Warmth.

Hiccup woke to a feeling of warmth surrounding him. He shifted.

A sharp spike of pain stung his chest. His eyes snapped open.

Hiccup was lying in his bed, a single candle lighting the room. It flickered unevenly. Sighing, Hiccup relaxed his body.

He tried to remember.

They reached Berk, he messed up the trials, what else - oh. He also failed the dragon test.

Glancing around the room, Hiccup noticed nothing had been moved. None of his sketches, none of his clothes. Hiccup felt a stab of longing.

This would be the last he saw of his home.

...of his father.

Hiccup gritted his teeth and sat up, letting out a small wince. Everything hurt more than it should. Ignoring the ache across his body, Hiccup stood. He knew his clothes - and himself actually - must've stank. With slow movement, he changed his clothes and walked downstairs.

Stoick wasn't in the kitchen. Hiccup's shoulders relaxed even though he hadn't noticed they'd been tense to start with. Then he felt guilty at being relieved. He should be sad. He was sad. But also glad not to gave to face his father.

Not yet, anyway.

Hiccup left the house. Outside, the sky was a brilliant blue, a gentle breeze providing a refreshing chill. The warm weather didn't make him feel better.

He was banished. He'd be given a raft and pushed off the island. He'd never see this place again. He'd never see anyone again.

Hiccup steadied his breathing. He stumbled towards the arena, where he assumed Toothless was. The gate opened with horrible metal creaking. Inside the stone walls, Hiccup shrunk in on himself.

He'd failed here. He failed against Alvin. And now he was banished.

There were quiet footsteps. Hiccup stiffened.

"Hey," Astrid said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You alright?"

Hiccup shrugged nonchalantly, then regretted it when a wave of pain washed over him. "Sure. Well. Not really. Everything hurts."

Astrid sighed. "Yeah."

Hiccup glanced over her. She had several bruises on her arms and seemed to be favouring her right leg.

He looked away.

This is my fault.

"I spoke with the chief earlier, when you were still out cold."

Hiccup bristled.

Astrid pretended not to notice. "He said we have until afternoon to be off this island. We can take one of the small boats."

"We won't need it," Hiccup said, focusing on the one fact he was sure of. "We'll take the dragons."

"And then what?"

"I... I don't know."

Astrid frowned. "That's not an answer."

"I don't have an answer," Hiccup snapped, his exhaustion taking a toll.

"It's a mess," Astrid said, changing strategy. "You've lost everything. Your father. Your tribe."

Hiccup's vision grew blurry. He forced back the tears.

"But it's not over."

"It's not?" Hiccup hated the way his voice cracked.

Astrid nodded firmly. "It's not," she assured, almost as if convincing herself. "You have me. And Toothless. And Stormfly."

Hiccup blinked. "And Snotlout."

Astrid shrugged slightly. "Yeah, him too."

Hiccup crossed his arms and focused on dulling the ache in his heart rather than his body. Banished. He still couldn't believe it.

"We couldn't convince them," Hiccup murmured. "We couldn't convince them that they're being controlled."

"Yes, we failed."

Hiccup deflated.

"But we can keep going. There has to be something we can do."

"Well what can we do? We're banished, Astrid. Outcasts."

"There must be something. Think of Toothless. Why did you train him instead of kill him?"

Hiccup shifted his weight. "Why is this so important to you all of a sudden?"

"Because I want to remember what you say right now."

"Oh for the love of - I was a coward. I was weak. I'm the first Viking in three hundred years who wouldn't kill a dragon. I'm the first Viking to fail the Dragon Games."

Astrid's voice was soft. "First one to ride a dragon, though. And you didn't fail. You chose the safety of the people of the Archipelago more than your own."

"Not that it did any good."

"But it could."

Hiccup met her steady gaze. "Maybe."

Astrid smiled and placed a hand on her hip. "So what do we do now?"

"I don't know, probably something stupid."

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Great, but you've already done that."

Hiccup looked at the dragon pens then into the distance. Snippets of a plan formed in his mind. "Then something crazy."

Astrid grinned. "That's more li-"

"Hey! I hope you two weren't planning on doing anything without me," Snotlout boomed, entering the arena. "Whatever Hiccup-y scheme you got there better include Hookfang and me."

Hiccup nodded at him. "You bet. Come on then, we have dragons to ride."

Astrid pushed the lever down with her foot, her braid flowing over he shoulder. Hiccup's breath hitched. Stormfly shot out of the pens in a blur of blue scales and knocked Astrid.

Hiccup laughed and then proceeded to be pinned to the ground by Toothless.

"Gah! You're heavy, y'know," he complained. Toothless gurgled, licking Hiccup's face.

Snotlout snorted and walked towards the pens. With the least amount of enthusiasm, Hookfang entered the arena. When his gaze landed on Snotlout he wandered over, picked him up by the foot and spun him in the air.

"Hookfang!" Snotlout shrieked. "You put me down you stupid lizard!"

Hookfang chortled, swinging Snotlout onto his back.

"We are going to have words," Snotlout muttered.

Hiccup smiled weakly, mounting Toothless.

Astrid led Stormfly past Hiccup and out the arena. "Where too?"

Hiccup followed her. "We head West and find an island to make camp."

"Sounds like a plan," Astrid commented. "Up Stormfly!"

With a squawk, Stormfly took off.

"Oh no you don't," Snotlout said. "After them Hooky!"

They shot off.

"Can't let them get too much of a head start, now can we bud?" Hiccup whispered. Toothless' green eyes had a mischievous twinkle on them as he stretched out his wings. They stormed into the sky.

Toothless spun in the air, locked onto Stormfly, who was gliding over the sea stacks. With a burst of speed, they closed the distance. Toothless flew upside down over them.

Beaming, Hiccup tapped Astrid's shoulder plate. "Think we caught you."

Astrid snorted. "In your dreams." She rushed forwards, diving steeply and lurching to the side.

Snotlout chased after her, trying to steer Hookfang between the sea stacks with little success. They seemed so much younger. More their age.

Hiccup looked over his shoulder back at Berk. He thought he saw his father standing on the coast. His eyes pricked. He hadn't even said goodbye.

Toothless twisted and dived after Hookfang.

Hiccup tried to spot his father again, but they were too far. He shook himself and focused on the dragons in front of him.

In a way, this was freedom. He was no longer trapped by the Viking ways of life.

...he couldn't partake in the Viking ways of life either.

Hiccup took a shaky breath and urged Toothless on.

***

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this slower chapter and a break from Alvin.

What do you think Hiccup has planned?

What are your thoughts of how Astrid and Snotlout reacted? I figure that they'd both shove down any strong emotions they'd have and try to soldier on. I intend to explore this further in the next few chapters.