish what Strogg started. And he won't rest until either we're dead, or himself."

"And what if he attacks while you and your friends are gone? What if he never actually retreated back to Thariin?"

"You still have the A-team. Besides, he's lost half his fleet! You only lost a ship!" Gesturing to Bruvos, he then added "Besides, our problems will double if Zekir actually is able to conquer Gorthurk! He'll have the resources to have four times the fleet than what he came with!"

Stoick turned to Bruvos, asking "How does your army compare to Zekir's?"

"I left a quarter of my men to defend my land if needs be. As weak as Zekir is now, they'll be able to thwart any invasion he could throw at them." Bruvos answered. "But your son is right. Zekir will rebuild; Thariin is a hub for commerce, and it won't take him long."

"Aside from that, Darien will be rebuilding the Hunters as well. That means they'll have weapons and equipment entirely designed to counter us and our dragons." Matt threw in, interrupting the conversation. "This isn't just about Zekir. It's about Darien as well, Chief. What she did to you and Hiccup…it's just a sample of what she wants to do to us personally."

"Why do you call your father, chief?" Bruvos asked, looking at Matt curiously.

"It's a long story. The gist of it is that I wasn't part of this tribe for the most part of my life. As such, he wasn't my dad until really a year ago." Matt quickly explained, hoping to not need to go into detail. "Though we're related, I was more or less adopted into this tribe like Ukiah."

"I see…"

"Dad, let us go help Bruvos. We can at least stop Zekir from trying to attack us again. And we can end Darien's threat to us as well! The fight with Viggo and Ryker will mean nothing if she's still free."

"By free, you mean breathing…" Matt growled, playing with his knife in hand.

Stoick sat there stroking his beard and contemplating on letting Hiccup go with Bruvos.

"Father, let them come with us…" Auger spoke up, making everyone turn to him. "Lydia trusts them with her life. We've both seen what they're capable of. If we let them help us, then we might have a chance to stop living under Thariin's shadow. We can finally break free from them. Besides, Matt and Ukiah made it clear they're coming with us regardless of what Chief Stoick decides."

"You have no idea…" Ukiah whispered, having stayed quiet during the 'discussion'.

"It's true! If I had to pick anyone to rescue me again, it'd be the Riders!" Lydia quickly added, looking at her dad with an earnest expression. "If they want to help us, we should let them! We owe them that much!"

"Auger, Lydia, we're not going to pull our new friends and allies into our own mess; especially if we can't guarantee the safety of their Chief's son, or sons in this case."

"Not if we agree to come anyways!" Matt quickly countered. "We've lived with danger. We've waged a war by ourselves!"

Stoick waved his hand, silencing the argument. "Hiccup. Are you sure you want to do this? It's not just you and your friends you're involving; it's the Berserkers too. Heather is part of them, as is Matt now."

"Dagur would come himself, if offered." He quickly answered. "Matt's the one pushing it, as is Heather."

"King Bruvos, if you wish to let them go with you, then they have my blessing." Stoick replied with an authoritative tone. "As I don't dare leave my shores undefended, I can't send my men or fleet with you. But my son and his friends will be more help than all my ships, catapults, and men put together."

Bruvos looked at Hiccup, then to Matt, and finally to Ukiah. Letting out a long sigh, he shook his head as he agreed to the offer. "If it's their wish to come, they are welcome too. I don't have much of a choice with Ukiah, since he saved my daughter and as a result, stopped a meaningless slaughter of my men's lives. However, I do not guarantee their safety; or that they will return."

"We know what the risk is. We've lived with it ever since we personally decided to become Dragon Riders." Ukiah spoke up, shocking everyone that he broke his silence. Standing up from his seat, he let Arrow cling to his chainmail armor. "Danger never swayed us before, and has never altered our decisions when it comes to protecting those we care about. Or in my case, avenging them." Motioning with his stub of an arm, he growled "It's the entire reason why I lost my best friend and arm."

"And why I limp." Matt added, standing up and taking his brace off.

"And why I have this." Hiccup finished, taking off his prosthetic and waving it to everyone.

"If this is your decision, then we leave immediately. Auger, get the men ready. I want the ships resupplied and ready to sail before nightfall."

"Yes, father." Auger replied, bowing to his dad. At that, he marched away, leaving everyone behind.

"Hiccup, Matt, Ukiah. I need a word with you." Stoick announced, standing up from his seat.

"If I may, Chief Stoick, I would like to visit with Ukiah." Bruvos asked, staring at his daughter's rescuer. "I've yet had the chance to talk with him."

"Very well. Hiccup, Matt, with me." Stoick replied, walking out of the Great Hall with the two.

Ukiah stood there, gently letting Arrow down. Watching the Sand Wraith sniff around and wander around the obstacles created by the benches and tables, he turned to look at Bruvos and Lydia.

"So…Ukiah. What was your last name?"

"Legna."

"You're not an actual son to Stoick, are you?"

Shallowly shaking his head, Ukiah could only stand there. He wasn't that excited to spill his whole life story to a man he didn't really know. "As Matt said, we're both adopted into the tribe. Specifically by Stoick."

"Would you mind telling me why you call Matt and Hiccup brothers then?"

"Dad! Stop questioning him!" Lydia snapped, walking to stand next to him. "He saved me! A thank you would be sufficient!"

Raising his hand to silence his daughter, he calmly explained his intentions. "I know, Lydia, but I'm under the impression that Ukiah doesn't value words. A thank you would hardly seem appreciated. Hence why he doesn't direct you as princess, or me as king. Words are words, valued as nothing unless action is associated with them. Am I right?"

"…I asked him to not call me a princess…" She muttered under her breath.

"You can read people fairly well." Ukiah agreed. "I'm glad I was able to help you and Lydia, and I'm happy that my decision to go with you will help your people. But when you learn the reason of why I'm doing this, is because I'm pretty selfish."

"I understand it's vengeance that is driving you. And I do not think it is selfish." Bruvos commented. "Desires for oneself is not being selfish. It's when your desires overcome others well-being. You didn't need to help my daughter, yet you did. You didn't need to help your brother, who was shot down in the ocean earlier today, yet you passed up pursuing Zekir to help his dragon."

"I vowed I wouldn't let my personal feelings prevent me from protecting them. Again." Ukiah whispered, looking down. "I don't regret what I did, though I still wish I went after Zekir."

"As I felt when I had to leave Lydia in the Black Heart's clutches back in Thariin." Bruvos replied. Walking up to Ukiah, he extended his hand out to him. "As far as proper introductions go, I am King Bruvos of Gorthurk. I understand that you, Ukiah Legna, are not a Berkian. Where are you from?"

Ukiah slowly took the extended hand, grasping it with a firm grip. "Crev. I was taken here by Stoick and Hiccup."

"Crev…I heard of that place…" Bruvos whispered, staring at Ukiah with a stupor.

"You might have heard of it, but it no longer exists. Only skeletons and graves."

"A Crevite…" Bruvos gasped as he made the connection. Staring at him in wonder, he simply whispered. "If I recall…your peop-"

"I'm nothing like them. I spent my life trying to burn that away." He quickly snapped, glaring at him with fire in his eyes.

"I can see that. You haven't yet made an attempt on my life, nor Lydia's."

"Dad…he doesn't like to talk about it…" Lydia whispered, eyeing Ukiah nervously.

"I understand. Ukiah Legna, though I can say I thank you for helping rescue my daughter, I offer instead my fleet and men to help you end Zekir the Black Heart. If you succeed in this, you help me as well."

"Sounds like a mutual agreement then." Ukiah replied. Gesturing to Lydia, he then said "As far as what I've done for Lydia, just forget it. She's been a friend to all of us, and it's something anyone of us would have done."

Resting his hand on Ukiah's shoulder, Bruvos gently shook his head. "No. It's something I won't simply forget. In time, I hope to be able to repay you. Until then, I welcome you and your brothers, and their friends with us. We'll all benefit with this agreement, especially when one such as you will be accompanying with us."

Ukiah didn't say anything. Looking up at Bruvos, he simply nodded.

"Pack your things, Lydia. We're leaving as soon as possible."

"Yes, father."

At that, Bruvos turned to leave, walking to the doors of the Great Hall.

"I'm glad you're coming. Hopefully we can help you stop Zekir; and maybe help you get some peace." Lydia whispered, walking up to and squeezing his arm that was resting on his dagger's hilt.

Ukiah instantly tensed up, feeling her grab his arm. "My only desire is to end Zekir. Revenge will mean nothing if I don't stop him from hurting others."

Seeing that he was still tense about his past, and his experience with losing his friend and arm, Lydia gently let go. "Then let's go. Thariin isn't going to get any closer."

Nodding, Ukiah turned to leave, with Lydia alongside. Arrow screeched, seeing that he was being left behind. Sprinting after Ukiah, he weaved in between his feet, as if to try and trip him up.

"You little tyke…" Ukiah growled playfully, lightly kicking Arrow out of the way. "I guess the trip will be a perfect opportunity for you to learn how to fly."

"Maybe…you could teach me how to befriend a dragon." Lydia whispered shyly, unsure if was inappropriate to ask.

"Maybe."

"I know Matt's been wanting to show me."

"Well, I guess he'd be a good one to learn under. He's the only one that's been able to train a Skrill. Twice."

"Are they hard to train?"

"Each dragon is different. I wouldn't say one's harder than another, but even Hiccup couldn't train a Skrill. And he's called the Dragon Master for a reason."

"How did he get that title?"

"It's a long story. And wouldn't make sense without everyone to talk about it."

"The trip's going to be a long one. I don't see anything more perfect to pass the time! As long as Snotlout doesn't get closer than what he's already doing when I sit down."

"You've got a lot to learn about him. He doesn't take hints very well. Nor does he give up easily."

"…great…" She huffed, shaking her head in agonizing frustration. Opening the door, she stepped out to see Stoick, Hiccup, and Matt talking to each other. All their dragons were nearby, waiting and listening to the conversation.

Letting a faint smile grow on his face, Ukiah picked up Arrow and walked up to Lasher. "Go ahead and get your gear. I just need to run to the forge, as that's where I left my gear after the fight. I'm also going to help Astrid. I'll see you at your father's ship."

"Uh…sure. Se-see you in a bit then." She called out, seeing him launch into the air. Watching him fly away, she let out a long sigh. Finally tearing her eyes away from him, she gazed at her dad's fleet. The ten remaining warships were more than enough to carry his men. But even better, it was enough to invade Thariin with, given that Zekir lost half his fleet and men with it. Even with the advantage of defending, they'd have to fight Dragon Riders. Something that even with Dragon Hunters, they couldn't exactly prepare for.

"Gall, you're an open book." A voice loudly called out to her.

Startled, she whirled around to see Matt and Hiccup walk up to her. Matt was giving her a mischievous smirk, which was oddly comforting.

Hiccup then gently grabbed her arm. "Are you alright, Lydia?"

"Oh, yeah. Of course. I'm fine." She stammered, turning to look back at the fleet. "I'm just…just taking it all in. Last week, even this morning, I was wondering if I'd ever be able to warn my dad about me being safe. Now look at what happened. Not only are we reunited, but we're finally in a position to stop Thariin from ruling us. All that I thought about in this life has…changed."

"Sounds like me when I first rode Toothless." Hiccup replied with a smile. "Everything I knew, even all that my dad knew, was disproved when we became friends."

"Sounds a little more extreme than what I'm going through." She replied with somewhat of a forced smile.

Matt saw the chagrin. "Hey, Hiccup. Can I talk with Lydia alone for a moment? I'll go help her get her stuff."

"Oh, uh, sure. If you want me to." Hiccup replied, taken back by the request. Turning to mount on Toothless, he gave Lydia one last comforting smile, and then took off.

Lydia then turned to Matt with a confused expression, wondering why he wanted to be alone with her.

"Come on, let's get your stuff." He replied, guiding her back to the Great Hall, where she had taken residence while she lived with them.

"What's going on? Is there something I said that's bugging you?"

"I'm not the one being 'bugged'." He explained, limping alongside her. "Something's bugging you, isn't there?"

"Uh, no! Not really!"

Matt gave her a look that screamed that he wasn't buying that answer, making her let out a long, exasperated sigh.

"Ugh, fine. I guess there is one thing bugging me…"

"Being?"

"Ukiah. It's Ukiah. He's been so kind and selfless to me, but sometimes he acts like he doesn't want anything to do with me. I don't understand him!"

"I don't think any of us do. He's been sort of a mystery ever since I met him."

"I thought you were brothers? Is it because he's adopted?"

"Uh…yeah. We'll go with that for now." Matt replied with a scrunched-up face, as if to try and figure out the answer to the question. "The thing is, you're not alone in that thought. Ukiah's a person who's seen and done things most adventurers don't get to experience most of their lives. He was born alone and friendless. He's from a tribe that's been known to murder for no reason. And he lost someone that could have been arguably been closer than family."

At that, the two arrived at her room, to which she began to pack the few things she acquired while living with Berk, including a new battle-axe that Gobber made for her. Throwing her few clothes gifted to her in a bag, she then looked up at Matt, who was busy folding up the blanket she was given by Astrid. "What happened to him? How did he get here then?"

"That's something he should tell you about. Not me."

"If he ever wants to…" She whispered, looking at her bag dejectedly. "He would barely say anything about himself to my dad."

"To be fair, he doesn't trust your dad. At least not like he does with you."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly what it sounds like; that he trusts you. He let you sit in on his story of when he was at Crev, didn't he?" He asked, taking her bag from her. Shouldering it, he then began to walk her out.

"Sure, but that was because you were all ther-" She began to counter.

"No. Not really. If he didn't want you there, then he wouldn't have let you come with us. Just give him time, and I'm sure he'll tell you his story."

Lydia pondered what he was saying, with a thought growing in her mind. "And if he doesn't?"

"Then ask him." Came the quick reply. "Who knows? Maybe that's all he needs now. Besides, I think he likes you too."

"Wha-what?!" She cried out, staring at him in disbelief.

"Please, Heather and I have both seen how you look at him. Especially when you ride with him on Lasher." He teased with a smirk on his face. "We're betting against each other on who will make the first move." Nudging her with his elbow, he laughed at her blushing face. "I'm betting you will."

Not saying anything, Lydia just looked ahead, trying to hide the red on her face.

"Don't think too much about it. Just talk to him and he'll open up about himself." Matt continued to say, walking through the doors of the Great Hall. "Wasatch! Come on! Let's help Lydia over to her ship!"

Watching the Skrill sprint to Matt, Lydia nervously tapped her gauntlets. She couldn't deny it; Matt nailed exactly what she was thinking about. Looking down at where Gobber's forge was, she simply thought about her rescuer, Ukiah; and how he was becoming more of a mystery the more she got to know him. More importantly, she was thinking of possibilities to help him have some sort of peace in his life.

There you go! Hope you enjoyed it! Again, I'm not expecting this Act to be as long as the previous one, but doesn't mean it won't have a story or memorable scenes in it!