Coasting over the bridge leading to the Haddock home, Finn gradually steered Zap toward the ground. She landed on her front paws and trotted toward the barn, snuffling against the grass excitedly.

"You hungry, big girl?" Finn asked as he slid off the saddle. Zap bounced up and down, her tail pounding against the barn door like a war drum. "Okay, okay! Come on then." The teenager hauled half a barrel of cod into her giant bowl, marveling when she eagerly began to snap up the fish.

He still couldn't believe how big she'd gotten. She wasn't much bigger than Toothless, but the Shockjaw had grown nearly four and a half feet since he'd first met her. Housebreaking and hours upon hours of training had kept him extremely busy that first winter. Between his job, countless chores for fixing his mistakes, and then taking care of his new baby dragon, Finn had hit the hay every night exhausted for what felt like ages. Finally he'd found a groove that fit his schedule and the rest was history.

Finn scratched her scales behind her ears lovingly before walking out of the barn. He heard a bark of laughter behind the door as he pushed his way inside. He blinked in surprise at his father sitting on the kitchen table getting his left bicep wrapped in a white cloth by his wife.

"What happened to you?"

"Yes," Astrid gave her husband a mocking smile. "What happened to you, Hiccup?"

Adrianna snorted from her reading chair in the living room, sparkling green eyes peeping over her book. Finn looked back at his parents in confusion, barely catching Hiccup's timid glance at Astrid.

"Well..." Hiccup scratched his neck. "I had a duel."

Finn's eyes widened. "What? And you didn't invite me?"

"It wasn't on Berk."

"Wait," Finn's eyes narrowed. "You dueled Allie?"

"She insisted!" Hiccup threw his arms out. Astrid huffed and pulled his arm taught, making him wince. "Easy there. Gah! Woman."

"Don't you easy there me!" Astrid said as she walloped him on the back of the head. "You've got to stop doing this stuff, it's stupid!"

"How many times do I have to say that when I'm given a belligerent request to duel, which is the only way to 'ceremoniously open the proceedings' mind you," Hiccup said with flourishing air quotes, making his kids chuckle. "I can't say no!"

"You can say no or the meetings are off!"

"Astrid, I can't just call off the meetings that twelve chieftains traveled far and wide to attend!"

"Did they have to duel as well?"

"...no."

"See!" Astrid nearly yelled. "She's trying to get you killed!"

"Or worse, footless," Adrianna piped, staring at his remaining appendage.

Finn crossed his arms. "Seriously dad, what would happen if they shipped us a dead body with a not-so-apologetic 'oops' from Allie the Sincere- oh wait, no, that's Insincere!"

"Ha! That's what I said." Astrid said, yanking the cloth tight with finality. Hiccup winced and rubbed his arm.

"Thanks." The chief slowly stood with a sigh. "I know guys, I get it, but it's a matter of honor and making a good impression. Also, Finn, thank you for that vote of confidence. Shipping my dead body? Thanks."

"Hey, I'm trying to think logically here."

The girls burst into laughter when Hiccup pouted. "Logically? What's that supposed to mean? I've had many successful duels!"

Finn tried to stifle his guffaws. "No that's not what I- aw come on dad, come back!"

"Nope!" Hiccup said as he marched up the stairs with squared shoulders. "I officially wash my hands of you."

"Baby!" Astrid yelled up. Hiccup turned at the top step and stuck his tongue out. "Hurry up though, dinner's almost finished."

Finn marched into the kitchen, snatching four plates before his mother could even open the cabinet. Within five minutes he had the table set as Hiccup tromped back down the stairs in more comfortable trousers and a wool shirt.

"Done moping?" Finn smirked.

Hiccup pointed at him. "You shush."

A loud scratching the door and wailing "AROOOOOOOOO" filled the silence.

"Aw man," Finn sighed. "Zappy, go back to bed!"

"AROOOOOOOOOOO!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Finn, let her in," Hiccup laughed.

"I was going to; it's just fun to tease her, but she doesn't know that!" Finn put a hand on the door. "Zap? You can't run. If you run, I'm putting you back out. Can you be nice?"

"AH-ROOOO!"

Finn sighed. "Alright..."

He cracked the door open, but it was instantly shoved in when the Shockjaw plowed inside. She instantly ran to Adrianna's side in the living room, sniffing her lap and book for treats.

"Hey you big bad precious!" Adrianna dropped her book, not even bothering to save her page. She grabbed the dragon's face and shook in back and forth. "What's my big drooly face doin', huh? Awe you wookin' for tweats!"

Zap pranced in place, nearly knocking over the coffee table before rolling onto her back to expose her belly. Finn jumped in with his sister to give the dragon an extra good belly rub. Toothless growled in contempt when the bluish-green dragon's tail slapped away his cod.

"Aw hush, you big galloot!" Finn said. "You're always getting spoiled. Ow! Dad, control your dragon!"

The twins looked up when Hiccup didn't respond. Even Zap twisted to look over at her master's dad. They discovered Hiccup and Astrid having a very quiet argument in the kitchen, probably still over the duel because the chief gave an insistent "I'm fine!"

Finn pursed his lips and looked over at his sister, raising his eyebrows and looked to the door. Should we leave?

Adrianna shook her head, pointing to the table. Let's sit down. She got up from the floor and grabbed the bubbling pot off the fire and set it on the table, stoically ignoring the adults rising argument.

"-stop being so worried about me all the time."

"You need to stop making stupid decisions! Or rather allowing other people to allow you to make stupid decisions, however you want to look at it."

"I will do what I have to do, Astrid!"

"You don't need to prove yourself to anybody! The entire Archipelago is afraid of you!"

"Not true." Hiccup pointed a finger in her face. "I haven't done anything to strike fear in anyone's heart in a decade so that argument is invalid."

"So let's just be careless because people need to remember how capable you are." Astrid said snidely, grabbing the water pitcher and walking to the table.

"Oh my gods, Astrid, it's called tradition!"

"Then delegate it!" Astrid exclaimed. "Start taking councilmembers with you when you go to these things!"

Hiccup laughed. "Oh yeah, and who do you suggest I pawn off? Snotlout? Horst? Or wait, Gobber's a seasoned veteran; surely he'd be willing to take my place."

A knot began to form between Finn's shoulder blades at the bite in his father's voice. He hated it when his parents fought. It brought back too many bad memories of varying kinds. Adrianna didn't seem to be faring much better, pressing her hand into half of her face.

"Maybe it would be better than losing you," Astrid muttered.

"Now why would you even say that?" Hiccup demanded.

"You're the last person that needs to die-"

"Nobody even died!"

"Not yet-"

Adrianna finally snapped. "Can you guys please stop it?" Zap suddenly pressed into Finn's side with a whine.

Hiccup looked away, his hand tight against his waist. Astrid calmly sat down in her seat, staring down at her plate. The house rang in deafening silence for a few minutes. Finn dry swallowed, glancing at his dad from the corner of his eye. Finally, his prosthetic squeaked when he moved toward the table. He sat down with a heavy sigh.

"I'm sorry, guys," Hiccup apologized. "We shouldn't fight in front of you."

Neither of the kids responded. Finn didn't want to say something to upset him further. Adrianna had other ideas however.

"Mom's got a point," She looked at him pointedly. "I get it's protocol but what's worse: breaking tradition or potentially dying?" Then she turned to their mom before Hiccup could reply, "And you're overreacting bit. It's just a cut on his arm. It could be worse right?"

Finn didn't know what to expect to happen next, but it wasn't Zap sneaking her dragon-y lips and tongue pulling Hiccup's plate toward the edge of the table. The chief looked down at her shrewdly. "Really?"

Zap sank to the floor with a dragoness grumble, which summoned an easy chuckle out of the family. At long last, the tension seemed to break and everyone began to gather food. Hiccup dropped a fatty piece of meat toward Zap and launched a second toward Toothless across the room, ignoring Astrid's stink eye. Finn could tell most of their ire had simmered. He shot his sister and dragon a thankful smile and began to shovel down his food.

As usual, Finn finished first and began to clear away the leftovers. This was something he did mind doing anymore. He often helped his mother cook if he got home early enough, but he barely thought about doing household chores like this anymore. When he first started going out of his way to make amends to his family and village, it had been a lot of (tiring) work. But it proved fruitful in the end, for now he had quite a few good habits under his belt.

The others chatted about various things while he scrubbed some dishes. His conversation with Brandyn came back to mind and he began to meditate on it once again. He still wasn't sure why the guy would bring it up and discuss all these in depth laws, just to turn around and say he need not worry about it.

"You're awfully quiet, Finn." Hiccup said from the table. "What are you planning?"

"Well-"

"Oh, he's not planning anything." Adrianna snatched a cookie out of the cookie jar. "When he's planning things, he smirks. You don't have a poker face like Erick does; he'd have an elaborate plan to string up like a wild hog in minutes."

"Which is why one does not anger a Larson," Finn said emphatically. "Anyway... I had a weird conversation with Brandyn today."

"Really?" Astrid asked with interest.

"Yeah..." Finn paused. He questioningly turned toward his dad, who raised his eyebrows. "He um... he saw my slavemark today." The temperature seemed to have dropped as the trio stilled. Finn plowed forward, "It was at the race, the wind blew my hair back so it wasn't anything weird. But he acted strange after that."

Adrianna frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well, he brought up the fact that I'm cleared to be the official heir again," Finn watched his father's face darken, as if he knew where this was going. "And made mention of certain laws that people hold that forbid a slave from holding any leadership positions."

His sister looked devastated. "Really?"

Hiccup took a long, deep breath before releasing it. "Yes. There are several villages that hold to that. We don't," He said firmly, looking his son in the eye. Finn felt reassurance take a hold of his heart. "So you don't need to worry about that."

Despite the comfort, Finn had to know more. "But he mentioned Allie," His mother scowled at the mention. "She wouldn't like it."

Hiccup turned his cup against the table. "As far as I'm concerned, I do with my village what I will and last I checked Allie does the same. We lead our people very, very differently, but neither of us can force the other to do something we don't agree with. It just doesn't work that way."

"Unless she felt so compelled as to go to war over it," Finn muttered.

His father looked up at him. "Finn, look at me." Finn slowly raised his eyes. "You are going to be chief one day. Don't you ever doubt that."

Finn nodded nervously. "Could that happen though?"

"They'd have to dethrone me and basically change everything from top to bottom," Hiccup said. "And believe you me that would take a long, long time. Our heritage isn't as steeped in barbarism as some of the surrounding cultures. Personally I don't think it would be worth the effort just to keep one kid off the throne."

"So why did Brandyn bring it up then?"

"Well he's from Outcast Island, isn't he?" Astrid asked with a shrug. "Surely he knows Allie the Insincere well enough. I'm sure he's seen the way she operates as a chieftess, or why else would he want to move away so badly?"

"And guys, we've had countless people move to Berk in the last twenty years." Hiccup added. "I couldn't even tell you the number. A lot of people want to live on Berk because we're the most fertile, the least aggressive, we're independent, our chief doesn't make any demands that aren't completely copacetic, and we Berkians fly dragons for a living. What's not to love?"

Adrianna smirked. "I think his head is swelling."

"Just a bit," Astrid agreed.

"Hey," Hiccup raised his hands. "What can I say? My life's work is a bit satisfying okay?"

"Yeah yeah," Astrid poked his arm as she stood. "Adri, get the rest of the dishes for your brother?"

"Meh okay."

Finn watched his sister grab the rest of the plates, scrape them into the garbage bucket and drop them in the wash bin. She made some jab about him moving his big butt, so he grudgingly scooted over. He refocused on his parents to see his mother's arms wrapped around Hiccup's chest from behind as she murmured something to him. Hiccup tilted his face toward her too, an apologetic expression on his face. Finn barely heard him say, "Me too."

He didn't know much about marriage and if he knew anything, it was that they weren't perfect. No marriage was. No single young man or woman was perfect, so no couple could seriously be absolute perfection. There were good days and bad days, easy days and trying days. But one day he wanted to have a marriage like they did.

Through all of their ups and downs, they still made time for each other. They apologized after arguments, to each other and their kids. It took effort and a lot of humility to apologize to somebody; of all people, Finn understood that. And his parents always made the effort. Even after more than a decade and a half of marriage, they still held hands in public and tried to do meals together whenever they could. Finn wondered if he'd ever know a deep friendship like the one they shared.

Astrid brushed her lips against Hiccup's ear as she whispered something, making his eyes widen ever so slightly. He fought a smirk and his tipped head at her, watching her playful grin. "Save it for later," Hiccup murmured before looking forward in time to catch Finn's eye. A crooked smile merged onto Hiccup's face and the teen looked away, a blush overtaking his youthful face.

"Hey, that's what you get for eavesdropping."

"I ain't droppin no eaves," Finn stood, face still flushed. "Ya'll disgust me."

"Oh you ain't seen nothin' yet."

"Nope!" Finn marched up the stairs. "Still think they're cute, Anna?"

"Shutup or take my place, Finnegan!"

Finn laughed once and then whistled for Zap, listening happily as she bounded up the stairs to join him. He hopped in his bed, grabbed a half-finished wood carving and a dagger from his boot. Zap curled up on the end of his bed as best she could, licking the sole of his boot. He must have stepped in something tasty.

He felt comforted by his father's words. If he said he'd be chief one day, regardless what other leaders out there might think, then become chief one day he would. If there was one thing he'd learned to do the last year and a half, it was trust his father. He pulled out his leather strap necklace and brushed a thumb across the necklace's worn edge. Fortis still held a lot of meaning for him; even more meaning since he'd returned home. He was pleasantly surprised how satisfying it felt to look around and help others rather than focus on himself.

Of course, he still had a long way to go. He wasn't Benen by any stretch of the imagination. He still needed to learn how to be humble and kind and patient. He needed to learn how to hold his tongue more often. But one day, he resolved, he would be strong just like his best friend, Benen. Just like his father, Hiccup. They were his role models, and more and more each day he wanted to be just like them.

Xxx

A thin finger poked Hiccup's arm at gods knew what time and he groaned, looking up at his wife through bleary eyes. He felt like Toothless was sitting on his chest.

"Hey," Astrid smiled. "It's almost nine. Are you going to your meeting?"

Hiccup frowned, rubbing his face. He'd gone to bed around ten thirty with Astrid. So why was he this tired at almost nine? Usually that much sleep left him feeling rejuvenated. Finally, he sighed and sat up. "Yeah."

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Really tired," Hiccup yawned. "Guess that dragon racing wore me out more than I thought."

"Probably," Astrid smiled, strapping on his prosthetic. "I'll go on ahead and hold them for another ten minutes."

Hiccup stood, pecking her lips. "Thanks, babe."

"See you there."

The chief quickly got dressed, ignoring the slight pain in his left bicep when he pulled his shirt over his head, and tromped down the stairs. He ducked in and out of the washroom, toothbrush hanging out of his mouth as he poured himself some leftover coffee. It was lukewarm from Astrid making it a while before. He shrugged indifferently. Cold coffee was better than no coffee. Worst case scenario, he'd grab a cup at the Great Hall.

Toothless stretched on his stone bed in the living room, giving a wide yawn. He walked over to his rider, dragging his tail. Hiccup replaced his toothbrush in the washroom and scratched his dragon's nose.

"Glad to see I'm not the only one sleepy today. Come on, let's get going. We can walk if you want though." Toothless stretched his wings when they walked outside. He gestured to the saddle and Hiccup nodded resolutely. "Flying it is then."

The chieftain and his dragon swooped over the village. Hiccup vaguely realized he poured coffee and didn't even touch it. He shrugged indifferently, resolving to grab some at the Great Hall after all. He definitely needed the wake up call.

Landing at the top of the stairs, Hiccup slid down and led the way inside. He grabbed a coffee from the drink stand and joined the rest of the council, who all sat chatting as they waited for his arrival.

"Morning sleepyhead!" Ruffnut wacked his left arm just under the duel injury.

Hiccup jerked back. "Hi Ruff."

"Alright?" Manny the Mad asked, only half concerned.

"Fine. Sorry I'm late," Hiccup said, taking his seat and ignoring Astrid's beady-eyed stare.

Mara waved a hand. "There's no rush, Hiccup. Why don't you eat something?"

"That's okay, I'll grab something on the way out." Hiccup said, turning to Fishlegs. "How is training at the Academy coming along?"

"Great! All the new recruits are handling their dragons and responsibilities well. There have been minimal injuries and damages this year so that's always a plus!"

"Great," Hiccup said. "Later I'll stop by so we can talk to them about flight patterns-"

"Flight patterns lessons is tomorrow," Astrid reminded him. "Saddle and pen care is today."

Hiccup frowned. "Oh." He shrugged, only mildly wondering how he'd forgotten that. They had the same schedule every week. "Okay then... um." He rubbed his eyes absently, then chuckled. "Sorry, what am I doing today? Does anyone know my schedule? Because I don't."

"We're supposed to check out the tunnel systems under the village," Snotlout said. "Make sure they're still stable."

"Oh that's right."

"You're sure you will be awake enough for that?" Horst asked in concern.

Hiccup waved a hand. "I've been down there a thousand times. I'll be fine.

Xxx

He was most definitely not fine.

Checking the tunnels all morning with Snotlout had been fine, really, except for his inability to think straight. Hiccup didn't know why he was so scatterbrained today. Maybe it had something to do with forgetting to eat breakfast three hours before, but he honestly couldn't care less about eating. He wasn't hungry and seemed to be gradually getting more irritable as the day when on. Finally, by quarter after noon, he roped a few men into helping Snotlout with the final tunnels.

Toothless swooped out of a tunnel and into the sunlight, momentarily blinding the chief. Hiccup blinked rapidly before regaining his sight. The village went fuzzy for a moment; Hiccup blinked and shook his head.

"Let's land somewhere, bud." Toothless growled in agreement and flew toward the Great Hall. A minute later Hiccup walked into the spacious building and swiped a cup of water from a passing tray, hoping it wasn't meant for any particular orders.

"Dad!"

Hiccup turned in time to see Finn passing by. He blinked at him unsurely. "What?"

Finn frowned. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"You sure? You look kinda pale."

Hiccup scowled. "I said-"

"You're fine!" Finn smiled. "Perfect, really. Anyway Gobber wanted me to let you know that your sword is sharpened. Do you want to pick it up or me bring it home?"

"Um..." Hiccup thought, a headache starting to bloom in his forehead. "I-I don't care, do whatever buddy."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

Hiccup didn't reply; he simply turned and walked away. He didn't know what was wrong with him today. He plopped in the seat beside Fishlegs and muttered something along the lines of "I'm not here". He buried his face in his hands and tried to ignore the pounding behind his eyes, beating in time with his pulse.

"-cup? Hiccup!"

"What?" He finally demanded.

Fishlegs looked concerned, which only made him more annoyed. "You don't look good. I think you should go home."

Stubbornness flared in his chest and he gave his friend a bleak stare. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Hiccup, you're sick or someth-"

"I don't need assistance with anything, Fishlegs."

"That's not even what I said."

"Whatever, 'Legs. I've got stuff to do."

"Hiccup-"

The chief walked away without even realizing he'd contradicted himself. He couldn't find Toothless, so he simply marched out the door. Walking down the stairs was proving more difficult than usual. Either he suddenly had two feet and two prosthetics or the stairs kept changing positions on him.

Shaking his head, he forced himself to keep moving, determined to get where he needed to be. Except now he was walking into the village and he didn't actually know where he was going. Hiccup stood in the middle of the street at a complete loss. What was wrong with him?

His vision quaked, he felt his skin flush beneath his clothes like he was suddenly overheating. Hiccup grabbed onto a nearby barrel to keep himself steady. That's when the pain flared in his left arm.

Something was very wrong.

Of course, nobody was in the street to help him out. Their chief could be dying and nobody had chased after him. Why did he have to be so stubborn? He looked around, willing the buildings to hold still for one second so he could find-

The leather shop. The boys. Horst.

Grappling with the walls, Hiccup gradually made his way toward the door and fumbled for the doorknob.

Xxx

Erick heard the doorknob jiggle and turned to see the chief walk in. "Hey Hiccup!"

"Hi Chief!" Cliff yelled, stepping in from the back. "Whoa, you don't look so good. You okay?"

Hiccup stared at them blankly. "Horst..."

Erick watched horrified as Hiccup pitched forward, slamming into the nearest table. Horst lunged out of his seat to grab his shoulders and ease him to the ground. "Hiccup! What happened!"

Hiccup didn't respond, moaning against the floor and pressing the palms of his hands into his eyes. Horst looked up at Cliff. "Get Mara! NOW!"

Cliff bolted out the door without hesitation, the door nearly flying off its hinges. Horst still held Hiccup's shoulders tightly. "Hiccup, talk to me, what happened? Erick, get water!"

Erick stayed rooted to the spot, watching as the man he'd grown to love writhed on the floor in some kind of pain. He'd already seen horrific images like this in his life; it couldn't happen to Hiccup too, it couldn't-

Horst's soft, calm voice broke through the haze. "Erick." The young man flinched and Horst reinforced his request: "Please get some water."

Erick nodded and stumbled into the next room, quickly filling a cup with shaking hands. Water splashed on his arms and soaked his shirt sleeves, but he didn't care. He quickly returned and handed the cup to Horst, who brought the cup to the chief's lips.

"Hiccup, drink this."

A fist grabbed Horst by the shirt and pulled him closer, making Erick back away. Hiccup stared at the older man with intense eyes: "The duel..."

"What about it?" Horst asked.

"Something... on her blade."

"Oh gods," Erick whispered, pulling at his hair.

Horst ignored the blonde. "I hope you're wrong, chief. Drink this. Stay with me, Erick, he's going to be fine."

Just then the door burst back open and a flurry of people ran inside. Mara and Astrid knelt over the chief, instantly fussing and checking his vital signs. Erick could vaguely hear various councilmen demanding questions outside the shop and ordering guards to cover the perimeter and search all the streets. Erick's heart sank: that only meant one thing.

One way or another, someone had tried to kill the chief.

Xxx

Fearless Finn nearly tore the Mara's door off its hinges when he arrived. The front room was filled to the brim with important people, but he looked over their faces in search of someone familiar.

"Inga!" Finn bolted through the crowd when he spotted the girl rush out of a room. He tried to look in before the curtain closed once more. "What happened?"

Inga didn't spare him a glance as she filled a syringe with a clear liquid. "He's got an infected wound on his arm."

"Infection?" Finn gasped. "But... they were just wrapping his arm up last night, it was fine!"

"I don't know, Finn. Something about a duel with Allie. Sorry, he needs this."

"What is that?" Finn asked, fear creeping into his voice.

Inga finally looked him in the eyes, her gaze sympathetic. "Pain killers." Then she pushed past the curtain and disappeared once more. A hand on his shoulder made the boy jump. Horst stood there, looking grim.

"He collapsed in my shop," The tall man said. "It all happened very fast."

Finn exhaled shakily. "I'd just talked to him in the Hall and he was acting weird. I kept asking if he was okay but..."

"He'll be okay, Finn."

"What if he won't be this time?" Finn asked worriedly. "People always say he always bounces back, but what if he doesn't this time?" He stared the councilman in the eyes unblinkingly. "An infection? What kind of infection?"

"Finn, there's no need to worry," Mara said as she moved swiftly out of the room, quickly washing her hands. The anxious chatter of conversation died down in the room as everyone focused on her words. "We caught it at a good time. I'll have it fixed up in no time and he'll be right as rain by Monday."

"No need to worry?" Finn asked sardonically. "It's been a matter of hours since he's gone from completely fine to practically deteriorating and you say he's fine?"

"Oh he's not fine, not by a long shot." Mara replied calmly. "To put it simply, your father doesn't get sick but when he does, his body fights it hard. That's why he's down for the count so quickly. But when we take care of this issue, I promise, he will be fine."

Horst stepped forward, resting a hand on Finn's shoulder. "When are you operating?"

"I'll be ready in five minutes. Inga!" Mara called. The dark-haired girl appeared within seconds. "Get me some cloths, a sharp knife, and these," she instructed, handing the girl a basket. "Be ready in five."

"Yes ma'am."

"Is he awake?" Finn asked quietly.

Mara finally faced him. "Barely. The pain killers make people-"

"Can I see him?"

"Of course. But be quick."

Finn instantly pushed his way into the room. His mom sat in a chair close to the bed, brushing his dad's hair off his forehead. Finn ground to a halt, fear seizing his limbs. Sweat dotted Hiccup's face, which was pale. His eyes were on Astrid's, but he looked like he might fall asleep in seconds. His leather armor had been removed so a wool shirt covered his upper body, but the sleeve had been cut away to expose the infected limb. Cotton wraps covered the area, but Finn knew the signs of infection when he saw them.

Astrid looked over, her face splotchy. "Finn. Come here."

Finn gulped, carefully walking forward. Hiccup shifted and weakly grabbed his arm. "Hey, it's okay. I'm not dying yet."

The teen choked back a laugh, but felt like he might cry at the same time. "I sure hope not. I'm not ready to take your place."

Hiccup gave him a weak smile. "Not true."

"Besides," Finn said quickly. "I couldn't find Anna on my way over so... you're not allowed to go anywhere."

Determination (and maybe some irritation) flashed across Hiccup's face. "I'm fine."

"Like I said earlier, you don't look fine."

"Finn," Hiccup said, reaching out to hold his wife's hand. "Just in case-"

He shook his head crazily. "Don't start that."

"Just in case, Finn, don't trust Allie."

"I don't trust her anyway, dad." Finn said quietly. "But you're going to be here so it doesn't matter right now."

Hiccup swallowed, closing his eyes like it hurt. "If she did this on purpose, it will matter."

"On purpose?" Finn asked.

Just then, Mara swished back into the room with Inga and another nurse on her heels. "All right, it's time."

"But-" Finn began.

"Hey," Hiccup squeezed his arm. "I'll see you in a few hours. Okay?"

Finn felt his throat constricting, but he nodded firmly. He wished he could hug him one last time, but knew his dad was in too much pain to try that. Astrid leaned down and kissed her husband soundly on the lips before quickly pulling back, releasing his hand and ushering her son out of the room. Finn allowed himself to be marched out, but felt a little dazed when they reentered the main room.

Astrid pulled him into a hug. "He'll be fine."

"I hope so." Finn pulled back, ignoring the hushed whispers around them. He wished the council would go away for once. He just wanted his family to have some closure for once. Even now, being chief didn't always have its perks. "You cleaned the wound out last night?"

"Yes," Astrid's face clouded over. "It wasn't infected."

"Must have been in the earliest stages to happen so fast then," Finn murmured. "He seemed really disoriented when I saw him last."

"Disoriented, dizzy, exhaustion, he didn't eat at all today," Astrid counted off on her fingers. She dropped her hands with a sigh. "I should have looked at it this morning."

"If you had, he still might have ended up here."

"Oh he would have," Astrid nodded. "It just wouldn't have been so... crazy."

Finn sighed. "I hope the whole village isn't freaking out."

"We'll give them an update when he's out of surgery." Astrid said. "But for now... Horst?" The man turned from his conversation and walked over. "Where's Erick?"

Horst sighed. "I told Cliff to take him home."

"All right," Astrid turned to Finn. "Would you talk to them? See if they're okay? Plus it will keep you occupied for the time being."

Finn instantly felt bad for his friends. "They saw it happen?"

"Cliff was the first to notice," Horst said. "Erick... he froze. Poor kid's already seen enough life and death situations. Seeing Hiccup collapse like that... Ah he'll be okay. I just worry for him; that's why I sent them home together."

Finn nodded. "Yeah, I'll go talk to them."

"Thanks."

"Send me a note if anything happens," Finn insisted before walking to the door. Astrid promised to do so and he quickly left, marching through the streets toward Cliff and Erick's little house. He finally reached the door and knocked. He heard footsteps on the other end before the door swung open, revealing Cliff.

"Finn!" Cliff nearly pulled him inside, instantly peppering him with questions. "What happened? Is he okay?"

"They're operating on his arm right now," Finn sighed, plopping on their small couch next to Erick, who sat still and quiet with his good knee drawn up to his chin. "It's infected."

"Infected from what?"

Finn quickly explained the situation, answering Cliff's questions and constantly glancing over at Erick. He still hadn't said a word or acknowledged his presence.

"But if the blade had been poisoned, he would've died a while ago!" Cliff said quickly. "It's been almost a week since the duel."

"She probably never cleans her weapons then. Not that I'm surprised." Finn frowned. "I don't know if it was intentional or not, but it's still a bad situation for all of us to be in."

"Yeah..." Cliff nodded. "Could we handle a war right now?"

Finn shrugged. "I doubt it will come to that but... my dad doesn't really talk about those kinds of resources with me. I trust we'd be okay. Hopefully."

"Yeah."

Their conversation dwindled. Finn looked at Erick once more, bothered at his constant silence. He looked at Cliff questioningly, who shrugged. "He hasn't said a word since we got here."

Finn carefully reached out and poked Erick's arm. The blond blinked once and finally turned to look at him, his usually bright eyes dull.

"You okay?" Finn asked softly.

Erick faced forward, a muscle in his jaw standing out. He swallowed hard and shifted on the couch. "Didn't hear you come in."

"It's okay." Finn thought carefully, unsure how to proceed. "Want to talk about it?"

Erick shook his head.

"All right. Okay if I stay though?"

The Larson boy looked slightly surprised at this question but he nodded. Finn glanced over at their little pantry.

"I'm going to make some tea." he said, feeling very awkward at his friend's silence. It was like he was intruding on something but he wasn't sure what it was. "Do you want some?"

Erick nodded. Finn got out three teabags and a kettle.

"Oh, I don't need any." Cliff said with a small shake of his head. "I have to talk to someone."

"Okay." Finn replied.

When Cliff left the room, Erick shifted slightly in his seat. "I'm sorry. I feel selfish freaking out over this." he said in a slightly choked voice.

Finn blinked, slightly surprised that he'd spoken. "Selfish how?" he asked as he placed the full kettle over the fire.

"He's your dad. But you're the one making tea for me." Erick turned away from him. "Sometimes I forget I'm the outsider."

"Don't be ridiculous." Finn scoffed slightly. "You're not an outsider. You're an honorary Haddock. You have every right to be distressed about this. Especially after..." he caught himself before he continued.

"After I lost my dad." Erick finished. "It's not like reminding me is going to make me cry my eyes out."

"Yeah." Finn nodded and turned to the tea kettle, wishing he could say something a bit more important. "Mara says he'll be fine by Monday. So you don't have to worry about losing him too."

Erick looked up at him. "You sure?"

"Mara's the best healer we've got. If she says dad'll be fine, he will be." Finn stated. "So please don't panic. And you know I'll panic if you do. We both know what'll happen next."

"Cliff will panic." Erick said with a tiny smile. "Now that's something we want to avoid."

"Unless we want him monologuing at us for hours on end, yes." Finn chuckled, pouring the tea into mugs and setting one down in front of his friend.

"Thanks, Finn." said Erick, taking a small sip of tea. "You're already my second favorite brother."

"Second favorite?" Finn gasped dramatically. "You've only got four!"

"Five, actually. Don't forget Greg. Brothers in law count." Erick reminded him. "And I have to give Cliff the top spot. He's kind of like a lost puppy, he needs me and I need him."

"Sounds unhealthy. And shouldn't you put your blood related brothers first?"

"Gustav's great but he's also a decade and a half older than me. Nikolas is... Nikolas." Erick sighed.

"Well you're my top bro." Finn lightly punched his shoulder. "You're a lot more patient with Cliff than I could be. Although if you're counting me, wouldn't Anna be your sister?"

"Ah, no." Erick made a face. "Yeah, that doesn't quite work. Where is she, anyway?"

"Thor knows." Finn shrugged. "Probably has her tongue down Brandyn's throat somewhere."

"Eugh." Erick stuck his tongue out. "Please spare me the mental image."

"Yeah, will do." Finn took a sip of tea.

The boys were quiet for a while. Finn glanced at his friend and internally marveled at how much he'd changed in the last year and a half to be bantering with a boy he'd once described as a pansy. His eyes fell to Erick's prosthetic and the familiar guilt surged within him. Not once had Erick brought up Finn's involvement in the accident that had cost him his foot but the Haddock boy couldn't help but feel horrible about it. Some nights, he could still hear the screaming, not just from Erick but from Gustav and Magnus and Adrianna... it was enough to drive him crazy.

But despite how awful it had been, the fallout had started a friendship in the boys that felt natural. This was strange because Erick and Finn truly were opposites in almost every way. There was a reason the Larson boy had been so drawn to Adrianna. Both were deep thinkers, philosophers, intellectuals. Finn didn't like to sit around thinking about the world, he liked to go out and do things. But he'd come to appreciate Erick's quiet reflection and insightful advice that had saved Finn from many an embarrassing moment. Finn's ability to think on his feet had done the same for Erick.

As they drank their tea, it occurred to Finn that Erick would be invaluable if Hiccup died before he had gotten the proper training. Of course, Adrianna would be just as helpful for a lot of the same reasons but Erick had a way of thinking that would counteract Finn's likely stupidity in his early years. A tiny bit of the fear the Haddock boy felt concerning the possibility of Hiccup's untimely demise alleviated a bit. As long as he had his friends, Erick as well as Adrianna, Cliff, Inga, and Taryn, he'd be fine. Just fine.

Xxx

Cliff had never been so nervous in his entire life.

Jogging through the village, his mind racing, he caught sight of a small bush of budding flowers and quickly picked the prettiest one he could find. He paused to admire it for a moment. It truly was a lovely flower.

Then he was racing through the village again. He finally caught sight of his intended target outside Mara's.

"Okay, buddy." Cliff mumbled to himself. "You can do this. You've been preparing for this for days." he took a deep breath and strolled over.

Morgan Sigmund was standing by herself, her arms crossed to ward against a chilly breeze that had blown through the village seconds before. Cliff took a deep breath and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hi." he squeaked when she turned her big, hazel eyes to rest on him. He cleared his throat. "Uhh hi." he repeated in a lower register.

"Hello." she said, looking slightly confused.

Hoo boy, this was going to be harder than he thought. The prettiest girl in the world standing before him, staring at him with a beautiful but confused expression. Cliff felt like his throat had swollen to twice its size.

"So hey, I was wondering... uhh..." Cliff gulped again and held up the flower. "You know, maybe we could go out sometime?"

Morgan stared at him, mouth slightly ajar. "What?"

"Well, I mean, Chief Hiccup is sick and I know he'll be okay and all but I just got to thinking that life is really short and precious and I shouldn't waste any time so I thought hey, what the heck, let's take a chance and ask out the girl I've had a crush on for a super long time and oh gods, did I say crush?" Cliff gasped at the end of his ramble. "I meant I think you're cool and all. And uh... yeah."

"Oh." Morgan took the flower, staring down at it instead of him. "Well I... I appreciate the thought, I really do."

"Ah. Yeah. Is that good?" Cliff's heart was pounding and he suspected that his hands were trembling. Gods, it was hard to be male. All this expectation to ask a girl out, it was exhausting!

"I'm sorry, Cliff." Morgan handed the flower back to him. " I don't want to lead you on. It's not you, it's just-"

"You're not interested." Cliff interrupted. He felt like his heart had dropped into his stomach. "I get it."

"No, really, you're a nice guy but I just don't think about you that way." Morgan truly looked apologetic, which was a small comfort.

Cliff shook his head. He felt like burying his head in the sand on the beach. "Forget about it."

"Cliff, really, I'm sor-"

"No, please. Don't." the Smedley boy walked away before she could say another word.

As he walked through the small crowd, he spotted Cale, who seemed to be laughing at something Frey had said. Cliff wondered how on earth Cale, the lying, cheating scumbag, had been good enough for Morgan when he, a guy who would never do that to a girl, simply wasn't.

But there was one thing Cale had that Cliff didn't. Good looks. Could any girl really be attracted to someone with wild, curly hair? Steel gray eyes that seemed to be a direct contrast to his goofy personality? A tall, gangly body that was still growing? Cliff wasn't the sort of person to worry about his appearance but he'd been burned by three girls now. No first dates. No first kiss. So what was it about him that turned girls off to him?

Feeling a surge of frustration, he threw the flower on the ground and watched as a nearby Nadder trampled it. Maybe he wasn't meant to have a love story after all.

Xxx

The surgery had been a success. Finn had smiled widely when he received the news by way of an overly exuberant Terrible Terror. If it weren't for the fact that Mara insisted on giving Hiccup a few hours to sleep it off, he would have bade Erick goodbye right away and gone to visit his father. But, once Hiccup was ready for visitors, Finn left the Erick and Cliff's place (Erick wanted to visit Hiccup a bit later) and strolled to the healer's house, his mind racing.

Even if Hiccup was fine, Finn would still be chief one day in the future. That meant there was a lot of training to do, meetings to attend, people to meet. It was completely overwhelming, which led him to his next mission.

Finn walked through the doors to the healer's house with mild trepidation, giving a wide berth to some women bustling passed with arms' full bandages. He watched them leave whilst running a nervous hand through his hair, before turning back toward the room where his father lay recovering. A few council members greeted him as they walked by, Gobber clapped him on the back with a grin, but he only gave them halfhearted smiles. He honestly couldn't understand what he was so nervous about. Just a few years ago he had been eager to help out with stuff, yearned for it even. But now he felt almost afraid to bring it up.

Finn scowled and shook his head, walking through the door marching up to his father with more confidence in his step. This was his dad, there was nothing to be worried or anxious about. There was no harm in asking a simple question. All he had to do was spit it out and wait for the response, whatever it might be.

And with just that thought, his confidence shriveled and his step faltered. He couldn't seriously expect a positive answer. Sure he'd been working hard as of late to do better around the house and be kind to people, but this? He couldn't honestly hope for his dad to have forgiven him so much in so little time. It would be a while before his dad let him-

Toothless perked from his seat beside Hiccup and bounded over, giving him a gummy smile. Finn patted the dragon's head, his eyes focused on his father. For someone who had been operated on a few hours before, Hiccup looked pretty good. His arm was bandaged and he seemed a bit tired but aside from that, there really didn't seem to be anything to worry about. Hiccup looked up from the book he was reading and stared at his son in surprise, his eyebrows nearly disappearing into his hairline.

"Finn?"

"Erm... H-hi. What's up dad?"

"Ah... Well, I just got out of surgery. Total success. Now I just have to rest for the next day or two."

Finn wanted to slap himself. He had gone to his dad, not the other way around. His inner tangent distracted him from his father's next question, so he shook his head. "What?"

Hiccup smiled in amusement. "I asked you what's going on? You look... flustered."

"Flustered? Me?"

"Yes. Shall I name you Finn the Flustered at your naming ceremony-"

"N-no dad, I Uhh... I don't think that would instill fear and respect into my fellow chiefs and adversaries one day."

His father chuckled as he placed his book on the nightstand. "No I don't suppose so." Hiccup straightened a bit in the bed, "So... what's going on?"

"Ah... Yeah..." Finn glanced from his father's piercing green gaze to random places around the room, wondering where this sudden fear and trepidation came from. He hadn't been afraid to practically spit the man's face, but now he couldn't ask a simple question?

His father's face finally clouded with concern. "Finn?" The teenager's gaze snapped back to meet his at last and he leaned forward. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine! Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because my usually boisterous boy has been standing here for nearly five minutes and hasn't said anything intriguing, frightening or downright insane yet." Hiccup smirked, "Seriously though, what is it? I'm not going to bite, did something happ-"

"Do you need help?" Finn blurted. His shoulders instantly tensed and he paused, waiting for the hammer to fall.

But his father's eyebrows only furrowed in confusion. "Help?"

"Yeah... Help, with umm... stuff? Ya know, hunting for Great Hall dinners, barn building... need me to wrangle a few Monstrous Nightmares for you?" Hiccup nodded with pursed lips, which only drove the boy to plow through more thoughts. "I-I mean, just because I'm bored and don't have anything to do and figured you probably have a lot to work on, not to mention not having a lot of free time, especially now you're recovering and will have to get back to everything after putting it off for so long..."

"Well," Hiccup patiently interrupted, a corner of his mouth rising at his son's still open mouth. "I might have a couple things for you to do. Could use a smart head and strong hands. If you feel up to the challenge."

Finn sniffed. "I love a good challenge."

Hiccup smirked, "good. But first, one question: why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you want to help me? Not that I don't want the help, but this seems sudden. Were you really so scared I wouldn't make it?"

"No..." Finn shook his head, some nervousness welling up inside his chest again. He scratched his neck awkwardly. "No, I came myself. I umm... honestly I was a little bored, but then I thought about how you and mom have so much to do and not a lot of time to do all of it. But..." Finn shrugged. "I don't know, I guess I figured if I'm going to make you proud one day then I'd best get started. Not wait around for someone to bring the jobs to me. So... yeah."

Hiccup watched him with a blank face for a few quiet moments, arms still crossed. Finn felt like he was being weighed or studied.

"Okay." Hiccup finally replied in a soft voice. "I think you're ready for a little responsibility then."

"You're sure?" Finn asked. "Because you can say no, gods know I don't deserve it."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "Just coming to me to ask what you could do to help us out, without prior asking, makes me proud and tells me you're more ready than you ever were. I love you, Finn, and I want you to succeed. I can only tell you're succeeding by the good things you do, and I'd say you're headed in the right direction."

A smile split Finn's face. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Hiccup smiled proudly at his son. "I think it's time to start training you in the ways of chiefing. Which, believe me, is a lot less exciting than it sounds."

Finn shrugged. "I'm about as ready as I'll ever be."

Hiccup smirked. "Good. First why don't you check in with Snotlout and Gobber, see if there are any pressing matters you could help with. I'm sure they've got a growing list. Worst comes to worst, see Fishlegs."

"All right."

"One more thing," Hiccup said before he could leave the room. "How are Cliff and Erick?"

Finn winced. "I don't know about Cliff. He said he had to talk to someone before I could talk to him. And Erick... He's okay now. He was really quiet the last few hours. Made him some tea."

Hiccup sighed. "Poor kid."

"It's okay," Finn attempted to sound encouraging. "Once he sees how good you look, he'll be okay."

"I know. I just feel bad."

Finn shrugged. "It is what it is, I guess. What about Allie? Are you going to... bring it up?"

Hiccup shook his head. "I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. Discuss it with the council once I'm back on my feet."

"Foot."

"Be quiet." Hiccup could hide the smile when Finn snickered. "All right, get out of here."

"Okay, see ya." Finn turned out of the room and quickly sought out Snotlout. The man looked relieved to have some assistance given the day's impromptu emergency. Finn's heart swelled in pride at the list of jobs to do, thankful his father trusted him so much to give him somechiefing duties. And soon he'd start getting legitimate lessons! This is what he was meant to do someday; to take his father's place was the single most important thing he'd ever do in his life. And he couldn't wait to get started.