Ooooh my gosh, Um, ideas, what about encountering something like that assassin guy from Fishlegs section again, but it doesn't go the same way, either because Hiccup is keeping his promise to his friend and being more prepared or because he isn't as alone at the time as he initially seems.
Or, what about something to do with players who died in the game, and what happened to them? Did they die in reality too? Fall into comas? If the latter, what would happen if they woke up and, like, remembered the game more clearly than reality? Or if the kids found themselves practically needing to visit the comatose people who died in the game to see if any of them were people that they saw die in the game, because of their actions or inactions - because if they didn't recognise them personally they wouldn't have had any way to tell who was an NPC and who was a brainwashed player
Maybe they even meet someone who's was also in the game but came out just not remembering it properly, and it's sucheap a surreal experience for them. Maybe it's even someone they recognise, like someone important in that first city...and here they areally, living their normal lives none the wiser and unchanged except for some muscle atrophy...
What if they found, like, a forum online or something full of people talking about what they remember, and so many complaints about how inconvenient it all was, and the kids stew for a while before kind of exploding, because these people GOT LUCKY
They could have DIED in the game but these people did not, the kids were targeted by the entire goddamn world and fought for there survival and they got everyone out and they are by far the least ok of all the games victims and it's is not fair in the least! GAH, I'm getting all wound up because I came up wth that idea AFTER reading the chapter, so I'm all upset about what these characters are going through...

Oh god...it's going to be a while before they can feel safe here again, isn't it? But...at least they have each other - they know they're not alone in feeling like this

Oh Snotlout...damn that's terrifying. ..
" Sleep was for the weak.
Sleep kept reminding him of how weak he was."
...excuse me while I go scream at the unforgiving void if space for a while...

Ooooh my gosh I just love what you've done with the twins, how in their own logic they're still making use of their okayness with the situation to protect their friends and I LOVE IT

" Baby steps and all that, right? Slow exposure therapy stuff, like the people on that TV show they only watched when they were bored and there was nothing else on, hoping all the while to see the subject suddenly freak out again." That sounds so damn like them and I adore it!

" All anyone knew was that the twins had transformed abruptly from mere major annoyances to wild and unstoppable scourges of nature.

Well, anyone but their friends, who knew them well and were generally as observant as they were, if not more so in one or two cases. For the most part these turned blind eyes – or even mildly approving nods – to the twins' antics." Oh good god this is killing me from sheer joy

Oh jeez, I just love the idea of Hiccup being so spring-loaded now that he defends himself so well, and now the distractions are for everyone else's benefit rather than Hiccups!

" He never racked up enough skill points in any one style to match the more focused individuals, but it didn't matter in the end, because he could do anything which might grant them an edge in a fight. Fishlegs memorized the manuals and could tell you the stats of any boss off the top of his head, but Hiccup could take that information, arrange his equipment accordingly, and then come up with a strategy on the fly for all of them to take it down." God I adore that analysis! I love that DYNAMIC of theirs!

Oh god..." No spells, no swords, no fumbling for magic bottles and corks while a friend whimpered and bled in front of him, no throwing out a desperate spell and praying it would form between an unprotected back and a descending claw in time, praying it would hold." Sounds REALLY REALLY BAD
Like...wow...just how often did they almost die?

The whole "He saw" part was heartbreaking, because we already have an idea of where most of these are coming from and know that he's right on the money...and that the way he's handling it is just the right way and it's SO HEARTBREAKING BECAUSE HE WANTS TO HELP MORE BUT THEY'RE SO MUCH MORE INCAPABLE IN REALITY AND AAAGGGHHH

OK. ..OH GOD Astrids section. ..wow
That actually hurt to read
The things that were the only reason they survived in the game are now serious problems for them as much as it brings them together, and they're all now the most important things in each others lives, even though Astrid had been drifting in that maturing-early way of hers
She's scared to LOSE them, and that's heartwrenching
And Hiccup, the worst scarred by this, of course he's the one to go to each of them about these situations directly...now I'm wondering if anything like that happens with Snotlout, particularly if he's been so protective of his cousin
And DAMN
They're not in a situation where they have to risk there lives for each other anymore, but they want to live with each other more than ever before, and they're willing to devote themselves just as much...wow...I'm speechless...
That was incredible...

OK already adoring this to hell

The little insight into what SHOULD be happening was really interesting, especially since it hinted to us what the modern reality is like

OK the twins are spectacular so far
Ofc they'd be more interested in chaos than catching the criminal even though it's been supplanted into them that he's a bad guy. I especially love how their relationship as twins played into them displaying the unusualness of the situation for us

Ooooh Snotlouts section was incredible
That was all just PERFECT for his character, from his not-so-humbleness to his still-present integrity even if in this world he shouldn't have that, to his relationship with Hiccup
I mean it was their antagonising each other until the reapinse of snapping at his cousin, which is clearly practically muscle memory, came up was fantastic, and " or a moment Snotlout saw fame and fortune, his name regaled as a hero's, banquets and parades and maybe even a statue in the square. Then he saw what that would take – saw himself handing Hiccup over to who knew what, saw the pale fear on his face, saw a sword stained red with his cousin's blood, and he knew, more surely than he had ever known anything he could recall, that while he'd happily throw Hiccup under the proverbial cart for the little things, for the big ones he'd fight off the world at his back" just about made my day
GAH, most things don't feel right but Hiccup as family does? I love this fic so damn much

Oh Fishlegs! He's a shopkeeper and he's helping Hiccup so much, and he remembers/recognises so much, and GAH these bros! I love how time is carrying on and we're finding out bits about what happened next from last time, like how we know that the twins and Hiccup are hanging out with Fishlegs, and Snotlout is still sort of in denial but not actually regressing at all, and for him that's basically just his usual stubborness in play so it's more reassuring than anything
And the idea that Fish has been programmed to be a one dimensional NPC but overrides that singular role for his friends sake...I love it so much
Though the fact that only the twins and Hiccup go into the shop sparked an idea in me - in video games there's often no sigh that anyone but your character ever goes to the shops except that they don't close down...so what if the reason everyone seems like they're meant to be NPCs but Hiccup is so aware of the truth is because he's the "player" Here?

ASTRID!
Ooooh she's a dragon hunter here too...damn that's awesome
Oh. Oh thats not good. Whoever's behind this is actually getting frustrated enough with Hiccups freedom to destroy the city searching in a way the guards couldn't. ..wow...
" Everything she knew of criminals and vagabonds and the scum of humanity said he would choose the first. Every deep-rolling thought and formless, baseless impression that had coalesced around the nugget of his known existence said that the latter, while perhaps not quite right, was at least likelier in tone." YA GOT THAT RIGHT
" When he glanced over his shoulder and gave her a crooked smile she smothered the sudden, inexplicable urge to punch him in the arm, drag him back to the city, ask him what the hell he thought he was doing…" *squeal!*
Ooooh the traitorous thing is so damn reminiscent of the film...of "betraying" the vikings by taking the dragons side
AAAAGGGGGHHHHHH they're so brilliantly in character and I love it
This exchange is just PERFECT
And I love how the thing that was the sight of Astrid first breaking from the programming was rescinding the widely accepted opinion about him, just like in the film

Oh my god I love how it came back to the twins again, but Ruffnut this time, and how through their crazy logic we see how the fight plays out AND SNOTLOUT RUNS OUT TO HELP
Plus Hiccup being a mage is a phenomenal idea that is done absolute justice here!

"Guard, knight, and outcast all spun to face it in a line, the first two flanking the third with their shields at the ready. Ruffnut could just make out the faint flicker of another magic scroll in the center figure's hand. Leaving aside the fact that they faced a dragon and were statistically likely to wind up burned to a crisp, they looked, for just a moment, kind of heroic."
My god that was awesome...that was ABSOLUTELY AWESOME
SNOTLOUT AND ASTRID PROTECTING THE MAGE OF THE GROUP EVEN THOUGH THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO BE ATTACKING HIM

YOU ARE IN THE WRONG PLACE RUFFNUT, YOU NEED TO BE OUT THERE WITH THEM

oooooh ofc Hiccup is reluctant to kill even here...

HOLY CRAP FISHLEGS YOU SWEETHEART

Oh I love how perfectly in character everyone is, from Snotlout shouting at the dragon initially to Tuff doing his fake posh thing occasionally

Woah...with all of that together he really does sound like the Hiccup from the 2nd film, particularly with "The black dragon idling at his back"

"Sounds like the first of 'everything in the area' just ran headlong into one of my friends. You might be everything in this world, but I'm not exactly alone anymore either" Good god that gave me chills - in the good way

Good god it's literally them against the entire virtual world, isn't it?

"At his touch, the dragon left its idling animation and entered his full control – the result of a game element which he had discovered fighting rats, and the thing that had stolen it from the AI's command." HOLY SHIT THAT'S WHY HE DIDN'T WANT TO KILL THE DRAGON BEFORE but it's kind of sad that the dragons aren't doing it willingly like in the film. Like, I know it wouldn't have any reason to work out like that, but it's still sad because they're not really Toothless and Co otherwise, you know? Its just a bit sad

FUCK YEAH I knew this was going to involve code and breaking the game somehow!

Wow...I really love how it ended on the AI'S PoV!

"Not if we break you first," Hiccup said, mounting up. "And not if we make you regret ever trying to keep us here." BADASS DISTILLED HERE

HOLY CRAP THEY ALL HAVE DRAGONS NOW IT'S LIKE IN THE FILM BUT EVEN MORE AWESOME BECAUSE IT'S THEM AGAINST THE WORLD
I really love how it ended on the AI'S PoV! It's all so damn fascinating! !

This is amazing. I especially loved the aftermath and seeing how the experience really affected the characters.

This story was absolutely amazing! The way you built the world up as the story went and the descriptions were wonderful! I would love to see this expanded on, like their parents felt while waiting for the kids to wake up or those first few days in the hospital. Would love to hear more about Hiccup's life as an outlaw and some of those visits with Snotlout too. And how the kids all got their dragons!

Everyone was so in character and I loved it! Hope that you continue!

Every time I re-read this fanfiction, I just fall in love with it more and more. Beautiful writing, wonderful use of vocabulary, good grammar, and character continuity. An amazing HTTYD fanfiction that I recommend every How To Train Your Dragon fan to read.

Love it! This was so good! I fell for your writing here. I loved the flow, how you twisted the plot and how the characters tried to adjust being back to life!

Hmmm, this was pretty neat. The author actually paid attention to the possible effects the game had on them. /nods, I approve.

This was an interesting AU and very well written. I really enjoyed reading this.

I have fallen in love with many things while reading this story; though I don't have any sort of particular order of favorites, this story and the way you wrote it would have to be at the top of the list. You write so nicely and you made this fiction a very enjoyable read. It's rare to find any sort of fan-fiction with good grammar and spelling these days, I'm telling you :'). The story itself is downright amazing, incredible, stunning, spectacular, brilliant, etc. etc. I loved and eagerly swallowed every little bit of it. The concept is a really interesting one and it even reminded me a bit of an anime called Sword Art Online. I honestly cannot tell you how much I adore this fan-fiction, and I mean it! The way you portrayed these characters in this type of situation was superb, and you had an amazing use of vocabulary, too. Also, the way you would switch and introduce the characters was so... satisfying to read.
If you ever have the time, would you consider writing more scenes and snip-bits of the group after they've left the game? Any little pieces would be great, really, because I know you'd write it the perfect way. Maybe even something really juicy and angsty where they all come to Hiccups rescue, but of course in the end he's got to stand up all on his own(though, of course, with his buddies still at his back; and, yes, a bit cliche but everyone loves it). Maybe they meet a someone in real life who they had had some sort of contact with within the game? Or, possibly, someone gets injured, or something amazing happens but the character is forced to leave because of it, or maybe just simple high-school struggles (but honestly, they're never actually that simple). Anything at all! Really, I am good with anything. I really just want more of your spectacular writing and endearing story!

Was searching for SAO xovers when I found this. Lovely writing and concept! Even if it was over very fast, you wrote this little piece beautifully. And thank-you so much for including the aftermath! That is, in my opinion, just as important in a great story as the the rest - something most fanfiction authors seem to forget.

Thanks for sharing!

Nice

This is super good! Wow!

The detail is awesome and I love the dialogue and sentence structure. Great, great work!

Interesting

Don't you just love when someone writes awesome stuff based on your prompt? I'm howlingguardian btw. Awesome stuff! Love the bit where the twins realise they've been out-crazied.

Oh, my god. I want a hundred thousand words of this. A whole series. With good, massive-budget movies. This is amazing, and I adore it. You've a serious gift for characterization-I could guess pretty much every single one of the characters before I got a couple of sentences into the new section. Each of them is pretty perfectly confined, too, and I just... Yes to your characterization and your dialogue, especially. Your descriptions are awesome-I liked the bit about the Intelligence speaking through someone and the person's voice sounding like he was reciting something learned by rote. Bless whoever gave you the prompt, because I am so fascinated by this world.

I don't know if you have plans to continue this ever, but I hope you do, because it's fantastic and I will be throwing it at my friends to read. Well done!