Disclaimer: I don't own httyd.

AN: Hmm… Why do I have this fleeting feeling that I'm getting bored… or maybe I'm just hungry since I hadn't eaten since lunch and that was 10 hours ago… Meh…

Arc: The Retrieval

Days Until Wedding: 22 days

Music I'm Listenting To At The Moment: Life's Too Short… This has got to stop! I've been listening to this song for weeks!

"How Did He know"

Hiccup and the others spent two days trying to settle the chaos that ensued inside Trader's Isle. Thuggory was so adamant in keeping the baby Red Death that he actually bought with half the gold he had in his both, or in other words almost fourth of the wealth in Berk. Thuggory still didn't understand why Camicazi laughed every time he said Thughead's name…

Hiccup and Astrid spent their free time in each other's company; trying to replace the time they lost by being stuck in the prison. Astrid was still mad at Hiccup for hitting her too hard and he replied by saying "Does that mean I overestimated you?" he innocently asked and smirked inwardly when she fidgeted in trying to find an excuse to his question.

He knew that Astrid was too stubborn to admit that she was weaker than him but he wasn't going to correct her because he found it cute when she was trying her best to be better than him. Both teens actually stopped their little competition on who was better and focused more on their trying to figure out their future.

Sometimes though, Hiccup had this look in his eyes. It was like he wanted to tell Astrid something but was afraid. Astrid reassured him but he still didn't tell her because he didn't want her to worry. That only made her more curious. Astrid was known to be stubborn and wouldn't stop at nothing to solve a problem she encountered. That included her fiancé's current situation.

Whatever Hiccup did, Astrid was there to bother him. He knew that she just wanted him to tell her what bothered him but he too was stubborn. This lasted for hours until Cami couldn't take it anymore.

"Could you two please stop acting like idiots! Some of us are working here!" she snapped "You two are acting like children!" she stormed off while muttering cursing words under breath.

Astrid crossed her arms and huffed "Well I would if Hiccup would just tell me what's wrong!" she accused

Hiccup sighed. He knew that she wouldn't stop. He also knew that both girls had short tempers and he didn't want another fight so he finally gave in.

"Remember when I dragged Dagur towards the center of the arena?" He asked

Cami snapped her fingers "Oh yeah! I still couldn't believe your left arm is artificial!" she shook her head. If it wasn't for the fact that Hiccup was constantly wearing long-sleeved clothes then somebody was bound to notice

Hiccup nodded "Well… Dagur whispered something to me…" he solemnly said

Astrid noticed the tone of his voice and her worry grew "What was it?"

Hiccup looked at Astrid critically "He knew about Heather"

"What?" Astrid whispered. She couldn't take it so she walked towards Hiccup and grabbed his tunic. Their faces were inches apart. "What exactly did he say?"

Hiccup gulped. He needed to tell the truth or he was going to feel worlds of pain "He told me to take care of my little sister."

Astrid's eyes widened "That's impossible! There's no way he could've known about that! The only people we told were Cami and Thuggory!"

"That's the reason why I didn't want to tell you. I have this feeling that things are just getting started and I'm afraid something big is coming"

Astrid placed a hand on Hiccup's shoulder "Hey, just remember I'm here for you, ok?" Hiccup smiled gratefully at her

"Hey, don't forget about us! Right Thug?" Cami said as she nudged the huge viking

Thug just snorted "Whoa there. As long as my father is still in the hands of that tyrant then count me out"

Cami glared at him while slapping him on the arm. Thug responded by shrugging his massive shoulders. The only thing occupying his mind was the girl waiting for him in Berk.

Hiccup groaned and threw his head back "That's right, we can only trade the dagger with either your father or Heather's parents. I completely forgot about that."

Astrid furrowed her brows "That makes things worse then."

"What should we do then?" Cami asked as she stood next to Thuggory

"Not to sound rude but why are you coming with us?" Astrid asked with a raised brow

Cami beamed and skipped next to Astrid "Well… ever since I hanged with you guys, things had been quite interesting. From the fights to Hiccup's iron arm to family feuds… Heck I'll pick you guys over treasure any day!" she said as she hugged Astrid.

Astrid laughed while shaking her head and returned the hug. She won't admit it out loud but she wanted the girl to stay because it had been a while since she was being in a company of another female.

"Hey Hiccup" Thuggory called and Hiccup turned his head to him. Thuggory jerked his head to side, silently telling Hiccup they needed to talk in private.

Both men went to the front of the boat. Thuggory leaned on the rails and sighed.

"These past few days sure was intense huh?" Thuggory asked with a lopsided smile

Hiccup scoffed "That's an understatement."

Thuggory waved him off "Oh lighten up. The least you can do is relax a bit. I mean, without you that madman would still have been alive and still kill people." Thuggory raised a fist towards Hiccup. "With that, you have my respect"

Hiccup blinked in surprise but recovered quickly to smile back and meet Thug's fist with his.

"Thanks, I couldn't have done it without you guys. I owe you one"

"Hmm…" Thuggory had an idea "Now that you mention it… Since me and Heather are-"

"Not gonna happen" Hiccup deadpanned, completely cutting him off

Thuggory raised an eyebrow "You didn't even let me finish…"

Hiccup sighed "Look, whether I give my consent or not, you two are still going to do it."

Thuggory blinked a few times, shocked that Hiccup practically said that they could get married and he wasn't going to stop them. Thuggory smiled widely and picked Hiccup up in a bear hug.

"I love you!" Thuggory shouted

"Whoa! Put me down! This is not good for our image, you know that?!" he desperately tried to pry Thuggory's arm off

"I can't believe it…" a voice sounded behind them and Hiccup paled "Are you telling me that you're cheating on me with him?" said the voice in a teasing way. Hiccup turned his neck around sharply and was now face-to-face with a grinning Astrid.

"This is not what it looks like!" Hiccup said as he continued to struggle

"Oh? Then tell me what it is then…" Astrid crossed her arms with a raised brow

"I…" Hiccup sighed as he let Thuggory carry him around "I can't…"

Astrid chuckled. "Ok Thuggory, you can let go of him now. I still need him" she patted the muscled viking on the back.

"Oh, sure!" Thuggory said all too happily as he let go of Hiccup. Thuggory then proceeded to bother Cami by saying how happy he was that she was going with them. Cami just gave Thuggory a weird look and slowly backed away.

Hiccup laughed along with Astrid as they stared at the pair. Astrid stopped laughing and looked at Hiccup with a serious face

"What're we going to do now?" Astrid asked

Hiccup looked at her and smiled gently. He draped an arm around her shoulders and started laughing

"Hiccup!" Astrid couldn't help but laugh with him "I'm serious!"

"I'm not…" Hiccup chuckled as he stared at Astrid seriously "You need to loosen up"

Astrid snorted "Coming from someone who doesn't know how"

Hiccup glared at her while giving her a playful shove on the shoulder "Hey! I do know how to relax!"

Astrid returned his glare and pushed him back "You're joking right?!" she laughed

"No, I'm not!" he crossed his arms

"Prove it…" Astrid simply said

"Prove what?"

"Prove to me that you can loosen up and you win."

Hiccup smirked at her "Wager?"

Astrid smirked back "Why not?"

"The usual?"

"Sure"

"Deal" Hiccup said as he held his hand out

"Deal"

The teens were currently headed back to Berk to regroup and make a plan and also to prepare Hiccup and Astrid's wedding. It was so obvious on both teens' faces that they were excited for their wedding. Astrid was visibly beaming while Hiccup was smiling at nothing. Yep, nothing was creepy about that.

When they arrived at the docks though, the four teens were staring at the scene infront of them. Hiccup and Astrid's friends, namely Snotlout, Tuffnut and Fishlegs were tied to a rope while being dangled on a mass.

Snotlout noticed them and gave his cousin a smug look "Hey cuz, good to see you back" he simply said. He would've waved but he was tied up at the moment.

This, this was going to be a long week.

AN: Sorry for the short chapter but I ran out of ideas XD Enjoy and Review!