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

Chapter Eleven: Merida Report

"Here's your leg," Astrid said to a greatly disturbed Hiccup. He stared into the distance as he put it on. Backwards. When he noticed his mistake, he readjusted it so he could walk.

"Hiccup, what's wrong?" She asked. He never put a leg on backwards. He was too precise.

"Greta," was all he said. Just then, a Monstrous Nightmare called, followed by a Zippleback and a Gronkle. The Riders were coming.

"Guess they got tired of being on their own," Astrid chuckled. Hiccup didnt reply. Instead, he looked around frantically.

"Toothless. Where is he?" Hiccup asked. The threat Greta made kept echoing through Hiccup's mind.

Then the Night Fury is mine. Hiccup shivered.

"He's right here," Astrid said. As if on cue, Toothless nudged Hiccup's arm. Hiccup pulled out a fish from one of the baskets they brought, and gave it to Toothless.

"Woah, what got into him?" Tuff asked once they landed. The other Riders approached Hiccup with caution. They know from past experiences that quiet Hiccup is bad Hiccup.

"He just met someone," Astrid said. She tried to wave it off so the two could talk about it later, but Hiccup wasn't having it.

"Not just someone," he said, turning to the Riders huddled around him. "Greta."

"Greta?" They all asked, petrified of the answer they would receive.

"Yes," was all he said. The others bombarded him with questions of who and what happened.

"Okay, the thing that mattered most of what she said, is that the Night Fury is her's," Hiccup replied. He looked towards the horizon, where Berk rested on the island.

"Wait, Toothless?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah," he replied.

"Which is why you called for Toothless," Astrid figured. Just then, a Terrible Terror approached with a message.

Dear son,
You will not believe who has returned. Please come to Berk, WITHOUT Toothless. She is a little iffy on the whole dragon thing.
-stoick

"Wait? You mother?" Astrid asked. She seemed excited for him, until the next statement left his mouth

"No. My father would have written less than that if it were my mother," Hiccup said all too quickly. He wanted to shove the thought of his mother out of his head before the guilt set in. If only...

"Hey, I'm going to go back to the Edge to explain why you left to the others, with Toothless. You fly Stormfly to Berk, and send her back. See who showed up, and I'll meet you there in a week with one of the traders by ship.

"Why can't you explain it here?" Snotlout asked, annoyed by lack of information.

"Because, Greta is probably watching us here. We can't take any chances," Astrid said. "If she knows we're having internal troubles, she'll jump at the chance to attack us and further separate the bond," Astrid whispered to Fishlegs, who whispered that to Snotlout. He whispered that to Ruff, who said that to Tuff.

"We're not having troubles?" He asked out loud. Astrid gave him a look, and climbed on Toothless. The rest followed suit, climbing on their own dragons.

"Just, take care of him," Hiccup said, patting Toothless on the side. "Make sure no one takes him."

"I won't," Astrid said. She bent down and planted a kiss on Hiccup's forehead. "It'll be okay." She rested her chin on his head as she said this. She wanted to stay with him, but Toothless's safety was a main priority.

"I know," was his reply. She gave him one last kiss, and took off, the feeling lingering on her lips.

"Dad, what's going on?" Hiccup asked, once he landed with Stormfly. He signalled for Stormfly to find Astrid, and he turned back to his father. He gestured to the crowd gathered around the entrance to the Great Hall.

"You just gestured to all of Berk," Stoick replied.

"Well, what was the letter about?" Hiccup clarified. He figure there must be some connection.

"Oh, come with me son," Stoick replied.

"Dad, you know I don't like surprises," Hiccup said, walking alongside his dad.

"This one I think you will enjoy," Stoick replied.

"What about my tenth birthday, where you got me that dragon head? You said that it would be a great surprise. I couldn't sleep for a week stra-"

Hiccup's eyes met something he hadn't seen for ten years. "Merida? Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" He asked, giving her a hug.

"Who are you?" She asked, hesitantly wrapping her arms around his torso.

"Hiccup," he replied.

Her eyes dropped at that statement. "I once knew a Hiccup. But, I haven't seen him anywhere on Berk."

"Merida. I'm Hiccup," he replied.

"But, your leg. Hiccup had two," she said.

"Yeah, I kinda fell into an exploding dragon," he said.

"Shut up. You?" She asked. "The same Hiccup who would hide in our basement when dragons attacked?"

"The very same," he replied.

"So what have you been up to?" He asked.

"Oh, just looking for new treasures, what else?" She said.

"New treasures?" He asked.

Yeah, like Night Fury secrets, she thought. For the rest of the evening, the two chatted innocently all through the night.

The next morning, Hiccup got a letter from Astrid. It read:

Hey. I'll be there in an hour or two. Hitched a ride with Berserkers.

Hiccup smiled at her conciseness in her letters. She was down to the point, and he enjoyed that.

"Morning," Merida greeted, popping her head in the window.

"Hey," he replied. He got out of bed, and sauntered downstairs like any other morning. She met him at the door. Like a true viking gentleman, he opened the door, and invited her into his home.

Unlike regular greetings, Merida stood on her toes, and gave Hiccup a gentle kiss on his cheek. Before she could do anything else, Hiccup removed her hands from him. "Merida. You can't do that. We're not five," Hiccup said. He was worried Astrid would walk through the door at that moment.

"Excuse me?" She asked. She was expecting something else, a little more kind.

"We're twenty. We're adults. And I only think of you as a sister, nothing else."