Growing Uncertainties

Hiccup pushed through the door of his home hoping to find Astrid. He felt like he owed her an apology for leaving her alone with his parents. If anyone should have to deal with all the uncertainty in his home, it should be him.

"There you are!" Stoick greeted heartily as he set a mug on the table in front of Valka. Hiccup's mother sat at the table, blushing slightly, and he wondered what he had just interrupted.

"Is Astrid still here?" Hiccup asked, although he was sure that she wasn't. She had probably left as soon as she could, since he hadn't been there and she had her own family to check up on.

"No, she went up to the Great Hall." Stoick answered.

"She is just lovely, Hiccup." Valka finally spoke up. She gestured for Hiccup to join them at the table. "I like her."

Hiccup gave his mom a small smile, then ushered Toothless into the house so he could close the door. Toothless maneuvered himself inside and stared up at Stoick with pleading eyes. If dad was serving breakfast, than Toothless wanted food too.

"No need to be giving me that look." Stoick pat Toothless' head before retrieving the basket of fish he had sitting by the table. "I didn't forget about you."

Hiccup stepped over Toothless' tail— swinging across the floor in excitement— with practiced ease as he made his way to the table, to sit by his mother's side. Valka leaned close to him after he sat, and pressed a kiss to the side of his head in a motherly way that Hiccup wasn't used to. It was nice to have a mom, to have both parents, but it was also kind of weird and Hiccup still didn't know how things were going to work out.

Valka noticed as Hiccup stiffened the slightest bit, at her touch. She quickly pulled away, giving his shoulder a gentle pat instead. She supposed that maybe she was moving a little too quickly, acting so familiar with her son. He had seemed so open to her a couple days ago, when they had first met. Valka had thought that maybe Hiccup was just a friendly person who wasn't shy about showing affection. He had been so kind, talkative, and sweet. Since then, she had seen a whole other side of him, a side that had surprised her, and was realizing just how little she knew about him. One day was not enough to say she knew her son, to be making assumptions about him.

"Where were you?" Valka decided to try and start up a conversation. "You must have left early, you were long gone by the time we got up."

"Uh." Hiccup supposed he should have tossed some blankets on the floor and maybe fed the fire a bit before leaving, to make it seem like they had actually slept there. "I... We, uh, we couldn't sleep, so we went for an early morning flight."

Stoick eyed his son as he finished feeding Toothless and brought another mug to the table for Hiccup. He knew how Hiccup got when he wasn't telling the truth or was trying to avoid answering a question. He would get flustered, would stumble over his words before getting out a complete sentence. He wasn't sure what Hiccup and Toothless had been doing, but he was sure that it hadn't been a morning flight. Especially with how tired the two had been last night.

"Oh? I figured the two of you would have been exhausted." Valka was surprised by his answer. "After racing to get here."

"Fighting a battle." Stoick threw in as he joined them at the table, sitting across from them, finished with serving everyone a light breakfast.

"And working all day." Valka finished, blushing a little as she glanced at Stoick, both sharing a smile.

Hiccup looked between his parents incredulously. Had they just finished each other's sentence? Were they already ganging up on him? What was this? It seemed like his parents were already falling back into... something. Whatever they had used to be, whatever their relationship was. Clearly, they still cared for each other a great deal.

Hiccup wondered if he could get away without answering their question, as they smiled at each other like they had just seen each other for the first time. He slowly bit into a piece of bread that his dad had served him, feeling like he was intruding on a private moment. The crunch of the bread's crust broke his parents from their trance and they turned to look at him expectantly. Hiccup's eyes widened like he had been caught doing something he shouldn't be doing, and he quickly finished taking his bite of food as he awkwardly avoided meeting their eyes.

"Is everything alright, Hiccup?" Stoick finally asked a follow-up question to the one Hiccup had left unanswered.

"Yes!" Hiccup covered his mouth as he swallowed. "Yep. Toothless and I are fine."

'Smooth.' Toothless gave Hiccup a smug look as he rested his chin on the end of the table, from behind Hiccup's parents whose focus was on their son. Hiccup narrowed his eyes at Toothless, causing Stoick and Valka to turn their heads to the dragon. Now it was Toothless' turn to widen his eyes and try to act innocent.

Hiccup abruptly stood from the table, drawing attention back to himself as Toothless was just as bad at acting casual as he was. "So, is everything good here? Because I was going to go meet up with Astrid."

"You just got here." Valka seemed a little disappointed and Stoick picked up on it.

"Why don't we at least have breakfast together as a family?" Stoick insisted. Hiccup slowly sat back down in his seat. Not only was he not sure if he should tell them about his and Toothless' newfound connection, but he also just didn't know how to interact as a part of a complete family. This was all new territory for him. His father had at least known them both, even if at separate times, but Hiccup felt like his and his father's relationship had just begun to strengthen, and he had only spent one day with his mother.

The three sat in silence as they ate for a while. Hiccup had expected them to know what to say, since they had wanted him to stay there. He was wracking his brain for something to start a conversation but nothing was coming to mind. They had seemed to have been getting along just fine until he had shown up, now things were awkward.

"So..." Hiccup started speaking but wasn't sure where he planned on going with it, so he said the first thing that came to mind now that he had everyone's attention. "I was thinking, there is a lot of uninhabited forest on Berk, and we will need to expand the dragon stables since the underground stables are filling up."

"You might be right." Stoick agreed.

"Stables?" Valka interjected, she didn't seem too happy at the thought.

"...yes." Hiccup wasn't sure what the problem was. "We have stables for the dragons that live on Berk."

"Shouldn't they be free to come and go as they please?" Valka asked, getting a little defensive on the dragons' behalf.

"They are, for the most part." Hiccup answered, just a tad passionate about his answer. "We only lock down the stables when there is a threat or new dragons to train."

"The dragons from the nest won't like that. They're used to flying free and doing what they want."

"They don't have to stay. The dragons of Berk have chosen to be here. They like their lives here." Hiccup argued.

"Where would they go? Their leader is gone, they accepted Toothless as their new alpha." Valka looked slightly offended.

"They can go anywhere they want! We can't always step in and fix everything when something goes wrong in nature. Things changed, now the nest dragons have to adapt or figure out what they want to do." Hiccup got caught up in his defense. "Dragons don't need people to look after them, they're not helpless, and we can't afford to take care of every dragon who decides to drop in for a while."

"Drago's attack was not an act of nature."

"Two alphas fighting for leadership was."

"And now Toothless bears that responsibility."

"He's his own type of leader."

'I agree.' Toothless concurred with Hiccup, but went unheard by everyone else.

"I'm sure we can figure something out." Stoick interrupted, not liking the direction the conversation had taken. His wife and son both loved dragons, he had been sure that would have helped them to bond and become closer. He had definitely not expected them to argue about dragons. Hiccup and Valka looked away from each other and relaxed, returning to the former silence. "Anyway, the priority right now is fixing people's homes and getting that ice out of here."

"Yeah, you're right." Hiccup said quietly, endeavoring to listen to his father more and learn from his mistakes. Stoick was startled by Hiccup's submissive response, not expecting such acquiescence. He wasn't sure if he liked it.

"I'll focus my efforts on restoring Berk to what it was. You focus on coming up with ideas for the improvements we need. We'll put our heads together once things settle down a bit." Stoick encouraged his son. "Remember, we work best when we work as a team."

Hiccup met his father's eyes at that last sentence, remembering their conversation the night before. He smiled and gave Stoick a nod.

Valka was mentally reprimanding herself for having argued with her son. Surely she could have offered her opinion in a more constructive manner. Hiccup cared for the dragons too, he was good with them. He would take care of the dragons on Berk to the best of his ability. However, she had lived with the dragons for twenty years. Surely Hiccup would realize she had some valuable knowledge and could offer some beneficial input.

She allowed herself to let it go and instead take pride in her husband and son, who were getting along now and working together. She had worried about their relationship when they had argued and Astrid had referred to their relationship as "complicated," but now that things were mostly resolved, they were acting like they were very close— and that made Valka happy to see.

"Gobber told me Astrid was looking for me." Hiccup brought back up, feeling like he'd spent enough time at this family breakfast. "I'd really like to go check in on her."

"Of course." Stoick gave in, thinking that maybe it would be good for Hiccup and Valka to get some space from each other for a little while. "Go check on your girl."

Hiccup excused himself from the table, waved a goodbye, and followed Toothless out the door, leaving Stoick and Valka at the table together.

"How did Hiccup and Astrid get together?" Valka broke the silence. Her and Hiccup's argument had disrupted the pleasant atmosphere they had managed to create as she and Stoick prepared breakfast together that morning. Valka wanted to get that feeling back, of pleasant companionship and a promise of something more, someday, once they reacquainted themselves with one another. She also really wanted more than vague answers.

Stoick chuckled. "From what I've been told, Hiccup and Toothless kidnapped her."

Valka blinked. "That is not the answer I was expecting."

"Hiccup had befriended Toothless, without anyone else knowing." Stoick clarified, after getting another chuckle out of Valka's reaction. "He kept him a secret, since we were still fighting dragons. Astrid grew curious about Hiccup's sudden talent in dragon training and followed him into the woods. She found Hiccup with a Night Fury and ran off, but they snatched her up and convinced her that dragons weren't what we thought they were." Stoick raised his eyebrows, a smile on his lips. "After taking her for a romantic, evening flight."

"Hmmm, well that will do it." Valka chuckled as well. "Flying is amazing."

"It is. We owe a lot to Hiccup and Toothless." Stoick praised. "We would still be struggling for survival and fighting with dragons if it weren't for those two." Stoick quieted and took on a more serious expression, hoping that his next words wouldn't upset his wife. "Hiccup knows what he's doing. He knows how to care for the dragons."

Valka looked down in shame. "I didn't intend to argue with him. I want to get to know him better."

"I'm sure he wants the same thing." Stoick assured her. "He doesn't know what it's like to have a mother— and I mean no offense. It will take him some time to get used to things, assuming-" Stoick actually looked a little timid as he brought himself to ask the tough, unasked question. "...assuming you intend to stay?"

Valka snapped her head up to meet Stoick's eyes. She had been dreading that question. She had been avoiding even thinking about it. There wasn't much of a nest to go back to and her Bewilderbeast was dead. She had met her son and didn't want to abandon him again, she wanted him in her life, she wanted to be his mother. Berk was at peace with dragons now, so she had no excuse to stay away, but she hadn't lived amongst so many people in so long and, staying would be harder. It would mean rebuilding relationships, working to better herself as a wife and mother, facing all her past fears that she had been running from for so long.

"I don't mean to put you on the spot." Stoick apologized, seeing the internal struggle that Valka was going through. "I... I can accept it if you decide to leave again. I had my time of grief and acceptance at your loss. I would love for you to be my wife again, but will respect your wishes." Those words were hard for Stoick to get out because he had never truly gotten over the loss of his wife, even if he had adapted, but Stoick wasn't concerned about himself. "However... Hiccup, Hiccup shouldn't have to go through losing a mother he just found. If you choose to leave, I only want to ask that you do it before he becomes attached. I don't want him to go through what I went through, when I lost you."

Valka couldn't help her watery eyes as she thought about the pain she had caused. She had felt a sense of loss too, at being separated from her husband. Though, that had been something she could have fixed, she knew Stoick was alive, and he had thought she was dead all that time. Hiccup hadn't grown up knowing the love of a mother. She couldn't bear the thought of causing that same pain in her dear son.

"Stoick, I can't express how sorry I am." Valka started, but Stoick set a giant hand on her arm and stroked it with his thumb comfortingly.

"I understand why you stayed away." Stoick assured her. "I wouldn't have taken it well if you had brought Cloudjumper back to Berk, and after seeing the bond Hiccup shares with Toothless, and bonding with a dragon myself, I know what it is to have a dragon companion."

"I don't want you to think I chose a dragon over my family." Valka said, still teary-eyed. "I just, I knew I couldn't fight dragons anymore, after discovering their true nature. I told myself I would be putting you and Hiccup in danger if I came back and couldn't bring myself to fight them. I would have brought shame to the chief's family."

"Val, I get it. I'm ashamed to say that I didn't take it well when I learned that Hiccup had befriended a dragon." Stoick was ashamed of a great deal when it came to his past treatment of his son. "I wish I had been more willing to listen, then things might have worked out better for him."

"I want to stay." Valka said with resolve, despite her watery eyes. She was incredibly curious to know what had happened after Stoick had learned of Toothless, but that wasn't the focus of the current conversation. She set her hand on top of Stoick's, the one still holding her arm. "Now that I'm here, I don't think I could leave you and our son again. I love you both, and I want to be the family we were meant to have been. It will take some work on my behalf, but I'm willing to do what it takes, to be in Hiccup's life. To... to be your wife again."

"You don't know how happy I am to hear you say that." Stoick smiled and his eyes glistened with hope and happiness, and maybe a few tears. "I never stopped loving you Val. It will take some work from all of us, but it will be worth it. To be a family."

Valka stood from her seat and leaned over the table, she removed her hand from his and placed it on his cheek. Stoick closed his eyes as Valka placed a gentle and loving kiss on his forehead. "Our family is worth it."

Hiccup and Astrid walked, hand in hand, down the steps of the Great Hall. He had found her in the kitchens, finishing up with assisting her mom as they served breakfast. She had been eager to get out of there, so Hiccup had led her outside. He wasn't entirely sure where he was headed, but was content in the moment.

The people of Berk were hard at work, clearing away debris and the smaller pieces of ice. Gathering lumber for rebuilding. Working together to build up their home.

"I'm sorry." Hiccup stopped when they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"What for?" Astrid asked, used to random apologies from Hiccup, who was generally sorry about anything and everything.

"Abandoning you in my house to deal with things alone when I asked you to support me through all this. I should have been there."

"Hiccup, it's fine." Astrid reassured him. "I don't know what trouble you and Toothless were stirring up, but Valka and I had a nice chat before bed last night. I like her. She actually woke before I did, she and Stoick were cooking breakfast when I got up. They seemed fine, so I left to help out my mom."

"They did?" Hiccup had thought maybe there would be some contention between the two. "I guess they did seem happy when I went home, they were about to eat and seemed in good spirits."

"Maybe you're thinking too hard about all this. I think your parents still love each other, so trust them to work it out." Astrid suggested.

"Yeah... I guess." Hiccup seemed unsure.

"What is this really about, Hiccup?" Astrid knew that something was bothering him. Hiccup remained quiet, not sure if he wanted to answer, but Astrid gave him an encouraging look and he knew he had to stop his habit of keeping things to himself. He was going to marry Astrid, he could confide in her.

"I don't want to get my hopes up that we can all be a family. I feel like this is all so surreal, that it's a fragile thing that will break if someone says the wrong thing or mentions the past. I've only ever imagined having a complete family, and my only experience with mothers is with yours. I don't want to scare her away with the idea of commitment. I don't want my dad to have his heart broken again. I'm afraid that I'm still not enough to keep her here." Hiccup's voice had crescendoed as he had listed off all his worries, and he almost seemed stricken by his own confessions.

A few people walked past them on their way up to the Great Hall and they gave the two curious looks, Hiccup's expression was obviously distressed.

"Come on." Astrid, still holding Hiccup's hand, led him to a more secluded spot around the side of the Great Hall stairs. Once they had the privacy they wanted, she pulled him in for a hug. "It'll be okay, Hiccup. I'm going to be there, to help and support you. You won't ever be alone again."

"Do you think she'll stay?"

"I don't know, Hiccup." Astrid replied honestly as she stroked his hair. "She doesn't really have an excuse to stay away now. From our conversation last night, I think she really wants to get to know you better."

"...what if she doesn't like who I turned out to be?"

Astrid took Hiccup's face in her hands and looked him in the eye. "I know she's your mother, Hiccup— and I can't even imagine what all this feels like for you— but, she's one person. One person who doesn't get to decide if you're good enough, or what you're worth. I know for a fact that you have the support of Berk. There are people here who love you and care about you. People who consider you a friend and a leader. No matter what she thinks, she can't take away what you are to your people." Hiccup didn't look completely reassured. "That being said, I'm sure she'll love you for who you are. I happen to think you're very lovable."

"Well, you're biased." Hiccup couldn't help but smile at her words, she always knew just what to say. "Thank you, Astrid. Your support means everything to me, and I know I've been a handful lately."

"I'll always be here for you, and I'm happy to help." Astrid pressed a lingering kiss to his lips, the both of them taking comfort from the other.

It had been a long day of hard work for everybody. Hiccup had intended to help out at the forge, but along the way had been bombarded by people who needed help or had questions. Instead, Hiccup had spent the majority of his day helping individual people and making the rounds of Berk that his father usually made. He wasn't entirely sure where his father had ended up, or his mother for that matter, but he was always happy to help a person in need, and the people of Berk were real needy right now.

Astrid had followed him around for a while, helping him to help others, but eventually had to fulfill her promise to return to the kitchens to help her mom. She had returned to his side, however, to bring him some food and then to go with him to the underground dragon stables that evening.

"So, Eret favors the Deadly Nadder?" Astrid asked conversationally as the two came to the bottom of the staircase. "I approve."

"I'm pretty sure you and Stormfly inspired his choice to begin with." Hiccup responded.

"Because we're just that awe-inspiring."

"...yeah, sure." Hiccup teased and Astrid lightly shoved his shoulder with a chuckle. Before he could retaliate, a nudge in the back had Hiccup turning around to find the blind Hobblegrunt that had come to Berk with him. He had come running over when he'd heard Hiccup's voice. "Why, hello there."

The Hobblegrunt cooed in acceptance at Hiccup's greeting, wanting attention.

"So, where was your dad today?" Astrid reached out to pet the Hobblegrunt as she talked to Hiccup. The dragon was startled for a moment, but he quickly accepted the attention from Astrid.

"That is a good question. It's not like him to skip out on running the village." Hiccup looked down in thought. "Last I saw him was at breakfast this morning with my mom."

"I didn't see her today either." Astrid made a face as she thought through her day. "Not even in the Great Hall for any of the meals."

"Should I be worried? Or maybe happy, that they seem to be getting along better than I thought they would?" Hiccup thought maybe they had decided to spend time together that day, but it still seemed like an irresponsible thing for his dad to do when the village needed so much attention. It was also out of character for the old chief.

"I mean they fell in love once before, why shouldn't they fall back in love now?" Astrid found it hard to imagine parents not being together, as hers had always been together and in love, as far as she could remember.

"I don't know." Hiccup shrugged, although he felt kind of annoyed. His mother had abandoned his dad for twenty years, and they could just pick up where they had left off? Hiccup had always been there, had spent his whole life trying to be what his dad wanted, to please him, and he had been through hel and back just for the fragile relationship they had now.

Astrid opened her mouth to inquire further, seeing the uncertain expression on Hiccup's face and finding it concerning, but the arrival of Eret stopped her.

"Good evening Hiccup, Astrid." Eret cheerfully greeted them as he bounced down the remaining steps.

"Hey, Eret! You seem in better spirits than you were this morning." Hiccup smiled at his new friend.

"I don't feel as out of place as I did yesterday." Eret answered. He tentatively reached out to let the Hobblegrunt sniff his hand as he came to him, hearing the sound of a new voice and potential for more head scratches. "I helped Gobber in the forge and I think more people are starting to accept me here."

"They'll all come around eventually. They're just weary after everything that happened." Hiccup assured him. "But I'm happy things are working out for you. Have you worked in a forge before?"

"Oh, no, I haven't. But Gobber kept me busy, nonetheless."

"Gobber's good at that."

"I hear you intend to train a Nadder." Astrid decided to join in the conversation. Hiccup and Eret looked to her as she spoke.

"Stormfly helped open my eyes to the truth and saved my life." Eret said fondly. "I never thought I would have a favorite dragon, but I think it's safe to say that it's a Nadder."

"Well I happen to know where the Nadders prefer to nest." Astrid smiled back. "Come on, I'll show you."

"How do you know which one is right for you?" Eret asked as they looked around at various Deadly Nadders. There was a decent sized group of them hanging around and nesting in a higher level of the underground stables. They were bird-like, and so liked to be up high when resting.

"There's no need to pick one right away." Hiccup explained. "Just observe them, see if you find one that exhibits a personality that will work well with yours. It will happen, but maybe not immediately."

"I'll show you how to gain their trust and befriend them." Astrid walked off with Eret to find a friendly Nadder so she could teach Eret more about them. Hiccup decided that Astrid had this one handled and rested himself down on a decent sized rock, to think.

The blind Hobblegrunt had decided that he would follow Hiccup around like a lost puppy. It had tuned in on him— the sound of his voice and his scent— and had stuck by his side while they had wandered through the vast, underground stables. He set his head in Hiccup's lap and purred softly. It was a very different sound than the Night Fury purrs he was used to, but it was still comforting all the same. Hiccup started stroking its head, gently.

"How are you liking your new home?" Hiccup spoke softly. The Hobblegrunt made a quiet chirping sound. "Oh really, that much?"

Hiccup couldn't actually understand what he was saying or even tell if he actually understood the question, not like he could with Toothless. The Night Fury could be like an overgrown puppy at times, but he was very intelligent. Hiccup just liked talking to animals and dragons as if they could converse back. He didn't used to have anyone to talk to, except for Gobber on occasion, but he always found comfort in the quiet companionship of animals and pets, and then eventually with dragons. Except he did have people now, but he still felt like he couldn't tell them anything but what they wanted to hear. People liked to have someone to talk to, and boy did they tell Hiccup what was on their minds, but people didn't always like to listen in return, not unless it was what they wanted to hear. Hiccup still kept his innermost fears and feelings to himself, only ever confiding in Toothless and now Astrid, although the latter was harder as he was still working on opening up more.

"Do you ever feel out of place?" Hiccup continued his one-sided conversation, though the blind dragon made sounds in return. "The only blind dragon amongst all the ones who can see? That must be rough. You see the world very differently than all the others, and it's not wrong, just different."

The Hobblegrunt nuzzled closer to Hiccup, sensing some distress, and made some soft cooing sounds in an attempt at comfort. Hiccup continued petting the dragon's scales. "Part of the flock, but not really. Every time I feel like I've discovered my place, that I found a way to fit in, I find that I was terribly mistaken. I still don't know who I am or how I fit in. Even my mom and Eret are finding ways to fit in and be accepted. Why is it so hard for me?"

Hiccup looked up, startled, and the Hobblegrunt lifted and cocked its head at the excited shouts of Eret from not too far away.

"Good! That's good!" Astrid was praising. "That's how you gain a Nadder's trust."

"Well, aren't you a gorgeous dragon?" Eret complimented and the dragon squawked in delight. "Shiniest scales I've ever seen."

The Deadly Nadder preened, having devoted a lot of time to making herself look pretty. Her scales— various hues of radiant purple to soft lavender, with a creamy underbelly, and golden undertones— were lustrous. She stretched her spotted wings as she showed off, also purple but with vibrant yellow rings around the spots. She squawked again before starting to groom Eret's hair.

"She says she thinks I'm the most handsome dragon trainer she's ever seen." Eret pretended to interpret, getting a laugh out of Astrid.

"Looks like Eret found the one." Hiccup chuckled. He slowly stood up, carefully nudging the Hobblegrunt away so he could walk. "Why don't we go say hello to his new dragon companion?"

All was quiet and peaceful on Berk as people settled in for the night, tired from a day of hard work. Hiccup and Astrid had spent the evening with Eret as he started to build a friendship with the purple Nadder. He had reluctantly agreed to call it a night, and they had walked him to the forge so he could sleep, promising that his new dragon would remember him.

The Hobblegrunt had stubbornly insisted on following Hiccup home and was currently walking side by side with him, Hiccup's hand atop his forehead.

"Should I be jealous?" Astrid teased as she walked on Hiccup's other side.

"As much as I like this little guy, I would rather be holding your hand." Hiccup smiled at her even as he pat the dragon's head.

"I don't think your dad will be too happy that you brought home another stray." Astrid continued teasing, although she moved closer to him and took his other hand.

"Don't let Toothless hear you call him a stray." Hiccup chuckled. "And I don't bring dragons home that often."

"Oh really? Aside from Toothless, there was Torch the baby Typhoomerang, Sharpshot the Terrible Terror, Garff the Deathsong..."

"That last one wasn't all on me."

"This unnamed, blind Hobblegrunt." Astrid eyed him. "You didn't give him a name, did you?"

"No!" Hiccup protested, but Astrid continued giving him a look. "Fine. I've been calling him Heimdall."

Astrid burst into laughter. "Is that supposed to be ironic? You named him after the god who can see all? You do know there was a blind god, Hodur."

"Hodur was tricked by Loki and was killed for doing something he didn't mean to do."

"But this Hobblegrunt is blind."

"He can see." Hiccup protested. "In his own way."

"Right." Astrid would have inquired about it more and Hiccup's odd behavior, but they had arrived at Hiccup's house. They entered, expecting the downstairs area to be empty, save for maybe Toothless.

"Oh, you're finally home." Valka looked up as the two entered, Heimdall following behind. She was sitting on the floor by the fireplace, Toothless' head in her lap as she stroked his head.

'Someone's home late.' Toothless opened one eye to look at Hiccup, and it almost looked like he was smirking. Hiccup raised an eyebrow at him, then smiled.

"Why don't you go say 'hi' to Toothless?" Hiccup led the Hobblegrunt over to the Night Fury and he immediately cuddled up next to him. Toothless raised his head in annoyance as the dragon started licking his face. Heimdall was a cuddler.

"Is that the blind one?" Valka was pretty sure that it was.

"Yes." Hiccup answered simply.

"I'm heading upstairs to bed." Astrid had the feeling that the two needed to talk. Valka certainly hadn't waited up for her. Hiccup nodded in acknowledgment and leaned in when Astrid pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Astrid." Hiccup responded.

"I'll be careful not to wake you when I come up." Valka assured her and Astrid nodded with a small smile.

Hiccup proceeded to take off pieces of his armor and then retrieve the blankets and pillows he had failed to get out the night before. He tossed the bedding on the floor next to Toothless, who had finally gotten Heimdall to settle down.

Valka watched silently as Hiccup finally joined her on the floor. She felt like she had caused a rift in their budding relationship and didn't like it. "Hiccup, I'm sorry. About earlier. I didn't mean to offend you in anyway, I just thought I'd offer my opinion."

"Don't worry about it." Hiccup replied quietly as he stared into the flames in the fire pit. Normally he would reassure someone who had apologized and then offer his own apology, but he didn't feel much like doing that right now. She still thought she was right and he didn't want to argue about it again. He still planned on building those stables.

"I lived with them for twenty years. I just wanted to offer some advice." Valka continued, hoping to explain her reasoning so that Hiccup would understand why she had insisted. She had been trying to teach him, not insult or belittle him.

"Where were you and dad today?" Hiccup quickly changed the subject.

"What?" Valka blinked as she was thrown off track.

"You and dad? I didn't see either of you today." Hiccup repeated.

"Oh, well, after you left we talked for a little bit." Valka glanced at her son, remembering the conversation she and Stoick had had that morning. They had talked about their son, they had decided they wanted to be a family. After that, things seemed a little easier between her and Stoick. They had even started flirting a little. "Then we went out to help with the repairs."

"I was all over Berk, what were you helping with?" Hiccup inquired further. Had he missed them somehow?

"Sven's sheep were scattered. They ran off after Drago's men ransacked his home and destroyed the sheep pen. Your father and I were helping Sven to gather them back up while some others helped rebuild the fence." Valka couldn't help the slight blush on her face as she thought back on her day. She was telling the truth, she and Stoick had gone looking for the sheep. However... they may have let themselves become distracted as they had talked and caught up with each other. They had flirted shamelessly and they had kissed a couple times. They were falling in love all over again and it was a wonderful thrill.

"Oh, that explains why I didn't see you guys." Hiccup said, bringing Valka back from her musings. He had been watching her carefully, seeing the blush and the light in her eyes. Hiccup didn't know specifics, but did know how it was to lose track of time while out with the one you loved.

"We could have been more helpful." Valka admitted. "I'm sorry."

"No, that's okay. I didn't mind, I was just curious." Hiccup reassured her. He hesitated for a moment before continuing. "I had things handled today and things are going smoothly. If you and dad want to take some time, just the two of you, I can take care of things."

Valka raised her eyebrows in surprise at the offer. She and Stoick did have a good time. Part of the thrill had been in knowing they should be more focused on their task and then scrambling to gather some sheep to make it look like they had been taking the job seriously. It had been fun and she would enjoy more time with her husband, but he was the chief and had duties, duties that Hiccup was offering to take up for a while. "That, that is kind of you, Hiccup. But I don't want to burden you with everything. We can help."

"It's okay, really." Hiccup insisted. "We're all practiced at rebuilding anyway. I've got things under control."

Valka gazed at him with a scrutinizing stare, wondering why he was being so insistent. She finally relented, realizing that he didn't know that she intended to stay, that she and Stoick had agreed to being a family. "Okay, Hiccup. I'll see what your father says in the morning." She stood up, ready to finally go to bed. "Thank you."

"Good night-" Hiccup stopped himself before the word 'mom' slipped from his mouth. She smiled and walked up the stairs to his room, where she was staying with Astrid.

Hiccup sighed as he arranged the blankets to his liking and leaned back against Toothless. The Night Fury purred softly as he felt Hiccup against him, already mostly asleep. Heimdall was curled up on Toothless' other side, sleeping soundly.

Hiccup looked up at the ceiling, knowing that sleep wouldn't come easy that night, even though he hadn't gotten a lot of rest lately. His mind was active and wouldn't settle down. He had just offered to temporarily take over as chief, so that his dad could have time to reacquaint himself with his wife.

He had offered, in part, because he knew his parents wanted some time together, but also because he was determined to see how he would do with the chiefly responsibilities. This was an opportunity to see how he could handle things, to see if the role suited him, to see if being chief was him. He wasn't a Viking. He wasn't a peacekeeper. He wasn't the son his father had always wanted. He wasn't enough to get his mother to return to Berk. He was barely part of a family. Maybe... maybe he was a chief. He was determined to find out.

A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'm beginning to stir up some drama and angst.

Review Responses:

omega13a: You bring up an interesting point, but I attribute a lot of those inconsistencies to different writers for each episode and writing what was needed for the individual plot lines in each episode. They did try to connect the shows and the movies, but didn't do the best job, for the sake of the current plot they were writing for the show. Besides that, a normal sized dragon egg hatching and growing into a normal sized dragon is very different than the same sized egg hatching and growing into a giant dragon. That's a very different, and faster, rate of growth that I just don't believe possible, even in HTTYD. The second movie also implies that Valka has been in that nest for years, and the nest was created by the Bewilderbeast. The Bewilderbeast/alpha didn't act very young, he acted older and mature. it would take time to build up a nest and become an alpha, I don't think he would just suddenly be an alpha when he is still growing. Dragons of the same species can be different sizes, that would be up to genetics. I also think Drago was just after more power. But whatever the case, in this story, that egg wasn't Valka's Bewilderbeast. I do appreciate the review and your feedback!

R37uy: Hey there! Thank you so much! I was trying to smooth over the rough connection the writers made between RTTE and HTTYD2. I'm glad you like how I did it, and Eret's backstory. The third movie did imply that Eret knew of Grimmel, he knew his hunting methods. Nice catch. Thanks for the compliments and for reviewing! I hope you liked this chapter as well.

Silver Sentinel: Eret is a cool character and I can see him and Hiccup developing a strong friendship. There was a lot to connect between the show and the movie, and Eret was good for helping Hiccup make those connections. There's more to come with the egg and Hiccup and Toothless' connection, a bit later.

Animation Adventures: Haha, that was quite the sentence, I had to read it twice. I just refer to him as Eret, father of Eret. You seem to be on to something there... Eret did know a lot about Grimmel in the third movie. I thought a Nadder was the obvious and best choice for Eret. Since Skullcrusher isn't in the need of a new rider, because Stoick survived! (Like he should have, haha). Thanks for the review!

KN Hudson: Your reviews are always so detailed and insightful! I always enjoy reading your them.