Chapter Text

Introduction and license

This fanfic is temporary-placed after How to train your dragon 3 and, also, after Frozen 2 so, if you haven't watched them, you will probably spoiler yourself.

Characters and places are property of Disney, Dreamworks, or whoever owns the rights. The story is published under a BY-NC-SA Creative Commons license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0).

I translated this story by myself from Spanish (https://archiveofourown.info/works/28837518), so if you see any typo or mistake, it would be great if you could drop a comment so I could fix it as soon as possible.

Chapter Text

1.

"We're married! Can you believe it?"

Astrid smiled. The ceremony took place half a month ago, but Hiccup was still as excited as the first day.

"C'mon, come back here. It's cold outside..."

The young Viking obeyed without any complaint. He sat next to her in the makeshift bed and he covered herself to the waist. After that, he took a worn-out map out and unfolded it on his lap to take a look.

"I can't believe you are carrying this thing everywhere..."

"Of course", he said with pride. "So... where should we go next?"

They had been traveling the known remote islands looking for new lands, enjoying that peculiar way of their honeymoon. Travel was easier when they had dragons, but they were Vikings and sailing ran through their veins, so they got used to traveling that way quickly.

"Do you already want to leave? We've just arrived!"

"I know, but there is nothing here..."

"I am here..."

Astrid softly caressed Hiccup's arm with her finger.

"But there is still a lot to see, a lot to discover... When we get back to the village we will be busy trying to keep Gobber's customers from killing each other, or intervening in any Fishlegs and Snotlout fight due to any girl or whatever. We have to seize this!"

Astrid sighed.

"Alright. But what if we wait... I don't know... say fifteen minutes? Twenty maybe?"

Hiccup rolled his eyes, theatrically.

"I think I can handle it."

He put his map back in his pocket and he settled under the covers. Astrid moved closer to him, until their bodies were completely glued, and they began to kiss slowly. Without parting her lips from him, Astrid climbed the Viking's body until she ended on top of him. Her feet circled Hiccup's leg and she held a giggle.

"You are gonna mess with my leg again, aren't you?"

"It is so tiny!", Astrid laughed heavily. "It is like a... I don't know... a chicken leg, that's it! It is too thin to hold such a weight!"

"I must say that my leg is a completely real Viking leg", he said, hugging Astrid and rolling her to put himself over her. "Look how much weight it carries every single day!"

Hiccup kissed her passionately, and Astrid corresponded to him while moving softly her hands over Hiccup's naked back. Suddenly, he seemed to hear a flapping and he stopped short.

"What's up?"

"Shh."

They put all their attention into the surrounding sounds, but they could only hear a deep silence.

"Sorry, I must have imagined it. I heard something like a dragon for a moment."

Astrid smiled. She knew exactly how much he was missing Toothless: as much as she was missing Stormfly. The idea of seeing them again produced to her a nice tingling that ran through her body.

Hiccup put his hand softly in his wife's face and he kissed her hard in her lips and her neck.

"Stop!"

This time it was Astrid who heard the flapping.

Again, only the silence appeared.

"Maybe it was... the wind?", Hiccup said shrugging his shoulders, before resuming their privacy.

And, once again, the flapping appeared.

"Oh! For Thor's sake!"

Astrid came out of the bed and dressed her body quickly; she grabbed her ax and exited from the tent followed by Hiccup, who was trying to put on his shirt.

Using their hand to protect themselves from the Sun, they looked into the sky looking for any sign which revealed any dragon presence, but they only found some white, bright, and fluffy clouds.

Astrid sighed, putting down her ax.

"Wait", Hiccup said, putting his hand on Astrid's arm and making some steps with his eyes stuck on the sky.

He introduced his fingers in his mouth and whistled.

They heard a little explosion and a dragon's silhouette appeared from one of the clouds that were in the Sun's direction, flying towards them.

"It can't be...", Hiccup mumbled, his heart throttling.

The dragon descended at high speed and landed just in front of them, raising a dust cloud that forced them to close their eyes.

When they were able to open them again, they found themselves face to face with Light Fury.

"Fury!", Astrid yelled happy, who dropped her ax and ran to hug her, ignoring the dragon's growls.

Hiccup couldn't hide his disappointment. He was glad to see Fury again, of course, but she was not the dragon that he was missing so much. He met with them and he saw that the dragon was very tired. He put his hand to her head without touching her, welcoming her, while his eyes were still looking for any sign of Toothless, unconsciously.

"Hi..."

He was trying to find the words to ask for his friend, but there was no time for it. Fury opened her jaws and started to make a guttural sound as her body jerked spasmodically. Little by little, something emerged from inside her, spatting it to the ground, drool covered.

"Yuck...", Hiccup said. "What the hell is this?"

Trying to touch that thing as little as possible, Hiccup grabbed it and shook it to clean it up, trying to figure out what was that.

Hiccup and Astrid looked at each other worried: it was Toothless' prosthetic tail.

Chapter Text

2.

The dragon tried to explain what happened to these stupid humans, but it was worthless. Finally, jaded, she opted to take a nap to recover her strength at the stunned gaze of Astrid and Hiccup. She slept more than she expected, but she also thought that it was the best given the situation: they were going to do a long trip and it was better to be ready for it. When she woke up, the camp had already been picked up and both humans were waiting for her impatiently, making theories about what could had happened to Toothless. She stretched and she ate as quick as she could the fishes that the Vikings were prepared for her. Once she had the latest piece of meat in her mouth, she invited them to climb to her back. Luckily, humans understood this time and they hurried to settle in her back.

She regretted it the same moment she took off.

Hiccup and Astrid started to shout and to move around, full of excitement for riding a dragon after a long time. They could not vary the course of the dragon, but it was as annoying as having two blowflies flying over her nose. For a moment, she even thought of putting herself upside down and let gravity do its job, but then she remembered that she needed their help to find Toothless. She took a deep breath, made them stop with a warning growl, and they followed their trip quietly.

Fury let herself be guided by the internal feeling which was attracting her to the alpha, and they flew over the ocean for hours, discovering only a few small rocks that emerged from the surface now and then. They used some of them to rest a bit before continuing their trip. Finally, they arrived at a brand new land for them. It was cold and everything was covered in snow. Furthermore, they had to gain height to surpass the rugged mountains that were blocking them, getting frozen to the bone.

When they were able to descend, they saw a fjord in the distance, totally frozen, with a city on one of its sides. They didn't want to get closer until have rested from the trip; after all, they knew nothing about the locals and they didn't know how they would react to a dragon suddenly landing in front of their eyes.

Soon, they found a stream with an ice layer thin enough to easily break it, next to a small grove ideal to set up the camp away from prying eyes.

Just on landing, Fury shook herself, drank thirstily from the stream, and took off without any word. She needed to find some food.

Hiccup and Astrid looked at each other puzzled, and they shrugged.

They set up the tent, lit a small fire, and cooked something while waiting for the dragon to return.

Hiccup, sitting close to the fire to keep any warm, was looking distracted at his map, trying to localize that island (or maybe it was a continent?) on it.

"What do you think?", Astrid asked from the other side of the campfire.

"Well, we've been flying to the east... I think... at least the most part of the time, so probably we are... around here?"

"This is not what I mean. Do you think...?"

She was trying to find out the words to say that.

"Do you think we can trust her?"

"Fury? I think so... I mean, why shouldn't we?"

"Well... she's different, you know. She never had a rider, she doesn't trust people..."

"And, even so, she brought us here."

"She did, but we don't know why, and it's been a few hours since she left. We know nothing, Hiccup."

"You're wrong. We do know something."

Hiccup walked to sit side by side with Astrid.

"Remember that night furies cannot survive for a long time in a cold place and, more important than this, they fall in love once in their life. Something happened to Toothless, probably something bad, and Fury is risking her life, even making the effort of bringing us with her, and it's all to help him. If you don't trust her, trust her love to Toothless."

Astrid rested her head on Hiccup's shoulder and sighed.

"Maybe you're right."

* * *

When the dragon had returned they decided to visit the city. They thought that it was better for Fury to stay away to not scare the citizens, so she took off as soon as the Vikings unmounted on the outskirts.

It was already dusk when Hiccup and Astrid crossed the wall's threshold. The buildings, sturdy and cobbled, were glowing in orange, and only the echo of their steps over the street's tiles indicated the presence of living beings. They didn't see any sentry, not even in the main gate.

"It could be a ghost city?", Astrid said, almost whispering.

"May I help you?", said suddenly a voice on their back.

Turning and putting some distance, Astrid put her hand on her ax, which was hanging on her belt, and Hiccup drew his sword. Their hearts were pounding.

"Oh! I beg your pardon. It was not my intention to scare you."

A middle-aged man with a large nose and exquisitely dressed gazed at them indifferently from a few steps away. How was it possible that they had not heard him arrive?

The man cleared his throat, looking at the sword. Hiccup sighed relieved and kept his weapon.

"I'm sorry", the Viking said. "This's Astrid and I'm Hiccup. We came from distant lands looking for a... friend. We believe that he could be around."

The man, his look lost, didn't seem to react.

"I see", he said suddenly. "If that is the case, my advice is to go to the central square and ask for him there. There are a lot of people and it would be easier to find your friend. You just need to go straight ahead on this street and you will reach it."

"Thanks!"

Hiccup and Astrid started to walk, but they noticed that the man was following them. And not only him. The more they walked into the city, the more people followed them on their way to the square, all of them keeping a certain distance.

The Vikings, tense, needed only a glance. They came closer, ready to draw their weapons at any time.

"Are you still sure about this?", Astrid said.

"Yeah."

When they arrived at the square, they saw a lot of people coming from other streets that also led to there, blocking all of them. The people behind them didn't stop walking, and they were pushed until ending in the middle of the square, completely surrounded.

"Ok...", Hiccup whispered.

"What do we do now?"

"Leave it to me..."

Hiccup cleaned his throat.

"Hi! Um... How are you? I'm Hiccup and this is my mate, Astrid. We're searching for our friend. Well, I said friend but he is more like family. He has disappeared and we think that he could be around. His name is Toothless, he's black, big mouth, wings... and he's... a dragon. But there's no need to be afraid of him! He's very nice or, at least, he was when we were living together..."

A wave of sadness washed over Hiccup, who lost for a moment in his memories.

"Anyway, has anyone seen him around?"

Nobody said anything. Nobody moved. Everybody kept staring at them, with an empty and expressionless look.

"No one?", asked again, hopeless.

Again, silence.

"Alright... in that case, I think we better go, you know, to search elsewhere and stuff."

Astrid and Hiccup backed off, but people squeezed to block their way.

"I'm sorry, but we cannot let you go", said a distant voice.

Suddenly, a corridor was formed and a young, strong, blond man appeared riding a reindeer.

They were getting closer slowly, without making any sound, majestic, powerful. People bowed as he passed and, judging from his clothes, he must be an important person.

Finally, they reached the Vikings and they could see that it was a good-looking man, with a friendly face. His eyes and his face hadn't any expression, though.

"We're not looking for troubles", Hiccup said, trying to keep a cordial voice.

The young man unmounted and approached them, staring at them with empty eyes.

"I see strength in you."

"Thanks?"

"We'll give you the honor of serving our cause."

He stepped towards them, holding out both hands to them.

"Cause? Which cause? What are you talking about?"

Astrid, tired, freed his ax and moved it from one hand to another.

"Alright, that's it. Let us go. Now."

However, the young man made another step.

"If I were you, I wouldn't make a new step...", Hiccup advised.

At the moment his foot started to move, Astrid triggered a quick and heavy attack over the blond's body. She tried to attack with the plane of the ax to prevent any cut, but she put all his strength on it. The young man didn't try to protect himself, receiving the full attack and ending lying on the floor, still.

Astrid didn't pay much attention to him, and she focused on the crowd, waiting for any attack. But nobody moved.

"Let us go", repeated her, threatening.

Hiccup, trying to give strength to her words, drew his sword and ignited it, bursting into flames.

But nobody reacted.

"What? Nothing? Not even a simple 'oh'?"

"Oh, shut up!", Astrid said, irritated. "What are we gonna do now?"

The young blond stirred on the ground and stood up as if nothing had happened. He held out both hands to them again and walked towards them easily.

"C'mon! You should have at least a couple of broken ribs!", she complained.

"This is bad, Astrid...", Hiccup said at her side, who saw how the crowd held out their hands as well.

Both get closer, back to back, and raise their weapons as a warning, but nobody cared in the least. They advanced, step by step, without any rush, closing the circle over them.

Hiccup was the first who needed to attack. With his flaming sword, he hit with the plane of the blade in the naked arms of a middle-aged man who stepped too close, making him spinning and falling to the ground. The burned meat smell extended quickly.

"C'mon, please...", said, more to himself than anything else.

"I told you this wasn't a good idea", said Astrid at his side, just before forcibly pushing another person away.

But they couldn't talk much longer. People crowded to get to them, walking over each other, and the Vikings barely could repel them.

Suddenly, a huge man appeared in the crowd with the fingers of his respective hands pressed together, in front of his chest. His size almost doubled their size and he was advancing easily through that corpses' sea.

Hiccup nudged Astrid to put her attention over that man.

"Hot battering ram?"

"Hot battering ram."

Both moved until Hiccup was just in front of that mountain and, when the man was close enough, he sprayed the giant's clothes with flammable resin. He couldn't avoid a sigh thinking that he preferred the Hideous Zippleback's saliva, but at least he was able to find a replacement for his weapon that didn't require any dragon. After that, he simply approached his flaming sword and the resin burst into flames, turning that man into a huge fireball.

And yet he didn't stop walking towards them.

"You must be kidding me! You're supposed to run away and make a path for us!"

"All resistance is worthless", the blond said, who was standing just a few meters from them, watching the scene. "If you don't want to come by hook, you'll come by crook."

"Is this supposed to be by hook?!", both Vikings yelled at the same time.

The pacific character of the crowd changed completely, becoming much more violent and wild. People started to dodge and attack instead of just receiving the hits, and both soon realized that, although these people weren't fighters, they won't be able to get out of there.

"He! He is the key!", Astrid said, pointing to the blond. "People don't get closer to him. We have to get him."

Hiccup nodded and both put all their effort into reaching that man, who remained impassive even watching how his neighbors were falling one by one.

"Now!", Hiccup yelled when they were a few meters from the blond.

Astrid reacted immediately and grabbed her ax hard while Hiccup crouched. Then, she started to spin on her feet, repelled the people around her, and opened a small brief path to the man. Hiccup took the opportunity and ran to him, putting his sword in the blond's neck.

"Make them stop."

Astrid, still a little dizzy, stood behind him and twisted his arm, preventing any escape or defense.

The young man said nothing, but people didn't come near anymore.

Astrid dragged him by force, opening a safe path until they left the square. At that moment, noticing that the streets were empty, she gave him a strong strike on the side and she dropped him, and the Vikings took the opportunity to flee.

"What the hell just happened?", Astrid said, still confused.

"I have no idea. We better keep away from here, though."

When they left the city, Fury descended from the sky to meet them.

"Too little, too late!", Astrid said, irritated. "You had to rescue us if things got bad!"

The dragon complained and adopted an attack position.

Hiccup stood between them with his hands ready to separate them.

"Let's calm down. I'm sure Fury has a good reason for not helping us."

"We almost died there, Hiccup! We cannot trust her!"

The dragon wanted to hear nothing more. She turned back and took off, leaving them there.

Then, the Vikings could see some stains of Fury's blood in the snow.

Chapter Text

3.

"Astrid, wait!"

Hiccup ran limping after his wife, but she didn't seem to hear him. Since Fury went flying, the young Viking was feeling the urgency to apologize to her and she was walking in a hurry towards the camp, completely lost in her thoughts. They were passing through a snowy grove and, although there wasn't much snow, there was enough to put it difficult for Hiccup and his metal leg.

"Astrid!"

Hiccup slipped and fell backward on the virgin snow.

"Oh, great..."

He got up a bit and he saw how Astrid kept her way, impassive. Hiccup law down on the snow again.

"Aaaaaaahhhhhhhhhggggg!"

He freed his frustration and his tension by kicking and hitting the air. Then, he took a long breath, feeling the cold air in his lungs, and he released the air softly, forming a thick column of steam. He repeated the process a couple of times while his mind was lost among the stars that just started to appear in the sky, the disappearance of Toothless, and the argument between Astrid and Fury.

Calmer now, he tensed his body and jumped to his feet, coming face to face with a hooded figure.

The surprise was mutual, but Hiccup reacted quickest. He drew his flaming sword and he tried to ignite it but, after the fight in the city, it was out of oil. The Viking cursed internally.

The hooded, on his side, started to move as well. Hiccup was still cursing his luck when, with a gesture of his hands, the whole floor froze. Thanks to the Hiccup prosthesis' non-slip insole he prevented a new backward fall. It wasn't easy to keep the balance, though.

His adversary didn't hesitate and jumped towards him. In the middle of his jump, an ice sword appeared in his hand and, with it, he landed a strong blow on Hiccup, who hardly succeeded in staying standing after repelling it.

The Viking quickly rummaged through his pockets until he found an oil refill for his sword. After repelling a new thrust, he was able to insert the tiny capsule into the sword's hilt and to ignite it just when the hooded was attacking for the third time.

The sudden heat broke the ice sword and made the hooded backdown, who took his time to create a new sword while reconsidering the situation. Hiccup took advantage of the break to draw a circle around him with his sword, melting the thin layer of ice which was preventing him from standing properly.

They both looked at each other, attentive to every movement. The steam was gushing out of both of them, who were panting with exertion.

The hooded began to move in circles, and Hiccup preferred to keep his position, where he could put both limbs on the ground without slipping in order to put more force on his attacks.

The breath of the hooded suddenly cut and Hiccup prepared himself for the quick and direct attack that his enemy performed: a thrust straight to the face that the Viking managed to deflect with his sword. The hooded took advantage of the deflect's strength to turn and perform a circular attack that Hiccup managed to narrowly dodge, getting a small scratch on his nose. However, the hooded kept spinning and threw a powerful kick that hit directly on his shoulder, knocking him down.

Hiccup tried to recompose and stand up, but the hooded was quicker and he assaulted him with a small ice dagger in his hand. However, he never reached him. A figure appeared and rammed the hooded with a powerful tackle. It was Astrid.

They both rolled on the snow until they crashed into a tree. Astrid received the worst part and she lost her breath for a moment. The hooded pounced on her, but the Viking managed to grab his wrists and hug his body with her legs before receiving any damage.

Taking advantage of the hooded's speed, Astrid rolled over the floor and ended over him. Or, better said, over her. With the fight's movement, the hood slipped and it revealed the face of a young, very blond woman with a long side ponytail that was falling on one shoulder. Her intense and blue eyes were penetrating Astrid full of fury, and her red cheeks contrasted sharply with the paleness of her skin.

"Let me go!", she snapped, struggling.

Astrid noticed that she was trembling.

"Oh, sure! So you could take us back to that crazy city with your crazy friends, right?"

Astrid stared back at her, frowning.

"Forget it!"

Astrid's words disconcerted her, who relaxed a bit of her body. However, after a moment she shook her head and opened her hands. From there appeared a couple of blue beams that forced the Viking to retreat.

The girl was panting heavily, and she barely managed to get to her feet.

Hiccup sided on Astrid's side, ready for the battle again, but it wasn't necessary. That stranger collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Chapter Text

4.

Hiccup and Astrid were in the camp. It was night and the sky was reflecting infinity of stars. The dawn sunlight was starting to erase them softly, though. They had been taking turns on watchings all night, covered together with blankets, but at that moment they both were awake due to the intense cold they were feeling. And, most of all, they were starving. They hadn't eaten all night because they were afraid of being found if they lit on the fire, and they hadn't anything that didn't require any cooking.

Hiccup's guts roared and Astrid laughed, but Hiccup read sadness in her face.

"C'mon, don't worry. We will find her and you will fix the things up."

They had heard nothing more from Fury. When they returned to the camp, she wasn't there, and there wasn't any sign that indicated that she had been there.

A movement in their back startled them and they saw the unknown girl who fought them a few hours ago, standing up grabbing weakly to the tent.

"You saved me..."

"Your steps sound", Astrid said, shrugging and pulling on the covers.

"Thank you".

She seemed to understand what the Viking was meaning to.

The girl stepped to them, weakly, and Hiccup went to help her before she fell.

"You should go back inside and rest. You had a high fever."

She shook her head, and Hiccup walked her to sit next to Astrid. Then, she extended her arms and some tiny bright lights appeared, floating. A moment after, they flew away in all directions. The effort made her wobble a little, even while sitting.

"What was that?", Hiccup asked while Astrid was grabbing her, suspicious.

"Detectors. With them, we will know if somebody is coming. If you don't light the fire you will freeze to death."

The Vikings look to each other, deciding what to do. Finally, the cold was stronger than distrust and Hiccup shrugged and started to make the fire. Its comforting warmth attracted Hiccup and Astrid, who got close to it in relief.

"You coming?", Astrid asked, rubbing her hands in front of the fire.

"No, I am good here. If you haven't noticed it, I have ice magic, so the cold is not a problem for me."

Hiccup wasn't even listening, since he was pulling out the few cobs remaining and preparing them to cook them.

"I am Elsa, by the way."

"I'm Astrid, and he's Hiccup."

"May I ask you what are you doing in Arendelle?"

"We're here to find Toothless", Hiccup said while cooking. "He's a black dragon, a little stubborn, and our friend. He has disappeared and seems like he could be around."

"A dragon?", said between incredulous and alarmed.

"Don't worry, Toothless isn't dangerous", Astrid reassured her, smiling.

"D'you have any idea about where could he be?", Hiccup asked with interest. "He cannot fly by himself due to... well, to an accident that happened a few years ago, so someone must have taken him away."

Elsa made a worried face.

"If someone has taken him, I have an idea about who the culprit is."

Hiccup stopped and stared at her, questioningly.

"It was... my sister, probably."

Elsa accompanied the statement with a slightly guilty smile.

"Your sister?", Hiccup said stunned. "Your sister... So you have a sister. Has she powers as well, I don't know, of fire or something? And why the hell would your sister want a dragon for?"

Astrid poked him in the side, cutting his breath.

"How is she supposed to answer if you don't close your mouth?"

Elsa sadly smiled.

"All started three months ago, but I should go back a little bit more in time to make you understand better what is happening here. At least in part, because I don't even understand it myself.

"Anna and I are the royal family of Arendelle. I reigned first but, due to my powers, I ended taking care of the enchanted forest along with the Northuldra people. Yes, I know, it sounds like a tale, " said, looking at the faces the Vikings were making, "but I assure you it is real.

"Anna became the queen, then. She married Kristoff and, to be honest, they are much better kings than I was. They are very close and people love them. I have more trouble getting close to people.

"At the beginning, our relation didn't change: we wrote letters to each other, we met regularly... but the forest is really big and, sometimes, I had to leave for a long time to far places to find out why the river was flowing low or to calm down the earth giants."

"Giants?" the Vikings said at the same time.

"Well... you have dragons, we have giants" she answered with fun. "The thing is that, without noticing it, we distance ourselves. Every time we had more obligations and less time to see each other.

"This year winter is being especially harsh in the north. The harvest wasn't very well and we had to work hard to get enough food to get through the winter. In all this time I received only a few letters from Anna and I thought it was because things on Arendelle were being hard as well: robbery reports, food shortages... I assumed she was busy taking care of all this but, even so, I kept writing when I had the chance.

"After a month without any response I worried about it and I went to visit her. And I found her... different. I don't know how to explain it. She was very cold and distant. We barely exchanged a few words before she dismissed me, cutting me off.

"I got back to the forest, worried, and there I received a visit from my friend, Olaf, who agreed Anna was acting weird. A week later, I went back to Arendelle to talk with her, but that time I couldn't even see her. Of course, I kept trying, but it was worthless.

"In my latest tries I noticed that there was more silence than usual, but I was so worried about Anna that I didn't give it too much importance.

"The last time, two weeks ago, I arrived determined to see her at all cost. First, the servants asked me to leave, but I refused. Then, the royal guard arrived, and I also ignored them. Finally, Kristoff appeared riding Sven."

"Big blond guy on a reindeer's back?" Hiccup said.

"I see you have met them."

Elsa smiled sadly.

"In that case, there is no need to explain what happened next...

"I barely managed to get out of there and, using my ice powers, I froze the whole fjord to stick their ships and made the winter worse to block the roads. I know they are planning something, but I don't know what it is, so I decided to limit their movements as much as possible to prevent them from doing something foolish.

"Since then, the kingdom troops have been chasing me, and I even had to fight to the death with some of them. Although this is not true at all, actually. The only one who can die seems to be me, you know."

Hiccup and Astrid looked at her without understanding.

"Oh! I beg your pardon. I thought that, since you already fought with them, you had noticed. Apparently, whatever damage you do to them, they are able to fully regenerate themselves. In one of our engagements, I accidentally cut off Lieutenant Mathias' arm, who laid to the ground bleeding to death. However, the next time they found me, there he was, completely recovered. And the same with many other soldiers."

A chill ran down Hiccup's spine. How to defeat an enemy that couldn't even be killed?

"I have been fleeing since then, looking for a way to reach Anna to talk to her, but spending all this time alone and being chased by a tireless enemy has taken its toll on me. Especially the lack of sleep due to the watchings. I mean, if the detectors were activated while I was sleeping, I could not notice it and, then, my life will be in danger. But, after our meeting, maybe the thing could change..."

Hiccup and Astrid smiled.

"Count on us."

Chapter Text

5.

They spent a few more days in the camp waiting for Elsa's recovery because she was still having a fever and she needed to rest.

Hiccup spent all day outside, searching for Fury. Astrid and he argued because she wanted to be the one who searched the dragon, but the Viking made her understand that probably the dragon wouldn't fly away if she saw him and not her and, finally, she agreed to stay and take care of Elsa.

The food wasn't a problem thanks to the zone's knowledge of the Arendellian. This way, Astrid made little raids to get some food for the day, and then, she spent the day with Elsa, with whom got along easily.

They talked a lot these days: about their lifestyle, family, past adventures... Elsa, much more restrained, spoke calmly from the pallet, but Astrid, much more energetic, used to act out whole scenes jumping and throwing stuff while yelling and laughing.

"Tell me," Elsa said one afternoon. "Is leadership difficult for you too?"

"Well, sometimes... It is a big responsibility and also such an honor, of course, but sometimes I miss having a bit more freedom."

"Yes..."

"But then I look at Hiccup, how he put all his efforts on it and how, even being in the same situation, shakes his head, stands erect, and says things like 'a chief's first duty is to his people'." Of course, she was representing it as she spoke, with a deep voice. "These are the things that his father used to say."

"Looks like he was a great... How was it? Chief?"

Astrid laughed.

"Yes, chief. One of the best ones our people remember. It is hard to be as good as him, but we try."

"You sure are better than you think."

The Viking smiled.

"So..." she said, sitting at her side and staring at her.

"So what?"

"Why did you ask this?"

Elsa was a bit surprised at being discovered.

"Well... all these kingdom duties and stuff were hard for me. First, because of my powers, due to my lack of control over them, and then, because of my powers again, because the more they grew, the most I longed to be free. And then was all this thing in the enchanted forest and... I don't know. I'm scared of having used all that as an excuse to escape and had put everything in Anna's shoulders, and that all this has been too much for her, or that I have been unable to notice the signals and I had missed that she neither wanted to reign." She kept on silent for a moment. "I guess what really scares me is that... is that I am the one who caused Anna to be like this."

"C'mon, don't say that. I'm sure there's an explanation for all of this. And whatever has caused it, we'll fix out one way or another."

Astrid hugged her and Elsa let herself be hugged, feeling the warmth of the Viking and tickles on the nose due to the fur of her coat. And, suddenly, she noticed it.

Elsa withdrew abruptly.

"What happens? The detectors?"

"Hm? N-No, no, don't worry... I am a bit tired, that is all. I think I need some sleep."

"Alright, I let you rest then. See you later."

Astrid touched Arendellian's head softly as a sign of farewell and left the tent, leaving Elsa with her heart throttling.

* * *

That night, Elsa woke up, startled. She sat and put attention. Again, she noticed a slight vibration inside of her.

"Hiccup! Astrid!" she said with urgency, trying to not speak too loud. "They are near."

No more was needed.

Hiccup covered the embers they were using to warm themselves with some arena and Astrid started to leave, ax in hand, ready to face anyone who dared to get too close.

"Astrid, wait," Elsa said. "How long will take you to dismount the camp?"

The Vikings look to each other.

"Five minutes?" Hiccup answered, looking to Astrid.

"Four if we do it together."

Elsa couldn't help but feel impressed.

"Ok, I think I can gain us the time."

"Don't push yourself, Elsa" Hiccup said, worried. "Maybe you didn't notice it, but these are the bodies of the best Vikings of the whole history."

The Arendellian needed a big effort to contain the laugh, looking at Hiccup's lanky body. She recognized that they fought well, though.

"Don't worry. I am just going to play a bit with them."

She closed her eyes and a snow figure materialized in front of them, looking the same as Elsa. She dressed the figure with her coak and, once it was dressed, the figure left running.

"Hopefully, we will be far enough when they discover the trick."

But the Vikings weren't listening. With incredible skills, they were untying ropes, folding cloth, and storing belongings in total and mutual synchrony. Elsa could only stay on a side, covered with a blanket, watching fascinated (and a bit jealous as well) how the camp disappeared in a blink.

"Yeah!" Astrid said when they finished, high-fiving Hiccup.

"I think we've beat Gobber's mark!"

Elsa cleared her throat.

"Let's go?"

"Oh, yeah... The immortal silent lunatics and stuff," Hiccup said, suddenly remembering their situation. "Sure, let's go! But... where do we go?"

"I think we should go North, with Northuldra. There we will be able to rest and organize. We are too vulnerable here."

"Are you fine for the trip?" Astrid asked.

"I am. I rested enough these past days. Thank you... to both of you."

"North, then. Let's move!"

Hiccup grabbed one of the two bags they've prepared, put it in his back, and started to walk.

"That is South," Elsa said with fun.

"Of course!" The Viking turned and kept walking as if nothing had happened. "North, here we go!"

Chapter Text

6.

"Welcome to the enchanted forest," Elsa said when they reached the monoliths of the entrance, a couple of days after.

The Vikings felt a chill when they crossed the edge of the forest.

"How are we gonna find your friends here? It is a huge forest and you said they're nomads."

"Oh! Don't worry about this."

Elsa whistled and, a moment later, an air burst which seemed to be alive ruffled their hair and clothing, making a high-pitched sound.

"Do you have air magic as well?" Astrid asked with surprise.

"Let me introduce you Gale, the wind's spirit," Elsa answered laughing. "Gale, do you know where Northuldra people are?"

The blast of air stirred and whistled.

"I see. Alright. Would you mind going there and letting them know we are on our way?"

Gale stirred even more.

"Thank you."

Then, the burst left to the North.

"Wow... That was amazing," Astrid said, fascinated. "To be honest, I wasn't expecting spirits to look like this... I'm looking forward to meeting the others."

"You will meet them as soon as we arrive. Except for Gale, the others should be with Northuldra, protecting them. It is not that Gale can't do it, but since she is the fastest of all of them, she is most useful as a lookout and messenger."

"Do you think we're still in danger?" Hiccup asked.

"I think it is better to be cautious. We don't know what is happening in Arendelle and, even I don't think they could find Northuldra in their own forest, it doesn't hurt to take some precautions, just in case. What?" said suddenly, uncomfortable at Astrid's gaze.

"No, nothing..." the Viking answered, smiling and grabbing Elsa's hand. "I'm sure you were a wonderful queen."

Elsa stuck wordless and smiled grateful, feeling a pleasant sensation in her stomach.

* * *

"They must be around," Elsa said a few hours later.

They were in a dense area of the forest, with tall bushes that surrounded them and blocked their vision.

"Elsa!" somebody said suddenly at their back.

"Ah!"

Astrid, scared by the sudden presence of a snowman, reacted without thinking and kicked it in the head, sending the head through the air to Hiccup's arms, who stared at it with curiosity.

"Hi!"

Surprised to see it speak, he threw back the head back to Astrid.

"You must be Elsas' fellows who Gale talked about."

Astrid returned the head to Hiccup with an 'I don't want it!'.

"I hope you feel comfortable in the forest. It's a bit cold, but people here are very warm."

Hiccup returned back the head again with a 'Me neither!'.

Elsa caught the head mid-air and put it in its place.

"Guys, this is Olaf."

"Olaf your friend?" Astrid asked wide-eyed. "You never mentioned he was a snowman!"

"Oh... Surprise?"

Elsa smirked.

"It was a good game," Olaf said, happy, grabbing Vikings' hands and pulling from them. "C'mon, you need to meet the others."

They followed the snowman and arrived at the Northuldra's camp where, for the Viking's relief, they were surrounded by normal people who effusively greeted Elsa or politely welcomed Astrid and Hiccup.

An old woman with a crude cane appeared through the crowd.

"Yelena!" Elsa said, blissful, grabbing her hand.

"Welcome home, Elsa. And welcome, newcomers. We are called Northuldra. We are the people of the Sun, and we hope you feel at home.

Hiccup and Astrid nodded, appreciatively.

"You sure have a lot of things to tell us, but we better wait 'til the night. Ryder and Honeymaren are still outside, so do recollectors."

"Thank you, Yelena," answered Elsa.

They wandered through the camp, greeting and meeting people. The Vikings saw they were simple and pleasant people, busy with their chores, and Hiccup felt a sting of nostalgia remembering their village: they seemed each other more than he could have imagined.

They met the fire spirit as well, who got charmed on Hiccup's flaming sword; the water spirit, who Elsa froze to be able to join them; and earth giants, who put the Vikings in their shoulders. Even their lashes froze, but the views they enjoyed were well worth it.

At night, all the Northuldra reunited around a big bonfire. There, Elsa told them everything that had happened since she left, and a frown of concern appeared on Yelena's forehead as the Arendellian spoke.

Hiccup took the opportunity to ask about Fury and Toothless as well but, as he expected, no one had seen anything like a dragon.

"Certainly, this is disturbing news," Yelena said, taking the floor, "but the forest has always protected us, and it will keep protecting us. Let's rest tonight and meditate about all of this, which is not a small thing."

The Northuldra understood this as a dissolution of the meeting since most of them rose and dispersed.

Hiccup stood a bit longer near the flames, taciturn. Furthermore, he was playing with some branches and pieces of cloth.

"A new toy?" Astrid asked.

"I guess..." Hiccup answered, discouraged.

The Viking took a look and saw how Hiccup was trying to attach a small harpoon to a bracelet, although she didn't quite understand why.

"Interesting... What's this?"

Hiccup didn't answer.

"C'mon," Astrid said, giving him a small push with her shoulder, "we'll find Fury and Toothless, you'll see. Besides..." she got closer to whisper to him, "tonight we have the tent all for us."

The idea of regaining intimacy with his wife encouraged him.

"I'm so sleepy!" he said shamelessly, stretching out and putting away the invention he was working on.

Astrid laughed, took his hand, and pulled him up.

Elsa saw how they left the heat of the fire towards their tent, giggling, and she felt a stab of pain that puzzled her. She took a stick and began to beat the burning logs of the fire between angry and sad, lost in her thoughts.

"What is bothering you?" a voice asked suddenly at her side, startling her.

It was Honeymaren. Elsa was so engrossed that she didn't realize that the Northuldra had sat next to her, staring at her.

"Oh! Hi... Since when have you been there?" She tried to change the subject.

"Elsa..." Honeymaren crossed her arms.

Elsa sighed, accepting her defeat.

"Actually... I don't know."

And it was the truth. She didn't quite understand everything she was feeling.

Honeymaren, reading the bewilderment in her face, hugged her caringly.

"When you don't know what to do, we usually say let yourself be guided by life."

"And what does it mean?"

"I guess it's a way to say you must do whatever your instinct is telling you to do."

"What happens when your instinct doesn't tell you anything?"

"Then you must stay alert to hear it at the moment it tells you something."

Elsa remained confused, feeling a bit better though.

"Not the instinct, but I'm going to hear my body and call it a night. I'm tired."

"Sure! Night. And remember, I'm here for whatever you need."

"Thank you." Elsa pressed her hand. "Good night."

She entered her tent and found Olaf sleeping soundly, occupying all the space. She moved him, taking care of not awakening him, and lied on her bed, trying to think of nothing. It was easy because of the trip and her mood so she fell asleep soon, but the dreams reflected his inner storm.

She dreamed with dragons and giants, with shadows and spirits, with Vikings and Northuldra... agitated dreams full of fast images passing before her eyes which made her uncomfortable. That's why, when near dawn she felt someone shaking her with urgency, she almost felt relief.

"Elsa, wake up! Elsa!"

The Arendellian opened her eyes. It was Olaf.

"We're under attack!"

Chapter Text

7.

"We are under attack!?"

Adrenaline rushed through her body and, completely awake, she stood up. She heard screams and hits, people running and giving orders.

"Stay inside," she asked him.

Olaf hid on a nook, scared, and Elsa went outside posthaste.

"Elsa!" Astrid and Hiccup appeared from the darkness and met her. "What's going on?"

"I don't know, but let's find out. Gale!"

The spirit didn't answer the call. That was the first time it happened and Elsa felt puzzled. She tried on calling Gale a couple more times, but it was useless.

Who appeared was the fire spirit, jumping to her shoulder.

"Perfect," the Arendellian said. "We need some light. Could you set the treetops on fire?"

The salamander gave her a leave-it-to-me pose and, then, it jumped from her shoulder and lost quickly in the dark. A moment later, all the treetops around were on fire, lighting the whole camp.

On one flank they saw some Arendellian soldiers facing fiercely with some Northuldra who, in their own fighting style, were fighting back swords and shields with sticks and rocks.

"How did they find us?" Hiccup said, surprised. "We had serious problems finding the camp, even with you with us."

Elsa bit her thumb, visibly irritated. Her internal uncertainty, her situation with her sister, Gale's disappearance, the surprise attack... too many things were coming together that she didn't quite understand and she felt how the frustration was growing inside her.

Her face suddenly changed.

Without saying a word she pounced on Hiccup, knocking him down and getting on top of him, searching his neck, pockets, sleeves, hair...

"Uo, uo, uo!" the Viking complained, puzzled. "What are you doing? You're tickling me!"

Oblivious to his comments, she kept examining the Viking until she was satisfied. Then she moved to Astrid, repeating the process, who curiously allowed herself to be done without resisting.

Finding nothing, Elsa got up and cursed. And then she saw Astrid's ax in the ground. She grabbed it urgently and scanned it carefully, checking every inch. And she finally saw it. A small worm, wedged in a gap between the blade and the handle, completely still. She took it carefully and showed it to the Vikings.

"That's why they found us."

"What the hell is that?" Hiccup said, making a disgusted face.

"A Hoods' grub. Its parents can detect us from kilometers."

Elsa was shaking with anger. Anna had gone too far.

"Elsa... I...." Astrid said, feeling guilty, "I had no idea. It wasn't my intention. They must have put it there when—"

"No," Elsa cut her. "It is not your fault."

She put the grub aside, taking care of not hurting it, and got up to look around. With an ice blast, she knocked out some Arendelle soldiers. He knew it was a matter of time before they were back on their feet, but hopefully, she could buy enough time to escape.

"Olaf!" He went out of the tent, looking suspiciously everywhere. "We need to get out of here. You already know what to do."

Olaf nodded gravely.

"Be careful..."

The snowman gave her a fast hug and went out running to the opposite side of the soldiers.

Elsa turned to face the Vikings.

"I know this is not your war, but having two more pairs of hands would be helpful. We need to evacuate the camp."

While talking, she froze a small group of Arendellian soldiers who got close to them.

"Of course!" Astrid said, who, feeling used, wanted to retaliate.

Without waiting anymore, the Viking ran with her ax in her hand towards a group of soldiers who were surrounding some Northuldra.

Hiccup disposed to follow her, but Elsa grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait, Hiccup. Do you think you could reach the earth giants? It would be great to have their help."

"Sure!"

He turned away and ran as fast as he could. They weren't too far, so he probably would be back soon.

Elsa, without wasting a second, whistled and heard the neighing of the water spirit nearby. She made her way, eager, burning part of the anger she was feeling, until she reached it. Then, she froze it and mounted herself on its back.

She rode across the camp, leaving a trail of frozen bodies. It seemed like they were managing to repel the attack without too much trouble: Astrid was fighting with fervor, even joyfully, against several soldiers at once, and the Northuldra were also doing well despite being a peaceful people. And, even so, Elsa was feeling that something was wrong, although she couldn't explain what exactly was. With no time to think, she just kept riding, helping everyone within her reach.

"Careful down there!" Hiccup yelled, arriving on the shoulder of an earth giant.

With a single roar, the giant created a perfect corridor for escape. The Northuldra seized the opportunity and ran deep into the darkness of the forest.

A sound, sharp and rising, suddenly appeared. Astrid and Hiccup recognized it immediately.

"Everybody on the floor!" Astrid shouted.

A dragon, dark as night, appeared out of nowhere at full speed and unleashed a powerful purple blast against the chest of the earth giant who Hiccup was on. The giant staggered and fell to his knees as his entire chest started to fall apart. Hiccup barely managed to balance himself, clinging tightly to the head of the colossus.

Elsa was scared. She had never seen such power as to harm an earth giant and it made her hair stand on end.

"Let's go," she said to the water spirit with a trembling voice.

The horse turned and started to run, but a thick net fell on top of them, trapping them. The weight was suffocating and they could barely move. She tried to lift the net with magic, creating thick pillars of ice from the ground but, for some reason, they broke when they touched it without hardly moving the net. Seeing that this had no effect, she managed to stick one of his hands out of a hole and defend herself by freezing several of the soldiers who jumped on them.

* * *

Hiccup watched a dragon shadow approaching the dejected giant, slowly, until the light of the fire illuminated it.

"Toothless!"

The Viking, excited, took a step toward him with an outstretched hand, but the dragon showed no sign of recognizing him. Then Hiccup saw that there was a person on his back. A woman, young, red-haired, with an air of Elsa.

"C'mon bud. It's me."

But Toothless didn't even look at him.

Hiccup noticed his tail at the point where his prosthesis should been, and he was surprised to see that it looked restored as if it had never suffered any damage. If he wasn't so certain that there was no more Night Fury in the world, he would have doubted that he was Toothless.

"What have you done to him?" inquired the Viking.

The woman smiled. She seemed pleased about something, but she didn't reply. Instead, she drew a small crystalline vial from her clothing, opened it, and motioned for the dragon to come closer. Hiccup could see inside the giant's chest an amber gem that seemed to throb. When she was close enough, she placed the mouth of the vial on the gem and, a second later, the gem was gone and the vial was shining with a bright yellowish hue.

Hiccup decided to turn Viking's mode on and, taking a deep breath, prepared to jump on the dragon, but a strong jolt stopped him. The giant was falling apart.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Hiccup said holding on as best as he could.

Finally, he managed to make a small leap into the void, leaving behind the mountain of rocks that was falling uncontrollably, and unfolded the artificial wings that he had in his suit determined to bring down the woman who was flying away with Toothless, but it was easy for the dragon to dodge him and gain some height to be out of his reach.

"Toothless! Bud!" Hiccup yelled as he hovered toward the ground.

But the dragon kept going without even looking back.

* * *

A figure appeared before Elsa.

"Kristoff!"

The man in question crouched down and looked at her with empty eyes.

"Thank you," he finally told her. "Without your help, we would never have been able to catch the water spirit."

"What?!"

But the young man was no longer paying attention to her. He took out a small crystalline vial, opened it, and placed the mouthpiece on the horse, who was whinnying desperately. Just an instant later, the water spirit had disappeared and the vial glowed a soft bluish hue.

Elsa tried to stop Kristoff, who was already leaving, but all the weight of the net that was being supported by the water spirit was now falling on her body and she could barely breathe. Arendelle's soldiers surrounded her, ready to finish her off, and Elsa couldn't help but wonder if this would be her end.

Eyes a bit cloudy, he watched Astrid's ax gleam as she finished out the soldiers closest to her. Then, with a series of precise cuts, she managed to create a hole through which to pull Elsa, freeing her.

The Arendellian, lying on the ground, took a good breath of air, feeling how it swelled her lungs again and how life returned to her.

Hiccup, who had been watching them from the sky, landed a few feet away and ran to meet them, ready for battle, but the soldiers retreated. Their mission was over.

"You ok?" Astrid asked Hiccup.

"Yes... No... I... I don't know..." the Viking paced from side to side, scowling. "I've seen Toothless, but it wasn't him. It was weird... I don't know how to explain it, but he needs our help."

"That's what we're here for," Astrid consoled him, placing a hand on his chest.

The Vikings noticed a sudden cold and how their clothes were frosting.

Elsa, lying on her back with one arm covering her face, was quietly crying. Then, she clenched her fists tightly and released all her anger.

"ANNA!!!"

It was all she said, but her voice reverberated through the forest leaving an absolute silence in its path.

Chapter Text

8.

Elsa was lost in thought, staring at the campfire she and the Vikings had set up on the outskirts of Arendelle. It had taken a few days before they could leave the enchanted forest, and a few more days to get there, and impatience was gnawing at her inside.

"Still up?" Astrid whispered, stepping out of her tent.

Elsa turned to answer, but the image of the Viking dressed in a nightgown and with her hair down and a little tousled, took her breath away. She looked back at the fire and took a deep breath before answering.

"Y-Yes..."

Astrid, barefoot, skipped across the snow toward her.

"C'mon, make me hollow. It's cold."

Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed one end of the blanket that Elsa had over her and snuggled inside, close to her. The Arendellian's heart was beating so hard that she, for a moment, was afraid that Astrid would notice her.

"I thought the cold had never bothered you..."

"It's an old custom..." Elsa replied. "It comforts me."

They were both quiet for a moment, staring at the fire.

"Tomorrow is the big day," the Viking said quietly.

"Yes..."

"Anxious?" Worried?"

"Not quite..."

"You're not very talkative tonight."

"Yes... It's just that I'm having a hard time concentrating," she answered honestly.

"It's normal. Tomorrow we're gonna get directly into the wolf's mouth, so the best you can do is not think too much about it and get carried away. There's no point in worrying: it doesn't make any help and it exhausts your energies before time."

Elsa was silent, meditating. Astrid, on the other hand, looked up at the sky.

"Wow..." she whispered admiringly. "I don't think I'll ever get used to the vastness of the sky. Look how many stars!"

Elsa looked up and saw the night sky that she knew so well but, for some reason, that night it was more beautiful than usual.

"My people say that when we die, a star is born in the sky," the Arendellian whispered. "I know it's silly, but when my parents died, I spent a long time looking for them in heaven and ended up convinced that they were those two over there."

He took his arm out of the blanket to point out a pair of stars that were very close together and seemed to be beating at the same time.

"It's not silly," Astrid replied. "Among our people there are those who believe that the stars are the reflection of Valhalla, showing us the shining shields of all those brave warriors who have earned their entrance into the hall of the great Odin."

"It seems like something important."

"It's what every Viking aspires to."

"Let's hope then that it takes a long time for that day to arrive for us..."

Astrid turned and read the concern in Elsa's eyes.

"Don't worry. Everything will be fine tomorrow," she whispered and then brought her forehead to Elsa's.

Seeing herself reflected in those eyes as blue as hers, Elsa understood.

She didn't know if it was due to the imminence of possible death, the emotion of understanding herself at last, or the glow of the fire on the Viking's skin, but something inside her was asking to let herself be carried away by the moment. The Arendellian, remembering Honeymaren's words, followed her instincts. He reached up a hand, placed it on Astrid's cheek, and slowly moved closer to her until kissing her lips. They were cold and cracked, but still warm, soft, and comforting. She smelled of lavender.

A change in Astrid's breathing brought her back to reality and, in a panic, she jumped to her feet.

"I think I'd better go to sleep," Elsa murmured awkwardly. "Goodnight."

And she got into her tent so fast that the Viking didn't have time to say any word.

Astrid pulled the blanket over herself, curled up, and she was silent for a long time, absorbed in the swaying of the flames.

* * *

"Elsa kissed me last night."

The Viking decided that it was best to remove the band-aid as soon as possible, so she blurted this out to Hiccup the next morning, without further ado, while he was still dressing.

"Ahm... What?"

"We were talking quietly and, suddenly, she kissed me."

"Oh, wow... I mean, I get it, you're wonderful and it's normal for you to attract so much attention, but I didn't expect Elsa to like women."

"That's all? Are you not angry?"

"No... it bothers me a little, I'm not going to deny it, but I trust you. I know you wouldn't betray me."

Astrid looked away, feeling guilty.

"Or is there something I should be concerned about?" The young man said, reading his wife's gaze.

"No... I think..."

"You think?"

"I don't know, Hiccup! I mean, I love you, I have no doubt about that, but... I also liked the kiss. I don't know what it means and right now I'm in a mess."

Hiccup sat up, processing those words.

"You know how I feel about you, Astrid," he said after a sigh, "and you know everything I can and cannot offer you. I want to be with you and spend the rest of our lives together, but this only makes sense if you want it as well. Take the time you need, think about it well, and I will accept your decision... whatever it'll be."

With that said, Hiccup left the tent, and Astrid was amazed once again at how different this man was from the rest. Any other Viking would have been in a rage and left the tent ready to gut Elsa. And that made her happy, knowing that she had the most wonderful Viking of all by her side, but at the same time, it made her feel even more guilty and miserable.

She needed to clear up as soon as possible.

Chapter Text

9.

The tension between the three was evident. They hardly spoke or looked at each other during the day. They just dedicated themselves to preparing for what they were about to do, dedicating a few needed words to each other.

At dusk, the three of them were on the outskirts of Arendelle, sheltered by darkness.

"Before we start... well, I just wanted to tell you I'm really sorry... for everything," Elsa said, crouching behind a tree, her voice shaking.

Nobody said anything for a few seconds. Then Hiccup sighed uncomfortably.

"Let's focus on the task before us. We will have time to talk."

They all agreed and Elsa shook her head to clear it.

"It's fine. Let's do this."

Taking advantage of the darkness and Elsa's knowledge, they moved through the city, from alley to alley, until they reached the foot of the castle. They came across very few people, so it was easy to leave them behind unseen. Once there, Elsa created some ice steps so they managed to scale the wall. Luckily, they didn't find any guards there.

"Well, what now?" Astrid said, ax in hand.

"I'm going to see Anna," Elsa answered firmly.

"Let's find Toothless," Hiccup said at the same time.

The two looked at each other, between awkward and defiant. It was clear that each had their own motivations in this raid and they didn't want to postpone them.

"We would better split," Elsa suggested at last.

"I agree," Hiccup said, relaxing. "See you at camp?"

"Yes."

"I don't think it's a good idea to split up," Astrid said. "C'mon guys! We don't know what's happening, and let me remind you that we've already been kicked our ass once. Together we're stronger."

"But now we're the ones with the surprise factor on our side," Hiccup argued. "We have to take advantage of it."

"I agree," Elsa seconded.

"But..."

"Be careful, Elsa," said Hiccup who, despite his anger, was fond of her.

"You too."

And, without wasting a second, Elsa ducked inside the castle while Hiccup launched to climb up a ledge.

"Hiccup! Elsa!" Astrid said, trying not to raise her voice too much, but neither of them paid any attention to her. "Now what do I do?"

* * *

Elsa made her way through the corridors as stealthily as she could, heading straight for Anna's room. If she still knew something of her sister, she would be there. On the way, she met only two guards whom she outwitted without difficulty until, finally, she found herself in front of that door that she knew so well.

Instinctively, she started to knock, but then, remembering the assault on the Northuldra camp, the fury within her revived and she slammed the door in.

When she opened it she saw Anna sitting by the fire, in a dressing gown, enjoying a glass of wine. She was wearing her pajamas, but her crown still rested majestically on her head.

"Hey, Elsa! Where are your manners? You have to respect the furniture!"

Elsa stopped, bewildered. Anna didn't seem surprised to see her.

"Come in and close, the heat is leaving."

* * *

Astrid, not knowing who to go after, finally decided to take a tour of the castle to ensure the exit. She wanted to make sure it wasn't a cheat. Thus, she walked the wall controlling the movements of the guards that were prowling there. Nobody seemed to have noticed their presence and everything seemed to be in order, so she decided to go back to the place they had entered and see if either of them had returned.

However, halfway something caught her eye: a pair of guards escorted a platoon of about ten soldiers who were walking in perfect sync. Fearful, she decided to follow them.

* * *

Hiccup knew that Toothless would prefer a high place to rest, so he kept climbing until he reached the highest tower in the castle, where he managed to sneak through a window. As he did so, he encountered Toothless, who was quietly resting on a bed of straw and ash.

"Bud! You're here! Perfect!"

The dragon opened one eye and stared at him with a blank expression. Then he stood up, showing his teeth.

"Come on, Toothless. It's me! Hiccup!"

The dragon approached him, threatening, and the Viking was backing away little by little.

"Come on, buddy. We've been through this before..."

Hiccup reached out his hand, as he had done so many times in the past, but Toothless didn't flinch and opened his jaws. The Viking could see the back of his throat light up, and memories of his father's death shook him inside.

"Oh, my... That's interesting!"

* * *

"Come on, Elsa, don't make me beg. I've been waiting for you for days! Come sit with your sister. I have so much to tell you...!"

Elsa, ignoring her words, approached Anna and surrounded her, ready to throw her magic at any moment.

"What is happening, Anna? What is all this?"

"This? Just wine, don't worry," she said, innocent. "A good reservation that father had in the cellar. You should try it!"

Anna gave a small sip of her cup.

"Stop teasing me!!" Elsa exploded. "Where are the spirits of the forest? What have you done with them?"

"Don't worry, they are well guarded. They are really stubborn, yes. But now that you are here, it will be easier."

"Easier, what? What are you talking about?!" Elsa exclaimed, desperate. She took some air to calm her down and relaxed her arms before continuing. "Anna, I know we've been slightly distanced lately, and whatever it is in what you have gotten, we can fix it, but I need you to tell me what is happening. I'm with you."

Anna, moved by her sister's words, rested the cup on the fireplace ledge and got up with open arms.

"Oh, Elsa!"

Elsa felt the impulse of approaching her and hugging her, but she also felt that she shouldn't do it. Confused, she took a good look at her sister and, then, she saw a kind of black aura emanating from her entire body.

"No..." she put a hand to his mouth. Then she regained her defensive posture and froze her sister's feet. "Who are you and what have you done with my sister?"

"Elsa! What are you doing? What are you talking about?" Anna answered, her face broken as she tried to free herself from the ice block.

"Stop playing with me! I know you're not Anna!"

The attitude of her sister completely changed.

"Oh, I see! So you can see me? Not bad, to be honest. I guess it's normal: you're the fifth spirit after all."

Elsa, angry, created more ice until she left Anna -or whoever was impersonating her- frozen waist down.

"You're going to tell me who you are and what is happening here," she said with tight teeth. "One way or another."

* * *

Hico turned, frightened, as he heard that voice, but he didn't see anyone. Then he led his sight again to Toothless, who had stopped his attack and was completely motionless.

"So the dragon killed your father... So sad!"

"Who-who is speaking?" Hiccup said, unsuccessfully trying to locate the source of that voice again.

"Poor Stoick... What a horrible death... And everything because you did not listen to him."

Hiccup shook his head trying to get rid of that feeling of guilt that had tormented him in the past for so long. It was a long time since he managed to forgive himself.

"Come on... It is normal to feel bad about something like that. It is a really tragic event!"

"Toothless," Hiccup said, trying to ignore that voice. "I'm here with you. We've come to look for you. Please, I need you to react."

"And just when he had managed to recover his lost love!"

"Please, bud... We have to get out of here and look for Astrid."

He felt a twinge of chest pain on remembering his wife.

"Oh, wow! There is more? What has that been?"

Hiccup felt a strange presence in his head, as if his body was lighter.

"Astrid and Elsa! Oh, poor, poor boy... betrayed by the person who loves the most in the world."

"Astrid hasn't betrayed me!" He stirred, angry.

"Hasn't she?! In that case... Could you tell me where is she? Or rather, with whom?"

Hiccup felt his legs faltering by not knowing what to answer.

"Oh, poor, poor boy..."

Chapter Text

10.

"Ok," Elsa said, trying to order her thoughts. "First question: Where is Anna?"

"Right here."

Elsa made the ice rise a little more.

"No, seriously. This is your sister. I would be very careful."

"It's fine. If that is the case, who are you?"

Anna stopped to think.

"I suppose you can call me Oblivion."

"Oblivion? What kind of name is that?"

"I can not remember it!"

It exploded in laughs in front of Elsa's stunned look.

"Bad joke, sorry..." she said, calming down, with a tear in her eyes. "It is a long story that I have with the history!" She answered fun with her pun. "Winners write the history and, sometimes, they forget to include the losers."

"Is this what happened to you?"

"Yes, but I do not want to bore you with my problems."

"No, please. I insist"

"No, no. Seriously, it is a very boring story."

Elsa thought it would be better to leave that conversation for later. There were many other things that she wanted to ask and she didn't want to lose too much time.

"It's okay... Oblivion," she said. "What the hell are you?"

"Oh, Elsa! Are you telling me that you do not recognize one of yours when you see it!?"

"Are you a spirit? Like the forest spirits?"

"Of course I am! Wouldn't you think that they were the only spirits there was, right?"

Elsa kept an uncomfortable silence.

"Oh, well... I suppose it is normal. After all, the spirits never link to anything or anyone... rather, almost never."

"Then, what are you? The spirit of possession or something like that?"

"Oh, no, no! Please! That guy is disgusting, taking advantage of the poor victims of him without giving them the opportunity to defend themselves..."

Elsa crossed her arms, waiting for it to continue.

"You will not believe that I am going to tell you what my power is, right? I would be in a mess if it did!"

The ice climbed little by little.

"Hey, hey! Remember that you are freezing your sister! If you kill me, you will kill her, just so you to know."

Elsa stopped the ice. She wasn't sure that it was true, but she didn't want to take risks either.

"So, Anna is here?"

"Yes, of course, although she can not see you or hear you."

"Let me talk with her."

Her tone didn't admit any replica. The spirit thought about it for a few moments.

"Okay... I guess a little talk with your sister will not hurt anyone..."

* * *

Astrid followed the platoon through the castle wall until they reached the courtyard of arms. There, those soldiers marched until they occupied his place.

"Fifteenth unit, complete!" Someone shouted.

Astrid peeked to see better and ran out of breath. The courtyard was completely crowded with soldiers. The Viking had participated in many battles, some of them huge, and she had never seen so many soldiers together. All still, motionless, looking at the front as if they were statues. And there, supervising them all, was the blond guy with his reindeer.

"Ok... Time to go back."

She tried to go back, but an arm emerged from nowhere and tried to grasp hard her neck. Luckily, Astrid was faster and she managed to lower her chin to protect her gorge. If she had not done it, she would have been in serious problems.

The soldier, without emitting any sound, struggled with her to reduce her but Astrid, used to fighting, hit him a couple of times with her elbows, and took advantage of the momentary distraction to get rid of that arm.

Face to face with the soldier, she threw his ax to him and, with a dry blow, she sank his helmet, knocking out him. And then she knew that she had committed a tremendous mistake. Although the Viking tried to hold him, the soldier's body fell to the courtyard by drawing the attention of all the soldiers present there.

"Oh, Thor..." she said for herself as she was discovered.

Afterward, she ran out with all her forces without looking back.

* * *

The spirit closed its eyes and Anna's head fell limp forward. Then the young woman opened her eyes, blinking with difficulty.

"Elsa?"

"Anna, is it you?"

"Elsa!" Happy to see her sister, she tried to get closer to her, but she found she couldn't move her body because of the ice. "What is this? What's going on?"

"I'm sorry, Anna, but it's necessary."

Anna seemed to understand.

"I'm sorry, Elsa."

Big tears rolled down her cheeks.

"How do I know it is you?" Elsa said suspiciously.

"I don't know..." she answered without stopping crying.

Elsa thought for a few moments.

"How did mother and father die?" She asked, clenching her fists.

"Elsa..." Anna said.

"Tell me how it was."

Anna sighed sadly. It was a subject they avoided touching.

"People believe that they died in the South Sea, drowned, but actually they died in the Dark Sea looking for the origin of your magic..."

They had jealously guarded that discovery they made long ago, sharing it only with those closest to them.

"Oh, Anna..."

Moved, Elsa approached her and wiped her tears with her hands.

"Don't worry, I'll bring you back no matter what..."

She rested her forehead on her sister's, and suddenly Anna giggled.

Elsa withdrew immediately.

"I am sorry, I could not contain myself anymore! Pff... hahahaha!"

Elsa, between irritated and confused, took a deep breath trying to curb her anger.

"Damn you... let me talk to my sister!"

But the spirit didn't seem to be listening, busy as it was laughing.

"Oh, Elsa..." it finally said, calming down. "Come on, why that face? You have not gotten angry, have you? Come on! Where is your sense of humor? It has been great!"

Elsa couldn't take it anymore.

"It's over," she said, and prepared to use her powers to completely freeze Anna.

"Yes, we agree on that," replied the spirit. "I would love to continue playing with you but, unfortunately, I have more urgent things to do and I'm out of time."

Like someone who dusts himself off, the spirit got rid of the thick layer of ice that imprisoned it before Elsa's astonished gaze.

* * *

Hiccup faltered and dropped his knee to the ground.

"It hurts, right?" Said the voice.

The Viking tried to ignore him, but it was very difficult.

"It is normal, after so long by her side, and now she wants to go with the first blonde that passes her by."

Hiccup shook his head.

"Going home without her, can you imagine? Having to explain to the whole village where Astrid is... I do not even want to imagine the series of rumors that will spread about her... and about you. 'He is such a bad lover that his wife left him on the honeymoon for a woman', 'Hiccup? Yes, he is the chief of the village, but it is better not to go out with him if you do not want to end up hating men'. How cruel people can be, right?!"

The images of everything that the voice related to him took shape in his head, without being able to avoid it. The Viking shook his head over and over, covering his ears, but the voice echoed inside his head.

"No, no, no..." he said over and over again.

"What would your father think of you if he was still alive?" And what will your mother think of you?"

The image of his father, disappointed, appeared in his mind, and Hiccup could barely bear it.

"Don't worry," the voice told him. "I'll take care of everything for you. You just have to relax and let me take over. That's it..."

The light in Hiccup's eyes slowly faded away.

* * *

"But, how...?

"I understand your confusion, it is normal. I must thank the spirit of degradation for helping me escape."

Elsa looked around her urgently, searching.

"No, it is not here," she said, gesturing with open arms to the room. "It is here," she continued, pointing to her body.

"Are you the spirit of degradation?"

The spirit rubbed its frown with its fingers irritably.

"No... I am not. But somehow I am. Do you follow me?"

Elsa was looking at it with a frown, trying to understand.

"By all spirits! I am not the spirit of degradation, but I have its powers. Like the powers of other spirits such as silence or life."

"And how do you want me to know if you don't tell me what your power is?!"

The spirit smiled in understanding.

"Nice try, fifth spirit."

Elsa cursed to herself.

"Alright, time to stop kidding."

The spirit snapped its fingers and Elsa was suddenly trapped by a creeper, unable to move.

"As you see, I have gotten myself a few lesser spirits but I need to hunt down the great whale, get the jackpot, you know. However, your dear friends seem to be protecting themselves behind some spell and I cannot reach them, so I have no choice but to use the bridge to do it."

Elsa was trying to free herself from her bonds, but that plant was really tough. The spirit stepped in front of her and put a hand on her head.

"And now, with your permission... let's get started!"

Elsa felt a torrent of pain in her head that slowly spread through her whole body. She tried to resist, but it was too much.

"Oh! I already see them! Hello, little ones! It's time to play! Come on, come to me!"

Elsa began to rave; she no longer knew what was real and what was not. She heard a loud crash and saw a white dragon, with shining scales, burst into the room through a huge hole in the wall.

"You again!" Anna yelled, between surprised and annoyed.

The dragon gave her a powerful blow to withdraw her and, without waiting for anything else, caught Elsa with her jaws, threw her on her back, and flew away while the girl tried to hold on to her back so as not to fall.

It took a few more moments for the Arendellian to compose herself long enough to see that it was not a dream and it was really happening. The icy wind on her face and the remission of her pain helped. Then she saw Astrid running, desperate, with a horde of enemies behind her.

"There!" she pointed out weakly.

But the dragon had already started a very rapid fall to grab the Viking with its claws.

"Fury!" She exclaimed in surprise. "How glad I am to see you!"

The dragon gained height quickly to leave behind the arrows of the archers and get out of there as soon as possible.

"Where's Hiccup ...?" The Viking asked, but the voice died in her throat.

She saw her husband through a window, prostrate on the ground and clutching his head. They were moving away from him.

"It's there! Fury! Elsa! You have to turn around!"

But the dragon didn't change her course one iota.

"Fury, please! We can't leave him there!"

Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Elsa, we must go back! Please!"

"No!" Said the Arendellian instinctively, clinging even tighter to the dragon, her eyes closed. The very idea of returning seemed like a world to her.

"No, Fury, turn around! Turn around, we've to rescue him! They're doing something to him! It hurts! Fury! Elsa! Please...! Hiccup! I'm here, Hiccup! Hold! Hiccup! HICCUP!"

Heartbroken, Astrid struggled tirelessly as she was drawn into the dead of night.

Chapter Text

11.

By the time Fury released Astrid, the first light of dawn was already softly caressing the sky. They were in a small cave high on a cliff. The Viking dropped to the ground, dejected, while Elsa climbed down from the dragon, trembling, and sat in a corner, lost in her thoughts. Fury lit a pyre of clumsily stacked logs and lay on its side.

"Why haven't you went back for Hiccup!" Astrid exploded, pouncing on the dragon, who disposed of her with ease. "He was right there! We could have saved him!"

The dragon looked into her eyes and then sadly shook her head.

"Come now! You're a dragon! You could have given them a good beating yourself."

Fury raised her left wing and showed Astrid four deep furrows that ran through her body. Her wounds were crusted with doubtful color, but the dragon seemed fine.

"Toothless?" Astrid said, recognizing those marks.

The dragon nodded and dropped to the ground, curled into a ball.

"It can't be..." She shook her head. "Toothless would never do that..."

"And yet he had," Elsa replied from her corner, still looking half lost.

"No, Elsa, you don't know Toothless. He doesn't—"

"I know Anna," she cut her off. "She would never hurt me, but she is not herself, just as Toothless is not the one who makes the decisions."

"What are you talking about?"

Fury raised her head, interested.

Elsa sighed and told them everything she had discovered.

"So Hiccup..."

"Yes... Probably they subjugated him..."

"No..." Astrid said. "I won't allow it. I won't let him be one more puppet at the hands of you who knows who."

The Viking rose and started to leave the cave, determined, but a sudden block of ice blocked the entrance completely.

Fury winced, staring at Elsa in disbelief. Then, she cautiously approached the wall and probed it with her paw, making sure it was something real.

"What are you doing?!" Astrid turned angrily.

"Preventing you from doing anything stupid."

"Open it right now!"

Elsa stood still in the corner, watching her.

"Open it!!"

Faced with the Arendellian's refusal, Astrid raised her ax and slammed it into that ice wall, again and again, scaring Furia, who returned to her place. Despite the strong blows from the Viking, she barely managed to make a few small marks on the ice. Seeing that it had no effect, she went straight to Elsa, grabbed her clothes tightly at her chest, and forced her to get up, holding her against the wall.

"Get that damn wall off now."

Elsa looked into her eyes.

"No."

Desperate, Astrid clenched her teeth and her fists.

"If you want to hit me, go ahead, but even if I fall unconscious that wall will still be there. I'm not going to let you do such a stupid thing."

With a cry, Astrid let go of Elsa and, again, plunged into the arduous task of hacking her way through, burning all the rage out of her. Finally, exhausted, she dropped to her knees and cried. Elsa approached her, cautiously, and sat down next to her. He put an arm around her shoulders and drew her to her body, and Astrid allowed herself to be dragged. The Arendellian hugged her and stroked her hair tenderly, and for a while, only the crackle of the fire and the Viking's sobs were heard.

"I know it's hard," Elsa told her softly when the Viking was calmer. "All of us here have someone important there, waiting for us, but we have to think something. We can't go without a plan or we'll get caught... or worse."

She felt a stab of pain in her temples.

Astrid got up. The image of Hiccup parading with an empty gaze and forced to realize who knows what atrocities tormented her.

"I don't want him to be another pawn for his army..."

"Army?" Elsa asked, confused.

"Yes..."

Astrid related her discovery to Elsa, who grew more and more concerned.

"I don't like this at all," said the Arendellian, biting her thumb and pacing restlessly through the cave. The fjord was frozen and the roads practically impassable, but she still felt she was missing something important.

The Viking, seeing how Elsa lost herself in her thoughts, approached Fury.

"Fury... forgive me. I'm very sorry about, well... everything. I shouldn't have doubted you, not when we were in town nor today."

The dragon struck the back of the Viking's neck with her tail, snorting.

"Ouch!" Astrid complained, clutching her head.

Then, Fury leaned her head gently against Astrid's body, who returned the gesture by hugging her.

"Draw, then?"

The dragon nodded her head gently and they both stayed that way, comforting each other for a few moments.

"Don't worry, we'll bring them back, you'll see."

* * *

Astrid and Fury were looking everywhere, cowering from the cold and in wonder at the same time.

"What did you say this place is called?"

"Ahtohallan," Elsa replied hurriedly.

"And what are we doing here?"

But Elsa, again, didn't answer. Astrid and Fury looked at each other. The Viking shrugged and they both followed her.

The Arendellian guided them through a tangle of ice corridors, towards the depths of that glacier. Astrid's teeth were chattering and Fury was beginning to take on a certain bluish color to her skin, and yet Elsa was moving forward as if nothing was happening.

Finally, they reached a large room, with a much more bearable temperature, where they stopped.

"It's here."

Astrid looked around her and saw only the walls of the room.

"Ok... now what?"

"I'm not really sure..." Elsa confessed. "The only time I've been here I knew exactly what I was looking for and it was all very straightforward."

"And what were you looking for?"

"The truth about the past of the enchanted forest..."

A light shone on the wall and the face of King Runeard appeared.

"By Odin's beard!" Astrid exclaimed in wonder. "Who is it?"

"My grandfather. It is a long story."

"He looks a bit like my Uncle Birdnut, but much more thin!"

Another light flashed on the wall, next to the first, showing Astrid's relative.

"Oh wow!" Astrid was surprised again. "Looking at them side by side, they don't look that much alike."

Fury approached, and as it did so, a new light appeared showing Toothless. He growled at Astrid and nodded at the image.

"Yes, sorry Fury. We better focus." She then turned to Astrid. "What are we looking for?"

"There is something that I cannot get out of my mind about what the spirit told me. It said it had been erased from history, or something like that. And if that's the case, here at the Ahtohallan we should be able to find something. Or so I hope."

"Ok, let's get to work!"

The three of them set about the arduous task of exploring the past, learning the mechanics of the Ahtohallan by trial and error. They spent several hours simply learning how to visualize the past of beings they knew directly, and some few hours more to visualize the past of any other being. However, this last option was much more complex than the previous one and required a lot of concentration. Furthermore, the amount of information was overwhelming: the memories of millions and millions of beings rested there and they didn't even know how many years they must go back in history.

* * *

"It's impossible..." Astrid said, exhausted.

They had gone outside to eat and rest, in the camp they had set up in a small cave formed by the rocks of the Ahtohallan. Elsa and Astrid were having a good meal by the fire, and Fury was flying over the Dark Sea, taking a dip from time to time to catch a clueless fish.

"It's worse than looking for a needle in a haystack!"

The Viking lay on the ground, her hair disheveled. Elsa had to look away when she felt her heart race.

"Sometimes it's best to disconnect for a while to refresh your mind. There is no point in us spending the entire night in a daze, exhausting and frustrating ourselves."

The Viking grunted, unhappy and frustrated.

Fury returned and uncarefully shook off the water, splashing the two girls and ignoring their protests. Then the dragon lit the wooden pyre and lay down beside it, trembling, to regain warmth. Astrid remembered Hiccup's words, remembered that Fury was risking her life by staying so long in that cold place, and felt a deep respect for her.

"Better rest," sighed the Viking, lying on her side and covering herself with a blanket.

"Yes..." Elsa replied, fighting herself. "Goodnight."

"Night."

Elsa lay down and shifted uncomfortably. She turned her back to the fire and to the Viking and tried to fall asleep, but a little voice in her head kept bothering her.

"Astrid..." he whispered. "Are you asleep?"

"No," she answered from the other side of the fire. "What's up?"

"I'm really— I'm really sorry I kissed you the other day."

Astrid felt her stomach tingle at the memory, and at the same time, she felt bad for noticing it.

"Don't worry about it," she replied, shrugging it off.

"I shouldn't have. The truth is, I don't know what happened to me. And I'm sorry that made you and Hiccup argue," Elsa said, unable to control the rush of feelings she felt. "I appreciate you very much and I feel bad for everything that has happened. This is the first time I have felt like this and, honestly, I don't even know how to deal with it. And you may not want to talk about it and you just want to forget about it, but I feel like I have to apologize and be honest, and that we need to talk about it to get the issue resolved."

Astrid didn't say a word.

"Say something, please ..." asked the Arendellian.

Astrid got up.

"Elsa..."

She didn't know how to start.

"Go ahead. Let it go. I'm ready."

The Viking sighed. Maybe that also could serve to clarify herself.

"I liked it."

Elsa got puzzled and her heart race.

"What?" She answered, incredulous.

"The kiss you gave me, I liked it. I can't explain it well, but you made me feel things. And that has me confused, I will not deny it. But... I don't want you to get your hopes up or give you false hope. I mean, I love Hiccup with all my soul and I don't want to lose him for anything in the world. Our bond is something sacred to me and I know I need to clarify myself, but I will always give him priority over everything and everyone... Sorry, Elsa."

Those words hurt Elsa more than anything else. No matter how much she believed she was ready or how many times she had imagined what her rejection would be like, seeing the little flame of hope extinguished hurt more than she could have imagined.

"C'me here..."

Astrid walked over to her and hugged her, and then Elsa realized the tears welling up from her own eyes.

"I'm sorry I can't offer you more than my friendship," the Viking told her.

Elsa shook her head.

"Only with that I have already found a treasure," she replied, allowing herself to be hugged a little more. Then she took a deep breath, slowly blew out the air, and pulled away from Astrid. "I'm glad I discussed it with you."

And it was true. Despite the pain that she felt in her heart, she also felt much better.

"Me too," Astrid replied. "And now, time to sleep; tomorrow we have a story to gut."

Chapter Text

12.

"Arg!" Astrid yelled in frustration. "This is impossible!"

She flopped back onto the floor, staring up at the high, glistening ceiling of the Ahtohallan. Fury and Elsa had gone out to find firewood and food, leaving the Viking in charge of the search for the spirit throughout history. They had been there for several days and had yet to discover anything, and Astrid was already running out of patience.

He took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment to relax. Immediately, the image of Hiccup on the floor of that tower returned to her mind, as it did every time she closed them, and she felt again the pressing need to do something.

"Hiccup... what have they done to you?" She whispered to herself.

She took a breath again, renewing her energy, and got up ready to continue, but couldn't quite sit up: right there, in front of her, Hiccup was reflected in the bright lights of the glacier. He was on the tower floor, as she had seen him days ago, holding his head and mumbling. She heard her own voice in the background, calling out to him as Fury flew her away, and saw how the Viking recognized her and searched for her with despair in his eyes. He awkwardly managed to get up and take a step towards the window, but Toothless made him fall with his tail. Astrid's soul ached of seeing him like this.

"What happened next?"

Reacting to her words, the images changed and showed Hiccup in a dark room, chained to a wall by the wrists with chains so short that they forced him to keep his arms raised. He was on his knees, his head falling to his chest, and, judging by his breathing, he seemed to be asleep.

The door opened, filling the room with light and waking the Viking up. Toothless came in and sat across from him, without further ado, but the Viking began to frown and shake his head over and over again.

"No! Astrid loves me!" He said confidently.

The Viking put her hand to her mouth, unable to hold back her tears.

"That's it..." she told Hiccup. "I love you, Hiccup. Hold on..."

"Stop bothering me!"

Astrid didn't quite understand what was going on, but it seemed like Hiccup was having a conversation with someone. She listened, but she didn't hear anything other than Hiccup's heavy breathing.

"Seriously, why do you insist? I don't care what you tell me. I know that it isn't so."

Hiccup looked Toothless in the eye.

"Hi, bud. I know that you are in there, somewhere. You have to hold on, okay? It doesn't matter what they tell you. Whatever it is, it's not true."

The dragon didn't react in any way, but Hiccup didn't give up.

"What did they tell you? Something related to Fury? Was it because of the pressure to be the alpha? Shut up! I'm not talking to you!" He exclaimed suddenly looking up. Then he returned his sight to the dragon."Come on, buddy! Give me something!"

Toothless was impassive. Then he flicked his tail on the floor and left the room, leaving Hiccup hidden in the dark.

The image changed again. Hiccup, his beard a little longer and visibly worse, was still in the same place. This time he was sitting up, arms up. His wrists and hands were bloody, but the Viking looked cheerful. He was humming the song of his parents while her foot and his prosthesis rhythmically moved from side to side.

The door opened, forcing him to look away. Toothless came in and sat across from him.

"Toothless! Where have you been? I've been waiting for you for days!"

Nothing. No reaction.

"Blablabla. Shut up now! Listen, bud. I've been thinking about it a lot these days and I think I owe you an apology. I've never told you, but I'm so sorry I crippled you for life. We were at war with the dragons and that was what I was supposed to do, but that doesn't justify my actions. And I'm very happy that, thanks to that, everything changed and we became friends but, still, I want to ask your forgiveness." Hiccup looked Toothless in the eye. "I'm really sorry."

The dragon's pupils dilated for a small fraction of a second.

"There you are..." Hiccup said, smiling satisfied.

Then he took several breaths and, closing his eyes, he yanked his arms hard, hanging his entire body from the chains. His shackles slipped through his hands causing intense pain until they were released, but Hiccup didn't cry out; he didn't have time for it. Before giving the dragon time to react, he jumped on his tail and tightly grasped the membrane that shouldn't be there. He had a strange, cold touch, almost ethereal; nothing similar to the real tail of the dragon.

Toothless scrambled, but Hiccup held on tightly with his legs as he yanked on the membrane with all his might. He managed to break it a bit and the dragon screamed in pain, intensifying his movements. Hiccup endured as best he could the blows that Toothless gave him when he threw himself against the walls, without letting go of that strange appendage. The dragon managed to stir enough to catch the Viking in its mouth and throw him against the wall. Hiccup fell to the ground, inert, and his face began to cover with blood.

The images faded.

"Hiccup!!" Astrid yelled.

The Viking tried to get the Ahtohallan to show more images, but it was impossible.

Deep in despair, Astrid paced in the room.

"Think, Astrid, think," she told herself.

He feared for the life of the Viking. If the Ahtohallan didn't show her more images, it was either because it was a very recent event or because he was dead. Only thinking about it Astrid felt how the world was crumbling and how darkness completely enveloped her. But she also knew that, despite his puny appearance, he was a strong man, a Viking who had managed to overcome battles and blows much worse than that, so she decided to believe in him, to believe that he was still alive. Taking a deep breath, she pulled out forces weakness to do the only thing she could do right now: focus on finding a way to finish that spirit. However, her mind returned again and again to Hiccup, to her love, to the bond that united them, losing herself in him and shaking her convictions. Despite this, every time, Astrid shook her head, repeating to herself that Hiccup was still alive, that he still needed her help, and that she should keep fighting.

One of those times, the Viking shook her head so hard she was dizzy, hit the wall, and fell to the ground, face up. There, watching the small shadows that fluttered around the world because of dizziness, she suddenly had a revelation.

A while later, when Elsa and Fury returned, Astrid urged them to come closer to her.

"I think I have something..."

Chapter Text

13.

"What?" Elsa said, surprised. "How?"

"We were looking at it from the opposite point of view. Instead of looking for a connection with the past, we had to look for a connection with the present."

"Anna!" Of course!"

"That's it." Astrid turned to face the wall of the Ahtohallan. "I've been going back in time and I've managed to find the moment when the spirit contacted your sister."

Pictures on the wall showed Anna in her room, sitting on the floor and hugging her knees. Elsa felt her heart contract a little.

"From here on, it's almost impossible for me to track it down and see where or who it's in."

"Don't worry," Elsa replied without taking her eyes off Anna. "I can see it."

There it was, as before, that black aura surrounding her sister.

"Let's get down to business," Elsa said, looking away from her and tying her hair into a discreet ponytail. "Let's go back in history as much as we can to see if we find something to help us fight it. If you lose sight of it or are not sure where it has gotten, let me know so I can help you find that bastard again."

Astrid smiled at her and Fury moved to the Viking's side without missing a beat. Surprisingly, the dragon was the best dealing with the Ahtohallan.

"Hold on a little longer, Hiccup," Astrid told herself, feeling that they were finally moving forward.

* * *

"Alright, let's put it all together and see if we can make any sense of this," Astrid said, rubbing her forehead.

The three of them had dedicated themselves to pulling the thread of the present, going deeper and deeper into the past. They had been tracking the spirit through history, but still had not found a clear timeline, since it was difficult to know exactly when each fragment found was.

With a gesture from the Viking woman, the images swirled on the wall and showed a girl of about ten years old, with silver hair, trying to stop a large adult in a strange uniform as he crossed without difficulty through a market full of people.

"No Please! It was not his fault! Punish me instead!"

The adult got rid of the girl with a slap without even stopping and this made them able to see him dragging another boy by her arm, a little older than her and with the same hair color as hers. The boy was trying desperately to get away from that huge hand, without succeeding.

"Ayn! Get out of here!" The boy yelled at the girl, who had been thrown on the ground.

"No!" She got up, with an effort, and trudged toward him again. "You are my brother! And it was my fault!"

The man dragged the boy to an elevated area in the middle of the street. There, another man dressed in the same uniform, although much less large than the first, was sitting waiting for them.

"What do we have here?"

"A petty thief."

"No Please! My sister and I are hungry! And it was only an apple! Please! Piety!"

"I will go for the saber," said the man, rising quietly and ignoring the crying of the child.

People were beginning to gather around them. Ayn slipped between the legs of the crowd until she reached the front row, where she watched in horror as the burly man forced her brother to stretch his arm on top of some kind of wooden block.

"Evest!" She screamed, putting her hands to her mouth, but her scream was drowned out by the noise of the crowd.

The other man appeared with a saber in hand and, ignoring everything else, approached the boy, who was still crying and imploring.

"If you move, it will be worse," said the man slowly.

He brought the weapon closer and placed it on top of Evest's index finger carefully. The blade gave him a small cut with just a touch.

"You got lucky. I just sharpened it."

The boy was shaking, terrified, but he couldn't look away.

"On three. One..."

And, without warning, he squeezed the saber tightly on the boy's finger, separating it from his body forever.

In the audience, Ayn kept screaming with all of her might.

The portly guard then seized the boy, who was writhing in pain, and forced him to look at him.

"Keep in mind that next time it will be the whole hand."

After that, he simply threw him off the platform to the ground, getting rid of him.

* * *

"I think we should move on from here to this one," Elsa said, waving her hand.

The images changed and showed Evest and Ayn again, this time in an alley. It was night and Ayn slept curled up in a corner, wrapped only with her arms. Evest hugged his legs as he cried silently. His hand, awkwardly bandaged in dirty rags, ached terribly. He was staring blankly though a small flame of fury shone in them.

Without the boy noticing, a tiny shadow, barely a point of darkness, was born slowly beside him. The shadow floated gently, as if watching Evest, for a few moments. Then it moved a little closer to him and the boy, suddenly, was startled.

"Who has said that?" He whispered, looking around confused.

Discovering the shadow, Evest looked at it between fear and wonder. Her face changed expression over and over again, as if he were silently conversing with that being. After a while, his face twitched and tears welled up in his eyes again. The boy nodded a couple of times and the shadow crept into his chest, heart level. Evest fell asleep immediately.

The next morning he noticed that his hand didn't hurt. Carefully he removed the bandage and couldn't suppress a cry of surprise.

"What happens?" Ayn said, moving closer.

Evest held out his hand to show her a tiny appendage that had grown in his hand.

"What? How?"

"I—I do not know..."

Evest looked away uncomfortably.

* * *

"Ok, what else do we have?" Astrid said. "Fury, you had something else from Evest out there, right?"

The dragon nodded and shook her muzzle. The images changed again, showing Evest and Ayn, as adults, hugging. It was night and they were in the middle of a forest, illuminated by a bright full moon. She was crying inconsolably. Evest body was full of arrows and wounds, and he was barely standing. He was missing several fingers from one of his hands, which was bleeding profusely.

"I am sorry, Ayn... I am so sorry I did not tell you before," he said, barely forcefully. "By the time I wanted to do it, it was too late. I was unable to control it..."

She shook her head, trembling.

"What was that thing?" She asked him.

"Actually, I do not have an idea."

His legs gave out and he fell to the ground.

"Evest!!"

He gently stroked her face.

"Listen to me, Ayn. Do not tell anyone about what you saw today. They would accuse you of sorcery and execute you. The best you can do is forget all and move on."

He coughed heavily and a trickle of blood came out of his mouth.

Worried, she tried to lift him up a little to help him breathe easier, but he forced her to look at him again, taking her chin tenderly.

"Promise me!"

She bit her lip.

"I promise. But please do not leave me..."

He smiled, very weak, and dropped down.

"At least we have managed to finish off those bastards and gain control of the kingdom..."

She nodded, laughing, as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"We gave them a good beating."

He smirked.

"Move on, little sister... I... love you..."

His hand fell limp to the ground and the light in his eyes faded, abandoning himself to eternal rest.

* * *

"Great, we almost have it!" Said the Viking, ignoring the emotionality of the scene they had just witnessed. "Let's go back a little further."

She waved her hands and the Ahtohallan showed them the two brothers, slightly younger, inside a tent. They both wore armor. She carried a stout bow at her back and he carried a sword at her waist.

"You are being weird lately, Evest..."

"Ayn, don't start—"

"No! I know something is wrong with you! Is it because of the pressure to lead the revolution? Are you afraid we won't get it?"

"No! Of course not!"

"So what?"

"It is nothing..."

"Come on!"

She stood with her arms crossed, waiting for an answer, but he just ignored her and focused on reviewing a map on a makeshift table. Ayn sighed, disappointed.

"Sometimes I feel like you are not yourself... since your finger finished to grown," she said sadly, looking at the hand of her brother, wrapped in a discreet glove.

He waved his hand, not even looking at her. She clenched her fists.

"I leave you to continue speaking alone... commander."

* * *

"I think you've gone a bit far," Elsa said, grimacing.

Astrid rubbed her head with a frown.

Fury moved her paw slightly and the images changed. They were in the woods again, though only Evest was visible, pacing impatiently from one place to another. He carried a paper in his hand that he read again before furiously crumpling it and tossing it aside.

A noise was heard in the undergrowth.

"Finally!" He said.

Ayn came out from behind a tree, pointing her bow at Evest.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

In response, she shot her brother's leg.

"Hey!" He complained, barely noticing the arrow. "What is this?"

Ayn had already loaded her bow and fired again. This time the arrow hit him in the chest. She was sure she had punctured a lung. She gritted her teeth, trying to hold back tears, and recharged her bow.

"Ok..." he said. "I see you have not made me come to talk."

Evest tore the arrows barely blinking and drew his sword. Ayn managed to hit him two more times before he reached her. He threw several thrusts at her, but Ayn, used to battle, repelled them easily enough and struck him hard on the head with her bow.

"If you were my brother, you would know that I have always been a better fighter than you," she said.

Evest grunted from the ground.

"You know your brother is here too, right? If you kill me, you will kill him as well."

Ayn, with her bow already drawn, hesitated for a moment, and Evest seized the opportunity to get up, leaning on one hand and kicking her sister hard on her side. She cursed to herself for her carelessness and she tried to get up as fast as she could, but it wasn't enough. Her brother straddled her and punched her in the face, leaving her dizzy. She felt his hands searching for her neck and she tried to avoid it while the world spun around and around.

"Evest!" She said, breathing heavily. "If it is true that you are in there... please forgive me! I am very sorry for everything that happened!"

After those words, it was Evest who stopped for a moment. Ayn didn't think twice and, drawing a dagger that she wore on her belt, she sliced off several fingers from his hand, including that false finger that should never have grown again. Evest howled, grabbing his hand and backing away. Ayn leaped to her feet and grasped her bow again, loading a new projectile into it. She pointed at her brother and saw a strange human-like shadow appearing next to him, emerging from Evest's body. Surprised and scared, she shot the thing, but the arrow just went through it.

"Ayn?" Evest said in a small voice. "It is you?"

She burst into tears. It was her brother, the real one.

"Run! You cannot face it!"

But now that she had finally gotten him back she wasn't pretending to leave him behind. She loaded a new arrow and struggled to aim through the tears that fell nonstop. The shadow, knowing itself invincible, advanced towards her slowly. She fired and, this time, the arrow struck the shadow's chest, producing a brilliant flash and drawing a silent howl from the being.

The two were taken aback, stopping for a moment. Afterward, she hastily reloaded her bow, but by the time she was ready to shoot the shadow had fled deep into the forest, lost in the darkness.

Ayn fell to her knees, trembling, and walked over to her brother.

* * *

"What just happened?" Elsa said. "How she managed to harm the spirit?"

"Hiccup!" Astrid exclaimed. "He knew it!"

Fury and Elsa looked questioningly at the Viking, who showed them what she had seen a few hours before. Also, to her reassurance, this time she could see Hiccup in chains again, and with a bandage on his head. He was alive! Astrid was overjoyed with happiness and she felt her strength renewing, motivating her to keep going.

"Alright, so we know that the spirit can grow amputated limbs and that they all seem to be related to some traumatic event in the past. In Evest's case it was his finger, and in Toothless's, his tail."

"And besides, there must be some kind of resentment or something related to that," Astrid pointed out. "Both Evest and Toothless reacted to Ayn and Hiccup's apologies, which were the cause of their missing limbs."

"Yes, but... what about Anna? She hasn't any missing part of her."

"Perhaps there can be another type of materialization?" The Viking replied, shrugging. "D'you remember seeing something out of place when you saw her?"

Elsa tried to search in her memories for something that didn't fit with Anna.

"The crown!" She exclaimed.

So, using the Ahtohallan magic she showed them how Anna wore her crown even with her pajamas.

"The crown..." she repeated, more slowly, discouraged.

"Hey, what's up?"

Elsa, inattentive, devoted herself to observing Anna's past, discovering all the problems her sister had had to deal with, how she had built up stress, how she had argued over and over with Kristoff, how she had been feeling more and more lonely, and how, unable to bear it any longer, she had succumbed to the whispers of the shadow.

"It was all my fault..."

"What are you talking about? How will it be your fault?"

"Anna wears that crown for me. I delegated the responsibility of the kingdom to her and I couldn't be with her, even though she needed me..."

"You've had your problems too."

"But..."

Elsa knew Astrid was right, but still, she couldn't help feeling that pang of guilt. She bit her lip not knowing what to answer.

Fury walked over to Elsa and gave her a gentle push with her head. Elsa thanked her for her gesture with a caress on her neck.

"We'll get them all back," Astrid said. "In addition, this isn't about looking for culprits, but about finding solutions. We already know more or less how to free them from the influence of the spirit. Now we just have to find out how Ayn did it to harm it."

Elsa took a deep breath and shook her head.

"You're right," she said more animatedly. "Come on, let's check it out again."

Chapter Text

14.

Elsa, Astrid, and Fury flew over the enchanted forest looking for the Northuldra. They had already visited all the enclaves most frequented by the northerners, but they hadn't found any clue of them anywhere. Elsa was beginning to worry when, in the distance, on the west coast, they saw several columns of smoke.

As they approached, they saw the horizon full of large anchored ships, the coast full of boats, and a large number of soldiers everywhere, busy with different tasks: building tents, moving supplies, sharpening weapons...

"What now?" Elsa said, horrified at the idea of having to deal with another enemy as well.

"Look!" Astrid said then.

A little further on they could see the characteristic Northuldra tents. Elsa sighed in relief.

An arrow whistled near them and they then saw how the soldiers moved like frightened ants, looking for places to take refuge or bows to face the dragon that had appeared in the sky.

Elsa quickly raised a shield of ice around them, stopping or deflecting a new wave of arrows that sought to bring them down, but soon they began to hear echoes of screams in which the order to a cease-fire was given.

When they were sure of receiving no more attacks, Elsa dissolved the shield and Fury was able to land in the middle of the camp, before the astonished gaze of most of the soldiers.

With a quick glance, Elsa was able to make out emblems from several nearby kingdoms, including the Southern Islands. The mere memory of Hans gave her a chill, but the truth was that his brothers had nothing to do with him.

"Elsa!" Said a voice behind them. "You have returned!"

"Olaf!"

They both gave each other a warm hug.

"What is going on? What is all this?"

Elsa was still stunned, looking around her and recognizing even more emblems.

"Well... I thought that when you're in trouble, the best thing to do is asking your friends for help. Living with Anna, I was in charge of sending communications to our neighbors many times, so, after what happened in the forest, I wrote them to ask for advice on how to fight dragons or immortals. Before long, soldiers began to arrive from all over and we had to settle here on the coast. I'm sorry, I didn't expect them to start sending people here..." The snowman's expression darkened. "Are you angry?"

Elsa couldn't believe it.

"Angry? I'm delighted! Thank you very much, Olaf!"

"Yeah!" Astrid seconded. "You save our ass!"

The snowman laughed delightedly.

"Your highness."

Elsa turned to see a red-haired man with long sideburns kneeling in front of her. She didn't need to look at the emblem on his armor to know where it came from.

"I am Caleb, firstborn of the Southern Islands."

"Please, get up," Elsa asked. "I am not a queen anymore and I do not deserve such treatment. In any case, I should be the one to bow down to you."

"No way," he said. "Not after what my brother did to you."

"So... let's put aside the formalities?"

"So be it." The man smiled and got up. "Allow me to offer my apologies again for everything that happened with Hans. My father sends us in the hope that we can finally make up for that terrible fault since, as you know, we have few commercial contracts and have not been able to redeem ourselves until today. I swear on my honor that we will help you in any way possible, even if it costs us our lives."

"I hope it won't be necessary," Elsa replied, visibly uncomfortable.

The different commanders of the realms had been gathering around her.

"Please," Elsa asked them, "take us to a quiet place where we can talk and we can properly inform you of the situation."

They were led to a large tent and there Elsa and Astrid related everything that had happened and all their discoveries. The faces of the commanders grew grimmer, but women saw no hint of fear in them.

"I know this may not be the enemy you expected and some of you may prefer to go home. If so, please do it. I assure you that in no case will relations with Arendelle be affected in the least, "Elsa said.

No one answered and no one moved.

"Alright... in that case, first of all, thank you all, from the bottom of my heart. And second, you would better bring your troops up to speed. We will go talk to the Northuldra and then we should meet to discuss the strategy to follow."

"When do you think would be the best time to attack?" Caleb asked.

Elsa and Astrid looked at each other.

"As soon as possible," Astrid replied.

"In that case, we would better start," commented another commander, getting to his feet. "With your permission."

The rest of the commanders followed him and left the tent.

Elsa walked over to Caleb, who was about to leave as well, and touched his arm to get his attention.

"Caleb, please don't go yet. We have something to talk to you about. It is about Hans."

The redhead, a little surprised and, above all, curious, nodded and waited patiently for the tent to empty.

* * *

The allied army was positioned on the outskirts of Arendelle. Elsa wore ice armor, since a normal one was too uncomfortable and, above all, too heavy. Astrid, on the other hand, wore thick armor with which she handled herself better than many of the soldiers who accompanied them. Even Fury had agreed to carry certain metal plates to protect herself from potential archers. The commanders accompanied them, followed by all their troops, all armed in their best armor, ready for battle. About two thousand soldiers in all, marching in unison, clanging their weapons and armor. Even some Northuldra had wanted to fight in this battle. It was impossible that the spirit had not noticed it, and yet no one came to meet them.

They waited a long time, not sure what to do. Finally, Fury threw an attack from a distance against one of the castle's battlements, producing a huge hole and a small collapse, and a few minutes later, Anna appeared on Toothless's back and approached them.

"What a way to say good morning!" She said from above. "I was giving you the time to see if you would turn around, but I see you have no interest in it. Also, I see you have managed to gather an army and everything! Very good, Elsa!"

"Anna!" Elsa yelled from the ground. "I am so sorry I charged you with the responsibility of the kingdom! I'm really sorry I've been so absent lately! I'm absolutely sorry!"

"Oh! I see you have done your homework, Elsa. But let me save you the effort: that will not work, at least with your little sister. I learned a long time ago that it is best not to let my host knowing what is going on. And trust me, Anna is not listening to you."

Elsa bit her lip, frustrated, causing a bit of blood.

"Where's Hiccup?" Astrid yelled at him.

"The Viking? Do not worry, we are treating him very well. Better than I would really like, actually. I have not seen a more stubborn person in my entire life. And believe me! I have met a lot of people. If it were not because this little guy is so fond of him..." It stroked Toothless's neck. "But hey, keeping him alive is a small price to pay considering what I get in return."

Astrid suddenly stiffened at those words.

"We have to get out of here..." she said to Elsa in a low, uneasy voice.

"What?"

The Arendellian couldn't believe it.

"Let me thank you, Elsa," the spirit continued. "If you had not frozen everything, blocking my ships and the ways of the kingdom, you would not have forced me to look for an alternative and I would not have found Toothless. Lucky me, I found a book in the library where the existence of dragons was revealed to me. What extraordinary creatures, right?! And how elusive... It took me a bit to find them, as hidden as they were, but the effort was worth it: right now my army is invincible. Thanks to you, I will finally be able to carry out my revenge!"

"What revenge are you talking about? What have we done to you?"

"Oh no, dear. It has nothing to do with you or your kingdom; you are only the tools to achieve my goal. My hatred is directed to a distant realm. A kingdom that I forged myself, leaving my skin on it. And do you know how they paid me?"

"With an arrow to the chest perhaps?" Astrid replied teasingly, still looking around her, alert.

"Exactly..." The spirit, taken by surprise, found itself rubbing the spot where it was hit by the projectile. "Since they decided to erase me from their history, I have only had in mind the idea of recovering that kingdom, of seizing the power that was taken from me, and of obtaining the recognition I deserve for all that I strived on fighting. I could settle for any other kingdom? Sure, but first love is never forgotten, and that was love at first sight. And now I can finally burn it to ashes, smashing everything the usurpers have built, to shape a new kingdom, greater and more powerful than any other. And, of course, I will erase those two ungrateful from history just as they did with me..."

With a little touch on the dragon's side, it made him put more distance between them.

"I can see from your faces that you have done your homework really well and you know exactly what I am talking about, so we would better stop chatting and move on to what really matters: taking over this little army you have gathered for me."

"Ahead! Come get it if you dare!" The Viking challenged.

The city gates opened and Kristoff emerged leading an army of men, women, children, trolls, and even animals. But it was not what drowned a cry in Elsa's throat and made the hearts of everyone present constrict, but the imposing army of dragons that darkened the sky over the city, each one with its armed rider.

The spirit had a great time seeing their faces.

"Let the game begin!"

Chapter Text

15.

"Retreat!" Elsa screamed.

But by then, many of the soldiers had already scattered in panic.

The dragons, at a command from Toothless, surrounded them without any difficulty and cut their retreat creating walls of fire. Kristoff's platoon arrived just moments later, breaking in forcefully.

The allied army crowded together to hold on, and they managed to overcome the initial onslaught. Elsa, who had never stopped looking at Oblivion, managed to create a wall of ice around her, separating her from the rest of the battle and leaving enough room to fight comfortably. Standing there, her ice armor shining from the sun, she stood waiting in the middle of that makeshift arena, challenging the spirit to a one-on-one.

"All this will not do you any good, Elsa!" The spirit told her from the dragon. "You have already lost!"

With a new gesture, Toothless gave a series of orders to the dragons, who prepared to attack together with their flames. However, the voice of another dragon echoed above Toothless: it was Fury.

"You have the king," Elsa answered defiantly, "but we have the queen."

The dragons, undecided, didn't attack for fear of contradicting one of their monarchs.

"Come on, are you the alpha or not?" Oblivion said to Toothless, annoyed. "Make them attack!"

The dragon tried again, but Fury again blocked his order. The dragons, in their attempt to obey both, ended up throwing their flames to the sky, or to some deserted place. Others simply stared at that battle of wills waiting for a clear winner.

Elsa shrugged and challenged her spirit by inviting it with her hand.

"Dammit! Alright! I will play with you! But only while my king gets rid of your queen."

Toothless came down so Oblivion could dismount, then took flight again and launched himself directly at Fury, who was waiting for him, ready for battle. The dragons battled themselves in a bloody aerial fight of flames, bites, and scratches, losing themselves in the heights.

With dragons out of the equation, Elsa listened with relief as the commanders gave precise orders, determined to win this battle.

"And now? Do you want us to solve this with a card game or do you prefer—?" The spirit began to say, but an ice projectile brushed past its cheek and created a small cut. "As you wish..."

* * *

Astrid looked back and saw the battlefield. All those little dots were risking their lives fighting against the fear of dying, against the fear of dragons, against the fear of an indestructible army. She couldn't help but feel the ephemerality of life. And thanks to them, she could be there, climbing the palace walls to search for Hiccup. Shaking her head to focus, she continued climbing meter by meter until she reached the top of that wall. She had left her armor behind to facilitate movement, but it had still cost her more than she expected, so she allowed herself a few minutes to rest her arms and legs as she carefully looked around for any sign of life. Apparently, the spirit had gone with everything and hadn't left any soldiers behind.

Even so, Astrid moved carefully through the palace, walking its empty corridors, following the directions that Elsa had given her until she finally found the dungeon area. There, she opened the cells one by one until she found Hiccup's but, to her despair, she didn't find him inside. There were traces of dried blood on the ground, probably from when he tried to detach Toothless's tail, but no sign of him. That could only mean that they had succeeded in taking his will. Holding back her tears, she headed to the battlefield to find him among all that crowd.

Driven by haste, she started back without taking any precautions and ran as if her life depended on it because, in a way, it did. That is why her surprise was huge when she, turning a corner, collided with someone's back, pushing him and making him lose his balance. The Viking, still caught by surprise, didn't hesitate to take advantage of that crash in her favor and she launched a quick kick that knocked the man down.

"Ow!" He said from the ground.

"Hiccup?!"

The man turned around, surprised.

"Astrid!"

The Viking took his arm and twisted it behind his back, immobilizing him.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow!" He complained. "Can you tell what you're doing?"

"Whatever you say, I'm not going to believe you, spirit."

"Ow, Astrid! That hurts! I'm not the spirit!"

"Yeah, sure..."

"Astrid, seriously. Ouch! You're gonna break my arm!"

Astrid, without loosening any strength, managed to lower her head to the ground and leveled with Hiccup's. Their eyes immediately connected and Astrid lost all of her strength for an instant. It was him. It was really Hiccup. She felt his smell, his touch, his look... and, at that moment, she had the certainty that she would never want to be with anyone other than him.

Heart pounding, she released him from the immobilization and squeezed him into her arms with all her might, causing her husband to complain over and over again. Then, free from that strangling embrace, they both merged into a deep and passionate kiss.

"Thanks Thor, thanks Thor, thanks Thor..." She said over and over again, hugging him.

Hiccup stroked her head tenderly as his emotions welled up in tears.

"But how?" She asked, withdrawing.

"Well, first they chained me by the wrists. It was very uncomfortable, actually, and they gave me little food to—"

"Yes, I know all that."

Hiccup looked at her puzzled.

"I'll tell you about it later," she replied, waving her hand in the air. "The last I heard from you is that you had escaped and tried to remove Toothless' tail."

"Ooooooook..." It still took him a few moments to recompose himself from surprise. "Well, after that they chained me by the ankle."

"Ha!" Astrid exclaimed, understanding everything suddenly. "Chicken leg!"

"Chicken leg," he confirmed, pointing to his leg. "It took a while, but in the end, I managed to get my leg out of there."

Both start laughing.

"Hearing all the troop movements and then all being silent, I decided to take the opportunity to escape and take a look. And here I am."

Astrid hugged him again.

"Here you are..."

He made a move to hug her back, but something stopped him. Uncomfortable, he scratched his head.

"I know maybe this is not the time, but... I need to know. Elsa...?"

She looked at him with bright, smiling, loving eyes.

"No need to worry."

"No need to worry, why? I mean, is it a don't worry like everything is clear for me, or is it like it is still not clear to me but anyway—?"

Astrid silenced the barrage of questions with a tender, sweet and heartfelt kiss.

"So... how should I interpret this?"

"You're not gonna shut up until I answer you, aren't you?"

"I just want to understand..."

Hiccup shrugged and Astrid sighed. Then she brought her body closer to him, wrapped her arms around her neck, keeping their faces very close to each other, and looked into her eyes for a few moments before starting talking.

"I love you, and only you, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock, and there is nothing else to understand or explain."

Hiccup, full of happiness, hugged her and kissed her heartily.

"Alright, what's the plan?" Hiccup asked, pulling away.

"For now on, to return to the battlefield to help."

"Is Toothless there?"

Astrid recognized in her husband that special sparkle in his eyes.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Probably something stupid..." He shrugged.

It was definitely Hiccup.

"In that case, let's not waste any second." Astrid took his hand and pulled him hard, glad. "This way!"

And they both ran happily into the death and despair of war.

Chapter Text

16.

Elsa and the spirit stared at each other, circling around each other, attentive to each movement. Meanwhile, Elsa was remembering Anna, her love for her, and reviving all the horrible moments that that being had made them live. Finally, a tear spilled out of her eye, and, immediately, she caught it with her hand and created an ice spear with which she attacked head-on.

"Oh! So that was it!" Said the spirit, dodging Elsa's onslaught. "I had been wondering for a long time how they had managed to harm me. Now I see it clear! Thanks!"

Elsa whirled, annoyed, ready to strike with a circular attack, but the spirit dodged it with ease.

"The funny thing is, not knowing what it was, I learned to defend myself. I have spent many years training to perfect my technique. That the spirit of speed helps? Yes, of course, but you have to have a good base if you want to be able to defend yourself properly and make good use of its power."

Elsa, meanwhile, kept launching one attack after another, missing her target.

"Good attack! But you should relax your shoulders a bit more. There you have lacked to put a little more hips to give it more strength, and that movement has not been as clean as it should be."

The spirit seemed to be enjoying this, like a cat playing with a mouse. Elsa, on the other hand, was breathing heavily from the effort.

A new tear welled up in the Arendellian's eyes and, with a quick gesture, she created a small dagger. She took a breath and charged again, combining spear attacks at long range and dagger attacks at close range. However, it didn't work either. The spirit kept eluding her with ease as she tried on and on.

After another round of unsuccessful attacks, Elsa drew back to catch her breath.

"That is all? After so much posturing?" Oblivion said, taking slow steps toward her. "I suppose then that it is my turn now."

The Arendellian adopted a defensive posture, crossing her arms in front of her and placing her body on her side. She took a deep breath and prepared for the attack, but the spirit was gone.

A sharp blow to her side knocked her down, but she used the momentum to roll over and regain her posture.

"Where were you looking?" The spirit reproached him. "You have to focus!"

Again, it disappeared from sight again. Elsa took a step back trying to protect herself from it, but the spirit struck her again, this time on her shoulder, and a strong pain ran through Elsa's body as she fell to the ground with her armor split.

"Seriously... you have to pay more attention."

Elsa tried to get up but the pain she felt in her shoulder was so strong that she was unable to move her arm, which fell limp beside her.

Feeling cornered, she unleashed a strong blizzard around her and she managed to get up with difficulty, trying to put some distance from the spirit. As she walked away from it, she opened a small bag she was carrying on her side and tipped it over, letting the wind blow the contents of it away.

"Elsa, Elsa, Elsa..." She heard the voice of the spirit. "You know you have no escape, right?"

The Arendellian detected changes in the pattern of the blizzard and dived to the side. An instant later, Oblivion sped past her.

"Oh! You have dodged me! Very good! Let's try this."

Elsa noticed changes in the blizzard again and rolled away from the spirit, which descended from the sky and hit the ground hard with its knee.

"All right! Interesting!" It said before disappearing again.

Elsa knew that time was working against her, that sooner or later her resistance would fail, so she decided to play her cards at once. As soon as she detected the change in the flow of the wind, she waved her hand and a whole series of small ice balls that floated everywhere in the blizzard were drawn towards her at full speed. The spirit appeared in front of her and Elsa received its attack as best as she could: a brutal punch to the pit of the stomach that sent her flying through the air and almost made her lose consciousness. An instant later, all those ice shards slammed directly into the spirit from all directions, unleashing heartbreaking screams of pain.

The blizzard stopped because of the loss of strength of Elsa, who gasped on the ground with difficulty, hunched over. The snow settled slowly as the Arendellian tried to regain strength to see what had happened to the spirit. She, Astrid, and Fury had been gathering tears so that she could carry out that attack in case things got too bad, and she wanted to know if it had worked or not.

One hand grabbed her loosely by her hair and pulled her upward, forcing her to stand up. With ragged breathing, Elsa could see Anna bleeding from various parts of her body and her face contorted with fury.

"Damn girl! The game is over!"

It released her and Elsa fell back to the ground, on her knees. The spirit crouched down from her and it put a hand on her head. Without any warning, that excruciating pain that she felt the previous time returned to flood her body and her mind, unable to do anything more than try to resist that force that invaded her.

In her delirium, Elsa could see the four spirits in front of her and how they darkened, one by one, until all four were mere shadows of what they were.

* * *

Astrid snorted as she finished climbing the wall of ice that Elsa had created, and as she did so, she saw her friend totally subjugated to Anna, who was visibly damaged. Four colored lights fluttered rapidly around her, gathering strength with each passing moment. Without thinking of anything else, Astrid slid down as fast as she could and ran towards them, ax in hand, ready to help her friend. The spirit, seeing her arrive, extended her free hand and a greenish liquid gushed out of it that seemed to dissolve all that it touched. Astrid, used to similar attacks from some dragons, quickly drew her shield and protected herself with it while kept running. She knew that her shield wouldn't last long, so she put all her efforts to overcome that force that was pushing her back. When she felt that she was already close enough to them, she cocked the shield to deflect the abrasive blast to one side and immediately lunged the other way. She rolled on the ground and took advantage of the momentum to take a great leap swinging her ax towards the spirit, which had no choice but to back away to avoid losing the arm that linked it to Elsa.

The Arendellian fell to the ground, breathing with difficulty, and Astrid placed herself in front of her, protecting her with her body, in a defiant attitude.

The spirit considered the situation. It had suffered damage too, more than it was willing to admit, and actually, it already had what it wanted, so it chose to withdraw. It whistled for Toothless, who was still fighting a fierce battle with Fury on the sky.

The dragon reacted immediately to that call, ignoring Fury and diving towards the spirit to pick it up. Fury, unwilling to let him escape, launched an attack into the air and through it, reappearing an instant later ahead of Toothless, but instead of facing him, she flew at full speed towards the spirit while preparing the most powerful attack she could throw. As soon as she was close enough, she shot her projectile at Anna. Or rather, she tried. At the last moment, Toothless struck the dragon from above, knocking her down and causing her to miss the shot. Fury rolled on the ground with a crash until she hit the wall of ice, where she lay on the ground, senseless. Toothless, oblivious to everything, landed on the ground next to the spirit and lowered his body to make it easier for the spirit to climb onto his back.

"You are insistent, I admit it, but I am sorry to tell you it is too late," Oblivion told them as it climbed on Toothless's back. The four lights floated gently around it. "And now, if you will excuse me, I have to... convince these little buddies to lend me their strength."

Astrid charged in a desperate attempt to stop it, but Toothless launched a small projectile that, while not very powerful, was strong enough to knock the Viking down and leave her bruised to the ground.

The dragon flapped its wings and began to gain height little by little.

Hiccup, from the top of the ice wall, extended his arm, pointing the harpoon that coming out of his bracelet. He had finished it in a hurry and hadn't been able to calibrate it right, so he wasn't sure if it would work or not, but he had no choice. He took a deep breath and waited as Toothless and the spirit, oblivious to his presence, went higher.

"Come on, come on, come on, come on..." Hiccup whispered impatiently.

At last, he saw a clear shot and, without hesitation, he pressed a spring and the harpoon flew through the air towards Toothless, piercing the membrane of his tail that shouldn't be there and leaving behind the trail of a rope that now linked the dragon and the Viking.

"I did it?" Hiccup said incredulously. "I did it!"

Hiccup raised his arms in victory.

Toothless whipped his tail hard and the Viking was thrown to the ground by the force of the tug on his arm. Quickly pulling himself together, he gripped the small rope tightly and wrapped it around his hands to keep it from coming loose. Afterward, he pulled hard on it.

"Bud! You have to resist! Do you hear me?!" He yelled at him as the dragon continued to stir in the air.

Hiccup was shaken several times, but he always found a way to get up and keep pulling while he kept talking to his friend.

"What are you doing?" The spirit scolded the dragon." Stop this nonsense and let's go at once!"

Toothless obeyed and Hiccup slowly left the ground. Taking advantage of gravity, he jerked with all his weight, and, finally, he felt that membrane loosen a little. Toothless stopped, stunned.

"Fly, damn it! Fly!"

Hiccup didn't stop pulling.

"Come on, Bud! Almost there!"

The tail detached, faster and faster, until it was practically loose and, the more detached it was, the more confused Toothless was due to the loss of control that the spirit exerted on him, so he began to fly much more erratically.

"I love you, Toothless!" Hiccup yelled at him just before flexing his arms, lifting his body, to drop him down hard. "Come back to us, please!"

The false tail gave way to that last tug, parting completely and disappearing in a wisp of smoke.

Hiccup fell to the ground, rolling. Since the rope was long, he was actually relatively close to the ground, so the fall hardly hurt him. Lying face down on the ground, he looked up to see Toothless, who was shaking his head as he lurched from side to side as his mind gradually freed itself from the influence of the spirit and regained consciousness. Oblivion, barely able to hold onto the dragon, felt its hands slipping from the chair and its body falling into the void.

That was bad, very bad. The spirit saw again the fall it was suffering and knew that it would probably be fatal. It was bad to do without that body, since it was royalty, but it thought that it still had King Kristoff in its possession, so it decided to leave Anna and transport itself to any other puppet it had. It wasn't sure what would happen if it stayed there when she died, but it wasn't about to find out. It concentrated and tried to search for the closest human within reach to transport itself to, but found no one.

"What the...?"

It looked around, from on high, and then it understood everything. The allied army had allowed themselves to be surrounded with the sole purpose of separating it from the rest of its army, keeping them at a distance far enough to prevent it from escaping as it was trying now. In addition, Elsa's wall had blocked its view of all this and, at the same time, she had been expanding it as her army was moving away, preventing them from regaining the ground they won.

"Damn you, Elsa!" It screamed as it fell, accompanied by the light of the forest spirits, hovering around it.

The wind ruffled Anna's hair, gravity pulling relentlessly, and panic seized every part of its being. It tried again and again to locate one of its puppets until it, in despair, screamed with all its might.

Anna's body hit the ground with such a sharp blow that it shook everyone present, who couldn't do more than watch with a heavy heart that fatal outcome.

Chapter Text

17.

Elsa saw Anna slip off Toothless's back and, drawing her strength from weakness, tried to create a cushion of snow just below her, but judging by the sound of the impact, it was insufficient. Through the ground, she could feel the vibration of her sister's body hitting the ground, kicking up a fine cloud of powdered snow; she could hear the crunch of bones that accompanied him; and, above all, she could feel her heart, breaking into a thousand pieces.

Time seemed to stop for everyone.

Elsa went completely still, rigid, out of breath, unable to assimilate what had just happened. How should she feel? How should she react? What should she do? Her world had just changed forever, and sadly this time an act of true love couldn't fix it. Feeling her vision blur from her tears, she slowly relaxed her muscles and dropped to the ground. Her pain was so great, so unbearable, that she simply disconnected to feel nothing. She closed her eyes and abandoned herself to the darkness.

"Pfew! So close!"

Elsa opened her eyes on sheer instinct, hardly aware of it.

"Oh, poor Anna! Ugh... what a horrible way to die! Lucky that I have been able to escape in time."

Elsa saw a humanoid-shaped shadow tapping her sister's body with her foot as four small lights gently orbited it.

"Anyway... time to move on!"

The darkness within her completely disappeared, replaced by a sudden fury that ran through her entire body. The pain, the frustration, the tiredness... everything disappeared. She got to her feet with the help of Astrid, who had just reached her side, though Elsa hardly noticed her. In her mind, there was only one thing: to wipe that monstrosity from the face of the Earth.

"Come on, let's finish it," Astrid told her, gripping her ax hard.

"No!" Elsa snapped, blocking the Viking with her hand. "Stay out of this."

Her apparently serene tone exuded a hatred so deep that it made Astrid unable to reply. She backed away until she met Hiccup. A glacial cold spread rapidly in the environment and the Vikings could feel their muscles numb, so they moved a little further to avoid freezing.

Elsa, her body thrown forward and her head bowed, stretched her arms back, took a deep breath, and then clawed hard at the air, throwing her arms in front of her in a perfect cross. Thin threads of ice came out of her fingers and joined to form a web that was advancing at full speed. The shadow had no time to react and could only cover itself with its arms.

That web went through it without doing a scratch, since Elsa hadn't used any tears to create them.

"What a scare you have given me, Elsa! For a moment I thought my end had come!"

By the time the shadow realized that those threads had become entangled in the lights of the forest spirits, it was too late. It tried to hastily cut them, but before it even touched them, the powerful bolt of magic Elsa had launched through the threads struck the spirits hard, freeing them from their bonds.

"Please, help me," Elsa asked.

The lights flew quickly to her, settling on her back. Then, slowly, they introduced in the body of the Arendellian. The symbol of the flower of the five spirits appeared on Elsa's forehead, glowing.

"Oh, come now!" The shadow complained.

Elsa opened her eyes and shot herself into the spirit, propelled by a sudden blast of air, as an ice sword materialized in her hands just in time to deliver a powerful thrust. The shadow stopped her with its bare arms without difficulty.

"Wow... I was expecting more, to be honest," it said, somewhat disappointed. "Not too bad, but still..."

Elsa's sword suddenly burst into flames that engulfed the shadow. It was forced to retreat before the circle of fire closed around it.

"That is better."

Elsa launched herself on the attack again with another powerful and very fast attack, even more than the previous one. The shadow could block her again, but the Arendellian didn't give it respite and she kept attacking again and again, increasing her speed more and more, looking for any corner or fissure in that impenetrable defense. As she attacked, as she grew accustomed to the magic of the forest spirits, her attacks became faster and more accurate, and the shadow soon began to have serious trouble defending itself. Finally, Elsa managed to sneak a quick punch through the shadow guard, hitting its face directly and throwing it back hard until it slammed into the wall of ice around them.

"What?!" The stunned shadow said when it felt a tremendous pain in its being.

Elsa just lunged for it again, oblivious to anything but this death fight, and the shadow pulled away from her just in time to avoid another blow that shook the foundations of that thick wall.

The spirit didn't understand how a naked blow could affect it so much, but it was clear to it that it must take this battle seriously if it wanted to survive. Before Elsa charged again, it decided to get ahead of her and harnessed the powers of the spirit of corrosion to launch a wave of acid against her. However, she impassively launched herself towards that wall of destruction, crossing it easily thanks to a rock shield that completely enveloped her for a few moments. As soon as she put one foot back on the ground, she jumped into the shadow ready to launch a strong kick. Oblivion dodged her and counterattacked with some vines that caught the girl's feet in the hope of slowing her down a bit, but she disposed of them with a quick fireblast without even flinching to launch herself once more time against the spirit. The shadow slapped its hand on the ground until it reached the ground beneath the snow. A large amount of sand billowed out of it and swirled over it, spinning at full speed and making a high-pitched, deadly sound. With a gesture, that whirlpool flew straight towards Elsa, who simply surrounded herself with water to wet the sand and cause it to fall back to the ground, disabling the attack.

"Alright... Now you pissed me off..."

The spirit clapped its hands hard, then slowly spread its hands, as if it cost horrors. An electrical blast formed between them and a multi-tailed whip materialized. With it, it launched attack after attack against Elsa, creating powerful bolts that hit the ground and the wall, creating great explosions wherever they fell. Elsa could barely dodge them, but she still kept herself composed.

"Let's get this over," the shadow said in a sinister voice, feeling itself at an advantage.

It raised the whip with both hands and slammed it down on Elsa. Dozens of lightning bolts shot out of it and sped towards the Arendellian. Just when they were about to reach her, a gust of wind came between the lightning and her and redirected the entire electrical storm back to its source. The lightning struck hard at the shadow, which fell to the ground with large holes in its body.

Oblivion had to do a big effort to keep the spirits it had subdued within it. The parts of his body that still remained were reconfigured to regain the humanoid form, although it was now much smaller than before. If it played its cards right, it could still emerge victorious from that situation.

"Alright! Alright!" Said the shadow, resting on one knee and holding its belly with one hand. "You win!"

Elsa showed no mercy. She lunged for it again and kneed it tremendously right in the face, sending it rolling backward. That attack overcame its ability to withstand and some colored lights escaped from its battered body. Its body shrunk again.

"Please, Elsa! Mercy!"

This time it was a kick to the side that caused more lights to leave the spirit's body.

"I beg you... stop now..." it asked with a broken voice.

It knew that it no longer had a chance to win.

Elsa, on the other hand, didn't seem willing to stop, so the spirit decided to play a last trick.

"You know you cannot kill me, right? If you kill me now, I will reborn again in some weak heart. Believe me, I have seen it with other spirits that I have taken... Unintentionally, of course. Learning about your powers stuff, you know. What I mean is that, if we die, sooner or later we are all reborn of our element, and if the world is full of something, it is weak, so please stop this now. If you do, I promise I will get out of here and never come back."

Elsa raised her arms and a great amount of water, fire, earth, air, and ice swirled over her to form an imposing creature similar to a leviathan.

"Elsa, please... Please..."

The shadow could not take its eyes off that creature that slowly opened its jaws, ready to pounce on it at any moment. That's why it didn't see Astrid, sneaking up behind its back until she managed to touch it with a small crystalline vial. Just an instant later, the shadow disappeared and the vial was deeply dark. The Viking hurried to close the bottle.

"In that case, it would be best not to kill it, don't you think, Elsa?" Astrid said joying.

Elsa held still for a few moments, the leviathan hovering above her head, as she searched desperately for the shadow to finish it off. Then she noticed Astrid and, understanding what had just happened, she regained control over herself.

"But, where do you get—?"

"The spirits of the forest," the Viking replied. "We managed to get them from the castle, but as we were coming here they began to vibrate and, when we were looking at what was happening, they fell off and... well, they broke free and these empty jars were left. The point is, we thought it was worth a try."

Astrid shrugged and Elsa couldn't help but a small, incredulous laugh escaping as she fell to her knees, exhausted. The leviathan slowly unraveled.

"Thank goodness..." Elsa said, almost without strength. "I thought I wouldn't be able to hold out."

"I'm sorry," Astrid continued. "I didn't want to rush in and ruin everything."

On the other side of the wall, the shouts of victory from the allied army spread like wildfire. At last, it was all over.

The forest spirits slowly left Elsa's body and materialized in their usual forms, approaching the Arendellian to offer her all their affection.

"Anna..." she suddenly remembered, feeling the weight of reality.

With the help of the water spirit and Astrid, she rose to her feet and clumsily advanced with her heart in a fist towards the place where her sister lay inert.

Chapter Text

18.

Hiccup caught up with them as they were about to reach Anna.

"Fury is fine," he informed them. Then he turned to the Arendellian. "Elsa I..." he said doubtfully. "I am very sorry. I didn't know this would happen. I was just pretending—"

"It's not your fault," the Arendellian replied, shaking her head.

Elsa knelt next to her sister, who was lying on her back with her head on one side, full of wounds and bruises, and with one of her legs in a totally unnatural position. With trembling hands, she made a pretense of caressing her face, but she didn't dare. Her tears welled up in her eyes as she tried to contain everything she felt inside because she had the feeling that, if she just let it go, her pain would end up splitting her in half. Finally, unable to help herself, she pounced on her sister's body and hugged her tightly.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Elsa felt a strong blow to her head and almost lost consciousness. Anna, raging with pain, had risen so fast that the heads of the two sisters had collided with force.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch..." Anna said, sitting on the floor while she put a hand to her head.

"Anna!!!"

Elsa, ignoring her own pain, brought her down again with a new hug.

"Elsa? What are you doing here? Wait ... where are we? Oh my god! My leg! My leg! What happened to my leg?!"

Hiccup and Astrid, on the verge of tears, smiled happily when they saw the two sisters finally reunited.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." Elsa said over and over again.

"Come on, Elsa. Ow! It hurts!"

"I'm sorry I left you alone in command of the kingdom," her sister continued. "I'm sorry you felt pressured that way. Please, forgive me."

"The voice..." Anna seemed to understand suddenly. "What happened?"

Elsa squeezed her tighter, unable to speak.

"Ouch! Seriously, is no one going to take me to the doctor? I need a doctor! My leg hurts a lot!"

"Well..." Hiccup said, lifting his pants. "It could be worse!"

Anna stared at that metal leg for a moment, completely absorbed.

"Okay, seriously. I want to see a doctor now! Please, I don't want to wear one of those... Don't be offended, complete stranger, but it's not my style."

They all laughed heartily and, at last, Elsa broke away from her sister still shaking.

"Yes, let's go," she said to Anna without letting go of his hand. "We will have time to talk and fix things."

* * *

The following days were a real madness, with the kingdom turned upside down, but little by little the people who had been controlled by the spirit were regaining their day-to-day life. The spirits returned to the forest with the Northuldra, and the rest of the spirits that the shadow had controlled were finally set free. Some of them wanted to stay in the magical forest, where the Northuldra welcomed them with open arms. Others, on the other hand, decided to return to their places of origin. The spirit of life, in gratitude for its release, ensured that no one died from injuries sustained in combat before leaving, so there was no loss to mourn.

Anna's leg, which was broken in several places, was repositioned and she needed to lay in bed for a long time. She and Elsa spent many days together, both recovering from everything that happened. Also, they had plenty of time to talk about the kingdom, about the spirit, and about their relationship. Astrid and Hiccup, like the dragons, were also accommodated in the castle. They all deserved and needed a long rest, and now that Elsa had returned the realm to normal temperature, the cold was no longer a danger to the dragons despite still being winter.

Hiccup and Toothless took long flights together, trying again and again a new prosthesis that the Viking had designed for his friend. Astrid was happy to see Hiccup and Toothless together again, but she couldn't help but feel a little jealous. She also wanted to fly with Storm again. Fury, guessing her thoughts, approached her and, after giving her an affectionate touch with her nose, offered her back.

"You sure?"

Fury nodded.

"Okay... let's show those two how to fly."

The dragon gave a defiant roar and took off at full speed after Toothless.

* * *

"Wait, what?" Anna said suddenly. "Hans wasn't evil?"

It was night and they were all in the living room of the castle, illuminated by the light of the lamps. Elsa, Kristoff, and Anna lounged on a couch, Hiccup and Astrid shared an armchair, and Olaf and Sven were sitting on the floor near the fireplace. The only ones not present were the dragons, who had gone out for a night walk.

"Well, we can't be sure of that..." Elsa replied. "What is certain is that the shadow took over him taking advantage of his lust for power, so nothing that happened was actually his fault."

"Oh, wow..."

"Yeah... that same face put his brother when we told him," Astrid laughed.

"And there is more," Elsa continued. "The spirit is the one that has been sabotaging the crops and causing trouble, both in Arendelle and in the enchanted forest. It has been pressing us more and more until it was able to take control."

Anna shrugged a little.

"C'me on, don't think about it anymore," Kristoff told her, wrapping his arms around her. "This has taught us what to improve, and we're already working on it. I promise you, if we argue, we won't part without first arranging it. I'll never leave your side again."

"Well said!" Olaf applauded.

Anna snuggled into her husband's arms, feeling comforted.

"There's something I can't quite understand," Hiccup said. "Why did tears hurt the spirit?"

"It's just a theory," Elsa replied, "but I think it wasn't because of the tears themselves, but because of the feelings. From what it told me, I would say that it is the spirit of weakness, and I think it used the hollows of the heart to gain control; gaps that could be filled with feelings like love or forgiveness. Therefore, if the feeling was strong enough, it was capable of damaging it."

"And that's why you were able to hurt it without weapons!" Astrid exclaimed.

"Exactly... But, as I say, it's just a theory."

The silence fell in the room, a pleasant and warm silence, the kind in which one simply enjoyed the company without needing anything else.

Hiccup felt a little nudge next to him, and as he turned his head he saw Astrid nodding at him.

"Yeah, of course..."

The Viking cleared his throat.

"Well... we've been talking about it, and while we're really comfortable here, we think it's time to get back to our obligations."

"What? Already? But we just met each other!" Anna protested.

"We'd like to stay longer, really," Astrid said softly, "but our people await us."

Anna sighed in defeat. She understood the responsibility of leadership and she knew there was nothing she could do about it.

"When are you leaving?" Asked Olaf.

The Vikings looked at each other.

"Tomorrow morning..." Astrid replied.

"Oh... wow..." Elsa couldn't hide her disappointment.

"We thought it was best to say it with little time, to avoid a long goodbye..." Hiccup said.

"In that case..." said Anna, "let's party tonight! What do you think if we start with a mime session? Hiccup, you start!"

"What? Me? But I don't even know how to read this," he protested as he tried to decipher the paper Olaf was giving him.

"I feel you... I still remember when I couldn't read or write. All that frustration... But don't worry, Hiccup! I will help you! Come closer. What you have to represent is..."

Games and laughter flooded Arendelle's castle that night, where its inhabitants, permanent and passengers, enjoyed the company and friendship they had forged.

* * *

"Do you have everything?" Elsa asked Astrid significantly.

It was daylight and the Vikings and the dragons were finishing their preparations outside the castle, accompanied by the entire town of Arendelle.

"Yeah, relax."

The Viking opened her coat a little to show her the small dark bottle that rested in one of her inner pockets.

"Fine... fine..."

Elsa didn't really know what to do or what to say.

"C'me here..." Astrid told him.

The Viking gave her a long hug and the Arendellian couldn't stop some tears from rolling down her cheeks.

"Take good care of yourselves," Elsa finally said, pulling away from her and taking her hands.

"You too."

"All right! We're ready!" Hiccup exclaimed after finishing tightening a strap on Toothless's chair.

"Time to go, I'm afraid," Astrid told Elsa.

She nodded and couldn't help but squeeze her hands with bright eyes. Astrid understood without the need for words how much she felt that woman.

"You'll find someone and be happy, I promise you."

Elsa gave a laugh in the middle of crying, and they hugged each other again, for the last time.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Hiccup said theatrically, reaching out to them. "You're not trying to steal my wife from me again, are you?"

"Shut up, idiot!" Astrid elbowed him in the ribs so hard she knocked him to the ground, barely breathing.

Despite this, they both laughed heartily and Elsa wished that one day she could find someone with whom she could laugh like that, with whom she shared such complicity and such a love as great as the one she saw in that Viking couple. With a stab of pain, she made up her mind that she must forget the Viking.

After a long and emotional goodbye, Hiccup and Astrid mounted Toothless and Fury, and they took off in the middle of promises of return and goodbyes, cheers, and broken hearts. Elsa and Astrid gave each other one last look, a silent last sentimental goodbye, and the dragons sped off.

Olaf, staring at them as they walked away, sighed.

"Bye, Hiccup..." he said seriously. "Hopefully one day you learn to read and write. Although, anyway I wouldn't know where to send the letters... The world is too big!"

Elsa put an arm around his shoulder, comforting him.

"Come on... let's go back to the castle. I think there is some ice cream cake left."

The snowman was encouraged by the idea of that delicacy and they headed for the castle. Elsa still turned around once more time to watch the Vikings. Then, she took a deep breath, let out the air slowly, and followed the others, turning her back on those two little dots that had practically disappeared on the horizon.

* * *

It didn't take long to leave behind that cold kingdom that had given them so many headaches, as well as so many joys, to lose themselves again in the immensity of the ocean.

As before, they made small stops on the boulders that they encountered on the way to regain strength, happy at the idea of finally returning home. The dragons seemed very clear about where they should go, so the Vikings just let themselves go, enjoying the flight.

They were only interrupted when, mid-journey, they found themselves completely surrounded by water, with no land in sight.

"Is it okay here?" Astrid asked Hiccup.

"That seems perfect to me."

Then the Viking took the small bottle out of her coat and, waving goodbye between giggles, dropped it into the water.

They stood there watching the bottle slowly sink into the depths of the abyss.

"Hopefully no one will be able to find it here," Astrid commented.

"That would really be bad luck!"

Even so, they still stayed a few more minutes before resuming their trip in case they saw anything out of the ordinary.

* * *

It was already dusk when the dragons reached the Viking town, where all the inhabitants went to receive their leaders, surprised to see them on the back of the dragons.

"Well, Bud..." Hiccup said to Toothless, putting their heads together. "Goodbye time."

The dragon returned the fondling gesture eagerly.

"Take good care of yourself and remember that we're here for whatever you need."

The dragon threw itself on him trying to embrace him with its short legs amid the laughter and the complaints of the Viking.

Astrid and Fury watched the scene with amusement.

"They're like kids..."

The dragon rested her huge head on Astrid's shoulder.

"I'm gonna miss you a lot too."

The Viking hugged her and they both enjoyed that moment as they had never imagined.

"Give Stormfly a big hug for me, please," Astrid said as they pulled away. "And tell her that I miss her so much."

The dragon gave her an affectionate blow with her head. Then the Vikings released the dragons from their mount chairs, and after another quick hug, Astrid and Hiccup, holding hands, watched as their friends took flight and were lost in the darkness of the already growing night.

When it began to get cold, both went to the tavern ready to devour a succulent dinner with their friends. There, amid laughter and stumbling of food, the village chiefs recounted their adventures for the enjoyment of those present.

"Looks like you guys had a good honeymoon," Hiccup's mother told them.

Her hands searched under the table until they met, intertwining their fingers. They had flown to a distant realm, fought an all-out war against forces they didn't even understand to help their friends, new and old alike, and they had finally returned home much more united than before.

The Vikings looked into each other's eyes.

"The best of all."

Chapter Text

Extra

Looks like Hiptoff has created a sequel of this story! So, if you liked this one, take a look at "The Viking's thing"!
https://archiveofourown.info/works/30464982/chapters/75122208

Thank you, Hiptoff!!