"You underestimate yourself." The familiar female voice said.

"I thought you left." Hiccup almost scolded the woman. She giggled.

"I'm always watching. And never truly far away. You and the dragon are my responsibility after all. If I think there's a problem than I may just end up showing up."

"And the last time? You just sat in the hot spring and told me what everyone else has. Thanks for solving that problem." Hiccup sarcastically said. The goddess crossed her arms.

"That was just a check up. But I still ended up talking to you about your relationship. Which, potentially, stopped some sort of problem in the future. So you're welcome." She stuck out her tongue at Hiccup. The boy rolled his eyes.

"So what are you doing here now than?" His tone returning to normal.

"I don't know Sir DoubtsHimselfAlot, why am I here? Is the doubting that you deserve the person you love, or comparing yourself to your father? Maybe it's that you think to become better, you have to become your father. You do realize that's insane, right?"

I'm never truly alone am I? Everyone's in my head and there's nothing I can do to keep them out." Hiccup sat down again, fist on his cheek.

"No." She said flatly. "Only Toothless, because that was part of the deal, and he told you he doesn't use it or ignores it, and me. And I don't use it that often either. I do have other responsibilities you know. It's just been slow the last week or so. So I've had more time to relax, and check on something that I normally don't have to. Because as it turns out, things normally turn out just fine for you, like you've been dealing with high stress situations for nearly half your life now. Like somehow you've learned to deal with them subconsciously. The question is, what is the problem that you have to deal with right now that it making you freak out?" She found a spot near where Hiccup was sitting.

"I have to talk in front of all the alphas. I have to put the pride and the safety of their lives in that speech. I have to try to convince others to come to my group to raise their young. I don't know how I'm going to do that. I don't know how that's even possible."

"Has it happened in the past?"

"Toothless said it has but I don't know. I feel like it would be impossible. I know that it's supposed to be what's best for their kids but still. If they've been with whatever hoard, they're not going to switch. But I guess I'm not supposed to go after those people. But then it's pulling families after sorta. I don't even actually know if dragons have families like humans do. Am I trying to humanize them too much? Does that matter? Am I even the right person to lead these dragons? Wouldn't someone else do better than me? Someone who knows better ways to deal with the problems they have. I kinda wish Toothless had taken over instead of me. He's always helping me out anyway. He's more involved in their regular tasks than I am. He spends way more time talking and getting to know them. All I do is sit and watch, think and plan, then second guess myself and start all over.

I know that they give me some leeway but how long is that going to last? How long until someone dies and it's not because they made a mistake but because I sent them out to do whatever it was? How long until there's infighting that I can't stop? I know their behind me and almost all of them trust me. I just don't know when it going to stop being unconditional. And maybe it's already like that and I'm doing way better than I think, which is probably true. I'm so scared of feedback that I don't even know what my people think of me. Now that I'm faced with a situation that will give me direct feedback I'm too scared to even think. I need to come up with a very persuasive speech in however long I have and I haven't even started thinking about it yet."

"Don't you talk to your people everyday?"

"Yes, of course, but that's different. I don't have to convince any of them to change their way of life. I set my rules for them, changed and altered them as needed to fit my people. And now they follow my rules, my lead. I don't why but they do. I mean I'm going to do the best I can but I don't know what I'm going to say. Toothless wants me to go with the flow. I don't know how well that's going to work." Hiccup rested his head on his fist, trying to think of something.

"Why do you think that he did that?"

"He said that I make better speeches when I'm not prepared for them. Something about speaking from my heart."

"I see."

"Well could you inform me because I don't get it."

"Well he might think that you can find what's most important to say without having to think about it. Like you know what's important to you, and what you think is important for your people, so it's most likely that you'll say that. It's more likely that you won't find some way to say something that would confuse people, or hide what you're actually trying to say. It's more likely that you're going to say exactly what you're thinking. Which is probably what he wants you to do. He might be banking on it. That dragon has learned very well how to get you to do what he wants, without you even realizing it. I don't know how much he uses this to his advantage, but you may want to be careful about it" Hiccup wanted to snap at the woman.

"What are you implying? Toothless isn't like that. He wouldn't use me. He has his reasoning for what he does."

"Woah, woah. I'm just saying that you should be careful. Dragons are clever and do things that advantage them. If he sees that he can use you to get what he wants, what's stopping him?"

Hiccup's knuckles popped as he pulled his hand into a tight fist.

"I think you should be leaving now." His tone smooth and unthreatening. "I don't know if someone has hurt you, but if you ever accuse Toothless of using me again, I'll hurt you." The woman stood but her skin didn't follow. A man walked up to Hiccup, looking down on him, inspecting the half dragon. Hiccup recognized the man as Loki. The person who tried to separate him and Toothless before.

"Hurt me? You'd have to be able to touch me first."