Disclaimer: How to Train Your Dragon belongs to Dreamworks, not me.

—

He woke up slowly, rubbing his cheek drowsily against the softness of his mother's shoulder. The sun shone cheerily through the blinds, casting bars of warm light across his bed. He felt calmer than he had in a long time, but his nose felt funny. Sleepily he rubbed at his face, drawing his hand back sharply at the tubing taped to his cheek. He pried at the tape.

"No, baby, don't touch that," Valka murmured, her eyes still closed. She covered his hand with hers. "You need it."

Her hand slid to cup his cheek and she cuddled him closer, tucking the blanket tighter around his shoulders. "I think my fever went down," he mumbled.

Valka kissed his forehead. "Mm-hm," she said. "You feel cooler."

There was a muffled shouting in the hallway. "What's going on out there?" he asked.

"Daddy's yelling at the nurse who wouldn't do the CT scan when you went to the emergency room," Valka said. "Don't worry about it. Go back to sleep, baby."

"Mmkay," he said, curling into her side. She stroked his hair, humming under her breath as he drifted off to sleep again.

The next time he woke up his head was resting on his mother's lap; Valka was sitting up with a book open in one hand and her other hand tangling idly in his hair. Stoick sat in the chair on the other side of the bed, arms crossed over his chest as he glared at the TV, watching a soccer game with the audio turned down low. Hiccup lifted his head, blinking sleepily, and sank back down to rest on Valka's knee again.

"Good morning, love," she said, bending to kiss his cheek.

He rubbed his eyes. "What time is it?" he asked groggily.

"Nearly eleven," Valka said. "How are you feeling?"

He sighed. "Six," he said.

"Mom says you were at a nine," Stoick said quietly, not looking away from the TV screen.

Hiccup squirmed. He rarely told the truth when he was supposed to. "It was really bad last night," he mumbled.

Valka smoothed the blanket over him. "But you're feeling better now, and that's all that matters," she said. She'd braided her hair; it fell over her shoulder in a loose dark rope. "They're going to do another ultrasound on you soon to make sure the nasogastric tube is clearing the obstruction, okay?"

Hiccup made a face. "Do I have to?" he said.

"Yes," Valka said firmly.

"This would have been easier if they'd just listened to me and done the CT scan when we came in," Stoick grumbled.

"Stoick," she warned.

He sighed heavily, stretching his legs out. "I know, I've done my yelling," he said. "Sorry, Val." He reached over to squeeze Hiccup's thin arm. The half a ruby heart on the wide gold band circling his ring finger glinted in the sunlight. "I'm just glad they figured out what was wrong. Even if it took them long enough."

Valka shook her head in mock exasperation, the silky ends of her hair brushing Hiccup's chin. "Our boy's going to be all right, Stoick, that's all that matters," she said.

There was a light knock on the door and a nurse walked in. "Hi, there," she said. "Good, you're awake."

Valka slid off the edge of the bed, setting her book aside, and Hiccup pulled himself shakily into a sitting position. The nurse checked him over, taking his temperature and his blood pressure. "our fever's down a bit and your blood pressure's steady, that's good," she said. "Let's do another ultrasound, okay? We want to make sure the blockage is going down."

"What if it's not?" Hiccup asked.

The nurse pulled up his shirt and squeezed the cold gel on his belly. "Usually it requires surgery," she said.

Hiccup froze. "What?" he said. "I don't need surgery, though. Right?"

Stoick put his big hand gently on Hiccup's thin leg. "I'm sure you're fine, son," he said. "No need to get worked up."

The nurse moved the wand over Hiccup's stomach, watching the screen. "He's right, the blockage is starting to clear itself," she said. "A couple more days with the tube and you'll be good to go."

"But what if it happens again?" Hiccup demanded. "What if I need surgery next time?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Stoick said, squeezing Hiccup's leg in reassurance. "Just worry about right now, and getting better."

His heart was still beating a little too quickly. "I don't want surgery," he mumbled, his chin tipping down to his chest. Valka rubbed his back.

The nurse didn't seem to notice. "Before we start you on a new bag of saline, do you want to get cleaned up?" she asked. "You're welcome to take a bath or a shower if you'd like. We'll just cover up your port."

"That'd be great," Hiccup said, flexing his fingers. He felt pretty gross, to be honest; his fever had left his skin sticky and his hair was sticking unpleasantly to the back of his neck.

The nurse took up the IV tubing and wrapped up his arm. "Just don't get it wet," she warned. "You'll probably need Mom or Dad to help. I'll be back in a little bit."

The nurse left the room. Valka reached for Hiccup, sliding an arm around his waist, and he cautiously put his feet on the floor. "Hold on, hold on," he said, closing his eyes and gritting his teeth. "Dizzy."

"Take your time," Stoick said, half rising from his chair with one hand held out. He flexed his fingers cautiously and sat back down, as if he was second guessing how useful he might be.

Hiccup took a deep breath, waiting for his head to stop spinning long enough for him to stagger out of bed. Valka walked beside him, her hand pressed against the small of his back to keep him from falling. "You'll probably have to keep both of your arms out of the water," she pointed out. "Your other arm is still bandaged."

Hiccup glanced down at the gauze taped to his right arm where he'd accidentally pulled out his other IV. "Good point," he said. He sighed heavily. "I'm a mess."

"Just a little," Valka said, flipping on the light switch. She plugged up the bathtub drain and turned on the water. "I'll get your things."

"Okay," Hiccup said. He fiddled with the buttons at his shoulders as she left the bathroom, wriggling out of his hospital johnny and letting it fall on the floor, then tugged off his pajama pants. Carefully he tested the water with his hand, then slowly climbed in. He exhaled slowly, closing his eyes. The warm water felt amazing against his skin.

Valka knocked lightly as she walked back into the room. "How is it?" she asked.

"Great," he said, his eyes still closed.

Valka set his clothes down on the counter and put the bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash on the edge of the tub, then switched off the water. "Let me know if you need a hand, okay?" she said, perching on the counter with a book.

Hiccup leaned back against the wall of the tub, sinking deeper, with his arms hanging awkwardly at his sides. The quiet sloshing of the water and the occasional turning of a page in his mother's book nearly lulled him to sleep. The water started to turn tepid before he reluctantly ducked his head under. He came up spluttering, unable to catch his balance with his arms out of the water, and immediately regretted his decision.

"Funny, I thought you knew how to swim," Valka said, glancing up from her book.

"Ha, ha," Hiccup said, leaning over the side of the tub. "Who knew it'd be so hard to take a bath without hands?"

Valka closed her book and slid off the counter. "You could just ask for help instead of half drowning yourself, you know," she said, grinning.

"Yeah, but it sucks," he said, pushing his wet hair off his forehead with the back of his hand. "I should be able to do this for myself."

Valka knelt beside the bathtub and picked up the shampoo bottle. "Don't think of it like that," she said gently, snapping the cap open and squeezing shampoo into her hand. "Think of it as...you're getting tremendously spoiled."

"Yeah, fine, whatever," he grumbled, but he closed his eyes and relaxed as his mom massaged shampoo through his hair, her fingernails scratching gently at his scalp.

"Eyes closed," Valka said. She cupped water in her hands and rinsed the shampoo away, tilting his head back and raking her fingers through his hair. When she was done she kissed his forehead. "There. Better?"

"Mm-hm," he said. "Thanks. I can take it from here."

She pinched his shoulder lightly and went back to her perch on the bathroom counter. Hiccup squeezed a large glob of body wash into his hand and started to get himself cleaned up. It was slow going since he couldn't get his forearms wet, but he was able to manage fairly well.

He fumbled for the thick towel hanging beside the bathtub and pulled himself to his feet, wrapping it around himself. Valka turned a page in her book. "Be careful," she warned.

"I will, I will," Hiccup said. He dried himself off, draping the towel over the rack, and pulled on his clean clothes quickly, shivering in the cold. "Mom, do you have a comb?"

Valka looked up from her book and laughed. "Hand me your towel first," she said. "You look like you've been electrocuted."

He gave her the towel and allowed her to tug him close and turn him around. She rubbed his hair dry gently, then set the towel aside and picked up the comb. "Don't pull too hard," he said, leaning back and bracing himself against the counter.

"This would be easier if you let me give you a haircut," Valka reminded him as she drew the comb gently through his wet shaggy hair.

"My hair's fine," he scoffed. "You just- ow! Mom!"

"Don't be such a baby," she teased. He huffed as she combed his hair. "There. You're all done. Did you survive?"

"Mostly," he said.

She laughed. He grinned back. It felt normal to be teased, like it was an average day at home, and it made him feel better. "Go on, get out of here," Valka said, turning him towards the door. "I'll clean up. But just this once, understand. When you're home you clean up after yourself."

"Yes, ma'am," he said, opening the door. He frowned and tilted his head. "Astrid?"

The blonde girl was sitting on his bed next to his dad, who was holding his Nintendo DS in his immense hands. "No, Stoick, not the blue shells!" she was shrieking. "No, back up, back up….ah! You were too close!"

"Dammit!" Stoick said, furiously mashing buttons.

Hiccup blinked slowly. "Are you teaching my dad to play Mario Kart?" he asked, bewildered.

"Yeah, and he's terrible," Astrid said. She leaned over Stoick's shoulder. "No, you're too close to the edge, you're gonna- see, you fell off the edge!"

"It's my first time on this course!" Stoick protested.

Hiccup climbed back into bed, nudging Astrid. "Scoot," he said. She didn't listen. "This is my bed, scoot over!" She waved at him impatiently, too busy watching the screen. Hiccup put his cold feet against her bare ankle and she screeched.

"Stop that, you're freezing!" she said.

"Then move!" Hiccup said.

"Fine," she huffed, giving him enough space to get comfortable. He pulled the blankets over his legs, suddenly self-conscious that the pajama pants his parents had brought him from home had dinosaurs all over them. Astrid was too busy telling Stoick how to throw banana peels notice. She was wearing different pajamas today, rose pink pants with narrow white stripes and a soft white tee shirt, and her blonde hair was tied in a sloppy bun at the crown of her head.

Valka walked out of the bathroom and put his things away. "What on earth are you up to?" she asked.

Hiccup crossed his arms. "Astrid's teaching Dad to play Mario Kart," he said.

"Shit!" Stoick exclaimed. "Shit, you'd think something called Rainbow Road would be easy!"

Astrid shrieked with laughter, nearly rolling onto Hiccup. "Stoick, don't swear around the kids," Valka said. She eyed Astrid warily. "Especially the girl I've never seen before."

"Oh!" Hiccup said. He elbowed Astrid in the ribs; she swallowed her laughter and folded her hands primly. "Mom, this is Astrid. She's my next door neighbor."

"Don't worry, I"m not contagious," she said cheerfully.

"You still don't know anything yet?" Hiccup asked.

Astrid shrugged. "Apparently they have some test results, but they wanted to wait till my parents were here," she said. She squeezed his arm lightly. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Last time I saw you you were throwing up blood and barely conscious," Astrid said. She pushed his hair back, eyeing his face critically. "You've got a little something in your nose."

"Ha, ha, very funny," Hiccup said, covering the nasogastric tube self-consciously. "There's a blockage in my intestine and they're trying to clear it out."

"Ouch," Astrid winced. "I'm sorry. That sounds terrible."

"It kind of is," Hiccup said.

"Fucking shit!" Stoick roared, throwing the DS on the bed. "I got last place! Hiccup, why do you like to play this fucking game?"

"Maybe because I didn't start off playing on Rainbow Road?" Hiccup said, rescuing the DS from the blankets.

Valka took the game from his hands and cuffed Stoick lightly on the ear. "Enough swearing!" she said. "And Astrid, you need to let Hiccup rest, young lady. Besides, I'm sure you need to rest yourself."

"Probably," she said. "I'm fine, though. I just have a headache." She nudged Hiccup's shoulder. "Move."

"You move," he said.

She shrugged, pulling at the blankets so she could crawl under the covers with him. "Nice pajama pants," she said.

"Gee, thanks."

"No, I mean it. Where'd you get them? I've always wanted dinosaur pajama pants."

"Target," Valka said, smoothing the blankets over both of them. "Now the nurse is going to be back in a little bit to check on Hiccup. I want both of you to stay still and quiet."

"Yes, ma'am," Hiccup said. He elbowed Astrid, who echoed him obediently.

"And you," Valka said, turning to Stoick. "No more swearing around the children."

"Yes, love," he said. He kissed her on the cheek and she smiled.

Valka picked up the DVD wallet from the nightstand and handed it to Hiccup. "You two pick out a movie," she said.

"Hunger Games," Astrid said immediately when she saw the first disc.

"That's more intense than I want right now," Hiccup said. "Star Trek?"

"I thought you were a Star Wars fan!"

"I like both."

"Heretic."

"Indiana Jones?"

"You don't have Temple of Doom, though, that's my favorite."

"Seriously? Last Crusade is the best one. How can you think Temple of Doom is-"

Valka leaned over them and picked up the first DVD she saw. "You're watching this one," she said.

"Mom!" Hiccup protested.

"Which one is it?" Astrid said.

Valka glanced at the disc before she popped it into the tray. "Tangled," she said.

"Oh," Hiccup said. "That's fine."

"I mean, I guess."

"I just want the two of you to stop bickering," Valka sighed. She put the movie in, picked up her book, and sat down beside the bed. "Not a peep out of either you, understand?" They nodded meekly.

Hiccup had just gotten comfortable when the nurse walked in. "Time to get your IV set up again," she said cheerfully. "And we're going to get your feeding tube going."

Hiccup made a face. "Do I have to?" he said.

"Afraid so," the nurse said. "The tube is there to clear the blockage, and there's not enough space for you to eat anything properly until we know the blockage is gone and the tube has been taken out."

Hiccup leaned back against the pillows as the nurse unwrapped his arm and swiftly got the IV running again. "How long will he need the tube?" Stoick asked.

"Probably just another couple of days, two or three at the most," the nurse said. "He's already showing a lot of improvement. Once the blockage is clear and he's fever free we can send him home."

"And what if he has another obstruction?" Stoick asked.

Hiccup eyed the nurse warily as she hung the bag for his feeding tube. The contents were a thin brown slurry, absolutely nothing appetizing to look at. "Now that he has a history of obstructions, it'll make the process easier when he's admitted to the ER," the nurse explained. She checked the tape that held the tube in place against Hiccup's cheek and took up the end of it, taking off the cap. "As soon as you bring him in, let them know he has a history and they'll be able to take it from there."

Hiccup felt the slow slide of the feeding mixture sinking through the tube and gritted his teeth, bracing himself against the bed. It sank further still, heavy in his throat, and he could feel it hitting his empty stomach. But even as he fought back against the feeling, he felt a soft hand seek his under the covers.

He glanced at Astrid out of the corner of his eye. She was watching the movie intently, idly chewing on a fingernail, but her other hand was holding his tightly under the cover of the blankets, her fingers warm and firm around his. He squeezed back and relaxed against the pillows again.

The nurse gave him a last once-over before she left. Astrid still held Hiccup's hand, though. She even moved her fingers to link them through his, her thumb rubbing in gentle strokes across the back of his hand. It was relaxing enough to take his mind off the liquid dripping languidly through his nose.

They were halfway through the movie when a nurse knocked lightly on the door. "Astrid?" she called softly. "Your parents are here."

"Okay," Astrid said, letting go of Hiccup's hand and climbing out of bed. "See you later."

"Good luck," Hiccup said. She waved goodbye as the nurse ushered her out of the room.

Stoick stood up. "I'd better go to," he said. "I've got a work site to check on. Plus some dogs and a cat that are probably going a little nuts right now." He walked over to Valka and bent to kiss her. "Keep an eye on Hiccup."

"I will," Valka said, smiling up at him.

Stoick pulled Hiccup into a big bear hug and Hiccup hugged him back, leaning his cheek on his broad shoulder for a moment. "You keep resting, son," he said. He straightened up and squeezed Hiccup's shoulder. "I'll be back later."

Hiccup leaned back and watched the movie while his mother read beside him. Now that his stomach was full he was starting to feel sleepy and his eyes kept sliding shut. He didn't realize how tired he was until his mother was leaning over him, adjusting his pillows and pulling his blankets up to his chest.

"What're you doing?" he slurred sleepily.

Valka smiled. "You need to take a nap," she said. She picked up the remote and turned off the TV. "If you need to sleep, you sleep, okay?"

"Okay, Mama," he mumbled, his chin tilting. Valka kissed him on the cheek, and he was asleep in seconds.

He dozed on and off for the next two hours, waking up briefly when the nurse unhooked him from the feeding bag. Valka closed the blinds when the sun started to shine too strongly and he sank back into a deep sleep for a while. But he woke up when he heard the door creak open.

He rolled over, careful of the IV. Astrid stood in the doorway, her shoulders hunched. Hiccup rubbed his eyes. "Astrid?" he mumbled. "Y'okay?"

She shuffled towards him, her arms folded across her stomach, and shook her head.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

She climbed into bed beside him, slow and stiff like she'd aged a hundred years, and laid down beside him with her cheek on his shoulder. He could see that her cheeks were pink and her eyes were red and puffy. A chill ran down his spine. Something was wrong. But she was silent, so he waited.

And then quietly, very quietly, he heard her whisper.

"I have cancer."

A jolt ran through his whole body. "Are...are you sure?" he whispered back.

She nodded. "They're sure," she said. "They're really, really sure. It's brain cancer and I-"

Her voice cut off abruptly. Hiccup wrapped his arms around her and she buried her face in his chest. "All I have is a headache," she sobbed. "All I have is a headache."

Hiccup hid his face in her golden hair and swallowed back the lump in his throat. He didn't want this for her. He didn't want someone as vibrant as Astrid to know what it was like to have everybody know you as "the sick kid." To go through midnight emergency room visits. To cry while they poked and prodded you without telling you what was going on. To curl up alone under hospital blankets and beg for someone to put you out of your misery.

"It's going to be okay," he murmured into her hair. "It's okay."

He didn't know if it was going to be okay. But it was all he could do.

—-

Author's Notes:

Fun fact: the file for this story is named "all I write about is barf." And goddammit, it's true. I've been flipping through old stories and for fuck's sake, apparently people keep requesting me to write sickfic

Also...hello! It's me! Finishing this story after a four year hiatus!

I saw the third movie and it kind of kickstarted my desire to write. I haven't written much in general for the past four years, and to be quite honest I've missed not only writing, but also interacting with readers. I think I'm going to go back and finish off a lot of my unfinished stuff (so if there's anything of mine that you liked, go comment so I know to work on it.)

Also I found about 40 pages of a HTTYD/Rise is the Brave Tangled Dragons Hunger Games AU, so comment if you want to read that. I haven't looked at it in years but I think it's pretty good?

But yeah! I think I'm going to dabble in writing again. Comment here, leave me a message or a drabble request on my tumblr (themetaphorgirl), and let's see if I can get this ball rolling again!