After the discussion with Eyarr and the encounter with his dragon, Hiccup decided that for the time being, the two would temporarily stay in the holding house, a specialized extension of the Great Hall, that was constructed for any guests on New Berk whose fate was undecided. It sounded worse than what it was, as it was always temporary and anyone who had to stay there usually moved into the village or moved on with their lives elsewhere. Hiccup didn't want Eyarr to feel like a prisoner, but there weren't other options at the moment, so this is what we had.

Eyarr had reluctantly to stay in the spare space, albeit reluctantly, and I couldn't blame him.

That being said, I empathized with his situation; being somewhere new and not knowing what to do, or if you could trust someone.

A couple of days following Eyarr's arrival, I went to go see him in the Great Hall. He was sitting by himself at a table, and his dragon right behind him. One of his smaller bags was with him, and he had a book and several papers on the table in front of him.

My breath hitched, uncomfortable with being so close to such a massive creature.

He glanced up, an irritated expression plastered on his face, and a small scowl. I twiddled my thumbs, unsure of how I would even approach this.

"What do you want?" He demanded. My heart skipped a beat from the intensity in his voice, the dim light reflected off the taut skin of his facial scars, which enhanced his exhibited annoyance.

"I didn't mean to bother you."

"Well, you did." He snapped, his eyes averting back to his book. Shit. I swallowed hard, what should I say? If I said the wrong thing, he could do something, I'm pretty sure he had his sword on him, though it seemed unlikely.

I wasn't leaving, and my presence was bothering him further.

"Listen, unless you have something to say, just leave."

"Okay, I do have something to say," I sat down on the bench across from him, "now, I really don't want to get on your bad side, or whatever. But I wanted to assure you, I guess, that I've been in your position." He raised a doubtful eyebrow.

"And how would you possibly know what my position is like? And for that matter, I don't seen any dragons around here."

"It's not about the dragon, what I mean is about being a stranger here. Not really knowing where you are, what the people are like, and if you can trust them. I get it." His expression shifted from being less judgemental, and I could tell he was actually listening.

"Try me then."

"Well, first of all, look at me. I don't look like anyone here. I don't come from the north." He blinked, crossing his arms. "I washed up on their beach about a year ago, and even though I've spent my time learning about their culture and learning their language, I know I'm different."

Silence.

"All I'm trying to say is that, I understand. And I want to help. From one outsider to the other. If you're willing, you can stay in my house, instead of living here." I offered, gesturing the holding house. He didn't have anything else to say, so I left him with his dragon.

I didn't think anything would come with our tense interaction, I wouldn't even call it a conversation.

But that evening, just as the sun was setting, I was surprised to hear a knock on the door. When I opened it, it was Eyarr and Hiccup.

"Hiccup? Eyarr?" I greeted, slightly bewildered.

"He's decided it'd be best to stay with you." Hiccup explained. My eyes shifted momentarily to process what was going on, but then I stepped to the side, allowing Eyarr to enter.

"Welina," I said, hoping he didn't notice the slight tremor in my voice. He paused and turned to me with a puzzled expression but still said nothing.. The anxiety turned into a rush of confidence as I smirked at him.

"Welcome, in my native language. Head down the hallway there and the room is on your left."

As Eyarr made his way down towards his new room I turned to Hiccup.

"Uh, mind if I asked what changed his mind?" Hiccup was as uncertain as I was.

"He didn't want to be in the holding house, not that I blame him. You told him you didn't mind him staying with you, so when I went to the great hall, he requested to come here."

Oh. Okay.

Well in that case. Hiccup and I worked out some kind of agreement or terms about Eyarr's stay. I was promised full control over the situation, and if Eyarr gave me any problems, then I could kick him out.

After our chat, Hiccup then left me to figure out what to do now. I saw one of the packs that Eyarr brough inside set next to the couch, though I opted not to touch it. I didn't want to invade his personal belongings after he just showed up into my house.

Once Hiccup was gone, Eyarr rejoined me in the main living area.

"Why a spare bedroom? Since you live here by yourself?" He asked, catching me off guard.

"In case I needed company," I replied carefully. We both stood there awkwardly, unsure of what to say next. In the moment, I gave him a once over, taking in his tall, strong stature. He still bore an intense expression, but it was softened compared to my prior interactions. There wasn't a grin nor a frown behind that beard of his. He swallowed hard, a vein in his neck slightly distending from possible stress.

He huffed, crossing his arms, his biceps flexing under the muted blue longsleeve tunic he wore under his embellished leather vest.

"Alright, what are the rules?" He demanded. Now it was my turn to swallow hard. I pursed my lips, trying to think, twiddling my fingers again.

"Um, don't touch any of my stuff," I began, earning an 'that's obvious' look from him, I shook it off and continued. "As long as you're here, you'll help me with any chores or making food. Ah uh… And I won't go into your room unless you allow me, and vice versa."

He bore an expression of surprise, and I was confused at his surprise.

"What? Why are you surprised?"

"Well, from the places I've been before, I usually am dealt much stricter rules, not that I follow them anyway," I raised an eyebrow at him, "I'm not accustomed to… guidelines."

"Hm. If it eases your mind, I don't consider myself a strict type of authority figure; unless I absolutely have to be."

The corner of his mouth curled into a half-grin as he processed my words. I couldn't quite read it, but before I had the chance to ask him anything else, he then walked past me out the front door. Probably to go see his dragon.

While I couldn't read his expression, I could sense that he was incredibly stressed and unsure of his situation, and I genuinely empathized. As I had felt the same not too long ago, it was overwhelming, and I supposed that the least I could do was assist him and get him sort of comfortable. It was what the Haddocks did for me.

An hour after Eyarr came to the house, Zephyr and Nuffink came by to check in with me. Eyarr still wasn't back yet, but what could I do about it? If he had gone to see his dragon, I was not about to get in between them.

"So, how'd it go? You need anything?"

"Um, I'm not sure, honestly. I gave him some easy rules, or guidelines, to follow, and he was surprised at how lenient I am."

"Hmm, well, guess we have some kind of insight to the kind of person he is."

"I'm not going to get ahead of myself." Meanwhile, Nuffink make himself at home on the couch facing the fireplace. I just rolled my eyes at him, since he always did the same thing whenever he came over.

Zephyr, on the other hand, did her best to assure me.

"Seriously, Laeli, let me know if you need anything. I know this is going to be weird. I know dad talked to you prior."

"He did. And I'm going to take this one step at a time. I appreciate the concern, though. That being said, are your parents talking?"

"Yeah, they're talking with their friends right now. I don't know what's going to happen next, I don't think it'll be that bad."

"We just need to figure out what the hell is going on with him." Nuffink remarked. Zephyr and I just nodded.

"Anyway, again, I appreciate the concern. I've got this convered, you'll be the first I call if something goes wrong." Zephyr elbowed me playfully.

"Just don't stumble around him. He is rather good-looking." I rolled my eyes.

"Give me a break, Zeph."

"Just saying!"

After the Haddock siblings left, I decided to try and make dinner.

Once the fire was blazing and had a cauldron over it, I heard Eyarr finally return. Lovely; perfect timing. I didn't care to ask what he was up to. I quickly glanced over to initially say dinner was almost ready, but my breath caught in my throat as he pulled a tunic over his head. I saw the muscles of his chest and abdomen flex with every slight movement of his body. What on earth was he doing outside without his tunic and vest? Eugh, whatever.

I looked away before he saw me staring. I casually informed him food was ready as he walked up and grabbed a chair and sat down.

"I apologize in advance if it's not great. My cooking skills aren't up to par."

"I'm not much of a cook either. I don't judge." I handed him a bowl.

"I appreciate it. Where I'm from, women didn't cook, the men did." He took a bite before replying.

"You never learned?" I shrugged as I got myself a bowl.

"I never needed to learn, honestly. I'm the daughter of the chief back home-" Eyarr suddenly choked, interrupting my explanation.

"You're what?" I shifted my eyes in confusion.

"...Daughter of the chief." He hurriedly swallowed his food, trying not to choke again.

"Shit." I looked at him, unimpressed with his reaction.

"What's wrong with you?" He almost didn't know what to say to me.

"I mean, you're basically a Princess. It doesn't feel right to be here."

"What, do you want to stay with the Haddocks instead? I can arrange that. I'm sure the Chief will be more than happy to have you there." I noticed him swallow hard. I narrowed my eyes at him, leaning forward and resting my forearms on my crossed legs. Gods, where did that attitude come from?

"Didn't think so," I finished with a smug grin. He glared at me, the scar on his nose bridge creasing as he narrowed his eyes at me.

"I don't need that attitude from you." I glared back.

"And guess what, that's what you'll get while you're here. Until Chief Hiccup figures out a better situation for you, you're stuck here with me. And you have to abide by my rules. Since I am a princess, in your words."

"And something tells me you won't make this easy despite your 'guidelines'."

"I'll make it as easy according to your attitude. Don't act as if you know me."

"You don't know me either." He fired back. I doused out the fire and made my way upstairs without another word. It was getting late and I was not in the mood to bicker with him. He was certainly the stubborn type if anything from earlier was an indication.

I changed for bed and slid under the blankets. As I did so, I could hear Eyarr walking downstairs and opening the door to his room. I whispered a prayer to the gods asking for ease and any amount of patience they could grant.