Author's Note: Well here it is, the final chapter. I'm so sorry for taking so long, I won't make any excuses for this. I'm just glad to finally be able to get this story done, yet also sad at the same time. But don't worry it doesn't mean i'm done with writing. No, I have plenty more ideas in my noggin for story ideas. I have another one cooking in my head.

I tried with this chapter, and it's all fluff like, and maybe a bit sappy, but that's all I could think of. Still I hope it's good. I give a huge thank you to Ugly-Duckling123, who beta read this story for me. Thank you for your help. Now here is the final chapter, enjoy.

Chapter 12: Not Alone

The bright rays of the sun started to shine through the open window of Hiccup's window, illuminating part of the room. Slowly, but surely, all of Berk activity could be heard from outside, signaling the start of the day. Hiccup laid on his bed still, eyes open as he stared at the ceiling. The teen had been awake for a while already but didn't really feel like getting out of bed yet. It was rare for him to be up early like this, especially while Toothless is still asleep, but Hiccup's mind is wandering about endlessly, and he's taking his time to sort out his thoughts. He could do so for as long as he wanted, it wasn't like he had anything important to do right now, well not yet at least.

It has been fourteen days since he broke down and finally told everyone what was wrong, and they all did what they could to help him get through his mental troubles from killing. A huge part of him couldn't believe how foolish he had been for hiding these feelings from his friends and father, as they didn't care about if he showed weakness now. All they cared about is helping him return to his normal, cheerful self. To be honest Hiccup missed being himself once he finally had his thoughts cleared up. He would gladly take any assistance he could get.

Thankfully his friends would be there if he wanted to talk to them, if he suddenly had more panic attacks they would try to break him out of it. He had a few more but was glad they managed to bring him back. One biggest aspect of all they didn't make any jokes or anything about it, as they found it disrespectful to Hiccup's health, which he was grateful for. This only made Hiccup glad to have them…and to think they might not have been there to help him if he hadn't done what he did… Which part of him was glad that he managed to save them, despite them not having to be on Dragon Island in the first place if it wasn't for him. Still he can't dwell on the past now.

A small thump caught Hiccup's attention, prompting him to look over, seeing Toothless now awake and stretching. Seeing that his dragon is up Hiccup decided to get up as well, as it was only fair. Attaching his prosthetic and getting up Hiccup gave a smile as Toothless padded up to him, giving a few pets, "Morning Bud, ready for the day?"

"Of course, and I'm glad to see you're doing better," Toothless warbled.

"I think today will be the day bud," Hiccup said, which the Night Fury seemed to understand completely as he gave out a surprised warble.

"Are you sure? Do you need more time or anything?"

"I think it's been long enough," Hiccup said, almost as if he understood what was said, mainly as it would be an obvious response. Smiling now he stood up and heading for his door, heavy footsteps following right behind.

Making his way downstairs Hiccup wasn't surprised to see his father still at home, tending to the fire. The chief hearing his son coming down and looked up to greet him, "Morning son, didn't expect to see you up already."

"Couldn't fall asleep," He responded sheepishly, yet not gloomy either, which seems to be a positive sign. "And…well I wanted to talk to you."

"Oh, about what?" Stoick asked, seeing his son motion to the table, which he moved over to sit down at.

Hiccup had to admit, his father has been really helpful these last two weeks. Like promised the chief had said he would help him with any questions he may have, mainly on how he's feeling from his kills. Hiccup explained everything and his father listened to all of it. His patience being shown as he said nothing until the teen vented everything that needed to be said. His advice helped a lot, but Hiccup would still get nightmares now and then the coming days… Yet, as they days passed they started to become more tame as they were before.

They both sat down, with Toothless doing the same between the two, watching on. Hiccup was silent at first, but Stoick waited for Hiccup to say what's on his mind. Moving his head up, Hiccup looked right into his father's eyes, "Dad… I think I'm ready to return to my duties."

Both of Stoick's eyes rose as his mouth dropped a bit, not expecting that at all. After the night in which Hiccup crawled into his bed for the night Stoick talked to the boy, still seeing some fear and the like still within him. Both of them remembering the conversation that followed after Hiccup had woken up.

…..

Stoick sat down at the table, looking through some of the daily reports that were given to him for today. Having woken up not too long ago, and suddenly remembering his son is sound asleep next to him. The sight brought some comfort to the chief, fully knowing this must be the first bit of sound sleep his son has had in a long while. The last thing he wanted to do is wake him, when he needed the rest. Being as careful as possible the large man managed to untangle himself from his son, which itself was a large feat, and left him in his bed to rest further.

Taking a moment, Stoick couldn't help but smile and caress his son's face. Hiccup looked almost like he did as a child when he used to crawl into his bed, it was cute in a way. Yet, the reason for it was still disheartening as the realization set it. Sighing heavily at this. His son is still technically a child, and he has already taken six lives. Something that Vikings would usually praise… Yet Hiccup is different, instead of killing he would rather preserve life. This itself spoke leaps and bounds about his son's character, and only made Stoick realize he would have hard hurdles to jump in his life. Making sure not to make a sound he walked out of his room, just in time to see Toothless walking down the stairs frantically, almost as if in a panic.

"Where's Hiccup!" he warbled fast once he saw the chief.

"Easy there Toothless, Hiccup is in my bed don't worry," he reached and petted the dragon, which seemed to calm the beast. "Leave him be, Hiccup needs the sleep. Why don't you go out and stretch your legs until then?"

"No, I'm not leaving his side," Toothless warbled back, sitting down on the floor, unmoving. Stoick kept on insisting the Night Fury go out still, but he was adamant in his decision, which Stoick relented on.

"You're as stubborn as my son… Yet your loyalty means no bounds," Stoick smiled, seeing firsthand the bond his son and dragon had.

"He would do the same for me," Toothless warbled back. Both of them knew they it would be a while before Hiccup waited, but it was fine for them.

Both of them waited together.

Stoick took the whole morning off, putting Spitelout in charge until later in the afternoon. After what happened he would need to be here for his son… Just like when all this began in the first place. He wouldn't leave his son alone to deal with the aftermath of yesterday, he's not that heartless… At least not anymore. The familiar clanks of Hiccup's prosthetic could be heard as man and dragon looked back, seeing the teen emerging from the room.

"Morning Hiccup."

"Morning…dad," the teen responded, looking a bit embarrassed for some reason. Stoick ignored that for now, thankfully.

"Son, please sit," he motioned for the chair. Without a word or arguing Hiccup moved forward, smiling as he gave Toothless a few pets before sitting down at his chair. A small uncomfortable silence filled the hut as none of them said anything. The mood being set, as now they waited for the first person to speak up. Stoick decided to be the first one, at least give Hiccup time to compose himself more. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm…I'm feeling really good," Hiccup said with a smile, deciding to be honest with his answers. After all that happened yesterday, his father deserved the truth. "It was the first time in a long while that I didn't have any nightmares… And I am so relieved at that… T-Thank you dad… F-For… You know."

Stoick nodded, fully knowing what it was for, but didn't press it. "Of course, son. Like I said before I'll always be here to help you."

"I know… I just wish I saw reason sooner before everything else happened… It would have saved me so much trouble and pain," Hiccup looked down at his hands, still putting himself down at this. Another silence followed as Hiccup still saw blood covering his hands… Blood from the Berserkers he killed. Closing his eyes and shaking his head, he opened them to see his hands cleaned again. Stoick noticed this, and knew he needed to keep the talk going.

"That's life son, there's nothing more that can be done about that, you can't dwell on it. I know it may seem harsh, but it's true," Stoick leaned forward, trying to help more. He couldn't sugarcoat anything, not anymore. "Killing is part of a Viking's life, and it's bound to happen one day. Unfortunately, you experienced it at a young age. Sadly, you cannot go back and change things. I know it's hard, but you have to focus on what is right in front of you and not let your recent kills get the better of you."

"I…I can try, but I'm not sure how to," Hiccup responded, truly unsure how to even go about dealing with this. "Killing them was a huge mistake."

"Yet… If you hadn't your friends might not be alive," Stoick responded, causing Hiccup to look up at him.

"B-But dad, if it wasn't for me we wouldn't have been on Dragon Island in the first place. If I hadn't got mad at them I wouldn't have stormed off and allowed them to get captured. We would still be on Berk where it was safe."

"True, but what's to say that it wasn't going to happen sooner or later? The very situation you found yourself in," Stoick asked, seeing his son about to open his mouth but stopped. His mind realizing that his father is right and something like that could have happened at any time. "I know there could have been another way of dealing with the situation, but overall, I think you did what was best in the situation. It was either your friends, or them, and you chose to kill them to save your friends lives. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn't? It may not seem like a positive, but you kept them alive, and that is still the best outcome for you."

Hiccup hadn't thought about this, what if he hadn't done what he did? It still didn't justify the means, but still could his friends have been hurt or killed if he hadn't intervened as he did? His body shuddered as he didn't want to think about this more. It helped a bit but not that much. "Still… It feels like I'm paying the price for it… Which I'm not even sure how to handle it."

"Well stress can be the biggest cause of your troubles, and it can make things worse. Right now, you need to relax and take it easy, which is why I have come to a decision," At that Hiccup looked up to look at his father, curious and somewhat worried what he might do. "Son, you're going to be taking a leave of absence from the dragon academy and the forge."

"What? D-Dad I can't do that," Hiccup responded softly. Normally one would be a bit panicked and lash out, but Hiccup still felt worn out from yesterday and all his fight had left him long ago. Besides, he didn't want to stop working for other reasons. "I have too many people relying on me, I can't be-"

"Gobber has already signed off on this, he said he can handle things in the forge on his own for a while. Especially since things have been quiet as of late, so there won't be that much work for him," Stoick interrupted, seeing his son calming down some, but still wanted to protest. "And the other Riders can handle the academy, believe it or not but you have taught them well."

"But… Dad I… It just seems wrong of me to do so," Hiccup shook his head, his mind not fighting back as part of him agreeing with what his dad is saying. "I just can't stop… Not while the whole world is going on without me."

"Son, this will be good for you. Besides, you've earned a small break after all you been through, matter of fact I think it's needed… But if you don't think you can do that… Then look me right in the eye and tell me that your kills won't get in the way," Stoick offered sincerely, without any kind of negative tone. He's trying to prove a point, one of which he knew his son is starting to realize.

Hiccup knew this was some kind of test, he didn't want time off as he couldn't shirk his duties and let someone else take on the slack. He couldn't do that and wouldn't. Yet, as he looked into his father's eyes and opened his mouth, he froze. Doubt filled him as his body literally didn't say what he wanted to say. That doubt made him think back to the dead Berserkers and Outcasts, making him shudder and break eye contact. He started to think about what his dad said in hopes of getting his mind off of their faces. All in all… His father is right. Even if he could say those words there is no way he can function properly to do his job right, thus making things even worse and that is the last thing he wanted. Would it be better to step away from something willingly than risk making this worse? Maybe stepping away from his responsibilities could be good for him… Besides he was going to start trusting his dad more on this, and the first thing is to heed his advice.

Bowing his head more he responded in a low voice, "A break might not be that bad."

"I'm glad you saw it my way son," Stoick reached over to place a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Take all the time you need to get your head on straight. I'll be here no matter what I'm doing, and that's the truth."

"But… Dad you're a busy man, I can't possibly-"

"You let me worry about that, you're my priority right now," Stoick assured, which help put a smile on his son's face as a nod is given. "And when you feel ready to return to your duties, tell me."

"I will… Thank you dad," Hiccup nodded.

….

"Are you sure son?" Stoick asked, taken by surprise at the statement. He knew his son would have to get back to his duties sometime but wasn't expecting it yet. Yet, his son looked him straight in the eye and said it without trouble.

"Yeah…this break really has helped me a lot, and I think I got my head on straight," Hiccup responded back, which is true. The past two weeks were a relaxing one. Free of responsibility for the moment Hiccup practically seized every single day and did what he wanted. Whether it was flying around on Toothless, visiting the other dragons on Berk, or even sketching random things, Hiccup never got bored of it. At first, he thought his friends might be ticked off they were to handle things on their own, but to his surprised they were supportive of his break, which helped him feel a bit at ease. "I mean, I still think about them… But it doesn't affect me like it used to. I could actually go all of yesterday without stalling or having a small breakdown."

"I've noticed that," Stoick nodded, fully knowing it was true. For the past few days, he has noticed his son is less tense and calmer than usual. A positive sign. Also, he has been able to sleep through the night, something he has been needing badly. "This is good, yet are you sure you can handle things?"

"Yes dad, I'm good," Hiccup gave a genuine smile, and upon looking at his son's face Stoick saw the same Hiccup from before. No trace of hiding anything nor forcing the smile. Just by this look alone the chief knew that things were good.

"Alright son, but remember take things slow, and don't overexert yourself. Just because you're feeling good doesn't mean you're all better," Stoick warned his son, but was also glad to see him getting back to work again.

"I know, and thanks," Hiccup nodded as he got up from his chair and turned to leave, calling for Toothless as the Night Fury followed. Today was a start of a new day.

….

Hiccup slowly approached the forge, getting some waves and greetings from the villagers. The lot of them knowing what the teen is going through, though Hiccup wasn't sure how they found out. Still, they were just as supportive as it came to his mental state. Some respectfully giving him space, some asking if he needed anything. Hiccup was glad to know they cared, it just made him feel all that better. Arriving, he heard activity from within, a clear indication Gobber is hard at work inside. Hiccup was going to go to the academy to get back to training with his friends, but he had a bit of time before that happened and wanted to make one stop before going over there. Entering it he found Gobber organizing the shelves, humming an all too familiar tune, "Hey Gobber."

That stopped his actions as the blacksmith turned and smiled widely upon seeing his apprentice, "Hiccup! How are you lad?" he went over and gave him a small hug.

"I'm good Gobber, better than I've ever felt," Hiccup responded.

It was safe to say that the two managed to repair whatever damage had been left between them. Hiccup kept on apologizing for giving his mentor the cold shoulder for so long, but Gobber insisted that all was fine. Yet, he still held firm on not allowing Hiccup to work in the forge until he felt better. So instead the teen would come down to the forge and the two would just talk when Gobber had some spare time. Hiccup knew Gobber has killed as well and asked him how he dealt with the aftereffects of it. The blacksmith was kind of enough to explain things and give advice as well. It made things more bearable for Hiccup.

"So, looking for another talk?" Gobber asked, curious as to what brings his apprentice here.

"Actually, not today," Hiccup smiled. "I thought I'd let you know that I told my dad I'm good enough to return to my duties, and he signed off on it."

Both of Gobber's eyes rose in surprise, just like his father had done. "Really? So, you feel you're well enough to get back to work?"

"Yes, and you know my dad, he wouldn't have ok'd it unless he knew I could handle things," Hiccup explained reasonably, which Gobber couldn't help but agree with. "So, I came to let you know I'll be back to work either later on today or tomorrow."

Gobber gave a hearty laugh as he clapped the boy on the shoulder, "Welcome back my boy, I can say the shop hasn't been the same without you here."

"And I can say I missed your banter," both of them gave a laugh, clearly enjoying the sense of familiarity they were having. Both of them missing the usual interaction they would have.

Gobber then ruffled Hiccup's hair, glad to see him back to his usual self. "Alright, why don't you get going, I know your friends should be gathering soon."

"Alright Gobber, I'll see you later," Hiccup responded back with a nod as he headed out of the forge towards Toothless. He climbed aboard his dragon and the two were then launched up into the air, heading for the academy.

…..

At the Academy all the riders were present, milling about, well not really. Snotlout is lying against a sleeping Hookfang, both of them snoozing from boredom. The Twins were having one of their usual arguments with Barf and Belch snapping at one another. Fishlegs is reading a botany book as Meatlug is leaning against her rider sleeping. Astrid is huffing to herself as she saw her friends lazing about, Stormfly right behind her, waiting for an order to be issued from her rider. She pinched the bridge of her nose in irritation, as it seems like they aren't going to get much work down.

When they were informed that Hiccup was going to be taking a leave of absence from the academy Hiccup had put Astrid in charge, and for a while, things seemed to work out fine. Then things started to fall apart some as time went on. Astrid believed in sticking with an exercise until it was pulled of flawlessly, so this led to repeating various maneuvers over and over again, which in turn gained nothing but groans and attitude. Despite keeping everyone in order she still had trouble trying to get them up into the air when they gathered.

"Ok, listen up!" Astrid called out, and thankfully that seemed to get their attention as everyone seemed to look at everyone. "If you all are done slacking off why don't we get off into the air for more maneuvers."

"Again?" Snotlout asked as he pushed his helmet up away from his eyes. "Can't we do something different?"

"I don't normally agree with Snotlout, but yeah I honestly thing something new is warranted," Fishlegs responded as he put his book away.

"Come on, we're getting better at it, why mess with progress?" Astrid responded back, hand on her hip. She knew this was going to be another tricky verbal fight to win.

"Progress? What progress?" Tuffnut responded.

"Yeah, if you haven't noticed my brother here has been slacking," Ruffnut responded.

"Hey, if I'm slacking so are you," Tuff responded back, glaring at his sister.

"No, I'm not," she retorted.

"Idiot we ride the same dragon!"

Astrid rolled her eyes as she watched the two get into another argument, knowing that this would have to be broken up again. Yet, before she could do so they all heard wing beats and turned to the entrance to see a familiar Night Fury flying in and landing. "Hiccup!" Astrid called out, which seemed to catch the attention of everyone else.

Hiccup got off of his dragon, smiling at his friends, "Hey everyone."

"Hey cuz, what brings you here?" Snotlout got up with a smile, glad from the small reprieve from Astrid.

"Is something wrong?" Fishlegs asked as everyone went up to him.

"No, no everything is fine," Hiccup responded. That was another thing he was glad for his friends as they were there when he needed them. Whenever they weren't busy, they would gladly hang out with him, to keep him company. They all would go for relaxing flights, have small camp outs or just stay at one place to talk. Hiccup was glad to have them, just like with his father and Gobber as they helped him pass his problems. "Matter of fact I have some good news."

"Good news? What is it?" Tuffnuff placed his hands on Snotlout's helmet and pushed him down so he can see over him. The buffer teen grunting under the extra weight. "Is it about me?"

"Get off me!" Snotlout shoved the male twin off. "And why would he have news about you?"

Hiccup laughed at this, enjoying these funny moments between his friends. This didn't go unnoticed by Astrid, "Well, I see you're feeling good today."

"Yeah, and that's what I came here for," Hiccup responded back as all eyes were now on him. "I'm ready to return back to leading the academy."

"Wow, already?" Fishlegs responded in surprise and excitement.

"Cool, about time," Ruffnut said next with a smile.

"Ha, I knew you would bounce back quick cuz," Snotlout folded his arms, smiling.

"So, you're all better now?" Astrid asked, making everyone a bit nervous as they didn't think about this first.

Hiccup nodded, "Yeah, I'm good. I mean to be honest I still see their faces now and then, but it doesn't bother me the same way as it did before. I think I'm able to go on without incident."

A small silence filled the area as they all digested the answer given. It was good to hear that yet; they weren't sure if it was a good thing in general. None of them have killed before, they wouldn't know the signs. Still it meant something as Astrid then gave Hiccup a small punch on the shoulder, smiling, "Good to have you back dragon boy." With that everyone went in to give Hiccup a few pats on the shoulder, and a head ruffle. Hiccup smiled and allowed this to happen, glad to be back again.

"So, now that you're back, what are we doing today?" Snotlout asked, knowing Astrid's plans were going to be scrapped.

"Anything but Maneuvering," Tuffnut commented as he and Ruffnut headed for their dragon.

"Ok, how about a trick contest?" Hiccup suggested, gaining some positive smirks from them all. "I take that as a yes."

"That's better than the usual," Snotlout smiled as he mounted Hookfang and the two launched out of the academy.

"Finally, a change of pace," Fishlegs woke up Meatlug gently before mounting her to leave.

"Yeah, we are so going to win!" Ruffnut claimed as she and her brother are on their Zippleback.

"Just you wait," Tuffnut said, as the two left.

"Man, I haven't seen them this excited in a long while," Astrid amused herself as she headed for Stormfly.

"Same here, guess that means they are glad to have me back," Hiccup said as he went back to Toothless and is about to mount him.

"Your fault" A voice said in the teen's mind, making him stop.

Hiccup's body shuddered as his eyes closed on reaction and kept them closed. His hand clenched as those six faces could be seen plan as day, all of them glaring at him hatefully. Words of malicious echoing in his mind. Hiccup's body tensed some but soon relaxed as he opened his eyes, the faces disappearing and out of his head. "It was my fault… But you don't control me," he spoke defiantly, the words now leaving as silence if heard.

"Hiccup?" He looked over and saw Astrid looking at him worriedly. "Are you ok?"

He nodded, "Yeah… Never been better." He gave a smile; one Astrid knew was genuine. She knew what had happened to him and was glad to see him shake it off and come out of it unscathed.

"Come on Dragon boy, let's go," Astrid said as the two of them then took off and left the academy, leaving boy and dragon left.

Hiccup mounted Toothless, reaching down to give him a few scratches on the chin, "Thank you for standing by me most of all bud. I'm glad I was able to save you back then."

"And I'm glad to still be with you," Toothless warbled out. "It's you and I, through thick and thin."

Smiling Hiccup then motioned for Toothless to take off, which he did, and the two of them launched themselves off into the air, and out of the academy. He could see his friends out in the distance waiting for him, in which he was glad to join them again. He was glad to be back in action again, feeling the break was really helpful. He would never doubt his friends or family when it comes to concerns on showing weakness. Now he knows that things could have been a lot worse if he went down the path he nearly took. Glad to have been pulled back from it in time. Now, he could rejoice in being the same Hiccup he always has been.

He wasn't a killer, or murderer, he is a Dragon Trainer.

END

Author's Note: Hope you like. I did what I could and this is the ending I thought of. Hiccup has been through a lot and needed his friends and family to help him through this. He couldn't have done it alone, and others needed to show him that he didn't have to go through it himself. He may still think about the kills but he is able to go on with his life.

Thank you all who stuck by this story and giving it a chance. I promise to keep doing good with these stories. Now for those of you who don't know, i'm proud to announce that this story is getting a sequel. Believe me when I say a lot is going to happen there, and I can't say much without giving away spoilers. All I ask is that you all give it a chance when I do it. I'm going to do a oneshot or two, a small chapter story then the sequel. Hopefully it won't take too long. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Till next time.