Chapter 20:

AN: Here we go! The 20th chapter. I honestly thought I'd run out of steam by this point but I guess not. Enjoying this more than I thought I would, and hopefully you are too.

The rest of the afternoon had been rather stale. Arkyn spent some time doing a few simple house chores and tending to Stinger after his presumably exhausting flying exercise the day before. Several times a Viking or two had passed Arkyn's house carrying supplies for the later party to the Great Hall, most not yet even knowing who lived at the dwelling or why it had been built in the first place- but that was soon to change.

Arkyn stepped from the back door of his home just as the sun disappeared below the horizon, tossing Stinger a few cod before bidding him goodbye and making his way to the Great Hall for the party on foot. For most it was the only way to travel, a dignified way to travel, but not for Arkyn. He was one of only seven people on the island- probably in the whole world- who rode a dragon, and that dragon was supposed to be his companion through all things. The boy couldn't feel any more undignified as he left his companion behind and took one step after the other just like any other Viking on Berk. He sighed to himself in suppressed humility. Maybe if he was more experienced he would have been able to avoid injury in yesterday's skirmish.

Arkyn had a moment of realization and scolded himself for complaining. Walking had been the only way he had traveled for most of his 15 years. Flying was like a drug though, and once he'd started, there was no stopping. It made Gothi's order of the two day grounding seem insignificant, at least in the grand scheme of things. He had his whole life ahead of him to continue flying. It just felt so ironic that Arkyn's flying was what the party was for, and he couldn't even fly to get there…would the people of Berk find him a fraud? Did the chief know about Gothi's instruction?

The Viking finally approached the massive doors of the Great Hall to find the dragons of his friends already tied down outside. Great, I'm already late. He thought. Walking is for the birds. It was then he noticed something: The dragons were all there except for Stormfly. Toothless, Barf and Belch, Meatlug, and Hookfang all made noises and grappled with each other playfully in the absence of the Nadder. Taking note of this, Arkyn prepared to step inside hoping Astrid hadn't lied to him earlier and had indeed shown up. He didn't know how much "very loud" party he could handle that evening anyway, let alone without the ability to be surrounded by all his friends.

Cracking one of the large doors open he stepped inside and was immediately met by two greeters who welcomed him cheerfully, although they didn't use his name. An overly large swath of overly large Vikings was gathered in the center of the hall, with the Chief upon his throne off to the left side of the building. Drinks and food were at their normal location towards the back of the expansive building, and a motley crew of Viking musicians formed a small band positioned on the right side.

Only knowing that his friends were present but not where they were, Arkyn took a deep breath to calm himself down before pushing through the crowd in the middle of the hall in search of the people he knew. He was almost towards the back tables of food before he heard a familiar voice call out his name off to the right.

"Arkyn! Over here!" Arkyn turned to see that the voice belonged to Fishlegs, who was with the others hugging the wall to stay out of the chaos. He smiled and headed over to join them.

"Hey guys! What'd I miss?"

"Nothing's really happened so far. People are still showing up." Ruffnut answered. "Hey, you wouldn't have seen Astrid around, would you?" The girl asked, wanting to know the whereabouts of her best friend.

Arkyn frowned. "Can't say that I have, sorry Ruff. She said she'd be here though." The girl nodded knowingly. Arkyn spotted Hiccup at the far edge of the group and made his way over. "Hiccup! Sure am glad you're here."

The Haddock gave a bored smile. "My dad's the Chief…I'm not sure I had a choice." He chuckled.

"Something tells me I didn't either." He said, sharing the laugh. "But better I have you to hang out with than just Snotlout."

"I heard that!" The larger Viking shot from the middle of the group.

Arkyn didn't care. He was too busy casting glances at the doors to the hall waiting for a certain someone to walk in. The Viking quickly caught himself, wondering why exactly it was he worried so much. It was a party…parties were supposed to be fun. He could certainly still have fun even if everyone wasn't there.

Deciding a drink would take his mind off things, Arkyn decided to go get one, quickly rejoining his friends soon after. The distraction worked like a charm, although to Arkyn's agony- and equal parts relief- it was short lived. He was taking a long sip when he heard the sound of the large doors opening and immediately abandoned any attempt not to look up at them, strange things happening as he identified the person entering the structure. His life began to move in slow motion as Astrid strode in wearing an outfit he'd never seen before. She had on a beautiful modestly-sized dress (in her favorite color blue, of course) and her trademark braid flowed flawlessly behind her as she gazed in the direction of the group of riders. She looked stunning, to say the least.

Arkyn froze faster than he could blink and had no time to even realize he was staring before he choked on his drink, spitting it out all over the floor and erupting into a coughing fit while trying to hide his face from the girl that was now on her way over. He was so busy trying to catch air that he missed Hiccup's slack jawed wonder at the same sight, however Snotlout's suggestive whistle still rang loud in his ears before Arkyn recovered and looked up to find Astrid in front of all of them.

She swiftly punched Snotlout in the stomach for his gesture and then turned her attention to Hiccup and Arkyn, who were still stood next to each other trying their best to look inconspicuous in the presence of Astrid's changed appearance, both failing miserably. Astrid snickered at their reactions, expecting something like this might happen when she was getting ready that evening. Admittedly it had taken her a little longer than she would have liked, hence her late arrival, but seeing that her efforts had paid off made it all worth it. "Drink much?" The girl joked, addressing Arkyn who was still wiping liquid from his face.

"It uh…it went down the wrong pipe is all. Could happen to anyone." He smiled weakly. "Glad you could make it."

"Uh-huh." Came Astrid's reply, clearly not buying his story, despite its warranted plausibility. "Hiccup, you're staring."

Hiccup blinked as if woken up out of a trance and immediately looked up to the ceiling, clapping a hand on the back of his neck and giving an apologetic return. "S- sorry. I'm going to…hmm…find something to eat. Yes. That is what I'm doing." He stammered, very obviously deciding on his escape route mid sentence.

After he'd walked off Arkyn was going to attempt a similar maneuver but Astrid stopped him, forcing a guilty expression to fall over his face as he looked down at his feet.

"You two are muttonheads." She commented sarcastically, but Arkyn could tell she was still amused at the situation by the massive smile Astrid was making no effort to turn off. The girl was enjoying this.

"Guilty." Arkyn grimaced, only now glancing in her direction once more. "Really though, I'm glad you're here. Hiccup is too, I'm sure, you just…caught us off guard for a minute."

"If that isn't the understatement of the year…" Astrid laughed again.

"Wow." Ruffnut walked over. "What's all this for? You never wear dresses."

"Yes I do." Astrid replied quickly. "Besides…it's a party. Thought I should look nice."

"No, you don't. You showed up to Hoark's wedding last year in your battle gear and you had your axe with you as if one of the guests needed an emergency tree removal."

Now Arkyn was the one laughing.

"Well…you're in your battle gear." Astrid pointed out, gesturing to her best friend.

Ruffnut cackled. "Come on, I wear this all the time. You know that! I haven't changed clothes in a week."

Arkyn shifted his weight uncomfortably upon hearing this comment. Before anything else could be said, however, Chief Stoick broke out of the mass of people in the middle and approached Arkyn and his friends.

"Arkyn!" He boomed. "Good to see you're doing better! Enjoying yourself, I trust?"

"Just catching up with some of the guests." He eyed Astrid and Ruff accusingly, slightly annoyed. "What can I do for you?"

"I've come to get you for your introduction. It's time people find out who they're all here for." The Chief smiled.

Distracted in his recent interactions, Arkyn had almost forgotten that he was supposed to be the subject of the village's gathering. He raised his eyebrows at Stoick's comment before catching himself. "Uh- Ah, right." He lowered his voice so that just the Chief could hear. "Is that entirely necessary though? You know I…didn't get a Screaming Death killed because I wanted attention…or a party. It's probably just a hassle for you, so no introduction needed! You're off the hook."

"Nonsense, Arkyn!" The Chief's volume of speech remained unchanged and Arkyn jumped at the startling noise, made louder in his ears by his close proximity to the large man. This only caused Astrid and Ruff to giggle more, much to the Viking's chagrin. "From what Hiccup tells me, you saved us all! It would be dishonoring if we didn't pay you proper thanks."

"Well I don't think I exactly sav-"

"Yes you did, muttonhead. You saved us all." Astrid cut Arkyn off quickly, knowing what he was about to say. She could tell he didn't want to be the center of attention and was delighted to yell the truth to Stoick if it meant he was put in yet another uncomfortable yet hilarious situation.

Arkyn gave her the side eye. "You're really no help at all, you know that?" Astrid continued to smile slyly back at him, but said nothing.

"Just come with me. It'll be over before you know it." Stoick said, and before Arkyn could answer the Chief grabbed his arm and led him away from his friends, through the crowd and up to the stage and the throne that rest atop it.

There was no time for Arkyn to protest, and the next thing he knew the Chief was standing before everyone and clapping his meaty hands to get their attention. By this time Hiccup had made his way back to the group of riders, sandwiching himself in between Fishlegs and Snotlout in order to shield his still blushing face from the girls.

"AAAHHEM!" The large man bellowed. "Some of you may know why I held this party tonight, but others may not. I'm here to tell you why."

He took a breath, then continued. "After my son defeated the dragon now known as the Red Death," the crowd cheered at the mention of this feat, making Arkyn wonder if he was in for the same noise. Stoick waited for the roar to die down. "Berk got a lot friendlier with dragons. They're a part of our livelihoods now, and hopefully it will remain a good relationship long after I'm gone. All this said, there are still other dragons out there that pose a threat to Berk. A threat big enough to bring about the destruction of the whole island." There was another pause.

"This brings me to the subject of tonight's party. This lad here," he clapped Arkyn on the back so hard that the boy had the wind knocked out of him, briefly doubling over to catch his breath. The Chief definitely forgot his own strength from time to time. "is Arkyn Stryerson. Very few of you have had the pleasure of meeting him as his arrival on Berk has come about due to a recent tragedy." A silence fell over the Great Hall as the crowd began to cling to Stoick's speech. "Not even two full moons ago, this boy's own island was destroyed by a dragon called the Screaming Death." Murmurs were now heard as people exchanged hushed words with their neighbors. "Jus' yesterday afternoon, one o' these dragons came dangerously close te attacking Berk. Arkyn, who 'as since learned te fly his own dragon, killed this beast over the island tha' lies just west of Sunstone. Although he sustained minor injuries, he stands before us today a hero. Berk will become his new home. Ets time you all meet him."

Silence followed the conclusion of the Chief's address. Arkyn internally sighed in relief that not many people seemed to care, but he was sorely mistaken. The twins had other plans in lieu of the silence, and both began slow clapping from their spot in the back. Tuff whistled loudly, and soon enough the rest of the riders joined in the clapping, eventually leading the entire hall to shake with the roars and congratulations of the attendees. Stoick leaned into Arkyn's ear and whispered. "Smile, wave, and ge' off my stage." He joked, offering a wink. "You did well, lad. Yer free te go. Have some fun with your friends."

Arkyn barely stepped off the raised platform before new Vikings he didn't know were swarming him with questions about his entanglement with the Screaming Death.

"What did it look like?"

"How many teeth did it have?"

"How did you manage to kill a beast like that?"

It was all so overwhelming. To make things even more chaotic, the band began to play and several Vikings took up dancing in the middle of the hall. Arkyn was shaking hands, repeating "thank you" more times than he could count, and trying desperately to find an escape. It felt like he was being spun around again and again, his concerns from before the introduction becoming realized. He couldn't handle it. There was no way he'd ever make it back to where the other riders were standing with this crowd of people, and at this point, the door was closer. Switching gears, Arkyn waited for his chance to make a quiet exit, and luckily for him, it came sooner than he expected.

A fight broke out on the dance floor. Two large Vikings began shouting and screaming and throwing heavy punches at one another, for what reason Arkyn didn't know or very much care, but it worked like a charm. All of the attention was immediately thrown towards the brawl, because there was nothing Vikings enjoyed more than a good brawl. Thanks to the distraction, nobody noticed, well, almost nobody noticed when Arkyn began heading in the opposite direction of the action, reaching the doors to the Great Hall in record time.

Turning around, Arkyn took one last look at the lively scene before him and accepted that he'd indeed had enough partying for one night. Carefully, silently, and without regret, he leaned the weight of his body on the heavy door and backed out of the structure, stepping into the cold night air. Even after the door shut behind him Arkyn could still hear not only the yells of the aroused Vikings of Berk but also the continuing music of the band. Descending the steps slowly he bid farewell to the dragons he'd passed on the way in, peculiarly still not joined by Stormfly, and pointed himself in the direction of his house.

He was right back to where he was before: walking. A normal kid, by himself, walking home. Nothing special to be found.

"Hero my ass." Muttered Arkyn, finally entering his dwelling and closing the door decisively to ensure his privacy.

Hero.

That was the last thing he felt like.