Hiccup walked through the village with only the moonlight to guide him. It was his first time out of the house in what felt like forever, when in reality it was two and a half months. Gothi wanted him to stay inside and recover some more.

Despite his protests that he felt fine and was ready to rejoin the village, Stoick sided with the Village Elder. Hiccup was to remain in the house until Gothi gave him the all clear.

The only reason Stoick sided with the old hag was that he thought Hiccup was losing his grip on the reality of trying to deal with the memories that haunted his mind. So what if he's had a few panic attacks and wasn't talking about it. He wouldn't be able to understand.

Hiccup was dealing with it. He was working through the memories and nightmares. So what if his father didn't approve of how he dealt with it, it was his memories. His trauma.

The Rider found himself walking toward the forge. Even at this late hour, the forge would still be up and running. With Snoggletog a month away, Gobber was working overtime to get all the orders finished in time.

Gobber was a great listener. He knew exactly what to say when it came to Stoick.

Hiccup walked into the forge and found Gobber hammering away at a sword. "Hey, Gobber."

The blacksmith stopped hammering and turn to look at the younger man. "You should be at home resting."

"Couldn't sleep," Hiccup said as he sat down at his worktable. "Staying inside is driving me a bit crazy, so I snuck out after Dad fell asleep."

"And came straight here," Gobber guessed.

Hiccup picked a couple of stray turning gears and shrugged. "Wandered around for a bit. Headed down to the docks and watched the water. On my way back, my legs seemed to bring me here."

"What's wrong, Hiccup?" Gobber asked, knowing something was up.

"Just tired of being cooped up. I'm fully recovered, yet Gothi and Dad insist that I stay in the house," Hiccup answered in a bitter tone.

Gobber sat down across from the young lad. Stoick had warned him that Hiccup was angry and wasn't himself. The kid basically went to Helheim and back. Johann damaged the boy in more ways than one.

The aging blacksmith knew that Hiccup was holding back the dam. He was trying to keep other people from knowing what really went down. Everyone kept guessing about what went down inside that cave, but no one knew for sure.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Gobber wondered, hoping the lad would finally break the dam.

"What is there to talk about?" Hiccup practically yelled. "There is nothing to talk about. Johann tortured and almost killed me. I lived and he didn't. End of story."

"Hiccup there is no need to shout. I'm right here," Gobber soothed. He spoke as if he was speaking to a child. He needed to find a fault in the dam in order for it to break.

Hiccup stood and began to pace. His face was beet red with anger, or was it shame? Maybe both.

"Whatever you say will stay between us," Gobber promised. "No one else will know."

Hiccup rolled his neck from side to side, loosening up the tense muscles. "Yes, Gobber, I know. But what else is there to say?"

"You could tell me what really happened," Gobber suggested. "Maybe if you told me, I could help you."

"Where do I even begin?" Hiccup asked.

Gobber stood up and handed Hiccup a piece of scrap metal. "Here, you can start by turning this into something useful. You'll know where to begin eventually."

After an hour of taking all his anger and rage out a piece of scrap metal-turned sword, Hiccup knew where to begin. He placed the sword in a tub of cold water and sat down.

Hiccup rubbed his left arm absent-mindedly as he watched Gobber finish an axe. He knew where to begin, but how could he even begin to share the horrors with his mentor?

Gobber placed the axe with the sword and sat down. "Whenever you're ready, laddie."

Hiccup took in a deep breath and sighed. "I'd gotten there just seconds before Johann and Krogan. I saw that the King of Dragons had laid an egg..."

The more Hiccup talked, the more Gobber wanted to revive the villain and kill him all over again. By the time Hiccup got to the part about Johann breaking his ribcage, he had tears running down his cheeks. It was hurting Hiccup just to talk about it.

Gobber watched as Hiccup touched every healed injury as if they were still fresh. Hiccup was suffering under the weight of the memories. His body might have healed, but his mind had not. His anger came from pain. Pain Johann had inflicted knowing full well that Hiccup would be traumatized for the rest of his life if he had survived. Killing him would have been a kindness.

"So I locked myself away in mind, bringing everyone back to life," Hiccup finished. "How do I know I'm not still dreaming, Gobber? I can't tell the difference between reality and my dreams. When I go to bed I'm trapped in a cage on Johann's ship. He has the King of Dragons. When I open my eyes everyone is still alive. How do I know what's real and what's not?"

Gobber took hold of Hiccup's right hand and squeezed. "This is real. Johann is as good as dead. He will remain forever frozen in that cave. He can't cause any more harm. When you close your eyes at night, that world you are seeing isn't real. It's just a figment of your imagination running wild with what could have happened. Everyone is still alive and not going anywhere. I'm sorry about what happened to you, I wouldn't wish it on anybody, not even my worst enemy."

Hiccup choked back a sob but remained silent.

Gobber continued. "You went through hell, laddie, and your brain can't process it. Not on its own. You have to talk to people about it. Share your story. You might not like it, but in the end, you'll feel better, because you know that someone is helping you carry the weight of those memories. I can't promise that you'll forget, but you will know what to do when they resurface."

Hiccup nodded. He didn't trust himself to speak. If he opened his mouth, he would start crying like a babe.

"It's okay to cry," Gobber said. "It doesn't make you any less of a Viking. You should have seen your father after he lost Valka. After he thought we lost you to the Red Death. Crying is healthy. It helps you grieve. It makes easier for you to move forward."

Before Hiccup realized it, he was crying. Gobber led him to the back room before he broke down had a full on sob fest.

Gobber left Hiccup alone after he fell asleep from the sheer exhaustion from crying. The young lad had cried into until the sun began to peak over the mountaintop.

A few hours later, Stoick walked into the forge. The chief was furious.

Before the vast man could get a word in, Gobber answered all his questions. "He's in the back asleep. Leave him be, he's had a rough night. He didn't fall asleep until sunrise. And no, I'm not going to tell you what he said. It's up to him to tell you on his own. Yes, I'll send him home when he wakes up".

Stoick stared at the door to the back room, resisting the urge to go on there and force his son to talk. "Straight home. I don't want him taking any detours."

With that said, Stoick left and headed for the Great Hall.

Hiccup woke up feeling better than he had in a long time. It was his first time without that wretched nightmare. He had instead he dreamed of Toothless finding a mate and making baby Night Furies.

He smiled at the idea of Toothless having kids. That dragon could barely handle human children.

His smile faded as he remembered last night conversation. He had to take Gobber's words to heart. No matter how much it hurt, he had to share what had happened to him with other people. People he could trust not to share themselves. That meant only a few people.

The Rider stood and exited the small room. He saw Gobber hard at work. He opened his mouth to speak, but Gobber beat him to the first word. "No lollygaggin'. Your father wants you to go straight home. No silly business on my watch."

"Thanks for last night," Hiccup said before darting out of the forge. He headed for his home on the hill.

Hiccup shared his story with a select few. He told each of them in private. It was a painful process. Every time he recounted the torture, he was left emotionally exhausted, but in the end, it was worth it. He felt some of the weight being lifted from his shoulders.

His nightmares became less frequent. When he did have one, he knew what do. He wasn't angry anymore. All the negative energy he had built up faded away into nothingness.

By the time Dagur and Mala's wedding rolled around, Gothi deemed Hiccup able to fly again. The wedding was going to take place on Berserker Island.

Flying hurt, but he was going to take the pain. Toothless was so happy to be back in the air again, he momentarily forgot that Hiccup was on him. Hiccup cried out in pain when Toothless did a steep dive. He righted himself and crooned softly. Stoick looked like he was going to throttle the Night Fury, but held himself together. Hiccup patted Toothless's head in a show of understanding; Toothless had hung his head. He crooned softly again and continued at a much slower pace.

When they arrived, Dagur greeted them warmly. "Welcome to our wedding! We hope you enjoy!" It wasn't how Dagur usually spoke, but it was a special day.

When it was time for the wedding, everyone sat at seats alongside an aisle. Captain Vorg was standing by a podium. First Dagur walked down the aisle in a very professional way for him. He stood by the podium. Then came Mala, in a stunning white dress. She walked slowly down the aisle to join Dagur, a few Sacred Night Terrors holding up her dress. They stood to face each other, holding hands. Vorg talked a lot, no one was really paying attention. During this time, Shattermaster finally decided to arrive. He had a red cushion on his back with two gold rings. He sat by Vorg, his tongue sticking out.

"Do you, Dagur, Son of Odin, take Mala's hand in marriage?" the Captain Vorg asked.

"I do."

"And do you, Mala, Daughter of Freya take Dagur to be your husband?"

"I do." Male smiled

"Then by the utterance of these words, this union may only be broken in the Halls of Valhalla. You may now kiss the bride," Vorg announced.

The crowd cheered. The pair took the rings from Shattermaster. All was well.

Hiccup broke away from the dinner party and headed to the caves. He had to do something, alone.

Toothless made to follow him.

"Stay, bud," Hiccup gently ordered. "I'll be back soon. There's something I need to do before we leave.

Toothless let out a quiet roar of protest but waited at the mouth in case Hiccup needed him later.

Hiccup walked the path he took before. He could feel his old injuries throbbing. They felt as fresh as the day he had received them.

The Rider walked into the main cavern. At the edge of the abyss stood Johann. He was still frozen and would remain that way until the end of time.

Hiccup sat down at the far end of the cave and stared at the villain. He didn't know why he was here. Gothi suggested that it would be good for him. It would help his mind heal.

"I'm still alive," Hiccup told the frozen man. "I came out of this cave alive! And you didn't. You were killed right in front of me and I was still scared of you!"

Hiccup was standing now. He let all his anger out. The anger that had turned into nothingness came pouring out of his mouth.

"I was so damn scared of you that I was afraid to open my mouth. I was terrified that if the horrors came out, they would never stop. That you would come back to shut me up. You broke my body and my mind. My mind will never recover from what you did to me. I will have nightmares for the rest of my life."

Hiccup stormed over to the statue. "You were family, Johann. We trusted you. But it was all a lie and for what? Unattainable power? To be a ruthless ruler? Huh? Why? WHY?"

Tears were pouring out of Hiccup's eyes. "What made you think it was possible to control the King of Dragons? Didn't you even read the Dragon Eye? It clearly states that if you want the King to trust you, you had to be pure of heart. You had to be a friend to both dragon and man. You were neither. You were an evil, manipulative bastard, who had no problem killing people who got in your way."

Hiccup ceased his rant long enough to really stared at Johann. He moved to where he could study the villain's face better. He got within inches of the ice when Johann blinked.

Hiccup stumbled back. Oh, gods, he was still alive. After all these months, the man was still alive, encased in ice. Hiccup grabbed for the half of Inferno that was still stuck in ice. He pulled with all his might.

Once the half of Inferno was free, he aimed it at Johann. Maybe he was just hallucinating. Yeah, that had to be it. A hallucination brought on by stress. The Rider moved in closer to Johann once more. He examined his eyes, daring them to move again.

Hiccup counted the seconds. One. Two. Three. Four. Johann blinked again. Hiccup resisted the urge to run his blade through the ice. He couldn't risk freeing the man. Instead, he ran. He ran back to the party. Toothless crooned in concern and followed.

Johann was to stay there. It was just a matter of time before he died, right? But how was he still alive? He should have suffocated months ago. Maybe it had something to do with the King of Dragons power. Maybe the ice was keeping him alive as well as frozen.

Author's Note: This marks the end of Beating in Stride. I will be posting another story in the coming days that will answer your questions. Think of it as two-parter episode. Follow me if you want to know what happens.

Special thanks to Draconicbeing2.0 for being one hell of a beta reader. She has added things I never would have thought to add. She wrote Toothless in where I couldn't, which was pretty much everywhere. She made this story so much better.