Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The Long Way Home

One: Loss

Hiccup hated it when Astrid was giving birth. Even though he was a Viking Chief, respected and honoured by his Tribe and their allies, he was still a man who loved his wife with all his heart and seeing the woman he adored screaming in pain tore his heart as nothing else could. What made it worse was that Zephyr was now eleven and Nuffink nine, meaning Astrid was old to be going through the ordeal of childbirth more.

Hiccup and Astrid were thirty-five, middle aged for Vikings and Hiccup had been Chief for fifteen years since the death of his father, the great Chief Stoick the Vast. Under his leadership, New Berk-which people were now just referring to as 'Berk'-had grown and expanded, forging alliances with numerous other islands and Tribes. Berkians were powerful and innovative, the village well supplied with every possible invention to make life easier and more efficient. The sky docks lowered ships to the sea far below and every house was warm and weather-proof. Trade flowed in and out of the island and her allies looked to Berk's wise and measured Chief for leadership.

The pregnancy had caught both by surprise and after the initial shock, Astrid and Hiccup had be delighted, though anxious. Though she was healthy and fit, Astrid's previous births had been a struggle and Hiccup immediately blamed himself for not being more careful. But his wife had rested her hand against his cheek and stared into his worried emerald eyes.

"It's okay, Babe," she murmured, her lips tilted in a small smile. "This is a gift from Freya. This little one was meant to be. She's going to be very special." He gave a small chuckle.

"It could be a boy?" he suggested as she socked him in the shoulder, the fist impacting hard on his leather-clad arm.

"Which one of us carries the babies, Hiccup?" she asked dryly. "This one feels just like Zeph. Exactly. It's a girl, Babe-you're gonna be outnumbered." He grinned then, wrapping his arms gently around her slender shape and pressing a tender kiss to her lips.

"And I couldn't be happier," he told her. "As long as you and the baby are healthy, I couldn't care what she or he is." Her hand rose and trailed gently through his beard, always neatly trimmed and she smiled.

"I'm healthy and fit, even though I am older than the usual Mom," she reminded him. Her blue eyes twinkled and her hair cascaded in its braids down her back. "I should be fine. I'll just rest more at the end of the pregnancy." But Hiccup was worried-because Gothi, the elder and healer of the village, had died in the very severe winter two years earlier. The little old woman had sixty years of experience and her successor was a much younger woman with far less experience and only Gothi's almost illegible books and tutelage to guide her. He would have been far more relaxed if the hunched and ornery Elder had still been alive to watch over his wife, to use her skills to ensure his wife and child came through the ordeal safely. Now, he could only pray that Brenna was up to the task.

The village had been overjoyed at the news and the Chief and Chieftess had been showered with good wishes. Both were very popular, always in the thick of things and never shirking any duty, whether it was dealing with paperwork or treaties or helping unload the fishing boats when they came in, the nets bursting with cod. Hiccup was wise and fair, always listening to any dispute and ruling with an even hand while Astrid was a great trainer for the youngsters and teens, her tactical sense and skills with weapons recognised by all. Everyone recalled that they were the leaders of the village, back when they were Dragon Riders, when Hiccup had proved his worth and won the heart of the beautiful and ferocious Shield Maiden who would become his wife. And everyone was praying for a safe delivery of the couple's third child.

Labour had come on earlier that day, the contractions mainly in Astrid's back and she had been restless, snappish and clearly very afraid. Hiccup had asked Snotlout to keep an eye on the village and he had spent the time at Astrid's side, keeping her company and tending to her wishes. The Healer wanted him to wait outside but Astrid had yelled at her and insisted her husband was with her, even heading off to try to locate her axe, which Hiccup had hidden from the angry and scared warrior. Taking her hands, he had held her, feeling her body tense as another contraction rippled through her.

"I'm here for you, Milady," he murmured.

"Don't you go anywhere, Babe," she told him firmly. "Are the children okay?"

"Aunt Ruff and Uncle Fishlegs have them," he assured her and she chuckled.

"Thor, they'll both have tattoos and be worshipping Loki by the time we get them back," she murmured and then her voice stopped, her teeth gritting as another contraction tore through her.

"Zeph and Nuffink are far too sensible," he reassured her, his hands stroking her back soothingly. "Besides, Fishlegs will make sure they don't end up doing anything insane. They're in good hands." She buried her face in his chest.

"If anything happens, promise me you will love the little one?" she asked him. He tightened his arms around her, every fear crashing around him and freezing his heart.

"We'll love her," he assured her.

"Hiccup-you know what I am asking," she murmured. He nodded and kissed the top of her head.

"And I am ignoring it because it won't happen," he told her stubbornly.

"Hiccup-I need to hear you say the words," she murmured. "Please-this is very important."

"My love-of course I will love the baby as I do our other children," he promised her. "And you will be there to love them with me." She nuzzled against him.

"Of course," she said and paused, her breathing growing deeper as another contraction squeezed her slender shape. "I need to walk around."

"Whatever you need," he said, watching her walk slowly across the room towards the fire and back, the light of the flames gilding her golden hair and pale face. A hand resting on her back, she turned to him, smiling, the thin shift draped over her slender shape.

"It's okay," she said-and then her waters broke.

Brenna and her apprentice were called back in and they took over, pushing Hiccup aside and leading the expectant mother to the bed prepared by the fire, the furs heaped high and cushions ready to support her during the birth. Seeing Astrid's blue eyes widen with a plea, he surged forward, grasping her outstretched hand and feeling her clamp to him as her only anchor in the storm. So she had leaned back against him, her hand crushing his and screaming and grunting as instinct took over. Astrid was the strongest and bravest person Hiccup knew-and she was terrified. And he would rather have been flying on Toothless, facing Outcasts, Berserkers, Hunters, Trappers or even Drago's army. He would even have preferred Grimmel to the vision in front of him, his beloved wife screaming in the torment of childbirth. And this birth was far harder than anything he had ever seen and for four hours, she had toiled and screamed and panted as the increasingly frantic midwives urged her and chanted and prayed to the Gods to allow this birth to succeed. And finally, Astrid had managed to give birth to a bonny child.

The final scream died away and Astrid's panting breaths were the only sound. Brenna and Frida, her assistant, were bending low, holding the child and frantically shaking and rubbing the purplish shape and Astrid leaned forward, her sweat-beaded face filled with fear.

"Is she…?" she asked, unable to mouth the words. But the midwife looked up.

"She's shocked," she reported. "Very shocked." Hiccup peered over her shoulder and saw a damp newborn, the natal cord still attached to her middle, her big eyes wide and staring up to meet his shocked emerald gaze. But then Astrid extended her arms.

"Give me," she demanded, no hesitation in her voice.

"She…"

"GIVE!" the Chieftess demanded in her exhausted voice and the young healer handed the child over, wrapped in a simple blanket as she and her healer apprentice turned to the damage. Astrid felt the heavy bundle squirm in her arms, seeing a chunky child with wide blue eyes and a tuft of damp blonde hair. She looked up into Hiccup's shocked and adoring eyes with triumph. "There," she said proudly. "Girl. Told you."

"I never doubted you, Milady," he told her in an awed voice. "She is beautiful-just like her Mom." She smiled and leaned back against him, shifting the bundle in her arms and hearing the faintest mew as the baby took a shuddering breath and then gave an angry cry. A wave of relief washed through Hiccup at the sound, confirming the child was strong and alive.

"She's perfect," she sighed as the healers urgently changed the blankets and muttered among themselves. Pressing a soft kiss on the damp head, Astrid smiled and lay back, allowing the attendants to clean her up and concentrating on her husband and her new daughter.

"She's part of you so of course she is," he told her gently. "You get some rest and I'll go get Zeph and Nuffink…" But her hand clamped around his and she looked up, her eyes wide with a plea.

"Stay with me for now-please?" she asked softly. There was a quiet plea there, a vulnerability that she hardly ever revealed and he felt his heart melt. Nodding, he leaned forward to kiss her-and then he shifted his position and sat comfortably at the top of the bed with Astrid resting back against his chest. Quietly, he wrapped his arms around his wife and youngest child and rested his chin on the top of her head.

"I love you," he murmured gently. "The kids will love her as well."

"Love you too," Astrid said sleepily. Her eyelids fluttered and he bent forward to kiss her.

"Rest, my love," he said. "You've earned it. I'm here with you. I'll never leave you."

Brenna and Frida changed the sheets against and again and Astrid didn't budge, remaining quietly resting back against her husband. The bleeding was horrendous, the damage from the birth compounded by a steady flow from higher up. Gothi's notes were obscure and all Brenna could do was what she had been taught and tried with others, binding the young woman's legs together to try to slow the loss. But after an hour, the young assistant looked up in relief.

"The bleeding has stopped," she reported and Brenna frowned, then looked up. And her breath froze as she saw the Chief, bowed forward, his arms around his wife and new child. Astrid's lips were white, her face pallid and slack in repose. And her chest didn't rise and fall any more. Tears were flowing down the Chief's face, dropping in small splashes onto her stained shift, a hand carding through her long golden hair.

"It's okay, Astrid," he whispered. "I'll look after her. I'll look after them all. I'll never leave you." He gave a small sob. "There will always be a Hiccup and Astrid. Always."

But as sobs tore through his bowed shape cradling the body of his wife and the child she had given her life to bring into the world. Brenna knew that she would need to urgently find a wet nurse for the new child. And do everything within her power and that of the Tribe to help the Chief raise his children alone.

oOo

A dumpy and plain woman with two huge braided knots at the side of her head came over and took the child from Hiccup's unresisting arms. The little girl was howling in hunger as the Healers cleaned and laid out the body of her mother and the woman took her to one side and expertly began to feed her. Turning back to Astrid, Hiccup felt his heart shatter once more. Apart from her pallor, the deep shadows under her eyes and her white lips, she looked as beautiful as ever. They brushed out her long golden hair, composed her and dressed her in a long white dress that Hiccup pulled from the chest, realising too late that it was her wedding gown. He nodded.

"It's okay," he murmured, his eyes red and face haunted. And then he rose. "Can you stay with her, please? I don't want her to be alone and I need to speak to the village and let them know what has happened." And then he rose, pulling back his shoulders and absently palming his face dry, before walking to the door.

"Chief?" Healer Brenna called and he turned. "I'm sorry. I did all I could…" And he nodded, his eyes unfocused.

"I know," he said. "That is all you can do. Thank you for everything." And then he grabbed his cloak and pulled it on, before walking out of the door-to find a crowd of villagers waiting eagerly for news.

"It's the Chief!" a voice called from the crowd and Hiccup nodded, raising his hands to quiet them down. If they noticed he wasn't smiling and joyful, no one said anything.

"I have a new daughter," he said clearly so that they could all hear. "A fine bonny girl."

"Not a Hiccup then!" Vaguely, he recognised Snotlout's voice and he shook his head at the ripple of laughter.

"No," he murmured. Then he looked up. "The birth was complicated and though the Healers tried all in their power, the Chieftess has died. Astrid has died."

His voice cracked.

"Astrid h-has d-died…" he repeated and covered his eyes.

There was silence. And then four shapes detached from the throng, moving forward with unerring timing and clustering around the Chief. The twins moved to each side of him and wrapped their arms around him, not even bothering to announce a Thorston sandwich as they hugged him, feeling the sobs ripping through him. Fishlegs and Snotlout turned to the village.

"Give him a little time, guys?" the husky blond man asked, resting a hand on his friend's shoulder. Snotlout came in from the other side, gripping Hiccup's shoulder.

"We got this, cuz," he said quietly and looked over at the others.

"Come over to our house," Fishlegs said, watching the twins release Hiccup and each take an arm, leading the bowed figure down the hill towards the sturdy Ingerman house. The wind was icy and it was beginning to rain, causing the few remaining Berkians to head for shelter. The patrol were heading for the cliffs to scan the horizon and the torches were being lit but tonight would be a quiet night as a mantle of sorrow settled on the village, all stunned at losing their beloved Chieftess. Hiccup suddenly looked up and fought.

"Astrid…" he murmured but Ruffnut squeezed his arm.

"She's fine," she said gently. "She's resting."

"The baby…" Snotlout looked up and then nodded.

"I'll tell the wet nurse where to bring her," he promised and ran off, Hiccup allowed himself to be steered into the brightly decorated house, Gronckle and Zippleback motifs painted and carved all over the front of the house. Fishlegs pushed open the door and a wall of noise met them. The house was warm, there was the smell of meat roasting over the fire and kids were yelling at the top of their voices. Fishlegs and Ruffnut's five children-Rufflegs, Fishnut, Thor, Meatnut and Skye-were racing around with Hiccup and Astrid's daughter Zephyr and son Nuffink. The raucous game was so loud they didn't immediately notice when the adults arrived, though the thirteen year old twins, Rufflegs and Fishnut-shared a look and yelled at the top of their voices.

"PARENTS!"

Instantly, the kids turned to see the new arrivals.

"Uncle Tuff!"

"Uncle Snot!"

"Uncle Hiccup!"

There was a pause as Zephyr and Nuffink surged forward. Zephyr was the firstborn, a serious and determined young woman with dark auburn hair like her father and the bright blue eyes of her mother, the sight of which stabbed painfully into Hiccup's broken heart. She was slender and strong, trained by her mother from the moment she could lift an axe and absolutely as stubborn as both her parents combined. Nuffink was almost as tall as she was, with dark gold hair and thoughtful green eyes. He was as smart as his father, already allowed to do simple tasks in the Forge and taking sailing lessons from his father and Uncle. Both were sensitive and could read situations and people well-and their father's expression instantly brought them to his side.

"Dad?" Zephyr's voice was clear and echoed her mother's inflection. "What's wrong?" Quietly, he pulled away from his friends and dropped to his knees, wrapping his arms around his children. Both suddenly looked scared, for Hiccup's green eyes were no longer smiling and happy: in fact, they looked desolate and lost.

"Is it the baby?" Fink asked hesitantly but Hiccup shook his head.

"You have a little sister," he revealed.

"Mom was right," Zeph said with a frown. "She usually is." Then she looked into her father's face. "Dad?"

"There was a problem," he began haltingly. "The baby was fine but Mom...she didn't make it."

There was a pause. The children weren't strangers to death for the years had reaped a toll through the older Tribe members. Their grandmother Valka had passed the previous winter and the Elder the year before. Gobber had passed in his sleep when Zephyr was three and Astrid's father had died three years earlier. The children blinked and eyes shone with tears.

"Mom," Fink murmured and threw himself against his father with Zeph a second behind. Wrapping his arms around them, Hiccup squeezed them tight in his arms, tears streaking his face and feeling them sob in utter devastation. Somehow, sharing his grief with these two young people-the results of his union with Astrid, the children they created-made him feel less alone. He tightened his grasp around them, careful not to crush them as he had been so many times by his own enormous father, and nuzzled their heads.

"It will be okay," he murmured, though he didn't believe it. "I am here-and so are your Uncles and Aunts. Grammy is around as well. Your Mom loved you with her everything...and she loved the baby so much she had to give her life so she could be born. So we have to look after her as well. Can you help me do that?"

Slowly, two heads lifted and tear-streaked cheeks shone in the firelight. Both nodded and they swallowed. Fink wiped his nose on his sleeve while Zeph sniffed a few times. Slowly, Hiccup levered himself to his feet, wincing at the pressure through his stump. He knew he would never again have to hide his pains from Astrid-though she read him so well anyway he may as well not have bothered. He grimaced and then limped over to the big chair, looking askance from Fishlegs, who smiled and allowed his friend and Chief to take his seat by the fire. Sitting back with a sigh, he felt his children clamber into his lap, arms winding around his chest and kids snuggling into his grasp. He felt tired and numb inside and was just where he needed to be, with his now-motherless children. Gently, he kissed their heads.

The door opened and the plain woman-Gudrun Yakson-entered with Snotlout, a swaddled bundle in her arms. She nodded.

"Fed as good as gold, Chief," she reported. "I'll arrange to sleep where she is to make sure the poor little mite doesn't go hungry." Hiccup nodded, feeling strangely ambivalent. He had felt an immense surge of love for the child when she had been born but what would he feel-what should he feel now that his beloved Astrid was gone because she had given birth to this child?

Love her for us both, Babe. You have to make sure she never wants for anything. And you know what it is like to grow up without a mother and a largely-absent father. I know I can trust you not to make the same mistakes. You are a fantastic father, a loving, caring and funny man who adores his children. I know she will be in good hands.

He blinked: he could hear Astrid's voice so clearly in his mind and he looked up at the woman.

"Could I have my daughter please?" he asked. "And thank you-I know Astrid would be so grateful you are feeding her daughter." The woman blushed.

"I got plenty to spare and it's an honour to help you, Chief. You never fail to help one of us when we need it, even before we ask. If you need anything off any one of the Tribe, we're here for you and your family." And she gently placed the bundle in his arms.

Hesitantly, he looked down into the peaceful face. The little girl was sleeping, securely snuggled in fleeces and blankets, a suitable rag wrapped as a diaper around her lower half. A tuft of bright blonde hair peeked out from under the blanket, little blonde eyelashes a shade darker than the hair. Hiccup already knew those eyes were a bright blue and though they could change later, his heart told him they would not. The baby had Astrid's button nose and determined chin and he felt his lips curl up in a smile, the surge of love still there. He should be numb but despite his utter desolation, this infant had latched onto his heart.

"She's cute," Fink commented.

"And now she's the little one-so you have to protect her and help me and Dad look after her," Zeph said.

"We will all look after her," Hiccup murmured, never taking his eyes off the sleeping baby. His throat felt clogged with grief and his chest was tight and every ounce of energy had been drained from his body but at least he had the kids to help him-and remind him of Astrid.

As if every second of every day and every inch of the village wouldn't do that.

"What are you going to call her?" Zephyr asked.

"After Grandma?" Fink asked. He had been close to Valka, Hiccup's mother who had been absent all his childhood and had only returned after twenty years away. But Hiccup shook his head.

"I know your Mom and I talked about it-but there is only one name that will do," he said. "She's to be named Astrid."

Chapter Text

Two: Love

The Funeral was held the next day, an old fishing boat repurposed for the traditional Viking burial that a beloved Chieftess deserved. Fishlegs had suggested that Astrid should be buried in her dragonscale armour but Hiccup had vetoed that, partly because he knew that Astrid's body would already be setting stiff in rigor mortis, making the task of inserting her into the form-fitting armour all but impossible-and for the more practical reason that it was completely fireproof so it would be impervious to her pyre. In the end, she was buried in her wedding dress and Chieftess's white fur cloak, her long golden hair brushed out over her shoulders and hands clasping her axe to her body. Hiccup unashamedly kept the necklace he gave her on their Betrothal so he could gift it to his son for his Betrothed. A simple necklace with three blue Nadder scales was placed round Astrid's neck and she looked at peace.

The entire village collected down at Bucket's Beach, the widest inlet on the island where the funeral was to take place. The wide inlet opened towards the west, cascades of water falling at the extremes of the bay. They waited until the sun was setting before they pushed the boat out.

"I still can't believe it," Snotlout sighed. "I mean-she was the fittest and strongest of us all. I always thought that Tuff would be the first to die...probably by doing something immensely stupid."

"Me too," Tuff said. "I mean she survived everything. She was the best warrior."

"And she died in bed, not on the battlefield," Ruff reminded him. "It was a battle that she won to bring little Astrid into this world. She fought to the end." Fishlegs took her hand.

"She deserves Valhalla and the funeral of a Chief," he added as Hiccup walked forward, his children flanking him with Nuffink carrying little Astrid in his arms. The Chief looked as if he hadn't slept, his face gaunt and the life drained from his eyes. But his head was up and his shoulders back, every inch the son of the line of Chiefs of Berk. The flames were dancing from the fire-basket and the arrows were waiting as Hiccup stared at the receding ship and took a breath.

"May the Valkyries welcome you and lead you through Odin's great battlefield. May they sing your name with love and fury, so that we might hear it rise from the depths of Valhalla and know that you've taken your rightful place at the table of Chiefs. For a great woman has fallen: A warrior. A chieftess. A Dragon Rider. A mother. A wife. A friend". His voice wavered but he dipped an arrow in the flames and handed it to Zephyr then lit another. Nuffink handed the sleeping baby Astrid to Gudrun and then grabbed his own smaller bow and accepted the flaming arrow before the Chief nocked his own flaming arrow. Then in one swift motion, he aimed and fired the arrow, It soared through the air and landed perfectly at Astrid's feet, lighting the pyre immediately. The children fired and both arrows made the ship. Then the former Riders and Elders added to the hail of flaming arrows that ignited the ship. The breeze caught the ship and it receded quickly, the flames burning bright against the afterglow. Hiccup pulled his children against him and stared out, seeing the sky darken and listening.

And he hoped it wasn't his imagination that caught the edge of a roar-and a Nadder screech-and saw the purple flash and magnesium flare of dragon fire, honouring a former rider finally coming home. And as the villagers slipped away, he remained standing with his friends and his children, the baby cuddled in his arms as the flames began to die down amid the falling night.

"I will look after her, Milady," he murmured. "There will always be a Hiccup and Astrid. Always."

oOo

Little Astrid grew a healthy and stubborn child, relentlessly curious and determined to keep up with her older siblings. Zephyr and Nuffink adored her, helping their father care for their littlest family member and making sure she never felt alone or a burden. She was taught the axe by Zephyr, the bow by Nuffink and her father taught her how to swing a sword, for he was acknowledged as the finest swordsman in the Tribe. But to the little girl, he was Dad, funny, goofy Dad who was there every bedtime and never missed story time either. A source of endless rides and hugs and smiles and above all, love. His friends helped with his duties to allow Hiccup to spend time with his last child and as she grew, the resemblance to Astrid grew more achingly close by the day.

So he told her about her mother, about the girl she had been and the woman she had become. How Astrid had been a fighter, been the best student in Dragon training, how she hadn't been unkind to young Hiccup but hadn't really liked him either...until she discovered he had trained a dragon. And then how she became his friend, the person who stood by him, his impetus. And later, his girlfriend, lieutenant, counsellor, confidante and lover. How she had helped him be Hiccup, how she had given him the confidence to go on without Toothless, how she had helped him through losing a leg, his father, his home and his best friend. And how her Mom had fought to give little Astrid life and had charged Hiccup with her precious final child.

Astrid-who liked being called 'Asti'-loved the stories about dragons, about Berk's history and especially the bits her father and his friends had been involved in. She mixed with the other village kids, learned her runes and sagas with Archivist Fishlegs and helped out in the village with the other wee ones. She was aware there were eyes on her, that in some way people watched out for her. Everyone knew her older sister Zeph was the Heir, training to be the next Chief after Dad-though he was fit and strong and showed no signs of relinquishing his duty yet.

His friends, though, saw the change. Hiccup had lost that shine, the smile that was so ready and the sass was more sarcastic that playful. His emerald eyes were often guarded, and thoughtful, lacking the hope and optimism that had characterised his early years as Chief. His friends from Berserker Island, Heather, Mala and Dagur, had visited when they heard of Astrid's death and intermittently afterwards, doing their best to support their friend, but they had realised that there was nothing that they could do to get their friend back. The Hiccup they had known had died with Astrid and though the widower showed flashes of the man they had loved, there was a part of Hiccup that was forever closed off.

When Asti was six, he had sat down with his friends and explained that he would like to make one last journey to the Hidden World with his youngest child. He wanted to see Toothless one last time. Snotlout volunteered to mind the Tribe while the family was away and the Chief gave his children the choice...but both Zeph and Fink immediately said they would come, both to help their father with Asti and in memory of that fantastic trip they had made with their mother when they were small.

Bouncing with excitement, Asti had wanted to sleep on the ship the night before they sailed but Hiccup had laughed and commented slyly that someone else had wanted to do the exact same thing, causing Zephyr to blush. This time, Hiccup had let Fink do much of the sailing, guiding his son where necessary-but already proud of his son's seamanship. Hiccup had been able to explore the world on the back of a dragon and had flown to distant lands and far-flung islands-and though he was still an explorer at heart, his destiny was tied to New Berk and his wandering days were over. He knew that his son was infected with the same desire to explore the world-but he would have no dragon, just a ship and the currents and the stars to sail her by. So he had equipped his children with the skills they needed-Zephyr as an Heir and Nuffink as an engineer and an explorer. All had been taught to fight, to listen and to know their history and culture.

But his heart was pounding in his chest as they slowed approaching the shallows at the waterfall, the billowing aerosol of falling water rising like white smoke around the sheer drop. Fink lowered the anchor as Hiccup had done himself when they had last visited and the Chief leaned forward at the prow, peering at the rocks beyond the watery haze, hoping against hope that he would see the shape he prayed would be waiting. He knew he was a little skinnier, his face a little more haunted and his beard now had a few grey hairs mixed in. But when a black head popped up, he felt his hopes rise.

The black dragon flapped forward, landing on the prow but this time, he gave a warble of greeting and knocked Hiccup to the deck, crooning happily and licking him urgently. "It's okay," Zephyr reassured Asti, who was hiding behind her legs. "He's not going to eat Dad. That's Toothless."

"Dad's dragon?" the little girl asked, turning her big blue eyes up to meet her sister's matching gaze. Zeph nodded, her auburn braid bouncing as she did so.

"He made friends with Dad when he was younger than Fink-and they haven't seen each over for over a decade...but I think he wanted you to see the dragons. And maybe tell them about Mom." Asti nodded, hearing the catch. She had never known her mother and had long realised that her dead mother was a role model she would never live up to-but her father never put any pressure on her. He was just her Dad, always listening, sometimes talking and forever reminding her that she wasn't her Mom and she just had to be herself. And that he loved her.

The older children watched as she was introduced to Toothless and felt the King of Dragons press his snout into her soft palm. She had giggled-and then flung herself forward and hugged the dragon, taking him by surprise and earning herself an approving warble. The Light Fury and their hybrid offspring-that Hiccup had referred to as Night Lights-all emerged, as did the blue shape of a Nadder, her keen eyes searching for the shape that was missing. Slowly, Hiccup walked forward to the Nadder and gently stroked her face, his hand trailing over her nose horn.

"I'm sorry, girl," he said in a broken voice. "She isn't coming. She's gone." Stormfly gave a distressed squawk and the little girl ran forward, pressing her hands onto the snout.

"It's okay-Mom still loves you," she said gently. "And she always will. Thank you, Stormfly. Thanks for letting me see you. You were Mom's special girl." And then she took Hiccup's hand. The Nadder gave a desperate squawk and arrowed up into the sky, flipping round and stealing one last glance at the little family before diving into the mists, never to be seen by Hiccup again. Quietly, he pulled the girl into his arms, hugging her and hiding his face as he composed himself. Toothless walked cautiously forward and nudged against his hip, earning himself a chuckle.

"Thanks, bud," he mumbled. "Now...shall we check that tail..and then maybe let little Astrid feel what it is like to fly?"

Fink paid close attention to the mechanical tail, having already seen the blueprints that Hiccup had preserved as precious relics amid the dragonscale uniforms the Riders had worn, the various artefacts and the odd dragon scales and spines in the Berk Museum. One day, he may be needed to service the tail, for no one knew how long dragons lived and Toothless could outlast them all. And the last Night Fury had willingly obliged, allowing his Rider to sit aboard with his youngest while the Night Lights allowed Zephyr and Fink to fly them. And for hours, they had been treated to the thrills of being dragon riders one last time.

But too soon, it was over and with tears and heartfelt words, Hiccup had parted from his dragon once more, his expression more broken than ever. Toothless had watched from the rocks amid the mist as the boat weighed anchor and tacked away to the east while Hiccup sat in the stern, staring back at the mists of the Hidden World until it faded from view, a handful of Toothless's scales that he had shed grasped in his hand. Asti sat in his lap, eventually falling asleep and he cradled her as they sailed back towards home. His older children watched him carefully, taking him food and water and realising he had just said another final goodbye.

"I needed to see him once more," he said quietly, seeing his older children inspecting him worriedly. "When he left, Astrid-your Mom-was the-the only reason I coped. She was always there for me. Now she is gone-and I-I needed to see him. To let Stormfly know...and check he was safe and happy." He forced a small smile on his face and beckoned them to come close. "One day you will understand-but don't worry. In a few hours, I'll be back to normal again and…"

"Dad-you haven't been normal since Mom died," Zephyr told him honestly. "You work hard and you smile but we can tell...you aren't happy. You're a great Chief and an even greater Dad but we don't know what to do." Looking up at his firstborn, the child Astrid had cradled with such pride and happiness, he gave a melancholy smile.

"Be yourselves," he said gently. "Be the best you can be. Make me-and your Mom-proud. I am sorry she isn't here and I will try to make sure you never miss out but…" Suddenly Zeph was crouching by him, her hands locked on his.

"Dad-you don't need to worry," she assured him. "We know. And Aunt Ruffnut and Aunt Helga and Uncle Tuffnut make sure we don't ever miss out."

"Though I would prefer if you missed out on some of Uncle Tuffnut's wilder ideas," he sighed. "I mean the sheep and yak stampede was not really what I would hope my heir would be doing…"

"He said you would be doing exactly the same thing at our age," Fink pointed out.

"Actually, at your age, I spent a lot of my time chasing Uncle Tuff and Aunt Ruff around trying to stop them destroying the village-along with my Dad," Hiccup told him with a smile as Asti opened her eyes and smiled.

"I bet Mom would have kicked their asses," she murmured.

"That she would," Hiccup sighed and then he smiled nostalgically. "Admittedly, she was the most competitive person I ever knew. Everything was a competition with her! She was my right hand woman and I could always rely on her to keep the others in order. But she had a sense of fun as well and I remember when Ruff and Tuff were making an absolute pest of themselves on Loki Day, she finally got revenge."

"How?" Nuffink asked from the rudder, where he was steering. His growth spurt was setting in and he was starting to catch his sister up. His blonde hair was scruffy around his shoulders with a couple of small braids in and his bright green eyes mirrored his father's.

"She got Stormfly to relocate their entire hut to a small sea stack two miles off the Edge," he told them with a small smile. "I still remember her returning, her cheeks flushed with cold and her eyes sparkling with her triumph. Gods, she was beautiful. And I spent the time wondering how on Midgard I had managed to have such an amazing woman as my best human friend." Zeph reached over and gave him an awkward hug.

"You have us, Dad," she reminded him. "We'll always be here." And he smiled then.

"I know I am the luckiest man in New Berk," he said quietly, hugging her back. "I have my kids and my Tribe and I know I will never be alone."

oOo

Time passed and Asti grew. She was slender but strong, determined to be as good with an axe as her mother and as smart as both her parents. She studied military tactics and history, the stories of her parents' dragons and the official sagas. Physically, she resembled her mother with her sun-gold hair in a thick braid at the back of her head and bright blue eyes in a beautiful face. Her walk was confident and lithe and sometimes, Hiccup had to catch himself from calling out as if she was his dead wife as he remembered her as a girl.

Zephyr turned twenty and suddenly, all the neighbouring tribes started sending their scions and younger sons as potential suitors for the beautiful Heir to Berk. Asti perfected her stealth abilities and concentrated on eavesdropping the visitors to try to work out what kind of people the possible suitors and their retinues actually were away from the facades they erected in Hiccup and Zephyr's presences. More than once, she had reported that an apparently kind and pleasant young man was in fact a ruthless man who wanted to rule Berk as his own and Hiccup had stood by his Heir when she had rejected the suit, using his diplomatic skills to the utmost to prevent offence as he explained that he would never enforce a marriage upon his daughter, allowing her to choose the person she loved, just as he had chosen the only woman he could love. If the disappointed Vikings thought him unusual, they didn't voice their complaints to the powerful and respected Chief of New Berk.

But along with the suitors for Zephyr, there were an equal number of eligible young women seeking not only the hand of the son of the Chief-but the hand of Hiccup Haddock, the widowed Chief of Berk. When the first offers had come in, shortly after Astrid's death, Hiccup hadn't even replied, tearing the letters apart and dumping them in the fire. But as the years passed, the offers got more persistent-always young, blonde daughters who were vying to be the new Chieftess of Berk. But when ships arrived from allied or friendly Tribes, bearing the Chief and a plethora of eligible and attractive young women, Hiccup had to force himself to be civil and had smiled fixedly. Especially when the young women tried clearly practised techniques to entice his attention.

Fortunately, his friends or his children would usually warn the young women off, especially when one or two would try the direct approach, walking up to the tall, lean shape of the Chief in his brown leather tunic and epaulettes, his bear-fur cloak and with the unique metal prosthetic leg. More than once, Hiccup had shied back as a bold blonde had tried to take his hand and bat her big blue eyes at him-but he had no interest in any of the potential suitors. None of them were Astrid and though they were pretty, he didn't want any part of them.

Asti watched him and had intervened when a slender, very bold young woman from the Sun Tribe had come up to him and taken his hands. Shocked, he had struggled to find what to say, trying to untwine his hands from hers without shoving her away. Her figure-move curvaceous than Astrid's but a little less lithe-was sheathed in a shimmering pale blue gown. She tossed her long blonde hair and looked into his emerald eyes.

"You must be so lonely without a wife," she told him sensuously. He shook his head.

"I am perfectly content," he said tightly.

"But you are a handsome man, Chief Hiccup," she persisted, ignoring his disinterest. "I am young and healthy and I could make you very happy." He jerked his hands free, backing away and his emerald eyes hardened,

"That I doubt, Grethe Magnedottir," he said in a cold voice. "My heart belongs to my wife and I don't need another. I am sorry you have wasted your time and energies. Please return to your father, young lady-this discussion is over." And he turned away-to see the surprised shape of Asti. Immediately, he offered her his hand and and she took it, feeling him almost trembling as they walked away. Casting a quick glance over her shoulder, she saw the blonde girl, Grethe, scowling at him, a look of angry disappointment marring her pretty features.

"Are you going to get us a new Mommy?" she asked him softly as they reached his chair and he lifted her into his lap as he slid into the seat. She squirmed round to look into his familiar face and saw real sadness in his bright green eyes.

"No," he said, recalling a similar conversation from when he was a small boy of five, stumbling down late at night to find his own father, crying quietly by the fire as he recalled his lost soul-mate. "Your Mom was the one for me. She was perfect, my soul male, the love of my life. And there will never be another woman for me. I loved her completely." Not wholly understanding, she reached up and rested her hand against his cheek, feeling him press very slightly into her small hand. The neatly-trimmed beard was starting to grey and Hiccup had silver hairs at his temples but he was still her Dad.

"You really loved Mom, didn't you?" she said and he nodded, his eyes sad as he wound an arm around her.

"Love is the greatest thing there is, Asti," he told her gently. "The rewards are...oh more than you can possibly imagine. And I know that I will only ever love your Mom like that. Trying to recapture what we had...wouldn't be the same. It would feel like betraying her and everything we had. I couldn't even imagine trying with someone else, to be honest. So the flipside of that is that if you love someone, it involves loss. And the terrible pain of that loss is balanced with the absolute joy of the love you shared." And he looked gently into her bright blue eyes. "And it is always worth it, Asti. If you find the person you love, tell them and never be afraid to risk your heart-because there is nothing greater than love."

"And that is why you never even look at any of those girls," she realised, changing her position to look over at the visitors, who were talking angrily among themselves and glaring over at him. The rejected Grethe was haranguing her father, the Chief and as they watched, she stamped her foot.

"Well, she's got a temper," Hiccup commented dryly. "At least she's got that bit right. But trying to replace Astrid will never work. Maybe if they had considered someone who could be a companion, a supporter, a different template...but instead, all they ever do is attempt to present a poor facsimile of your Mom." He sighed and hugged her. "You are the only blonde young lady I need in my life." She hugged him back.

"Hey Sneaky," Zephyr said, walking up. Elegant in a long moss green gown with a gold-embossed leather belt around her slender waist and an amber necklace, her dark auburn hair draped over her shoulder in a braid very much how her mother had worn her hair, she looked every inch the Heir but she winked at her sister and bowed her head to her father. "I see the Sun Tribe failed to get you interested in Grethe the 'next week I'll be Chieftess of Berk'."

"A reason, if no other, not to marry someone," Hiccup commented sarcastically. "Think of the poor engravers trying to fit that on the ceremonial goblet!" The Heir covered her mouth with her hand to try to smother her laughter and then she winked at her smaller sister.

"Any news, Sneaky?" The name was affectionate, for Asti had perfected her stealth skills a while before and she nodded.

"The dark haired one-Geir-is mean to everyone and pretty horrible to his brothers," she reported. "Thorbjorn, the middle brother-the fat one with the brown hair and the really bad orange tunic-loves himself. He's already boasting he's won you, even though you stamped on his foot and told him he was a noxious son of a boar. The youngest one with the light brown hair is the nicest-he helped the servants when Geir hit them and he helped old Mrs Larson when she dropped her bread in the Plaza as they were jostling people aside."

"No," Hiccup growled. "I am not having them behaving like that on New Berk."

"Actually, Sverre is a nice guy," Zephyr said, her blue eyes thoughtful.

"The youngest son?" Asti checked, hearing a different intonation in her sister's voice. The auburn-haired girl nodded.

"While the older two have been showing off, he's been making a few asides that sound just like Dad," she commented. "He's not being offered up-he's only here to support the other two. He's not even here…" She gestured and Hiccup scanned the room, noting the absent shape of the youngest son. It could be that he was already Betrothed-though that seemed unlikely, since he couldn't see Magne, the pompous Chief of the Sun Tribe, allowing the youngest son to become Betrothed before his Heir. And then he looked up.

"You look a little flushed, Zeph," he said thoughtfully. "I think you need to go and get some fresh air." Her blue eyes widened and then she leaned forward, pecking a kiss on his cheek.

"Thanks, Dad," she said, gathering her skirts and trotting from the Great Hall before anyone else could intercept her. Watching her go, a small smile lifted his lips.

"She likes him," Asti added as he nodded.

"I think so," he murmured. "I recognise the look-from a long time ago." He sighed. "It was the look I had for your mother." Asti leaned against his chest.

"Don't worry, Dad," she said. "I'll do everything I can to keep those girls away from you." He winked and leaned his forehead against hers.

"Thanks, Asti," he sighed. "What would I do without you?"

Chapter Text

Three: Alone

Sverre Magneson asked to stay on New Berk when his Tribal party headed back east to their home and Chief Hiccup willingly granted him the chance to prove himself. Between himself, Fishlegs, Snotlout and the twins, they put the young man through his paces. Hiccup checked his skills with the sword and found them good enough to satisfy him that the young man would be capable of protecting Zephyr and New Berk. Snotlout took him through weapons assessment while the twins took him up and down, over and under New Berk, probably testing him through a number of trials involving innovation, adaptation and dealing with the unexpected Thorston-style.

He was a young man of twenty-two, a couple of years older than Zephyr, an inch or so shorter than she was but he held himself upright and his movements were graceful. His blue eyes twinkled with good humour and his light brown hair was tied back off his face, a couple of small braids appearing behind his ear after he moved from Berk, woven by Zephyr's nimble fingers. He was measured and calm though he had his own opinions. But he listened and debated, never letting a debate linger once it was over. He had an irreverent sense of humour and even pranked the twins-with the help of Fishlegs, who he rapidly befriended.

In fact, Hiccup found the young man readily welcomed into New Berk and growing closer and closer to his daughter. Nuffink, when he returned from his latest voyage, had a man-to-man chat with the outsider about his intentions and satisfied himself that the man's affections were real. But even so, Hiccup made it plain he would not approve any sort of formal attachment until the man had been on New Berk for at least a year. Zephyr had huffed and sulked and yelled at him for that, showing all the prowess her mother possessed in arguing but Hiccup was adamant in his ruling: she was his firstborn and if he wanted her, if he truly loved her, Sverre would wait.

And wait he did. All through the cycle of the seasons, he integrated himself into Berk life and on the first day of his second Spring in Berk, he approached Hiccup and asked for Zephyr's hand, asked for permission to become Betrothed. And looking over at his daughter, her eyes filled with love for the young man, he had given his consent.

They married in the Summer, with the sun high in the sky and the whole of New Berk bright green and stunning. Sverre's father did make the journey for the wedding, though his brothers thankfully stayed away. Hiccup conducted the ceremony that married his Heir and his other children stood by her, huge smiles on their faces, making Hiccup long even harder for Astrid. He knew her expression, seeing in his mind the beautiful blue eyes shining with pride and love for her firstborn and images from his own wedding, a quarter of a century earlier. The entire Tribe turned out and cheered for their Heir and as Hiccup wound the golden fabric around their hands, he knew an era was ending.

Zephyr was already on the Council and over the next few years, her friends and counsellors joined the Council. Hiccup saw his generation still in their prime but proud to see their offspring step forward and start taking their place in helping to lead Berk. Zephyr moved into her own home with Sverre and with Nuffink at sea for so long, it was suddenly just Hiccup and Asti. Hiccup's son had inherited his wanderlust and skills with mechanisms, navigation and maps and he travelled far and wide on behalf of Berk, trading and making new alliances. Hiccup saw much of himself in the boy-including his own sassy sense of humour-and he wasn't the least bit surprised when the young man returned with a girl with long raven hair, deep caramel eyes and honey brown skin, her features exotic enough to tell him that his son had lost his heart to a girl from a far off land.

Fink and Abeya, the stranger, married a mere month after they arrived back on Berk and though Hiccup offered to build them a home, the young man said he would share with Zeph and Sverre-or Hiccup, when they were home on Berk. Abeya was from a seafaring people and she and Fink were a perfect pair as they sailed away from Berk once more, charged with a mission from the Council and Hiccup's most heartfelt best wishes.

Zephyr quickly gave birth to three healthy and bonny sons on consecutive years and Hiccup suffered agonies and flashbacks every time-but she seemed blessed with easy births and uneventful pregnancies. After being married for two years, Fink and Abeya arrived back from a particularly long trip to the east with a newborn daughter with raven hair and bright green eyes, her gummy grin instantly reminding Hiccup painfully of Toothless and abruptly missing his dragon badly as he hadn't for many years. But he cradled his first grand-daughter in his arms and felt his lips lift in a smile once more, wishing he had Astrid at his side to hand the child to and hearing her verdict.

"She's beautiful," he managed roughly, his gruff voice expressing his emotions perfectly,. Zeph had hugged him and Abeya-who had always been in awe of the tall and stern Chief-leaned up and kissed his cheek.

"Thank you," she said in accented Norse. "You have made us so welcome. And we will be settling on Berk now we have family. My children will need ground beneath their feet, not a deck." Looking up, Hiccup saw his son wink but there was a proud look in his green eyes as he slid his arm around his wife.

""I will still sail-but my home will be properly on Berk now," Fink confirmed, his eyes still on the woman who had stolen his heart. She fluttered her eyelids and gently rested her hand on the medallion that Hiccup had given his son to gift to his girl on their Betrothal. The same medallion his father had given to his mother and he had given to Astrid now hung around his son's wife's neck, the warm amber light of the setting sun gilding the metal. "If that's okay with you, Dad?" Hiccup smiled, his eyes still fixed on the squirming bundle in his arms.

"That will be perfect," he said.

oOo

It was when Asti began to grow up and spend more time away that Hiccup's loneliness kicked in full force. Since Zephyr became more involved in the Council and her friends, it had largely been Hiccup and Asti. He had cooked for her in the evening, teaching her the skills her mother had never really mastered. He always listened to what she had been doing, recalling all those evenings when his own father had ignored him or never shown an interest because Stoick could not understand or relate to his clever, unVikinglike son. And he missed his father now as well, wondering what Stoick would think of the new village. Or Astrid. Careful he didn't stifle her, Hiccup still made sure Asti spent time with her peers but he took her to all the places he and Astrid had loved and made sure she was steeped in the history of the dragon riders and all the tales of Hiccup and his friends. And the importance of keeping the Hidden World and the location of the dragons a secret.

As neither Heir nor son of the Chief, Asti had more time and flexibility to develop her interests. Her time was filled with training, teaching the young ones, studying with Archivist Fishlegs and his son Fishnut on the history of Berk and learning trade contracts and military strategy from Snotlout-though Hiccup did remind her that Snotlout's grasp of strategy started and ended with 'run in there and blow it up then set it on fire'. She excelled with the axe and the sword and was every bit as lithe and athletic as her mother had been. But she was slow to anger, patient and kind and very determined, a young woman who was beautiful, accomplished, witty and playful.

Suddenly, the young men of the Tribe were trying to court her, falling over their feet to compete for the beautiful and gently mocking young warrior and with her older sister and brother, she managed to scare them off. But Nuffink approached Hiccup and let him know that Asti had been seen spending more time with Bean, Tuffnut's son. Though he had never married, the male twin had a long term relationship with Earwax, a squint-eyed sheep herder who lived in the heights above the village. She was pretty, crazy and had a wicked sense of humour-a perfect match for the male twin who had finally accepted that he couldn't spend all his time with his sister and her family. The unofficial couple had built a rather eccentric house that included a large sheep barn as well as zip lines and four different entrances. Ruff loved visiting with her kids and Earwax was a kind woman and a mean cook. When she had produced her son, Tuff had been proud and briefly tried to shape up-but he had been unable to maintain the effort and had resumed his crazy ways, though he provided for his family.

Bean was a lanky blonde with deep brown eyes and a ready grin. Despite his crazy parents, he was actually a serious and thoughtful young man-though he was a champion rock climber and woodsman. He had developed a lot of skills in woodworking and had been apprenticed to the village smith, Hardnose, who Gobber had reluctantly apprenticed when Hiccup had thrown himself into running the village. When Gobber died, Hiccup himself had finshed the man's training, ensuring that the village had a competent and hardworking smith to service their needs. Hardnose wasn't half the smith his Chief was but he had always respected the man's skills and innovation, though Hiccup knew he envied him as well. Bean had been an unusual choice for an apprentice and Tuff had been mortified at that his son was accepting responsibility-but he was clearly secretly proud as well.

Over the next few weeks, Hiccup had observed his daughter and noted the look in her eyes when she spoke to Bean, the small smile when she was with him and the way she spent hours with him in the forge as he worked on fixing weapons. The expression on her face and her smile echoed the one that he recalled from his youth, when Astrid would sit with him in the Forge on Old Berk, keeping him company as he upgraded Toothless's prosthetic tail, repaired her axe or worked on another project. Bean's expression was the mirror of hers, reminiscent of Hiccup's own smile when he realised that an amazing and beautiful young woman actually chose to spend time with him rather than the other, more buff and Vikinglike young men.

So one evening, Hiccup had gone down to the blacksmith's shop, smiling gently as he ran a hand over the sturdy beams that Gobber and Eret had constructed when they built the place. Eret had remained on Berk for a couple of years after Gobber died until one day, he had announced he was leaving, returning to his Tribe back up north. Hiccup always suspected that the man had found living among the Vikings after Gobber had passed too hard, with every inch of the place reminding him of his partner. Thor, he knew the feeling all too well-but he had his family and his responsibilities as Chief to anchor him. For Eret son of Eret, always the outsider, his kin were all up north and the decision had been easy. Hiccup had been truly sorry to see his friend leave but he had given the man his blessing and he had been given a raucous send-off and a fully-provisioned ship for his journey.

He blinked as the clang of metal on metal jerked him to the present. Bean was hammering a sword straight, causing Hiccup to smile once more. It seemed a Berkian trait to use weapons for other than what they had been intended and end up damaging them in the most peculiar ways. He recalled it had driven Gobber crazy and had led to more than a few tirades against uncomprehending Vikings who had presented a corkscrew-shaped sword or an axe bent into a right angle. And then he realised: the clangs had stopped.

"What can I do for you, Chief?" Bean asked, his voice low and clear. His cheek was smudged with soot and he was sweaty and flushed but his grip on the hammer was steady and there was respect in his eyes. Hiccup started, feeling almost embarrassed to be caught daydreaming and he fumbled as he drew out his sword. The blade was magnificent, one of his best pieces, the handle embossed with Night Fury motifs on a scale pattern, the metal a black Hiccup had achieved by incorporating just the smallest pinch of crushed Night Fury scales. Bean's eyes widened.

"Could you sharpen her for me?" the Chief asked and the young man frowned.

"Are you sure you don't want to…?" he asked, knowing that Hiccup almost always serviced his own weapons. But the Chief dipped his head with a smile.

"I'd be grateful if you would," he said and offered the weapon again. Nodding, the young man accepted the weapon and began to sharpen it as Hiccup limped to the stool and slowly lowered himself to the seat. Having had a missing lower leg for all of his adult life, he was finding his hip and knee were more and more painful as time went on, the stresses of walking on an unyielding metal prosthesis that was a little shorter than his natural leg damaging the joints over his active life. Some days, it was agonising just to walk but between phantom pains and various injuries, Hiccup had lived with pain all his adult life so he had gritted his teeth and just gotten on with it. Cold days were the worst so the heat of the forge was a welcome relief from the cool night wind.

"Is everything okay, Chief?" Bean asked, his eyes firmly fixed on his task and the Chief looked at the younger man. The two men had interacted intermittently, especially when Hiccup was helping to train him in techniques that Hardnose admitted he wasn't so skilled in but as Bean's skill increased, the lessons had become very infrequent. And as he tried to throw his mind back to some of the embarrassing talks he had endured as everyone had pressurised he and Astrid to marry, he gave a small smile. Funny-the person who finally made the decision for them was the one person who had never exerted any pressure.

"When I was a little younger than you, I used to spend a lot of time in the forge, back on Old Berk," he began, his voice thoughtful. "My girlfriend Astrid used to come in after training or after her chores were done and sit with me. We would talk for hours, about anything and nothing. About hopes and dreams. About the future." Hiccup's green eyes locked onto the young smith. "I know Asti is spending a lot of time here with you."

"We're doing nothing...um...inappropriate, sir," Bean said quickly. "She's just fun to talk to and interesting and-and wonderful!" Hiccup heard the affection in the young man's voice and he felt a frisson of jealousy. Asti was his daughter, his last precious piece of Astrid and though he knew one day she would find her own husband, the reality was suddenly facing him. And yet…

...and yet, he approved of this young man, a thoughtful hard-working young Viking. A smith, as Hiccup himself had been. A man with a sense of humour. A man who clearly cared for his daughter. And a man that his daughter certainly liked as well. The Chief smiled.

"I'm not going to give you a scary 'don't come anywhere near my daughter' speech because that is not my business and because she has her mother's temper as well," he said. "Seriously. I would never hear the end of it-and I suspect her punch is as fearsome as my late wife's." His lips curled in a smile. "And I am not going to try to encourage you in the same way your father tried to encourage me to propose to Astrid. I know this may not come as a shock but he is really really bad at pep talks." Bean chuckled.

"Neither he nor Auntie Ruff have any sort of filter," he admitted. "It made growing up...interesting…almost like having two older siblings, not two adults."

"The twins have always been allergic to the 'A' word," Hiccup admitted. "Even though they are two of my closest friends. They have always been there for me since we fought the Red Death."

"I think Dad has always been proud that he was a dragon rider, even though I know a lot of my generation think they are just myths," Bean admitted.

"Asti has seen the dragons," Hiccup said quietly. "She believes."

"I've seen Dad's armour in the Archives," Bean admitted. "And the carvings of the dragons on the houses and the columns of the Great Hall. They are consistent-meaning they are based on something that people actually saw. They were part of our Tribe for only a short period of time-but they made a huge impact."

"They brought my wife and I together and gave me the chance to prove what I was worth to her," Hiccup said. "I suspect you don't need that-because I think Asti already knows what you are worth." He slowly levered himself to his feet and winced. "All I ask is that you are careful with her heart. To me, she is the most precious thing on Berk and I would not want her to be with someone who did not love her as much as I do." Bean handed him back his sword, sharpened to a perfect keenness and polished beautifully and the Chief inspected it with a small smile. "And a man who puts so much care and attention into his work should be as careful and dedicated in his relationships."

"I-I love her!" Bean blurted out. Hiccup paused and his lips lifted in a smile.

"Does she know?" he asked gently. Bean shrugged and suddenly Hiccup was reminded of his younger awkward self, lacking in confidence and a stammering mess when it came to declaring his feelings to the girl he loved.

"I-I've never actually said…" he mumbled, his hands nervously playing with the edge of his leather apron and Hiccup smiled.

"Then tell her-and see what she says," he told the younger man. "I have learned from experience that women usually know-but that they need to hear the words. Preferably on a daily basis. If you love her, I can say now...it is always worth the risk." Bean walked forward and grasped his hand.

"Thank you, Chief," he said honestly, his eyes filled with hope and new determination and the Chief felt his heart swell with pride. He knew Astrid would have approved. Hiccup smiled as he turned away.

"I suspect it won't be too long before you are calling me 'Dad'," he commented and walked out into the night.

oOo

Asti and Bean married as the leaves were turning on a wonderful warm day in the village Plaza, before the now mossy statue of Chief Stoick the Vast. The young woman looked stunning in her simple white gown, similar to one that her mother had worn decades earlier and the crown of golden leaves and red berries mad her look like the Princess she was. For the third time, Hiccup wrapped the golden cloth around the hands one one of his children and said the words that confirmed their marriage. The village cheered and whooped and Bean kissed his new wife passionately before they all headed to the Great Hall for a celebratory feast.

Earwax and Fishlegs had stood by the young man, for his father had died over the summer, when Tuffnut tried one trick too many and fell from the highest cliff on New Berk while trying to scratch the words 'Ruffnut is a Butthead' on the rocks. His twin had known immediately and had come to find Hiccup, who had led the villagers in the grim task of recovering the body from the rocks below. Asti had comforted Bean and the Chief had been truly pleased that she was there to help the young man through the loss but there had been no comforting Ruffnut. Her children were grown and though she loved Fishlegs, she had always been closer to her twin. Hiccup had watched her fade, day by day as she had given up her desire to live any longer and within a month, she was gone as well. The Healer, Brenna, told Fishlegs that his wife had died of a broken heart but to Hiccup, it had seemed more like a broken soul, missing half of itself once her twin was gone.

Hiccup had found the double loss difficult to bear and he had spent a lot of time with Fishlegs, comforting him and being there as the man had been for Hiccup. Their five children were constantly in and out of the house, making sure the husky former rider was cared for but it was only with Hiccup that he could lower his guard. And Hiccup was truly concerned because Fishlegs hadn't cried. The man who cried at weddings, who was emotional to a fault was strangely calm. So after the initial toasts, Hiccup had left the happy couple and his other children and their partners at the top table and instead had joined the solitary figure sitting in one of the big chars by the fire. Fishlegs looked up with a wan smile.

"How do you cope?" he asked quietly, sipping his mug of mead thoughtfully. Hiccup had hoped Fish would go out and get drunk after he lost his wife but instead, he had retired home with a cup of mint tea and had remained calm and pensive. Just as he was now as Hiccup took the seat beside him. "I mean, you lost Astrid all those years ago…but I can't get my head around it."

"And I hurt every day," Hiccup said in a low voice. "Every morning, I get up and think of a reason to keep going that day. At first it was my kids. Then it was the village. And my friends. And my grandkids." Then he paused. "But in truth, none of them really need me any more. Asti will move in with Bean and I'll have an empty house-and no Astrid to talk to."

"When Tuff died, I knew she was lost," Fishlegs said, his voice wavering for the first time since the funeral. "I knew she loved him more than me-because he was her twin and they had this weird bond that they had shared forever. She knew when he died and it was like all the joy died that instant. I could see the life vanish from her eyes. So I had a few weeks to adjust to the fact she was dying. I mean, it's difficult to live with only half a soul and a broken heart. She knew our kids are grown and safe and they would look after me. And she's happy now." Hiccup reached out and rested his hand on the bigger man's shoulder.

"Fish…" He paused. "She did love you. She chose you. But she was always closest to Tuff-even though they both had their own families."

"I mean, who gets killed writing 'Ruffnut is a Butthea…' on a cliff?" Fishlegs said in a voice that cracked more with every word. His eyes shone with unshed tears and he swiped them away as Hiccup grasped his shoulder. Just for a brief moment-but it was enough. Fishlegs nodded and looked up seriously. "You know it's just the two of us left?" Hiccup nodded.

"I think Heather may be alive on Berserk but we haven't had word from them for years," he admitted. "I know Gustav was killed in that pirate attack and I've sent four ships to search for Snotlout's ship after that storm...but there hasn't been any sign. For five whole months since he vanished."

"I wouldn't put it past him to turn up next week, swaggering in like old times and proclaiming he was the most awesome Viking ever lived," Fish smiled.

"Helga, Treelout and Boarlout are holding up well," Hiccup said and then sighed. "I think they're holding onto the same hope. And I think it will hit them hard when the winter storms come in and he doesn't return. When hope is lost."

"We will have to be there for her," Fishlegs said. "I mean, I need to finish the Chronicles of the Dragon Riders-I've only got our last few rescue missions and the conflict with the Warlords and Grimmel to write up-and then I can hand over some of the Archive and teaching duties to Fishnut."

"Rufflegs will be taking it hard," Hiccup sighed, casting a glance over to the girl, sitting by her husband. "Losing her Mom, her Uncle and her father in law in quick succession. Boarlout is taking it hard as well-but at least he has some common sense. And little Hooklout is a good kid: he distracts Ruffie pretty effectively." Fishegs chuckled.

"That's because little Hooklout is anything but a good kid," he reminded his friend. "Any grandson of Ruffnut was never going to be anything but a total force of Loki. I'm shocked their house is still standing." Hiccup gave a wry smile.

"Should I be worried about Asti and Bean?" he asked, glancing over to the happy couple, who were dancing to pipes that were playing 'For the Dancing and the Dreaming' as was traditional at all Berkian weddings. "I mean, any child they have will be Tuffnut's grandkid. Should I expect the full Loki?" Fishlegs chuckled.

"I think Bean and Asti are two sensible young people," he said slowly, sipping his mead. "And I think your daughter will channel her inner Astrid and become the mother she was." Hiccup swallowed, his eyes prickling as they hadn't for so long at the mention of his wife. Suddenly, Fishlegs wrapped his arm around Hiccup's shoulder.

"Sorry, Fish-I'm supposed to be cheering you up," the Chief said gruffly, swallowing again. The husky former rider shrugged.

"I think we need to cheer each other up," he admitted. "Of course I miss her. She's here, in my heart and in my memory and in our home and children and everywhere on Berk. So even though she's not here now, I can still sense her. And I find that incredibly comforting. And I know, one day, when we are all gone, we'll soar the skies once more together." Hiccup blinked and nodded, then managed a small smile.

"You're right, Fishlegs," he said in a calmer voice. "My youngest daughter is wed and with the man she loves. I have four grandchildren-with another on the way. The village is safe and secure. The storehouses are full and the armoury is well-stocked also. And we are still here. So tonight, my friend, let's raise our mugs to our friends and to the new life Asti and Bean are starting together." Fishlegs gently clanked his mug against Hiccup's.

"To our friends and loved ones," he said. "And to the future they have left us."

oOo

Sitting alone in his Chief's chair at the feast, Hiccup rested his chin on his fist and glanced across the village. The Winter had been hard and a number of villagers had died in the outbreak of Eel Pox that had swept through the Tribe-among them Spitelout, who had never recovered from the loss of his son and had been suffering from memory loss over the last few years-and Fishlegs. The last loss had hit Hiccup the hardest, for he was now the last Dragon Rider alive on Berk, for all the other members of the Dragon Riders and the A Team had all passed on. Word had finally come through from Berserk, which was grim as well, for a plague had swept the island, killing many of the populace...including Heather, Dagur, Mala and Dagur's oldest son, Oswald. Berserk was now being ruled by his younger son, Dag-Erik and the young man had written to Berk for aid. Hiccup had dispatched supplies and was considering offering the young man one more form of assistance-but that would mean confirming the decision he had been considering since he realised the scale of the disaster.

Slowly, he rose and winced. His hip was agonising some days and he was using a staff now to help him limp along. He cast his glance across the Great Hall, seeing a sea of faces, all of whom he knew. He was almost the oldest there, with maybe a couple of fishermen having a few years on him. Carefully, he limped through the knots of people laughing and smiling, the children running back and forth. A small child slammed into his legs and bounced off and a small black-haired blue eyed little boy looked up at him from the floor. Easily, Hiccup bent forward and grabbed the little boy's pudgy hand, hauling him back to his feet. The boy grinned, his gappy smile infectious.

"Thanks!" he said and then he frowned. "Why have you got a metal leg, mister?" Hiccup's eyes widened: he had gotten used to everyone knowing what he had done but this was a small child who clearly had not heard the tale. He smiled, his eyes twinkling.

"A dragon bit it off," he said as the child frowned and then shook his head.

"Dragon's don't exist!" he said firmly. "They're just myths." Hiccup cocked an eyebrow, still smiling.

"Ah, but I'm so old that there were dragons when I was a boy," he told the child. "Where they went, only a few of us know. There were great sky dragons and brown scuttling dragons, huge sea dragons as big as the blue whale and a black dragon, a Night Fury that no one had ever seen. One day, they left and went to a Hidden World. And they may come back, when we are worthy of them. Here on Berk, we believe in dragons-because they were real."

By now, the boy's eyes were round and he was staring up in surprise at the Chief.

"Hooklout! Where are y...oh, sorry Chief!" The unmistakable shape of Rufflegs scurried up, her long face reminiscent of her mother and kindly blue eyes similar to her father. She scooped up her small son. "This one gets away like nothing I have ever seen. I'm sure he gets it from Mom and Uncle Tuff. I mean, from what I heard, they were legendary…" Hiccup gave a smile and nodded.

"They were," he said cheerfully. "How are you holding up, Ruff?" She gave a brave smile.

"It's hard, sir," she sighed. "I mean, losing both my parents so close together and my father-in-law as well. Boarlout has been incredibly supportive-well, he's lost his grandfather as well, though it was probably a blessing, given he couldn't recall who we were any more and…" She stopped and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry-I'm rambling."

"It's no problem, Ruff," he reassured her. "It was good to talk to Hooklout." He gave a small smile. "I enjoyed it."

"Thank you, sir," she said and steered the young boy away, a small voice floating up as the boy walked away, his hand clamped in his mother's.

"Who was that old man, Mommy?"

"That's the Chief, Hookie."

"But he's so old…"

That's true, Hiccup thought as he limped through the throng, leaning harder on his staff. Old and infirm. It's time. And he walked up to Zephyr, standing chatting with Asti and Bean and Fink. He cleared his throat and his children all looked at him, eyes widening. They all stopped talking and Hiccup stared into the eyes of his grown up offspring and sighed.

"It's time," he said and Zephyr started.

"But you're still fit and strong and…" she began but he smiled sadly and shook his head.

"My hip is very stiff and I can barely walk some days," he corrected her. "I could never lead them in battle, if required. The Tribe is stable and Spring is coming. It's time for a fresh start. Inform the Council: you become Chief tonight." Her eyes widened.

"Dad…" she breathed.

"Zeph-I'm old and tired," he said. "New Berk is just Berk for you. None of you recall our home of over three hundred years, of eight generations of Berkians. All my generation are gone and it's time you had your turn. You are ready-and now your children are growing, you can dedicate yourself to the village. You children are all grown and don't need me anymore."

"Dad…" Her voice was choked but he was smiling.

"Gather the Council," he repeated sternly. "I will draw the mark on your brow, just as Gothi did for me when i was twenty, when my father had been slain by Drago Bludvist and the village attacked. We had defeated his Bewilderbeast and his dragon army and Toothless had just been made Alpha...and then Gothi made me Chief. My father never lived to see his proudest moment. I have probably lingered too long...but I didn't want to make you Chief while your kids were too small. I was neglected as a child by my father and I didn't want you to make the choice between duty and family. And I'm sorry...I never wanted to lose your Mom so soon. I clung to the village too long. It's yours."

They stared at him. Fink stepped forward and rested his hand on his father's shoulder.

"Dad-you are the best Chief our Tribe has ever had," he said gently. "Please stay…" But Hiccup shook his head.

"I'm not needed any more," he said. "And I'm lonely, Fink. You have your families, your voyages, your duties. Take the lead now. I need to go to Berserk and support Dag-Erik. He asked for help-because he wasn't trained to rule and many of his advisers perished in the plague as well. At least there, I can be of use."

"You're still needed here," his son told him but he shook his head.

"No-my time has passed," he murmured as the Council walked up and he limped onto the dais, by the Council Table. He turned to face the village and suddenly felt a weight lift from his shoulders. "People of Berk. It is time. I have served this village for thirty-seven years as your Chief and I have made sure that Berk is strong and prosperous. Many of you may not recall, but we moved here thirty-six years ago. And when I led the migration, I said then what I say now: We are Berk. The people, not the place! Wherever we are, Berk is. And I know my people will be in safe hands." He gestured and Zephyr walked forward, kneeling as he took a piece of charcoal, smudged it on his fingers and swiftly drew the Chief's symbol on Zeph's lightly freckled brow. He beckoned her to stand up.

"The Chief has come home! Long live the Chief!" he shouted and cheers broke out as she turned to face her people. Sverre moved to her side, as did her sons and she smiled and took their applause as Hiccup limped aside, quietly skirting the crowd and heading out the doors into the night. He blinked as the cold air hit his face and he stared up at the brilliant stars, facing towards the west.

"Time to go home," he murmured.

Chapter Text

Four: At Last

Hiccup Haddock, former Chief of Berk, tugged on the painter and the sail swung to suck in the frigid wind, filling and tugging the little vessel faster into the currents away from the port. Not looking back, he raised an arm to wave, leaning against the little half-seat he had built into the space by the rudder, to help him stand when his hip was hurting badly. . On the docks, Chief Dag-Erik of Berserk, his Betrothed, Alita and his cousin Kjetil all waved at the stranger, his unofficial Uncle, who had sailed up when the young unprepared Chief had needed him most. Hiccup had offered his experience and advice, not to rule but to support the young man in his first uncertain months in the role.

"I am not here to take over or tell you how to rule Berserk," he said honestly as he bowed stiffly to the Chief. "I am only here to support the son of my unofficial brother who has lost his Dad and who has found himself unexpectedly Chief of the Berserkers." He gestured to the hostile-looking men who were glaring at his lean and unimpressive shape in his slight worn leather armour with his metal leg and staff and the sword on his hip. "These men are your advisers. They have the best interests of Berserk in mind. I just have your interests in mind, Chief Dag-Erik. I have been Chief for over thirty-six years-and I can still remember how uncertain and worried I felt when I found myself Chief. And I had known my whole life I was going to be Chief."

Ignoring his advisers, Dag-Erik had surged forward and hugged Hiccup fiercely.

"Thanks, Uncle Hiccup," he sighed. "Dad always said you were the absolute best. He always knew he could rely on you…" He gulped. "He left a letter for you before he died-because Ozzie died two days before. It broke his heart and he knew he didn't have time to prepare me because he was falling ill. He guessed you would come. Thank Thor you did." Hiccup hugged him back.

"Did the ships arrive with supplies and our junior healer?" he asked and Dag nodded.

"She's helping the infirm with their recovery and ensuring basic measures are in place to ensure the plague is gone," the young Chief confirmed as Hiccup nodded, smiling.

"Jonna is a very good healer," he confirmed. "I wouldn't have sent her if she wasn't the best. Brenna feels she is already her equal-and she seems to be the only person who can read Gothi's scrawl…" The young Chief frowned. "Our old healer-from when I first became Chief. She was amazing and ancient and had the worst writing and even worse temper but her knowledge was unparalleled and no one could read her notes-until now. Jonna is a blessing." Dag draped an arm around Hiccup's shoulder, obliquely helping him make his painful way up towards the village.

"Your presence is a blessing," he said with genuine gratitude. "Now let's get you settled in and offer you our hospitality." Hiccup smiled, recalling his early encounters with the boy's father. For a while, they had been viceral foes...but they had become almost as close as brothers-and he was saddened that after all their adventures and battles, it took a plague to fell Dagur the Deranged.

"The honour is mine," Hiccup said.

Hiccup had spent the time encouraging Dag-Erik to have confidence in himself, listen to his advisers but always make his own decision-but never do something he knew was wrong. To stick to his principles and honour his treaties...and be a good man. And though the advisers had remained wary, they had come to respect his advice and the confidence he had given to their Chief.

But now he was leaving. The autumn was closing in and he didn't really want to spend the long winter on Berserk, though the invitation had been there. A small part of him wanted to see if the King of Dragons-which he now realised had been a Bewilderbeast-was still buried under the heart of Berserk...but the larger part of him reminded him that he had limited time left and he had somewhere else he wanted to be. The breeze ruffled his hair, now heavily greyed and in need of a cut and he ran a hand through it. Astrid would have been haranguing him for looking a mess and he knew he had let himself go a little-but he needed his energies to steer the ship and head back. If he didn't rest, he would make it before the worst of the weather set in.

His hand closed on the rudder and he adjusted the course slightly, glancing at the compass attached to his vambrace and smiling.

"Not long to go," he murmured.

oOo

"I'm worried about Dad." Asti's tone was firm as she stared into her elder siblings' eyes. It was dinner time and the siblings got together to eat once a week as a family. Zephyr had moved into the Chief's House and it was the most popular venue, for all three loved the memories returning to the sturdy and homely building brought back. "He's been gone too long. When is he coming back?" Zephyr glanced over to Nuffink and took a sighing breath.

"He isn't, Asti," she said in a low voice. "When he said goodbye...it was goodbye." The young girl shook her head, her eyes filled with shock and denial.

"No…" she breathed. "No. He has us. He has his family. He…"

"He feels he isn't needed any more-that he has nothing left," Fink told her in a heavy voice. "He's given everything to the village-but what has he got left? All his friends are gone, we're all busy with our families. Zeph has the village-and no one cares about the dragons any more. Life is busy and he feels out of step with us now."

"But he built this village!" Asti protested.

"And if Mom had been alive, he would have stayed with her," her sister told her sharply. "But he's stayed here for decades when every inch of the place reminds him of her. And now that we're grown up, that we no longer need him, he's finally been able to go and seek his peace."

"I still need him!" Asti protested. "I miss him! I want him there when I have my child…" She rested her hand, splayed, over the barely perceptible swell of her lower abdomen. "I wanted Dad to name him or her…to see his face as he or she is born."

"Oh Asti-can't you understand that was another reason why he left?" Fink sighed. "You have no idea the agonies he suffered every time Zeph was expecting. When she went into labour, he would go to the forge and work on some strange contraption...or a sword or dagger or-or something to distract him from the images of Mom dying."

The girl stared.

"Mom died shortly after your birth, Asti," Zephyr reminded her. "Dad was with her through it all. He literally held her as she died. And he never spoke of it...but I think he wanted to leave before he could see you go through that...before he could risk losing you. As it is...he knows you are safe and happy and married to Bean…"

"But…"

"I received a letter from Chief Dag-Erik of Berserk," she revealed, rising to rest a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Dad left a few weeks ago-and he knew that he wasn't going back to Berk. He said he was going home." Asti shook her off and glared at her.

"It's our fault!" she said angrily. "When we got married, we forgot he was alone. We forgot having a village isn't the same as having someone you love there for you. I should never have moved out. I mean...once you were married, Zeph, it was him and me. Fink was always travelling meaning I was his family. I left him…" She chewed her lip and her eyes shone. But Bean rose and wrapped his arms around her, forcing her to face him and lifting her chin with a gentle, calloused finger.

"He gave us his blessing," he told her. "He came to talk to me-the night before I asked you to go out with me. The night before I told you I loved you. He approved of me and knew that you loved me-and I loved you. He wanted you to be happy." She blinked, her eyes shining with tears now.

"But I wanted him to be happy with us," she whispered.

"Oh, this is nonsense," Nuffink said in exasperation. "You are the Chief of Berk and Dad is an old man with a very gimpy hip and a metal leg…"

"He's also more stubborn than the three of us combined," Zephyr commented.

"Well, we better hope that he's only as stubborn as two of us now," Fink said and glanced at Abeya. "Milady-we gotta find him. I agree with Asti-he needs to know we love him and that he's not alone…"

"I'm coming as well," Bean said quickly, earning himself a grateful kiss from his wife while Zephyr sighed.

"I wish I could-but someone has to stay and look after the village," she reminded them. "Dad entrusted me with Berk and we can't all rush off Thor knows where…" Asti nodded, understanding.

"When can we leave?" she asked, suddenly fired with purpose but Fink shook his head.

"It's already dark," he reminded her. "We can leave in the morning. I know which way we can head."

"Where?"

"West," he said. "To the Hidden World."

oOo

The wind was straight from Freezing-To-Death as Hiccup limped up the ramp from the harbour. The way was rutted and partially decayed but there were enough sound boards, even after the decades, to allow him to make the top of the cliff and get a close up view of the village.

Of course, much of it was wrecked and burned, courtesy of the Warlords and Grimmel, but there were still a couple of relatively intact houses, though the village had clearly been picked over by pirates and scavengers. In the end, he decided to head up for the Great Hall, stopping in shock as he stared at the moss-ravaged statue of his father. The graven contours of Stoick's stone beard were filled with moss and lichen was freckled over his face but he smiled as he reached the top of the stairs, his leg agonising. He shifted his pack, provisions and the kindling he had picked up and smiled.

"Hey Dad," he said, his voice hoarse from lack of use. "It's me. I'm home." He rubbed his hip and his hand tightened on his staff as he felt his leg waver. "They're all safe. You have three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. My daughter, Zephyr is Chief. You'd love her-she a non-nonsense, calm, very just woman and she will be a great Chief. My son Nuffink is inventive like me and he's a great traveller. My youngest, Astrid is the image of her mother and as fierce and brave...but even more compassionate and curious." Then he blinked. "But I lost Astrid, a long long time ago. And now that I've stood down as Chief, there's nothing left for me. So I came home. I came back to Berk. Real Berk. Where I was born. Where Astrid and I met and fell in love. Where I met Toothless. Where I belong."

He walked into the dim space, seeing the huge space of the Great Hall largely untouched, the Council Table intact and some trash spread on the floor. He smiled.

"This will do," he said to himself and set down his pack. "Home."

oOo

Asti and Bean helped as they were asked as the little ship grew close to the foaming mist and the faint roat of the waterfall. It had been over fifteen years since they had last travelled to the place but Fink had led them to the spot unerringly, his sure hand on the rudder giving his passengers confidence. But as they reached the shallows and dropped their anchor, the young man shook his head, his emerald eyes scanning the rocks that occasionally peeked into view through the mists.

"This makes no sense," Fink said, walking to the prow and peering harder. "He would never come here-because if he stayed, the ship could betray the location of the Hidden World."

"Maybe they sunk it?" Bean asked but Asti shook her head, peering over the side.

"It's too shallow here," she murmured. "We would see it. And what would Dad do if he came here? He's just sit on the rocks and freeze or drown or fall to his death! He couldn't get down to the Hidden World…"

"Unless Toothless took him," Fink suggested but the girl shook her head.

"No human can go to the Hidden World," she reminded him. "Dad told us all about it. How he went there with Mom and saw Toothless as the Alpha, the King of Dragons with his mate, the Light Fury-and in that moment, he knew that it was where Toothless belonged...and he didn't. He knew they had to part."

"Then where would he go?" Bean asked. "And really? They came back here?" The two Haddocks nodded.

"We've both seen them…" Fink explained. And then he turned to the rocks. "TOOTHLESS! We're looking for Dad-for Hiccup! He's not on New Berk and he's not here. There is only one place he would be now…"

"Berk," Asti realised. "Old Berk. The island where he was born and raised. Where all his most powerful and treasured memories were made. That's home."

"He's gone to Berk!" Fink yelled. "And I think he may need you."

But there was no answer and after a few long minutes, the little ship tacked away, searching the currents to head east, back to the Archipelago and the island of Hiccup's birth. But as they were almost out of sight, a black head popped up from amid the mist, sniffing and recognising the scents. Toothless understood the words and his green eyes searched the skies. Once it was dark, he would leave and head for the island that had been his home so many years earlier. If his friend's hatchlings were worried, then Toothless needed to make sure his friend was safe.

oOo

The jagged shape of the island was unfamiliar-though Nuffink had sailed to Old Berk before...because it was part of his heritage and he wanted to see it with his own eyes. So he was unsurprised at the massive carven stone Harbour Guards or the ramp leading up to the cliff-top village. And the wreckage wasn't a surprise to either Haddock because they had heard the tales of Grimmel and his attack. But it meant there was a lot of wreckage to search. However, the fact there was a small and familiar boat moored securely at the docks gave them hope that they were at least in the right place.

The village was eerily quiet, a few birds flapping around as the only sounds. Grass had reclaimed the Plaza and most of the fallen houses had rotted or been plundered, leaving half-decayed wreckage only. The wind was bitter and a flurry of icy rain began to soak the travellers as they looked up and saw, above the village, a huge statue carved into the side of the mountain.

"Chief Stoick the Vast. Our grandfather," Asti explained as she headed off up the village, seeing a pair of huge doors partly closed and a light flickering within the space beyond. "Look, Fink…"

"I see it," he murmured and the three began to walk briskly up the steep slope, seeing the long flight of stars to the doors. Fink was panting as they neared the top.

"Thor, I'm amazed he could get up here with his hip," Bean murmured as Asti forged ahead, reaching the doorway and peering inside. Her blue eyes scanned the space and she saw a slumped shape on a simple cot, close by a small fire.

"He's here!"

oOo

Hiccup had taken to talking to his father during his daily routine. He had struggled to bring all his provisions up from the boat and plenty of water but soon after he arrived, the first bitter storms hit and he was confined to the Great Hall. And though it was grimy and the portraits of the previous Chiefs and their Heirs now hung in the Hall of New Berk, it still felt like home. But he had needed to ration his food and the kindling and the cold he had picked up in Berserk had gone to his chest. Coughing and hacking, he had hunkered down by the fire, writing in his journal and chatting to Stoick and Astrid, who was appearing to him more and more with the passage of time.

Wrapped in his Chief's bear fur cloak, which Zeph had insisted he brought with him and curled by hs meagre fire, he was shivering as his fever climbed when he heard a noise. There was the sound of people at the door and he looked up, wondering vaguely where he had put his sword. Not that he could fight off pirates or plunderers but he wouldn't go down without a fight.

"I'm a Chief, you know," he rasped. "The last Chief of Berk."

Of course you are, Astrid said, her voice amused. But you don't need to worry. There is no danger…

He blinked. His eyesight had been fading, the light hurting his eyes and breathing was a real chore. But framed by the light, a familiar shape entered, the blonde hair braided over the left shoulder achingly familiar, the concerned blue eyes bright with worry.

"Astrid?" he murmured. The shape stiffened.

"Dad?"

"Milady?"

I'm here, Babe, she said, her face coming into view. He gave a smile, a genuine expression of relief and joy,

"I've..been waiting so long…" he breathed. "It's been so hard. I've missed you every day. Every breath without you has been a chore."

I know, my love.

"Dad? Odin-he's really sick. Bean-have you go the medicine pouch Jonna gave us?"

"They're all safe," he breathed. "And I loved her. I love her. Enough for both of us. She's got her own husband now. They didn't need me anymore. No one needs me anymore."

"We all need you, Dad. Please come stay with us…"

I'm sorry you had to wait so long, Babe. I fought as hard as I could. And you were the best father you could possibly be. I love you, Hiccup. You don't have to wait any more.

"My Valkyrie-you came for me?"

Who else? I know you have been waiting so long. But I'm not leaving you ever again, my brave Hiccup.

"He's not making any sense, Asti. I don't think he even sees us."

"Please, Dad-stay with us. We've come for you. You are so much loved and wanted…"

"There should always be a Hiccup and Astrid. Whatever it means…"

Whatever you want to to mean. It's okay, Babe.

"I just wish...I could have seen my bud once more…"

"Oh my Thor…"

Hiccup's eyes widened a little and he lifted his head an inch as a black shape appeared behind the blonde woman bending over him. There was a small croon as his hand shakily extended-to meet the warm, smooth scales of the dragon's face. Toothless warbled in joy as Hiccup's ashen face moved into a smile.

"Hey, bud," he said in a whisper. "I prayed...one last time. You happy?" There was another warble. "Wanted to say...thanks for everything. You helped me to be...Hiccup. To be the best person I could be. And I've missed you so much…" He smiled. "Thanks for making an old man's wish come true."

You ready, Babe?

"Never moreso," he sighed, taking her hand. "I love you, Milady."

And his eyes closed. Slowly, his hand fell from its position against Toothless's snout.

The Night Fury's roar echoed through the Great Hall and caused every bird in Berk to take flight. Asti flung herself against her father, hands desperately seeking a pulse, any sign of breathing. But Hiccup was smiling, his hand still extended as his son and son-in-law also wept. And inconsolable, Toothless roared over and over at the loss of his human brother while his family mourned the last Chief of Old Berk.

oOo

Once the storm had passed, the little ship was hastily prepared and loaded with timber from the village for a pyre while Hiccup was swathed in his Chief's cloak, his sword laid across his chest and a handful of Toothless's scales grasped in his cold hand. They were the scales he had kept ever since the last trip to the Hidden World and treasured across the years since. Toothless remained with the three mourners, helping them ferry the former Chief's possessions down to Nuffink's sleek ship and carry Hiccup to his final resting place. Asti had kissed him and placed a little braid in his hair and his son and son-in-law had hugged him one last time.

Standing on the docks, the three had stared as the ship receded, flaming arrows in their hands. Nuffink looked over to his sister and nodded.

"You say the words, Asti," he said, his throat thick with grief. "He would have wanted you to." She sighed.

"What did he mean-there will always be a Hiccup and Astrid?" she asked. Fink sighed.

"It was something he said to Mom, just before they started dating-when she briefly lost her sight," he explained. "And I think that was what sustained him through all those years. And you." She nodded, finally understanding.

"Hiccup and Astrid-father and daughter," she sighed and lifted her chin. "I'm ready."

So flanked by her brother and husband, Astrid Haddock spoke at the funeral of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, the last Dragon Rider and last Chief of Old Berk. Her voice rang across the sullen sea of the harbour as the ship spun slightly.

"May the Valkyries welcome you and lead you through Odin's great battlefield. May they sing your name with love and fury, so that we might hear it rise from the depths of Valhalla and know that you've taken your rightful place at the table of kings. For a great man has fallen: A warrior. A chieftain. A Dragon Rider. A father. A husband. A friend."

She fired the first arrow, the other two flying a heartbeat later and igniting the pyre. Finally, there was the leathery flap of wings and a great black shape circled round, giving a last mournful roar of desolation and grief before Toothless fired, the purple plasma bolt igniting the whole ship. Circling once more, the Night Fury soared up into the air and was seen no more.

Finally, the ship vanished from view and Fink looked over at his sister and brother-in-law.

"Let's go home," he said.

oOo

The furor of childbirth had calmed and the lusty scream of strong lungs filled the air as the newborn baby was swaddled in a soft woollen towel and handed to his mother. Asti's golden hair was sticking to her exhausted face in sweaty strands but the healers were satisfied that all was well. The boy was smaller than average size but vigorous and his tuft of hair had a definite copper tinge. Big eyes stared up at Asti as she offered him a finger and he gave a couple of sucks before losing interest, instead fixating on her beautiful face, her eyes filled with love and pride.

"Hello baby," she sighed. "How are you?

"Aren't you clever?" Bean asked her gently, his face filled with pride.

"Aren't we clever?" she corrected him, tenderly kissing the baby's soft forehead. "A boy." Bean looked down on his wife and their child, knowing that she had hoped for a son ever since that cold and devastating day on old Berk, six months earlier. And yet, through all the grief, Bean Thorston had noted that...Hiccup had looked at peace, finally reunited with his beloved wife and with his dragon. After a long and active life, the Chief had earned his reward-no matter how hard it was for those left behind. Asti had been devastated but she had rallied with the help of her family and the promise of the new life growing within her. And though she had been nervous when the labour started, a peace had fallen over her as events progressed and in the end, it had been easy. Bean smiled at her, ghosting a kiss on the top of her head.

"Your sister and the village are all waiting on tenterhooks for the name," he said quietly. "What should I tell them?"

Asti smiled, recalling one of her father's last intelligible sentences.

There will always be a Hiccup and Astrid.

"Tell them...his name is Hiccup."

The End.