How to Train Your Dragon and it's characters are the legal property of Dreamworks and Cressida Cowell, I claim no ownership of the original source material.

Chapter 1: Stoick's Ship

He carried his father's corpse down to the shore. The superhuman size of Stoick the Vast dwarfed him as he carried the lifeless body away from the burned and ravaged battlefield. All around him were the remains of men and dragons alike, covered in ice and snow, in ash and in blood.

The battle ended hours ago, the fires that covered large areas of this coast were mostly extinguished, a few smoldering pieces of wood was all that remained of the massive blazes that illuminated the field of battle. Spikes of ice protruded from the ground from where the Alphas unleashed their storms of frost.

The body of the fallen Alpha lay to his left, by the mountain it had created as a sanctuary to dragonkind. The sun was setting now, its final rays of light protruding from behind the glacial mountain. The setting sun was painting the sky in shades of red and orange, as though the infernos of todays battle have ascended to the heavens to light the halls of Valhalla.

He stumbled, his prosthetic leg sliding on a frozen shield that belonged to one of Drago's men. He regained his balance, sighed and watched the small cloud of his breath dissipate in the evening air. He continued walking, away from the carnage behind him, the weight of his father on his back a reassuring comfort, as though he was still alive, embracing him in his colossal grasp. Someone walked up behind him, taking his father's right arm and putting it over their shoulder. He turned his head sideways, to face the unwanted aid.

"No!" he yelled at the slender blond vikingess, her blue eyes looked back at him with a look of confusion. "No... Astrid... I want to.. no, I have to do this myself." he told her

"But we can help, all of us." Astrid said, gesturing at the gathered crowd behind him.

"I have to get something right for dad, just once."

The blond nodded, and walked on, the other's following close behind.

As his mother came alongside him, she looked at his eyes, a mournful look on her face and a lone tear streaming from her right eye. "Son, please, let me help... he.. I.. I'm sorry.." Valka said, her voice sounding almost like a whimper as she looked on at her son carrying the man she was reunited with only hours ago. He gave his mother a small nod, a tear escaping his eye, he wiped it off swiftly. Valka stood next to him, surrounding herself in Stoick's grasp, sharing his weight around the two of them. The auburn haired family walked on, the mother and son carrying the the father's body through the snow.

It took them another half an hour to pull the body far enough away from the battleground, that neither the carnage of the battle, nor the massive form of the downed Alpha were visible.

Before them stood the group of seven, illuminated in the darkness only by a flickering torch held by Gobber the Belch. His cousin, Snotlout, was standing next to a boat, smaller than the drakkars used for sailing, only a bit larger than a row boat. Drag marks from the boat led to an upturned drakkar, whose cabin looked recently scavenged. Dry looking wood, and clay jars of what he assumed to be oil were neatly stacked next to the boat.

"Thank you" he told them as he propped his father's corpse by the upturned ship.

"It's the least we could do," Astrid spoke on behalf of everyone, "for our chief... and for you."

He didn't hear her. He looked at his father's body, it was as if he just fell asleep sitting, if not for the massive burn mark on his chest, exposing scorched muscle and broken ribs. His father, who has always been there to protect him, to guard him, a lot of the time from his own folly, is no more, he collapsed on his knees. This man, who has protected him all his life, who even when he disappointed him again and again, has in the end stood by him, is lying here, broken. And it's all my fault. A lone tear slid down his cheek, he let it fall, down his cheeks and off the scar on his chin, it froze before hitting the snow and gravel of the frozen shore.

He got up and blinked his eyes clean. He was surprised when he saw his right side was red, yet there was no wound on him, at least nothing bleeding. His father's eyes were still open, yet empty and devoid of life. He put two fingers on the chief's eyelids and closed them. He sensed something was missing as he looked at his father. "His axe!" he suddenly yelled, "where is it, where.."

"Relax lad," Gobber said, unslinging a double bladed battleaxe from his back "I got et."

Gobber, always the loyal friend, went up to the corpse, axe held firmly in his useable hand. The one armed man knelt down before the fallen chief, a sorrowful look on his face. "The'a ya are my old friend." He said as he put the axe into its owner's arms, his burnt, greying golden mustache swaying on his upper lip. "We'll mee' again in Odin's heavenly halls."

He looked at Gobber in his moment of silence and watch the big man get up clumsily. Gobber put his one good hand on the youth's shoulder, "come on lad, the'as still work ta be don'." He nodded to the older man and followed him to the boat.

The boat was tipped upright, the beginnings of a makeshift pyre being built on top of it. "He should be given a proper funeral, one fit for a chief." Astrid said as he neared. Gobber left his side and faced away from the group, he could have sworn he heard a muffled weep escape the man. The half-cripple went up to the twins, Ruffnut and Tuffnut, Fishlegs, Eret and Snotlout and began chucking pieces of wood up onto the boat.

"it should have been me." He whispered quietly to Astrid beside him. Astrid put on a steeled expression, "No." she simply said, then added "Your father did this not only for you, but for the tribe as a whole, you are the heir.. the chief, your father would not want you to blame yourself in this, he died with honor. If you want to blame anyone, blame Drago, and that spawn-of-Loki Alpha of his!" She said this in a quiet but deliberate voice that pierced him to his core and sent a shiver down his spine. Her face softened up, as did her voice, "I don't know what I would have done if it had been you." She said. He hugged her, and they stood embracing one another for a short while.

They broke off from one another, Astrid moving a lock of his wild, dirt covered, auburn hair from his face. They faced the boat, the pyre almost finished, the twins just laying down the final pieces of wood on the square platform. "We should help them." He said as Eret passed them, carrying jars of oil to the pyre. They walked up and each took some of the clay jars, that they carried back to the boat. It took them several trips to get all the jars to the pyre, where some of them were being poured onto the wooden platform.

As he looked at everyone, at all their dirt covered faces, at all the mournful looks he spotted someone missing. As he turned, he saw Gobber carrying the body of Stoick the Vast in his arms, like he was cradling a child. Valka walked beside him, Stoick's double bladed axe held firm in her arms, his helmet on her head.

With his help they laid the body down on the pyre on top of the boat. Stoick's body was lying straight, facing up. His axe was on his chest, the blades on the side away from his face. above his head, was his helmet, the colossal horns made the sight more impressive. The chief looked like he could be sleeping.

He walked up to his father, drew the dagger on hi forearm and made a shallow cut on the palm of his left hand. He winced at the pain. Dabbing the blood on his thumb, he drew a rune on his father's forehead, a red lightning bolt in the centre of the great man's head.

He stepped down from the boat as his father's body was covered in the oil. As the twins finished with the oil and stepped down, all eight of them pushed the boat forward. Their shoulders against the hard wood of the ship, the scene illuminated by the lone torch Gobber stuck in the the ground. The ship began to move, it inched forward slowly, until it hit the water. They kept pushing it, their feet entering the freezing sea. They were up to their waist in water when the ship was finally taken by the sea, it began to ever so slowly drift forward.

They waded back to shore, the ship already a hundred feet away from the bank. Eret walked up to him, and handed him a bow and a single arrow.. "Here, take this, you should have the honor." The hunter said, "I am sorry for all this, if my apology anything to you."

He took the bow and arrow. The arrowhead was covered in oil-soaked rags. Gobber walked up to him, torch in hand, "He'a ya go lad." The half-cripple said as he lit the arrow. He could feel the heat coming off of the arrowhead on his arm and winced as the flame licked at his hand a few hairs were burned away. He nocked the arrow and took a step back. "Go on son." Valka said.

He pulled the bow back, drawing the string back past his chin. His hand trembled as the large wooden bow tensed and bent back. "Tyr," he whispered quietly to himself, "guide this arrow to my father, let me do this one thing right. It's the least I could do for him." He closed his eyes, and slid his forefinger off the bowstring.

The arrow flew forward with a Thunk! It flew over the frigid sea and sailed in a clean arc to it's destination, over three hundred feet away. No one saw the arrow strike the pyre, no one heard it, Yet the boat erupted into flames all the same. The fire cast a bright light on the shore, even as it was heading away from it, captivating the onlookers as it brought with it the smell of burning pine and the sickly smell of burning flesh, a smell most of them were used to.

Gobber began the prayer, torch held high, he said "May the Valkyries guide you to Odin's bountiful halls, may you join the great heroes of Asgard in their valorous deeds, may the Allfather accept you into Valhalla, where you will spend your eternity in feasts and battle and may.. may.." Gobber faltered, a cry stuck in his throat.

"And may you be remembered as the great hero, chief.." Snotlout, of all people, continued.

"Father.." he added.

"Husband.." his mother continued.

"Inspiration.." Astrid joined.

"And friend to us all. Sail away into Valhalla and forget the sorrows of this world." Gobber finished.

It was silent for a moment, the wind seems to have stopped as to not disturb the farewell of this man. The crackling of the flames was all that could be heard. He heard quite singing coming from behind him.

"...Sail on savage seas..." it went, almost to quiet to hear.

He looked on at the dancing flames, their swirling patterns carrying his father to the heavens.

"...Ride the waves of life..."

The singing grew louder, but only slightly the tone still mournful and slow, as Gobber's joined his mother's voice.

He knelt, and said his own private prayer to the gods above and below.

"...Can stop me on my journey..."

The beach was still, but for the flickering shadows of the onlookers and the moving lips. More voices joined the sorrowful tune.

"...I've no need for mighty deeds..." the voices went on.

"...When I feel your arms around me..."

He joined his voices to the rest. The final few onlookers joined their voices to the tune, still it was slow and sad.

".. I have no use for rings of gold, I care not for your poetry..."

The voices went. He looked back at the fire, and it looked back. His voice left him for a second. The form of Stoick the Vast was swaying in the flames, made of yellows and oranges and whites, it looked at his son and he looked back.

"...I only want you near me!.."

His mother's voice dropped from the singing.

"I'll never be the chief you want me to be... I can't" He told the flames.

His mother put her hand on his shoulders, "You have the heart of a chief but the soul of a dragon," She whispered, "You'll be the best chief Berk has ever seen."

She hugged him, from behind her shoulder he could see the Stoick-flame give him a small nod.

"...For the dancing and the dreaming..."

He rose to his feet and joined his voice back to the singing.

"I'll swim and sail on savage seas,

and ne'er a fear of drowning,

and gladly ride the waves of life,

if you will marry me..."

Astrid came near him and put her arms around him. Hiccup wept bittersweet tears as the fires slowly died out.

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~Thank You