*cue epic fanfare* HERE IT IS! The epic sequel to Confessions of a Lovesick Viking! I have so much epic planned for this story and I simply cannot wait to get started! But let's start off with a little fluff, shall we?

Or is it? ;) Shall we begin my friends?

Testing the Vows

Chapter 1: Two Months

Astrid Hofferson bobbed her left leg as she firmly stared at the knitting in her hands. She was almost amazed at how fast she was knitting; her fingers flew at a rate previously unknown to her, the needles clicking like tap shoes on a wood floor.

Every few minutes she'd glance up into the sky beyond Berk, toward the west. The occasional dragon and rider would fly by, but they weren't who she was looking for. She saw nothing of interest and looked back down at her knitting.

Three minutes later she repeated the process. Still nothing. She pursed her lips and tried not to growl in irritation. Already today she had gone to the town square with her mother to help a few ladies with a mother sale, which was when all the mothers of the village would trade items for motherly duties. She had no reason to be there of course; she just wanted to work, and they needed the help.

She also had gone to the bakery where Amelia, the baker's daughter, taught her how to bake bread, rolls and a few sweet things as well. Then she had trained a few twelve year olds in the Dragon Academy for a few hours alongside Fishlegs and Snotlout.

And then she decided to go home at a humble two in the afternoon, but there was nothing left to do aside from knit more clothing for expectant mothers in need.

She sighed heavily, glancing back up at the sky. Her knee bobbed at a faster rate until a hand rested on top of it, making it stop.

Astrid looked up to see her father sitting down in a chair beside her. "Relax, dear," Olaf smiled at her lovingly. "He'll be back soon."

His daughter fixed her gaze back on the knitting with a scowl. Her eyes flicked back to the sky for an instant, but she knew that the person she sought would not be found there. "Two months."

Olaf smiled and looked beyond their porch at a few people walking by. He held up a hand in greeting to a neighbor as he replied, "Astrid-"

"Two. Months." She bit out, wishing she was axing something and not knitting. She set the needles and yarn down none too gently and propped her arm on her elbow. "That stupid son of a half troll has been gone for two months, dad!"

Olaf grinned. "Stupid son of a half troll, eh? Sounds attractive."

Astrid rolled her eyes and slumped in her seat, utterly defeated. Olaf looked over at his daughter, nearly laughing out loud at her pouting expression. "I just want him back."

"And he'll be back." Olaf leaned forward to look into her eyes. "He didn't leave by choice; it is a part of his preparation to become chief. He had to go."

"I know."

"Then you must have faith that he'll return soon."

"He didn't say it would be two months!"

"He probably didn't know himself how long the trip would take." Olaf reasoned.

Astrid sighed again. "Or he did know and he didn't tell me because he knew I'd go with him."

Olaf laughed. "Oh no you wouldn't. Your future role is half the reason the son of the chief has to leave. He has to prove his worth to you and to the village. Show us that he can connect with other tribal leaders, he can negotiate with council men that he both knows and doesn't know, he can lead his people in a raid, and more. He has to prove that to a lot of people. Unfortunately for you, marriage doesn't come before that."

"I know, I know…" Astrid whined, looking off into the sky. "I just miss him."

Olaf smiled and patted her knee again. "He'll be back soon. Don't you worry."

Astrid smiled and nodded. She picked up her knitting again, feeling a little happier now that she'd gotten her frustration out. "Where do you think they are now?"

"Oh," Olaf looked out toward the sea. "No telling. Last we heard they were in Meathead Territory."

"That's not that far away, I guess." Astrid mused.

"Nope," Olaf nodded. "Give it a few more days. I'm sure we'll hear from him soon."

Xxx

Uproarious laughter surrounded the table at Hiccup's sarcastic comment. He gave a wry a smile before taking a drink. He liked the Meatheads, especially their chief, Kiev the Wise. Kiev was around the same age and size as Stoick in height and girth, but his hair was a dirty blonde, his eyes a deep brown. He truly lived up to his name—he was wise, kind and optimistic. But heaven help the poor soul that threatened Brawn, home of the Meathead tribe. Kiev was known to come out swinging fiercely and avenge the good name of the Meatheads at any cost.

Luckily for him, the Hooligans and the Meatheads had a tight, peaceful relationship since the beginning when both tribes settled in the Archipelago. Hiccup was really enjoying his stay so far; probably his favorite stop as of late. The people here truly appreciated his sense of sarcasm and humor, unlike most people he had come across in his life.

Gobber raised his glass as if to point at him. "And now tell 'em what you told me on your front porch! I've never forgotten that!"

Hiccup grinned at his mug for a moment before looking back up at the men. "I said, 'He never listens, and when he does it's with this disappointed scowl like somebody skimped on the meat in a sandwich." Then he broadened the stance of his arms and sat taller in his attempt to portray his father, "Excuse me barmaid! I'm afraid you brought me the wrong offspring!"

The Meatheads howled with laughter at his attempt to impersonate Stoick, who was currently shaking his head with a firm eye roll beside him. "I ordered an extra large boy with beefy arms, extra guts and glory on the side. This here? This is a talking fishbone!"

Kiev slapped his hand on the table in his laughter and Stoick wrapped an arm around his son. "I'd say that in this case I couldn't really ask for better or worse, son." The bearded man replied.

Hiccup pushed his arm off his shoulders, not wanting to bear the weight. "Touché."

"Touché, what is it with you saying that?" Gobber asked, making the young man smirk. "You've been saying it ever since you came across that bloody Anglo-Saxon!"

"French, Gobber." Hiccup corrected. "He was French and you know it."

"French, my foot; he was strangely dressed with an ungodly accent!"

"And such lovely flowing locks!" One Hooligan councilman named Horst mocked, flipping his hair over his shoulder.

Hiccup joined in the laughter with a shake of his head. "Yeah yeah, make fun of the guy. I thought he was nice."

"And that there is what you need to work on." Stoick rolled his eyes. "You're too trusting. He could've dragged you off with tales of dragons in some far off place and we never would've seen you again."

"Or you're just too close-minded. There are a lot of people out there!" Hiccup pointed over his shoulder with his thumb.

Kiev spoke up. "That there are, lad. That there are. You could learn a lot from the people you meet, but all those lessons won't necessarily be enjoyable. You'd be careful to keep that in mind."

Hiccup smiled and bobbed his head. "Yes sir."

Kiev slapped his forearm. "Stoick, I don't know what you always complained about. He listens perfectly fine."

"Attention span of a sparrow, if I recall," Gobber threw in.

Hiccup felt his mouth dry a little at the thought of his father talking about him to other tribal leaders. But he threw out his childish bitterness and spoke up, "Nah they're right. Took a long time to get my head on straight."

"Ahh, you don't give yourself enough credit," Kiev tisked his tongue, swirling his mead in his cup. "But every good leader is first a humble man."

Hiccup smiled. He could seriously see himself staying at the Meatheads for an extended period of time. He enjoyed their company and they seemingly enjoyed his. He could get used to it.

But there was a certain someone he knew he couldn't live without, even if he tried.

"But speaking of humility," Kiev interrupted other chatter, facing Hiccup. Hiccup's questioning eyes met his. "It takes a good dose of that to propose to a woman, wouldn't you say?"

Hiccup's undeniable smile could be seen all around, making a few men chuckle, but he looked at his cup instead of maintaining eye contact. "I couldn't agree more."

"Congratulations, lad." A few men lifted their glasses toward him, to which he nodded his thanks.

"When's the wedding then?" Kiev asked.

"May." Hiccup inhaled through closed teeth. "Pretty soon."

"Excited?"

Hiccup grinned, "Oh, beyond excited."

Kiev smiled and leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. "Tell us about her. What's she like?"

Hiccup breathed a laugh. "Oh, where to start…"

"Fierce." Stoick interrupted.

Gobber lifted his hand, "Devoted."

"Strong-willed," Hiccup added.

"Beautiful," Gobber smiled, making Hiccup's head snap up.

"Hey, that was my next one."

"Sorry, beat you to it." The men laughed at Hiccup's scowl.

Stoick nudged his son in the ribs. "Seriously though, she could run our entire village herself if she set her mind to it."

"Really?" Kiev asked, intrigued.

Hiccup nodded, raising his mug. "Oh yeah, she wouldn't need us around to help." Stoick and Gobber shook their heads in agreement, as did most of their councilmen.

One Meathead councilman asked, "Can she fight?"

Hiccup snorted, nearly choking on his mead. Stoick cocked his head at his son, "You should see all the battle scars he has from their time together."

"Ah, she broke you in fast eh?"

"No! Not like that!" Hiccup yelled suddenly, his ears burning. The men crowed in laughter, even his father, and he buried his face in his hands. "Oh gods, why me?" It took a minute for their laughter and for the flush in his skin to die out enough for him to raise his head. "Yes, she can fight very well. She can hold her own."

Kiev nodded in approval, "Sounds like you're all set to go then. You're on your last leg of the journey, about to head home. You ready?"

Hiccup breathed a laugh. "Oh, am I ever. I mean, I love travelling—meeting people, discovering new cultures. I guess it's always been a secret dream of mine. But I couldn't trade Berk for all that. And I couldn't trade Astrid for any of it."

"As if we'd let you do something like that anyway," Stoick added.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Thanks for the support." Kiev chuckled, but a flap of wings caught their attention.

A green Terrible Terror landed on Hiccup's shoulder, rubbing his snout on the young man's cheek. "Hey, buddy!" Hiccup picked him up excitedly, pulling off a note that was tied to the Terror's leg.

"Messages by dragon…" Kiev mused. "Very impressive."

"Isn't it?" Hiccup smiled, holding a mackerel out for the little dragon. "Would you guys excuse me?"

"Absolutely!" Kiev nodded, grinning when the kid nearly bounded out of his seat, the Terror at his heel. "Message from that special someone?"

Stoick nodded with a smile. "They've been sending each other messages since we left. Two grueling months, it's understandable. I'm almost thankful for it, for he'd go insane otherwise I'm sure. But at the same time I'm a wee bit jealous; we didn't have that privilege on our preparation travels." Stoick waved a hand with a rueful smile. "But hey, what does it matter?"

Kiev nodded. "So he really loves her then?"

Stoick shared a look with Gobber and chuckled a little. "His eyes just light up at the mention of her." He looked at Kiev with a serious expression. "He'd die for her in a heartbeat."

The fellow chief nodded approvingly. "A man willing to die for his beloved is a good man indeed."

Xxx

The winter air blasted Hiccup's face when he shoved open the Mead Hall doors. The bitter cold wind shoved his hair back and blew down his ears, freezing his skull. But he relished the cold—he hadn't realized how hot and stuffy it had been in there. But mead and a group of large, burly Vikings did that to you. He was lucky that for his size he could hold his liquor to begin with.

He leaned against a pillar as he tore open Astrid's note and squinted his eyes to read in the torch light emitting over his head.

Hiccup,

Two months. Two months! Gods, you're killing me with all this time away. You must be pretty far off—the little Terror takes more time to come back every time I send him. But he's pretty faithful.

You were at Styr in your last letter, but that was over a week ago. Where are you now? Are you still meeting interesting people, like that French guy? Only you would freak out over all the differences between people. It's almost like Fishlegs discovering a new dragon. Completely and utterly crazy.

Kidding, kidding. Anyway, things have been going well here. I've been helping our neighbors and a few other ladies for the past few days and I helped Snotlout and Fishlegs train some newer kids. Oh, you should have seen them; they got to choose their dragons today. They were so excited! And the dragons bonding with them… Gah, it never gets old. I don't think it ever will. We'll be a hundred years old and still get excited over new trainees.

Amelia also gave me some baking lessons this morning. I suppose if we're going to make this work, I should learn how to cook other than roasting a chicken right? I wouldn't want you to starve to death in our first winter together.

Then again, I practically eat more than you do. How you survive I'll never understand.

I've been trying to stay busy, but these past few weeks in particular have been hard. I miss you so much… Words can't even describe how much I miss seeing you every day. I mean I understand why you had to leave, but… two months?

You need to come home. Soon. Very soon. Right now would be perfect, but I can cope for as long as I need to. Just know that the longer you take to get here, the bigger the bruise on your arm.

I love you so much and am counting the sunrises til we see each other again.

Love,

Astrid

P.S. Yes, I know that was corny so stop laughing. I mean it, shutup before I bruise your other arm!

Shoulders shaking from laughter, Hiccup slid to a sitting position and reread the note, his fingers lingering over the paper his fiancée had held in her hands a few days before. He sighed heavily, but not sadly. He too was ready to go home, to see Astrid again. His lips quirked when he reread her threat to punch him even though he was fully expecting it anyway.

Two months was a long time to be away from anything, but it was long, tiring and grueling when it was intentionally directed at one specific person. He remembered the morning he loaded up his bags on Toothless. His father, Gobber and the other councilmen were doing the same on their dragons and the ship. He had tried his best to keep the trip strictly dragon riding only as it would save time, but that was their argument—keep the ship to make the trip longer. This was intentional. He could keep Toothless and still fly him, but he couldn't get to islands before the councilmen and he couldn't return to Berk without the councilmen. He had to take this grueling journey as they ordered. And if he broke those rules, he would fail the mission, which would mean he, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third at age 21, would not be allowed to become chief anytime soon.

And more training didn't sound particularly appealing.

He had already said goodbye to his other friends, her parents and a few others who had come. But all those faded away when he looked in her eyes to see them filling.

Astrid stepped closer to him and straightened his collar. "Winter is only going to get colder from here, so make sure you bundle."

"You know I will." Hiccup rested his forehead on hers, thankful that everyone else had the decency to walk away and leave them alone. He gently pushed his fingers through her hair behind her ears.

Astrid gave him a small smile. "I put a bag of mint leaves in your satchel."

Hiccup breathed a laugh. "You thought of everything didn't you?"

"Surprised?"

"No," Hiccup shook his head. "You never surprise me."

"Never?"

"Nope."

"Never ever?" Astrid raised an eyebrow.

Hiccup laughed. "Well except that one time with my hair. You got me pretty good then."

Astrid grinned. "Enough to make you wipe out. Yeah, I'd say so." She gently pushed her fingers into his hair on the sides of his head, making him bite his lip, but he successfully made no sound. "You're getting better at containing that moan…" She whispered.

"Practice makes progress." He whispered back before closing the gap between them, fitting his mouth to hers and pulling her closer. Astrid wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on her tiptoes to reach him better.

Hiccup didn't want to pull away, didn't want to leave. He didn't want to leave her alone for the next few weeks. But he slowly pulled his lips away from hers, leaving them cold in the chilly winter air.

Astrid held on to his tunic, her eyes pleading. "Please don't leave…"

"Sweetheart, I have to." Hiccup whispered back, kissing her forehead gently. "This isn't just for the village, this is for us. I have to do this."

A single tear beaded at the edge of her right eye, threatening to fall. But she smiled and nodded. "I know." She pulled him into a tight hug, burying her face in his neck. "Just promise me not to die."

He laughed, his mouth resting above her ear. "Never. But I can't promise no injury. I am a klutz after all."

"Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of."

"Hiccup!" Stoick called from the ship, making the couple slowly pull apart. "Let's go before it gets dark!"

"I'm coming!" He called back, returning his eyes back to his fiancée's.

Astrid gave him a smile, choking down her tears that kept attempting to fall. "Write me?"

Hiccup leaned in and whispered, "I already did." He kissed her one last time and stepped away. Her hand slipped from his, meeting the cold air, the warmth of his fingers dissipating. She watched him climb on Toothless and give his father a nod.

Stoick and the men set off in the ship a moment later, but Hiccup turned in his saddle one final time to look at Astrid. She suddenly asked, "Where did you leave the note?"

Hiccup gave her his signature smirk and shrugged. "I don't know. Isn't that part of the fun?" He shifted Toothless' riding gear into position and his best friend took off into a steep dive off the cliff. Hiccup jerked backward in his seat, his muscles pulling as he strained to hold on. By the time they caught up with the ship and he was back in his seat, Astrid was a mere speck in the distance.

A sharp gust of wind snapped him back to reality, making his teeth chatter. The coolness of the mint in his mouth seemed to make the cold sharper and bite at the nerve endings in his teeth. Toothless lumbered up the stairs and lay down next to him with a tired moan.

"Where've you been?" Hiccup asked, scratching his best friend's scales behind his head. Toothless grunted something unintelligible and closed his eyes to sleep. Hiccup smiled, pulled out a piece of paper and his coal from his satchel to reply to Astrid's letter.

Ever since he proposed to her six months ago in August, he had taken up the habit to write her letters or little notes, and leave them in various places he knew she would be that day. Usually he would tie one to Stormfly's saddle or leave one on her porch, but sometimes he was more creative than that. But there was something about taking the time to write her a love note that was satisfying and enjoyable. And the smile on her face with each note only made it even more worthwhile.

He finished his letter and whistled to the Terrible Terror, who scampered over excitedly. Hiccup tied the note to its leg and a tie on his neck made his brow furrow. The Terror sat up almost proudly when he raised the small band and read, "Teggie".

"Teggie…" Hiccup grinned, scratching the dragon behind the ear. Teggie cooed and shifted his head to be scratched under his jaw. "Did the lovely Miss Hofferson name you that?" The little dragon jumped in his lap and licked his face, making him laugh. "Aw is that from her too? Well, give her a kiss for me when you get there okay?"

Teggie jumped out of his hands and onto Toothless' head, who opened his eyes a crack. He growled in annoyance, making the Terror sneer playfully in his face. The little dragon crouched, wiggled his behind for a second and took off into the air to take Hiccup's message back to Berk.

Hiccup watched him until he disappeared into the darkening sigh. He exhaled steadily with an open mouth, watching the cloud of moisture disperse in front of him. Movement from behind him made him swivel around, but he relaxed when he saw who it was.

Stoick sat down beside the pillar opposite his son, his lips puckered. "You let me get too close before you noticed me."

"Sorry. Just distracted I guess."

Stoick raised an eyebrow, not wanting to have to lecture his son. "I know you know this, but don't let something as simple as a letter distract you."

Hiccup gave his father a curt glance. "Letters aren't simple."

"I know they're not," Stoick looked out over the village of Brawn. "I'd just hate for you to fall by the hand of an enemy while writing a love note."

Hiccup smirked. "Oh trust me, so would I."

Stoick looked over at his son, his body relaxed against the pillar, his hand resting on Toothless' head. But his eyes were alert to any movement in the village. He had no reason to worry about Hiccup; he would be fine.

The chief of Berk faced forward again, his eyes watching a sentry on his night patrol through the village. He gave the man a nod when he raised his hand in greeting, which he was pleased to see Hiccup also return. No, he would definitely be fine.

"Are you ready to go home?"

Hiccup perked and he looked over at his father. He looked stunned for a moment, but he finally spoke. "Are you serious? We still have-"

"We have a Thing in a month. You will meet the rest of the chieftains then." Stoick gave his son a level look. "I think two months is long enough time away. Don't you?"

Hiccup's face broke into a grin which he couldn't wipe off. "Yeah! Yeah, I couldn't agree more."

Stoick smiled at his excited look. "We'll have to stay here for a few more days, but we can head home by the weekend."

"Sounds good to me." Hiccup nodded readily. "We just got here after all and I like Kiev and the Meatheads. I don't want to leave here quite yet."

"Good." Stoick stood and clapped his shoulder. "He expects great things from you."

"What else is new?" Hiccup asked with a light eye roll, but Stoick knew by his smile that he was joking.

Stoick turned back to the Mead Hall, but paused. "Oh," Hiccup faced him again when he turned around. "Kiev wanted you to do some archery practice with his daughter Svala tomorrow."

Hiccup jerked. "Daughter?"

"Now don't go getting your braid in a bunch. If you both are going to rule your tribes one day, you'll need a good friendship." Stoick reminded him. "She's a little over a year younger than you and she's very nice. But that's all there is to it; he's not trying to push anything more than that."

"And what about her?" Hiccup raised an eyebrow.

Stoick shrugged. "I trust you'll be kind yet firm if you need to be." His father then turned back to rejoin the men in the Mead Hall.

Hiccup sighed and faced the village again. He had run into many girls on his voyage (not that that was a huge surprise; men weren't the only beings in the world). And a great many of them had taken a great liking to him. However, many of the younger girls were quite upset that he was engaged. Needless to say he'd had his fill of crying and angry women—both eligible girls and their mothers.

It was a wonder some of the tribes still wanted peace with Berk by this point! The future chief of Berk had broken how many hearts in the Archipelago in a span of two months?

Hiccup rolled his eyes, but couldn't help the smile. Astrid would surely love those stories. At least no girls had… weeeell, there was that one girl… Okay, most of them hadn't tried to kiss him. Astrid would probably have blood on her hands by the end of the trip had she been allowed to come.

Hiccup shivered at both the thought and the nippy weather. He stood, stretched his tight limbs and nudged Toothless' snout with his boot. He walked away when Toothless didn't respond, knowing his best friend would know where to look to find him at an hour like this. As he walked to his sleeping quarters for his stay at Brawn, he only prayed this Svala character wasn't a flirt.

Hooray! Chapter one is done! Hopefully I filled you in enough has to what exactly is going on here. But to answer a few possible questions, Hiccup is not going to take over as chief yet. But he has a bunch of formal training and checkpoints that he has to make before he's clear to really take over if necessary. But I'm not booting Stoick and I'm not making him becoming chief yet. Let's not jump the gun though, this is only chapter one! ;)

I hope you guys like it so far! Hiccup will be heading back to his true love soon! Unless she gets on Stormfly and goes to look for him herself with all this time away of course ;) Now that would be interesting. Don't forget to review and stay tuned for the next chapter, coming soon!

Thanks guys!

~EmK