WriterFreak001:

I am very new fan to the How to Train Your Dragon saga but absolutely loved what I've seen so far! This is my first HTTYD: RTTE fanfiction story so I hope you enjoy it. 😊

Title | Prepare for the Storm

Fandom | How to Train Your Dragon / Dragons: Race to the Edge

Description | When Hiccup has to leave the Edge to stand in for his father as Acting Chief of Berk, Astrid volunteers to stay behind and watch the island while everyone else goes back home. One night while protecting the Edge, she was ambushed, attacked by one of Krogan's men and then left for dead. This is a survival story describing how a young Viking woman overcomes one of the hardest trials she had ever faced.

This story takes place somewhere within Season 5 after Hiccup and Astrid become an item but before the end of the series.

Trigger Warning| This story will include sexual and physical assault (not graphically described) in a later chapter.

Rating| This fanfiction will be rated T (for now).

Disclaimer | I don't own the HTTYD franchise, but I wish I did. XD

"If you listen to the wind very carefully, you'll be able to hear me whisper my love for you."
― Andrew Davidson

Prepare for the Storm

Chapter One

"How soon does he want me back?"

"Oh, aye. As soon as possible," Gobber replied with a smile to his ears as he scratched his back with his hook. "With everythin' goin' on out there and beyond, Stoick wol not take no as an answer. He told me that if yeh said no, I be taken yeh back by force."

Hiccup nodded and exhaled a silent sigh. "And where is it you said he was going?"

"Visitin' an old friend, I believe. Said somethin' about needin' to establish an alliance of some sort. Didn't get all the details, though. I'm sure yer father be tellin' yeh all of this when yeh arrive back home." Gobber crossed his arms in front of himself and waited for Hiccup to make up his mind.

"If it can't be helped, then I guess I'll have to go," Hiccup replied, concerned about the underlying cause for the possible alliance. But then a thought came to him. "Can the others go home to Berk as well?"

Gobber thought for a moment. "I can't imagine why not."

"Great." Hiccup enthusiastically punched his fist into his opposite hand. "I'll tell the others to start packing. We'll leave at first light." Hiccup left Gobber in the dragon stable and hurried down the boarded path to share the news. Toothless wasn't too far behind and eagerly followed him as he gathered everybody in the clubhouse to discuss the changes in their plans.

When everyone arrived, Hiccup leaned against the center table and crossed his arms as Toothless took a seat next to him. The young leader smiled at his dragon and gently rubbed his head. The Night Fury purred lightly and smiled his famous toothless grin as Astrid took a stand on the other side of Hiccup. Naturally, the future Chief of Berk slid his arm behind and around her and tugged her closer as she mimicked the same motion.

"You're probably wondering why I summoned all of you here…," Hiccup smiled awkwardly as everyone watched him closely while waiting for answers. He inhaled and exhaled a slow, deep breath before continuing. "The reason Gobber is here is because my father needs me to go back to Berk for a little while… Not sure how long, but with Krogan and Viggo still out there, Dad doesn't want to take a chance in leaving Berk without an acting chief. So, until my father returns from his trip, I'll have to remain in Berk for an undetermined amount of time. It could be a couple days or a few weeks. Hopefully not longer. Anyone who wants to go home during this time is welcome to travel with Gobber and me. Or at any other time during this hiatus. I'll leave that decision up to you guys. Whoever is coming with me, we will be leaving at dawn."

"A chance to go home and bug the heck out of my dad? Oh YEAH! Sign me up!" Snotlout smirked, raising his hand enthusiastically. "The Snot could use some good ole R&R." In response, Hookfang smacked the short Viking in the head and growled in annoyance. "Excuse me, sorry." Snotlout rubbed his head and glared at his dragon. "Correction: The Snotfang could use some good ole R&R."

Hookfang's nose flared in approval as he nodded in agreement.

Hiccup acknowledged Snotlout and Hookfang's desire to go back home and said, "Great. Gobber said something about Berk needing more Monstrous Nightmare saliva, so before you go, have Hookfang help you find all the other Monstrous Nightmare dragons to collect a healthy supply to take back home."

"Why should I listen to you?" Snotlout challenged, wishing he didn't have to work.

"Because Hiccup's the Acting Chief," Gobber replied automatically. "And if you don't obey his every command, you'll be tried for treason."

"Technically, Hiccup's not the Acting Chief yet," Snotlout shrugged with a smirk. "So his command is null and void."

"Hey!" Astrid snapped at the brawn Viking and held up a waving, tight fist, "If you don't listen to Hiccup, then you'll have to listen to me. I don't think you'll want to do that."

Snotlout gulped audibly as Hookfang laughed at his rider. "Fair enough." And before another word was said, Snotlout grabbed Hookfang's reigns and swiftly tugged him out of the clubhouse.

"Thanks," Hiccup muttered to his girlfriend, and she innocently smiled before he turned towards Fishlegs. "What about you, Fishlegs?"

The gentle Viking grinned as he stroked the top of Meatlug's head. "Going home does sound nice… It would be a good idea to drop off some Gronckle Iron for Gobber to make some solid defense weapons… you know since Chief Stoick will be away from Berk for a while. And you never know what might happen…"

Meatlug jiggled happily and snuggled against Fishlegs's arm. The blonde Viking beamed and hugged his dragon. "That's right, my little princess. We're going home!"

"Good idea," Hiccup agreed to Fishleg's offer. "Perhaps it also wouldn't be a bad idea to lead the other Gronckles to Berk in case we have a high supply and demand for Gronckle Iron."

Fishlegs grinned. "I agree."

"Hey!" Snotlout exclaimed from a side window. "Why do I have to collect saliva instead of leading the Monstrous Nightmares to Berk like Fishlegs is doing for the Gronckles?" Astrid immediately raised her fist again and glared at the Snot. "And nevermind. Actually, you know what's funny," he awkwardly laughed, "I forgot my question in the first place. Snotlout out!"

Snotlout never disappeared so fast.

"I've gotta do that more often," Astrid mumbled to herself as she shook her head in dismay, causing Hiccup and Fishlegs to laugh.

"As I was saying," Fishlegs continued with a soft smile, "I'll go ahead and pack my things before gathering up the other Gronckles on the island. We'll leave with you in the morning if that's okay."

"Sounds like a plan," Hiccup smirked and gave Fishlegs a thumb's up. "Tell Snotlout that if he plans to leave tomorrow, we'll all meet up in the dragon stables early in the morning. I'll sound the horn to wake everyone up."

"Okay!" Fishlegs exclaimed as he and Meatlug left to get ready for the flight back to Berk.

Gobber moved from his post and said, "While yeh finish talkin' to th'rest o'th'group, I'm gonna send a Terror Mail back to Berk to let yer father know that we'll be travelin' back in the mornin'."

"Good idea," Hiccup nodded as he watched Gobber leave before looking at the Nut twins. "Ruff? Tuff?"

Ruffnut yawned and stretched as Tuffnut noisily wiped his nose across his forearm. "Damn. That wasn't gross enough." Tuffnut looked up from his snot-covered arm and noticed everyone looking at him. "Did I miss something?"

Ruffnut glanced at her brother and then followed his eyes to the rest of the group before raising her hand. "I second that question!"

"He asked if you guys were planning on going back to Berk or not." Astrid re-emphasized with a sigh. "Honestly, don't you two ever listen?"

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Tuffnut twisted his finger in his ear and then smirked in response to Astrid's glare.

"You heard me."

"Well," Ruffnut shrugged, "I guess I wouldn't mind going home. I definitely need to cause some well-deserved havoc to some well-deserved people."

"No way," Hiccup frowned and shook his head fiercely, "there will be none of that while you're in Berk under my watch," (But the twins acted like he wasn't even there and continued their conversation as if they were the only ones in the room.)

Hiccup and Astrid shared an annoyed glance but didn't say anything more as they waited for the twins to finish their conversation.

Tuff sneered and shot his hands up proudly. "Yeah! People like… like… like… Snotlout! We haven't done anything to him in years, and he won't expect a thing."

"Well… that's not entirely true… we did kind of him into our boar pit yesterday… and then placed a hive of bees under his bed on the day before…" Ruffnut corrected her brother.

"Oh yeah," Tuff replied in agreement but then his lips twisted to his ears. "But tomorrow will be a new day, and we can start from scratch."

"You're so right!" Ruff matched her brother's lopsided grin and gave him a high-five. The twins stood up and headed for the door. "We'll be ready bright and early in the morning."

"Yeah, and in case you didn't know," Tuff added while dramatically waggling his forefinger, "we're bringing Barf and Belch with us."

"I… never doubted it for a second," Hiccup scratched the back of his neck and offered them a forced smile as Astrid and Toothless rolled their eyes, shaking their heads in dismay. Barf and Belch swayed as they followed the Nut twins outside, obviously proud to claim them as their riders. "They are definitely something else…" Hiccup quietly muttered.

Toothless slowly nodded and let out a breathy laugh.

"Tell me about it," Astrid replied as she turned towards Hiccup with a small smile. "But regardless of how crazy they are, they surprisingly have really good instincts and fight really well when riding."

"Very true," Hiccup agreed with a chuckle before angling himself towards her. Toothless and Stormfly exchanged knowing glances and then grinned at their riders before sneaking out to play. Both Hiccup and Astrid noticed their dragons' discreet retreat and smirked before facing each other completely. "Well?" Hiccup took Astrid's hands into his own and caressed her knuckles with his thumbs. "Are you coming back to Berk with me? I mean… you never said what you were going to do… I mean… I'd really like you by my side while I'm Acting Chief."

Astrid lifted her palm and caressed Hiccup's cheek, touched by his sincerity. "As much as I want that too, I think it might be a good idea if I stay behind and protect the Edge. As you said, with Viggo and Krogan out there, we can't afford to leave Berk unprotected while your father is away. That being said, the same thing goes for here…"

She laced her fingers with his and tugged him towards the clubhouse door before escorting him towards his hut. They shared a smile when they saw Toothless and Stormfly tackling each other in the sand below. Toothless was the first to spot them and snapped at Stormfly before giving the couple his biggest, toothless smile. Stormfly, however, retaliated and swatted Toothless with her tail, knocking him over. Astrid and Hiccup laughed at their dragons as Toothless shook himself before glaring at a snickering Stormfly.

"As you can see and already know, we have a lot to protect here… not only the Edge itself, but also the dragons who call this island their home." As if on cue, a group of Night Terrors flew above them as a pair of Terrible Terrors scampered across the island's sand. "We don't know what Viggo and Krogan are planning next," Astrid continued as she lightly touched Hiccup's shoulder, "and if we all leave, it gives them a chance to take over again… You and I both know we can't afford to lose the Edge to the Dragon Flyers, and we definitely can't abandon the inhabited dragons on this island after working so hard to save them from those very threats."

Hiccup nodded slowly, understanding where Astrid was coming from. "We can have Gobber stay and protect the island…"

Astrid laughed quietly. "As much as I like Gobber, he doesn't know the island like we do… like I do. And Stormfly is faster than his dragon. Since everyone else is going back home to Berk, I'm the most qualified to stay here and protect our fortress."

Hiccup didn't like what he was hearing, but he knew Astrid had a valid point. "You're right," he nodded and brought her hand to his mouth. "You're absolutely right."

A soft smile colored Astrid's rosy lips. "Hiccup, you're going to be a great Acting Chief. I know it was harder when we were younger to stand in for your father because of your lack of battle experience, but we've been through so much since then. You're the best strategist of all of us, and you're quick-thinking too. The people of Berk respect you a lot more now than they did back then because of how much they depend on you… on all of us… to help keep Berk safe from threats like Viggo and Krogan. I know that if you need to make a hard decision for Berk, whatever course of action you decide will be what's best for our people. I believe in you so much, Hiccup. You know that, right?"

Hiccup nodded with a small grin as he slid his arms around her, slowly drawing her closer. He leaned in and pressed his lips against her forehead. "You always know exactly what I need to hear. I'm going to miss you, Astrid."

"I know," she closed her eyes and embraced him tighter. "I'll miss you too."

A thousand different thoughts started swimming through Hiccup's head as he rested his chin on top of her hair. They didn't move away from each other for several minutes, and even in his silence, Astrid seemed to always know what he was thinking.

"Hey," she took a step back from him and cupped his cheeks in her soft hands. "Everything is going to be all right. Okay?"

Hiccup turned his head slightly to kiss her left palm before wrapping his own fingers around her hands and bringing them to his chest, right in front of his heart. "I know. I know, but I can't help but already worry for you. A lot of things could go wrong, and I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if anything ever happened to you while you stayed behind."

"Something could happen every day, Hiccup. Yes, it will be a risk for me to stay here alone when everyone else is in Berk, but it'll be an even greater risk if we all left the Edge unguarded. You have your workshop here, and I know you don't want Viggo or Krogan to know about the second Dragon Eye. Even if you have the Dragon Eye 2 on your person in Berk, without someone staying behind, either one the two could send scouts to survey the area and snoop around our base. We can't afford to be careless, Hiccup."

"I understand, Astrid. I really do, and I have complete faith in your abilities as a rider and a fighter, but please, promise me that if any trouble comes to the Edge, then you'll leave for Berk immediately. I don't want you going against any fleet of Dragon Flyers alone on Stormfly; it's too dangerous." Hiccup placed his hands on top of Astrid's shoulders as he waited for her reply.

"I promise," Astrid touched her forehead to his and closed her eyes as their fingers found their way back to one another, "that I will try my hardest to defend the Edge on my own, but if I come across a threat I can't handle, then I swear I will return to Berk." Astrid leaned forward and kissed Hiccup's cheek.

"I said if any threat…, Astrid… not just threats you can't handle…" Hiccup pursed his lips and cocked an eyebrow as Astrid chuckled.

She circled behind him and took a few strands of his hair into her fingers and slowly began braiding them together. "I know what you said," Astrid brought her lips closer to Hiccup's ear, "but if you think I'm going to run back to Berk and not even attempt to protect the Edge, then you're crazy." She tied the braid off with a small band that she had had in her pocket and walked back around him to see the smirk plastered to his lips.

"Astrid, since when have I not been crazy?" he challenged as he swiftly poked his fingers at Astrid's stomach, causing her to step backwards while trying to block his playful attack.

The Viking warrior lightly pushed the acting chief away from her to evade his finger-pokes and immediately turned away from him, trying so hard not to laugh in the process. She dashed across the wooden walkway and pushed her way into Hiccup's hut. Her boyfriend surprised her, however, as he snuck in the backway and swooped her in his arms from behind, causing her to lightly shriek.

"Come here, you!" Hiccup exclaimed with a loud chuckle as he began tickling her stomach from behind. Astrid wiggled her body to try to get away from him, but his arms were a lot stronger than he gave himself credit for. Astrid couldn't help herself and doubled over in Hiccup's embrace, unable to take anymore of his tickle attack. Hiccup fell forward, losing his balance, and ungracefully fumbled over Astrid. Neither Viking was sure how it had exactly happened, but the next thing they knew, Astrid had ended up on top of Hiccup in a very compromising position.

As if enchanted or just completely mortified, however, neither moved away from the other.

Hiccup's eyes deeply gazed into her sky-blue irises as he thickly swallowed his nerves. "H-Hi." He forced an awkward toothy smile and did perhaps the most embarrassing thing ever.

He waved.

In that moment, he wanted the floor beneath him to swallow him whole as he mentally smacked himself for his ridiculous awkwardness. However, Astrid didn't ridicule him as she slowly laced her fingers with his and smiled. "Hi."

Just when he thought nothing else could possibly humiliate him more, he noticed Astrid's blushing cheeks when his arousal became very apparent to her. She sat up, embarrassed for poor Hiccup, not realizing that when she had landed on top of him, her legs had straddled his hips, which as she moved, she made the evident source of their embarrassment worse.

Hiccup's throat began to tighten as Astrid froze, unsure if she could trust herself to move without affecting Hiccup. "Sorry," she mumbled, her cheeks flaming. "Do you want me to get up?"

"No, no. It's all right. Um…," Hiccup cleared his throat, "I'm probably not going to be getting up any time soon so, uh, just uh, just lie back down if you want. That was a little bit more comfortable."

"Are you sure?" Astrid bit her lip and flushed.

"Yes. Yes, Astrid. I'm sure." Hiccup replied with a little more confidence. Astrid slowly lowered herself back down to Hiccup but slightly adjusted herself so that her legs weren't straddling his hips.

"Feel… better?"

"Much." Hiccup nodded as he gently brought his right hand to her cheek. She blushed deeply and leaned into his palm and smiled slowly.

"Can I ask you a question?" Astrid bit her bottom lip, unsure if she should continue or not.

"Of course."

"Have you ever… thought about… us…?" Astrid's whole face went beet red.

"I think about us all the time," Hiccup answered honestly with a grin.

"No, I mean… Do you ever… think about… you know… us in an intimate way?" Astrid couldn't look away from his eyes but at the same time, she was afraid of what his answer might be.

"Oh. Oh!" It finally clicked. "You… uh… you mean what two people do together to establish a sacred union…" he paused for a moment before answering carefully. "Would you, uh, hit me if I said yes?"

Hiccup's blush matched Astrid's as she countered his response with, "would you hit me if I sometimes do the same?"

Hiccup slowly shook his head. "Never."

And like a moth to a flame, their mouths crushed together in a heated kiss. Neither knew who advanced whom but neither cared. Astrid's fingers got lost within Hiccup's thick, wild hair as he slid his arms around her until his palms rested on the small of her back. The sudden pool of desire both teens were feeling as they deeply kissed was unchartered territory, but neither wanted the intensity between them to end.

Somehow, in the crazy passion erupting between them, Hiccup found himself on top of Astrid, his hands now trapping hers against the floor above her head as they furiously kissed. He fluttered kisses along her jawline and down her neck until he reached a sensitive spot just above her collarbone.

A rather loud, foreign sound escaped from Astrid's lips as her head tipped backwards in response to his ministration along her neck. Immediately, Astrid clamped her hand over her mouth as Hiccup froze, his mouth still touching her soft skin. As if the timing couldn't get even worse, the door to Hiccup's hut burst open as Stormfly and Toothless flew in, both growling as if there was danger near.

The teens separated from each other instantly as their dragons cautiously walked up to them.

"What's wrong, girl?" Astrid asked Stormfly as the blue dragon nuzzled her nose against Astrid's cheek.

Hiccup rubbed underneath Toothless's chin, asking the same question. When the dragons realized there wasn't an immediate threat, they calmed down and plopped to the floor next to their riders.

"Why do you think they acted like that?" Astrid asked as she stroked Stormfly's head.

Hiccup was silent for a moment before an amusing smile colored his lips. "I think I know."

"What?"

Hiccup surprised her when he moved in closer to her again and kissed her hard on the lips. Astrid, surprised, leaned back as Hiccup crawled on top of her, wondering what he was trying to prove.

And then he did that thing again… moving his lips down to her collarbone and kissing her softly against her neck. Except, this time, Hiccup felt a little more courageous and fluttered his tongue against that same, erogenous spot on her neck. Astrid bit her lip in response as she let out a second moan, to which their dragons growled.

Next thing she knew, Hiccup was bursting out laughing against her. "I knew it."

"Care to clue me in?" Astrid cocked an eyebrow and frowned. What exactly was he seeing that she wasn't?

Hiccup rose to his feet and helped Astrid stand up before kissing her cheek lightly. He chuckled and then smirked. "They thought you were crying for help."

Astrid took a moment to process Hiccup's response. "What?! No…" She covered her face in complete embarrassment. She uncovered one eye with her fingers. "You really think so?"

"It's kind of obvious," Hiccup let out a laugh.

"Just kill me now," Astrid buried her face again, flushing madly.

Hiccup removed her hands from her face and cupped her cheeks. "Hey, look at the bright side."

Astrid frowned. "Which is…?"

The dragon rider smirked. "Well? The more they hear that sound, the more they'll get used to it, and the more they get used to it, the more they'll realize you're not in any imminent danger."

Astrid's jaw dropped, but she couldn't help but laugh. "Hiccup, I can't believe you said that!"

"Just telling you how I see it, milady," he grinned as she swatted at him.

"Don't you need to be meeting Gobber sometime soon?"

"Don't really want to…, but I guess it can't be helped," Hiccup sighed. "When I get done, I want to steal you away for the rest of the day if that's all right."

"Oh I think that could be arranged," Astrid replied dramatically before laughing. "Of course, you idiot. Just tell me when and where, and I'll be there."

"Meet me at the cove on the other side of the island when the sun is directly overhead. I should be done talking to Gobber by then." Hiccup said as his arms enfolded around her. She embraced him tightly as they shared another brief, but passionate kiss.

"Now," Astrid combed and smoothed down Hiccup's unruly hair gently before straightening up his clothes. "as Acting Chief, you will need to look presentable whether you're here on the island or on Berk. If you look like you just walked through a wind storm, people will start rumors about you… about us." She smoothed down the last of his stubborn locks and moved slightly back when she was done.

"Well, considering the fact that you've decided to stay here, I don't think that'll be an issue," Hiccup smirked as he kissed her button nose. "Now, I would really much rather stay here with you then go see Gobber, but the last thing I want is for him to track me down… He has a bad habit of barging in unannounced."

Astrid nodded and curled a strand of her hair behind her ear. "While you and Gobber are discussing some things, I'm going to take Stormfly out for a while… have her stretch her wings some before going to the cove."

Hiccup scratched his chin. "Do you want me to fix your hair before I go?"

"Nah," she laughed as she began pushing him out the door. "I'll just blame the wind."

Hiccup nodded. "Okay, well in that case…" Without warning, Hiccup ran his fingers through Astrid's hair and made it three times as worse as it originally was. "There. Now you really look like you were just flying in the wind."

Without another word, the Acting Chief ran away from Astrid and towards the clubhouse as swift as he could, and she just rolled her eyes and laughed. "That goofball."

WriterFreak001:

Yay! Chapter 1 is finished! I had planned for this chapter to be shorter, but I decided this was a good stopping point. :) I'm new to the HTTYD fandom so I apologize if any character is Out of Character. I tried my best.

I hope you enjoyed this story so far!