Hiccup shoved himself up against the barrier for the umpteenth time. It was finally starting to give way. He could see light on the other side. Voices were coming in clearer. He could make out Astrid and Dagur talking. Once in a while, he heard the sound of a crying baby.

The more he heard, the more questions he had. Where was he? Why was Dagur there? Who's baby was crying? Nothing seemed to make sense as he became aware of what and who was around him.

With one final push, the barrier shattered. In the distance, he could see a faint orange glow, he could feel the warm air that surrounded him, and he could hear the crackling of a fire. He could also feel the pain of what Skade had done to him. He could hear the voices, worried if he'd live through another night.

If he didn't wake up now, he never would. He'd join the ranks of the dead, leaving everyone he cared about and loved behind. He turned and took one last look into the void.

"Not yet." With that said, he walked across the barrier, ready to re-enter the world of the living.

Dagur walked into his home with his arms full of meat and fresh bread to find Astrid sound asleep in the chair next to Hiccup. He set the food down on the table, grabbed one of the many blankets he kept by the hearth, and stepped over to his friends. As he was placing the blanket over Astrid, he looked over at Hiccup, who was looking right back at him.

The Berserker did a double-take before saying. "You're awake."

Hiccup just offered him a small smirk, not saying anything, but using his eyes to gesture to the pitcher of water on the side table next to the bed. Dagur picked up on what his brother wanted and grabbed the pitcher and cup.

He poured the water into the cup, then helped Hiccup lift his head to drink. "Not so fast, brother. Slow and steady." He spoke softly so as not to wake Astrid.

If it hadn't been for Dagur helping him drink, Hiccup would have inhaled the water, savoring none of its deliciousness. As he drank, he began to realize that he never knew he could miss something as simple as water.

Dagur pulled the cup away as Hiccup finished the last drops. "Better?"

"Y-yeah," Hiccup said hoarsely, the sound of his own voice feeling foreign to him.

The older of the two set the cup back down and helped Hiccup keep his head propped up so he could see better. "Okay, Twenty Questions. How do you feel?"

"Sore and hungry," Hiccup answered.

"Good," Dagur said. "I'll get dinner started while a Healer looks you over. Next question: What do you remember?"

Hiccup had to think for a minute. His memory seemed to be trying to piece together what happened, but most of the memories seemed to want to stay hidden. "I was going to Saman when Hunters appeared. They took me on their ship and did things. They wanted to know where the dragons went. I-I don't know how I got here."

Dagur gave the younger man a look of sympathy and understanding. "It's okay. The memories will come back. They always do. What's important is, that you're safe now. Follow-up question: Do you know where you are?"

Hiccup glanced around, he didn't see any Berkian designs, plus Dagur was here talking to him. "I'm guessing Berserker Island."

"Yeah. We were closer than New Berk, so your rescuers brought you here. Good thing too. You might not have survived the trip home," Dagur explained, not wanting to bring Toothless up just yet.

"Rescuers?" Hiccup asked. "Who?"

"Well, one of the Healers on the Hunter ship was one of them," Dagur answered. "He decided he couldn't take seeing you suffer anymore and got you out when the ship was under attack from a close friend."

"Close friend?" Hiccup inquired, trying to remember how he got off the ship.

"We still don't know how he knew. No one knew you were being held captive. Yet he knew," Dagur rambled. "It's nothing short of a miracle he found you."

"Who found me?" Hiccup pushed.

"Toothless," Dagur blurted out. "From what we could gather, he flew for days searching for you, forgoing food and sleep. Once he got you here, he collapsed from exhaustion. We got him well and had him go to New Berk with a note to give to Astrid. He brought her here and has been outside since."

As Hiccup let the information sink in, Dagur stepped outside to shout for a Healer. How could he not remember Toothless being there? He should know that shouldn't he? Then again, he couldn't seem to remember most of what had happened to him. Which was probably a good thing. He could feel how different his body was from what should have been normal.

Hiccup was sure that if he could see his own reflection, he'd see a stranger. He could feel the bandages wrapped around various parts of his body. He could feel the stitches holding him together. He had the sense that if he tried to get up, he'd collapse, unable to hold himself up. It's not like he could test that theory anyway, given that he didn't have his prosthetic leg.

Dagur came back in with a familiar man right behind him. Hiccup knew this man but couldn't place him. He looked a bit like his father, but skinnier with a bit less muscle.

"It's good to see you're awake," the man said, walking over to the bed. "We were starting to get worried there for a bit."

"How long was I out?" Hiccup questioned.

"Ten days," the man answered. "Dagur told me you don't remember much."

"Yeah," Hiccup said. "Why? I feel like I should remember, but I can't."

The man sat on the edge of the bed as he began to examine Hiccup, starting with his face and neck. "Lack of memory could be caused by any number of factors; trauma, a hit to the head, malnutrition, or your coma. We'll probably never know why, but the memories will return."

"When?" Hiccup asked, not liking the blanks in his memory.

"No one knows," the man replied. "Could be five minutes from now, tomorrow, or a year. There's no way to know. The important thing right now, is that we get you healthy again, You're quite frail right now."

Hiccup didn't argue with that statement. He felt weak and sickly, like when he was a little kid during the harsher parts of winter on Old Berk. He remembered his father holding him by the fire, wrapped up in several blankets, and trying to get him to take the herbs Gothi had given them.

"What's the treatment?" Hiccup wondered. "And when can I go home? I have an island that needs me."

"You're not going anywhere, brother," Dagur stated firmly. "You are staying right here until Jorn says it's okay for you to travel. Your tribe can take care of themselves for the time being."

"Dagur, why don't you get the stew started?" Jorn suggested. "Hiccup doesn't need to be crowded right now."

Dagur just nodded and walked over to the table where he had set the food down.

Jorn took hold of Hiccup's wrist and carefully began unwrapping the bandages. "I'm sure Dagur already asked you some questions, but I need to ask again. Can you describe your pain?"

"I'm a bit sore," Hiccup answered. "Like I spent a full day in the forge melting scrap metal."

"That's good," Jorn encouraged. "Means you're healing just fine." He looked closely at the various cuts that covered the length of his arm. "Looks like these stitches are able to come out. We'll get to that after we get something in your stomach. Now for my next question. What's your last clear memory?"

The young Chief had to think for a minute. His memories were all sorts of muddled. He knew there were a lot of gaps. He also knew that a lot of what he thought he remembered from his captivity was blurred together. So after some thought, he settled on a positive memory. "I was talking to Astrid about my trip. I was going to Saman, the land of my ancestors, to ask for them to bless my marriage. Normally, you go before the wedding itself, but due to the circumstances, we had to wait. Astrid didn't want me to go, fearing something might go wrong." He looked over at her still sleeping form. "Guess she was right."

Jorn looked over at the sleeping chieftess as well and smirked. "She hasn't left your side since she got here. Took forever and a small sleeping tonic to convince her to get some much-needed rest. Going the way she has been isn't good for anyone." The Healer bit back the urge to tell Hiccup the good news about Astrid. It wasn't his place to tell him after all.

Jorn continued his examination of Hiccup, making notes here and there and informing the young man of his condition. While he worked, the home filled up with the fragrant smells of Dagur's cooking. Hiccup could hardly stop his mouth from watering; he was so hungry.

The Healer noticed this and thought it best to let Hiccup know some crucial information about his health. "I feel I should inform you now, rather than when you start eating. For a while, your diet is mostly going to consist of blanda and broths. Your stomach can't handle solid foods quite yet."

Hiccup opened his mouth to protest, but closed it again when he realized Jorn was right. He vaguely remembered having to go through a similar process when he was a kid after a harsh winter with very little food.

"You're extremely malnourished," Jorn continued. "If you try to eat right now, your stomach might burst, killing you. I've put too much work into keeping you alive, so you can die from yak stew. After a few days of the blanda and broths, we'll move up skyr, gradually mixing fruits in with it. As your body adjusts we'll move up to small portions of meats and a variety of root vegetables. After a couple of weeks or so you should be able to tolerate decent size meals. In about a month you'll able handle most if not all foods with little to no problem."

"What about everything else?" Hiccup asked, resigned to the fact that he wasn't going to be able to eat the delicious-smelling stew Dagur was making.

At that moment, Astrid woke up. She sat up, stretched, and yawned. She looked over at Hiccup, not really registering that he was awake. He shot her a small smile, causing her to do a double-take. "You're awake."

"Good of you to join us," Jorn said, biting his lip to keep from laughing. "We were just discussing Hiccup's recovery process. Care to listen in."

"Y-yeah, sound great, Jorn," Astrid stammered, still gathering her bearings, staring at her husband in disbelief. "When did you wake up?"

Hiccup opened his mouth to speak, but Dagur answered for him. "About twenty minutes ago. I came in with dinner and found him wide awake."

"How do you feel?" Astrid asked, taking hold of her husband's hand.

Hiccup tried again to answer, but Dagur once more interrupted him. "Said he was sore and hungry. His memory is a bit fuzzy on what had happened."

Jorn shot Dagur a look. "I think it would be in everyone's best interest if we let Hiccup speak for himself. It will go a long way in terms of recovery."

Dagur held up his hands in mock surrender. "Okay, okay. I'll be quiet. Just happy my brother is awake."

"It's fine," Hiccup reassured. "Appreciate the help, Dagur."

"No problem, Hiccup," the Berserker Chief said, before returning to cutting up the meat.

"Anyways," Jorn continued, looking over at Astrid. "It's going to be a long process. Getting his weight back up, regaining lost strength and appetite, multiple exercises, and so on. Right now, we have to focus on one thing at a time. Right now it's his weight."

"Okay," Astrid nodded. "How can I help?"

"Making sure he's given blanda in small portions as frequently as he can handle," Jorn explained. He looked back at Hiccup. "Think of your stomach as roughly the size of a baby's. We have to get it to grow again." He used his hands to demonstrate what he meant by keeping them tightly closed and then moving them away from each other.

"Dinner's ready," Dagur announced as he filled up two bowls of stew. "I'll go take this to Mala and eat upstairs with her and the baby. Give the two lovebirds some alone time with their Healer." He then left to take his wife her dinner.

"Baby?" Hiccup asked once Dagur was up the stairs.

"Yeah he and Mala had a baby the night you were brought here," Astrid answered. "They haven't settled on a name yet though. Dagur said he wanted to talk to you first."

"Which he can do later," Jorn said. "Right now, let's get you your first cup of blanda."

Author's Note: Thanks to the Viking Answer Lady, I got some insight into how malnutrition was generally treated back then. Blanda is a whey drink that is diluted and given in small portions and frequently. Skyr is basically a Norse version of flavorless Greek yogurt that usually has honey or certain fruits added to it for flavor.

Special thanks to anyone who has been reading and following the story. I hope you are enjoying it as much as I am writing it.

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