AhahA- Thanks for all the new follows and favourites! Kinda terrified now tbh, haha.
Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh: TYSM again for the shoutout! Ooh, great idea :D
Robbie Streets: Hiccup's wearing his RTTE attire, but is working on his HTTYD2 outfit. As for where I live... well, let's just say I'm not American and leave it at that. Privacy is important!
Holly: Happy extremely late birthday!
Original episode was written by Art Brown and Douglas Sloan, directed by T.J Sullivan.
Hiccup doodled in his newest sketchbook as the Vikings bumbled about, launching into further discussions about what they'd seen on the screen. Rough drafts of some of his ideas for inventions, nothing more. Unfortunately, it seemed like no matter how much time he spent sketching, drawing hands specifically would always be a bit of a nightmare. The young heir sighed in annoyance as he erased bits of the ink; drawing hands sucked.
He kept his ears open for whatever tidbits and dashes of the conversations around him that he might catch. Maybe he was being a little bit nosy, but considering the fact that the moving pictures always showed things that happened to he and his friends, he'd rather like to know what everyone was saying about them.
"Oh-hoh man, did you see that?" He heard Speedifist, a teenager that was a few years younger than him, shout, "That was just awesome!"
"I know!" Wartihog squealed, the admiration evident in his voice, "The way Hiccup punched them, and he did that, and this, and-"
Oh, great. Just fantastic, not.
Hiccup tried his best not to visibly cringe and look natural as the two teens continued on, not wanting to interrupt them from their chatter. Who was he, of all vikings, to stop anyone from finding joy in something so seemingly harmless, right? Toothless nuzzled Hiccup by the side, noticing his prior discomfort.
"You know, the explosions Barf and Belch made were pretty cool, too," Hiccup heard Snotlout cut in, interrupting the two boys.
"Of course, nothing could be as cool as my beautiful presence," Snotlout continued as Hiccup discretely rolled his eyes, "but they were still pretty great."
"Here's a fun fact-o-mundo," Tuffnut entered the conversation, resting his head on Snotlout's shoulder, "Barf's gas can make anyone diforentiated. Wait, I mean, disoriented."
Hiccup watched the scenario unfold, pretending to still be doodling in his book, and hid a small smile as he saw what his friends were doing.
"Woah, really?" Speedifist grinned, "That's like, really cool."
"Yeah, it must feel so gross," Wartihog agreed, "Dude, let's try it out!"
"W-w-wait, slow down!" Fishlegs skittered off after the two as the remaining three humans watched the younger teens run towards the unsuspecting Zippleback, "Hideous Zipplebacks have a high gas-ignition rate if they feel threatened from the shock of loud noises and surprises!"
Snotlout smirked as he watched Fishface run and then followed his cousin's gaze, which was not focusing on that little sketchbook at all. The dude was so bad at lying.
"Well then," he announced to no-one, clapping his hands together now that his glorious work here was done, "Time to-"
Whatever Snotlout was going to say next was rudely interrupted by the sound of a rather loud explosion coming from one of the Hall's bathrooms.
"What the?"
As everyone in the crowd turned to look at where the noise had come from, a soot-covered Phelgma the Fierce emerged from the girls' bathroom, the smoke still rising from behind her. Evidently, judging by the absolutely infuriated look on her face, a certified-Thorston-Twin-prank had taken place.
"I'LL LOB THOSE SKULLS OFF OF YOUR SHOULDERS, YOU-" She then launched into a rather long and loud tirade involving multiple swears and causing many of the parents around her to cover their children's ears for the next few minutes.
"Man," Dagur whistled, followed by a chuckle, "Those are some impressive swears!"
"Ruff rigged one of the toilet stalls, didn't she?" Hiccup questioned tiredly as both of the Twins stood next to him, cackling.
"Yep!" Tuffnut grinned, clapping his hands together, "Wow, that must've been the most explosive crap of her life!"
In a bit of inexplicably convenient timing, the screen began to whirl once again, leaving Phelgma to grumble quietly and indignantly. If there was one thing anyone who'd ever stepped foot or claw on Berk knew, it was to never get between a hall of rowdy, sometimes-violent, dragon-riding, drama-loving Vikings and an interesting story.
The screen fades from black to show the silhouette of a dragon leaping off a stone, revealing Hiccup wielding Inferno and standing next to Astrid riding Stormfly in the middle of a forest.
"Look out!" Hiccup called as the purplish-black-and-yellow dragon leapt forward, its three stingers hitting the ground.
"Hey, I'd recognise those colours anywhere!" Dagur leaned forward excitedly, gently rubbing his dragon's head to wake him up, "Sleuth-ey, look! It's you!"
Indeed it was. Sleuther watched with intrigue, trying to remember when this had occurred. He'd been regrettably hostile towards the Dragon Riders for so long; what was so special about this particular instance?
"Woah!" Hiccup grunted, readying his stance. The camera cuts to a front view of the dragon roaring; it's Sleuther the Triple Stryke.
Toothless pounced in the other dragon's way, readying a blast.
"Toothless, no!" The heir called as the Night Fury shut his mouth, "We're trying to train it!"
Astrid piped up, "How are we supposed to train it if we can't get close to it?"
"Well, I guess you can't blame it," Hiccup replied, "The last humans it dealt with forced it to fight other dragons to the death."
"Uh.. he said what, now?" One of the vikings asked.
"It's a long story," Hiccup explained as the other Riders nodded.
A few vikings gave them all questioning looks.
"...Really long," conceded Hiccup after a moment, biting his lip as the stares ceased. These video things would probably show that story eventually, so there wasn't really much point in spending so much time explaining it, was there?
"Hiccup," Astrid commented, "maybe we should make room for the possibility, that the Triple Stryke is just.. untrainable."
"Untrainable, you say?" Dagur leaned back, giving the Riders a smug look. It sure as Helheim seemed pretty easy for him!
"Oh, just watch it, Dagur," Hiccup snarked back, crossing his arms with a grin, "We did train him before you came along.. eventually."
Sleuther himself only grunted nonchalantly as the two bantered back and forth, not really understanding the point in the humans' love of turning nearly everything into a competition. It was exhausting. The skinny one and his friends did it first, and his rider did it quicker. What was there to fight about?
"We're making progress," Hiccup retorted, "If we could just find a way to get this guy on board.."
The three closed in on the dragon as Hiccup continued, "Have him fighting with us instead of against us."
"Stormfly!" Astrid called as Sleuther growled, "Spine shot!"
Stormfly sent a hurl of spines towards the Triple Stryke, while the Triple Stryke roared in retaliation.
"Dude!" Dagur hissed, snapping his head around to look at Astrid, "What happened to not hurting the poor guy?"
"Sorry, Dagur.." Astrid winced, "But we were trying to get him to back into a corner, so we could try to train him without risking being attacked."
Hiccup still had the gall to remain positive, "Look, we-we've dealt with way worse."
"Snotlout doesn't count!" Astrid replied.
"Oh, shut up.." Snotlout grumbled as Hookfang snickered next to him.
The camera switches angles as Fishlegs and Meatlug hover above them, "Good one, Astrid. I'll have to remember that."
"Fishlegs!" Astrid greeted, "What brings you to the valley of pain?"
The Vikings snickered and chuckled lightly, Astrid herself included. It seemed that all of the Riders had a certain wittiness as sharp as a Nadder's spines.
"Wow, Astrid," Hiccup smirked, nudging Astrid gently by the elbow, "Y-you were on a roll that day, huh?"
"Well, I learnt from the best!" She grinned mischievously.
"Snotlout and the Twins just got back from patrol," Fishlegs reported, "and there are multiple storm fronts heading right for us. We need to lock down the Edge before they start to hit."
"Okay," Hiccup resigned, turned to look at the Triple Stryke for the final time, "We're not done here."
Sleuther roared, and then the scene fades to show Astrid and Stormfly flying towards Snotlout's hut, Hookfang perched right outside.
"Snotlout," Astrid called as Snotlout held up a sheet, "What are you doing?"
"Covering up my 'S!'" Snotlout replied as the view reveals him standing on Hookfang's head near the metal 'S' hanging on his roof, "What does it look like I'm doing?"
"You're supposed to be closing the dome and battening down the hatches."
"Hey!" The boy remarked, "I'm not leaving the 'S' hangin' out in the wind."
"Ladies and gentlemen," Fishlegs announced to the chuckling hall, "Pretty much every conversation between Snotlout and Astrid."
"I can attest to that," Astrid raised a hand to confirm.
"Snotlout, the 'S' is made out of metal, and the sheet's made out of easily flammable fabric," Hiccup pinched the bridge of his nose tiredly, "Didn't you think it would be safer from the lightning without the sheet?"
"Hey, you were the one who found out that metal and lightning hate each other!" Snotlout defended himself, "I didn't want my hut burning down!"
"Your hut wouldn't-" Hiccup sighed, "Oh, j-just forget it."
"Snotlout!"
"Fine!" He hurriedly put the sheet over the 'S', taking off with Hookfang. Unfortunately, the sheet fell straight off.
"Argh!"
The scene then cuts to show Meatlug flying over as Fishlegs leads the Night Terrors to the stables. Fishlegs looks upwards to see Astrid and Stormfly swooping in.
"Wait a minute.." Astrid recollected, "So we went to try and tame the Triple Stryke, and then Snotlout was covering up his 'S', and now Fishlegs..."
"What's up, Astrid?" Hiccup asked in concern while the other Riders gave her questioning looks.
"Oh, no.." She murmured in realisation, "This is about the time I went blind!"
"Wait.. Oh, yeah!" Fishlegs remembered, slamming his hand onto his face while Tuffnut continued for him, "Huh, I forgot about that."
"Fishlegs, hurry," Astrid called, "You need to get them into the stables. The storm.."
"I know, I know!" Fishlegs called back, "My thunder to lightning calculations are never wrong!"
"And, according to them," He scratched the back of his head, "Well, let's just say it's-"
Lightning struck nearby, the thunder sounding with a loud crack. Fishlegs squeaked in terror, "Really close."
Just then, the Twins flew above Astrid on Barf and Belch.
"What do you want us to do?" Tuffnut asked.
"Get to the clubhouse," Astrid ordered, "and don't move."
"Oh, really?" Ruffnut replied saltily, "And who put you in charge, exactly?"
"We all voted Astrid 'Storm Warden!'" Fishlegs shouted from the ground.
"Woah," Gustav awed at the screen, "That title just sounds way cooler than it should be."
"It is," Astrid confirmed with a sigh. It was always, always a headache preparing the Edge for all the storms that happened there, especially considering Ruffnut and Tuffnut's stupid pranks.
"Well, I would like to rescind my vote!" Tuffnut crossed his arms, "If that's the right word?"
"Oh, sorry, too late," Astrid snarked, "Now get going."
While the rest of the audience chuckled merrily, Stoick leaned in a little bit, silently watching and taking note of Astrid's every command. Of course, he had no doubt in his mind that the Hofferson girl would make a brilliant future Chieftess, much like he had no doubt of his son's capabilities as the future Chief, but it never really hurt to observe things a teensy bit more, did it?
The scene then cuts to a view of the Clubhouse from outside, when it's raining. Chicken clucks nervously, and the screen shows Tuffnut holding a panicking Chicken in his arms while Ruffnut stands to the side with her arms crossed.
"Huh.." Tuffnut mumbled as the rainwater dropped from Chicken's feathers onto the table, "Hey, there, big guy."
The camera pans over as Hiccup walks into the room.
"Did you drop off the food and water at the stables?" Astrid asked.
"Yep," Hiccup confirmed, "Troughs are all full."
A loud grunting sound is heard as the camera switches to reveal Fishlegs closing the door. Snotlout is leaning by the side, watching amusedly.
"Well, the dragons are all cozy in their pens.." Fishlegs reported as he turns around, skin shiny with sweat.
"Did you lock the main doors?" Astrid asked.
"Astrid, Astrid, of course. Who would forget something like that?" Fishlegs replied as Snotlout walked off. Thunder crashed outside and Fishlegs scratched his head, beginning to ramble, "I mean, I guess it is possible... But I would never! But then again, there's a first time for everything."
"Ugh," Astrid groaned, "I'll go check."
"Astrid, wait!" Hiccup called as she jogged out.
The scene then cuts, panning upwards from the grass as Astrid ziplines downwards. She lands with a somersault roll, and runs towards the stables. As if right on cue, lightning strikes the roof of the stables and a huge explosion occurs.
"Woah!"
Astrid opened the stable doors to find it falling apart, the dragons screeching in fear.
Fishlegs squirmed guiltily in his seat. That whole debacle was all his fault! If he hadn't opened his big mouth, Astrid wouldn't have gone to check on the stables and gone blind! Oh, sure, it was temporary and lasted less than a day, but the Ingerman just couldn't help himself from feeling horrible.
His spiralling thoughts were interrupted by the sudden sound of someone snapping his fingers next to him.
"Hey, no! You can feel horrible later, Fishface!" Snotlout reprimanded, "We're here to relax and have fun, and you're going to enjoy yourself, or so help me!"
Fishlegs blushed, "But I-"
"Dude," The shorter viking hissed, "If anything, you should be proud of what happened!"
"What?!" Fishlegs nearly screamed, careful to keep his voice down so as not to make a scene, "How can I be proud of causing Astrid to go blind?!"
"You know that we can still hear you, right?" Astrid asked, cutting into the conversation, "I mean, we're literally sitting right next to you guys."
"Eep!" Fishlegs squeaked.
"Uh, Snotlout does have a point, Fishlegs," Hiccup had entered the conversation as well, "You couldn't have known what would happen. Even if it was your fault, Astrid's blindness did help us train Sleuther. You were there, right?"
"Yeah, I know.." Fishlegs muttered moodily, still not seeing the point.
"And.. it, uh.." Hiccup gestured towards Astrid and himself, "It gave us the push we needed to start being, well, us."
"It did?" Fishlegs gasped quietly, as Astrid nodded in response.
"So.." Hiccup shrugged, "Thank you, Fishlegs. Thank you so much, really."
"You see, Fishface?" Snotlout interrupted, "Screwing up's awesome!"
"Yeah, let's not go there," Astrid deadpanned.
"Huh," Fishlegs hummed to himself for a moment, "Thanks, you guys."
"Alright, come on, you guys!" She commanded, rushing to open all of the gates, "We're moving to the arena before this whole place comes down!"
Stormfly and the Night Terrors rushed off. Astrid continued, letting Hookfang out while Meatlug flew over them. The camera cuts to the outside of the stables as all of the dragons rush out, the fire growing stronger.
"Uh, why did the dragons need saving, again?" Tuffnut questioned dully, "Aren't they all fireproof?"
"Idiot," Ruffnut smacked the back of his helmet, "There was still all that debris falling out from the ceiling!"
"Though," She scratched her chin inquisitively, "It is strange how the place only started falling apart right after Astrid arrived at the scene of the crime..."
"That can only mean one thing!" Tuffnut concluded, pointing a lone finger to the sky as he spoke, "Astrid can control the weather!"
"A ruse!" Ruffnut exclaimed dramatically. The two twins looked up, something twinkling in their eyes as if they'd just uncovered one of the greatest discoveries of the Viking world.
"A conspiracy to rise to dictatorship through the Storm Warden rank!" They proclaimed at the same time.
"Or, and hear me out here," Hiccup spoke up, gesturing wildly with his arms, "It was just coincidental timing."
"That's just what you want us to think," Tuffnut pointed an accusing finger as Hiccup rolled his eyes, "Mr. Gambler!"
"Why do you guys think I have a gambling problem?!" Hiccup asked in exasperation. Unfortunately, he did not receive an answer, as the Twins had quickly took off into hushed discussions and conspiracy theories about Astrid somehow secretly being a changeling troll sent by the Red Death from beyond the grave, and poor Hiccup was left completely, utterly confused.
Astrid then gasps as she sees that Smidvarg is still trapped inside.
The Nadder squawked as Astrid turned around.
"It's okay, girl," Astrid consoled, speeding back inside, "I'm right behind you."
She rushed towards the trapped Night Terror, "What do you say we blow this joint, little guy?"
Lightning struck the stables again, causing the building to fall apart faster. Astrid threw open the gate and Smidvarg flew out.
Stormfly screeched at her to hurry, but just as Astrid ran out, lightning struck in front of her, causing her pupils to contract.
The dragons took off in fear as the explosion threw Astrid back, covering her in soot as she landed on the floor, unconscious.
Hiccup and Toothless flew in, landing on the platform.
"Astrid!" Hiccup ran in, looking over her. Toothless crooned worriedly as he approached, watching as Hiccup tried to lift Astrid up.
"Thanks, Hiccup," whispered Astrid. It had occurred to her, in that moment, that she hadn't yet thanked him for saving her that time. Even though she really didn't need to, considering how the two were always saving each other.
"We should be thanking you, Astrid," Hiccup replied, taking her by the hands. Astrid could practically see the stars in his eyes as Hiccup spoke, "You single-handedly saved all of those dragons, you're amazing!"
Astrid giggled an un-Astrid-ly giggle at Hiccup's humbleness and sweetness. She loved that about him, so, so much. Though, it certainly wouldn't hurt for him to take a little more pride in himself.
"Just take the compliment," She nudged him by the elbow, "Alright?"
"Alright, alright," Hiccup relented with a quiet laugh, "You're the boss."
A piece of the roof started shaking, and then fell down towards the two vikings as Hiccup leaned over Astrid, bracing for impact. Toothless shot a blast at the piece, incinerating it while Hiccup hobbled over, dragging Astrid with him. The stables then collapsed as the three walk away in a hurry.
The scene fades back to the Clubhouse in the rain, as Hiccup lays Astrid down carefully, putting her head on a pillow.
"W-what happened?" Fishlegs asked as the camera cuts to show the Twins standing behind them as well, "Is she okay?"
"I don't know," Hiccup responded, the view switching again to show Snotlout standing nearby, "We.. found her like this. The place was collapsing."
Snotlout piped up worriedly, "What about my Hookfang? Did you see him?"
"Speaking of wayward dragons," Tuffnut stepped forwards, "Nobody happened to see.. one Barf and Belch?"
"Guys, they got spooked by the storm and took off," Hiccup replied, turning around, "But I'm sure they're fine and they'll be back. Right now, I'm worried about Astrid."
"Sure, Toothless is right here," Snotlout quipped, "Everything's peachy for you!"
Hiccup and Toothless glared, the Night Fury rumbling lowly.
"..Just an observation."
Snotlout looks downwards as Astrid stirs, "Hiccup?"
Hiccup kneeled next to her as she opened her eyes, "You're okay. You're okay."
"D'aww," Many of the Vikings cooed at the lad's sweetness.
Gobber rolled his eyes. Not at the couple, no, but at the busy-bodiness of the other Vikings. Couples were always the talk of the town and the centre of gossip on Berk, especially the royal ones. When Valka and Stoick first got together, nobody in the village would shut up about them for weeks on end. More often than not, it disrupted his work in the forge, which got a little annoying.
"Well," Gobber sighed, ready to watch the chaos unfold, "Here we go, again."
"I'm right here," Hiccup continued as Astrid scanned the room around her, the pupils in her eyes still contracted and small.
"Where?" She asked getting up, "I-I don't see you!"
"Why is it so dark in here?"
Everyone who'd noticed glanced at Astrid, who'd curled in on herself uncomfortably. She hated seeing herself so.. helpless and scared. She hated feeling helpless and scared.
The camera then cuts to a close-up of Astrid's features, the tininess of her pupils now clearly visible. Hiccup looked over in concern, "I.. It's not."
"What are you talking about?" Astrid replied, "I-It's pitch black!"
The Vikings gasped in concern as they all came to realise what had happened. The lass had gone blind. Some of them had gone frozen with sheer shock and fear. The Hofferson parents, however, were quick to their feet, and rushed to their daughter's side, bringing an entire mountain of their parental paranoia with them.
"ASTRID, CAN YOU SEE ME?"
"HOW MANY FINGERS AM I HOLDING UP?!"
"ARE YOU STILL BLI-"
"Mom, Dad, calm down!" Astrid held out her hands in a placating gesture, the blood swelling to her cheeks, "I can see you; You're holding up four fingers, Mom."
Astrid's parents visibly relaxed, though the tension was still very much there.
"Why didn't you tell us?!"
"Gothi healed me later," Astrid explained hurriedly, "It wasn't that big of a deal!"
The Vikings turned their heads to Gothi, who nodded lightly in verification. Mr and Mrs. Hofferson weren't all that convinced, however. What if something even worse had happened? What if there were lasting side effects? They felt like they deserved to at least be 'in the know' if their own daughter had gone blind, even if temporarily, didn't they?
"We're going to talk about this later, Astrid.." Mr. Hofferson said, sternly.
Astrid groaned in irritation. For Asgard's sake, she was well over nineteen! She could take care of herself.
"Hey," Hiccup squeezed Astrid's hand gently as a show of comfort, sensing her tension, "It's okay, now."
Astrid took a breath, feeling her anger melt away at his touch, "..Thanks."
The Twins exchanged glances as Toothless crooned. Hiccup held out a hand, "Astrid..."
"Hiccup. Hiccup!" Astrid called, standing up and trying to feel her surroundings while the other Riders watched, "I can't see any of you!"
Hiccup got up slowly, a sorry look on his face as she nearly tripped over an object, "Somebody, say something!"
"Oh, uh.." Tuffnut struggled with his words, "Your hair looks really nice? I mean, considering all the fire, and lighting, and debris and..."
"One of life's greatest mysteries," Tuffnut whispered, scratching his chin. Just how had Astrid's hair remained so clean?
"Indeed, brother Nut," Ruffnut nodded in agreement, "How does she do that?"
Hiccup walked over to Astrid as she slowly realised what was actually happening. Hiccup laid a comforting hand on her shoulder as he addressed the others, "Guys, let me talk to her. Alone?"
"Oh, yeah," The rest of the Dragon Riders quickly shuffled out, "Yeah, sure, sure. Sure."
"Uh, Tuff, what's up with your hair?" Heather asked, having observed the on-screen Tuffnut's hair freeze up as he walked, as if it was a hardened solid.
"An animation error," The Witch muttered to herself from her spot near the roof, unseen and unheard by anyone else.
"Hey, don't look at me!" said Ruffnut, as the other Riders had looked at her questioningly when Tuffnut didn't answer, "He does his own stuff a lot."
"Okay," Tuffnut groaned, mostly just because the fact that he was caught, "So, I may or may not have experimented with some Snaptrapper saliva earlier that day..."
"Wait, did you steal that from me?" Hiccup wondered out loud, to which Tuffnut responded with an innocent grin.
"'Borrowed' is the term I would've preferred.." The Rider continued, "Really sticky, would not recommend."
"Ew," Ruffnut gagged, "No wonder you spent so long washing your hair that day."
"She can't see.." Tuffnut whispered on his way out.
"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Astrid snarked.
"Hey!" exclaimed Snotlout, "I was gonna say that!"
"Too bad, so sad," Astrid quipped with a smirk.
"What is happening to me?" Astrid asked as she and Hiccup sat on a table.
"Whatever it is, I'm sure it's only temporary.." Hiccup replied, looking scared himself, "You remember when Bucket lost his sight? He got it back."
"And.. now he wears a metal bucket on his head, permanently.." Astrid responded.
"Oi, don't knock on the bucket, lass!" Mulch chided, albeit half-heartedly in defense of his friend.
"Aye," Bucket remarked, obliviously joyful, "It's very useful for predicting the weather!"
"Thanks," Astrid replied, "...but I think I'll pass on wearing a bucket, Bucket. No offence."
"True.." Hiccup conceded, getting up, "Well, all I'm saying is... Oh, Thor, what am I saying?"
"I know what you're trying to do," Astrid sighed, "And.. a-and I appreciate it."
"Really," She held out a hand, which Hiccup took to help her up.
Astrid felt herself going red as she watched. Whether it was because of anger at what she considered a fairly private moment being displayed for all to see, embarrassment at the reality that pretty much all of Berk was watching one of her weakest moments, her love for Hiccup and his sweet actions, or all of the above, she did not know.
But, what she did know was that she was currently blushing a lot, and didn't even know if she liked that or not.
Hiccup clasped her hand in his, "Look. When there's a break in the storm, we'll fly to Berk and see Gothi."
"She'll be able to help you," Astrid turned around as he continued, "In the meantime, Astrid, you need rest."
"No!" She turned back to face him, "No, we have to find Stormfly! She's out there all alone, all of the dragons are!"
"Don't worry about that right now," Hiccup guided her to sit back down as Toothless approached, "Just rest."
Despite the severity of the situation being presented to them, many of the Vikings had found themselves gushing over the intimacy of it all.
Astrid lay down, still nervous.
"Hiccup?" She called after a moment, "Are you still there?"
"Yes," Hiccup replied softly, "Yes. I'm here, Astrid."
"Will you and Toothless stay with me a little while?" She requested, "Just until I fall asleep?"
"Blegh," Snotlout had to keep himself from gagging from all the sappy schmaltz. Yeah, yeah, he was happy for them and all that, but man this was getting cheesy!
...But, well, you can never have too much cheese, now can you? At least, that was what the Hall full of definitely-hardened-warriors-that-were-totally-not-hopeless-romantics-at-all thought.
"Of course," He replied. Toothless crooned in agreement, sitting down and surrounding them.
"We're not going anywhere, Are we, bud?"
Many vikings sighed happily. Ah, young love.
Toothless crooned again.
The scene then fades to reveal Snotlout and Fishlegs grunting, working together to rebuild the stables after the storm. The camera pans upwards to the clubhouse, and Tuffnut's voice is heard.
"Okay," The camera cuts to a close-up shot of Tuffnut's face, "Thorston Blind Field Test, numero uno."
The perspective switches to reveal Astrid standing near him as Tuffnut continued, "Who.. is standing right in front of you?"
Astrid scoffed, "Tuff, I know it's you."
"Oh!" Tuffnut grinned, "She got it! She's fine, everybody. Oh, thank Thor."
"Phew," he walked away, "That was a close one."
Let's just say that at that moment, there were many meetings between the Vikings' faces and their hands. Well, some of them actually slammed their faces on their tables, mostly the ones that didn't have any hands, and some of them just chuckled, but that's besides the point.
"Guys, we can't worry about me right now," Astrid called, "We need to worry about our dragons! They're still out there and obviously scared or they would've come back."
"Guys, she's got a point," Hiccup agreed, "We need to round them up before the next storm hits."
"Toothless and I will find Stormfly," He consoled, turning towards Astrid, "Don't you worry."
"Wha- And leave me here?" Astrid replied indignantly, "I don't think so. I'm going with you!"
"Sorry. Not an option."
Stoick chuckled fondly, having had similar conversations with both Valka and Hiccup himself in the past. Stubborn minds think alike, he supposed.
"Listen, I'm more effective blind than some Riders who shall remain nameless," She turned her head towards the general direction of the Twins, "..that are fully sighted."
"Is she... looking at us?" Tuffnut wondered, pressing a hand towards himself.
"She can't see," Ruffnut crossed her arms, "Hence, she cannot actually look. Uh, so, no."
"That is an accurate assessment, yes," Throk commented mindlessly.
"Eh, I mean," Dagur shrugged, "You can't argue with that logic."
Astrid gave a staring expression as Hiccup walked into view from the side, "Astrid, there is no way you're flying in your condition. Right? I'm sorry."
"As leader," He crossed his arms, "I am putting my foot down."
The girl turned her head towards him slowly with an angry expression, and less than one second later, the scene cuts to Hiccup and Astrid flying on Toothless.
"Remind me never to put my foot down again.." He grumbled to Toothless.
The Vikings and Dragons all laughed at the sight as Hiccup groaned out loud at the memory.
"Hah! What'd she do, lad?!" Gobber questioned, hollering from across the room. Astrid crossed her arms in satisfaction as Hiccup gave her a look, and the rest of the Dragon Riders snickered quietly.
"Oh, man," Ruffnut laughed heartily, "You should've seen it!"
"A battle for the ages," Tuffnut reminisced, his eyes shining with glory as he looked off into the distance wistfully.
"Okay, we didn't battle, per say," Hiccup clarified, getting up from his seat, "She just... nagged me.. a lot."
"Nagged you?" Astrid raised an eyebrow as she bit back playfully, "I'd like to think I was raising some valid points, thank you very much!"
"Y-you see what I mean?!" Hiccup gestured teasingly, announcing to the rest of the Great Hall, "She can speak like a lawyer!"
"Oh, don't even start," Astrid chuckled, "You're the person who still insists that he didn't kidnap me that one time."
"I didn't kidnap- oh, just-" He rolled his eyes, "come here, you!"
The two then pulled each other in for a kiss, and then pulled apart once they realised that everyone was staring eagerly. Oh, they were just so damn cute together!
"Eh-heh.." Hiccup blushed, feeling the gazes of everyone else upon them. A few of the Vikings turned red, and they all quickly scampered away to give the couple some space, totally not gossiping about how adorable the two were. No, definitely not.
"We should argue more often," Astrid teased as they sat back down.
Hiccup let out a quiet laugh of agreement, "Yeah, we should."
"I can still hear you, Hiccup," Astrid deadpanned from behind, "But I agree."
"Ah!" She tumbled backwards as Toothless flew upwards.
"W-woah!" Hiccup grabbed her just in time, "Okay, you've gotta hold on tighter."
"Oh, sorry..."
"No, don't apologize," Hiccup smiled, "The truth is, obviously, I'm glad you're here."
Astrid leaned forwards, holding Hiccup by the waist as they flew. Hiccup seemed surprised as first, but then looked onwards, smiling slightly wider.
"Ugh, is this entire thing just gonna be filled with a bunch of Hiccstrid kissy schmaltz?" Snotlout whined, attracting the ire of many in the hall, "I see enough of that in real life!"
Gobber slowly took a single sip from his cup, as the rest of the Vikings glared angrily and silently at the young Jorgenson, which immediately shut him up, not wanting to be murdered on the spot.
"Geez, I was only joking," Snotlout whispered to Hookfang after a moment, "What's got their helmet horns in a twist?"
Spitelout laughed at his son's comment and patted Snotlout's shoulder, causing Snotlout to yelp in surprise, having not expected his father to be anywhere nearby him at all. Wasn't he literally sitting on the other side of the hall just a minute ago?
"Bah, they're hopeless romantics, boyo!" Spitelout whispered, as if he was sharing some sort of great secret and apparently oblivious to Snotlout's tension. Spitelout gave another pat on his son's shoulder and sauntered back to his seat, as if that one statement had explained everything in the world.
"What the Helheim just happened?" Snotlout asked himself after a while.
The scene then fades to a forest canopy, panning downwards to reveal Fishlegs walking around, holding a large rock.
"Meatlug!" Fishlegs called, "Here, girl! Here, Meaty! I've got some nice fresh bauxite!"
Meatlug found herself crooning fondly at her Rider's thoughtfulness. He'd even brought a tasty treat, how sweet of him!
He hears a rustling noise nearby.
"Meatlug?" The rider tossed the rock aside, "Meatlug, is that you?"
"Aww, don't you worry, girl!" Fishlegs consoled, scratching the Gronckle's chin as she whimpered sadly at the wasted food, "We went back for that and found an even better batch of rocks, don't you remember?"
Ah, yes. The dragon remembered now, and she'd loved every bit of it. Though not as much as her own Rider, and so she contented herself with nearly crushing the large boy with a hug.
"Don't move, Daddy's on his way!" Fishlegs called, running into a clearing before his mood shifted considerably, "Oh, it's you."
The camera switches to a back perspective, revealing Hookfang pacing around in front of him. Hookfang stops for bit, giving Fishlegs a glare.
From the corner of his eye, Fishlegs saw Snotlout snickering into his own hand.
"What?" Fishlegs asked as Snotlout continued snickering.
"This is gonna be just amazing to watch," The shorter boy remarked, already priming his brain to remember this very moment. Fishlegs rolled his eyes, but it wasn't like he could dispute that claim, either.
"Oh, sorry, Hooky..." Fishlegs apologises, "I didn't mean it like that, it's just that... Well, never mind."
"Let's just get you back to the Edge, right?" Hookfang growled as Fishlegs approached him. Suddenly, thunder crashes nearby and Hookfang lights himself on fire in fear.
Fishlegs recoiled, "I finally know what it's like to be Snotlout."
"Okay, okay.." Fishlegs soothed as Hookfang flapped his wings, "You're upset and scared. But everything is gonna be fine."
"Oh, he's doing t-the- uh, Hiccup's hand thing!" A young child shouted excitedly from within the crowd.
"Wait, other people can do that?" Another child whispered in amazement.
"Yes, it's not just a 'me' thing," Hiccup sighed in amusement, "And why does everyone keep calling it the 'hand thing'? It doesn't need a name."
"It's an iconic move," Tuffnut explained, as if that statement was the most obvious thing in the world, and somehow managing to rest his head atop of Hiccup's hair, "Ergo, it needs to be named! Trademarked, even!"
"It's just a simple hand gesture, Tuff," retorted Hiccup, "I don't think it needs to be copyrighted."
And then Hookfang slapped Fishlegs away with his tail.
"Oh," Fishlegs groaned, landing upside-down by a tree, "Now I really know what it's like to be Snotlout!"
"Hah," Snotlout snickered, before giving a more genuine grin, "Thanks anyway, Fishface."
The scene then switches as the Twins emerge from a bush. Ruffnut takes the lead as Tuffnut follows behind her, with a bag on his head.
"Uh," Snotlout squinted, "What are you guys doing?"
"You wish to become a master at the art of Loki-ing, correct?" Ruffnut began, as she put a hand on her hip.
Uh oh, Snotlout thought. Whenever one of the Twins used that weird posh accent to talk about pranks, things never ended well. Well, well for anyone except the Twins themselves.
Ruffnut continued, completely ignoring Snotlout's fearful expression, "Then watch and learn, my faithful pupil."
"Uh, why am I doing this, again?" Tuffnut asks.
"We are now living with a blind person, Tuffnut," Ruffnut explained, "And I think we owe it to her to offer our services as 'seeing-eye-Vikings.'"
"Got it. Wait- so, wait, who's playing Astrid?"
"Can you see?"
"Not a glimpse. Total darkness over here."
"Then you, my friend," Ruffnut pointed, "are Astrid."
"Now, come to the sound of my voice," She instructed.
Tuffnut groped around hopelessly as she grinned, "Good, good. Okay, a little faster."
"Come on, let's put some hustle into it!"
Tuffnut began running towards her, "How's that?"
"You're doing great!" She called, "Just a little further."
Tuffnut laughed, running faster and faster... and then Ruffnut stepped to the side, causing him to fall off a cliff.
"Respect!" remarked one of the younger and more mischievous Vikings.
"YOU LET HIM FALL OFF A CLIFF?!" Mrs. Thorston screeched in horror, turning to glare at Ruffnut, who was merely sticking her tongue out innocently. Oh, this was almost as bad as when Tuffnut decided to get a tattoo without her permission!
"What?" Ruffnut questioned as she looked at her mother's furious face, "He was fine, it happens all the time!"
"I can authenticate that statement!" Tuffnut exclaimed, hanging upside-down from Belch's neck and apparently oblivious to his mother's worry.
"Besides," He continued, pointing a finger towards an unsuspecting Hiccup, "Our dear ol' Hiccy over there falls off more cliffs than any of us!"
"Hey!"
"Yeah, and on purpose, too," Ruffnut crossed her arms, "I'm kind of jealous, to be honest."
"HICCUP!" Stoick thundered, breaking several eardrums as Hiccup groaned exaggeratedly.
"Really, guys?" Hiccup raised an eyebrow, cracking a small grin, "I thought that was classified information!"
"Oh, yeah," Snotlout snarked, entering the conversation, "Because you regularly sky-diving off of a Night Fury in the middle of the day is totally gonna remain a secret."
"Wow, Snot," Fishlegs added sarcastically, "That's the most complicated sentence I've ever heard you say."
"Why, thank you, Fishface," Snotlout boasted with a bow, "I am an accomplished this-pain, after all."
"It's pronounced, 'thespian'," Astrid corrected from the side, "Though being a 'this-pain' definitely still works."
"Whatever."
"I'm sorry," The Twins' father began, "But are we seriously going to overlook the part where these kids are saying that they regularly fall off of cliffsides on purpose?!"
"Yep!" The Riders chorused in unison, eager to avoid such a conversation as the screen continued.
"Aah!" He screamed, before landing with a thud and a familiar sounding growl.
Ruffnut chuckled, and peered down the cliff.
"Hey! You okay down there?"
"Nice work, Sis!" Tuffnut called back, "I think we landed on something."
And that something that Tuffnut had landed on just so happens to be Meatlug, who seems completely relaxed despite the recent storm.
The scene then cuts to an underside view of a forest, facing the sky as Snotlout's voice is heard.
"I can't believe this stupid dragon!" Snotlout huffed as the camera cuts to him walking in the forest, "Out here in the middle of nowhere."
"HOOKFANG!" He stopped to scream, "Get over here, now!"
As he hears rusting nearby, Snotlout smirks to himself.
"See that, Hiccup?" He dusts his hands off, "That's the way you handle your dragon business."
"Come on, big guy!" The boy pats his knees, "Bring it in for the real thing, baby!"
However, instead of the Monstrous Nightmare, Barf and Belch come trotting through the woods. The camera switches again, and zooms in on Snotlout's dismayed face.
"Ugh.." Snotlout groans as the Zippleback runs him over, sending him tumbling to the floor, "Stupid Hiccup."
"You're welcome." Hiccup replied dryly in a monotonous voice, sending a few of the other Berkians into well-meaning and hearty chuckles.
Stoick and Spitelout looked on, reminiscently. It was almost as if they were drowning in nostalgia, having said similar things about each other countless times in the past. Gobber definitely noticed, too. Ah, those two knuckleheads and their sons were far more similar than either of them realised.
The scene switches to a topside view of Hiccup, Astrid and Toothless wandering into a clearing near the base of a mountain.
"Stormfly?" Astrid shouted, "Stormfly, come here, girl! Stormfly!"
Toothless and Hiccup trailed behind, "Okay, I'm thinking that," He began, "as jittery as the dragons were, they probably want to get as far away from the storm as possible."
"So," Hiccup gestured downwards, "if we take this stream down towards the beach..."
"No! I know my dragon, Hiccup," Astrid turned around, "She's more worried about me than she is about herself. Which means she would be trying to find her way back towards the Edge. Upstream."
As Astrid finished, she turned to run forwards, but then tripped over a large rock with a yell.
"Astrid!" Hiccup ran to assist her, tripping over the same rock and landing on top of her as they both land with a grunt.
They stare into each other's eyes, panting. Well, Hiccup stares. Their faces are both a little too close for comfort.
"Oh, for the love of-" Ruffnut teased, "Just do it already!"
"Ruff!" Tuffnut screamed with an over-dramatic gasp.
Both Hiccup and Astrid sputtered in response, neither being able to form a coherent word as the Vikings chuckled. A few of the Vikings leaned forwards, unable to tear their eyes away from the screen. If you could read minds, then you'd probably hear a constant chant of, 'Kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss!' running through the Berkian's shared thoughts.
"I-uh," Hiccup stuttered, "Are you.. you okay?"
"Uh, I'm... I'm fine," Astrid responded awkwardly, "...We should probably get going?"
"Yeah! Yeah," Hiccup flushed as Astrid gave a barely noticeable smile, "that's- uh, e-exactly what I was gonna.."
"..Get going," He stood back up, helping Astrid up. Hiccup smiled softly, despite Astrid being unable to see it.
"You're an adorable dork," Astrid giggled fondly, leaning her head on a nearby pillar. Hiccup only chuckled back in response, gazing tenderly as she repositioned her head to lean on his shoulder instead.
The rest of the Vikings drooped, slightly disappointed at the lack of any onscreen kissing.
After a moment, Astrid turned around, having heard the sound of rustling nearby, "Do you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"Something's coming at us.."
Toothless emerged from the woods, guarding the two protectively with a growl. Astrid stepped forward, bypassing the Night Fury.
"Astrid, what are you doing?" Hiccup asked. Astrid focused on listening to her surroundings, and relaxed when she heard the tell-tale shriek of a Deadly Nadder.
"It's okay," Astrid called back, "It's Stormfly!"
Sure enough, Stormfly emerged from the top of the mountainside, flapping her wings and screeching.
"Huh," Hiccup replied. Astrid watched, elated, as Stormfly flew down to nuzzle her.
"There's my girl!" She hugged the Nadder's snout, giving her a rub, "Oh, I knew you'd come!"
Stormfly chirped happily at the sight of herself and her Rider having such a tender moment, and leaned her head downwards to nuzzle the real thing. Astrid returned the hug, laughing tenderly as she did so.
The Vikings and Dragons looked on fondly as the two- both on the screen and in real life, shared the gentle touch. For some odd reason, this motivated many of the other rider-dragon pairs to share a little moment of their own as well. Some were met with nuzzles and hugs, while others merely nested their heads together.
"What is it, girl?" Astrid asked as Stormfly retracted from the hug, screeching with caution, "What's wrong?"
Astrid hears a clicking sound, and quickly turned around.
"Hiccup, above you!"
Hiccup turned around, and he and Stormfly looked above to see the Triple Stryke perched atop of a part of the mountain. The dragon roared, diving downwards. Hiccup quickly grabbed Astrid, pushing her out of harm's way as the Triple Stryke landed, piercing the ground with his three stingers.
Toothless fired a blast as the Triple Stryke dodged, taking to the sky with a loud roar.
"Okay, Astrid," Hiccup called, "There's a rock formation ten paces to your left! Hide behind it, and you'll be safe."
"You're telling Astrid Hofferson to hide?" Stoick chuckled, "She's nearly as stubborn as you are!"
"Yeah, yeah," Hiccup rolled his eyes, "I know, Dad."
"Hide?" Astrid responded incredulously, "I'm not gonna hide!"
"Stormfly!" She called, running off.
"Of course she's not gonna hide," Hiccup ranted to himself, "What was I thinking? She's Astrid."
Hiccup ran off to mount Toothless, who let out a roar. Astrid, however, was not so successful as the Nadder stepped away from the girl.
"Stormfly?" Astrid grunted as the Deadly Nadder walked out of reach. Stormfly grabbed Astrid with her mouth, throwing her to the side, away from the battle.
"Argh!" Astrid groaned as she landed on the hard ground. Meanwhile, the Triple Stryke rolled up into a ball and dived down, using his tails to scratch Stormfly.
"Argh!" Hiccup yelped in surprise. Toothless sped up, grabbing Astrid with his claws and moving her out of harm's way.
"You, stay!" Hiccup shouted as Astrid sat up from the ground.
"Not fair, Hiccup. So not fair!"
"We'll discuss it later!" Hiccup grunted as the Triple Stryke threw him off, grounding Toothless as well.
Astrid rose from the ground and pointed towards him, "You need me, admit it."
"Stormfly, come!" She called as the Deadly Nadder in question merely squawked, "Stormfly!"
"It's okay," Hiccup held out a hand, blocking Stormfly as she took a single step forward, "She's with me. We need her help."
Toothless and Stormfly growled protectively as Hiccup continued, "And I can't fight this thing if all I am doing is worrying about you."
"Ugh," Astrid groaned, "Fine. I'll hide."
She sat down behind a large rock, "...Exactly what an experienced Dragon Rider should be doing in a time of crisis."
"Well, at least now, I get to actually see what happened back then," Astrid muttered, in an attempt to remain positive.
The camera panned towards Sleuther who growled angrily. Stormfly looked to Hiccup, who made a circling motion with his hands before pointing at the other dragon.
"Stormfly!" Hiccup ordered as the Nadder took off with a growl.
Hiccup and Toothless took off as well, circling the roaring Triple Stryke. Toothless shot two blasts as Hiccup called to Stormfly, making a chopping motion with his hand, "Spine shot!"
The Nadder flew over before firing a wave of spikes from her tail, surrounding the Triple Stryke as Toothless shot a blast. This caused the scorpion-like dragon to flee into the forest as Hiccup sighed in relief. Meanwhile, Astrid grumbled annoyedly from behind the rock.
The camera cuts to a shot of Meatlug, nonchalantly feasting on a pile of rocks as Tuffnut grunted, trying to push her forward.
"Pull harder!" Tuffnut called.
"You want me to pull her tail off?" Ruffnut called back, as the camera switches to her pulling on Meatlug's tail.
Tuffnut contemplates for a moment, before responding, "Nope. No, no, no. We'd never be able to explain that to Fishlegs."
"Urgh," Ruffnut groaned, walking beside him, "What is wrong with her?"
Tuffnut put a hand on his chin, "Remember Fishlegs said that she eats when she's under stress?"
On cue, Meatlug looks up with an odd expression on her face, bobbing her head up and down as she gurgled.
"Oh, no!" Tuffnut cowered, "She's gonna blow!"
Meatlug vomits a spiel of molten lava at the camera as Ruffnut screams, the lava slowly sliding off to reveal Snotlout walking around as Barf and Belch hide their heads in the ground, like ostriches.
"Woah," Ruffnut remarked, impressed, "Clever transition."
"Yeah," Tuffnut agreed, "Wasn't nearly as cool in real life."
"Blech," He gagged, continuing, "It didn't even burn anything and it took us forever to clean, it was so gross, like-"
"Okay," Hiccup slammed his palm onto Tuffnut's mouth, preventing the other boy from elaborating on the disgusting details further, "Uh, that's enough, thank you."
"Come on, you two!" Snotlout put his hands on his hips, before pulling on Belch's neck, "You can't stay in there forever!"
Snotlout grunts, pulling on Barf's neck next, but to no avail.
"Fine!" He grumbled, "You won't come to me?"
He huffed, digging downwards with his hands, "You know what, I blame this on the Twins. They let you get away with too much!"
"Now, me and Hooky," The camera switches to an underground view of Barf and Belch's buried heads, as Snotlout continues digging, "We're a well-oiled machine."
With a final grunt, Snotlout breaks into the Zippleback's burrow, hanging from upside-down.
"Alright," Snotlout ordered, "Let's go. Out! Up! Whatever you two understand!"
Barf only hissed out his gas in response, and Belch ignites it, ejecting Snotlout from the hole and causing him to skyrocket out of there with a scream. Snotlout lands back in the forest, several metres away as the Zippleback kept their heads in the ground.
"Stupid Zippleback.." Snotlout groaned tiredly, having landing on the branch of a tree.
The camera then cuts to Fishlegs screaming as he ran from a flaming Hookfang.
"Hookfang!" Fishlegs shrieked, running offscreen, "Oh, Thor!"
"Woah!" His voice sounded as a the sound of a cymbal crashing and a loud splat is heard, "Oh..."
The scene fades to show Astrid still sitting behind a large rock, as Hiccup and Toothless approach her.
"Okay," Hiccup spoke as Astrid stood up, "let's mount up and get back to the Edge before that thing comes back."
Hiccup watched as Astrid stalked moodily towards Toothless.
"Uh, no, Astrid, that's Toothless.." Hiccup pointed out as Stormfly squawked "Don't you... want to ride Stormfly?"
Astrid sighed, "I think she's made it clear, she doesn't want me riding her."
Astrid bit her lip and looked to the side as the Vikings gave her sympathetic looks. She didn't need those, she knew her past self was just.. being silly and acting on high emotions. But, that still didn't stop the weird, mixed feelings of awkwardness and embarrassment from creeping up her shoulders.
"Astrid, she was protecting you!" Hiccup approached from behind, "She didn't want you in that fight. It's.. it's was pretty cool, if you think about it."
Astrid scoffed, walking off, "Well, I'm having a hard time finding anything cool in all of this."
"Look," Hiccup grabbed her gently by the arm, stopping her in her tracks, "Obviously, I can't even.. imagine what this might be like for you."
"You're... Well," Hiccup let go of her arm, "You're Astrid! You're strong and invincible."
"Not anymore," Astrid scoffed again, turning around, "What if this is it, Hiccup? What if.. the rest of my life is like this? What then?"
"Then we'll deal with it," Hiccup held Astrid by the arms, "Just because you can't see doesn't mean you're helpless."
"But, that's exactly how I feel."
"Astrid, you and I have been through.. everything together," Hiccup lowered one of his hands to hold Astrid's as he spoke, "You don't think we can handle this?"
Toothless crooned interestedly as Hiccup continued his speech, "Astrid, you have me, no matter what. Okay, whatever that means, whatever you want it to mean. I am with you."
"There will always be a Hiccup and Astrid. Always."
"Aww!" The Vikings cooed at the diabetes-inducingly-sweet speech. Who knew the lad had such a way with words?
"Huh," Tuffnut mused, "Maybe he would have been a better poet laureate."
"Thanks," Astrid whispered to Hiccup, her mood having been lifted as she held onto his hand.
Hiccup moved in to give a kiss, but a clicking noise interrupts the moment.
An axe was hurled towards the screen, passing through it, seeing as how it was made of magic and not an actual physical object.
"Oh, COME ON!" Shouted a voice from the crowd, which, surprisingly enough, belonged to none other than Heather. She shot a guilty-looking Sleuther a glare as she retrieved her axe. They were just so close!
Hiccup giggled slightly, and leaned towards Astrid while the audience had a small riot.
"How in the name of Helheim did you feel that?" He asked quietly, despite already knowing the answer. Having spent so much time training and all, it was probably a little bit hard for Astrid to not sense Hiccup's movements.
Astrid laughed silently, seemingly confirming Hiccup's train of thought, "You move too much."
"Do you hear that?" Astrid turned around slightly as Hiccup widened his eyes. Toothless snorted, probably because such a romantic moment was being interrupted as Hiccup stuttered.
"I-I didn't hear anything."
The clicking noise repeated itself as Astrid focused, "There it is again. Behind you!"
Hiccup turned around to see the Triple Stryke barrel-rolling itself back into the clearing. Hiccup and Astrid held onto each other as they landed on the ground, while Stormfly and Toothless both shot blasts at the other dragon.
"What ever happened to trying to train the Triple Stryke?" Mala inquired. Last she checked, chucking blasts at a dragon wasn't the proper way to earn its trust.
"They were all defending themselves, I'm not gonna blame 'em for it this time," Dagur shrugged as he gave his own response, "Astrid was blind, and they thought Sleuther was trying to kill them, sound familiar?"
"Uh, I'm pretty sure that you were actually trying to kill us way back then," Hiccup deadpanned.
"Sleuther was probably just scared, like you guys were," The Berserker Chief reasoned, "Maybe that clearing was his hiding-place or something, and you two trespassed."
"There weren't any signs of nesting when we went there," Hiccup said, "But, I see your point."
"Okay," Hiccup commented, "this guy has got to go. Now!"
The camera cuts to black, before fading to show Hiccup, Toothless, and Stormfly glaring up at the Triple Stryke while Astrid hides behind a nearby rock. A loud crack of lighting and thunder struck, indicating the incoming return of the storm.
"Toothless," Hiccup called, "distress call!"
Quickly, Toothless shot a powerful blast at the sky, which could be seen from all over the island, including where Meatlug and the Twins were.
"Oh, great." Tuffnut muttered as he and his sister looked up, "Hiccup's in trouble, and Meatlug has half the quarry to eat!"
Meatlug flew off determinedly upon seeing the distress call.
"Nice going," Ruffnut reprimanded, "You know how she feels about her weight!"
She then grunted as Meatlug pulled her and Tuffnut upwards with her claws, flying as fast as she could as the Twins screamed. Tuffnut pumped a fist in the air as the Gronckle flew, "Yeah!"
Meanwhile, on the other side of the island, Snotlout, Barf, and Belch all looked upwards upon seeing the distress call.
"Alright. That's it, you two!" Snotlout commanded, "Playtime in the sand is over!"
Snotlout leapt off of the branch, intending to land on the two-head dragon.
"Snotlout, Snotlout!" He cheered, before landing on the ground directly in front of the Zippleback, "Ow, ow, ow..."
The Vikings either winced in sympathy or laughed at the failed attempt at being awesome as Snotlout himself groaned miserably. Hiccup put a hand on his cousin's shoulder, as a small show of comfort.
"Well," Hiccup shrugged as Snotlout gave him a look, "A-a-at least you tried?"
"For the record," Snotlout grumbled, shooting a certain two-head dragon a glare, "I still blame Barf and Belch."
The scene cuts to Fishlegs, still running and panting from the flaming Hookfang.
"Huh.." Fishlegs stopped upon seeing the distress call, holding a hand outwards.
"STOP!" Fishlegs shouted, causing Hookfang to step back in surprise, "Alright, Hookfang, let's get something straight!"
"Woah!" The rest of the Riders remarked, as they and the other Vikings watched in awe.
"That's a game-face if I ever saw one," Astrid complimented, causing Fishlegs to blush as many others nodded in agreement.
"Impresionante," Tuffnut agreed, giving the larger boy a nudge, "You being scary can be really cool!"
"Eh," Fishlegs grunted uneasily, "I mean, I don't want to end up being like Thor Bonecrusher again.."
"Duh," Tuffnut rolled his eyes when his friend stated the obvious, "Doesn't mean it wasn't cool, you weren't hurting anyone."
"I may not be Snotlout, but I am a Dragon Rider!" The large boy pointed, "And, as such, I deserve the respect of a Dragon Rider! Are we clear?!"
Hookfang stared for a moment, too shocked to do anything else, before letting out a growl of respect and agreement.
Meanwhile, the scene switches to reveal Sleuther roaring menacingly as he fought with Toothless and Stormfly. Hiccup stands nearby, wielding his fire-sword before lightning strikes nearby and the rain puts out the flame.
"Argh.." Hiccup sighed as Inferno was extinguished. The perspective switches as Meatlug flies overhead, the Twins having somehow climbed from her claws to her back as they flew downwards.
"Man," Ruffnut observed as Meatlug surveyed the situation, "Those guys are getting their butts kicked down there!"
"Where's Fishface?" Snotlout called, flying nearby on Barf and Belch.
"I haven't got a clue!" Tuffnut yelled back.
"Yeah, I know," Snotlout quipped with a smirk, "But where's Fishface?"
Someone in the crowd spit out their drink and nearly choked, trying not to laugh out of respect. They were so gonna use that one day.
The Twins only stared, unamused as the rain pattered on.
"You really think this is the time for your stupid jokes, Snotlout?" Ruffnut growled, "Give us our dragon back."
Snotlout groaned as Barf and Belch lowered their necks, allowing the Twins to hop on.
"Hey, what am I supposed to do?" Snotlout asked. In response, the Twins threw him off.
"Woah! Hookfang!" Snotlout shrieked as he fell, before landing on Meatlug's saddle, "Great. Just perfect."
"Ooh," Dagur winced as he watched the on-screen Snotlout land on his butt, "Right where the dragon eggs don't hatch!"
Hookfang chuckled in amusement, half at the Berserker's comment, and half at the fact that his Rider had instinctively called for him despite the obvious lack of the Nightmare's presence. They'd really grown close, haven't they? He'd never, ever admit it, no, but his foolish little human was simply adorable at times.
"Hah, hah," Snotlout droned on sarcastically, crossing his arms as the Monstrous Nightmare continued laughing, "Whatever, Hookfang."
Snotlout and Meatlug flew downwards, as the battle below continued. The camera pans towards Astrid, listening intently to the sounds of clicking as she hid nearby. Snotlout, Meatlug, the Twins, and Barf and Belch landed next to her.
"Astrid!" Snotlout dismounted first, "Thank Thor. All I could think about was..."
Astrid pointed a finger, indicating for him to remain quiet as she focused on the clicking.
The Triple Stryke flew upwards, blasting a wave of fire as Stormfly pushed him aside. Sleuther's three tails twirled around each other, making the same clicking sound, swiping upwards for an attack.
"Oh, I love that sound!" Dagur grinned, leaning forwards in order to hear better.
"Do you guys hear that?" Astrid asked, "It's that same sound before every attack."
"Uh.." Snotlout turned to face the others, "what is she talking about?"
"Are you guys deaf, or something?" Gustav asked boredly.
"It was quieter in real life, Gust-egg!" Defended Snotlout.
"Uh, yeah, guys?" Hiccup called, "A little help over here would be nice! We need to surround it. It can't hit us all at once."
The other riders took off, swirling around the Triple Stryke.
"Coming in hot, blowing out snot!" Cheered Snotlout as Meatlug sent several blasts of lava near the Triple Stryke. Sleuther roared as Stormfly landing behind him, sending another blast while the Twins and the Zippleback directed an explosion his way.
Sleuther whipped his tails up in retaliation, making the same clicking noise while Astrid listened.
"Stormfly!" She called, "Come, now!"
While the Nadder did as she was told, Meatlug poured another shot of lava near the Triple Stryke.
"Ha!" Snotlout mocked, before getting hit with the Triple Stryke's tails and falling off, "Meatlug! Aah!"
He landed on the ground with a thud, "This is getting old."
"Did you see that?" Tuffnut looked on in amazement. Ruffnut turned her head to reply, "He totally stuck the landing!"
"Oh, so you guys can make jokes, but I can't?" Snotlout huffed in complaint.
"Uh, duh," Tuffnut stated matter-of-factly, "Making jokes is our job!"
"Yeah," Ruffnut agreed, "Quit stealing our spotlight!"
Chicken let out a bawk at the end of Ruffnut's statement, inciting Tuffnut to give Snotlout a rather smug look.
"See, Chicken agrees!"
"Chicken agrees with everything you say, Tuff," Snotlout deadpanned.
"Well," Tuffnut retorted, "Everything I say just-so-happens to be agreeable to her!"
Tuffnut cackled in response, before they were both thrown off the Zippleback's heads by Sleuther's tails, landing in the same area. The Triple Stryke turns around to roar at Hiccup and Toothless.
"Okay, bud," Hiccup began, "I guess it's..."
Before he could finish that sentence, Sleuther charged towards them. Meanwhile, the view switches to reveal Astrid swooping in, riding on Stormfly.
"Stormfly," Astrid ordered, "Spine Shots!"
The Nadder sent a hurl of spikes towards the other dragon, causing him to roar in response.
Hiccup stepped forward, confused, "What?"
Tuffnut groaned, slowly getting up to see the scene in front of him.
"Hey," He wondered, "When did she get her sight back?"
"Uh, she didn't," Hiccup replied, before looking up, "Astrid, what are you doing?"
"I got this, Hiccup," She called from above, "I've been listening to you guys get your butts kicked and I'm sick of it. Besides, I have this dragon figured out."
Astrid and Stormfly swooped down from above, pelting the area around the Triple Stryke with more spines. Sleuther roared as the two flew above, making the same clicking sound while Astrid listened.
"Again, Stormfly!"
The Nadder squawked in response, sending a hurl of spines towards the other dragon and cornering him before he could attack. Stormfly landed and Astrid dismounted, feeling around for a bit before picking up two of the spikes from the ground.
Slowly, Astrid walked towards the roaring Triple Stryke.
"Astrid, no!" Hiccup shouted, "Get out of there!"
"Quiet, Hiccup!" The girl retorted, "I'm dealing with it."
The dragon roared as Astrid approached, preparing to strike again. Just as he did so, Astrid clicked the two spikes in her hands together, causing the Triple Stryke to look around in confusion.
"That's it.." Astrid whispered. Sleuther roared again, and Astrid tapped the spikes together again. Sleuther screeched, looking around warily.
"She's using the clicks to distract it!" Hiccup realised as the other Riders stood up to see.
"Woah," The audience had collectively whispered in awe. Now, that was clever.
Astrid repeated the clicks a few more times, now close enough to hold out her hand for the dragon to touch. The Triple Stryke relented, crooning as he directed his snout into her hand.
"Great! Now that that's settled.." Dagur pat Sleuther on his head, who only looked at the Dragon Riders apologetically, "Sleuther, say you're sorry, boy.."
"Aw, Dagur," Astrid raised her shoulders, "Sleuther doesn't have to-"
Sleuther made a quick noise of apology, looking more like a remorseful puppy than the giant scorpion-like beast that he was on the screen. Nothing could beat Toothless in terms of dragon cuteness, but it was still an adorable sight.
"Okay," Astrid chuckled, "Apology accepted. We're sorry, too."
Astrid chuckled happily as the dragon crooned. Meanwhile, the others regrouped.
"And that's how we get close enough to train it," Hiccup gestured.
Snotlout gasped, "Amazing!"
"Hey," Tuffnut approached, "I think Astrid just stoled your move."
"It's not my move, Tuffnut!" Hiccup stuttered.
"Wait, so anyone can use it?" Tuffnut asked incredulously, "Why didn't you tell us that?!"
"Because it's not a move!" Hiccup whined in exhaustion, planting his face on the table.
Tuffnut and Ruffnut shared a look, before Tuffnut held out his hand and let his sister press her forehead against it.
"How'd she do that?" Ruffnut questioned, her forehead still on Tuffnut's palm, "She can't see a thing."
"She doesn't need to, she's using her other senses," Hiccup explained as Astrid stepped forward confidently, "Hearing, touch, smell. Following her gut."
"Speaking of which," Astrid piped up, stepping aside, "I'm sensing something big and out of control heading for us."
True to Astrid's word, Fishlegs comes crashing into the clearing on Hookfang, big and out of control.
"No!" Fishlegs shrieked as Hookfang landed, "This is NOT RESPECT!"
"Welcome to my world, Fishface," an unsurprised Snotlout snarked, before smiling at the last second.
"We're never switching dragons ever again, right?" Fishlegs asked Snotlout tiredly. He didn't think he'd be able to last that long if he ever had to ride on Hookfang again.
"Oh, yeah," Snotlout quickly responded, "Definitely not."
"You stink," Ruffnut bluntly stated with a gag, "Tuff and I had to scrub that 'Snotlout smell' of off Barf and Belch for days!"
"All the better for making me more memorable, right?" The Jorgenson flirted, before promptly getting his butt lit on fire by his own dragon for the fifth time that week.
The screen fades to an exterior shot of Astrid's hut while Stormfly waited outside, before cutting to Gothi unwrapping bandages from Astrid's face. The view switches to Astrid's point of view, as Hiccup looked at her uncertainly.
"A-Astrid," Hiccup stuttered, "are you..."
"Looking at you?" Astrid looked around, "Seems like it."
Hiccup sighed in relief, "Thank you, Gothi."
Gothi merely watched as Astrid got up from her chair, ambushing Hiccup with a hug while Toothless purred.
The Vikings sighed in relief as well, as the Hofferson family shot Gothi their grateful looks. Gothi, of course, paid no heed and continued to focus her attention on the screen above.
The camera then cuts to the Edge's arena, the clicking noise making another auditory appearance as Sleuther shot a blast at a painted target. Sleuther roared as the clicking continued, directing him to attack another target.
The camera cuts to a hand, shaking a small contraption in his hand. The item produced the clicking sounds as the top part spun around.
"This is awesome," Tuffnut cackled as the view panned downwards to reveal that it was him wielding the contraption, "Can you imagine what we could do to Snotlout when we get this thing trained? The possibilities are endless!"
"Yeah, could you please be more careful with that, next time?" Hiccup commented, wringing his hand through his hair, "The clicker's very fragile!"
"What?" Tuffnut grinned, "It's fun!"
"Gotta agree with him there," Dagur smirked, moreso just to annoy his little brother than actually agreeing with whatever Tuffnut had said, "I love that clicking noise."
Hiccup's hand met his face for what was exactly the millionth time in his life -quite a significant milestone, might I add-, "I can make you guys your own little clickers if you want, but that one specifically is not a toy."
"I digress," Ruffnut began in that weird posh accent, "Anything can be a toy if you try hard enough!"
"That noise just makes me uncomfortable," A random viking shuddered from the side, "What's that word, again?"
"Erh, I think it's called miso-something?" Another random guy sitting next to him had remarked. The two of them shared a look and simply just shrugged, before turning to look at the screen again. The majority of Berkians weren't exactly eager learners when it came to such topics.
"Yeah, I don't think that's what Hiccup and Astrid had in mind when they asked us to start its training," Fishlegs said, standing off to the side with a shield in his hand.
"Pfft," Ruffnut puffed, "Well, who's gonna tell them? I'm not. Are you?"
Tuffnut continued playing with the clicker as Fishlegs looked on, "Nope!"
The camera cut to a wide shot outside the stables. Hiccup and Astrid sat next to each other on the wooden platform, looking at the sunset while Toothless and Stormfly played nearby.
The two humans looked on in silence for a bit before Hiccup turned his head, "Are you sure you're feeling okay?"
"I'm fine, Hiccup," Astrid sighed, "You can stop worrying about me now."
"Well, I.. never stop worrying about you," Hiccup shrugged before smiling, "That's just the way it is."
"Yeah, yeah," She smiled as well, "I guess... that goes for me, too."
The view switches to a back view of them looking at the sunset. Hiccup scooted closer to her, and Astrid responded with a playful nudge to the side.
The hall was completely silent, save for the flickers of the torch fires and the odd grunt of the dragons. Everyone was watching with intent focus, and no-one dared say a word for fear of ruining the cinematic moment. Was this it?
Obviously, the vikings knew that Hiccup and Astrid were dating long before the Witch had even stepped foot on Berk. There was an announcement and a party and everything; but watching exactly when they started dating was an entirely different scenario than merely being informed that they were dating.
"Hey!" Hiccup retorted as Astrid chuckled. She put her hand back on the platform,
"Can I ask you something?" She asked, turning her head to the side.
"Sure."
"Um... Back in the forest," Astrid began, "When, we were... Well, you know..."
"Yeah?"
"Were you about to..."
"O-oh, uh..." Hiccup stuttered at being caught, "So you felt that, huh?"
Hiccup gave a nervous chuckle, "I felt like maybe I got away with it."
"Well, why didn't you?"
"Oh...?" His mind blanked for a moment before realising, "Oh! Well, I... It wasn't perfect."
"And I.. always thought that if it ever happened, uh..." Hiccup continued, "And yes, I've thought about it... a lot."
"Oh, Thor, strike me down, please!" Hiccup proclaimed, cringing all the while as Astrid burst into laughter, "'I've thought about it a lot,'?! Seriously? Who on Midgard even says stuff like that?"
He moaned, letting his face collapse in his hands, "I sounded so creepy!"
"No, no, Hiccup-" Astrid laughed, sliding her hand through Hiccup's own as her boyfriend settled down, "No, it was sweet."
"Uh, it had to be just perfect."
Astrid chuckled, taking a look at the scenery around them.
"Well," Astrid mused, "This seems... pretty perfect to me."
"Yeah?" Hiccup replied, "Yeah, I guess it does."
Hiccup and Astrid lean in, kissing on the lips while birds fly overhead. They pulled apart to look at each other, and reposition themselves to cuddle as they looked on into the sunset.
"FINALLY!" A random viking shouted amidst the crowd. The sound of all the cheers that erupted through the hall was deafening. A few of them actually had to tone it down in order to prevent the roof from collapsing in on itself!
"Aww!" The Twins squealed.
Seeing that the Great Hall was on the verge of collapsing, Stoick decided to take a page out of his son's book and had Skullcrusher send a harmless, but effective blast to the ground.
"Alright, QUIET DOWN!" The Chief hollered, immediately reducing the noise of the rowdy Vikings to mere whispers. Hiccup and Astrid gave the Chief looks of appreciation and thanks, which he waved off as he addressed the tribe.
"Thank you," Stoick sarcastically announced as he clapped his hands together, "Now, I want ye' all to remember to respect Hiccup and Astrid's boundaries about this as we wait for the next bout o' this witchcraft to start, are we clear?"
The vikings nodded, and dispersed once again into their own little groups.
Next up is Enemy of My Enemy!
I hope you all had a great Snoggletog. It's been a crazy year and a painful pandemic, and it's almost over. I hope you guys have a good new year, too! Let's make sure that next year is at least a little better than this one, eh?