Hiccup

I didn't understand it. Why was I laying down? Why was Astrid there? I thought I was racing her. She looked older somehow, and even prettier than ever, if that was possible. I felt funny. Taller.

Astrid smiled in relief. "Hiccup, you're okay!"

"Of course I'm okay. We were just flying through the village… how did I get here? Did I fall off Toothless?"

My dad came next to me. "Hiccup, don't you remember?"

"Yeah… I just woke up after fighting the Red Death."

"You've been unconscious the past two days. After you fell down the tunnel. Do you remember that?"

The tunnel. How did they know?

"Yeah… I lost my balance and fell down… it was the door to change the past. But things ended up the same."

Fishlegs looked intrigued. "What do you remember happening, Hiccup?"

"I… I fell through, and fell, and then woke up again the morning I was supposed to kill Hookfang in the ring. But the Terrible Terror I released interrupted before Toothless was captured and I got onto him. And I joined the Outcasts, and a month passed, and then it all happened like it did… oh, you know!" I told him.

"You didn't join the Outcasts, Hiccup," Astrid told me. "Less than a day passed, remember, before you fought the Red Death?"

"No… no, that was before I changed it. It's a long story."

"Or is he an Outcast?" Tuffnut demanded. "He could have been an Outcast, with the plan of destroying Berk from the inside! Looks to me like someone has changed his allegiance. I knew this day would come. Seize him!"

"Traitor!" cried Ruffnut.

"Muttonheads!" Snotlout shot back. "Hiccup didn't join the Outcasts." He turned to me. "Uh… did you join the Outcasts with the plan of destroying Berk from the inside, Hiccup?"

Astrid turned toward him in exasperation. "Hiccup did not join the Outcasts, Snotlout!"

"How could you even think that?!" Fishlegs demanded.

"Yeah, I… I joined the Outcasts."

"No, after they captured Toothless, you got the rest of us on dragons and trained us to ride them… all in one day," Astrid insisted.

"Oh… I… I guess I dreamed it all." That confused me. "I was so sure that everything was changed. I hoped I could save the fleet, keep us out of danger, change this –" I pulled the blanket aside, gesturing to my leg. The prosthetic wasn't there, making my point even better. "But it didn't work," I said.

"Wait, I'm confused," Tuffnut broke in. "Did Hiccup join the Outcasts, or not?"

"Hiccup did not join the Outcasts!" Astrid insisted.

"But I would have… and I would have wrecked havoc on the village, if things had happened only a second differently. But it all would have worked out the same in the end."

"How?" questioned Snotlout.

"I don't know," I admitted. "We made different decisions, but with the same minds. It all happened almost the same, only after a long, hard time."

My dad sat down on the side of the bed, putting his huge hand over my non-bandaged one.

"You're right, Son. Despite circumstances, we have the same minds, the same hearts. I don't know if things would have really turned out the same way given a second's difference in conditions, but I do know that strong character will prevail. Now, tell me," he said, changing the subject, "how are you feeling?"

"A little confused," I replied. "In pain."

"That's what you get when you jump through a hole in a cave, twenty feet down to the jagged rocks below," Snotlout told me.

"But I also feel pretty good," I added. "My mind feels clear for the first time in weeks."

"And no wonder!" Gobber said. "After you smashed into the academy's wall several weeks back, you must have hit your head harder than we realized. You haven't exactly been yourself lately."

"I'm back now," I said, smiling a little. I sat up. "And I'm ready to get back out there."

"You're not going anywhere," my dad said. "Not until you're completely better."

"C'mon, Dad, I'm fine now."

He shook his head firmly. "We're not taking any risks this time. Gobber?"

Gobber held up my metal leg. "You're not getting this back until the chief says you can. And just in case you get any ideas of building a new one, Toothless here is assigned to make you rest."

Hearing his name, Toothless came up from behind the others. He saw me sitting up and pushed me back down. Then he licked my face over and over.

"Hey, Bud, great to see you too!" I laughed. "But you know that doesn't wash out."

Astrid laughed softly as Toothless backed away. "It's great to have you back."

"And you don't even know how glad I am to be back," I told her. "It feels like it's been a long, long time." I lifted my hand to my head, feeling the bandages on my face. "How many cuts do I have?" I asked.

"You look pretty beat up," Astrid said.

"Really?"

"Yeah," Tuffnut put in. "You look like someone just played a game of kick-bag with you and then you fought the Red Death, am I right?" He winked at me.

"You doofus!" Ruffnut blurted. She slammed his helmet. "You know we're not supposed to mention that!"

I jolted up to a sitting position again and looked at the twins, the color draining from my face. I hadn't told about them playing kick-bag with me.

"How… how did..." My voice trailed off. "You know, Dad, you're right. I think I need to rest a little while longer."

"Is everything alright, Hiccup?" he asked, as everyone except the twins looked concerned.

I looked around at them, gathered around. My family, my friends, all caring about me despite any mistakes I made. Toothless nudged me back down to a laying position.

My heart warmed as I spoke. "Yeah, Dad. Everything's alright. Everything worked out just fine."