Off to Athens

Hiccups POV:

I woke up like every morning with the sun shining through my window and onto my face. As the warmth of the morning suns light I pulled my upper body up and stretched out my muscles. I let out a yawn and looked out the window at the ocean and couldn't help but think about these past few months. I had been going back to the village every week to help out Gobber and everyone has been trying to repair the damage that's been done. I'll admit they've made some progress but not much since they've been horrible for fourteen years of my life but things have been good for me. My jaguars now help me by climbing trees to shake fruit loose with the monkeys helping me collect it out of the nets I set up in the branches to catch it. Glacia has been growing bigger every day and was now the size of a gronkle. Her ice breath has also become far stronger to the point where it was just as powerful as Bergs icy blast and it was because of this she begun to help with sealing off her coves roof during winter by being carried by one of the larger dragons who could fly.

Still she was just my precious little angel and would always blow some frost into my hair and face when I come into her cove. The wolf pups are no longer pups and now join their parents in their patrols and hunts through the forests. Ikan now helps me exchange letters with Gobber with this little circle cylinder bag made of leather on his back. (AN: Like the messenger hawks in the avatar the last airbender series.)I've also createrd a new armor that is completely fire proof and I know this because I had Violet blast it and it was undamaged. This armor was full body gronkle iron armor with only one lair and no bone armor underneath, painted completely red, had the stoker class symbol on the chest plate, think leather inside lined gauntlets, an axe on the back, a mask like the one on my winter armor except this one was to help me see through smoke and finally a cloak with shed dragon scales I sowed into the material. This armor was built for fires or to be more accurate help get people out of burning buildings. I had also built a new room in my cave full of maps which rested on different shelves like the ones that hold my blueprints, all pushed against the walls and in the middle of the room was a large circular table where I plan things out for my travels.

I got out of bed and did my morning stretches before I got my armor on. As I got dressed I couldn't help but think about what's happened with the village besides the slight repair in damage. Gobber had started forging weapons out of gronkle iron I delivered monthly. I still remember the day I brought him his first batch, he was as giddy as a little girl on her birthday. It was actually pretty funny the way he bounced around. One of the downsides to being back in contact with the village was Ruffnut and some of the younger preteen girls wouldn't leave me alone when I walk through the village. They normally flirt with me, invite me over to their houses for lunch, talk about how a special guy like me needs a special girl, try to feel my arms through the armor and Ruffnut was the worst out of all them with her constant flirting, asking me to her house for lunch and to make things way hotter than the forge. It's a major pain for me when they don't understand I'm not interested in a relationship. There was also Snotlout and Tuffnut who were also major pains in the butt. Snotlout wanted me to make him a suit of armor like mine asking me to imagine how good he'd look like in one. Tuff kept trying to convince me to come with him and to use my dragons to destroy stuff, which I did not want to do. Mildew was still a pain trying to convince people my dragons and me were no good but after he'd normally shut up after I tossed a knife at him or pointed out how he was the true useless one.

My dad was also a pain since he was constantly trying to spend time with me like when I'm working, eating or just taking a stroll to do some thinking but, I will admit the I admire his persistence. There are also the dockworkers that have been trying to convince me to show them how to make fishing ships like mine after they saw how well it worked when I was asked to help with the fishing. There is also Trader Johan who I have started trading with more often. I trade him some of the shark skins I got and he gives me all the books he has which, normally goes the same way every time he comes and it is because of this my library has only a quarter of its shelves free. This did lead to problems though since I got all the books Fishleggs normally begged me to let him uses my library which, I couldn't since the man couldn't keep a secret to save his life. Johan has also been a bit of a pain though since he wants to trade me some stuff for my animals even though I keep turning him down. I think I got my point across last time though but I do wonder if I went overboard by tossing him overboard. Other than that, there was also how dad was also trying to convince me to move back into the village even though I had no interest of moving back yet.

Another thing that has come to pass is devastating winter which I spent comfortably in my cave designing new things, building new things in my forge to the point that I have enough weapons in my armory to supply an army, taking care of my animals, fishing by my dock which helped keep us from running low on food, going through maps to plan new trips for when the ice thawed, confusing the heck out of the tribe by using my secret entrance up in the rafters then leaving by one of the secret entrances in the village, celebrating my birthday which was the first one in years where my dad actually got me a gift of a new bear fur cape like his and I spent the rest of the time just passing the time with different hobbies. As I made my way down the stairs I remembered everything that has happened over these past few months and muttered to myself

"I need a vacation."

Before I made my way to the food storage area to get started on my breakfast. I didn't need to worry about my wolves since they still did their own hunting. As I entered the storage room I grabbed a barrel of fish and took it to a big gronkle iron bowl I made for my dragons and proceeded to pour the fish in. I repeated this till the bowl was full before giving out a whistle and yelling.

"BREAKFAST!"

This brought all my dragons out of their dens and to the bowl after giving me a growl of greeting. I watched as my wolves came out of their den to greet me especially Snowdrop who hopped onto my chest and leaned on me so she could lick my face. I laughed since she really was just like her mother in almost every way. The only difference was their size since Snowdrop was a little smaller than her mother. I did not matter to me however since I love all my wolves the same so I didn't have any favorites. I watched as my jaguars walked down to the shallow end of the dock where fish swim often to do catch their own breakfast. I walked over to the dock and smiled down at them as they each caught a decent sized fish in their mouth. I have to admit I was proud at how far they'd come in the past few months. I went back to my food storage area and grabbed an apple before taking a bite and wondering what I should do now since the ice has thawed so I could travel again and I wanted to go see more of the world.

I walked up the steps to my map room while I continued to munch on my apple to decide where I should travel to next. As I walked in I browsed through the different maps staring at them as nearly all of them lead to a place I have yet to be. So many places to see with so little time. I ran my hand over the nameplates under the small shelves, which held the maps as I wondered which one I should pick out. As I dragged my hand over one however I felt a slight tingle and saw a glimmer of light pass over it. I pulled my hand away and looked at the plate, which read 'ATHENS' I pulled out the map and put it on the table before going over the route. I saw the route I would have to take and knew it was safe and calm this time of year so it would be good to go now. If there were no problems we'd arrive there within four weeks if we don't run into trouble. I had been wanting to go to Greece for a while now any way since they have so many interesting things I can learn like astrology, astronomy, their architecture, their customs and if I brought some of my made weapons I could probably make a fair bit of gold. Athens was the perfect place to do that since it was one of the largest Greek state according to Trader Johan so I would be able to do some good trading there and pick up a few things on their culture. It was official I was going to Athens next so I had a lot of things to take care of. I immediately went over everything I had to do like stock the storage room with food in case of problems, load my ship up with supplies such as food, blankets and of course stock to trade, tell all my dragons and animals I'd be away for a couple of weeks and finally tell Gobber and my Father I'd be gone for a while. If I get started now I should be ready to go in three days.

4 hours later

I had just finished going over the list of things I'm going to need for this trip and had Oracle do a check up on the weather to see if it would be suitable for travel. I had also explained to everyone in the cave what was happening and none of them were happy and I don't blame them since I could be gone a while but after some gentle words of reassurance that I'd be back they were okay but they did give me a few nuzzles, licks and in Gina's case slaps for when I leave. Now it was time for me to go and tell the tribe while also dropping off Gobbers bag of gronkle iron. I mounted Toothless with the bag of gronkle iron before we took off to the village.

When we landed as usual a group of girls tried to approach me but a growl from Toothless was all it took to drive them off. As I dismounted I took the bag of gronkle iron before making my way to the forge where I could see Gobber working in the forge. I smiled at him before I walked in and dropped the gronkle iron down by the anvil. As soon as I did he looked up and smiled at me before saying.

"Well is it that time of the month again?"

"Hey Gobber how you been?"

"Oh can't complain but my orders for weapons made out of gronkle iron are up to my bridges."

"Well I'm afraid it's going to be a while before your next delivery." He looked at me in both confusion and worry.

"And why is that lad is something wrong?" I chuckled.

"No Gobber just help me find my dad and I'll explain it to the both of you."

He nodded before replacing his iron tong attachment with his hook before we took off to find my dad. After we found him we went to my dad's hut where we could talk in private. Once we were all sat down at the table my dad asked.

"Okay Hiccup what is it you wanted to talk about?" I decided to be straight with them.

"I'm leaving Berk for a couple weeks to go and explore Greece." Hearing this their jaws fell open before Gobber asked.

"Are you sure about this lad? Greece is a long way away." I shrugged.

"I do a lot of traveling to places which you put as a long way away. Heck I even have vacation homes is some." Dad sighed and said.

"Listen Hiccup I've heard for a while that some Greeks don't take kindly to foreigners. They'll probably treat you like dirt."

"Well then I should be fine since I'm used to being treated like dirt and nobody trying to make it stop." I saw them both wince at that before Gobber stepped up.

"Now lad I know the villagers were mean to you but don't you think saying you were treated like dirt is a little over board." I looked at him as if he'd grown a second head.

"In my opinion over board is a major understatement when it comes to how I was treated. The people treated the dirt on their boots better than they treated me and frankly I'm glad I left this village because now I have a way better life."

It was at this point my dad was beginning to get mad. I could tell because I had developed the ability to read the subtle signs that show his growing anger. He slammed his hands on the table as he said.

"Okay Hiccup enough with the acting!" I looked at him as if I didn't know what he was talking about but I knew he didn't believe my life would be any better. I decided to mess with him a bit so I asked.

"What acting?" He glared at me.

"This whole act you're doing saying how much better your life is without the village." I remained calm despite his anger directed at me.

"I'm not acting. My life really is better and if you don't believe me then that's your decision." Gobber then once again stepped in.

"Okay then how's about we calm down a bit and talk without the anger." I stood up.

"Sorry Gobber but I've got some last-minute preparations to get through." Before I could leave however my dad stood up.

"Now holds on we're not done discussing this." I turned to him.

"Yes, we are. I will be leaving in two days for Greece and there is nothing you can say or do to stop me." As my father was about to reply Gobber put a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't even try it Stoick. The lad inherited your stubbornness so you'd have an easier time convincing me to take a bath willingly." I couldn't help but chuckle a bit at this before my dad let out a defeated sigh.

"Just be safe Hiccup and be careful of those Greeks you never know what they might do." I gave him a nod.

"I will dad." Before I left the house and took off back to my little lair to finish preparing.

Two days later

Me along with those who were coming were saying goodbye to everyone who was staying home. Travelling with me was Toothless and Scaulder since I didn't want to cause too much of a panic if we were spotted in Greece. As we said our final goodbyes I couldn't help but smile at all my animals and dragons. They had become my family over the time we'd been together since I trusted them and they trusted me. It meant a lot to me to have others who trust as much as I trust them. As Scaulder pulled the ship out of the entrance I waved goodbye to them and as we passed through the opening I waved goodbye to Glacia who was too big to fit anywhere but her cove. All I know is we were setting out for new adventures and hopefully we will be able to bring back new artifacts of the world.

2 weeks later

As I felt the wind of the sea blow in my face I couldn't help but remember what has been happening these past two weeks I've been on my ship. Not much I could do though but while travelling we did find a few uncharted islands, flew on Toothless a bit, read up on my Greek language and came up with a name I'd be going by while in Greece to help me fit in better. The name I had chosen was a simple Greek one I read once. The name I'd decided to take was Herakles which I hoped would allow me to fit in with the Greeks a bit better since I doubt my name would make them take me seriously. I also went over my maps a few times and I think I found a small Greek island near the mainland where I can keep my ship and dragons since I don't think my dragons would be taken well. It was at that moment that the island I planned to dock at came into view. The island of Kea I heard is not that inhabited which is good since I don't want to cause problems with the locals and it's only an hour and a half to the mainland so I'd be fine. We docked on a small beach before I got off the ship and took a look at the island. It looked a little barren but still lush so I would be able to get some vegetation and hopefully some fresh water here. After an inspection of the area I knew I'd be able to hide out here since there didn't seem to be any people who come out this far nor any reason for them to do so. I decided I should explore the island from the sky now just to make sure and to see any places I should avoid.

1 hour later

I had just done a full fly over the island up in the clouds to avoid being spotted while using my spy glass to get a better look. On the other side of the island from where my ship is docked there was a small town with quite a few people wondering around. I figured I'd take my ship down to that town and see if I could exchange the money I have for their currency since I read that they did have people who did exchange foreign currency for barter in Greek cities. As we landed on the beach I gave Toothless a pat and said.

"Thanks Bud. You're going to have to wait here while I handle the business in the village." He shook his head at this. "It's for the best Toothless. The last thing we want is to cause a panic now."

He merely huffed and walked away before lying down on the grassy area at the end of the beach. After he did that I boarded my ship and had Scaulder take me out to the sea so I could sail to the village.

Half an hour later

As I docked at the village harbor the man who tied my ship to the dock looked at me strangely as I let my gangplank down in order to leave my ship. Once I had reached the end of my gangplank he approached me and I was able to get a better look at him. He was wearing a brown tunic with a belt with a sword at his side, while his face had a small beard which resembled my Uncle Spitelout and a bald head. As he stood in front of me he asked in Greek.

"What is your business here stranger?"I answered him calmly as to try not anger him or make him see me as a possible threat.

"I'm here to see if I can find a money changer to exchange some of my foreign currency."

"Well sorry but you won't find one in this small town. Where is your money from?"

I took out a gold coin from my bag and gave it to him to examine. He looked at it with analyzing eyes as he turned it around in his hands before biting it probably to see if it's real gold. When he pulled it away from his mouth he continued by saying.

"If you're looking to exchange these types of money for drachmas then go to Athens. You'll need to find a moneychanger by the name of Kristos. He's the only man who deals in such foreign currency. You can find him four houses down past the agora in a small shop with a sign that says foreign moneychanger. If this stuff is real gold you should be able to make a fine number of drachmas."I nodded and thanked him before he tried to give me my coin back but I told him to keep it for the help before I returned to my ship and sailed off to Athens.

Half an hour later

I had just arrived at the docks of Athens which went a lot faster than it should have since Scaulder pulled my ship once we were out of sight of the village on the island and as soon as we got close enough he was let go and dived deep into the water to wait for me. As I docked I took notice of all the different types of ships that were docked at the port. To say I was amazed would be an understatement since there were so many some of which I recognized as Egyptian. As I docked I still had trouble pulling my attention away from the ships and the docks as well. The docks were incredible from their size to their incredible architecture was truly incredible. As I docked my ship one of the dockworkers asked me what my business was in Athens. I explained to him that I was a simple traveler wishing to see the wonders of Athens. He accepted this and let me through before telling me I would need to pay for docking when I got back. I simply nodded before I began my advance to the city, which was a long walk since I had to make it down the path with the North and South long walls on either side of me.

When I finally reached the end, I froze in shock at the sight of the city. It was huge from what I could tell and it was full of people walking around in different clothes but tunics that were mostly worn. The architecture of the buildings was also amazing and I knew I had to get some books on the architecture and devices they have. I shook my head to clear it of all these incredible things before I asked for directions to the agora. Most of the people I asked ignored me until a man who I'm assuming was a guard if the armor, spear and shield he had was any clue was kind enough to give me the directions I needed.

After five minutes of walking I was able to find the agora and it was incredible. There was so much to look at, so much to buy, so many different stalls to browse, so many merchants to barter with and so much more. I decided I'd focus on browsing after I had gotten my money changed for the currency so I could actually do some buying. It wasn't easy getting to the moneychanger with the merchants constantly calling me over or shoving their produce into my face. When I was finally able to reach the moneychanger I saw it was a simple two story building with a closed wooden door. Not wanting to be rude I knocked on the door only to receive an answer of.

"Come in."

This answer however was almost drowned out by the crowds' noise. As I entered I saw a balding elderly man with a small grey beard, wearing dark green robes, sitting at a desk with a couple of coins in front of him, a large bag probably filled with coins and a metal scale. As he looked up to me he asked.

"What can I do for you my dear boy?"I walked up to him.

"I was hoping to exchange my foreign money for drachmas."He nodded before gesturing me over.

"Then let us do business my boy. Just need to see what type of money you have."

1 hour later

I had just left the money changer and I have to say I was pretty pleased with how things ended. It started out with Kristos weighing my money on his scale and evening it out by fulling the other side with drachmas. As he went over his calculations we began to talk and soon enough we had lost track of time. He was very interested to hear about my travels and adventures but I left my dragons out to try and avoid making trouble for the elderly man. Once business had been done I walked out with two bags full of drachmas which was plenty even after Kristos had taken his payment and I had left him saying my name was Herakles. After I took care of the money exchange I stopped by a map shop and bought a few maps of the surrounding area before I returned to my ship and paid for the time my ship was docked before I went back to the island where Toothless was waiting. I spent the rest of my day studying the maps I got in hopes of finding new islands to explore in the Greek empire and wondering what adventures Greece holds for me.

AN: Hey guys I hope you enjoyed this chapter and the next chapter has a lot more action, adventure and exploration. Keep in mind though I've started writing my own novel which takes up my time with planning out the chapters and then writing them so be patient if it takes a little while to update but I already know what I'm doing in the next chapter so it might not take so long but it depends on how things go. Don't forget to review and please keep them nice.