I Love You to the Edge and Back (A How to Train your Dragon Fanfiction)

Chapter Two: Between Father and a Hard Place

"Stoick, er, Chief, is Hiccup with you?" Astrid's mother asked, stammering in fear. No one had ever seen Stoick like this. Even when Valka died he was calmer.

"No! And it's because of him that he's gone," Stoick shouted, pointing a finger in the direction that Lars took off. Astrid watched in horror as Toothless came in through the door, an unconscious Hiccup on his back.

"Snotlout, go get Gothi. Twins, get Hiccup to our house, bring him to his room. Astrid, Bertha, go find that man and bring him to the Great Hall," Stoick ordered, leaning over to help the twins. The Riders then went to their perspective jobs. Astrid and Bertha had to go on foot due to Stormfly being down.

If you were in Berk's outer forests that day, you would have heard two Viking women searching desperately for a man who could have killed the son of the Chief. "Mom, we need to go back. We have no dragon here to protect us from the snow and wind," Astrid shouted, crossing her arms over her chest. Her heart ached with worry, wondering if Hiccup was okay. In all reality, the snow was basically flurries. And the wind, a gentle breeze, barely enough to blow trees over.

"Astrid, we are not leaving your father. If we don't find him, Stoick will send an army after him. We need to find him now. Hiccup can wait."

"No mom, he can't. I love him, just as much as you love dad. I can't leave him."

"But you also can't leave your father," her mother replied.

"Mom. Look, I gotta go. Hiccup needs me," Astrid said, turning around fast so her mother couldn't see the tears in her eyes. She never expected to have to choose between Hiccup and her father.

"Astrid, but your father," her mother started.

"Mom, dad isn't dying in bed. He's out there, alive and well for now. If Hiccup is going to die, I want to be there with him," Astrid said, voice cracking because of the tears threatening to come. Her mother stared, dumbfounded as Astrid took off. She was brought back to the day Valka was declared dead, and Stoick defended Hiccup in front of the entire Council.

"Stoick? What will we do? That fishbone of a son won't be able to rule Berk. He won't even be able to raise an axe in victory," Spitelout complained. "My son should be the heir to the Berkian throne."

"No, Hiccup will make a great Chief one day, I'm sure of it," Stoick replied. He held the child in his arms, as if to protect him. Hiccup scrunched his face up at the sound of Spitelout's voice. "Tell me about it," the father whispered to his son.

"I say our daughter should help him raise an axe. She loves axes," Bertha said. She lifted Astrid up. Sure enough, Astrid was holding a half-sized axe. She had a menacing expression on her face, as if she were already battle-ready.