*looks around*
Did I do it?
*looks down*
YES! TWO UPDATES TODAY! WHOOP WHOOP! :D :D :D I DID IT! :D Hahahahahaha, oh, I'm a lost cause. LOL! :D Shout-outs:
Galaxy-Mitsuko-Pegasus: Yep. You're all going to have to wait and see the plan I have up my sleeve, heh heh heh...and yeah, I think the only person Astrid wouldn't punch for hugging her is Hiccup. Everyone else, beware. :)
BrokenSky49: I love father/son bonding! :D I'll do my best to make some of that for sure! :D And thanks! :D
LunarCatNinja: Dagur's pretty cool for a villain. :D I think he's cool. I really don't know what I want to happen to him yet...XD
ShadowSpirit020: YES! HE WAKES! :D And yeah, FEED VIGGO TO THE SCREAMING DEATH, ASTRID! MAKE HIM PAY!
Guest (#1): Father/son! :D
HappyPup1: Yay Hiccup! :D
Artwing7: I love Hiccup and Toothless bonding! :D If I don't do more Hiccup and Toothless in this fic, I'll definitely do it in another one. :D
MissPitchPerfect25: Agreed! :D Thanks! :D And I think Hiccstrid has been a couple for a while now, but later I think I'm going to do a scene in a fanfic where Hiccup asks Astrid to be his official girlfriend, so...yeah. That might be happening! :D
1 Fan: Thanks! :D I'm probably having too much fun writing them. :D
Charr2003: GO HICCSTRID! :D And yeah, Whoovian referance...well, I'm a Whoovian! :D :D :D But we really should be called "Whooligans." XD Thanks! :D Oh, and why are fangirls so odd? Because we can't even! :D :D :D HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! *dies laughing*
AquaticDragon: Aww, thanks! :D And Hiccup/Toothless bonding is AWESOME! :D You don't have to be a Hiccstrid fan. No worries. :D But I do love Hiccstrid, so there'll probably be quite a bit of Hiccstrid in here, and some Toothless/Hiccup bonding as well. :D Thanks! :D
Guest (#2): I'm going to try and update "Stay With Me" either tomorrow or the next day; it's really just a matter of deciding what I want to do with the chapter. After that, writing it's easy. :D
Jo: Seriously though, he needs to stop all his acts of heroics before he gets himself killed for real. o_O
Dimentional Phaser: Ain't no such thing as too much Hiccup/Toothless bonding. :D
RainDragon28: Yes, it is all very sad. *sobs*
HeartAngel1796: Got that right. :D Thanks! :D
AnimeAngel: VIGGO MUST PAY! DIE, VIGGO, DIE! :D Father/son Hiccup/Toothless for the WIN. :D
SnivyDragon: It's so hard to decide which feelsie element to write about, so I think throughout these 13 "episodes", I'll try and cover it all. :D And yeah. You just summed up the riders perfectly. XD
Prince Maggie: Haha, thanks so much! :D I'm glad you're enjoying it! I think my favorite time to write in is during the RttE series, so I'm having a lot of fun with this. :D Thanks! :D
"Ready the ships!" said Stoick, shouting to get his voice to carry to his entire fleet of men. "We head out as soon as they're ready and make for Viggo's base!"
The men saluted and began preparing themselves. Stoick watched them skeptically, barking an unnecessary order when he thought of his son…
Ooooh, Viggo was going to pay for what he did...when Stoick was through with him, Viggo was going to wish he had never been born…
"Stoick, what are we doing?" Gobber's voice broke Stoick out of his thoughts, and Stoick turned, watching as his friend hobbled up towards him, eyes curious and sad both at once.
"We're laying siege to Viggo's base," said Stoick sharply. "I don't care if we beat his entire army or not, but Viggo is dying. I will make sure of that."
"Stoick, are you sure that's a good idea?" said Gobber. "Don't you think maybe you should...I dunno...stay with Hiccup? You've seen him, Stoick, you know he isn't doing well."
"I know, Gobber," said Stoick harshly, because how in the world could Gobber think he didn't know!? "But when Viggo learns Hiccup is still alive, he's going to try again, and again, until Hiccup is dead, and as long as I'm here, I'm not going to let that...that...treacherous fiend near my son."
"Stoick-"
"My answer is final, Gobber-"
"STOICK!" Gobber finally shouted, and he grasped Stoick's shoulder and shook him slightly. "Listen. You have more priority as a father than you could ever have as an avenger. You know Hiccup. You know he doesn't want to be protected, and he doesn't want to be avenged. Hiccup...he'll be twenty in February, Stoick...but don't think for a second he's stopped needing you."
Stoick looked down. He knew Gobber was right, but he didn't want to admit it; not openly, anyways, because admitting it meant that revenge on Viggo would wait, and Stoick didn't want to wait, he wanted to find Viggo and wring his son-stabbing little throat-
"Hiccup needs his father more than he needs vengance, Stoick," said Gobber softly.
"You're right...of course you're right...I'll ready the men," said Stoick, "and send them out, but I'll stay here myself, with Hiccup."
"I think," said Gobber, "that is definitely the right thing to do."
Stoick turned back to his men, hollered for one to come over, and said, "When you find Viggo, bring him to me, alive! I want the pleasure of finishing him off."
The soldier snapped to attention, saluted obediently, and hurried off to do as he had been commanded.
…
"Hiccup…? Hiccup!"
And as it turned out, he was awake; she hadn't just simply been hearing things. He was looking at her, his eyes half-closed dazed, but they were open. That was all that mattered.
Astrid stood and sat on the edge of the bed, and she brushed Hiccup's hair away from his eyes, so he could see her more clearly, and she could see him. "Oh, Hiccup, thank Thor," said Astrid, weak with relief. It took all that was in her not to simply throw herself at him and hug him and never let go. "Thank Thor, thank Thor, Hiccup, oh gods-"
She thought about kissing him, but when she noticed how labored his breathing was, she settled for a kiss on his forehead. "Are you okay?" Astrid asked, hoping her concern wasn't as evident as she sounded. "Hiccup, how do you feel?"
Hiccup swallowed and spoke; it sounded like hard work. "Spec...spectacular…" he murmured. "But...you…" He raised his hand weakly and brushed his fingers against her cheek. "You look...look like you've been...crying...is s-something wrong?"
Astrid laughed, slightly hysteric, and took Hiccup's raised hand in her own. "I'm okay," she said. "I'm okay now."
Astrid was instantly bumped out of the way momentarily - though she did keep a rather firm grip on Hiccup's limp hand - by Toothless, who instantly started licking Hiccup's face, growling happily, looking as though he would send a celebratory plasma blast straight through the roof. Hiccup laughed and coughed weakly.
"H-hey, Toothless…" he croaked. "I'm...I'm...glad you're a-alright…"
Toothless moved out of the way, just slightly, to allow Astrid back her spot, and Astrid took back her position at the edge of the bed, her hold on Hiccup's hand never loosening.
"Does it hurt?" Astrid asked faintly, squeezing his hand, wishing silently for him to squeeze it back. "Are you okay? We've all been so worried about you…"
Hiccup swallowed again. "Sor...sorry…"
"No, no, don't apologize," said Astrid, shaking her head. "Don't. I didn't mean it like that, it's just...just...we were all so…"
She didn't have the chance to say anything else, because Gothi had raced back into the room as soon as she heard Hiccup speak, almost as though she had been eavesdropping. Gothi hobbled over to the bedside with surprising speed, set her staff to the side, and examined Hiccup, starting with his eyes. She stared into his eyes, and he stared back, confused, and she pulled away briefly, felt his forehead, and tapped her chin.
"Is everything alright?" Astrid asked, hoping she didn't come out sounding as worried as she felt.
Gothi waved her hand, which could have meant anything, and scribbled out on the ground in the sand. Astrid looked at the runes; Toothless growled at them in question.
"So...w-what's up?" Hiccup finally managed, sounding loads weaker than he had a moment ago.
"She says your eyes are clear," said Astrid, translating, "which is a good thing...but she still thinks you might be getting a fever...which is why we're sending for a healer from the mainlands, just as far as preventing infection goes…"
"From...from the mainlands…?"
"Yeah," said Astrid, and she moved away from the runes to sit by Hiccup's head. She took his hand casually again and sighed. "But she says as long as you stay hydrated and don't pull your stitches out, she might be able to treat you herself, without another healer…"
Astrid subconsciously set her free hand on Hiccup's forehead; yes, he felt warmer than he had before, but only slightly. Hiccup stared at her hand, blinking rapidly, and then, he shut his eyes all together with a small sigh.
"You can rest, Hiccup," said Astrid. "We're not going anywhere. The riders are safe, your dad was here a minute ago, I'm sure he'll be back soon…"
Hiccup moved his head slightly in what could have been a half-hearted, exhausted nod. "You'll...you'll stay?" he whispered breathlessly.
"Of course," said Astrid, and she smiled. "Of course I will...we'll look after you, won't we, Toothless?" Toothless nodded and bumped Hiccup's arm in agreement. "Yeah. We've got it covered."
"M's-sure you do...you a-always do...and...I-I know I said…spectacular...but I'm really not...feeling so good…"
"I know you're not," said Astrid, "which is why you should rest. We'll be here when you wake up. We promise."
Hiccup smiled without opening his eyes, squeezed her hand briefly, and then, his posture slackened, his hand went limp, and he was sleeping. Not unconscious: actually sleeping healthily, normally, and it was then Astrid decided that he would be okay.
There would be bumps along the road for sure…
But he would be okay. He just had to be, because she didn't know what she would do if he wasn't…
"Gothi," said Astrid, "how big of a chance does he have? And don't give me a half-truth, or sugar-coat anything. I want to know."
Gothi looked at her (it was impossible to tell what the elder was feeling through her expression), leveled the sand already spread on the ground with her foot, and wrote once again. Astrid read the runes out loud to herself and Toothless, who was eagerly looking over her shoulder, awaiting answers.
"She says the dagger didn't hit any of his primary organs, and as long as it doesn't get infected," Astrid read, "he has a good chance. The things we have to think about are bloodloss, and fever. He can't be out of bed for a month - or two months to be safe - and nothing at all strenuous until then."
Astrid looked at Toothless, and then back at Gothi. "I expected it to be worse," said Astrid, once again feeling lightheaded with blissful relief.
Gothi scribbled some more.
"Oh, you were expecting it to be worse," said Astrid after reading it over. "You thought he wouldn't wake up as soon as that, that he'd get dehydrated and lose more weight than he could afford before we could help him…"
Astrid looked back at Hiccup, sleeping soundly, Toothless' tail draped protectively over his legs.
"But he's stronger than he looks," said Astrid, and this time, she smiled, if faintly. "He's proved it again."
…
"Is Dagur still aboard the Berserker ships?" asked Viggo to Ryker as their ships cut through the water, towards Dragon's Edge.
"Aye, he is," said Ryker, nodding.
"Have him come here," said Viggo, waving his hand as if to confirm his order was valid. "I would like him to join me for a quick game."
"We're in the middle of a war, Viggo," snapped Ryker, "and you're thinking of a game-"
"The way I see it," said Viggo, "the Berkians are outnumbered. Hiccup's dragon riders may have an army behind them, but there are two armies sailing against them, and that is our army, and the Berserker army. We have nothing to fear. Losing is not an option. Send for Dagur so that we may practice our skills in a game of Maces and Talons. Dagur and his men must be sharper than ever. Sharper than you ever were."
Ryker bared his teeth and growled through them, more like a dragon than a man. "Dagur and his men will never be sharp," he argued.
"And yet," said Viggo, "you do not deny that they are sharper than you. Send for Dagur. I will not repeat myself again."
Ryker growled, but, as he always did, obeyed nonetheless.
…
Three armies sailed towards each other, each one out for blood.
The Berkians were sailing under good intentions, and more specifically, under the orders of their Chief. And even if they hadn't been under Stoick the Vast's vast influence, they would have been sailing to war regardless, for Viggo had wounded Hiccup, and no one - no one - was allowed to do that. Every Berkian who lived today were under life-debt to Hiccup; they had never told Hiccup this, of course, but it was true.
Hiccup had saved them from the dragons; Hiccup had brought peace to the lands. And Viggo had hurt him, and they would hunt Viggo until Viggo was dead. They would bring Viggo to Stoick, as Stoick had commanded of them, and watch Stoick finish him off forever.
The second army wasn't so; the opposing side, Viggo and his dragon hunters, were out to kill without reason, were out to fight the battle they themselves had created. They were out to kill, and Viggo was leading them, though this time, he was going to make sure to keep himself protected; burly soldiers stood at either of his sides, and they would act as Viggo's bodyguards.
Viggo was the thinker of the group; without him, the fight was pointless.
But there was a third army, battling between sides. Dagur the Deranged and his armada of Berserkers sailed behind Viggo's ships, silently scheming how they would overthrow Viggo and the Berkians both at once. But Dagur's main target, for now, was Viggo; he could always regroup and defeat the Berkians some other time, but right now, he wanted to deal with Viggo. Viggo, who had killed the prize Dagur had been hunting for months. Viggo, who bossed Dagur around like he was a slave. Viggo, who told Dagur never to think, that he was smart enough for them all.
Three armies sailed towards each other, each one out for blood.
But whose blood would be spilled?