Symphony of Shadows

50. Seed

A/N: Hi everyone! The next chapter will be posted on Wednesday at 8pm Eastern Standard Time:)

Astrid and Hiccup flew swiftly through the darkness until they saw the familiar outline of their hideout. Eret still hadn't woken up, and when they dismounted, Hiccup pitched the brilliant idea of tying him up to a tree in the middle of a dozen sleeping dragons. That way, they'd have bodyguards and an alarm system. Gods, he was so smart.

Toothless and Stormfly took watch, and she was grateful for the chance to wash and change before the interrogation began. Hiccup took a nap while she quickly rinsed in the lagoon. Turns out Astrid had gotten quite a bit of blood on her, and she was more than thrilled to wash it all off before changing into a lighter tunic and leggings.

When she got back to their hut, Hiccup gave her a quick kiss and left to wash all the blood off himself. He was practically coated in it. It was gruesome, and she loved it. She almost didn't let him go.

In the meantime, Astrid ate some leftovers from their lunch and made sure Eret hadn't snuck off. It was boring, but she didn't have to wait long for Hiccup to come back.

Soon, her man was in her arms, and she didn't want to be anywhere else. Hiccup was still partially dripping from the water, but she didn't care. He planted a kiss on the top of her head and carried her off to their bed as she giggled like a madwoman. How could she resist him when he looked so good shirtless, hair still damp from washing?

They curled up on the furs, and she lay down on his chest. Hiccup ran his fingers through her hair and laid his arm across her waist.

"You did so well today. I'm proud of you."

Astrid smiled and traced circles on his bare chest at the mention of their successful night.

"We make a good team, you and me."

He nodded in agreement, but still looked astonished.

"I can't believe how amazing you were with those dragons. Some of them were really skittish, but you handled them perfectly. You'd think that you've been doing this for years."

She reddened at the compliment and placed a sweet kiss on his jaw.

"I had a pretty good teacher."

Hiccup smirked and poked her side.

"Just 'pretty good'?"

"He was too handsome, so I kept on getting distracted."

She explained with a humorous glint in her eyes. It wasn't a lie, though. He brushed his lips against hers and she instantly forgot what they were discussing.

"You did great today, too."

Her voice was a whisper as she fought to string together words in her brain, but she couldn't hide her attraction.

His brows lifted and gaze fell to her lips.

"You think so?"

Astrid shifted her hand to the back of his neck and adjusted herself so she was leaning towards him on her stomach. Using an elbow to prop herself up, she let herself get lost in his eyes.

"I loved watching you fight. I've never seen anything like it."

Hiccup wasn't a conventional fighter, by any means, but that wasn't a bad thing. Instead of pushing forward during his assaults, he let them charge and used their motion against them. He dodged and targeted their exposed vulnerabilities. Because of this, he was less likely to grow fatigued and could focus on multiple targets at once. It was the definition of outsmarting his opponents.