I don't own How To Train Your Dragon, I'm just a fan :)

Hand on my Heart

Chapter 16

Hiccup and Val reached the island the day after they left Berk. Neither said all that much while they flew. Both of them were thinking over everything that happened. When they finally reached the island, Hiccup got Toothless to fly low and slowly so they could see if there was anyone on the island. They spent over an hour flying all around the island and it was literally deserted. They landed eventually at the spot Hiccup and Camicazi had camped in. That was where Hiccup was going to build the house. It was an excellent location. Close to a clean water supply, close to the hot springs for bathing, close to the forest where food was plentiful. Hiccup also knew that the port wasn't too far from there so he'd be able to pop over for supplies and other food regularly. They would be okay.

Hiccup wanted to get started straight away. Hiccup had been teaching his mother for weeks how to use the pedals on Toothless and Toothless loved the woman. Toothless could smell that she was Hiccup's mother as their scent was very similar so he totally loved her. Toothless did however miss Camicazi and Stormfly. Hiccup had noticed that Toothless was kind of grumpy and he understood. He was kind of grumpy too. Hiccup set to work on chopping wood and Val wanted to help build the house so Hiccup asked her to go on Toothless to look for stone that could be used in building a house.

Toothless and Val took off the scour the island while Hiccup chopped wood. He'd already drawn up the design for the house so he knew what he would need and what would go where. Throughout the day, Val appeared back with Toothless who dropped off large pieces of flat rock for the base of the house. Some of them were thicker than others so to make it even, Hiccup dug into the earth and sunk them until they were all evened out. By the end of the first day, the entire rock base of the house was sunk into the ground and because Hiccup was a perfectionist, it was perfectly flat.

Hiccup and Toothless hunted in the evening while Val set up a fire and cooked some vegetables that Hiccup had brought with them. Hiccup returned with a deer which Val cleaned then cooked and the two of them had dinner together while Toothless ate what was left of the deer. After dinner, the two of them had a little mead then Hiccup got back to work on the small house. He wasn't planning on making it spectacular right away. It just needed to shelter them at first. It was too cold to stay outside. He dug deep holes all around the stone floor and sunk in the long planks of wood he'd cut so that the stuck up vertically in the air and they were down deep enough in the ground so that they sat solidly and wouldn't be moved by wind or a storm. When Hiccup finished one wall, Val weaved thin rope in between the planks along the wall to hold them all together while Hiccup started on the next wall. It took hours but eventually all four walls were up.

Hiccup had left a gap on one wall for a door and Val tied an animal hide over the gap so it was like a door flap. While Hiccup had been doing the floor, Val had weaved hay and leaves together with sewing string to make a thick thatch for the roof. Obviously, that wasn't a permanent solution but it was late and they were both getting tired so it would have to do for the night. Hiccup had made the two middle planks at the front and back of the little house significantly longer than the others and he flew up on Toothless and tied a long thin tree trunk securely to both of the long planks providing the backbone of the roof v shape. After that, he hung the thatch across the plank and it was large enough to cover the entire space then Val and Hiccup tied the thatch down securely on both sides of the small house. They'd literally worked on it all day.

"I cannot believe that it is finished in one day." Val said to Hiccup shocked and he chuckled.

"Only the floor is permanent, mother. The walls and the roof will have to be redone and I will have to make a door, but it's enough for now." He said and she smiled.

"You are so clever, my son." She said proudly and he smiled.

"I'm glad you're with me, mother." He said softly and she grinned at him.

"I am glad I came with you." She agreed.

There was enough room in the small house for Hiccup, Val and Toothless and the three of them slept in there together. Val made two makeshift beds and Toothless slept in front of the door which blocked any cold air from coming in. It was surprisingly warm inside. They hadn't needed all of the hide blankets which surprised both of them.

In the morning, Val set about making breakfast while Hiccup went to check behind the waterfall. He wondered if the remaining treasure would still be there. It was over a year since he was last on the island so he figured it would be gone. He went to the falls, leaving Toothless with Val for her protection. Hiccup swam behind the falls and was shocked to see everything was exactly how they'd left it. It was all still there. He decided that the best thing to do would be to go to the port and sell it as soon as possible. He took the remaining bags of treasure then he made his way back to the house.

"It was still there?" She asked surprised when she saw Hiccup with several bags.

"Nobody has been here since then it seems. It would be best to sell this immediately." He commented

"Then go to the port and sell it after breakfast." Val shrugged.

"I cannot leave you here alone, mother." Hiccup said to her and she cocked an eyebrow at him.

"I am a Viking, my darling. I can take care of myself if you remember." She pointed out.

"I know." He nodded.

"Also, you will fly much faster if I am not with you and I can work on the house while you are away. You said that it will only take you a few hours to fly there and back." She said. "You will be able to carry more if I am not with you and you can buy some supplies when you are there." She added.

"Are you sure you will be alright?" He asked her and she laughed.

"Yes, my darling. I will be fine." She smiled.

"I'll bring back food, material and anything else I can think of that will help." He nodded. "We will also need clothing." He said thoughtfully.

"If you bring material and thread I will make us clothes." She said.

"Alright." He smiled. "The port also has a forge I can pay for use of so I will make the fitments for the door at some point." He said. "Think over if there is anything you want or need that I can get at the port." He said and she nodded.

Hiccup was back in the early evening and he'd managed to discretely sell all of the remaining treasure and he'd gotten himself a fortune from it. By the time he got back, his mother had made them beds and she'd sealed all the cracks in the wood so there wouldn't be a draft in the house. Hiccup brought back bread and butter and they had that with salted meat that he'd also bought. Val had also fished a little so she cleaned and salted them to dry them out so they'd be able to eat that the following day. The two of them were exhausted from their two tough days so after dinner they just sat and talked and had some mead that Hiccup bought. Hiccup told her a few stories and she did the same. They weren't talking about Stoick or Camicazi.

Axela and Fishlegs had refused to let Camicazi go alone so the three of them took the ship. Sure, it took longer, but Cami was pregnant and they didn't want her going off on Stormfly all by herself. It took them a week to get to the island and Camicazi's stomach was in knots. The three of them made their way through the forest because Cami knew exactly where Hiccup would be staying on the island. It took a while but they eventually got to the spot and their jaws dropped at the sight of the amazing house that stood there. They couldn't believe Hiccup had managed to build such an amazing house in only a week. The fire was burning and Camicazi walked forward towards the house just as Val walked out of it and Val blinked in surprise at the sight of not only Cami but Fishlegs and Axela too.

"Cami, darling, what are you going here?" Val asked her surprised.

"I need to speak to Hiccup. Where is he?" Cami asked confused.

"He and Toothless went over to explore the caves on the other side of the island." Val said. "They've been gone for a while though and Hiccup said he wouldn't be long so he'll no doubt be back soon." Val added. "Are you alright?" She asked Cami. Val loved Cami and she was so happy to see her.

"Yes." Camicazi nodded. "Though I'll be better when I speak to Hiccup."

"The house is amazing." Fishlegs commented and Val smiled.

"Hiccup worked so hard on it. It's really quite great isn't it?" Val asked proudly looking at the house.

The four of them sat talking for a little while then the newcomers wanted to see the inside of the house. Hiccup landed just as the three of them went inside. He jumped off Toothless' back with a grin and ran up to his mother who was standing outside.

"Mother!" Hiccup exclaimed before she could say anything. "I thought the waterfall had a lot of treasure but the caves have even more." He said to her excitedly. "We're going to have to go through it and see what can be sold discretely and..." Hiccup froze as Camicazi walked out of the door of the house and his eyes were wide and he blinked rapidly at the sight of her. "Cami?" He asked shocked.

"Hiccup." She said softly and Val saw the longing all over her face.

"What are you doing here?" He asked her confused.

"Can we go talk?" She asked him and he looked surprised but then he nodded. Toothless bounded over to her and licked her face and ran around her in circles then went back to licking her face and she giggled. Val and Hiccup were laughing a little at that too. It was obvious the dragon had missed her. "I missed you too." Cami said to Toothless as she hugged his neck. Toothless caught a whiff of her scent then started to sniff her stomach then he jumped up and down excitedly then ran over to Hiccup and pounced on him and licked his face too.

"What is wrong with you?" Hiccup asked him confused at his weird behaviour. Cami understood just why the dragon had done that.

"I'll go inside." Val said to them then went into the house leaving them alone. Cami went over to Hiccup and sat down next to where he was flattened on the ground and Toothless pulled back and sat down on the ground with a big toothless grin and Hiccup was still looking at him confused.

"Why are you acting so weird?" Hiccup asked Toothless confused.

"He's acting like that because he's happy for you." Camicazi replied and Hiccup then turned to look at her confused as he sat up next to her.

"What do you mean?" He asked her sceptically.

"He knows that I'm..." She gulped. "I'm pregnant." She said and Hiccup's jaw dropped and his eyes widened.

"What?" Hiccup asked her in disbelief.

"We're having a baby." Camicazi said to him softly and he stared at her in shock then his expression turned to sadness which surprised her.

"Does Bertha know about that?" He asked and she nodded.

"It turns out that Stoick told my mother that you told him that you were only having fun with me but you would eventually go home and marry Astrid. That's why my mother did that." Cami said and Hiccup looked furious.

"I would never do that to you!" He exclaimed and she nodded.

"I know that. If she'd told me that at the time I would have explained that to her." Cami said.

"So you came all the way here to tell me that you're pregnant?" He asked her softly.

"No. I came all the way here to tell you that I'm an idiot and I chose wrong." She said to him sincerely. "I told my mother that too. I'm sorry it took me so long to see that." She said to him ashamed.

"What are you saying?" He asked her as his stomach clenched.

"I'm saying that I choose you." She said to him and in a move too fast for her to register she was pinned to the ground and Hiccup kissed her. She laughed a little against his mouth and pulled him closer and kissed him back. "Does this mean you forgive me?" She asked him in a whisper and he stared down at her.

"I love you. There's nothing to forgive." He said and she smiled. "Please tell me you didn't get yourself banished." He said worriedly.

"That depends on you." Cami said to him sincerely and he looked confused.

"How so?" He asked and she sighed.

"My mother is really against the marriage thing so she said that I can still be Chief, we can still be together and she'll stay out of it all as long as we wait to get married until after she dies. She said she doesn't want to see me get married." Camicazi said to him. "But if you want to get married now, I'll let her banish me. I only need you." She said sincerely and his stomach fluttered.

"Cami." He said softly running a hand over her cheek. "I don't need some organised ritual or marriage ceremony. That doesn't matter to me anymore. It only mattered before because that's what I was brought up to believe I needed." He explained. "I don't care if we never get married. I just want to be with you. The ceremony isn't what makes two people married. I love you and it will always only be you." He took her hand and put it flat on his chest over his heart. "In here, I'm already married to you." He said and her eyes welled with tears. "I'm completely miserable without you." He admitted and tears streaked her face.

"I've never been as miserable in my life as I have been in the last week." She replied and he chuckled.

"So can we just be together? Be us?" He asked her and she nodded.

"I want that more than anything." She said and he smiled then kissed her again.

"You're really pregnant?" He asked her softly and she nodded. He smiled widely at that. "That's amazing." He said and she grinned at him.

"Really? You're happy?" She asked.

"So happy." He nodded and she smiled.

"Me too." She agreed. "My mother will flip if it's a boy." She said amused.

"You're mother is staying out of it, remember?" He smirked at her and she laughed a little.

"That's a very good point." She nodded in agreement.

"Don't tell Bertha, but I hope it's a little girl." He smiled and she laughed.

"You are a Bog Burglar in disguise, aren't you?" She teased and he chuckled.

"I'd be proud to be a Bog Burglar." He smirked and she smiled at him widely.

"I love you." She said with all the love she had for him.

"Though I do plan on telling Bertha all about how manly our son is going to be and how we're going to have five boys just to annoy her." Hiccup teased and she laughed loudly.

"I'll help." She winked at him and he chuckled.

"Her facial expression is going to be priceless." He said amused and Cami giggled.

"So does that mean you'll come home with me?" She asked and he nodded.

"Won't that cause problems for your tribe though? My mother and I are banished from Berk." He said.

"My mother doesn't care about that. She said that you're both welcome to live with the Bog Burglars." She said.

"Alright." He agreed.

"Though I have to say, I love the house." Cami commented pointing to the house and he smiled.

"We can always come for little vacations here when we want some time alone." He smiled and she grinned at him.

"That will be amazing." She said.

"By the way, I went to see Stoneclaw at the port and he changed over the ownership papers for the ship to Nordsten." He said and she blinked in surprise.

"My surname?" She asked him confused and he nodded.

"News will travel that Hiccup Haddock is banished from the Hooligan tribe on Berk so it would be better that the ship isn't associated with me." He said to her.

"But what about the baby?" Camicazi asked him confused.

"She'll have your name, obviously." Hiccup replied surprising her.

"You're okay with that?" Cami asked curiously.

"I'm not using Haddock anymore so why would our child get that name?" He asked her.

"What will you use?" She asked him and he shrugged.

"Doesn't really matter. I suppose I could use yours." He said and she grinned at him.

"Really?" She asked happily and he chuckled.

"Hiccup Nordsten sounds better anyway." He smirked and she giggled.

"You're very strange for a Viking man." She teased and he chuckled.

"Everyone knows that already, Cami." He winked at her and she smiled. "Anyway, my mother could use some good news, so we should tell her that she'll be a grandmother." He smiled.

"Yes, definitely." Cami grinned. Hiccup got off of her and retook his seat and Cami sat up.

"Mother?" Hiccup called and moments later Val walked out of the house.

"Is everything okay?" She asked them softly.

"I'm going to be a father." Hiccup smiled at her and she looked surprised and ecstatic all at once.

"You're pregnant?" She asked Cami delighted and she nodded with a smile. "That is so wonderful! I am so pleased for you both." She said sincerely and they both smiled. "And what about the two of you?" She asked motioning between them.

"Bertha just can't resist me." Hiccup teased and they both laughed.

"So are we going to live with the Bog Burglars then?" Val smiled.

"Yes." Hiccup nodded.

"That won't be a problem for Bertha with Stoick?" She asked Cami concerned.

"No, my mother doesn't care what Stoick thinks about it." Cami replied and Val smiled.

"I'm glad everything worked out." She said. "Now, darling, what on earth were you trying to say about the caves?" She asked Hiccup.

"Oh!" He exclaimed. "I completely forgot! There is tons of treasure in the caves!" He grinned.

"That's amazing." Cami said surprised.

"We'll have to go get it all before we leave. There is literally like ten times more than what was behind the waterfall." Hiccup said and Cami's jaw dropped.

"Are you joking?" She asked shocked.

"Nope." Hiccup grinned. "There is so much that we could literally buy every single one of the Bog Burglars their own ship and we'd still have tons left." He said shocking them. "So we need to take all of it. I remember Bertha saying she wanted to redo all of the roofs on the island. There's more than enough to do that now." He said.

"You want to share it?" Cami asked him curiously.

"Of course." He nodded. "We will never need that much money." He said.

"You are too nice to be a Viking." Cami commented amused and Val chuckled.

"Hiccup, you should really say hello to Fishlegs and Axela." She said surprising Hiccup.

"I didn't even know they were here." He said and Val chuckled at him being so wrapped up in Cami.