When Hiccup opens his eyes, it's to a dull glow on the wooden beams of the ceiling. Night has fallen, and the fire is beginning to wane. His injuries throb lowly in time with his heartbeat, highlighting all the aches he'd rather forget. It's fascinating though, how the end of his leg pulsates, but it still feels like his foot lies just beyond that.

Swallowing roughly, his throat feels like sandpaper. As he goes to sit up, his bruised ribs flare with pain in protest. He squeezes his eyes shut and hisses as the sudden spike of pain draws the breath from his lungs. The arm he wraps around his midsection for comfort can do nothing to soothe the hurt lying beneath.

A large hand supports his back and a wooden cup is pressed into Hiccup's palm. Blindly, he drinks the contents. The taste of willow bark coats his tongue and though the tea is no longer warm, he gulps it down.

As Hiccup draws the cup back away from his face, he finally reopens his eyes. Sitting on the edge of the bed is the Chief. The low firelight catches the side of his face, drawing out all the shadows and wrinkles it finds on the surface – dark circles sit beneath his eyes and the creases at the corners of his eyes are heavy with worry.

The cup is taken from Hiccup's hand and placed on a nearby table. Then Stoick reaches around Hiccup to adjust the pillow behind him, propping him up.

"Thanks," Hiccup murmurs, not quite able to meet Stoick's eyes.

They lapse into silence then, with only the sound of the last log in the fire popping as it's slowly consumed. Hiccup isn't willing to break the silence. Astrid said that Stoick didn't seem mad, and currently his facial expression doesn't look angry, but the last time Hiccup had seen his father was when the man had locked him up, so he wasn't holding his breath.

"Hiccup," Stoick finally begins. And though he says it in a hushed tone, his voice still seems too loud in the space between them. "We need to talk."

Hiccup grimaces, definitely not ready for whatever conversation lies ahead. But he sighs, resigning himself to it anyway because there is nothing he can do to avoid it.

"Talk about what Dad?" It sounds sad, instead of being accompanied by his usual snark. "About how you think I'm a traitor to Berk? About how I needed to be locked up because of it? We already had that conversation."

He's expecting his father to yell, or at least say something in that chiefly assertive tone of his. But instead, Stoick takes a breath and proceeds in an even tone of voice.

"I spoke with Astrid yesterday, and she reminded me of something very important," he begins. "I may be Chief, but I am also your father. And sometimes, I think that's the harder job. Not because of you, but because being a parent is difficult – especially on your own. I never thought I would have to raise you without your mother, but that's no excuse. If Valka could see me now, I know she'd be disappointed in me for all the ways I've failed you. I should have been better, and I'm sorry for that."

Stoick's eyes shine, the extra layer of moisture catching the glow of the firelight, but he doesn't let it turn into actual tears. He reaches out to grab Hiccup's hand, so much smaller than his own.

"I know you've been through a lot, but I want you to know that I am willing to listen to whatever you have to tell me, whenever you're ready."

Hiccup stays silent, feeling the weight of his father's hand in his. Failure is not something a Chief readily admits to – Hiccup's not sure he's ever heard his dad do it before – but to do it now? Could he really mean what he says? There is only one way to find out, and Hiccup has taken plenty of other chances in the past week – what's one more?

As Stoick begins to rise, intent on giving Hiccup his space, the boy squeezes his father's hand tighter and looks up at him. "You mean it? You'll really listen to what I have to say?"

The Chief nods to agree, but Hiccup is quick to shake his head. "You won't like what I have to say. It'll be hard for you to hear."

Stoick sits back down. "With injuries like yours, there is always a chance that the body will go into shock, that you wouldn't wake up. Nothing you can say to me will be more difficult than the past few days spent facing that possibility."

Frowning, Hiccup picks at the blanket draped over his lap. "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"Try me."

Hiccup takes a deep breath. "I know you're probably wondering how all of this happened," he gestures to his various injuries, "but we can't start there. There are other things we have to talk about first."

Stoick nods agreeably, but Hiccup's not quite sure where to start. It really all began the night he shot Toothless down during the raid, but starting with such an insane truth doesn't seem like a good idea. He needs to start smaller.

"Dragon training," Hiccup says, choosing to build on something Stoick already knows. "I was doing well, but it's because I wasn't doing things the way we are supposed to."

Stoick frowns at that, so Hiccup clarifies. "Dragon training has always been about people proving what amazing warriors they'll be, about letting kids really show off their dragon fighting skills for the first time. Except, I wasn't fighting the dragons – I wasn't even trying to hurt them."

"I never signed you up for dragon training because I wanted you to turn into some kind of dragon killing warrior, Hiccup." Stoick reminds him. "I just wanted you to learn how to take care of yourself in situations where dragons are involved."

"And I did that," Hiccup insists, "just not the way I was supposed to. I made a friend while you were gone, someone who helped me see that dragons aren't what everyone has made them out to be. Sure, they're capable of a lot of bad, but they're capable of a lot of good too. They're not so different from people."

"Why are you so insistent in seeing dragons that way?" Stoick interrupts. Hiccup would have expected the question to be asked in an angry tone, but mostly the Chief seems deeply confused. "Our history with the dragons is a painful one, written in blood. Countless of our people have died because of them Hiccup – your mother was one of them."

"Don't you see that's exactly why?" Hiccup questions. "The bloodshed on both sides of the war can stop – once I learned that dragons can be good, I realized people no longer have to die."

Hiccup waits for a moment, letting that sink in. Preserving the lives of his people and ending the war has always been Stoick's top priority as Chief. If he can just get his dad to see that it can be accomplished without violence.

Hesitantly, Hiccup continues. "I'd like to show you something – someone – but you have to promise me you'll keep an open mind and not freak out."

"Is this someone the friend you made while I was gone? The one who taught you about dragons?" Stoick clarifies.

Hiccup nods. "I need you to see what I finally did."

"I promise I will listen and I won't freak out," Stoick says, "but I make no promises about believing them."

That'll have to be enough. Hiccup just has to have faith that together, he and Toothless will be enough to convince Stoick.

"Okay then," Hiccup says, tossing back the blanket. "Let's go."

"Now?" Stoick asks. "With your injuries, you should still be resting. And it's the middle of the night, won't your friend be sleeping?"

Hiccup shakes his head. "You said you'd listen whenever I was ready and I'm ready now."

The Chief did say that and he's a man of his word, so reluctantly, he passes Hiccup his crutch. Taking a moment, Hiccup adjusts to the feeling of being vertical and the renewed throbbing of his injuries before he begins hobbling over to the back door of the house. Stoick looks surprised by Hiccup's choice of direction, but follows nonetheless.

Halfway up the hill behind the house, Hiccup gestures for Stoick to stop. "You wait here. I just need to get to the edge of the woods," Hiccup explains, nodding his head towards the tree line at the top of the hill. "He'll be waiting nearby."

Stoick looks even more confused now, but doesn't argue, waiting where he is told as Hiccup continues the rest of the way.

It's a slow trek for Hiccup. His injuries are protesting all the movement and he is still very clumsy with the crutch. Sweat coats the palms of his hands as his nerves about the whole situation settle in, making his grip on the crutch even more precarious, but he perseveres and is eventually standing at the edge of the trees. The moonlight does little to penetrate through the canopy, leaving things heavily engulfed in shadow. Once, Hiccup would have been too scared to stand here. Though his house was just at the base of the hill, the possibility of monsters potentially lurking in the darkness would have terrified him. Now, such a thing no longer scares him. He's more afraid of Stoick's reaction than of anything that could be laying await in the woods.

"Toothless?" Hiccup calls out, just loud enough for the dragon to hear.

Behind him, there's a confused mutter from his father. "…Toothless?" But Hiccup pays him no mind.

The foliage rustles ever so slightly. It's so subtle someone could probably mistake it for the wind, but then there is a pair of bright green eyes piercing through the darkness. Toothless rushes over to see him, and Hiccup drops the crutch to the ground, throwing his arms around the dragon's neck. In return, Toothless nuzzles against him. Hiccup can't control the smile that spreads across his face. No matter what else happens, at least he has this.

Ready to face his father, Hiccup turns to look over his shoulder, but without the crutch, his balance falters. Instantly, Toothless is wrapping his tail around him, supporting him before he can topple. Hiccup thanks him before laying eyes on his father.

Stoick definitely stands closer than he did before, likely having taken a few frantic steps forward at the appearance of a dragon so close to his son, but he stopped before reaching them. He's studying them – how they greeted one another, Hiccup now absentmindedly scratching at his scales, the protective yet gentle way the dragon is curled around his son. From this display it would be clear to anyone that not only does Hiccup care for the dragon, but it cares for him as well.

As the chief opens his mouth to speak, the dragon narrows his eyes.

"A Night Fury?" Stoick breathes out. "Your friend is a Night Fury? Hiccup, how did you even-" He trails off, his eyes still going back and forth between the two.

"He was injured in the raid right before you left," Hiccup explains, choosing to leave out the detail that he was the one who shot Toothless down because that would only bring on unnecessary questions. "I found him in the woods. He could have killed me – it would have been easy for him to do, even with his injury – but he didn't. And I could have left him to die, but I chose to help him instead. We can get along with dragons."

As if to punctuate Hiccup's point, Toothless nuzzles against him.

Stoick sighs, crossing his arms over his chest. "Hiccup, I understand where you're coming from. Maybe this dragon is capable of good, and that's got you thinking he might not be the only one. But the raids? They aren't going to stop just because your best friend is a Night Fury. As Chief, I can't tell my people to stop fighting back against the dragons and just let themselves be killed and their food taken, all because my son befriended a dragon."

"But what if the raids were over?" Hiccup questions. "If the dragons stopped raiding, then the war could end, right?"

Wearily, Stoick rubs a hand over his face. "Hypothetically maybe, but the raids-"

"It's not a hypothetical," Hiccup interjects, leveling Stoick with a firm gaze. "The raids are over."

Now Stoick looks confused. "Son, what are you talking about?"

"Toothless lets me ride him, and while you were gone, we ended up accidently finding the nest. It's not like what we pictured." Hiccup draws to mind the mental image of what they were taught, of dragons hoarding their kills and feasting savagely. "The dragons were forced to raid us because a dragon queen the size of a mountain needs to eat, and it's either our livestock or the dragons who live there – she's not picky."

Hiccup pauses, expecting Stoick to say something. Afterall, Vikings have been searching for the nest for hundreds of years – with many never returning – and Hiccup is the first one to have found it, the first to have seen what really happens there. But it seems he's too surprised to interject, so Hiccup continues.

"The night I disappeared from the jail, Toothless and I went back there."

This gets Stoick's attention.

"By yourself? Hiccup, dozens of Vikings go just to scout for the nest. To go alone is practically a death wish! How could you be so foolish?"

"No!" Hiccup shouts. The hand that was rubbing Toothless' scales is now clenched tightly in a fist. "You don't get to say that to me, not when I spent days in that jail feeling so frustrated and helpless after my final exam. I didn't know what else to do!" Moisture gathers in his eyes, and he's not sure if it's from sadness or anger. Toothless curls his tail more protectively around Hiccup as the boy points an accusatory finger at his father. "I tried to talk to you, and you shut me out! Threw me away like I was nothing! Was I supposed to think you'd listen to me about the nest after that?"

Stoick's shoulders drop, like the weight of what his son has said is physically resting on them. He may have come to a realization while Hiccup was unconscious about what a horrible father he'd been, but that doesn't magically erase everything that happened before.

Swiping roughly at the tears in his eyes, Hiccup tries to regain some composure before continuing. "I didn't see another option, so Toothless and I went back to the nest to try and stop the raids. We provoked the queen into following us high into the clouds and tricked her into diving back down after us. She was too big to stop herself from crashing into the ground from that height and it killed her."

Stoick is speechless – eyes wide as they run over Hiccup's frame.

Hiccup sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "Look, I know it's probably difficult to believe that your scrawny fishbone of a son had anything to do with it, but it's true. Toothless and I stopped her."

"I believe you."

"Really?" Hiccup asks, raising an eyebrow as doubt seeps into his voice. "Because you look kinda shocked."

"I'm shocked that you survived," Stoick clarifies. "A dragon the size of a mountain? And you're still standing before me?"

"Well, that's mostly because of Toothless. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be standing before you." Hiccup admits, wrapping his arm around the Night Fury. "I don't want to make it sound like it was easy, because it wasn't. I was very close to not making it back. But we did succeed – the dragon queen is dead – and without her, we can have peace."

There's a stretch of silence while Stoick is deep in thought. He turns his back to them, facing the village instead. From here, Stoick can look out over the houses of the people he has sworn to protect as chief. Hiccup swallows nervously now that his father is turned and lets his head rest against Toothless' shoulder. All they can do is wait it out and see what he says. Hiccup has done everything he can to convince his father, and if this doesn't work? He doesn't even have his Plan B to fall back on anymore. How could he take off with Toothless when all of the flight gear was destroyed and – more importantly – Hiccup no longer has a foot to operate the pedal?

Finally, Stoick turns to face them again. He looks Hiccup over, his eyes lingering on the empty space at the bottom of his left leg, before flickering momentarily to Toothless and back to his son's face.

"I want this war to end. As both a chief and a father, I want that more than anything. But if I'm to go to my people and tell them what you've told me, it won't be enough. My belief in you won't be enough to sway them, not when hundreds of years of history stand in the way. If we're going to do this, we need something they can see, something they can't deny."

A wide grin stretches across Hiccup's face. "Is that all? If you need proof, let Toothless and I take you to the nest. He can show us the way on a ship, and you can see the carnage for yourself."

"You'd be willing to go back?" Stoick asks.

"Well, I didn't lose my leg for nothing," Hiccup semi-jokes. Toothless huffs beside him, clearly not amused. "If we need to go back to get proof, we will. It's as simple as that."

Stoick nods. "Then we'll leave tomorrow."

Hiccup turns and wraps his arms back around Toothless. They've done it. It might not be over, but they managed to convince his father and that's not something Hiccup had previously believed was possible. He'd hoped, but to have it become a reality? The relief is tangible. The stress and tension Hiccup had been carrying since Stoick offered to listen and Hiccup decided to tell the truth melts out of him in a rush, leaving him swaying where he stands. If Toothless wasn't there to support him, he would be flat on the ground.

Stoick sees the strength leave his son and approaches slowly, the Night Fury watching his every move. It's one thing to see the dragon show care for his son, it's another thing entirely to believe he'll be shown any of the same treatment. Afterall, it's clear that the Night Fury is a very intelligent creature, and it had heard the way Hiccup yelled at his father earlier, tears rising to the boy's eyes at the pain he'd felt – the pain Stoick caused, no matter how much he wishes he could take it back. He couldn't really blame the dragon if it chose to be hostile towards him.

Watching the Chief's every step with his sharp green eyes, Toothless does let him approach. Even before today, the Night Fury was aware of Hiccup's relationship with his father, and tonight's interaction showed him that the man is one to be watched. But it also showed Toothless that he's trying, and no matter how protective Toothless wants to be, he owes it to Hiccup to let him try. So, when Stoick comes within arm's reach, Toothless croons in Hiccup's ear to bid him farewell for the night and nudges the boy into his father's arms. As Toothless locks eyes with the chief, an understanding passes between them. There is nothing that this dragon wouldn't do for this boy. For the first time in his life, Stoick is comforted by the determination he sees in a dragon's eyes.