Welcome back, guys! *Moriarty voice* SORRY BOYS! I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOO CHANGEABLE! XD Sorry I didn't update yesterday. Life has been...*runs around frantically* LIKE...CRAZY. But I wrote this thing, and I'l going to try to update HTTYD2 AU sometime today, too, sooooooo...yeah. Until then, enjoy chapter 30! :)

Astrid placed her hand on Hiccup's head while Stoick moved his hand to lay on top of Hiccup's in a way of reassurance. Hiccup looked up at the both of them wearily, and they glanced back down at him, finding no words to speak. Hiccup tried to get comfortable, and then found himself unable to. His wound hurt so bad, almost as if it were on fire, slowly burning, taking all the time in the world, and he was starting to feel a dull, throbbing ache in his head due to the pain. He curled into himself tighter, drawing his knees to himself, almost pressing them against his chest, as if somehow that would abate his agony and stem his severe discomfort.

Toothless ruffled Hiccup's hair with his breath, laying his head next to Hiccup's so he could look the boy in the eyes. Hiccup, however, had his eyes closed and teeth clenched, trying to hold back the groans and moans of pain that were fighting to find their way out of him.

"W-will you…" Hiccup started, pausing only to swallow before continuing; "W-will you g-guys stay w-with me?"

"Of course we will," said Astrid.

"Nothing could keep us away, son," said Stoick, patting Hiccup's hand. Toothless rumbled in agreement, purring to try and soothe his suffering, dying master. Hiccup visibly relaxed, sighing contentedly, happy that since he was going to die, he was going to do it surrounded by his friends and family.

Hiccup rested against Astrid, leaning his weight against her, although he was already laying down. He appreciated her presence, along with the presence of his Father, and his dragon. He loved them all, and was relieved that they were going to stay with him during what he was certain was going to be the hardest part of his life.

Just as Hiccup thought he was about to fall asleep again, they heard the door swing open, followed by swift and almost frantic footsteps ascending the stairwell. A split second later, Valarie appeared in the doorway, carrying with her a small bag of herbs, and a book.

Astrid and Stoick looked at the healer with confusion as Valarie took deep breaths, seeming to have ran the whole way there (which she probably had, the more they thought about it).

"Valarie?" said Stoick. "What is it?"

"I...think...I've...found...something," Valarie gasped, and then approached the bedside. Toothless reluctantly moved out of the way just to let her see Hiccup, and Stoick scooted backwards slightly to do the same. Astrid was the only person besides Hiccup who remained unmoved, and only because she wasn't in the way of the healer.

"Found something?" said Astrid, almost excitedly. "What something?"

"A herb," said Valarie. "It's an uncommon herb, almost impossible to find, but I just barely managed to find some in my hut." She opened the bag and pulled out a sickly green twig-like plant with pale green leaves. The plant was flimsy, almost as if it were old, yet it looked freshly picked.

"What is that?" said Astrid.

"It's a healing herb," said Valarie.

A healing herb. Wait a minute…

"You mean...you mean you can save him!?" Astrid said excitedly, a smile blooming on her face just for a few moments.

"Maybe," said Valarie.

Astrid and Stoick's smiles fell.

"Maybe?" Stoick questioned, and Valarie nodded. "What do you mean maybe?"

"This herb works in mysterious ways," said Valarie. "It could heal almost any open wound, broken bones unincluded. It can't make scars disappear; it has to be a deadly, open wound recently either reopened or created. Hiccup's wound is rather both. The herb could heal infections in a matter of twenty four hours, just so long as we healers do the rest of the work as far as keeping it clean goes. It could stem blood flow, and reduce fevers if they are caused by the wound."

"Then what are you waiting for!?" said Stoick demandingly. "Go ahead and use it!"

"That's the thing, Stoick," said Valarie, hesitating slightly. "I said could for a reason."

"What's the...y'know...not 'could'?" said Astrid, trying to find the words while she was panicking inside. She glanced down at Hiccup; he was sleeping again, his chest rising and falling shakily.

"It could kill him," said Valarie.

"Well, this wound is killing him anyway," said Stoick. "He'll be dead by morning if we don't act quickly, we all know that much. It's better to give him a chance then to just fail him completely."

"No, Stoick, you don't understand," said Valarie. "The herb will keep him alive for three weeks before it kills him...but during those three weeks will be endless torment, and unbearable pain. Three weeks of that, Stoick, and then he dies, whereas now, he will have a quick death. It's completely up to you, Stoick, but we have to hurry."

"You mean...we either stay here and do nothing, and then watch him die," said Astrid, hesitating slightly on each word, "or, we give him this...this plant, in which he can either die a slow, unbelievably painful death that takes three weeks, or he can he healed of his infection and get back to normal instantly."

"Not instantly," said Valarie. "It could still take up to a week for the healing process. But he won't die, I can tell you that if it works."

Stoick, meanwhile, had stood up and was now pacing the room, glancing from Astrid, Valarie, Toothless, and his sick and dying son. He knew he needed to act fast, but he didn't know how or what to do. It was either watch Hiccup die quickly without trying to save him, or risking watching him die slowly and painfully for three weeks straight, each day full of torment.

"Stoick," said Valarie, "we really, really need to hurry. I'm sorry, but...I still need to get my assistants and get everything ready, and it doesn't look like he has much time left."

It was probably the hardest decision Stoick could have been asked to make as a father regarding his one and only son, but he knew that Hiccup was a fighter. He knew that Hiccup would have wanted him to try, at least giving him a chance.

So, he spoke two single words, that were harder for him to say than anything else:

"Do it."