TWELVE: Homeward Bound

The rest of the evening had been perfect, another bottle of champagne donated by the Maitre d' in recognition of the Proposal and the best seat in the house as they settled by the pool and listened to the band. And they had played various songs including Dancing Queen-at Hiccup's request-and Back For Good, which Astrid had hesitantly sung for Hiccup, backed by the band. At the end, there had been a round of applause and Hiccup had kissed her and nodded in agreement of the musical apology. The couple had drunk coffee and soft drinks-as well as liqueurs that Griselda had sent them-and danced to the band, usually romantic numbers where dancing just consisted of holding one another and swaying gently, savouring each other's closeness.

Snotlout had tried to interfere but someone-astonishingly Fishlegs-had shoved him into the pool 'by accident'. Furious and dripping, he had been led away by the Assistant Manager who wanted to speak to him about his extremely large room bill-which the twins were laughing helplessly at. When he arrived back in his room, he found four crates of bottled water and seventy hotel special dressing gowns placed diligently on his bed as requested. The argument about the bill had gone on long after the others had retired to bed.

Hiccup and Astrid found flowers and fruit in their room with a card bearing their friends' apologies. There was also a voucher for a Parasailing Experience back in Berk the following weekend to allow the couple to try the sport together rather than have Hiccup never try it and Astrid's only experience be the one with Snot. Smiling, the couple had laughed at the gesture and nodded before carefully packing their bags and just leaving out their clothes and wash bags for the morning. And then they had gone out onto the balcony and sat together, finishing off the champagne and enjoying the peaceful and beautiful scene.

"I'm glad I'm here with you," she said softly. "I really do mean it, Hiccup. This is just…perfect…and I almost threw it away."

"We both did," he admitted.

"And Zephyr and Nuffink," she reminded him. He burst out laughing.

"You remembered," he chuckled. She nodded.

"I mean those are the most Hiccup names ever-but they are so right," she confessed.

"You don't have to use them," he reminded her but she nodded.

"I know-but we agreed-and I kind of like them…because they are quirky and unique just like you…and any child we have would definitely be as well," she countered. Her solitaire gleamed on her finger as she clasped his hand.

"Is that a suggestion?" he teased her.

"Not until after we've graduated, Babe!" she retorted and gently punched his shoulder. He clutched the point of impact.

"Oh the pain!" he groaned theatrically. "Beating up a poor man who hurt himself stopping a muttonhead falling off his balcony…"

"This balcony, in fact," she reminded him and kissed him on the lips. "My hero…" He gently rubbed noses with her, his eyes pensive.

"You know, I had this holiday all planned," he confessed. "In my mind, I could see us by the pool, swimming, parasailing, walking down the Promenade…and having those romantic meals. It was perfect…but everything that happened wasn't anywhere near that. And I think I got more and more frustrated as well as jealous and angry and hurt…" He shook his head. "But when I saw you being attacked by those guys, nothing else mattered. And seeing my brave and fierce Astrid so shaken…I forgave you that second. I just need to know…that you forgive me?" She smiled and leaned against him.

"Babe-you have nothing to forgive," she assured him. "Now come inside and let me show my new fiance that I forgive you…"

oOo

Night was peaceful in their room, though Hiccup roused once when he thought he heard a beeping noise and some very flowery cursing. But Astrid stirred against him and he closed his eyes, snuggling into her once more.

In Snotlout's room, however, the stocky man was going crazy. Every half hour or so, an alarm clock was going off, starting at 2am. There had been one under his pillow, one in the bedside table, one in the other bedside table, one under the bed, three in the wardrobe, one in the chest of drawers, one in his suitcase and one above him that he couldn't find and was driving him mad. He'd spent most of the night up, furious and hunting down the little alarms that were now smashed in pieces on the floor-not a wise move when he was stomping around in bare feet. Treading on the jagged pieces of plastic and inner alarm clock workings was only making his foul temper worse and he had exhausted every single cuss word he knew and some he reckoned he had invented.

Of course, it was all Hiccup's fault. His scrawny auburn sarcastic one-legged cousin had stolen his girl and thwarted his attempts to get Astrid to fall in love with him. He had sulked and looked mournful and pathetic and finally, he had caused Astrid to feel sorry for him. And somehow, they had escaped from his trap and gotten to the restaurant that Snotlout had guessed they would go to in an attempt to reconcile. And worse, he had been robbed of most of his holiday money in having to pay for the hilarious prank. He was sunburnt-thanks to the twins-and people kept laughing at him so he had checked himself in the mirror and had been horrified to see the white shapes standing out against his bright red skin. And then there was the tattoo. The only person he had told the words to had been his scrawny cousin…and now they were inked onto his arm in black and red! It was all the twins' fault for getting him drunk and forcing him to prove how brave he was by getting a random tattoo...

And now he had been up most of the night and they were leaving in the morning. The eastern horizon was already looking a lighter blue and there was the faintest smudge of yellow just above the sea. He needed his beauty sleep before he flew so angrily, he checked the bed, clambered in and placed the pillows over his head. Closing his eyes, he gave a small smile. He had one last chance on the flight to prove he was the man for Astrid…

oOo

Hiccup had woken early, a sense of relief and peace washing over him. He had honestly been more miserable than he had since his Mom died over the last few days but now…everything was right in the world and he didn't want to waste time by sleeping. Quietly, he got up to go to the bathroom and then grabbed his phone, noting that it was nearly dawn. Glancing over at Astrid, he gently knelt on the bed.

"Astrid?"

"Mmm?" she murmured and then sleepily opened her eyes.

"Milady, will you share the dawn with me?" he asked softly and though she closed her eyes, her lips stretched into a wide smile.

"I would love to," she admitted and opened her eyes again. Swiftly, she got up and ran her hands through her crazed hair, managing to make it point in the normal direction before walking onto the balcony to lean over with Hiccup, staring at the horizon as the sky warmed and the sun peeked over the flat azure sea. Hands twined, they both smiled and closed their eyes as the warm morning light hit their faces, the warmth setting their skin tingling.

"This was perfect, Babe," she murmured.

"You want a walk along the Promenade-just the two of us?" he asked her and she grinned, staring down at the quiet space, looking fresh and empty in the new morning light.

"Last one down there is a sea slug!" she teased him and they scrambled into the room, frantically getting dressed and sprinting for the door. Hiccup bounded over the bed and reached the door first, grinning at the competitive shape of Astrid who dived past him and ducked under his arm to run for the elevator. Grabbing his phone and key card, Hiccup closed the door and stampeded after her. But when they made the lobby, he slowed and allowed her to win-because Astrid victorious was a sight to behold. Eyes gleaming with triumph, cheeks flushed and mouth wide in a huge smile, his heart skipped a beat as he pulled to a halt at her side. She lifted her right hand, thumb and index finger forming a L. "Loser!" she giggled.

"You are now officially engaged to a sea slug," he told her ironically and wrapped her in a hug, swinging her around.

"Put me down, you clown!" she protested, giggling as he staggered.

"As Milady commands," he managed and chuckled. "Now shall we promenade?"

"Nah-let's go for a walk instead," she teased him, taking his hand. "A girl and her sea slug."

"I'm never going to be allowed to forget that, am I?" he checked. She grinned.

"Maybe in ten years or so..." she said airily as he rolled his eyes. But the seafront sidewalk was pristine and almost empty at this hour and they were able to have a walk in peace, taking in the sights, taking photos and generally enjoying their last morning together on the holiday. When they headed back, they went into breakfast together and enjoyed a quiet meal with just the two of them, though they were happy when the others joined them as they had finished. And it was noticeable that their friends checked it was okay to join them, rather than assuming and interrupting a private moment. The couple had thanked them for the gifts and promised to bring the fruit along for the flight before heading back to their room to collect their bags. Ruff and Tuff were looking shifty so Hiccup pulled them aside and checked.

"You haven't booby-trapped us, have you?" he asked in a wary voice but they both shook their heads.

"Not you, no," Tuff admitted.

"But Snottykins has had a very busy night, what with all the alarm clocks that were concealed in his room," Ruff added.

"Alarm clocks?"

"Every 30-40 minutes starting at two," Tuff confirmed. "He should have got about ten minutes sleep..."

"He'll miss his plane," Hiccup murmured and then sighed. "Ask reception to call him, at least. If he doesn't wake, that's his responsibility." The twins both looked disappointed.

"Awww...and we wanted to wake him once we'd boarded," Ruff whined but the tall, auburn-haired man was insistent.

"At least give him a chance," he said sternly.

"You are no fun," Tuff grumbled.

"Wrong! He's lots of fun...he's just an adult," Astrid corrected them. "And kinder and more generous than Snot or any of you deserve."

"Which is why we all love him," Fishlegs said. "Hey-group photo!" The others all scrambled up, eager as a waiter kindly snapped multiple images of them standing by the palm tree that was growing in the outdoors portion of the restaurant. Finally, finished, Hiccup and Astrid headed upstairs as the others finished their breakfast. And then Hiccup smiled and thumbed open his phone.

"I know how to ensure we get our seats this time," he murmured.

oOo

The phone jolted Snotlout awake and he almost rolled over but some nagging worry was clawing at his sleep-deprived brain. On the fourth attempt, he managed to snag the receiver and held it the wrong way against his head.

"Yeah?" he mumbled.

"Mister Jorgensen, your friends were concerned that you are not yet up and requested I put in this call," Manuel said in his accented voice. Snotlout frowned and peered at his phone which was the wrong way up.

"I'm sure I'm fine for...TEN O'CLOCK!" Snotlout screeched. "I'll miss my bus!"

"You're welcome," Manuel said and hung up as Snotlout frantically scrabbled to get out of bed and pack, having forgotten to do that the night before. He raced into the shower, putting the water on full and soaping himself frantically, then sloshing a handful of the free shampoo into his hand and beginning to scrub his hair. He scrubbed...and then realised he was stuck. Or more precisely, his hands were stuck to his hair. Desperate, he pulled and pulled-and then screamed as his hands came away, along with chunks of his hair. Frantically sluicing the water off himself, he dried himself and stared in the mirror: his hair was stuck in frozen peaks, shampoo mixed in with the gluey mess. There were two huge chunks missing and his palms were extremely furry from where his hair had been ripped out. Blinking, he pulled his clothes on, threw everything into his suitcase and ran for the door, arriving in the lobby to find it deserted. He gave a sigh of relief.

"I'm in time," he said and waved to the doorman. "Hey-Esteban! Let me know when the bus for the airport arrives!" he called. But the doorman was frowning.

"The bus left ten minutes ago, Senor Jorgensen," he said respectfully as Snotlout shot to his feet.

"WHAT?" he yelled. "How could they? How could my Princess...? Wait...it was that evil jealous one-legged...Hiccup! I'll get you..." Watching from reception, Manuel was trying not to laugh, for they had all been irritated by Snotlout's behaviour over the previous few days.

"Would you like me to summon a taxi, Senor Jorgensen?" he asked professionally. Calculating how much money he had-and that he really had no other choice, Snotlout nodded ungraciously.

"Yes please," he said grumpily. "And tell them to put their foot down!"

oOo

"You did what?" Astrid repeated.

"Swapped his free shampoo for superglue," Tuff explained. "I mean, if he had a decent shampoo he could tell but he's such a cheapskate he uses whatever the hotel provides. He already stole the little bottles from our room and Dagur's because he had used his up..."

"But glue?" Hiccup asked. "How will he get that out?" The twins shared a look and mimed a scissors cutting action.

"He won't," Ruff sniggered. Hiccup looked over at Astrid who was already laughing and tried hard not to grin.

"So let me get this right-you gave him sunburn, rude sunblock shapes on his sunburn, a tattoo, kept him awake all night and swapped his shampoo for superglue?"

"He tried to split you and Astrid up-so we're officially making amends," Tuff told him. "Anything to see you smile, little Hiccy ..."

"If I hadn't already disowned him-and texted Dad so he would do the same, I would have to go to have to go into hiding for the next family get together," Hiccup commented.

"Aww," Astrid agreed, "but I would've been in hiding with you so no need to worry..." Casting her a playful look, he chuckled.

"That might not have be so bad and we could do that anyway if we wanted to avoid Dad and Gobber singing Snoggletog carols really badly," he conceded as the bus gave a cough, a splutter and then coasted to a halt. "But that may be..." Staring up ahead, the group saw the bus driver kick the panel and scramble down, grabbing his phone and talking in urgent Spanish.

"That looks very bad..." Fishlegs commented as Hiccup got up.

"I'll see if I can help," he murmured and walked down the steps, then round to the back of the bus and lifted the engine panel. The driver saw him and began to remonstrate but Hiccup peered in, smiled and deftly reattached the cable that had somehow gotten detached. He pointed and gave the driver a thumbs-up, then walked back into the bus. There was a pause as the driver tried the engine-and it sprang into life. Cheers rang out and Astrid gave him a kiss as he slid back into his seat and they pulled back onto the road once more. Buffeted by claps on the back and promises of drinks on the plane, Hiccup nodded acknowledgement and tightened his grip around Astrid. All the reward he wanted was her.

The journey to the airport after that was uneventful after that and checking in was easy, because Hiccup had checked the couple in online, meaning Snotlout couldn't mess up their seats again. So they printed out their boarding cards and swept through security, even having time to visit duty free where Hiccup bought Astrid her favourite perfume 'Valkyrie' while she grabbed some vodka for her father and a duty-free strength litre bottle of mead for Hiccup's Dad. And then they went to the gate with their friends.

"I wonder where Snotlout is?" Heather mused, checking her BerkBook news feed. Snotlout's hadn't uploaded anything all day.

"I wonder how hairy his hands are," Ruff chuckled.

"I wonder how much his taxi is going to cost," Fishlegs mused. "It's a long drive..."

"I wonder if he'll learn his lesson..." Hiccup murmured and then shared a glance with Astrid. "Nah. Some things are just too unlikely..." Nodding, Dagur passed round the bottle of wine he had brought with him. They all took a sip and passed it on as Astrid handed round the fruit from their room.

"To friends," she said and glanced around. "And respecting boundaries."

"To friends," Fishlegs and Heather murmured.

"To Loki!" Tuff called as his sister whooped.

"To vacations," Throk added.

"To us," Hiccup murmured. "Friends and family...and fabulous fiancées."

Boarding was completely uncomplicated and on time but there was no sign of Snotlout as they walked up the steps and found their seats-side by side this time. Astrid leaned her head on Hiccup's shoulder in relief.

"You have no idea how much I missed you last time," she admitted. "I know it's stupid but when Finn died in that air crash, it just really put me off flying. And heights because his plane crashed down the thousand foot drop over that cliff. So the only way I can fly inter-island or here is...you. If you can carry on after losing your leg, I can fly after losing an Uncle."

"And you know I'm always here for you, right?" he reassured her. "No immature self-absorbed lazy unfaithful mutton-headed yak-brained bath-shy irritating creep is ever going to get between us again...literally or metaphorically!"

"I love a man who covers all bases," she laughed as the doors closed and they pushed back from their standing. She peered out of the window. "Hey...is that a donkey cart galloping up to the front of the terminal?"

Everyone scrambled to peer through the windows and Throk frowned.

"I believe Snottykins is in the back," he commented in his deep, serious voice. Hiccup had realised the man had no sense of irony and took himself and life unerringly seriously. And he believed whatever he was told by Ruffnut, so Hiccup had resigned to being called 'Hiccy' by the tall man forever.

"He looks very red," Astrid commented.

"And what has happened to his hair? There are two bald patches on the top," Mala added.

"He's seen the Viking Air flight," Hiccup said. "I can't lip read well but I think he's rather annoyed. He knows he's going to miss it."

"Now he seems to be trying to scale the perimeter fence," Heather noted.

"Nope...three armed security men have taken him down," Fishlegs continued.

"He's fighting back," Tuff said eagerly.

"Not any more-he's been tasered," Hiccup corrected him, stifling a smile. "By all three of them!"

"He's actually foaming at the mouth," Astrid noted.

"And another two security men have arrived." Fishlegs squeaked.

"Snotlout has just bitten one on the ankle," Heather sniggered.

"One has just shot his suitcase..." Dagur commented.

"That will be the final alarm clock," Tuff said knowingly.

"He's being led away," Astrid said in satisfaction. "Still protesting, I might add…" The twins high-fived.

"And Loki's work is done!" they said triumphantly. Astrid's hand tightened on Hiccup's as they reached the end of the taxiway and turned, the engine noise rising to a shriek as they prepared for takeoff.

"Any regrets, Milady?" he asked her and she nodded.

"About my behaviour but never about you-about us," she said, leaning over to kiss him. "Love you, Babe. And you?"

He smiled.

"Best holiday ever!" he said,

The End.

A/N: I'm on a plane going on holiday to the US as I write this so I am definitely in the holiday mood. Thanks to Vala 411 who showed me a post about the alarm clock thing and suggested teletubbies while the glue/shampoo swap is straight out of Police Academy but no less fun for it. I have had most of the their things happen on various holidays including even more extreme things that I couldn't fit in. I may consider doing a day trip one-shot because I've been on a few and they are definitely fertile ground for chaos and mayhem. I am aware Astrid was a bit OOC but everyone is allowed a mistake-as long as you learn from it. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this one. Happy holidays one and all! BW-hp.