Author's Note: Here's the end! I appreciate all of the kind things you have said. This fandom has been wonderful. Thank you!

Chapter 11

Astrid

"I'm going to kill them all," Astrid gritted through her teeth.

Astrid and Hiccup's friends had pushed cup after cup of alcohol into their hands, no doubt hoping to lessen their indignation with the situation. While the drink had helped Hiccup descend into an even more sarcastic version of himself, Astrid had only grown angrier. The fuzziness in her brain served to smudge the inhibitions she usually harbored about solving her problems with her fists.

Snotlout had come first, receiving a clean uppercut to the jaw after joking about how long it would take her to get Hiccup into bed.

"You half-wit troll," she spat, standing over Snot as he writhed on the ground in pain.

Someone placed their hand on her arm, and she whirled to slap them away.

"Woah!" Hiccup said, holding up his hands. "Only me."

"You going to help me finish him off?" asked Astrid.

Hiccup giggled at this—clearly drunk, since he had kicked that adorable habit of his years ago. Giving him a sly grin, Astrid placed her foot on Snot's belly and applied pressure until he whimpered.

"We probably shouldn't kill him," Hiccup said.

Astrid frowned. "He deserves it."

"If you're going to kill everyone who makes a joke about your sex life, you'll decimate the village," said Fishlegs.

Whipping her axe from her back, Astrid pointed it at Fishlegs, who turned pale as he sank further down on the bench.

"Come on," said Hiccup, pressing down her arm and pushing her away from their friends. "We need some fresh air."

At this declaration, a series of suggestive hollers erupted from those within earshot. Astrid snatched her arm away from Hiccup and threw her axe blindly in the direction of the loudest offenders. Vikings tumbled drunkenly out of the way as the axe thumped into a tabletop.

"We should definitely leave before you maim someone," Hiccup mumbled.

They stumbled outside, the chilly air slapping their faces, but doing little to sober Astrid's rage.

"I'm going to kill them all."

Hiccup slumped an arm over her shoulder and whispered in her ear as they meandered down the road.

"It's kinda sexy when you get all murdery," he said.

"Murdery?" snorted Astrid. "Inventing words now, Haddock?"

"Whatever. You think it's sexy when I invent stuff."

Astrid's face burned. Drunk Hiccup was revealing some things that sober Hiccup had obviously observed.

"So?" she spat.

Grinning, Hiccup twirled her around to face him. He pressed his lips against hers, much sloppier than before, but Astrid wasn't doing much better with her twisting vision.

"Get a room!" someone shouted.

Looking up the road, Astrid could make out the silhouettes of a hooting group of vikings. She stooped down to scoop up a rock, nearly losing her balance before hurling it at the creeps. One of them yelped in pain while the others laughed.

"Let's go," Hiccup said, pulling her away before she could find something bigger to throw.

"Where?" hissed Astrid. "This island is full of idiot vikings bent on ruining my life!"

Hiccup squeezed her hand and they walked through the darkness. "So glad to know our betrothal is ruining your life."

"You know what I mean!" she shouted.

Before he could respond, Astrid yanked him through the open doorway of the forge.

"Whoa, milady," he said, stumbling after her. "You're not taking me in here to murder me, are you? Because that would—"

Astrid cut him off by shoving him into his old workroom and yanking the door shut behind them. Moonlight peeked through the high window above, providing enough light to see Hiccup tumble into the work table and rattle its contents.

"Murder it is," Hiccup said.

"Would you shut up?"

Astrid yanked down on his shirt and smashed her lips into his. As she pressed him back against the wall, his body melted into hers. He gasped when she broke the kiss to suck on his neck.

"I'm almost positive this isn't real," Hiccup mumbled, his eyes shut as if concentrating intensely. "I'm thirteen again, fantasizing at my worktable about Astrid Hofferson bursting into the room and demanding my body."

Knowing he'd thought about this before, a thrilling sort of tension shot through Astrid's body.

"You like me demanding?" whispered Astrid in his ear.

Hiccup sighed. "Gobber will wake me up any minute now, and I'll have to go back to being a little dweeb."

"I liked you even when you were a dweeb," Astrid said, her anger flaring up again. "And I'll pummel anyone who calls you that—anyone who ever called you that!"

He smiled slowly before reaching up a hand to cup her cheek.

"You really are the best at pummelling," he said.

Kissing her lightly, Hiccup then pulled back to look at her again.

"I love you," he whispered. "I've loved you for so long."

Astrid returned the sentiment by assaulting his mouth again, but a very small voice of reason broke through the haze in her brain to remind her that sometimes words were important.

"I love you, too," she said.

Then she got back to the action bit, and Hiccup didn't seem to mind.