Hiccup was confused.

Adrianna wasn't always the easiest child to raise but her behavior usually made sense. But this was not the case that day. Her bright green eyes were focused on the group of older boys as if they were the most interesting things the world could offer. And considering the fact that it was a Monstrous Nightmare attempting to get her attention as she stared, that was saying something. Wishing that Erick hadn't interrupted him as he asked his child what she was up to, he turned back to the village, intending to see how Gobber was holding up, when he spotted his wife ambling toward him, Stormfly at her heels.

"Okay, I know that look." she said as she got within earshot. "What's up?"

"I'm confused." Hiccup glanced over toward the arena. "I found Addie staring at that group over there just now."

Astrid looked over to the group and a small smile crossed her face. "That group of boys?"

"Yes. Did one of them take something from her? It makes no sense. I don't even think she knows them very well." Hiccup frowned and crossed his arms.

"Oh, Hiccup." Astrid's smile widened. "Can't you tell what's going on?"

"Is something going on?" Hiccup asked, feeling even more bewildered.

Astrid patted her husband on the back, sensing that she would have to do a lot more comforting when he found out the truth. "It's very obvious what's going on. If she was just staring at them, that is."

"Okay." Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "What?" he paused as Astrid opened her mouth to explain it... and then something hit him. "Wait!" he exclaimed. "She... she doesn't!"

"Hiccup, I think our daughter has-"

"No!" Hiccup wailed. "Don't say it!"

"A crush!"

"GAH!" Hiccup put his face in his hands. "She's way too young for that!"

"She's ten!" Astrid chortled. "That's plenty old enough. Besides, it's harmless. These things happen!"

"I didn't think I'd have to deal with her chasing boys until she was eighteen!" Hiccup whimpered.

"Eighteen?" Astrid rolled her eyes. "Why would she wait that long?"

"Because I'm supposed to be the only man in her life for the foreseeable future!" Hiccup poked himself in the chest. "If she starts chasing boys now, who am I anymore?"

"Same as always." Astrid put her hand on his chin and turned his head to face her. "Her daddy. And no matter how many boys she chases, you're always going to be there for her. So be her rock."

Hiccup shook his head. "I don't like this."

"Of course not. Your baby's growing up." Astrid patted his chin. "But you remember how rough that was. She's going to need you more than ever. Just you wait until puberty."

"We are not mentioning the p-word until we absolutely have to." Hiccup winked at her, a small smile crossing his face once more.

The moment was interrupted when a loud cry came from the village. Hiccup and Astrid exchanged looks before taking off after the shouting voice. They stopped outside the Thorston house, feeling quite bewildered as Allie the Insincere burst through the door.

"What is that?" she shouted quite loudly. "What is making that sound?"

Hiccup and Astrid exchanged looks for a split second before the sound to which Allie was referring reached their ears. A sort of high pitched humming and low growling... at least that was the best way anyone could describe it. Allie's room was apparently playing host to a singing Terrible Terror. An invisible one, by the looks of things.

"That is, without a doubt, the most horrible sound I have ever heard! Get it out!" Allie whined, covering her ears.

"Relax, Allie." Astrid said in an unconvincingly sweet voice. "It's just a Terrible Terror. Nothing to worry about."

"But where?" Allie grimaced as the high pitched noise reached an earsplitting note. "I've looked all over and I can't find it!"

"Oh, I'm sure it's around here somewhere." Hiccup strolled into the room. Truth be told, he thought the song of the Terrible Terror was rather pleasant so the noises didn't bother him in the slightest. Allie's reaction was just icing on the cake, so to speak. "They can be pretty stealthy sometimes."

"Well if you don't find it before I do, I'm going to kill it!" Allie said through gritted teeth.

"Aww, don't do that." Hiccup chirped. "Have a little compassion. It's just an innocent little- well there you are!" he smiled at the red Terrible Terror, which he had finally found lodged up the chimney. "Are you bugging the nice lady? Come on over here. I'll find you a nice place to sing."

The Terror recognized Hiccup's scent as being similar to the scent of the nice little human who had put her up to this in the first place so she immediately scuttled down the chimney and settled on his shoulder.

"Ugh. Nasty little thing." Allie shuddered. "Get it as far away from here as possible."

"That can be arranged." Hiccup mumbled irritably. "All right, come on. I think my kids'll appreciate your singing more than she does. Well you're affectionate." he added as the Terror nuzzled his cheek. "Do you have a person out there somewhere?"

The Terror licked his cheek and he let out a distinctly unmanly giggle. Astrid sighed in amusement. Her husband was adorable when he interacted with new dragons. She was so entertained by him that she didn't notice the death glares he was receiving from the Outcast chief.

Allie let out an angry growl and went back into the house. She would make Hiccup pay tomorrow.

Xxx

Hiccup and Astrid had been slightly surprised when the Terror they brought home immediately flew to a gloomy looking Adrianna but they didn't question it; she had a tendency to put new dragons at ease. Despite the parents' strange silence throughout dinner, Finn continued to prattle on about the upcoming duel. Adrianna pushed her food around her plate absently, glancing up at her father when he'd wince or tense at some of Finn's words. Finn pretended not to notice his fathers jumpiness until a sharp look from his mother forced him to launch into another tale about the day's events. The family had gone to bed early in anticipation of the Thawfest games. Hiccup spent most of that evening trying to put the duel out of his mind but it was to no avail as the seconds ticked closer to the moment he dreaded.

When the moment finally came, Hiccup lightly frowned at Astrid's pensive expression as he once again tightened the bracer over his right wrist. She paced with crossed arms through the entryway leading into the Academy. He felt the urge to search across the large space for Allie, but he instead focused on his fretting wife who so clearly was trying not to appear to be fretting. With a heavy sigh he finally walked over to her and rested his hands on her shoulders.

"Hey, it's only to first blood. It's going to be fine."

Her wide blue eyes full of fear startled him, and his confidence shrunk down a size. "I never wanted to see you in a duel again. Ever. It's just... that first one was too traumatic and I d-don't ever want to see you covered in bl-"

"Astrid," he squeezed her shoulders and bent lower to look in her eyes. She forced herself to take a deep breath before looking back at him. "First blood does not mean she's going to rip me to shreds like he did. It's different."

"How do you know that? What if she uses a single swing powerful enough to... to slice half of your face off? Or stabs you before she can check the strength behind her sw-" Hiccup sealed his mouth around hers before she could utter another word. The kiss was firm and warm, and he caught her lips in his a second, third time before pulling away.

"It's going to be okay," he smiled at her. She stared at him with confused blue eyes before sighing heavily. "I promise, I'll be fine. She'll probably kick my butt so fast I'll be back here in five minutes."

"No, you had better win so I don't have to clean you up afterward."

"Griping again, I see." Astrid punched his bicep firmly and he grinned. "Violence."

"Shut up and kiss me, idiot." Astrid pulled her mouth to his and was glad to feel herself relax against his frame. He was right; she did need to calm down. No matter how intense this stupid duel got, it is nothing compared to the intensity of the duel with Dagur. He'd be back in her arms in a matter of minutes.

"Hey dad, are you-" Finn's excited voice filled the tunnel along with the sounds of his footsteps, until he stopped a few feet away from them. "Ugh, seriously? You're about to be awesome for once and you're making out?"

The couple laughed and pulled away from each other, grinning at their son. Hiccup tousled his hair playfully. "I'm always awesome, Finnster."

Finn rolled his eyes as he tried to fix his hair. "Right, which is why this is the first duel I've ever seen you fight."

"But it's not my first duel. That one secured your safety so much that I haven't needed to fight again since." Hiccup replied quickly, glancing over his shoulder. Allie was making her way into the Academy now. "Hopefully I won't be anything short of impressive." he couldn't help but grin at the sight of his only son's hopeful eyes.

Quick footsteps echoed down the tunnel and Hiccup knew instantly who it was. Adrianna ran forward and wrapped her arms around his middle, squeezing tight. "Do you have to do this?"

"Unfortunately I do, baby." he pulled her face up to look in her eyes. "I'll be fine. Trust me."

Adrianna sighed and nodded. "Just don't get so hurt that I have to clean you up afterward." Astrid snorted while her daddy slumped.

"Ye of little faith," he shook his head before quickly pecking Astrid on the lips. "All right, let's get this over with. Keep Toothless close. I don't want him mauling the chief of the Outcasts."

Finn snorted. "Yeah, that would be most unfortunate."

Hiccup rolled his eyes at his son's already evident knack for dry humor as he exited the tunnel with his sword jingling at the right side of his waist. Allie already stood at the center of the arena with her arms crossed and foot tapping impatiently.

"About time you showed up."

"Oh Allie, I was here long before you were."

The female chief smirked maliciously. "Why? Nervous?"

"No, I just like to come prepared."

Astrid stood at the head of the arena and strongly lifted a hand. Hiccup ignored Allie's snide comment about his wife ordering both tribes around and instead focused on his wife's words. "The duel will commence promptly. The rules are simple: swords only and the fighter to draw the first blood on his or her opponent wins. Drawing blood through other means other than your sword does not count. My final rule, don't kill each other. This is for opening Thawfest and for sport only. There is no need to spill more blood than necessary." Hiccup bit the inside of his cheek at her words to keep from smiling; she was glaring at Allie so hard right now. But he knew Allie was merely smirking back at her. He didn't even need to look for confirmation. "Fighters ready!"

Hiccup twisted and took a few steps backward, drawing his sword and taking a long, slow breath. Allie's malicious smile returned and he couldn't help but feel the sweat pricking at the back of his neck from her obvious desire to attack him, the multitude of eyes watching (four of which belonged to his own children), or the noonday heat, he didn't know. All he knew was the sudden nervousness clawing at his insides. He forced his face placid and calm, tensing as he awaited the gong.

Astrid swallowed thickly, adding on a whim, "May the best fighter win. Good luck." She saw Spitelout swung his mallet from the edge of her vision and tensed when the gong sounded across the land.

Allie lunged forward first, twirling her sword in her hand for a moment. Hiccup cast aside initial instinct to back away and held his ground, digging his right foot into the ground behind him to stabilize himself. He tensed, patiently waiting for her to reach him. With a horrendous cry Allie swung her sword at a straight diagonal towards Hiccup's left shoulder.

With a sharp jolt, Hiccup dodged her swing and jutted his sword toward her exposed torso. Twisting sharply, she regained her footing and clashed her sword against his with a mighty clang. Hiccup backpedaled toward the center of the arena as her attacks kept coming, one lunge coming close to actually hitting his face. Allie still wore that cursed malicious scowl that seemed all too familiar in this situation, though he couldn't put his finger on where he'd seen it before. He was too occupied to really think about it.

In the center of the arena Hiccup, caught her sword against his and tightened his core muscles, stopping her from pushing him backwards any further. Their opposing forces made their arms shake and the villagers around the arena began to cheer for their respective chief.

Only one voice got through to Hiccup. "Get her, dad!" Finn.

Hiccup couldn't help the smile that spread across his face as a surge of adrenaline pumped through his veins. He so wanted to make his son proud... who was he kidding? He had to win this thing, at least for Finn. With an audible grunt Hiccup shoved Allie back and began to attack her with quick fluid movements. She parried each attack, gradually moving backwards again. She'd lost her footing and that only infuriated her.

Allie blocked Hiccup's sword on a particular strike to her left, and while she had the chance, she socked him in the jaw with her fist. Hiccup yelped and withdrew, wrist on his mouth. She grinned and prepared to attack while she had the opening, but Astrid's voice rang above the buzz of the villagers' cheers or boos.

"Swords only!"

Allie glanced over to shoot a short glare at the blonde woman, giving Hiccup time to turn and spit the accumulating blood out of his mouth. "It's a duel, Mrs. Haddock. You do what it takes to win!"

Hiccup barely had time to register her words until Allie tackled him onto the ground full force. The wind knocked out of him as his back slammed into the cobblestone. Allie poised her sword above him but he grabbed her wrist and flipped them before she could strike. It was just an opening ceremony duel; why was she acting like she really wanted to kill him?

Allie screamed indignantly with his weight on her and used all her strength to wrestle him back to the ground. He wouldn't give and they managed to be fighting for the upper hand on their knees, hands holding the wrists with poised weapons. Allie shoved all her weight into her feet, willing her strength to dominate Hiccup's. He felt the cobblestone digging into his sensitive left leg and couldn't help the wince until inspiration hit.

Relaxing his muscles all at once and pushing his legs into her stomach, he rolled backwards and threw her over his body onto the cobblestone behind him. He retrieved his dropped weapon as he regained his footing, trying to catch his breath and ignore the pain in his leg. He heard Finn cheering for him nearby amongst the Hooligans but forced himself to focus on Allie regaining her footing.

A small scrape had appeared on her chin from colliding with the cobblestone, but he forced himself to focus on circling the center of the arena as she did, searching for an opening. Jeers from the Outcasts came and encouragements flew from the Hooligans, but he ignored them.

"Go daddy!" Addie's voice rang out suddenly, making Allie flinch momentarily.

Hiccup lunged forward at that exact moment, quick as the Night Fury he rode. He nearly jabbed her armpit until she jumped backwards out of reach, swiping their swords against each other in a high pitch metallic squeak that set everyone's teeth on edge. Allie slid her blade diagonally towards Hiccup's stomach, making him lunge backwards on his left leg. Astrid gritted her teeth when she saw him wince at the movement, his left leg shuddering momentarily. He had no time to recover when Allie swiped her sword back down towards his knees. Hiccup managed a high leap and her sword sailed past. Hiccup blocked her oncoming sword strongly but what she did next was completely unexpected to everyone, even her own people.

Allie kicked his left knee.

A sharp cry flew from his throat before he realized it and he dropped his knee to the ground. Gasps echoed around the arena at the low blow for such a technically minor duel. His sword clanged on the ground, still in his hand but shaking. Flashes of light emerged and he found himself on Brawn, hearing the screams of Astrid and Gobber, yelling for him to get up. Dagur poised above him for the final kill.

"DADDY!" Adrianna screamed, slamming back to the present. Instinctively Hiccup tucked and roll out of Allie's reach, her sword screeching against the stone.

Hiccup stood panting, placing more weight on his right leg than his left. He clamped his jaw as he stepped slowly backwards while she advanced, malicious grin ever present. He knew anyone could tell that he was trying to hide the pain. He almost didn't care but he didn't want to crack now. Astrid's hand was on Adrianna's shoulder. She didn't want to think about the blow that would've landed on him if the girl hadn't screamed.

Allie continued to pace after him, a few Outcast jeers echoing through the stone. "Must be Hel to be a cripple."

Hiccup's prosthetic scraped to a stop mid-step and his eyes filled with ire deeper than many had seen before. Allie's grin widened—now they were getting somewhere. "Must be sicker to take pleasure in issuing low blows."

"Low blows, weak spots," Allie shrugged. "Call it what you will."

Hiccup bit back a groan as the pain in his leg spiked through. His sensitive nerves could only take so much and he had already been pushing it as it was. The pain was blinding and he knew he could only last so much longer. If she wasn't going to play fair and if he wanted to win, he'd have to play dirty too... but did he really want to do that in front of his kids? Was it even worth it at this point? The sharp replay of his duel with Dagur replayed in his mind, confusing him with reality. He could feel his hands beginning to tremble but he shook his head in a pretend motion of moving his hair out of his eyes. He knew he wasn't fooling Astrid or Allie.

If he didn't focus he could be seriously hurt.

He internally sighed when Allie charged again and he bent his knees in anticipation. At the first strike he ground his feet into the stone, forcing himself not to be pushed back. He choked back a sharp whine in his throat at the pain and collected his strength. He pushed back, following up with a few sharp jabs. He came so close to hitting her at this point that he nearly cried out in frustration; he wanted this to be over already.

But a sudden kick to his prosthetic, the world shifting down a foot and the second spike of pain through his leg combined with the slip of a cold sword against the side of his jaw made him freeze. He stared up at Allie with mild trepidation and he realized what he looked like at that moment.

He was on one knee in front of another chief, a sword pressed to his throat.

It almost looked like she was forcing him to pledge fealty... or something. But the silence in the arena aside from the tense growl of Toothless beside Astrid and he finally found his voice. "First blood. Just cut me already."

Allie's smirk deepened and he seriously wondered at the sword on his neck. She could seriously kill him right now with one stroke. "You're giving up?" She tensed when Hiccup's sword point poked the inside of her knee.

"Checkmate." Hiccup growled. "Take your petty win or I will take it."

Allie had to admit that he looked pretty scary when he was furious. It must be humiliating to lose in front of two tribes. If only she knew how he really felt. That was the least of his worries right now.

She tittered lightly and slid her blade thinly along the underside of Hiccup's jaw in such a quick motion that he had no choice but to jerk. Adrianna screamed and a few Hooligans leaped up angrily at her lithe action. Hiccup felt the blood trickle down his neck, knowing from experience that this cut wasn't even slightly deep. It was just enough to end the fight.

He finally stood to his feet, ignoring the jeers from the his people and choosing to glare at Allie as she returned her sword to its scabbard and walked out of the arena with swaying hips. Something about that fight threw him off. Why did he get the feeling she didn't mean for it to be just for show, just for opening Thawfest? Why did she fight like she wanted to kill him, just to give him a minor cut that didn't even need stitches? It was confusing and concerning.

A hand on his shoulder made him jerk and Astrid held out a hand to him with careful eyes when he raised his sword. He froze and quickly exhaled. He had forgotten to put the weapon away in his deep musings. His hands shook frustratingly as he tried to put the sword away and a shaky exhale escaped him. Astrid tried to help him but he stepped away; he could surely put how own sword back in its place. After struggling for another few seconds he put his sword down and tried to stalk out of the arena. He forced a calm expression on his face as he walked out while his leg threatened to give out with every step. Astrid followed him closely until they were finally in the darkness of the tunnel.

Hiccup leaned against the cold wall, exhaling heavily, shakily. Astrid's hands were on his face in an instant. "Hiccup? Hiccup! Talk to me, what is it?" She knew he was in pain but he was on the verge of a panic attack. She could see it in his eyes and hear it in his rapid breathing. "Hiccup!" she rasped, shaking his shoulders and trying to keep her voice down.

Hiccup blinked and bent over, forearms resting on his knees. He knew he was overreacting so why couldn't he calm down? He wiped the sweat off his forehead with his hands, watching them in fascination as they shook violently. Astrid's forehead suddenly bumped against his and he looked into her wide blue eyes.

"Hiccup, you're scaring me. What's wrong?"

Hiccup swallowed the lump in his throat, but it only grew. "I... wh-when she kicked my leg, I... I s-saw Dagur." She blinked in disbelief and he continued, "And I heard you and Gobber yelling at me to move... I... I-I think I had a f-flashback."

Astrid nodded steadily, turning at the familiar echoing footsteps. She held out a hand to stop her twin children from bombarding their father already. Finn stopped with a look of confusion on his face while Adrianna received a more stern expression from her mother. She had to stay put.

Hiccup's breathing gradually slowed and he wiped the sweat off his upper lip. "S-sorry I scared you-"

"No," Astrid pushed his hair out of his eyes just as Gobber made his way down, brushing past the kids. "No Hiccup, you're fine. That's normal."

Hiccup slowly stood up straight, accepting Gobber's pat on the shoulder. "I was so sure I would be completely fine. I didn't expect th- ahh!" A strangled cry erupted from his throat and he collapsed, Gobber and Astrid catching him mid-fall.

The twins gasped in shock as their father braced himself on the floor for a minute, trying to contain the whimpers and groans coming from his throat of their own volition.

Finn felt his face get hot. "She should have her foot chopped off for kicking you. That's not fair."

Hiccup managed a short laugh. "Trust me, buddy..." he slowly stood, Finn's eyes widening at how red his dad's face was. Adrianna's hands still covered her mouth with wide eyes. "Nobody deserves to l-lose a limb..."

"Ah ah ah, what are you doin'?" Gobber asked, grabbing his shoulder when he tried to walk again.

"I'm going home?"

"Not on that leg; have you lost your mind?"

Hiccup sighed stubbornly. "Gobber-"

"You just collapsed, Hiccup! No!" Astrid nearly growled. "Finn, where's Toothless?"

"I'll find him." Finn turned and ran out of the tunnel, glad to escape the look of tortured pain on his father's face. That look shouldn't have been there. It should never have been there.

Adrianna inched forward after Finn left, trying to remain discreet while her parents and Gobber argued. "I'm fine, I can make it!"

"All the way to the house? You've really lost your mind this and you didn't even hit your head this time." Gobber knocked a fist against her father's head.

"Seriously, I'm f..." Hiccup tapered off and leaned against the stone wall when his leg shuddered beneath him. "F-fine. Get T-toothless."

"Finally, someone who's making some sense around here," Gobber huffed.

Adrianna shuffled past Gobber and reached for Hiccup's hand. He accepted it and barely spared her a glance as he ground his teeth, trying to not cry out loud. Why was he still standing again? If he knew anything from the past, it was that he'd be getting dizzy pretty soon from the pain.

Toothless trotted inside without Finn a moment later, sniffing Hiccup up and down for injuries. He warbled at Hiccup's left knee, making his rider smile. "All right bud, let's go home."