Hey guys! I have great news...I'm DONE my IB EXAMS! And now b/c I'm basically done my courses, I get summer vacation a month earlier, which means ... yep, you guessed it. MORE time for writing, which is what I'm "assuming" you guys want.

Also, I've realized that, and I hope you guys have also realized, that this story and The Past Defines The Future didn't really start out well, in terms of writing skills and the plot basis and how I convey the emotions and internal conflicts the characters are having. I've read the stories of EmmerzK, , Cathrath, Midoriko-sama and many other authors here that I just stay hooked on to their work no matter how much internal conflict it causes me, b/c they're just so good.

I hope you've noticed that even as my stories go on, I try to improve my style of writing, looking more in-depth about the characters and maybe trying to fill out the gaps that I'm sure I've left open. I'm still working on my writing, and I hope you guys can, as you all have always been, give comments about my writing and areas that I need to improve on. I don't care if it's harsh criticism or the occasional 'good chapter'. I just want to keep improving myself b/c I know I can make my stories better and I need you guys to help me to do that.

I also can't believe the movie is so close! Just over 13 days left for it. I'm actually glad that they show 2 or 3 shows before the actual release date. So I'll be going to see it on June 12th and since it's also my birthday that day, it will be all the more special to see it.

Anyway, without further-ado, onto the chapter.

And could someone fill me in, on what a beta reader is? Is it another reader who proof reads the chapter you've just written and makes edits where they feel necessary?

P.S. Sorry for the long delay.

Also, this chapter isn't filled with angst or drama or action. Just one of those filler chapters of humour, slight smut and cuteness.

The docks were bustling with extra activity ever since they saw the Phantom on the horizon ... and was now about a half-a-mile off the docks. At that moment, the dockworkers saw a Whispering Death rise from the ship, with a rope attached to it and began heading in their direction, pulling the formidable vessel with relative ease behind it. They immediately recognized it as one of the dragons that helped liberate their village from Drago's control. With the great beast pulling the vessel, it reached the docks in no time.

Snotlout, Ripper and the Twins tossed ropes over the side where the Bog women were waiting for them, and tied the ropes to secured posts. Some other women got the planks ready and immediately placed them once the ropes were secured.

"Uh ... any chance you can fly me to whatever place I'll be staying?" asked Eret, falling back onto the deck and trying to make himself smaller.

"Why are doing that?" Ripper asked, ignoring the question.

"Well, let's just say there are a lot of women here who I've had the pleasure to meet and never left on good terms with" he blurted out as fast as possible.

"Alright ladies, you have the opportunity to take the prisoners to their cells" Ripper yelled as he walked off the ship, not before giving Eret an amused smile.

"I'll stay with him and make sure they don't rip him apart" Ruff said, but they both couldn't help but feel satisfaction at hearing the angry voices and some, unbelievable screams, by Eret. Razorcut rejoined Ripper's side after the ropes were removed from him.

"So I see Hiccup tasked you as the poster boy again" Cami said, walking up to him and giving him a hug.

"By now you'd think I'm used to it" Ripper replied with a chuckle. "So where are Hiccup and Astrid?"

"They're at the healer's. Apparently Hiccup's stab wound reopened and he was bleeding without even knowing on his way here. Only realized something was wrong when he fell to the ground clutching his stomach" she briefed him. And as expected, Ripper halted his steps and stared at her as if she had a beard growing.

"Why am I not surprised" he said shaking his head and hanging it.

"Because it's Hiccup" she stated.

"That's reason enough for me. Is he in bed, or did he run off somewhere?"

"He's in bed. Astrid's making sure of it"

"That's enough punishment for him, don't you think?" he asked with a chuckle.

"After what he did to us in Atlaka? I don't think so" she said shaking her head, and holding either side of her arms, laughing.

"Well, in his defense he had to make it look legitimate" Ripper said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"But making us have a full out make-out session in the inn was not the way to do it" she said.

"You're saying I'm not a good kisser? At least I'm better than Hiccup since you kissed both of us. By the way, don't mention that you kissed him in front of Astrid. She will not take her jealousy out on trees if she does hear it"

"Don't worry ... I'll wait until he's made a full recovery and then tell her" she said with a grin.

"What makes you so sure she won't come after you?"

"Oh, because at that stage she'll be too angry to think straight, so if I said Hiccup kissed me, she'll go berserk on him" said Cami with a devious smirk, one that could rival Loki's.

"Sometimes, you scare me ... a lot" he remarked, taking a step away from her. He technically did have a right to be scared since he's heard, and seen, what Cami can do to anyone, mostly men, if they manage to step over her temper ... which is relatively short.

"Good" she replied smugly and pressed on ahead of him towards the healer's. The conversation proceeded to take a shift to the talks of the upcoming plans and counter-attacks against Drago. Their options were, believe it or not, quite limited.

Drago had an array of associates in Atlaka, along with many connections in their army, as well as between two or three dozen villages under him. He had the resources unlike them, he had much more firepower than them, and his fleet alone makes Dagur's armada look like Berk's fleet, and that is the hard truth. They were, in essence, already beaten.

But they wouldn't be Vikings if they didn't have their stubbornness issues, would they?

"Hopefully Eret can give some insight about his next plans" Cami said as they opened the door of the healer's building.

"Since he's an arms dealer of dragons, he'll want a deal ... are we willing to offer him one?" asked Ripper.

"Here's the deal ... you tell us everything there is to know about Drago, and I won't castrate you" she said, walking into the sick bay.

"That's enough to make any man squeal" Ripper said with a chuckle, and soon he gaze landed on the infamous duo on one of the beds on the left side of the large room.

"Please tell me weren't talking about me" Hiccup said, his eyes showing terror and anxiety.

"Please don't ... otherwise it won't be the same for me" Astrid said with a cheeky grin, earning a snort from Cami and Thuggory, who was on his bed beside Hiccup.

"Nice to know you're thinking about me" Hiccup retorted with an eye-roll.

"So what's the news? Has Eret started talking?" asked Astrid.

"Not yet, he would like to meet with Hiccup though ... has a lot of questions for you" Ripper said, folding his arms over his chest.

"Dragon related?"

"Mostly between how you got Astrid as your girlfriend"

"Well, that's easy ... my raw Viking-ness, my smarts, my looks and my sense of humour" he said, rather smugly.

"Yep, you are a one of a kind catch" Astrid said with an eye-roll, while he traced circles on her hand that he was holding.

"Okay ... apart from that, he'll only talk to you, since you're the only one he hasn't had the pleasure to meet ... well, to get to have some idea about you" said Ripper.

"Well, I look forward to meeting him, once the healer has discharge me, of course" he said, getting more comfortable, and Astrid shifting her position on the bed to make it more comfortable for him as well.

"She did tell me that you'll be able to leave tomorrow, once she knows your wound will have no chance of reopening again" she said.

"Don't worry, I've learned my lesson. I'll stay put when I'm seriously injured" said Hiccup, statement directed at everyone in the room so that they'll believe him this time. Of course they wouldn't believe him, but would keep a watchful eye over him in any case where he disobeys a healer's or their orders.

"Well, I think it's time I hit the hay ... see you guys tomorrow" Cami said, bidding a small wave and walking out. It's only then the others turned their attention to one of the small windows in the room and noticed it was night outside.

"I think it's time I left as well. Rest well Hiccup" Ripper said, following Cami's steps.

"Goodnight guys" Astrid called out as they heard the front door close.

"Aren't you going with them?" asked Hiccup.

"And leave you here all alone ... with the exception of Thuggory? I don't think so" she said, pulling back the sheets and lying down beside her boyfriend. The bed was just wide enough for two people to fit in. "You're staying put here in bed, where I can keep an eye you and if you even think about shuffling your way out of my grasp when I'm asleep, I can't guarantee I will not constrict you" she said.

"Okay, okay. I get it. No sneaking out with you here" he retorted, making himself comfortable underneath the covers.

"Goodnight Hiccup" she said, giving him a small peck on the lips.

"Goodnight M'Lady" he replied, turning to face her and resting their foreheads together.

"Somebody please gouge my eyes out and rip my ears off" they heard Thuggory whine and couldn't help but laugh at the situation.

000

"What?! Who was supposed to meet up with Eret!?" bellowed the voice of a mad Drago. Some soldiers, knowing how he was when his temper rises, already exited the deck and down below into their cabins. Others weren't that lucky. Their tasks required them to stay on deck, and would only be able to leave once their shift was over. However, Drago was walking up and down the deck, demanding answers. None of the soldiers wanted to meet his gaze, which could have turned them to ash with just one peek. Luckily, Orvon was there to answer those questions.

"Well sir, Eret was supposed to meet up with two of our scouting vessels six hours ago. When he didn't show up, the captain sent out a scout to look for them, but when he did find his ship, it was commandeered by the Dragon Riders and the Dragon Vigilante, which we now know her by" he spoke calmly.

"And they didn't do anything to take the ship back!?" asked Drago, turning towards his second in command.

"They were outnumbered sir. The two ships were also too far out to catch up with them. Plus they only had two dragons, which were the scouts so very little firepower was available for them. But they did say, based on their heading, they were sailing to the Meathead's tribe."

"That could only mean they have control over that tribe as well ... Why do I even bother taking control of these tribes if I just lose them again" he sighed in exasperation. "I've already lost the Bog Burglars, and now the Meatheads, their next target will obviously be Berk" he said, rubbing away the stress that were present as bags under his eyes.

"No doubt about that sir. I suggest we actually take matters into our own hands and send dragons to protect Berk, since we can't obviously trust Dagur's men to keep Berk under their control" he said.

"You're right ... I want a squad of Nightmares and Nadders sent to defend Berk. NOW!" he yelled and soon there were running steps over his deck, the men getting their dragons and preparing for the long journey.

"Those Dragon Riders are more resourceful than I expected" said Drago, in a much calmer voice. He made his way to the captain's deck where Deathwing was resting, watching the activity with mild interest. He knew that when his rider had this temper, he shouldn't try to mess with him.

"The Vigilante might have something to do with it ... especially with her dragon, the Stormcutter" Orvon replied, a few steps behind his leader.

"We needed Eret to help determine the location of it" Drago said leaning against the railing, watching his men take off for Berk.

"Actually sir, we don't" Orvon said, and judging by the tone of his voice, he could tell his friend had a small grin. "We've found it" he stated simply. Drago turned around slowly, hoping he wasn't just telling him this to lighten up his mood, but since this was his most trusted friend and commander, he had little reason to lie to him.

"Where?"

000

"Rise and shine sleepyheads!" came the blow-horn that the riders and others have come to known as Ripper's mouth. The man was banging the tip of his sound, creating an incredibly annoying noise, while at the same time shouting orders for his friends to wake up.

"Did he do this during your time away?" Astrid asked, pulling the blanket over both their heads to try and drown out the noise.

"Be lucky he didn't come in here and throw a bucket of freezing water on us" he replied groggily, and burying his head deeper into the pillow.

"Sometimes I wonder if your training was harder than living with him" she said, this time bringing a hand to cover her ear.

"Believe me, it wasn't" he replied. At that moment, the covers were pulled from their exhausted forms, allowing more light to reach their eyes and cause them to hiss a bit at the sudden brightness.

"Hope things didn't get crazy between the two of you last night" he said with a chuckle, only to be met by un-amused glares from the couple. "Breakfast will be served in their main hall, and the healer will be here in a few minutes to check on your status Hiccup" he told them, before proceeding to wake up Thuggory.

"Better get ready then" she said, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and reaching for her boots. Hiccup reluctantly removed his head from the comfy pillow he was given and stretched the stiffness away from his arms, running his hand through his hair to get it into its shaggy-self.

"It seems Ripper beat me to you" they heard the voice of Helga, the head healer of the Meathead tribe.

"Yeah, lucky us" Thuggory grumbled angrily, and glared at the now leaving form of Ripper, who was casting smug grins at the three of them.

"Well, I'll just do a quick check over you two and then you can go clobber him" she said nicely, placing the tray of medicines and bandages down on Thuggory's bed, inspecting him first.

"You're making nice recovery, Thuggory. The wrist is alright, your cuts have healed and your bruises are fading ... you're good to go" she said, after removing some of his bandages, which were no longer needed, and replacing a few others, not before applying more medicinal treatment.

"And let me check on you Master Hiccup" she said, removing the blanket from his torso, and unwrapping the bandage covering his stab wound. "Ah yes, it's healing again nicely" she commented. She grabbed a flagon and poured water over his wound and scrubbed it gently, washing out any impurities or any stray and possible infections. She then grabbed a new bandage and applied some herbal ointment onto his wound, before wrapping the new one around his torso.

"Make sure you don't exert yourself too much this time Master Hiccup" she said, making sure the bandage was tied properly.

"Oh don't worry, I'll make sure of that" Astrid commented, watching the whole procedure.

"Nurse Astrid ... I like the sound of that" Hiccup said with his lopsided grin.

"Believe me ... you're not going to like the nurse" she said with an evil smile, however she was laughing on the inside when she saw Hiccup's face go pale, immediately telling her he knew what she meant.

Helga chuckled lightly at their banter. Never had she met a young couple with their kind of relationship, until now. "Alright Hiccup, just take it nice and easy and let that wound heal properly. That means no flying on Toothless for at least two to three days" she said, gathering up the used bandages and her medicinal treatments. Hiccup however wasn't pleased with the idea.

"Two to three days?" he asked, and his facial expressions told the rest of the story.

"Do you want that wound to open again?" she shot back.

"Well ... I ... the thing is" he stammered but it was an obvious answer.

"I'm sure your dragon has the patience to not fly for three days. If not ask someone else to do it for you" she said, getting up and leaving.

"If only you knew my dragon" he muttered under his breath, getting a laugh out of Astrid as well.

"I'll take him for his flights, don't you worry" she said, holding out her hand, offering to help him up. He gladly grabbed hold of her hand and was pulled onto his feet slowly, her making sure he didn't exert too much or sudden movements.

"Come on. I've got to meet this Eret guy myself" he said.

"Not before your breakfast mister" she said, putting his arm around her shoulder and hers around his waist to help support him.

"You sound just like my mother, you know that?"

"Well I wouldn't if you would just be good wittle boy and do as he's told" she said in a voice that Hiccup had never heard before.

"What did you just..."

"Tell anyone I spoke like that and you're dead" she said back in her normal and threatening voice.

"I'll take my chances" he replied with a grin she knew all too well. She would have elbowed him in the gut but knew he was still healing. She could punch him in the arm but in their current position she couldn't. She did try it before but that only succeeded in him pulling her down and being embarrassed in front of the whole village. She didn't want the same situation to occur in another village. So this time, she decided to withhold more threats, since she did find it amusing when he learned the hard way.

The pair stepped outside and were immediately met with the sun's warm rays and a cool breeze. Only was it now that they realized the Meatheads climate was just a bit warmer than Berk's. But given Berk was known for its cold climate, a bit goes a long in making a difference. Most of the village was already bustling with the usual activity of repairing damaged buildings and rebuilding their defenses in case of attack.

"Come on, their Hall is this way" Hiccup gestured to a path that led uphill.

Most of the Vikings they passed ran up to Hiccup to wish him well and that they were glad to see them. He honestly didn't like the attention of a celebrity. Even after five years since the Red Death incident, he's still coming to terms with being in the eye of everyone. Well technically three years since he was away for two and some of the places he visited hadn't heard of what he endeared.

"Hiccup! Hiccup!" the two young adults heard someone shouting. They turned around and saw a little girl, whom they expected no more than six, running up to them.

"Addie!" Hiccup also matched the girl's excitement, to a lesser extent. He knelt down onto his good knee and the little girl ran into him at full speed. "Ompf! Addie, I'm so glad to see you" he said, hugging the little girl tightly.

"Me too! I heard you were sick! Are you alright?" she asked, moving her head back to see Hiccup's face, concern written all over it.

"Ha, I'm fine Addie, really I am" he said, standing up and carrying her in his arms.

"Are you sure?" she asked, voice filled with concern still.

"It's you I should be worried about, Addie. Those Berserkers didn't hurt you did they?" he asked, raising his eyebrows, getting a giggle out from her.

"No they didn't. They only hurt papa" she said, looking down sadly. "Mama said they broke his arm and leg" she said, a tear running down her cheek at the memory seeing her father in pain.

"Hey hey, it's okay. I'm sure your papa made them pay. Nobody messes with him or his little girl without getting away alive" he said in a low voice that was supposed to sound dangerous but only made her laugh.

Astrid watched the scene in front of her with a fuzzy feeling in her chest. Hiccup never mentioned meeting this little cutie when he came here. That's when Addie noticed Astrid and shrank a bit into Hiccup's chest. Said man wondered why she was doing this but then noticed she was looking at Astrid, who he forgot about for the moment. Astrid raised a small hand and waved slightly at Addie, who shyly waved back.

"Hiccup, aren't you going to introduce me to your little friend?" she asked, coming to stand by him, and keeping that spark in her eyes which she always had when she met young children and babies.

"That's right. Where are my manners? Addie, this is my best friend Astrid. Astrid, this is Addie, she's my number one fan of all the Meatheads here" Hiccup said, propping Addie up on his arm better so it was more comfortable for him and her.

"Hi there" Astrid said, bringing her face closer to the young girl.

"Hi" Addie replied in a soft, incredibly cute voice. "Wait ... are you the Valkyrie Hiccup was speaking about to my parents?" she asked, causing both young adults to visibly blush.

"Hiccup called me what?" she asked the small girl.

"He stayed with us one night and mama and papa were talking to him. He talked with mama and papa about a very, very pretty girl who like he liked ... a lot" she added.

"Really?" Astrid asked, raising an eyebrow at Hiccup, who was a deep shade of pink now.

Addie nodded her head. "He talked about how beautiful she was and him being blessed by Odin, Thor and all the Gods that he was friends with" she said. Astrid's eyes simply grew in realization at how much the little girl had heard and couldn't help but keep glancing at Hiccup, whose skin was now red until the base of his neck.

"Thank you for telling me, Addie. How old are you?" she asked, switching to another for Hiccup's benefit. But she made a mental note to talk with Addie about more stuff she overheard and embarrass Hiccup later.

"Five winters. Getting close to my sixth" she replied, more confident this time.

"Nearly six winters! You're a big girl" Astrid commented, brushing a few stray blonde hairs away from Addie's face, who was comfortable with Astrid doing it. Since she saw Hiccup was comfortable with the young woman, she knew she could be too.

She reached her arms out from Hiccup, silently asking to be carried by her. "Come here" she said with a laugh, taking Addie into her arms, and kept her propped up with her left arm.

"I love your hair" the small girl said, touching Astrid's braid and a sparkle in her eyes at how beautiful it was.

"Thank you" she replied, moving her head so it brought her braid closer for Addie to see.

"Do you ride a dragon?" she asked.

"Yes I do in fact ... a Deadly Nadder named Stormfly. She would love to meet you" Astrid said, knowing how Stormfly loved little children. She was always so gentle with them and let them play on her, pet her (as she loved the attention) and took them for rides with her rider.

"Is she pretty like you?" Addie asked, causing a slight shade of pink to brush Astrid's cheeks.

"She is Addie, believe me" Hiccup said, standing next to Astrid.

"Where are your parents Addie?" asked Astrid.

"They're both at home. Mama has to look after papa" she said.

"And they let you come out alone?" Hiccup asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No ... I sneaked out" she said, looking down with a small mischievous smile.

"Guess who she reminds me of Hiccup?" Astrid said, looking at her boyfriend with a knowing smile, and said man scratched his neck and looked away with a guilty grin. "Did you see Hiccup sneaking out when he was here?" she asked her, and the little girl nodded her head. "Aw, see Hiccup, you're a bad influence" Astrid said with fake angry face at him.

"W-what ... Now see h-here ... I-I" he stammered before Addie interrupted him.

"I see him sneak out on nights when everyone's sleeping ... and take Gummy out for rides" she said, pointing at Hiccup, who only struggled to find more words to speak.

"Gummy?" Astrid asked, chuckling a bit.

"When I first met with her she was only three and learning to speak. When she first saw Toothless, he smiled his gummy smile at her, and she stuck with the name" he said. It was actually a nice memory from his two year journey. He had come to the Meathead village about four months after he left, and after the regular misunderstanding about Toothless, they started to see what dragons really were. He met Addie by accident. Being three, she still hadn't grown out of her adventurous faze, and had come up to Toothless who didn't notice the girl at first, but then felt something touch right foreleg. When he looked down he saw a small baby rubbing his scales and then she looked up at him, green-cat eyes meeting small brown ones.

He then proceeded to lie down on his stomach and examined the little human with curiosity as she stood up and tried to make her way to touch his snout. She almost fell but he managed to get his snout in front of her in time and help her stand back up. She smiled openly at him, and that's when he smiled back at her, with his gummy smile and she called him Gummy immediately. And all this took place in front of the village, which found it ridiculously adorable.

"Addie! There you are" they heard a voice and turned to see a woman running to them. She appeared to be in her thirties by the look of it and was thinner than most women here.

"Mama!" the small girl responded and reached her hands out to be taken by her mother. Astrid, reluctantly, let Addie's mother take her into her arms. She was really enjoying talking to and holding the little girl.

"What did I tell you about sneaking off?" she asked. She was concerned as, from the sweat on her forehead, she had been running around looking for her.

"Sorry mama" she said, looking down and feeling bad for causing her mama to worry.

"Thank Thor you ran into Hiccup here. By the way how are you Hiccup? How's the wound holding up?" she asked.

"Good morning Mrs. Haraldson. I'm doing a lot better and the wound is healing nicely" he replied.

"Yeah ... if you learn to follow the healer's orders this time" Astrid said, shooting him a knowing look.

"You must be Astrid. Hiccup talked a lot about you when he stayed with us for a night" she said, turning her attention to the young woman.

"I know. Addie here told me what Hiccup told you. It was pretty flattering" she said, folding her arms over her chest.

"Anyway, I have to head back to help Audun get to the Hall. Nice to see you again Hiccup, and nice to finally meet you Astrid, dear" she said turned around and began making her way back to their house, with Addie waving goodbye over her mother's shoulder.

"That was ... partly embarrassing" he said, breaking the few seconds of silence between them.

"And I can't wait to hear more of it" she said, taking her position beside Hiccup, wrapping her arm around his waist and him placing his arm around her shoulders.

"Can't wait" he mumbled, knowing what he would be in store for that day.