Chapter Text
Astrid and Stoick flew all night, finally returning to Berk in the early afternoon hours. They were all exhausted.
Skullcrusher and Stormfly set down to much acclaim. The villagers cheered as they dismounted, only for Stoick to hush them a moment later. Hiccup was asleep in his arms.
Astrid smiled at the sight.
Hiccup had been crucial in the trip back. He’d slept off and on a bit, but while he was awake, he’d chattered about his capture. It kept them awake, and they were able to fly all night.
She could have sworn she saw him flying Skullcrusher while Stoick slept sitting up, but it might have just been Skullcrusher acting on instinct.
Astrid slipped off her saddle, and then pulled the Sleeping Toothless down into her arms.
“Finally,” Snotlout snarked. “Took you long enough!”
Astrid gave Toothless a little squeeze, which made him cough a small fireball in Snotlout’s direction.
“Ah ah ah!!” Snotlout danced around, trying to put out the flames while Toothless purred in amusement.
“Oh, yuck it up!”
Heather grabbed Snotlout by the ear and yanked him away. “While we were waiting for you guys, we worked on the potion. Gothi got it started!”
“Yeah, and I was worried all my hard work would go to waste,” Snotlout snarked.
Astrid wielded Toothless like a weapon.
“It was a joke! Don’t get your pauldrons in a twist…”
Astrid groaned in annoyance. “I’m too tired for this…”
“Then you’re not going to like this part,” Heather winced. “We still haven’t figured out what the last ingredient is.”
Astrid yawned. “Sagefruit.”
“What?”
Astrid went back to Stormfly and took one of the green fruits from the crate still strapped to her back. “Sagefruit. The Defenders of the Wing use them to keep dragons calm.”
Heather turned the fruit over in her hands as she thought it over. “It makes sense, at least…it’s the only thing that does.”
“Doesn’t to me,” Snotlout huffed.
“That’s because you’re a dumb moron,” Astrid snapped back.
“Wow, you need a nap.”
“Yeah, I do.” She sighed. She spotted Stoick carrying Hiccup back to their house. Not much else for her to do, or able to do. “Heather, could you take this to Gothi?”
“Happy to!”
“Snotlout, can you take Stormfly’s tackle off?”
“Why do I gotta?”
“Because I haven’t slept in 40 hours. That’s why.”
“I suppose I can’t argue with that…”
—-
After much needed rest, Astrid met up with the other Riders and went to the chief’s house. Gothi was already there, stirring a cauldron over the fire.
Hiccup sat on a stool, kicking his feet back and forth.
“Is it ready?” Astrid asked.
The old woman nodded.
“Auh we habing soup?” Hiccup asked, eyes wide in innocence.
“No,” said Stoick with a little smile. “We made a special drink for you and Toothless.”
Toothless perked up from his spot under the stool, his tail thumping on the ground in excitement.
“Is it yummy?”
“Maybe. You’ll be a big boy and try it, right?”
Hiccup didn’t seem so sure, just quirked his lips to the side.
Gothi poured a generous portion into the mouth of a fish, treating it like a vessel. Then she waved it at Toothless who leapt and swallowed it in a gulp.
He burped shortly after and flopped on the ground, his eyes heavy.
So far, so good.
Gothi served up the next portion in a cup and handed it off to Stoick.
“Here you go, son. Made just for you.”
Hiccup lost all intrigue and excitement he had as he looked at the concoction. Astrid didn’t blame him. It was a baby puke green and thick.
It also smelled quite pungent, as the Sagefruit and garlic did not combine well.
“Don’t want it,” Hiccup frowned hard.
Astrid sighed, not expecting the roadblock in curing Hiccup would be Hiccup himself. “Come on, buddy, I’m sure it tastes better than it looks.”
“We can have something tasty after, okay?” Said Fishlegs. “I’ll make fresh cookies.”
Hiccup didn’t respond, too busy watching the potion burp out a bubble.
“Just this cup, and you never have to drink it again,” Astrid pressed.
“Don’t want it,” he said more firmly. “Icky!”
“Hiccup,” Stoick became firm. “You’re going to drink this.”
That was decidedly not the right thing to say as Hiccup cried out, “I don’t wanna!” He threw his arm back, ready to throw the cup. Stoick grabbed his wrist, preventing the potion from being completely wasted, but a portion did slosh out and onto the floor.
“Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III,” Stoick snapped.
Astrid felt her spine snap to attention while the others in the room immediately sat on the floor, criss-cross applesauce with their hands folded in their laps.
An immediate reaction to hearing that tone from Stoick the Vast.
Hiccup pouted, tears in his eyes threatening a full blown tantrum.
Stoick spoke in a calm tone, one that while gentle, carried a weight that shook the room. “Young man, we do not throw cups. You know better.”
The pout didn’t waver.
“Sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to do, especially for our loved ones. You are sick, Hiccup, and this drink is going to make you better. You may not want to, but you need to. So you are going to, and you will thank Miss Gothi for making it for you, understand?”
Hiccup deflated, and hung his head. “Yeah…”
Stoick let go of his wrist, and Hiccup obediently held out the cup for Gothi to refill it.
“Tank you, Miss Gofee.”
Then it was back to the beginning, where Hiccup was staring at the cup of bubbling fluid with disdain.
“Plug your nose,” Heather said helpfully. “It will cut the taste.”
Hiccup plugged his nose and then started to chug the drink. A couple of gulps in, he stopped and had to take a break. His face twisted up in a grimace.
“Keep going,” Stoick urged.
He took another gulp and swallowed, as his face turned green. “Ugh…”
“Almost done,” Astrid encouraged.
He clenched his eyes shut and downed the rest of the cup in haste. Then he handed the empty cup to Stoick, still holding his eyes shut tight as he fought through the nausea.
“Look!” Dagur pointed to Toothless, who had passed out on the floor. In the time that they’d been persuading Hiccup to drink, Toothless had already doubled in size.
“It’s working!” Fishlegs cheered.
“I don’ feel so good…” Hiccup muttered before he burped. “Uuugh…” He tipped forward, eyes heavy, only to be caught by Stoick.
Gothi elaborated in writing, “it will take a little bit for the transformation to reverse, but he needs to be undressed, lest he hurt himself.”
Stoick laid Hiccup’s unconscious body on the bear skin rug and threw a blanket over him for cover. Then he stripped him naked.
All that was left to do was wait.
Snotlout and Dagur nudged Toothless around, as he was growing bigger and threatened to move into the hearth or squish into furniture.
Hiccup started to grow too, just slightly. His hair visibly grew, as his limbs stretched, just a subtle shift.
“Fascinating,” Fishlegs said, staring intently.
Astrid watched as her friend went from a toddler, to a child, to pre-teen, to—
It was startling to see that face again. The version of him that only existed in her memories and one painting in the Great Hall. This was the version of Hiccup that fought tooth and nail for acceptance. This version trained the first dragon, and taught her how to fly. He risked his life, and saved Berk from destruction.
This version almost died, and came out of it without a leg.
It made her emotional, sentimental, and she took his hand from where it was hidden under the blankets.
As his hair had grown long, so too did his fingernails. But she paid little mind as she held his hand. It was dainty and small, lacking the callouses from the years of blacksmithing.
His hair and nails kept inching longer, with little change to his face. A few chin hairs grew, but not much else.
Then she remembered that this phase lasted a long time. Many people feared this was his final state and puberty hadn’t been kind. The other teens had grown leaps and bounds ahead of him, while he was trapped at this size.
Then the growth spurt kicked in.
Compared to the subtle shifts before, this growth was dizzying. The planes of his face shifted as baby fat gave way to chiseled cheeks and jaw. The blanket shifted as he grew tall like a tree. His arms and legs lengthened and shoulders widened. The hand in hers grew wider, the fingers longer with knobby knuckles and veins on the back standing out.
By time the changes stopped, his hair was the length of Astrid’s and he had a patchy beard. His muscle tone had diminished, as the curse had left its mark. All the hard work he’d done was gone, and he was left gaunt, thin, and skeletal.
But a man.
His chest rose and fell as he slept, strong breaths indicating he was healthy.
He just looked weak.
Astrid ran her thumb over the back of his hand, daring to hope. “Hiccup?”
His eyes twitched, wakefulness coming slowly. “…Mom?” He murmured in a deep voice.
Astrid swallowed thickly, worried what that might mean.
He frowned as his nose crinkled. “No…that’s not right…”
“Yeah, no mom here.”
He blinked a few times and looked around. “Where—? Ughhh my head.”
Hearing him speak without a speech impediment and his deepened voice made Astrid’s heart sing. Oh how she’d missed him! He’d been right here, but not the same.
“I assume growing fifteen years in fifteen minutes would be quite a headache,” said Fishlegs.
Hiccup tried to move, but groaned in pain. “Oh gods! Everything is sore!”
“Growing pains,” Tuffnut nodded sagely. “I remembered those days.”
Astrid placed a hand on his chest and forced him to lay still. “Your body just had a complete transformation, you should rest.”
“I feel like I got sandwiched between a Quaken and a Rumblehorn.”
Toothless groaned in agreement from his side of the house. He was sprawled out with a pile of scales circling him.
“You look weird,” Ruffnut commented.
Astrid was inclined to agree, slightly. He looked…fresh. His hair was dark, and his skin pale and soft. He still had freckles, but they were faint. He was missing the years of sun and toiling that worn and shaped his body.
He was different. Strange. Not bad at all, just different. She had hoped that the potion would have reversed everything and it would be like nothing happened, but that wasn’t the case. The curse left…scars, for lack of a better word.
Hiccup raised his freehand and scratched his cheek, or attempted to as he nearly poked his eye out with his long nails. “Ew…”
Dagur chuckled. “You’re worried about the wrong thing, brother. You should see how thin you are! I could snap you over my knee like a stick!”
Hiccup raised his arm up into the air, shaking as he did so. He groaned as he caught sight of the size. He was always thin, but now he was super extra thin.
“So we stuff you full of food and double the sparring,” Astrid smirked. “And double duty in the forge.”
Hiccup whined as his head plonked on the floor. “Woooorrrkkkk…”
Stoick took one of his hands and started trimming his god-awful long nails for him. “You’ll be back to normal in no time, son.”
Gothi added her insight onto the floor. “Both of them will be weak for a few days. It will take some time before the mental changes to completely fade. You may see some childish attributes come through every once in a while. It won’t last long.”
“Oh so now he’s a big baby!” Snotlout joked.
“Don’t call me that,” Hiccup whined.
“Big baby, big baby!”
Hiccup’s face scrunched up and Astrid wondered if he might actually start crying.
Heather smacked Snotlout on the back of the head instead.
“Owie!”
“The only big baby around here is you, Snotlout.”
Hiccup chuckled weakly as he watched the exchange, a fond smile coming over his face. Then he muttered to himself, “‘Tupid.”
—-
Hiccup was up two days later, though he was moving more like an old man than an 18 year old. When he’d first lost his leg, he’d initially used Toothless to lean on to get around (when he wasn’t flying). In order to learn how to walk properly with the prosthetic, he’d used a wooden frame to support his weight, a walker.
He was glad he never got rid of it, as it made getting around now easier.
He sat in the Great Hall with the gang, waiting for dinner.
Astrid was busy braiding his long hair in elaborate plaids.
“You know I’m not going to keep it this length, right?” He asked.
“I figured, but this will keep it out of the way until we cut it.”
Ruffnut giggled. “Just admit that the effects of the curse haven’t worn off you yet and you still feel the need to baby him.”
“He’s weak, Ruff, I’m just trying to help.”
“Oh, she wears denial well,” Tuffnut snickered, as the rest of the table giggled.
Ruffnut wasn’t wrong at all. Astrid had been far too eager to help Hiccup wherever he needed it. She’d even been the one to shave his beard. Though she didn’t hate the look entirely. It was pretty thin and patchy though. Maybe in a few years he’d grow something fitting of ‘The Dragon Master’.
“It’s okay, Astrid,” Hiccup said lightly. “You helped me out so much the last week or so. I’m sure it’s hard to just turn that off.”
“Hm,” she bit her lip.
“And I am rather pathetic right now, so your help is appreciated.”
“You aren’t pathetic!” She argued.
“Uhhh…” he looked at his walker, parked next to the table. “If you say so.”
Soon, the food was ready and dishes were passed around. Hiccup took a normal sized portion of bread, meat and cheese, only for everyone else to stack his plate with even more.
“I can’t eat all that,” he protested.
“You can’t leave the table until you clean your plate, mister!” Tuffnut pointed.
Hiccup rolled his eyes. “I see Astrid’s not the only one treating me like a child…” He muttered.
“What was that?”
“Nothing! Nothing…”
They chatted while they ate, making plans to return to the Edge. Dagur finally asked about how this all happened, which everyone contributed to explaining.
A line of gravy ran down Hiccup’s chin.
“Oh,” Astrid took a handkerchief and wiped his face clean. “There we go.”
Hiccup stared at her with raised brows as the rest of the table set off in stifled giggles.
She blushed. “Problem?!”
“Mother Hen! Mother Hen!” Snotlout and the twins started chanting.
Normally, threats worked to deter their teasing, but Astrid was so flustered, she just stammered out a weak protest.
“Mother Hen!” Snotlout laughed harder, gaining attention from other tables.
Astrid threw down the handkerchief and stormed out of the Great Hall.
Hiccup was fine now. He didn’t need her. Even if he was recovering, anyone else could help him. He didn’t need her.
He never did.
Even when he was cursed, she coddled him instead of just lending a hand. She saw him so helpless, she couldn’t bear to not smother him.
It didn’t help that he was so cute too.
She settled on the cliffside, sitting in the grass. The sun was about to set, and she watched it go down.
Stormfly trotted over and sat at her side.
“Hey girl.”
She squawked back.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just…embarassed.” Astrid laid her hand on her dragon’s horn and gently rubbed. “I didn’t know I had that behavior in me, and now I can’t shake it.”
An idea came to her, one that would probably work, though it would hurt quite a bit. It was for the best though, for her and Hiccup.
After dinner, the gang moved from the Great Hall to the watch tower to have a bonfire, like old times. Hiccup slowly climbed the stairs, and arrived out of breath, but he did it on his own.
Astrid appeared late, and offered no excuses.
“Look who finally came back!” Snotlout grinned, before being elbowed.
“There you are!” Hiccup smiled at her.
She didn’t sit down, didn’t join them. Instead, she just announced. “I’m going to bed early. Stormfly and I are going back to the Edge at dawn.”
“What? Why?”
“Someone has to go out there.”
“But—” Hiccup protested.
“We’ve been away long enough. I can handle things myself.”
“It’ll be a few weeks still before Toothless and I are strong enough to make the trip…and that’s if we plan to stop a few times on the way.”
“I know,” Astrid nodded. “But…I’m just anxious to get back.”
Tuffnut spoke up, “Oooohhhh, I see what’s going on! Astrid needs space from Hiccup so she stops seeing him like a baby, huh?”
Astrid glared at him.
Ruffnut shoved him. “You’re not supposed to say that part out loud, doofus.”
Hiccup visibly swallowed, guilt all over his face. It was clear that the idea didn’t sit well with him as his eyes glittered in the light. “You’re really going?”
“Yes.”
“...I don’t want you to.”
“I figured.”
“Momma’s boy,” Snotlout muttered.
Astrid took a sharp inhale, before responding. “Well, goodnight!”
She turned tail and left, despite Hiccup’s pleading otherwise.
—-
In the early hours of the morning, before the sun had even properly risen and the sky was just starting to lighten, Astrid arrived at the stables with her bag.
“Hey girl, ready to fly back? We don’t have to rush this time. Plenty of stops!”
Stormfly chirped and fetched her saddle all on her own.
“Oh so you’re eager to fly now, huh? Guess you’re all rested up!”
She buckled the saddle and got everything all prepped to go, and led Stormfly out into the morning light.
Hiccup was waiting for her right outside.
She sighed. “You’re here to stop me, huh?”
“I thought I’d try, but I can’t tackle you to the ground. Best I can do is beg.”
“You’d beg?”
He nodded. “Please don’t leave, Astrid.”
“It’s not forever. I’ll see you in like, a month.”
“That’ll be the longest we’ve been apart in years.”
She gave him a stern look. “Do you hear yourself right now? We can be apart. It’s not that big of a deal.”
“What if I need you?”
“You won’t.”
“But—”
“Hiccup,” she said sternly. “I’m not your mom.”
“I never said you were,” though there was clear pain in his voice as he responded.
“So why would you need me? I’m your friend, yes, and we depend on each other a lot, but I need space.”
“Did I do something?”
“No.”
“Then why—?”
“Damn it, Hiccup! Not everything is about you! This is about me!”
He stared at her, letting her explain.
“I can’t…I need to stop coddling you. The others are right. I am a Mother Hen. If I’m around you, I’ll default to treating you like a toddler again. It’s not healthy.”
“Oh…” he looked at the ground.
“And you need to stop looking to me to fill that motherly role. Your dad will be here to help you. I’m not abandoning you.”
“It…kind of feels like it.”
“Hiccup…”
“Will you at least give me a hug goodbye?”
She was so tempted to say yes and give into his simple request, but she shook her head no.
His lips trembled as big emotions stirred up.
Astrid had to fight the impulse to run, to hug, to sooth, to comfort. Instead, she just said, “you should probably fight that. This isn’t something to get worked up over.”
He hastily wiped his eyes, a blush covering his cheeks. “Y-yeah, sorry…”
“It’s fine. So…see you later?”
He nodded, but said nothing else, as it was obvious he hadn’t been able to win in the fight with his emotions.
Astrid just gave him a small smile, then mounted up and departed.
—-
A month later, Astrid paced the Edge’s platforms stir-crazed. She had done everything to keep busy. Repairs, cleaning, organizing, mucking the stalls, and she’d restocked the food stores from Fishlegs’ garden and the lake. She organized the forge and performed the dragon census a few times.
She’d even built a lighthouse out of sheer boredom.
Well, not boredom, because she could always train. But training led to thinking, and thinking led to…
The roar of a Nightfury led her eyes to the skies.
There, she could see the gang flying in, returning home.
“Oh Odin preserve me.” Her heart rate sped up and she started to sweat. And she hadn’t even seen him yet, for Thor’s sake!
Still, she played it cool as she leisurely made her way down to the landing strip.
They were there when she arrived. “Hey, welcome back.”
“Oh it’s good to be back!” Snotlout said dramatically. “I missed having some real independence!”
Hiccup leapt from Toothless’ saddle and stretched. She noted, happily, that he didn’t need a walker to stand. His hair was still long and tied back in the intricate braids she gave him, though they were messy now, and needed to be redone. He’d filled out a little, putting on some weight in all the right places. It looked like Snotlout and Dagur were keeping him trained in her absence. His skin even had some color back, indicating plenty of time in the sun.
“Looks like you’ve been busy. Everything good?”
She sighed in relief at how normal he sounded. Things were back to the way they should have been. “Yep! Everything is fine. Not a single ship spotted.”
“What’s with the lighthouse?” Tuffnut asked.
“Personal project. Thought it was a good idea.”
“I like it,” Hiccup nodded, pleased. “I hope you won’t be offended if I make some tweaks. You know, make it easier to light and extinguish in a pinch.”
“Fine with me.”
“Great!” Chirped Dagur. “Now that everything is settled, why don’t you share the good news?!”
“Huh? Oh yeah!”
“What good news?” Astrid frowned.
“The revenge we’re going to get on Viggo!” Dagur laughed manically. “We talked about it on the way here! It’s so great!”
Astrid winced. “Are we sure that this wasn’t revenge in the first place? Should we poke the bear?”
“Oh absolutely. We're stabbing this bear,” Hiccup said, quite insistently.
“Whoa, violence! Rare from you.”
“You’ll understand when you see this.” He pulled out a piece of paper from his satchel and handed it to her.
She recognized it immediately. “I found this in the ship we gutted. I gave it to Tuffnut to give to you. Did you figure out what it is?”
“It took me a little while. At first I wasn’t sure, then when I showed it to everyone, Heather noted that this little symbol in the corner is stamped onto the Hunter’s gold. It’s also…” he took out a map from his saddle bag. “On this map that Viggo gave us, you know, the one that got us in trouble with Mala?”
“Yeah?” She took a closer look at the paper. He pointed at an island that had the symbol on it, but it was so small, it could have been mistaken for illustrated grass or rocks. “Mmmm…I guess that’s the same. So what, that island has the Hunter’s gold stores on it? It’ll be armed to the teeth then.”
“That’s probably why Viggo didn’t bother removing it from the map. He figured if we figured this much out, we’d stay away. Or, he set up an area to look like Gold Stores, but booby-trap it instead.”
“Sounds convoluted, but that’s Viggo’s M.O. these days.” She glanced back at the other paper. “What does that have to do with this? Viggo’s taking notes about a viking ruin there?”
“Even as a child, I could tell it was a blueprint. They built that structure to look old.”
“...to hide their gold! I bet we would have looked right over it! When do we go investigate?”
Hiccup started rolling his map back up. “Now. We took our time getting here. Our dragons are well rested. All we needed was to pick up you and Stormfly, and then we’re going to hit them.”
She grinned widely. “Then let me just grab my axe!”
—-
The island wasn’t that far from the Edge, at least in comparison to Berk. The way there, they discussed how they would transfer the gold back, how they would divide it up, and what they’d use it for.
That devolved into arguing, as usual.
Astrid stayed out of it, figuring they (Snotlout and the Twins) would tire themselves out eventually. She kept glancing back at Hiccup, who kept combing his hair out of his face.
“I thought you were going to cut it?” She asked, smirking.
“I had every intention to. But the only man with scissors I trust around my head is my father, and he didn’t know how to cut hair. I asked a couple of the ladies and they all said the same thing, ‘who usually cuts your hair?’”
“Me,” Astrid grinned.
“Exactly, so they told me just to wait. I almost chopped it myself, but I know how mad you got the last time I did.”
“Because you don’t even look in the mirror! It was all choppy and uneven and diagonal!”
He chuckled. “See, I knew you were going to bring that up.”
“I can trim it when we get back to the Edge. I can see you’re not growing used to it.”
“I don’t know how the twins do it.”
—-
The stone ruins were made of gold, coated in a grout to look solid. Astrid had assumed a treasure chest would be buried beneath them, but this was more than she could dream of.
As the Riders disassembled the structure and put the gold into crates and barrels for transport, Hiccup took a break to sit on a rock and write a note.
At first, Astrid just assumed he was doing the math and figuring out how much gold should go to Berk and how much to their allies, but then she saw it was a message. “Whatcha writing?”
“Just a little note to throw Viggo off our trail, and get a little extra revenge myself.”
Astrid looked over his shoulder as he finished and nailed the note to a rock left behind where the ruins used to be.
‘Krogan,
You were right. The gold was exactly where you said. This should make up for that bounty child that got away. I’ll have your portion in the usual cache in the Northern Markets.
-Amaund Gustovson’
“Who’re these people?”
“Child traffickers.”
“Ah. I see.”
Once things started to wrap up, Dagur lifted a crate onto his shoulder and approached the group. “Well friends, this has been an incredible few weeks. When I came to the Edge, I was not expecting this wild of an adventure.”
“You say that like you’re leaving,” Astrid noted.
“I am. I came looking for help to find Heather, I found her. Now, I just have to find Oswald.”
“We have to find him,” Heather added. “I’m going with.”
Fishlegs stood at her side and held her hand in solidarity.
“Dagur and I talked it out. The Dragon Riders have been the closest thing to a home I’ve had in years. I’m grateful, and I love all of you. But there’s something to be said about blood family. I want to know my roots, where I come from.”
“We understand,” Hiccup said with a nod. “Just don’t be a stranger.”
“I don’t plan to.”
“Am I allowed to come back too?” Dagur asked, almost pouting.
“I’d say you’ve proven your trustworthiness. Thanks for almost rescuing me,” Hiccup smirked.
Dagur fumed. “If I had noticed a second earlier, it wouldn’t have happened! When I find that hooded man, I’ll throttle him! How dare he hurt my little nephew–brother—whoever you are!”
“We’ll find him. He was desperate to get into Viggo’s good graces. I’m sure he’ll try again.”
“And we’re ready to help. Don’t hesitate to send for us. I think I owe you,” Dagur smiled sheepishly.
While it was a jest, Hiccup stated very seriously, “Yeah, you owe me a few favors, I think.”
It was bittersweet to see them go. Astrid had grown really close to Heather and it was nice to have another girl (besides Ruffnut) on the Edge. And even Dagur had been a great help recently.
He had also made things a lot more complicated initially…
Heather hugged everyone goodbye, and even gave Fishlegs a tender kiss on the cheek. Then she and Dagur departed into the sunset.
“Awww, guess you’re in bachelorville again,” Snotlout sang.
“Yeah, like the rest of us!” Tuffnut chirped.
“She’ll be back,” Astrid comforted. “I know she will.”
“Yeah,” Fishlegs smiled wistfully at her retreating silhouette. “I came out to the Edge to discover myself and figure out what I wanted in life. She deserves the same.”
“That’s a really mature way to think about it,” Hiccup praised, resting a hand on his arm.
“And you would know, since you just fully matured a week ago,” Snotlout teased.
“Oh so it’s been long enough now we’re making jokes, huh? Hiccup’s not in peril anymore, so we can make fun of him?” Hiccup glared at Snotlout.
“Yes, that’s it exactly, Hittup!”
Hiccup just rolled his eyes. “‘Tupid.”
—-
They returned to the Edge after dark. The moon was full and offered plenty of light to fly by. It was an arduous day, and the work continued as they off loaded the gold into their storeroom. Then they finally called it a night.
Hiccup retreated towards his hut, having been the one to triple check everything. He hadn’t even unpacked from their trip to Berk yet either.
Astrid waited for him with a stool on the bridge between their huts.
“What’s this?”
“I promised I’d cut your hair.”
“You don’t need to do this now.”
“I don’t mind. Or are you tired? I guess it can wait until tomorrow.”
“No no, I can—I’m the one sitting. It’s fine.” He obediently sat in the stool and allowed her to get to work, untangling the old braids and combing through his hair.
“Your hair is so thick! It’s like yak hair!”
“You say that every time.”
“Well, it’s true every time.” She gathered the bulk of it together and cut it shoulder length, then she could begin taking a little off at a time.
“Thank you,” he said as she combed a chunk in front of his face.
“You’re welcome.”
“You always do a good job.”
“I want to. Our resident Dragon Master should always look his best.”
“Oh yes, I’m sure our enemies are admiring my haircut as Toothless blasts their ships apart.”
“You never know. Maybe it’s frustrating to Viggo. Like, ‘the boy foils my plans so effortlessly, and he always looks good doing it!’” She mimicked Viggo’s accent.
Hiccup snorted. “I’m sure that drives him crazy. But it probably drives Ryker absolutely bonkers. He doesn’t even have any hair.”
“Oh, so frustrates him, and makes him jealous.”
“Exactly!”
They giggled about that for a little while, while Astrid trimmed and trimmed, returning Hiccup to a very familiar appearance.
“So…” he began. “Did you solve whatever it was that drove you to come out here all by yourself?”
She dropped the scissors, but played it off casually. “Hm? I mean, I think so. You haven’t called me mom yet, so I think we’re clear.” Though, she was cutting his hair and fretting over him again, so maybe it didn’t work after all.
He sighed. “Yeah, sorry…that had to be really weird.”
“It was, but I don’t blame you. You reverted to being a child and I was the closest thing to a mom you had. And we were telling people I was your mom, so that didn’t help.”
“I bet that did contribute to it.”
“Do you remember everything?”
“Yes, pretty clearly. The kidnapping has some spotty parts, but I blame that on getting knocked unconscious.”
“I hope those people get to deal with Viggo’s wrath. I hope they like Whispering Death tunnels.”
“Same.”
She cut the last little bit and took a step back. “Yeah, that looks better. Not that you didn’t look fine with long hair, I just think this suits you more.”
Hiccup ran his fingers through the new, shorter locks and sighed. “It feels better. That hair put a lot of weight on my neck.”
“Huh,” Astrid fiddled with the end of her braid. She’d never noticed how much weight her hair could add. Maybe she was just used to it.
Hiccup stood and shook the excess hair from his tunic while Astrid swept the longer locks off the bridge. A companionable silence reached between them, just like old times.
“Hey,” Hiccup softly spoke. He touched her arm gently. “I really am sorry. You wanted space, but I selfishly wanted you to just stay.”
“Hiccup…” she sighed.
“L-let me finish,” he croaked. “Um…You were right, you were the closest thing I had to a mom when I was cursed. There was this haze on my mind and this voice kept shouting ‘I want my mom, I want my mom’...but I didn’t know Valka. This faint image of her kept popping up, but I guess it wasn’t enough. When you came for me at Mala’s I had this overwhelming…love for you. You were who I wanted.”
Astrid swallowed thickly, not sure how to feel about that. Was it all going backwards?
“The thing is, when that curse was lifted, the haze was gone and I had this very embarrassing realization I called you ‘mommy’ a few times. But you’re not.”
She nodded. “We’ve established that I’m not your mom.”
He chuckled, “Yes, I know. I’m just…what I’m trying to say is that for several years now, you’ve been the person I trust the most. You always know what to say, whether it's to comfort me, or to kick my butt into shape. Some of those traits, I guess are very maternal, which is why I—”
“Can we change the topic?” She winced.
He laughed again. “Don’t be embarrassed!”
“Yeah, excuse me while I just turn that off…” she rolled her eyes. But she smirked, realizing that was a very Hiccup thing to say.
“Fair enough.” He trailed his hand down to hold her hand, giving it a little squeeze. “When I asked you to stay back on Berk, it was because I depend on you and I trust you. I was so weak and vulnerable, I worried what would happen if you left. Would I be safe?”
“And you were,” she confirmed.
“Of course I was, but I just…” he shook his head. “I don’t know what I’m saying. I just didn’t want you around to coddle me like a mom, I wanted you because…you’re you. I hope that makes sense and you don’t feel weird about it.”
“That does help, thanks. I suppose if I was really sick, I’d want you around too. I feel safe with you.”
He smiled widely. “Yes, that’s it exactly. I feel safe with you.” And then he enveloped her in a tight hug.
Astrid returned it with gusto, wrapping her arms around his waist and hiding her face in his shoulder. She really regretted not hugging him goodbye all that time ago, but a reunion hug might be even better.
He rubbed her back and shoulders, before pulling away enough to look into her eyes. “You know, I really owe you for putting up with my tantrums.”
“No no, it’s fine.”
“No really! You took such good care of me! What can I do to make it up to you?”
His face was so earnest, his eyes bright and eager…and he was so close to her.
Astrid’s heart pounded in her chest as she knew exactly what she wanted, but not the words to ask for it.
“You want a haircut?” He joked after she was silent for a moment. “Or I just came into a nice amount of gold!”
She swallowed thickly, her blood roaring in her ears as she decided what to do. If she had no words, she’d just act. “Hiccup…”
“Hm?”
It was sort of amazing that she had to get on her tiptoes. He’d grown so tall, she had to reach up, just a little bit…
And she kissed him. Her lips pressed against his none too gently. It wasn’t a peck, or something flirty or friendly. It was closer to the first kiss she gave him when he’d lost his leg. It was full of affection and desperation.
Several seconds passed, before she pulled away.
He blinked at her, his lips still pooched slightly as he was frozen in shock. Then he quipped, “…is there another curse on me I should know about?”
She shyly smiled and shook her head. “No, I just…wanted to kiss you.”
“Why?” He asked with a grin. It was like he knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it from her.
She trailed her hands up to his shoulders and held him gently. “Because…I didn’t hate pretending to be married to you. The idea didn’t repulse me.” She stared at his chin as she ran her thumb over his collarbone. “In fact…I really liked the idea. I want to…” she mumbled the rest of the sentence, a blush coming to her face.
The fact she’d just admit all that out loud really flustered her.
“Pardon?” He asked with a cheeky smile.
“I…want to have a family with you. I want to marry you for real…and I want to be a mom, but only if you’re the dad.”
His smile was so big and giddy, she thought his face might burst. “How many do you want?”
She smirked. “Ohhhh…about a dozen.”
His eyes went wide as his smile dropped immediately.
She laughed and was about to tell him she was just joking, but before she could, he lifted her into his arms in a bridal carry and started towards his hut. “That’s a lot! We better get started then!”
“Hiccup!” She cackled, hanging onto his shoulders. “Have some self-control!”
“Can’t. You finally kissed me, the floodgates are open!”
She giggled as she rested her head on his shoulder. “I should have known. You’ve been pining after me since you were 15.”
“Oh, longer than that,” he confessed. “I may have been born to love you.”
“Babe…”
He carried her to his hut, but set her in a seat by the fire. “And you know I was just kidding about that, right?” He flicked his gaze up towards his bed.
“I figured.” She slowly caressed his hand, just because she could. “On a more somber note, I think we know we have to wait on kids until after this war with the Hunters is over.”
“Yeah…” Hiccup sighed. “Oh, and we should probably get married first too.”
“Good point.”
“So…does this mean I get to kiss you whenever I want?”
“Mmm…maybe. If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to keep it from the others for a little while. Just keep it between you and me. Keep it special.”
“Avoid the teasing?”
“Just for a little while.”
“I like it. Especially since it hasn’t been very long since the curse. I don’t even want to know what Snotlout will say.”
“Exactly!”
He leaned towards her. “So I ought to get all my kissing in now, huh?”
“I’ll make sure you’re stocked up.” And she threw her arms around his neck before starting one of the night's many deep and experimental kisses.
—-
To everyone else, everything was back to normal. Hiccup was all grown up and had his usual haircut, Astrid was just as relentless in training as always…
And the chore chart was back to pre-Heather days.
This meant meal rotations, where everyone contributed and no one complained (outwardly, at least, but there were buckets under the table.)
The gang gathered in the clubhouse for lunch. Snotlout had made a decent breakfast, so when the twins inevitably messed up their meal, no one would be starving for dinner.
Hiccup and Astrid sat beside each other, as usual, and shared subtle glances.
“Gadies and Lentlemen,” Tuffnut began, “this lovely afternoon, we present a very special treat. A new dish never before seen, but one that promises to tantalize.”
“What’d you mess up?” Snotlout rolled his eyes. “You were just supposed to bake bread.”
“Yeah well, we forgot to add the yeast.”
“So you made unleavened bread? So what?” Asked Fishlegs.
“Ah, close! But not quite! You see, instead of baked, this bread is fried! I call it—“ he held up a disc, slightly browned in some spots. The modern reader would recognize it as a tortilla. “—Floppy Bread!”
“Looks edible, but the name could use some work,” Hiccup winced.
“Oh, like you’re good at naming things,” Snotlout jested.
“Fair.”
Ruffnut brought out the platter of various meats, cheeses, and sauces. “The best way to consume floppy bread is to create a cocoon of food. Observe!” She took a tortilla, placed some sliced mutton and cheese on it, drizzled it with garlic sauce, and rolled it up. “Tada!”
Snotlout reached for his own bread disc. “You boobs might have made something non-barfable for once.”
“Don’t jinx it,” Astrid muttered.
The group assembled their wraps in different ways. Hiccup started with the sauce, slathering the tortilla, and then added the fillings.
He brought it to his mouth, but realized he’d made a food slip-and-slide and everything just fell out and onto his lap.
“Shit!” He blurted.
Tuffnut gasped. “Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?”
It was too easy. He just couldn’t help it. “Sometimes, yeah.”
The room went silent.
Then Astrid smacked him in the shoulder, hard. “What did we talk about?! You were afraid of them making those jokes!”
“I couldn’t help it!”
“Oooh,” Fishlegs caught on first. “Congrats, you two!”
“Wait what?! Hold on! Umm….” Snotlout desperately scrambled to make a joke, but came up empty. “I got nothing. Hiccup’s was too good.”
“Time to cut the umbilical cord!” Ruffnut snapped her fingers.
“Ahhh damnit!”