I wrote this maybe two weeks ago while I was on holidays and never posted it on here. Hope you enjoy. Set right at the end of RTTE.

Hiccup was exhausted.

They all were.

Flying back and forth between Berk and Dragon's Edge was tiring. Making sure that the dragons who called the small island home were safe was tiring.

The volcano appeared to have finished its impressive eruption. It had spewed rocks and lava and ash into the sky for days. The top of the mountain was gone, disintegrated in the initial explosion. Clouds of ash still rose from the crater, filling the air and irritating lungs.

The worst was over but one thing was sure. It wasn't a safe outpost for the Dragon Riders anymore.

Astrid had noticed the sluggish movements of their leader. She'd put it down to fatigue. They were all exhausted from the events of the last week.

She wondered just how much Hiccup had slept in that time. He always seemed to going, going, going.

Going off to Berk for supplies.

Going back to the Edge to assess the damage.

Going up to his room to work on more plans.

Astrid was sure the bags under his eyes had their own bags.

She had tracked him down to his workroom on Berk. He was at his desk pouring over lists and maps. The Edge had been home to many dragons and Hiccup was working on finding a new place for those whose homes had been destroyed by the volcano.

Astrid watched him work for a moment, taking in the tired slump of his shoulders. Toothless was curled up on the floor, sleeping. Astrid wished she could be sleeping, but first she had to try and get Hiccup to his bed.

"Hiccup?"

Wandering over, Astrid came up behind her boyfriend and placed her hands on his shoulders. She peered over the top of his head to squint at the papers he held.

"How can you see in this light?" She asked.

Hiccup shrugged. "You get used to it." He craned his head up to smile tiredly. "What are you still doing up?" He pushed his stool back from the table and turned. "I thought you'd have gone to bed by now."

"I could say the same for you," Astrid came around the front of Hiccup and, after a moment of uncertainty, sat on his lap.

Their relationship was still new, only the other Dragon Riders knew about it. The kissing and the hand holding was nice, but they were still learning how to be more physical with each other.

"There's just so much to do," Hiccup snaked an arm around Astrid's waist. "I'm planning another trip tomorrow," he coughed into his free hand, "there are a few more things I want to collect from my hut there."

"Surely it can wait," Astrid let her head rest on Hiccup's shoulder. "The buildings aren't in too much danger and there's still so much ash in the air."

"These are the last things I need, then I'll take a break, promise." Hiccup turned his head to press a kiss to Astrid's forehead. She sighed in defeat.

"We'll if we're heading out tomorrow, maybe we should call it a night," she suggested. She made herself stand, slipping out from Hiccup's hold. Upright, Astrid turned and took Hiccup's hands, pulling him to his feet. "No protests," she warned when he opened his mouth to argue. "I'll even walk you home."

"Isn't that my job?" Hiccup allowed himself to be pulled from the workroom. Woken by the noise, Toothless yawned and rose, padding after the couple.

"I want to make sure you actually go home." Astrid dropped one hand so that she could lead Hiccup out of the forge. "I don't want to coming back here tonight, right Toothless?"

The dragon nodded his agreement.

Hiccup and Astrid walked hand in hand through the quiet village. Their relationship wasn't necessarily a secret anymore, but they weren't openly broadcasting it. Hiccup was still trying to decide how to break the news to his dad.

The night air was cold and Hiccup coughed again.

Astrid frowned but said nothing.

It was a steep climb to reach the Chief's hut. Though it was late when they reached the front door, there was still light shining out from underneath.

"Guess you're not the only Haddock who likes to burn the midnight oil," Astrid joked as Hiccup pushed the door open.

Sure enough, Stoick sat at the table by the fireplace, looking very much as Hiccup had looked earlier, pouring over papers. He looked up.

"You two are certainly up late." He pushed his work aside.

"I'm just making sure Hiccup gets some rest," Astrid pushed Hiccup towards the stairs.

"Are you just?" Stoick smiled beneath his beard.

Astrid blushed and made shooing motions, pointing Hiccup up the stairs.

"Uh, goodnight Chief. Goodnight… Hiccup." She turned and left. Her own bed was calling her.

()

Astrid woke early the next morning.

Despite her weariness her years of training held, waking her at sunrise.

On autopilot she dressed and braided her hair. Her parents were up asking about what time she'd come home. Astrid avoided the questions, mumbled something about dragon riding and went out to see Stormfly.

"Morning girl!"

The dragon was in cheerful spirits. Astrid had made sure that even if she wasn't getting enough sleep, at least her dragon would be. She watched Stormfly gobble down her breakfast.

"Want to go flying?"

Stormfly was always up for an early morning flight and the crisp clear air above Berk did wonders in eliminating the last of Astrid's sleepiness.

Normally they were joined by Hiccup and Toothless halfway through their morning drills, but this morning Astrid and Stormfly were able to complete their exercises with no sign of the boy and his dragon. She directed Stormfly back towards the village, spotting Toothless lounging in a sunny spot outside Hiccup's hut.

Astrid dismounted Stormfly and watched as the two dragons played.

"Guess he isn't up yet," she mumbled to herself, unsurprised. Hiccup had been running on fumes for days, he needed the sleep in.

She debated on whether she should go inside. Hiccup would be annoyed if she let him sleep too long and miss their opportunity to visit the Edge today. On the other hand, there really was no pressing need to fly there today and Astrid could deal with an irritated Hiccup.

Astrid was about to head back down to the village when the front door opened and Hiccup emerged.

"Morning milady," he greeted cheerfully. "Fancy meeting you here."

"You missed our flight this morning," Astrid wandered back over.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Hiccup shut the door to stand by Astrid. "Guess you were right about me needing sleep after all."

"Who would have guessed," Astrid nudged Hiccup playfully. "So are you feeling up to a flight? I remember someone promising to take a break after we collected the last few things from the outpost."

"I did make that promise, didn't I." Hiccup still looked tired. Despite his chipper attitude there were still dark smudges beneath his eyes. Astrid wondered how much he had actually slept last night and decided she was going to hold him to that promise if it was the last thing she did. "Let's go round up the others."

()

The idea of a break went down very well with the rest of the group. Snotlout let out a whoop, pumping his fist into the air. The twins gave each other high fives.

Hiccup cleared his throat.

"Now, I've got a list of things," he began. "There's not much, we should be back by tonight." He cleared his throat again. "Everyone still got their masks? We don't know how much ash the volcano is still putting out, so we need to be ready. Let's go."

They were up in the air, gliding above the clouds in no time. There was a new sense of energy among the Dragon Riders, knowing that this was the last trip they had to make before they could relax.

Not everyone seemed to be feeling it though.

Astrid pulled Stormfly up beside Toothless.

"Are you sure you're feeling okay?" She had to call out to be heard above the rushing of the wind.

"I'm fine Astrid," Hiccup called back.

Astrid didn't trust it, but she kept these thoughts to herself, resolving to keep an eye on her boyfriend during the trip.

An hour in the coughing started.

Astrid wasn't sure at first. Hiccup looked like he was trying to hide it, keeping his mouth closed to muffle the sound. Maybe she should have questioned him more thoroughly that morning? Hadn't he also been coughing the night before? Was he coming down with something? Astrid wouldn't be surprised if that was the case. Hiccup was completely incapable to looking after himself, always putting the needs of others before his own.

She watched him carefully as they flew. The cheerful mask he'd put on that morning was slipping. Not that anyone else had noticed. Hiccup probably figured he was doing a good job at hiding his discomfort. He was a terrible liar.

They landed at the outpost around midday. Cloth masks fixed around their faces to prevent breathing in the thick ask. They got to work quickly. Rounding up the last of the items to take back to Berk.

There wasn't much. Astrid wondered why Hiccup was so desperate to come and get it. All of this could have waited, but Hiccup was too stubborn to let it go. She went looking for him.

Hiccup was in his cabin, mask pulled down around his neck, breathing heavily. They air wasn't as bad inside, but it still wasn't clean. Astrid's frustration bled away to concern. He looked awful.

"This was a bad idea," Astrid came over to Hiccup and fixed his mask back over his face. "You sound bad enough already, you need to keep this on."

"Maybe I underestimated just how bad I was feeling this morning," Hiccup mumbled. He broke into a cough.

"Liar," Astrid scolding him gently, she decided he felt bad enough without her rubbing it in, still, "you knew exactly how bad you felt this morning and you tried to cover it up."

She reached out to grasp his hand, pulling Hiccup to his feet. "Guess break time starts now," she told him. "We should head back to Berk."

"But-"

"You're sick Hiccup," Astrid motioned for him to follow her outside where Toothless and Stormfly were waiting. The Night Fury looked concerned for his rider. Like Astrid, he had noticed that Hiccup wasn't quite acting like his normal self. Astrid waited for Hiccup to climb into his saddle. "Take him back to Berk," she instructed Toothless. "I'll round up the others and catch up to you guys."

Astrid climbed onto Stormfly's back and did a quick loop. Most of their gear had been loaded into nets for the dragons to carry. They swooped down to land by the others.

Fishlegs and Snotlout were fighting over something.

"Guys, get ready to go," Astrid hopped off her dragon to break up the argument.

"Where's Hiccup?" Fishlegs asked, turning away from a scowling Snotlout.

"I sent him ahead," Astrid was working to divvy up Toothless's pile into the other four nets. "He's not feeling well."

"So all this was Hiccup's idea and he's doing none of the work?" Snotlout complained.

Astrid shot him an annoyed look.

"Will you just get Hookfang and pick up your net? The longer you sit there complaining, the longer it takes us to get back to Berk."

"Fine," Snotlout threw his hands into the air. "Hookfang!"

The dragon flew over and gathered up the corners of the net. The rest of the dragons followed suit. Once up in the air they turned for home.

Weighed down was they were; the others were not able to catch up to the faster Night Fury. Astrid hoped he got Hiccup home safely and wished she could have gone with him, but someone needed to keep the others in line.

It was dark by the time they reached Berk. They unloaded their nets in the area. Astrid instructed Stormfly to drop her bundle and hurry back to the village. She was impatient to check on Hiccup.

She knocked on the Chief's door.

"You're back," Stoick opened the door and let the girl in.

"Yeah," Astrid moved to stand before the fire. The night had grown cold. Most nights were cold on Berk. "I just came to check on Hiccup. Make sure he got back okay." Her gaze turned towards the stairs.

"Oh, the boy's not back yet," Stoick closed the door against the chill. "You must have beat him."

Astrid frowned. "He left before we did. I made sure of that." She wasn't sure whether to be worried or frustrated. She settled on frustrated. Better to assume he'd come home and then gone against her advice of rest than to assume he hadn't made it back at all.

"I'll be back," she told Stoick, stomping out of the house. "Come on girl," Stormfly was waiting patiently outside. "Let's check the forge first."

Sure enough.

Astrid sighed at the sight of her boyfriend, fast asleep, slumped over his work desk.

"This wasn't what I had in mind when I told you to get him back to Berk," she told Toothless who crooned softly. "I know," she answered, "stubborn, bull-headed…" she trailed off. "You got him back though, thanks."

A gentle shake roused the sleeping Viking.

"Wha-?" He looked around, bleary eyed until he focused on Astrid's face. "Hey milad-" More coughing.

"Time to go home," Astrid told him softly. "Come on." She slung one of Hiccup's arms across her shoulders and wrapped her arm around his waist.

"I'm not a complete invalid," Hiccup whined.

Astrid cocked an eyebrow at him. "Could have fooled me. This is the only way I can be sure you're not going to run off on me and go do something completely stupid." She led Hiccup outside. "Oh wait, you've already done that."

Hiccup winced at her tone.

"I'm sorry." He pulled out of Astrid's grasp so he could look at her properly.

"If you were truly sorry you'd go home and rest like I asked." Astrid laid the guilt on thick. All of the times she had been sick and needed help Hiccup had been there to take care of her, now the roles were reversed and he was completely ignoring her advice. She hadn't been like that had she?

"Your right." The scene was playing like the night before. The two Vikings made their way back to Hiccup's house as Toothless followed, stopping every so often while Hiccup attempted to cough a lung up.

He was exhausted by the time they made it to the top of the hill.

Astrid didn't even bother knocking on the door, she just nudged it open with her foot before pushing Hiccup inside.

"Found him," she announced to Stoick.

"You look dreadful." Hiccup's dad came over to size up his boy.

"He's sick," Astrid led Hiccup to the stairs. "He spent all day trying to cover it up." She waited as Hiccup trudged slowly up the stairs towards his room. "Remember you promised to take it easy tomorrow," she called as he disappeared through the door. "Take care of him," Astrid asked Toothless as the dragon bounded up the stairs.

She turned to find Stoick watching her with a knowing look on his face.

"Thanks Astrid, I'll make sure he gets some rest tomorrow."

()

Astrid was busy the next morning.

With a decent nights rest she felt ready to tackle whatever the day could bring. Remembering Hiccup's promise to take a break, she let the other Dragon Riders have the day to themselves. They deserved the time off.

Still, Astrid never felt right with nothing to do, so she decided to take a look over the stuff they had brought back from the Edge. It was all still sitting out in the dragon arena. Fortunately, it hadn't rained the night before. Astrid figured she could get it all under cover.

She popped by the Chief's hut on her way where she was assured that Hiccup was still sleeping. Satisfied, she continued on with her morning.

Stormfly was a great help. Most of what they had retrieved from the Edge were Hiccup's inventions. She assisted Astrid with moving the heavier items into one of the old cages and out of the weather. They were done by midday.

Afterwards, Astrid went to practice with her axe. She had turned it into a game with her dragon, throwing things for Stormfly to pin with her spines while Astrid ducked and dodged.

Weary from the exercise Astrid returned to the village for lunch.

It was there that Fishlegs found her.

"Astrid, have you seen Hiccup?" The larger boy ambled over. "We just got this terror mail from Mala, it looks like they may need some help."

Astrid held out her hand for the letter and read it over. Things had quietened down in the week since Viggo's death. No one had seen or heard from Ryker but it seemed there were a few dragon hunters still stirring up trouble.

"Let's try and keep Hiccup out of this," Astrid read the letter over again, making sure she had the details straight. "I'll talk to the Chief about putting the Auxillary Riders on standby, can you round up Snotlout and the twins? We'll go talk to Mala and see what we can do."

She handed the letter back to Fishlegs and went off in search of Stoick. She found him overseeing the construction of the new dragon stables. With so many riders on Berk, the extension of the stables had become necessary to house all the new dragons.

"Astrid!" The Chief of Berk waved the young Viking over.

"How's Hiccup?" Astrid came to stand beside the large man.

"Still sleeping last I checked," Stoick had an unrolled blueprint stretched between his big hands. He nodded to himself and rolled the parchment back up. "Toothless is keeping an eye on him. Watch that beam now!" He called out to a number of workers who were placing the supports for the roof. Confident that no one was in any immediate danger, he turned back to the girl.

"What can I do for you?"

Astrid explained the letter and her plan for a reconnaissance mission. They needed to check on the Defenders of the Wing and determine just how many dragon hunters were still there.

Stoick was watching Astrid intently as she described her plan.

"You know you and Hiccup make a good team."

Astrid paused mid-sentence. "I, uh, excuse me?"

Stoick chuckled. "That's just the kind of plan he would have come up with"

"Oh, well I-" Astrid wasn't normally this flustered.

"You're good for him Astrid. I'll gather the A Team so they're ready if you need them."

"Thanks… uh… Chief."

"You can call me Stoick, lass." He wandered off towards Spitelout who was ordering another of the workers around, leaving Astrid on her own, speechless. Did he know about her and Hiccup? They had been careful around him. Hiccup had wanted to tell his father himself rather than let news of their relationship reach Stoick through the rumour mill. Perhaps it already had?

Astrid shook her head. No. Not enough people knew about it yet for that to happen.

She turned slowly. Fishlegs should have gathered the others by now. She returned to the village square where she'd met him before.

He wasn't there yet, but someone else was. There was a familiar mop of brown hair hunched over reading the letter Astrid had returned to Fishlegs and there was a very familiar black dragon looking at Astrid nervously.

"What are you doing up? Toothless, you were supposed to be watching him." The Night Fury warbled what sounded like an apology.

Astrid marched over to Hiccup, taking in his appearance as she did. His face was pale and his eyes were glassy.

"Come here," Astrid reached out but Hiccup ducked out of the way.

"Astrid- would you just…"

"Can you hold still for just one second?" Astrid demanded.

Hiccup stopped.

"Now stay." Astrid reached out and rested her hand against Hiccup's forehead. She already knew it would be warm, but she wasn't quite expecting the heat that was radiating off his face.

"You're burning up," she stated matter-of-factly.

"I feel fine," Hiccup insisted.

"Then you're delirious." Astrid sighed, letting her hand drop to cup his cheek. "Hiccup, I love you, but you're really testing my patience right now."

Hiccup's eyes had gone wide.

"You love me?"

Astrid realised with a start that it was the first time either of them had said the 'L' word.

"Yes, you idiot," she wacked him playfully, knocking him off balance. "Whoops, sorry." She righted him again. "But I might take it back if you don't get yourself back to bed."

The coughing started again. It sounded painful.

"The Defenders of the Wing need our help."

"Right now, you can't help anyone Hiccup," Astrid let go of him, letting the sick Viking wobble. "You can barely stand. How are you supposed to fly Toothless?"

"Woah, you look awful man!" The twins had arrived on Barf and Belch.

"You look worse than that time you nearly died," Tuffnut pointed out.

"Which time was that?" Ruffnut laughed.

"Guys." It was more of a croak than a word.

Ignoring Hiccup for a moment, Astrid turned to the twins. If she let Hiccup get involved it would be even harder to get him to stay back on Berk.

"Do you know if Fishlegs found Snotlout?" She asked.

"They're coming. Snotlout's unhappy that his holiday is already over." Ruffnut leant forward over Barf's head eyeing Hiccup. "I didn't think people could turn that colour."

"Okay, we'll if they're on their way we can get ready to-"

"Um, guys-"

At Hiccup's insistent tone Astrid spun on her toes, turning just in time to watch his eyes roll back into his head and his legs give out beneath him.

"Hiccup!"

Astrid rushed over. Toothless was nudging his rider worriedly. Hiccup groaned and tried to sit up.

"'m fine."

"Will you stop saying that?" Astrid knelt down beside her boyfriend and helped him into a sitting position. "Why are you being so stubborn about this?"

Hiccup didn't answer. He dropped his head into his hands and rubbed tiredly at his eyes.

"Come on, we're taking you to see Gothi." Astrid looked up to see Fishlegs arriving with Snotlout. "Then we'll go see Mala and the Defenders of the Wing."

With Fishlegs help, they got Hiccup on Toothless.

"Thanks Fishlegs," Astrid climbed into the saddle behind Hiccup, not trusting him to fly the dragon on his own. "You should probably go find Stoick, let him know what's going on. We'll see you there."

Toothless took off. It was only a short flight to Gothi's hut.

The Elder took her time checking Hiccup over. Astrid watched nervously as she stripped Hiccup out of his armour but turned away when the tiny old woman made Hiccup remove his shirt so that she could listen to his chest.

Fishlegs arrived with Stoick soon after and they waited for the diagnosis.

"It's some sort of infection of the lungs." Fishlegs was better at translating Gothi's words than Astrid was. "He'll be fine. He just needs to rest."

Gothi nodded and set about collection jars and combining ingredients.

Astrid let out the breath she'd been holding. She sat down beside Hiccup and rested her fingers over his hand.

"I'll tie him to his bed if I have to." Stoick was sitting on Hiccup's other side, concern was written across his face, but it had eased with Gothi's words. Hiccup was leaning against his father's shoulder, eyes shut, breath a little wheezy. He looked like he was asleep, but Astrid could feel him squeezing her hand. In this moment he did not like the eighteen-year-old Viking he was. He looked like a little boy.

Suddenly Gothi was back pressing jars and flasks at Astrid. She had to let go of Hiccup's hand to take them.

"That one is for his fever," Fishlegs was saying. "And this will help his cough?" He looked to Gothi who nodded again. "And he needs to drink plenty of water."

"Thank you Gothi," Stoick told the Elder gratefully. He hoisted his son into his arms as if the Viking weighed nothing at all.

Hiccup mumbled a complaint which was ignored.

Astrid climbed on to Toothless, tucking the bottles into a saddle bag and was surprised when Stoick deposited Hiccup in front of her.

"You got him?"

She nodded. She could hold on to Hiccup and control Toothless's tail fin at the same time. She supposed it looked a little more dignified than Stoick cradling his adult son in his arms. Astrid had her arms on either side of Hiccup, holding the handles at the front of the saddle while Hiccup more or less leant back against her.

"Ready?" She asked.

Hiccup croaked in response. "Yeah, let's go."

()

Back at their house Stoick helped Hiccup down from Toothless. He was able to get inside under his own power and sat, panting at the table.

"One moment." Stoick went upstairs and returned shortly with all the furs from Hiccup's bed. He set them up downstairs in a soft bed.

"Dad, you don't need to-" Hiccup tried to look exasperated.

"You're staying down here where I can keep an eye on you."

Astrid knew the Chief was a busy man.

"Maybe I should stay," she offered.

Stoick shook his head. As a single father they both knew he was more than capable of looking after his only son. He'd already set up a mug of water and was rifling through the jars Gothi had sent with them.

"We both know you need to lead the Dragon Riders. Go, find out what is going on and you'll be back before you know it. I won't leave his side."

Toothless curled himself up beside the fire, with Hiccup grounded, so was he.

"I'll be back soon," Astrid promised. She turned and left the hut.

()

It was early morning when Astrid returned to Berk.

The Dragon Riders had spent the night with Mala and her people, taking shifts watching the dragon hunters offshore. There weren't many, but without Toothless they were lacking the firepower needed to take them all out and rescue the dragons that had been captured. Astrid recognised some of the captive dragons as ones from Dragon's Edge. Without the riders to protect them, the hunters had made their move.

They would need to return to their old outpost at some point and relocate the rest of the dragons. Hiccup had been right about that, but Astrid would have to worry about it later.

She left the other riders with Mala under strict instructions not to engage with the hunters while she and Stormfly made the flight back to Berk. They needed the Auxiliary Team.

They didn't stay on the island long. Just enough time to gather the A Team and go.

Astrid's gaze drifted up to the Chief's house. The temptation to go up and see Hiccup was strong, but she had to put the dragons first. That's what he would have done.

She saw Gobber watching her from the corner of her eye.

"He's fine lass," he told her when she turned to him.

Astrid tried to shrug it off, no big deal, but her eyes drifted back as they took off.

It didn't take long to defeat the dragon hunters and all the riders returned to Berk. After the damage the ships had taken it would be a few days before the hunters would get the chance to regroup – if they did regroup.

The dragons had been released and where returning to Berk with the Dragon Riders. Astrid couldn't think of what else to do with them for the moment, that had always been Hiccup's job. She figured they could relocate them later, once Hiccup was up and about.

There was still the issue of the dragons left on Dragon's Edge, but Astrid put it out of her mind for the time being. One thing at a time. And right now the only thing on her mind was getting back to Hiccup.

()

It was mid-morning when they landed on Berk. Astrid went straight to Hiccup's house. He'd probably want a run-down of what had happened, as would Stoick who had also been forced to sit this one out.

She knocked lightly on the door, if Hiccup was sleeping, she didn't want to wake him.

Stoick opened the door to let her in. Toothless came rushing out, almost knocking her over, eager to stretch his wings and play with Stormfly.

"How'd it go?" Stoick whispered as he took a seat in his large armchair.

Astrid took a seat at the bench. Her gaze fell to Hiccup. At some point his bed had been brought downstairs and he was no longer on the floor. Astrid wondered absently how on earth Stoick had got the thing downstairs.

"It went well. The dragon hunters won't be bothering us for a while." She gave the Chief a report of the events of the last two days.

"How's Hiccup?" She finally got to ask the question that had been playing on her mind all day.

"He spent most of yesterday complaining that he should be out with you and the others," Stoick looked over at his son. "He's slept though most of today."

Right on cue, Hiccup began to cough.

Astrid went over to him. There was a mug of water beside his bedside. Astrid handed Hiccup the cup as he took a spluttering sip.

"Astrid!" His fever-bright eyes lit up as he recognised her. "You're back." The coughing returned.

A green bottle filled Astrid's vision. She hadn't noticed Stoick coming over.

"This is supposed to help," the older Viking told her. Astrid thanked him and took the bottle, removing the stopper. Whatever it was, it smelled awful. Astrid scrunched up her nose, glad she wasn't the one who had to drink it.

Hiccup seemed to have the same aversion to the smell.

"It'll make you feel better."

"Tastes awful."

"Just a sip. For me?"

With a groan Hiccup propped himself up on his elbows.

"For you," he asserted. "Because you love me."

Astrid blushed furiously, aware that Stoick was standing right there and Hiccup seemed completely oblivious to it.

There was a soft sound. A clearing of the throat from behind her. Then a mumbled excuse about getting some fresh air. Stoick left the hut. Astrid was grateful, this was not how Hiccup had wanted to tell his father about them, but it had come out in true Hiccup fashion – awkwardly.

"Well done babe," she whispered. "now your dad knows."

Hiccup took a sip of the nasty smelling liquid. He pulled a face and for a moment Astrid thought he was going to bring it back up again. It passed and Hiccup lay back down again.

"I love you too," Hiccup's eyes were closed as he spoke. His throat sounded so raw.

"I know. Shush now." Astrid glanced around, she could hear Stoick talking softly to someone outside, then gentle footfalls as he walked away from the hut. She reached out and rubbed soothing circles on Hiccup's chest. She remembered the last time she had been ill and coughing and how her chest had ached from the effort. "Go back to sleep."

She was uncomfortable kneeling as she was on the floor. She carefully climbed onto the bed and shifted around so that her back was against the wall. Gently she lifted Hiccup's head to rest in her lap. Astrid ran her fingers through Hiccup's hair as he settled back down to sleep.

()

"Astrid."

A hand was shaking her shoulder.

Astrid opened her eyes to find Stoick standing over her.

"What time is it?" She wiped the sleep from her eyes. The last few days had caught up with her and she'd drifted off while sitting with Hiccup.

"It's about dinner time." Stoick had set some food on the table. "Hungry?"

Astrid shook her head, but her stomach growled loudly. "Okay, maybe a little." She realised she still had her fingers tangled in Hiccup's hair. She quickly freed herself. Moving was another problem. She didn't want to wake Hiccup who seemed to be finally sleeping soundly. Carefully she extricated herself from the furs and stood. Stoick handed the girl a plate.

Astrid sat at the table and picked at her food.

"You'll end up like him if you don't eat," Stoick gestured with a chicken leg.

Astrid took a proper bite and chewed thoughtfully. "I like to think I know my limits," she said when she swallowed the mouthful. "Unlike him."

"He's always been like that, ever since he was a boy."

"I know," Astrid smiled. She took another bite, chewed, swallowed nervously. "Uh, can I ask you a question?"

Stoick put his knife down. "Anything." His expression was so open and honest. So much like Hiccup. Astrid wasn't used to seeing her chief like this.

"Uh," she hesitated on what she wanted to ask next. "Why do I get the feeling this isn't a surprise to you?" Astrid asked. "Me and… him".

Stoick chuckled. "Hiccup is not very good at keeping his feelings close to his chest." Astrid huffed through her nose, that much was definitely true about Hiccup.

"Gods, he's been in love with you forever."

Astrid blushed.

"Besides, I've got eyes. I've seen the way you two act around each other. Reminds me of his mother." Stoick sighed. He was staring past Astrid lost in memories. Finally, he spoke, "you should go home, get some rest."

Astrid pushed her empty plate aside. "Thanks… for dinner." She stood.

"Thanks… for him," Stoick nodded towards the sleeping Hiccup. Astrid felt her cheeks heat up again.

She left the hut and pressed her hands to her face. She couldn't remember the last time she had blushed so much. She was supposed to be a tough Viking, not some flushed maiden.

It was dark outside. Astrid could make out Stormfly and Toothless curled up together on the grass. Stormfly chirped at the appearance of her rider.

"Sorry girl," Astrid scratched her dragon just where she liked it, under her jaw. "You must be hungry. You too," she turned to Toothless. "Want to get something to eat? You probably want to stretch your wings too."

She led the dragons back to her parent's place.

"So what first? Food or flying?"

Toothless flapped his wings open.

"Guess it's flying then." Astrid ran inside to get a coat. Once rugged up against the cold she returned to the dragons. She climbed onto the Night Fury's saddle and adjusted the pedal. Toothless sprang into the air followed by Stormfly. Astrid switched the position of her foot as Toothless pumped his wings higher and higher.

She was always amazed that Hiccup could do this without thinking. A few people on Berk knew how to work Toothless's tail properly, but no one could do it like Hiccup. It was like he and Toothless were one being and together they could fly so fast!

"How about a race?" She called out to Stormfly. "Me and Toothless against you." Stormfly squawked indignantly. She knew Astrid's clumsy riding could never match her speed. Toothless knew it too, but was happy to be back in the air after two days stuck on the ground.

He dove suddenly, spiralling down in something reminiscent to Astrid's first ride on his back.

The blonde Viking let out a yell. Less fear than the first time and more exhilaration. Stormfly swooped after them in a game of chase.

They landed at Astrid's house much later.

"Not quite as good as Hiccup, but I hope that helped," Astrid climbed down from Toothless. "Let's get you fed and you can go back to see him." The Night Fury craned his neck towards the Chief's house, his toothless grin faded. Astrid could only guess at what he was thinking.

"Don't feel guilty," she told him. She went to get some fish. "It's okay to take you mind off things for a bit." Maybe she was trying to reassure herself more than the dragon. She fed them both their dinner "He's going to be fine in a few days and cooping yourself up, worrying isn't going to make him better any faster."

She said goodnight to the dragons. Stormfly went to her pen and settled down to sleep. Toothless trudged back up the hill towards his rider. Astrid watched him go before she made her way inside to her own bed.

()

Hiccup was sitting up when Astrid went to visit him the next morning.

"You're looking better," Astrid commented as she sat on the edge of the bed. He didn't, not really. He was still pale, his freckles in sharp contrast to the rest of his face.

"Thanks," Hiccup coughed.

Astrid winced in sympathy. "When was the last time you took your medicine?" She asked, eyeing the bottles beside the bed.

"Good luck with that one," Stoick appeared in the doorframe. He had some bread, meats and fruit from the Great Hall. "I've been trying all morning."

"Hiccup," Astrid scolded the sick boy. "I was going to update you on the last few days, but not if you don't suck it up and take your medicine."

Stoick chuckled from the table. "Go Astrid, get him to eat something while you're at it."

Hiccup held out his hand for the first bottle. Astrid uncorked it and passed it to him, suppressing a smile at the look of disgust that passed over his face. She took it back and passed him the next one.

"More?" He groaned.

"Cough." Astrid shook the first bottle. "Fever." She gestured to the bottle clutched in Hiccup's hands. "Drink."

"I don't like this side of you," he muttered as he handed the foul potion back. His head had fallen back against the wall, eyes closed. Astrid pressed one last mug into his hands.

"What now?"

"Juice… to get rid of the taste."

Stoick was watching the little exchange from the table, a big grin on his face. Hiccup caught him staring. His eyes flicked from Astrid to Stoick. Astrid followed his gaze. This was awkward. Hiccup didn't remember his little outburst from the day before and Astrid really didn't need Stoick watching over every little thing they did. She cleared her throat hoping Stoick got the message.

He did. He made some awkward excuse about needing to check the thing and left.

Hiccup stared at Astrid in wonder. "What just happened?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, finish your juice."

Astrid waited as Hiccup slowly drained the cup.

"So what have I missed?" Hiccup handed back the empty cup and yawned. It turned into a hacking cough and Hiccup doubled over while he got his breathing back in order. Astrid gave him a few thumps on the back to help clear his lungs.

Wearily he straightened. Astrid took the chance to move into the position she'd been in yesterday with her back against the wall. She directed Hiccup to lie down with his head in her lap.

"What if my dad-"

"Just lie down Hiccup." Astrid ran though the events of the previous days. She told him about how many of the rescued dragons had come from the Edge, that she had plans to try and herd the remaining dragons to Berk until they could find somewhere else for them. She twisted new braids into his hair as she spoke. It helped to voice her ideas even if her audience was sleeping.

"We'll need to head back to Dragon's Edge."

Perhaps he hadn't been sleeping after all.

"What's this we business? You're not going anywhere."

"But-"

"No 'butt's Hiccup. You're trying to do too much," Astrid's fingers paused in her boyfriend's hair. "You need to rest and get better."

"How can I rest when there is still so much to do?"

"It was that kind of thinking that got you here in the first place," Astrid remarked. She placed a gentle hand on her boyfriend's forehead. Warmth radiated into the back of her hand.

Slowly her hand drifted higher, sweeping back through the damp locks.

Hiccup let out a content sigh at the touch, eyelids flickering shut for a moment.

"No," he forced himself upright. "I can help with something. Anything."

"Hiccup, so help me I will tie you to this bed," Astrid pushed his shoulders until he was lying down once more, her voice was gentle despite the force. "You are sick. If you come with us on any missions right now, you'll be putting yourself and us in danger. And I'm no good to the others if I'm worrying about you."

"But I have to lie here and worry about you?"

"No, you get to lie there and sleep." Astrid pressed her lips to Hiccups brow. "It could all be a coincidence. We don't know that the hunters are targeting the dragons from Dragon's Edge."

"That's one big coincidence."

"We've got no plans yet to deal with this. Besides, it will be days before the Dragon Hunters recover from yesterday's fight, we've got time."

Despite his determination to stay awake, Hiccup's body needed sleep and so sleep came. Astrid kept watch as he snored in wheezy little breaths. She'd downplayed the situation a bit to keep him calm. She was certain the hunters were targeting Dragon's Edge's dragons. It really was too big a coincidence.

Carefully she eased out from under Hiccup and stood, stretching the kinks from her back. Hiccup coughed some more but didn't wake.

They couldn't run into this without a plan. What would Hiccup do? Current Hiccup was no good. His planning skills went to mush when he was this exhausted.

What about a stealth mission? Go in under the cover of darkness and herd the dragons out before anyone noticed.

Astrid stepped outside. The air was much less stuffy than it was in the hut and the sunshine was almost warm. The weather had been really good these past few days. Soon it would turn again. Winter was a few months away, but the weather turned sour early making it tough for the healthiest of Vikings. Hiccup needed to be kept out of this, he needed to be better before the storms came.

Toothless came up and nudged the girl's shoulder.

"I suppose you'd like to go flying?" She looked back at the door of the hut. Hiccup would hopefully be a sleep for a while and maybe the rush of wind through her hair would help Astrid come up with a feasible plan.

Stormfly came bounding over. Astrid ran a hand down her dragon's snout.

"I'm sorry girl, I haven't been the greatest friend to you these last few days." Stormfly squawked in agreement. "I'll make it up to you, promise girl. We'll go flying together, just you and me but right now Toothless is stuck here without Hiccup. Imagine if you couldn't fly," Astrid knew her dragon couldn't really understand all the words she was saying, but Stormfly was a clever animal, she'd get the meaning.

"Just a quick one okay?" Astrid climbed onto Toothless's back and put her feet into the pedals. "Let's go."

()

The flight really did do wonders. It cleared Astrid's head of all the doubts and she was sure she had a solid plan forming by the time they landed. She'd run it past Stoick and see what he thought. Hiccup most likely got his planning skills from his father and it would be good to have a sounding board that did more than chirp in response.

Astrid decided to stop at the Great Hall on her way back to see Hiccup. She was hungry and Stoick had been so good making sure she ate while she cared for Hiccup, she decided to return the favour.

Stoick was inside when Astrid returned to the house. She wondered if he'd been waiting for her to leave to make things less awkward.

The Chief was sitting by his son on the edge of the bed, wringing out aa damp cloth to place on his head. Hiccup was moaning in his sleep, the sound of it tore up though his poor inflamed throat.

"What happened?" Astrid put her bundle of food on the table. Hiccup had been fine when she left. Well, not fine, but he hadn't been this bad.

Stoick shook his head. "He was tossing about when I got back, mumbling things, he'd thrown his blanket off," he dipped another cloth in the bucket of water by Hiccup's bed and wrung it out. He wiped it down Hiccup's neck and the boy groaned again.

"I don't understand. He's supposed to be getting better, not worse." Astrid came to stand by the bed. "Gothi said he'd be fine, that he just needed rest."

"It's the getting him to rest part that's difficult." Stoick dropped the rag back into the bucket.

"He's had this fever for almost three days, when is it going to break? Maybe I should go get Gothi."

Stoick glanced down at his son. "Maybe that's a good idea." He wrung out another cloth.

Astrid turned and left, running for Stormfly. Toothless took the opportunity to paw his way into the house. "Let's go Stormfly," Astrid jumped up onto the dragon's saddle. "Let's go get Gothi, fast as you can girl."

She tried to stay calm as she rushed into the Elder's hut, but the words came out jumbled as she asked Gothi to hurry and come with her to the Chief's hut. The tiny woman gathered her supplies and allowed herself to be helped up onto Stormfly for the trip back down to the village.

She ushered both Astrid and Stoick out of the room while she looked over Hiccup. Astrid paced nervously outside waiting to be let back in. Stormfly and Toothless were both picking up on her anxiety. The large blue dragon was trying to run her beak-like snout through her rider's hair in an attempt to calm her. Toothless batted up against Astrid like a cat.

Stoick was leaning against the wall of the hut, arms crossed in front of his chest. He was maintaining his composure much better than Astrid was.

Finally, Gothi opened the front door. She stepped outside and began to write in the dirt.

"His fever is spiking." Stoick translated out loud, but Astrid was following along on her own. "Keep him cool. Get him to drink as much water as you can. Once it breaks he'll be on the mend."

"Are you sure?" Gothi paused her scrawling to look up at the girl. She scribbled a mark in the soil.

"She promises this is the worst of it."

"Oh thank Thor, can I go in now?"

The healer nodded and Astrid ran inside, one black Night Fury was hot on her trail. She sat by Hiccup's side as he tossed and turned on the bed.

He was mumbling something in between bouts of coughing.

"Astrid."

She could barely make out the words but she was sure he was repeating her name over and over.

"Hush, babe, I'm here." She wrung out a new cloth to place on his forehead.

"Looks like he's in capable hands." Stoick had come into the room after speaking to Gothis.
I uh… I guess I'll leave you to it then." He backed out of the room awkwardly. "Fetch me if you need anything. I'll be nearby."

()

Astrid woke with a start.

She sat up, looking around the room. Her room.

She couldn't remember making the trip back to her house. Most of the night was a blur. She'd spent the entire afternoon sitting with Hiccup, refreshing the damp clothes keeping him cool and urging him to drink whenever he surfaced long enough to choke another mouthful down.

His fever had finally broken sometime around midnight. He'd sweat through his clothing and the thin blanket covering him. Stoick had taken over at that point, sparing Hiccup the embarrassment of having his clothes changed by his new girlfriend. Astrid felt embarrassed for him.

She had dim memories of waiting outside and sagging against the wall, completely worn out. There was a large figure with gentle hands who scooped her up. Astrid's father had carried her like that when she was a little girl, too tired to make it upstairs to her room.

Stoick must have carried her home.

Now Astrid felt embarrassed for herself.

She rose slowly. Her back was stiff from leaning over her patient all night. Astrid took her time stretching and working out all the kinks from her spine.

Feeling much more limber she changed. She was still wearing her clothes from the day before. A quick glance outside told Astrid that it was much later than she normally woke. She re-braided her hair and made her way downstairs.

Her mother asked how Hiccup was and gave Astrid some soup. The young Viking wondered if her parents knew the truth of her relationship with Hiccup. Stoick had known, apparently they weren't as secretive as she thought. Astrid didn't mind if her parents knew. She'd find the right time to tell them properly… later.

Astrid took the soup and made the trek up to the Chief's house. She let herself in feeling very comfortable after spending three days in Hiccup's home.

"Good morning," she placed the soup on the table and went over to Hiccup. "You look so much better." This time she meant it. Like the day before, he was sitting up in bed. Instead of the red shirt he'd been wearing previously, he was in green. It suited him.

Colour was returning to his cheeks and the fever gleam had left his eyes. Best of all, he was eating.

"I'm glad someone thinks so," he croaked out his response around a mouthful of food. "I feel like a Whispering Death chewed me up and spat me back out again." He put down his half eaten breakfast, his free hand rose to his mouth to cover a cough. It didn't sound as bad as the day before. He really was on the mend.

Astrid sat down on the bed. "If you ever do that to me again, I'm going to break up with you."

"Do what? Get sick?" Hiccup's tongue flicked over dry lips as he glanced at his father in the corner.

Astrid laughed. "Oh babe, he definitely knows about us already. You let that one slip days ago."

"I what? When? But..." Hiccup groaned in embarrassment. "This was not how it was supposed to happen," he rasped.

"That's what you get for refusing to take a break and getting sick and absolutely scaring me to death in the process," Astrid pat Hiccup's hand with her own.

Hiccup's mouth opened and shut, but he couldn't think of anything to say.

"Anyway, you need rest and I need to go over some plans with the Chief here." She took away the remains of his breakfast and went to talk to his father.

Completely lost with what was happening, Hiccup settled down and went back to sleep.

()

Two days later the Dragon Riders and the Auxiliary Team took off for Dragon's Edge. They left late in the afternoon, aiming to reach the outpost well after nightfall.

Hiccup was left behind, technically under orders not to leave his bed. He doubted he could get far right now. He got the shakes just walking from his bed to the bathroom. Anything other than that was completely beyond him. Astrid had relented at the look on Hiccup's face when she told him they were heading off. She told him to take it slow and stay in the house.

What was the difference between lying about inside and lying about on the grass outside his house anyway?

Inside was stuffy and cramped. Outside afforded Hiccup a view of the entire village and the sea stretched out before him. More importantly he could watch for the Dragon Riders return.

He was rugged up in several blankets to ward off the chill. Toothless reclined behind him, giving Hiccup something to lean on. He coughed quietly into the soft woollen folds of the blankets. He'd be so grateful when the cough was finally gone. His attention drifted momentarily to the foul potion he still had to drink until his chest cleared up completely.

The sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon. It was a fantastic view. Hiccup had spent many morning as a child sitting in that very spot and watching the sun rise. Toothless was a warm, rumbling presence at his back. The only thing now that could make this perfect-

There! On the horizon!

At first it appeared to be a dark cloud. Hiccup rocked forwards, squinting, trying to make out the individual dragons.

A blue streak at the front.

That had to be Stormfly with Astrid.

Hiccup waited as the dragons came closer. There were so many of them. They flew over the village of Berk herded by the Dragon Riders and the A Team. They would be settled on the far side of the island for now, until they could find a better place for them.

Leaning back against Toothless, Hiccup closed his eyes. He'd almost dozed off then there was a soft thud to his right. He cracked an eye open and found himself face to face with a pretty blonde Viking.

"I thought I told you to stay in the house."

Hiccup opened up the blanket so that Astrid could sit beside him. He wrapped his arm and the cloth around her shoulders so that they were both tucked in.

"I remember you telling me to take it slow." His voice had almost come back. "This is taking it pretty slow don't you think milady?"

Astrid rolled her eyes at the pet name.

"You're completely hopeless, you know that?" She asked.

"Completely," Hiccup agreed. A slow smile spread across his face, "but you love me."

Astrid laughed. Hiccup tightened his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in close.

"Come here you."

He leant in and closed his eyes, relishing the feel of Astrid's soft lips against his own.