Hello my lovely readers! No trigger warnings this time, enjoy!

Astrid really did not want to have this conversation.

Atali had been quite absent lately, and Hiccup and Astrid were starting to worry. Council was meeting nightly now thanks to all the changes and movement and chaos on the island, and Atali hadn't been at the last three meetings. At this rate she wouldn't be at the one tonight either if someone didn't drag her there, and her Wingmaidens reported not seeing her around either. Astrid could make a few guesses why.

She took the long way to Atali's makeshift home so she could check in on Minden. No doubt Snotlout would be with her; Astrid hadn't seen him so happy in years, and seeing them together put a smile on her face. Which she would need walking into Atali's if she was going to make it through.

As she walked into the Healing Hut, she noticed that things were much less hectic than they had been the past few months. Things were finally starting to settle, and the injured from all tribes seemed to have recovered. Thankfully, the casualties were minimal. She turned quickly to the room that had become Minden's residence and found her sitting in a chair next to her bed. She looked exhausted, but she had true color in her face for the first time since she arrived in New Berk. She smiled up at Snotlout, who paused while brushing her hair long enough to lean over and kiss her. She giggled, making Snotlout smile bigger, and settled back with her eyes closed while he continued to brush. Astrid smiled. They looked so happy, maybe she'd come back later-

"Hey, Astrid!" Snotlout said, smile never faltering. "Did you need something?"

Minden opened her eyes and smiled at Astrid as well. "Always a pleasure, Astrid."

Astrid smiled and nodded in response. "I was just wondering if either of you had seen Atali out and about lately. She's been... Scarce around the village."

Minden sighed. "I haven't. She hasn't been here to visit in a few weeks now I'd say. I'm worried about her. She's taking all this a lot harder than the rest of us."

"Well, thanks for letting me know. I'm going to check on her now, I'll do whatever I can."

"Thank you, Astrid."

Snotlout squeezed Minden's shoulder gently. "Thanks for everything. I know I haven't been helping out much, but with Minden doing so much better I can start taking over so you can get some rest."

Rest wasn't exactly what Astrid wanted right now. Rest made her restless, especially with all the changes and unknowns going on.

"I'll see you tonight?" Snotlout asked.

"Yeah, I'll see you tonight," Astrid replied with a smile. "I'm so glad you're doing better, Minden."

Minden smiled and nodded as Astrid left the room, closing the door behind her. She sighed. If Atali hadn't even been out to visit Minden in weeks, this was about to be worse than she thought.

As she left the Healing Hut, she came to a fork in the path. To the right was the village proper. To the left was a path that led into the forest and the training grounds. She sighed and banked right.

Her fingers were itching to throw an ax. Her muscles ached to train. Her mind could still clearly see the movements of battle but it begged to be able to carry them out. She felt so helpless, but she knew why she had to stand down. If she got hurt, she'd be upset with herself, sure. But if her child was hurt because of her decision, she'd never forgive herself.

Even worse, this was the first time she found herself pregnant with the peace of their island threatened. It was the first time she actually feared she may be caught in combat while pregnant, more specifically. And regular combat with an oversized Viking was hard enough.

She thought of the dreams she'd been having, of a crazed man twice her size attacking her with nothing but his hands. But even with her ax, she struggled to keep the upper hand. And while focused on protecting her severely swollen belly, the enemy overpowered her far too easily.

She shivered. Gods, please don't let it come to that. Those words seemed to float through her head more and more each passing day.

Suddenly a man stepped through the trees and onto the path, stopping her in her tracks. She gasped as he looked up at her, seeming just as surprised as she was.

"Oh, gods," he said, relaxing. He smiled apologetically at her, half-bowing. "Apologies, milady."

Astrid sighed and placed her hand over her chest. "Gods, Hiccup, don't scare me like that."

"I know, I know, I'm sorry." He closed the distance between them and leaned in for a kiss, wrapping one arm around her back and resting his other hand on her belly.

She happily leaned into him and returned the kiss, sliding her hand from her chest to his chest. "It's alright, I'm just a little jumpy lately."

"Understandably. I think we all are. Are you headed to Atali's?"

"Yeah, figured if I went a little early I might actually get her to the meeting later."

Hiccup slipped his fingers in between hers. "Well then allow me to escort you. You know, in case any more scary Vikings jump out at you."

Astrid chuckled as they started back down the path. "And where exactly did you materialize from?"

Hiccup chuckled as well. "Yeah, I guess I kind of did. I was scoping out the land between the training grounds and Atali's current hut. Fishlegs and I have been surveying potential areas to build more homes in case either of the tribes stay."

Astrid nodded. "Does that seem like a good area?"

"Yeah, actually, it's not bad. There's no major fissures, the land is pretty flat, it shouldn't be hard to build there. There's plenty of trees that we'll have to clear but it'll give us enough lumber to build with. And if the Wingmaidens settle there Atali wouldn't have to move if she didn't want to."

"That's good."

"If the Outcasts stay, we might have to get a bit creative. But it shouldn't be hard. I'm just worried about putting all those weak elders too far from anyone else."

"I was worried about that too. We've already lost 4 since they arrived…"

They both quieted. Those 4 losses were hard on all of the Outcasts, but Eirson took them the hardest. It wasn't his fault of course, but he didn't see it that way. They each happened a few days apart, the oldest of the Vikings that came from Outcast Island finally showing the wear and tear the attack and then voyages had on them. Sickness overtook them, and at that point there wasn't anything anyone could do. Once the first one passed, the next three weren't far behind. Each death was only a few days out from the last. The final to perish, a woman named Nana, seemed to hit Eirson the hardest. He stayed at her side until she passed, and then disappeared until the ship was ready. Eirson, Osmond, Halvor, and Oscar were the four that carried them each onto the ship, and the other three were the ones to light them, led by Osmond. Nana's ship, however, Eirson insisted to light with them, shooting the lead arrow. And now knowing what had killed Alvin, it was suddenly very clear why it was so difficult for Eirson to fire that first flaming arrow. Astrid thanked the gods Zephyr didn't hesitate to comfort him afterwards.

Hiccup seemed to be thinking the same. "I don't know how much more loss that poor kid can take."

Astrid shook her head. "I don't want to find out."

Hiccup's voice hardened. "Hopefully we won't have to."

Hiccup was quiet for a moment, and then asked, "How long has it been? Since the Wingmaidens arrived?"

Astrid thought. "Um… Four weeks? Almost five? Why?"

Hiccup sighed. "It's getting late in the season. Hopefully Dagur makes the supply trip out here soon. I'd hate for them to get stuck by sea ice." He shook his head. "I hope they haven't run into any trouble."

Astrid squeezed his hand. "I'm sure they'll be here soon." They found themselves at the edge of the village, Atali's hut in sight. Astrid sighed. "I'll see you at the meeting tonight."

Hiccup leaned in for another kiss. "Send for me if you need reinforcements."

Astrid chuckled. "I will." She kissed him, took a deep breath, and walked up to Atali's door.

She knocked and waited a minute, but no one answered. She knocked again. "Atali? It's Astrid."

Still no answer.

"Atali?" Astrid pushed on the door. The first thing she saw was a fire dying in the fireplace. As she pushed the door open and stepped inside, she got a good look at the absolute mess all over the main floor. And there was Atali, slumped over in her chair in front of the fire, half-conscious and holding a pint of what Astrid assumed was ale.

Oh boy. She was definitely going to need reinforcements. But Hiccup wasn't going to cut it. Astrid sighed to herself. "Oh, Tuffnut, I hope you have some of that hangover fix leftover from Zephyr's birthday."

Things in Berk weren't what they used to be, and Zephyr could cut the tension on the island with an ax. Between the timeline of events on Outcast Island finally coming fully to light, pieced together by Eirson's retelling along with some other brave souls who found their voice, and the explanation of Eirson's parentage complete for the first time, New Berk was buzzing with gossip… And with gossip came opinions.

But for once, Zephyr didn't care about the gossip and the opinions. All she could find herself focused on was Eirson.

He hadn't spoken much since the week before. Understandably so; Zephyr knew reliving the Battle of Outcast Island wasn't easy for him, and she still felt guilty pushing him to open up before he was ready. But then Atali telling him about his mother, information that no doubt he had been seeking for years... No one was anticipating that. No one could have prepared him for that. Especially not in the wake of losing his father. And then the first death in his tribe since they lost their island, so closely followed by three more… Yesterday was the first day he shot an arrow after what happened to his father. She knew he didn't want to do it, but he insisted. "For Nana," he kept saying. "I have to do this for Nana." But the pain in his face was still evident, and he dropped the bow as soon as he shot the flaming arrow.

Needless to say, Zephyr was extremely worried about him.

Thankfully, the island was being gentle with him to his face. But Zephyr knew he could hear the whispers just as well as she could.

Zephyr pulled her furs tight around her as she made her way to the Great Hall. She returned a few courteous nods, but the streets weren't as busy as they usually were. The warmer months were past them now, and no one was spending time outside that wasn't needed. It only made the whispers harder to keep track of.

She pushed the large doors open, happily inviting the warmth that quickly enveloped her. She shut the doors and wasted no time collecting two bowls of stew before making her way towards the back corner she always went to.

Eirson was sitting there as always, close by the encampment of former Outcasts. Thankfully most had been moved after the burial from the sad corner they had claimed into some of the cave openings just off the main room. They had mostly been used for small meetings or council proceedings, and various other rooms for the many projects that seemed to always be underway on the island. For now they served as living quarters to give the Outcasts more privacy, and to make caring for the elders easier. But Eirson still kept guard, sitting at the table closest to the main cave that stretched back to the rooms.

Zephyr set the bowls down in front of him. "Hey."

"Hey," he replied, glancing at her for a moment before his eyes fell back to the table.

She laid her hand on his shoulder, partially to balance herself as she took her seat but mostly to comfort him. "How are you feeling?"

"Better." He took one bowl and spooned some stew into his mouth without Zephyr having to ask. Progress. It would have made Zephyr much happier if she couldn't see the distant look in his eyes. But it was progress.

"That's good." Zephyr took a bite herself. "Any thoughts about tonight?"

Eirson sighed. "Not even a little."

Zephyr nodded. "That's okay. You don't have to know."

Eirson pursed his lips. "You don't have to baby me, you know."

Zephyr froze. "What are you talking about?"

"You don't have to tiptoe around me like that. You don't have to tell me whatever I'm doing is right no matter what it is. The same thing everyone else is doing to my face, when I know for a fact they talk about me behind my back like I'm incompetent."

"You think I talk about you behind your back?"

"No, Zeph," he dropped his spoon into the bowl. Sighing heavily, he scrubbed his face with his hands before brushing them back into his hair. They settled back down, one on the table and the other over Zephyr's hand, as he turned to face her. "No, that's not what I'm saying. You don't talk to me like that. You're... You're real with me, and with everything that's been dumped on me I just..." He closed his eyes. "You've been the only stable thing in my life since I got here. Or at least the only thing that feels stable to me, like..." He paused for a second, searching for his words, but then groaned. "I don't know how to explain it. I don't want you to treat me any differently from how you always have. I don't want you to treat me like I'm broken."

Zephyr bit her lip. "Eir... Eir, you are broken, no offense. And there's nothing wrong with that, but... I told you, I was wrong to push you the way I did. You're being too hard on yourself."

"Yeah? What about 'You can't avoid your tribe forever'?"

Zephyr sighed. Gods, she regretted those words. His hand was still laying over hers, so she turned her hand around to hold his. "You can't care for your tribe if you can't care for yourself, too."

Eirson scoffed and rolled his eyes, but didn't pull away from her. "Gods, where do you get all these philosophies?"

Zephyr chuckled. "My dad."

He smiled ever so slightly as he looked down at their intertwined hands and sighed quietly. "Yeah, well... Tell him they're very conflicting at times."

Zephyr chuckled. "Probably because he's just making it up as he goes. We all are."

Eirson didn't respond. He kept his gaze on their hands, and slowly began rubbing the back of Zephyr's hand with his thumb. Zephyr found herself leaning over to lay her head on his shoulder. Maybe it was just all the emotionally vulnerable moments they had shared compiling, especially with Eirson's difficult experiences as of late, but the closeness just felt right in a way Zephyr couldn't explain. And she was done pretending she didn't feel it. After the emptiness she had seen in Eirson's eyes before, she didn't care. She wanted to savor every touch, every look, every smile, every chuckle, every good feeling she could muster out of him. Whatever it took.

She felt him lean over as well, resting his head on top of hers. He sighed, but it sounded content.

"I don't know what to do," he whispered.

Zephyr squeezed his hand. "I know. It's okay."

He hesitated. "I… I don't know if I can make it tonight."

Zephyr chose her words carefully. "I can't say I'm surprised. But I also can't say I wasn't hoping you'd prove me wrong."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize."

"Everyone's going to be disappointed."

"They understand too."

"Doesn't make it better."

Zephyr squeezed his hand. "You've done great. We have what we need from you right now. Take it easy on yourself. The rest can wait."

Eirson sighed and lifted his head off of Zephyr's. "The Outcasts want answers too."

Zephyr lifted her head as well. Eirson was looking down at his bowl with tired eyes. Zephyr used her free hand to gently pull his chin towards her, and he looked into her eyes. "The rest can wait," she softly repeated.

He studied her for a moment, and then slowly nodded. "Alright. I, um… I think I'm just going to turn in for the night." He started to stand.

"Are you going to be okay?"

He gave her an empty smile. "Yeah, I'm good. Just tired. Besides, I promised Osmond, Halvor, and Oscar that we would talk some stuff out tonight. They're probably waiting for me." He softly kissed the back of her hand before letting go. "'Night."

Zephyr smiled. "Goodnight."

She waited for him to make his way out of the Great Hall before sighing heavily. He seemed a bit better each day, but there was still work to be done. She wished she could follow him, but instead she had to make her way to the council meeting. She hoped there was at least a little truth in his words when he said he'd be okay. Maybe she'd stop by after the meeting, catch him up on what was said and check in on him.

When she walked into the meeting room, her father, Snotlout, Fishlegs, and Ruffnut were already waiting. Hiccup and Fishlegs were looking over some paperwork, possibly maps of the island from the shapes Zephyr could make out across the room. Ruffnut was sitting next to Fishlegs, half paying attention to what they were saying and mindlessly gliding her fingers across the skin on the back of Fishlegs' hand and arm (Fishlegs would occasionally smile at her but stayed focused on their conversation). Snotlout was casually lounging further down the table, apparently repairing a tear in a tunic. They all glanced up when she walked in.

Hiccup looked a little hopeful. "Eirson?"

Zephyr shook her head. "Sorry, Dad. I tried."

Hiccup's face fell a little, but he didn't look surprised. "I thought so. It's alright, he'll come around eventually."

"He looked pretty comfy with you out in the Hall though," Snotlout teased with a smirk while continuing his stitching.

Zephyr crossed her arms over her chest. "Just as comfy as you were in Minden's bed?"

Snotlout's face went red and his hands paused. His eyes flicked up and he glared at her. Zephyr smiled innocently.

Ruffnut laughed. "You might want to see Tuff for that burn, Snot."

"Shut up, Ruff," he muttered, furiously returning to his stitching.

Zephyr snickered and sat next to Ruffnut. Valka, Gobber and Eret slowly filtered in after her. What came next was the real surprise.

Astrid walked in holding a cup of some sort of liquid, and then held open the door for Atali, who was hanging off of Tuffnut's shoulders. Tuffnut was practically carrying Atali, holding one of her hands to keep her arm around the back of his neck and keeping his other arm securely locked around her waist.

"Oh, gods," Hiccup muttered under his breath, concern clear on his face. He rushed around the table to help Tuffnut get Atali settled into a chair.

Astrid put her cup in front of Atali. "Drink," she ordered.

Atali made an unpleasant face. "It tastes like piss."

"Yeah, well you're going to feel like shit if you don't drink it," Tuffnut threatened.

Hiccup cleared his throat. "Well, I suppose I see where all the ale stores have gone," he jested.

"Oh, piss off, Hiccup." Atali threw back a swig of whatever Astrid had given her her and grimaced.

Hiccup pursed his lips. "Okay. Well if that's everyone I suppose we should get started."

"Excellent. Sooner I can get back to my ale." Atali attempted to stand up but didn't make it very far. She fell back into her chair instead. "Hiccup, I will be taking up your offer to absorb my tribe. We're all yours."

Hiccup pursed his lips again. "Atali… Maybe we should wait until you're a little more… Sober to have this conversation."

Atali shook her head. "Won't change my answer. We can't survive on our own. We've no where to go. We're fucked, to put it frankly." She raised her cup. "You're all we got. Congratulations." She threw back another strained gulp. She stared into her cup. "Honestly, Tuffnut, what is in this?"

No one seemed to know what to say. Everyone just stared at Atali. No one had ever seen her this drunk before. It was honestly startling, at least to Zephyr. Thankfully Hiccup spoke up. "Uh… Alright, well, in that case, we'll start on some permanent residences. But we'll talk about this more later when Atali is… Uh… Feeling better." He shook his head as if to clear it. "Anyway, Zephyr, how are the Outcasts doing? Since Eirson isn't here you probably know better than the rest of us."

Zephyr took her eyes off of Atali, who was still studying the contents of her cup. "Uh… They're doing better, I think. The caverns help them feel less exposed. They're more worried about sickness though, with the draft and the moist air, especially after the 4 earlier in the week. I think most of them can make it up to the guest quarters now, so we may want to move them. Tomorrow, ideally."

Hiccup nodded. "Mom, do you think you can have rooms ready tomorrow?"

"They already are," Valka assured him. "I'll be sure to move anyone still on the first floor up to the second to make things easier."

"Great. Tuff, can you help out?"

"Ruff and I should both be there. The Healing Hut is mostly cleared out at this point."

"Perfect. That'll be the first priority for all available hands tomorrow." Hiccup looked down at his journal and flipped through some pages. "Alright, next order of business. I would really like to get a more solid number of everyone staying on the island through the winter with the Wingmadiens and Outcasts here as well. We were really lucky with our harvest this year, and I don't anticipate any issues based on my population estimates. But I would really like to avoid any more surprises. Fishlegs, can you…" Hiccup trailed off. His gaze turned to the back tunnel.

Zephyr focused her attention that way as well, and could faintly make out footsteps approaching. Zephyr gasped as a white bird flew into the room, footsteps still growing louder down the tunnel. The bird lighted on top of Zephyr's chair, playfully nipping at her hair. "Oh my gods, Aurboda! Where have you been, girl?" She reached up to scratch her head. "We've been so worried about you!"

"Oh, that's Aurboda," Astrid mused.

"As in, Eirson's bird?" Snotlout asked. "The one that brought the letter about the Outcast attack?"

"Did you find Eirson, girl?" Zephyr asked. She looked over her body. "You must have, don't have any of the leather around you. Then that must be him running down the tunnel."

The footsteps were quite loud now, and they could hear panting. Not long after Eirson burst into the room as well. He ran straight to Hiccup, leaning over the table to try to catch his breath. "Hic… Hiccup… You… You gotta… Read this…"

Hiccup hesitantly took the paper from Eirson, muttering, "Gods, not again."

Zephyr ran around the table and pulled a chair up behind Eirson. He fell back into it, leaning over his knees and heaving. The fear in his eyes frightened her. She put her hands around his shoulders and squeezed gently.

"So much for no more surprises," Astrid sighed, sharing a pained look with her husband.

"I know," Hiccup replied sadly. He took a deep breath and looked over the paper in his hands. "Alright, let's see..." His face fell almost instantly. "It's Dagur."

The room went uncomfortably silent.

Hiccup fell into his chair as he continued to read.

Everyone waited anxiously.

Hiccup's hands slowly dropped to his lap, still clutching the letter. His eyes filled with tears.

"Hiccup... Son, what is it?" Valka asked, reaching out a hand.

Hiccup tried to steady himself. "There's... There's been a death in the Berserker tribe."

The silence grew heavier. Zephyr's heart squeezed. No... Not again... She felt herself grow unsteady, and she fell against Eirson's chair, sitting on the arm of it. Eirson wrapped an arm around her waist to steady her. Zephyr looked down at him, and she could now see that his eyes were red and raw from crying. She could feel her own eyes filling with tears now, and she didn't even know who it was that died.

Everyone else in the room was just as speechless and teary eyed. It felt like the night they learned of the Outcast attack all over again, but this time held a fear that wasn't quite so potent last time. These attacks were no coincidence. Someone was directly threatening and viciously attacking their allies with a purpose. They could no longer deny the fact that New Berk was in grave danger. This was war.

Hiccup threw the letter on the table and buried his face in his hands.

Finally, Eret managed to ask the question that no one else was brave enough to ask. "Chief... Who have we lost now?"