Ruffnut has sacrificed herself for Astrid. Hey, maybe she does have a brain in that head of hers. Anyhow, let's just see how this unfolds. Did either of the girls die? Let's see!

Hiccupisnotuseless: Thank you! Enjoy your holiday!

rafa number one fan: Hehe, I'm not the only one. But you'll have to wait and see how the story plays out!

"Ruffnut!" The voice echoed across the Armoury courtyard. Two boys came rushing over the dusty ground, their feet leaving tracks behind them in their hurry. Before them, laid out in a pool of her own blood, the girl in question lay broken and pale, stretched out on her side. Her helmet lay abandoned a few paces away, her clothes torn and ripped beyond repair. She made no movement as they dropped down beside her, no indication that she was still alive, somewhere in this broken shell.

"Oh, she's dead!" Her brother wailed, tugging on his long, blonde strands just as his sister did when she was afraid. His face reflected the horror he felt. Nothing he could muster could cover his feelings, not even if he wanted it to.

"Don't be stupid, she's breathing!" Snotlout Jorgenson, not used to emotional pain, reached up and smashed his fist into the twin's face. Tuffnut bounced back eagerly, searching his sibling for any sign of life. Snotlout frowned, gesturing to her outstretched arm, the fingers still roughly curved save for the index, which was almost straight.

"Check it out. She was pointing at something when she passed out!" He nudged the twin the catch his attention. Both turned to the sky, following the direction in which Ruffnut had pointed, to where they could see the not-too-distant shape of Toothless, flying hard and fast towards something unseen. And if he was flying, that meant Hiccup was with him too.

"He's flying really fast!" Tuffnut observed pointlessly. Snotlout scowled.

"He left a friend in this state. Whatever he's gone after, it sure as Hel must have been important..."

Hiccup crouched low over his dragon's neck. Every wing beat brought them closer to Blueflame, closer to the battle they were yet to have. He could feel nervousness building in the pit of his stomach, an uncomfortable knot of uncertainty. He didn't even know if Astrid was alive, and yet he left Ruffnut to go after her.

"If we don't save Astrid, I'm never going to forgive myself..." He murmured. Granted, Ruffnut wasn't one of his favourite people, but he still cared for her as he cared for every one of his friends. He urged Toothless on, closer and closer, until they were all but on top of them.

"Kat!" He cried out, watching her head jolt up to stare at him. "No games this time. Hand over Astrid or you're going down."

"You can't hit me. You'll hit her too." She retorted sourly. She looked... different. No longer the boundless energy and confidence. Like she'd aged overnight. Hiccup frowned, not allowing himself to feel sorry for her.

"You forget, a Night Fury never misses. Right, Bud?" His dragon gave a low growl of approval, teeth bared. "You could just give up now and avoid all this."

"You know I can't do that."

Hiccup's face hardened, eyes turning to stone. There was nothing there any longer of the gentle, life-loving boy. Now, he was replaced by a Viking, strong and sturdy. Ready to fight. Urging his dragon forward, they swooped down in front of Blueflame, twisting about and letting off a volley of Plasma Blasts, hitting his soft underbelly. Though the fire didn't bother him, the force with which the attack hit him made the old dragon groan. A twisted snarl on his lips, he turned about and took a breath, discharging a great cloud of fire. Toothless banked sharply away, coming back up and hitting him again across the plates on his back. Then, the black dragon disappeared.

The clouds around them were thick, covering all traces of the Night Fury. Blueflame had nothing to target. He swept about in a circle, beating heavily to stay aloft, searching for Toothless. Suddenly, a whistling noise reached their ears, followed by the fiery explosion of purple across Blueflame's back, too close to Kat for comfort. She bared her teeth angrily, yanking on her dragon's reins.

Blueflame spotted Toothless coming in for another strike out of the corner of his eye. He snapped around, almost throwing his rider off, and loosed another great cloud of liquid fire. The Night Fury only just managed to dive in time to avoid the flames. He had missed his shot, and so disappeared into the clouds again. Hiccup cloud feel the strain this technical flying was putting onto his dragon. Toothless heaved for breath, rolling his wing-joints to release the tension (which looked slightly odd from his rider's perspective) and swooping around in a circle to catch his breath.

Unfortunately, he never got the chance. All of a sudden, the huge, lumbering form of his enemy came thundering through the cloud bank, smashing straight into him. Kat's sword flashed above them, opening a thin wound in the Night Fury's shoulder and puncturing the breastplate of his rider, though it never got close enough to break his skin. With a shudder, the massive dragon's paws came crashing out unexpectedly, smashing into the other dragon's breast bone with a hideous smack. Toothless screeched, falling away, his strength gone.

"Toothless!" Hiccup felt himself lifting from the seat of his saddle as he and his dragon went into a spinning dive, headlong towards the ocean stretched out below. He cried out in fear, seeing his buddy's eyes rolling in their sockets, dazed, tired and dull with pain. Toothless span faster and faster, out of control, his wings uselessly flapping behind him.

"Toothless, wake up, please!" The rider gave a final, desperate cry, before he gave up and slid his arms under the neck strap and held on tightly. There was no way he was letting go now. He wouldn't let Toothless crash to his death without his rider by his side. If they were going to Valhalla, they were going together. He closed his eyes, forcing the bile back down into his stomach as it tried to escape. This was it. Hiccup took a deep breath. Everything was for nothing. They had failed. He couldn't stop a tear from slipping from his eye, feeling it ripped away by the hammering wind. It was over. They had failed. Kat had won.

Suddenly, those green eyes snapped open. With the sea only meters below and sea stacks rising around them, the brave little dragon reached out with his thick, sharp claws, snatching a grip on one of the magnificent stone structures. His body slammed against it. He lost his grip. With a cry, he scrabbled for another. Sliding, falling, down, down, the sea lapping at the rock hungrily. They were slowing down, but Toothless was weak, he couldn't hold on...

Suddenly, they jolted to a halt. The Night Fury's behind was braced against a small outcrop, giving the poor dragon a seat on which to rest. He fell against the cliff face, his wings collapsing. His breast heaved.

"Buddy, you saved us! You did it!" His rider whooped with joy, throwing his aching arms around the dragon's neck. A low moan answered him, the dragon licking his lips slowly. "I'm so proud of you, Toothless. I thought that was it. I thought we weren't getting out of that one, but you saved us." Hiccup brushed the blood off Toothless' shoulder wound, inspecting it. He observed the heaving rattle of the dragon's breathing. "We don't have to go back up, Toothless. We're going back to Berk."

Toothless had his eyes fixed on the sky. His paws found a grip, and slowly, slowly, he hauled himself up the claw-scratched rock, up and up, right to the top, where he perched for a second, taking deep breaths of the sea air. He searched the skies, possibly for a last glimpse of the foe that had defeated him.

"Come on, Bud, back we go. Back to Berk." Hiccup urged his dragon gently. Toothless spread his wings, catching the wild currents of wind coming off the sea. They made him feel renewed, strong and powerful once again. He lifted his snout to the wind. Wings rose either side of his rider, a shudder of power running the length of his spine.

"Toothless, don't you dare..." Hiccup warned. He felt the dragon wriggle beneath him, gaining the power in his legs, ready to spring. And then, as if fired from a cross-bow, he rocketed into the air, pounding his wings, heading straight as a die towards the black dot that was Blueflame. The Night Fury wasn't one to take defeat lightly. He was going to finish this, and not only that, but he was going to win.

Perfect place to end that chapter! Oh my gosh, I hadn't planned that bit in the middle, with Hiccup preparing to give himself up and go down with his dragon, but the music made me do it. I almost cried. And that's saying something.

I'm unnaturally proud of this chapter.