When morning came, Stoick and Dagur began walking around the island. Before long, they were approached by Gobber. It was subtle, but the chief could tell something was wrong.

"I'll return in a moment," he said, turning to the younger Viking.

Dagur nodded and glanced over towards some huts. Snotlout was excitedly waving, so the Berserker joined him while the Berkians spoke. Stoick went with Gobber towards his shop.

"What's wrong?"

"Dagur hates his home," the blond said. "I don't really know what it's like for the lad there, but he doesn't even think Oswald likes him."

Stoick's brows furrowed. "I'm sure he does. He just wants them to get along better. That's why he suggested this."

"It probably is, but Dagur's thinking Oswald just wanted an excuse to get rid of him. Is it really that far-fetched for him to assume?"

Unhappily, the chief sighed. "No, I can understand why he'd think that. I doubt his last time there helped much." He began stroking his beard thoughtfully. "I suggested that he open up to Oswald and got him to work some on his temper, but maybe there's something else that can be done so that they'll enjoy each other's company more."

"Well, Oswald's a fan of exploring."

Stoick frowned slightly. "Yes…but I've already had that issue with Hiccup. I can't tell him we shouldn't leave, then go with Dagur."

"You can take Hiccup somewhere when he comes back," his friend offered hopefully.

Gobber saw how much the chief seemed to hate this idea. He put his hand on his shoulder.

"Going to a new island isn't the worst thing in the world, Stoick. At some point in the past, our great, great, great–"

"I think I get the point, Gobber."

The blacksmith chuckled. "They came here and others probably moved away. It's not like you need to spend every day out there, but you already know Oswald loves being on the sea. If you want to help him and Dagur, help the lad be someone Oswald can bring on those adventures he loves."

Stoick looked off where he saw the boys play fighting. He wondered how different he was from Oswald. Certainly, he had to be significantly different if Hiccup could get along so well with the man. So, how would he understand what the other chief would want his son to do? Concern hit Stoick as he considered something else. What if he messed things up more for the pair? He could accidentally encourage Dagur to explore in a way that just led to Oswald being disturbed or disappointed.

"Maybe focus a bit less on violence with him this time," Gobber advised, seemingly reading his friend's mind.

"I'll try," the other Berkian stated.

Stoick began heading towards the smaller Vikings. Dagur was in the middle of putting Snotlout in a choke hold, but both kids were smiling, so the father supposed that this was fine.

"He's a pretty good fighter," Dagur told the larger Viking.

"Thanks!" Snotlout said, in a partially strained voice.

The chief smiled. "Good. He'll need that against the dragons." He paused briefly. "We're going to do something different today."

Curiously, Dagur let the young Berkian go. "What are we doing?"

"We're going to try exploring."

The boy made a face. "I thought that wasn't something you did."

"It's not, but it's something Oswald does a lot. So, hopefully, this'll help you do that with him."

Dagur seemed to think about this for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. See you later, Snothat."

Snotlout waved goodbye as the redheads began going towards the dock. Stoick hoisted the sail so that they could begin sailing.

"Where are we going?" the Berserker asked, looking over the side.

The chief held a map between his right hand and the helm. "Hopefully, to an island not too far from here. Trader Johann told me about Vikings who have gone there."

"Did they hunt anything?"

"I don't think so."

A disappointed expression crossed the boy's face. "Then what's the point of going? Are they trying to expand their tribes?"

"He said they'd just go sightseeing." Stoick already saw the boredom in the boy's eyes. "It might be more interesting than it sounds."

"Do you really think it will be?" the youth asked doubtfully.

The Berkian looked back at the seas. "I think it'll be good for you to have the experience."

Finding this dull, Dagur crossed his arms and leaned against the side of the ship. Their trip was not much longer. When they docked, the duo went down the ramp. Stoick had to admit to himself that he was becoming bored as well. The island looked plain with some trees, a few stones, and lots of sand. He hoped the center of the island was more interesting.

"We shouldn't judge from first glance," he said, hoping to convince Dagur of this as much as he wanted to convince himself.

To his surprise, the Berserker was quiet. His eyes were narrowed and he looked like he was trying to spot something.

"What are you doing?"

"Dad normally searches the island stealthily first," Dagur whispered. "He said it lets you know what's there."

"Ah, I can see that helping," the man responded, also whispering now.

He let Dagur lead the way as they went through the island. Stoick was a little taken off guard by the boy's diligence. He had seen it for chiefly duties, but he had not expected that with exploring.

"It seems like he remembers more of Oswald's adventuring methods than I anticipated," he thought.

After a little bit more, Dagur abruptly stopped. "The island's clear." He looked up at Stoick, half-curious and half-uncertain. Suddenly, he brightened. "If we find a rodent, want to kill it?"

"We probably shouldn't."

"Aw."

"What kinds of things did you do with Oswald when you went on adventures?"

"Not much." Dagur tapped his chin, trying to remember. "Once, I used something we found as bait."

"Did he enjoy that?"

Expression dimming, the Berserker shook his head. "Not really. He seemed upset."

"What did he want to do?"

"That boring sightseeing stuff you mentioned on the ship." Dagur pretended to yawn. "He's happy just staring at things all day. I don't get why he didn't want to stare at the animals I'd caught. At least then, we're looking at something that's moving."

Stoick found himself struggling to find a good solution. Surely, Oswald had to enjoy something about adventuring more than just watching rocks wear down due to water. If only the Berkian had ever asked about that. With twinkling eyes, Stoick remembered a conversation during one of the peace treaty signing trips.

"Oswald likes to learn new things," he said. "It might be more about that than generally watching what's going on."

The idea was plausible to Dagur. He had not thought of it that way before. Why did his father not simply say that? He also enjoyed learning. Maybe thinking about it that way would make the expeditions more interesting. Dagur started to smile as another idea came to him.

"Want to see if we can make a new discovery with this island?"

Stoick smiled as well. "Of course."

The Berserker moved his gaze to the ground, looking for anything peculiar. So far, it all seemed regular. He was becoming disheartened, but Stoick tapped his shoulder when they were next to a stream.

"What is it?" Dagur asked, trying to follow his gaze.

"I didn't realize this island had Grimora."

Raising a brow, the boy turned to the chief. "What's that?"

Stoick pointed to the surface of the water near them. Dagur squinted and saw an unfamiliar creature with a wide mouth and tiny wings.

"They're parasites," the Berkian informed him. "That's probably why we don't see dragons here. These will go inside of them and take over. We're warned about that in the Book of Dragons. The only way to make a dragon more dangerous is to have it infected by a Grimora."

Dagur frowned at the little creature. "They're creepy-looking. Can they do anything to Vikings?"

"I don't believe so."

Stoick could see the thoughts racing through the boy's mind. Before Dagur could hop over to the Grimora, he managed to stop him.

"Let's not test that."

"Why not? It would be a new discovery. Dad would probably be interested in it."

"He would, but he'd also probably be very upset if Grimora can infect Vikings and that happened while you were with me."

Reluctantly, Dagur stopped looking at the parasite. "Alright, I won't grab it. Can I catch it, though? I can try to do it safely. I wonder what it'll do if it's out of the water for a while." He started to grin deviously. "Maybe it'll dry up like Grimora jerky."

Although Stoick was sure he should not have, he chuckled as well. "It might," he conceded. After a moment, he nodded. "We can capture it. Just make sure it doesn't touch you so that it won't get into your skin."

Dagur grinned excitedly. He started looking around them to see what was nearby.

"I could use something flat to put underneath it," he thought. "Maybe a stone…nah, that won't work. The parasite would probably run off and I don't know what I'd put on top of it to keep it from flying away." "Have any honey?" the Berserker asked.

The question surprised Stoick. "I think so." He began piecing together the boy's reason. "You want to use honey so that it won't go anywhere?"

Dagur eagerly nodded his head. "I can put honey on a cloth, toss it on the Grimmy, then it'll be trapped."

The concept intrigued Stoick, so he followed Dagur back to the ship. Quickly, the boy got a cloth and dabbed one spot with honey. When there was enough to satisfy him, he hurried back out to the stream. His eyes scanned the stream again until he found a stone with that Grimora. He flung the cloth to make its sticky side land on the parasite. Dagur cringed when he heard a loud screeching.

"Do they normally do that?" he asked, covering his ears.

"I'm not sure," Stoick admitted, also covering his own. "We don't have anything written about that."

The Vikings were glad that the cloth muffled most of the noise. Dagur leapt onto several rocks to get closer. When he was by the one with the Grimora, he poked at the cloth, then stopped. It suddenly occurred to him that his plan might not work. Potentially, the honey could have not gone onto the creature. If so, it would be able to get on him as soon as he lifted the fabric. Getting controlled by a parasite had not been on his plan for the day. From the grass, Stoick saw the unsure expression on his face.

"Move back," the father instructed, drawing his sword. "I'll use this to bring it over to us."

Dagur complied and hopped away from the stream. Stoick got closer and put the tip of the blade under the cloth. Slowly, he lifted it up. Noticing that there was no more screeching and that the Grimora was not flying away, Stoick smiled. He dangled the cloth over the ground and let it fall. Dagur went over to it and saw the parasite wiggling in honey. His eyes lit up as he let out a happy cackle.

"We caught it!" he cheered. Dagur picked up the cloth and gave it a little shake. "Looks like it isn't going anywhere."

"We could see how it responds to being near flames."

The Berserker liked the idea and started looking for some wood to use. It was fun to try to make new discoveries. If all exploring was going to be like this, he just might not mind going on those voyages. He doubted his father would even believe it–he hardly did himself. On Berserker Island, Oswald had gotten up early to walk around the village. He wanted to think over the various ways he could help Hiccup and Stoick. During the walk, he spotted Herald checking on some young soldiers who were in the middle of training.

"Morning, Chief," the general called.

"Morning, Herald," Oswald said. He paused when he saw a troubled look on the other Berserker's face. "What's wrong?"

"Have you considered the end of this experiment?"

"Of course. What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about what happens when the boys are on their own islands again. Hiccup seemed worried that not much would change when he returned. Yesterday, it even sounded like he would've preferred to remain here rather than ever go back to Berk."

Hearing this, Oswald's brows furrowed. "Stoick would be devastated to hear that."

"Which is why I wanted to tell you."

The chief put a hand to his chin in thought. "I was considering something that might help them in a more direct way. I'd say I understand the lad pretty well now. I've given Stoick ideas for what they can do together, but maybe it'll also help if Hiccup enjoys something that Stoick likes."

"Like fighting?"

This caused a skeptical expression to form on Oswald's face. "You're suggesting I recommend that he and Hiccup begin sparring? I doubt the boy would last five minutes against him."

Herald shook his head. "They don't need to spar that intensely and Hiccup doesn't need to be turned into a seasoned fighter or anything. It might help more if you can work with Hiccup on self-defense. It's good for him to learn anyway and Stoick would have a few less worries if he can handle himself better in a battle."

The other Viking thought of this. It could work…maybe. The problem was that Stoick was such a warrior. Sometimes, Oswald wondered if the father missed his true calling by going to battles on a regular basis. It could take a lot to impress him–potentially more than Hiccup could do. If Oswald filled the boy's head with hopes of leading Vikings to victory against enemies, it could end in him only being more disappointed. Still, it was possible that with a bit of ingenuity, any battle could be won.

"I'll try this out," he said. "Wish us luck."

"Good luck."

Oswald started heading back to the hut. He stopped as he heard a new sound.

"This part is a little too thin. It would need to be thicker for more durability," Hiccup stated.

The chief turned to the voice and saw the Berkian talking with Lefa and Wayde. They were showing him a sword.

"Oh, okay," the girl said. "I'll make sure the ones I work on are better then."

The young Vikings smiled when Oswald went over to them.

"You're all up early."

"I saw that you weren't at the hut, so I thought I'd go for a walk. Then I found Wayde and Lefa, so we started talking about working with the forge."

Oswald grinned at them. "Well, you two couldn't have found a better teacher for that than Hiccup."

"I'll bet!" the brother agreed.

"Of course, there are some other skills I was hoping to teach him," the elder Berserker stated thoughtfully. He glanced at the siblings. "Could you excuse us?"

The Vikings nodded and Hiccup began walking off with Oswald. He noticed the pensive expression on the man's face.

"What did you want to do today?"

"I was thinking about fighting. Spars more so, I suppose." Oswald glanced at Hiccup, seeing the boy turn ashen. "I don't plan on attacking you or having anyone else do it," he quickly clarified.

"Then how are we going to fight?"

"I can teach you defensive techniques through demonstrations. Have you done those before?"

"A little. Mostly, we just learn to grab a shield on Berk."

"There's a lot more to it than that. I don't like hurting others if I can avoid it. Unfortunately, I don't always avoid it like the time with the Silkspanner, but ensuring that everyone remains alive is important."

"And you can do all that with defense?" Hiccup asked, in awe.

Oswald chuckled at his shocked expression. "If it's done well. Remember, it's defensive. You can defend yourself, those around you…even your enemies if you decide to."

"I doubt Dad would want me to help protect an enemy."

"Maybe not, but I'm certain he'd want you to protect yourself and those on Berk. You don't have to do it with an ax lodged in someone's head. There are other ways. I'll see how many we can try before it gets late."

"Is this because Dad said he wanted me to fight?"

"Not at all. He never suggested this, but I think it would help. Stoick's more open to unique ideas than I thought he was–this much has been proven to me during the experiment–so it could lead to a nice moment between the two of you if you shared what you came up with."

Hiccup seemed intrigued by the thought and nodded as they made their way to the training grounds. The boy always felt awkward when he was in those. Despite that, there was something about Oswald's nonjudgmental gaze that made it less stressful. Hiccup selected a shield that was hanging off a wall.

"Dad and Gobber always say to go for one of these first," he commented.

"Good advice. Do you want to just work with that or a weapon in addition to it?"

Hiccup was not really sure. "Maybe just this for now."

Oswald nodded and grabbed another shield. "Very well. Get into a defensive stance."

Demonstrating, the Berserker bent his knees and held the weapon close to him. Hiccup tried to mimic what he saw.

"Nice," the father said, smiling. "Now, if someone is coming with an attack from above, what do you do?"

Hiccup adjusted the position so that the shield was higher. This time, he noticed that Oswald did not say it was correct.

"Mostly right," he stated, "but you're leaving too much space between yourself and the shield. Someone could take advantage of that and get your core." Oswald chuckled as he gestured to himself. "I'm not the shortest, but I'm far from one of the tallest Vikings in the Archipelago. So, I understand how it is to adjust for attacks that are coming down on your head. Just keep in mind that a move of the arm could change a head strike to a blow to the stomach."

The Berkian adjusted accordingly, receiving a smile as a reward when he did.

"And if they're coming for your legs…"

Hiccup made his stance lower, intentionally keeping the shield next to him still as it also protected his legs.

"Perfect! You're picking up on this quickly. I think you could use a weapon now."

Oswald went over to another wall with weapons laying against it. His eyes trailed along them all until he suddenly stopped.

"We shouldn't use these," he said.

"What's wrong with them?'

"Nothing, but it would be better if you used your own blade."

The father had to smile at the twinkle in Hiccup's eyes. He had not thought he would train with the sword he had created. The boy was so used to just helping Gobber make them and then giving them to warriors. He never got to use them.

"I can get it and be right back," he said, grinning.

Hiccup hurried off to the shop. He was able to quickly find the sword and then began returning to where Oswald was. On the way, the boy had to almost laugh at himself.

"I can't believe I'm actually looking forward to training," he thought. "Maybe the berserk part of this island is how it messes with your mind."

The Berkian reached the training grounds again and tried to get in a fighting stance he had seen his father do. Oswald remembered the other chief looking similar. He smiled at the attention to detail Hiccup had used.

"Try to disarm someone as soon as possible," he advised, grabbing a sword for himself.

Oswald approached the smaller Viking. He put the tips of the blades near one another.

"How would you make me lose this weapon?" he asked.

Hiccup thought over his options. He was not strong enough to use sheer power to knock it out of the man's grip.

"I could bring my sword closer to your hands," he mentioned, not sure if he was right or not. "That might get someone to let go."

"I agree. It might not work for everyone, but the average Viking wouldn't want to get cut." Oswald turned pensive. "What if I was about to attack someone over there?" The man pointed towards the wall. "Imagine that's a Viking. If my attention's there, what would you do to stop me?"

"I could try to distract you."

"You could, but it might not work. I could be too focused. Maybe I didn't like the last ax Gobber made."

"That seems pretty unlikely."

Oswald laughed. "Okay, fair point, but maybe he said something that angered me."

"Now, that I could see happening," the boy admitted, chuckling.

"So, let's say it did. You have to find a way to stop me because he's not looking and doesn't know I'm about to slash his back."

Hiccup frowned in thought. "I could throw something. It would be better if I had something to shoot, though, like a crossbow."

The Berkian turned to the shield. He seemed to concentrate on it so much that Oswald had to know what was going on through his mind.

"What would the shield have to do with a crossbow?"

"What if…would that work?" Hiccup mumbled. He tried again, speaking louder. "What if I turned the shield into a weapon like a crossbow? I can't really hold both at the same time, so it would probably be my best chance to hold a shield and a weapon."

Oswald blinked at the shield, suddenly seeing it in a new light. "I think that would work nicely. I'd be interested in finding out how you maintained the structure of both." He pointed back at the wall. "So, you'd use your cross shield to hit me and delay my attack?"

The boy nodded. "I have better aim with those than throwing things. Do you think that plan would work?"

"I do," the father said with a smile. "I like it a lot. Also, I didn't forget what you'd said to Lefa earlier. You know how weapons are made. You know where they're strong and where they're weak. Use that to your advantage." Oswald grabbed a mace and brought it close enough for the Berkian to see. "If I was using this and was so out of control that I didn't drop it when my hands got cut, where's a weak point you could target?"

Hiccup's eyes moved over the object. It was pretty well-made, but it was far from perfect.

"The handle closest to the head isn't strong," he said. "It's already struggling to hold the mace up. If it got hit with a different weapon, I don't think it would last much longer."

Oswald grinned brightly. "And your opponent would be stuck with little more than a stick."

Hiccup smiled back at him. "This kind of fighting actually isn't bad."

"Fighting isn't inherently terrible. It's all in the mind. You don't have to be the fastest or strongest fighter if you're the smartest. Creativity, Hiccup. That's the key to everything."

The Berkian liked the sound of that. If that was how he could begin fighting, he would not mind showing Stoick one day. The chief might even think he was skilled. This thought put a hopeful smile on the boy's face. It was decided. Berserker Island had definitely done something to him because he was having way too much fun learning how to fight. It was all pretty berserk indeed.