The key to keeping up skills was to use them regularly. Practice, practice, practice as they said. So even though Astrid was probably the best axe weirder in the tribe, she was sure to stay on top of her game by regularly practicing her throws. Her target was practically destroyed by now, the bullseye completely chipped away the replaced and chipped away again. She was about to throw again, her sight locked on the damaged target and arm drawn back to toss, when just as she was about to she heard someone call her name. Jumping at the sudden sound, her grip slipped and the axe went flying into a tree instead, the small branch it had landed on being cut clean off. Well... at least that was tonight's firewood sorted.

She turned to look around for the voice, and when she spotted it, she lit up.

"Heather!" She smiled, spotting the rider land her dragon and quickly jump off.

Heather pulled her helmet off, her black hair tied up into braids and wrapped around her head in an updo to keep it from getting tangled in the wind. The two rushed up to each other, leaping into a hug.

"It's been so long! I missed you" Astrid said.

"I missed you too, but I really need to talk to you guys. It's a major code red" Heather replied.

Windshear quickly spotted Stormfly who'd been napping under the trees while her rider was busy with the axe, and the two dragons chirped at each other in a typical dragon greeting. Like no time had passed at all, they were immediately nuzzling like best friends.

"Uh oh- what's happened? You're not in danger are you?" Astrid asked.

"I'm not, but that hybrida you guys are harbouring is" Heather replied.

"Woah- hang on wait... how do you even know we have a hybrida here?"

"You know how I don't agree with like... anything my brother does because he's well... deranged?"

"Yeah?"

Heather had been in a complicated situation ever since learning her true heritage, the fact she was a berserker and of all people Dagur the Deranged was her brother. For a while her teenage self felt some kind of obligation to at least try and understand him, but he proved to be just soo batshit insane and she made it clear she didn't want anything to do with his dragon hunting schemes. Especially since taming her own dragon and learning just how special and feel the human-dragon bond could be.

"Well, I still keep an eye on him. Just to be sure he's not going to try and kill me or any of my friends you know? I was doing some snooping, and I heard that one of his ships had attacked a trader ship and kidnapped a hybrida. But then a rivalling hunter ship attached THEM and they had to abandon it. They wanted to go back for the hybrida but they were gone when they came back to the wreck. And well... who else would be rescuing hybrida? That has Hiccup written all over it" Heather explained.

"Well you're right there, it was Hiccup who picked them up. So you're saying it's the berserker hunters behind (y/n)'s kidnap?" Astrid asked.

"That's their name huh? (Y/n), unique. But yes, it was Dagur. And he's stopping at nothing to find them, I don't know why he wants them. Maybe to kill? Or to force them to lead him to their homeland? But either way they aren't safe"

"Do they know they're here?"

"Not yet, but I don't doubt they'll find out. You guys are known for keeping dragons safe"

Heather was right, the whole archipelago knew that Berk was the home of the dragon riders, the safe place for dragons. And well, hybrida were half dragon. They needed to tell you and Hiccup ASAP, so it was off across the island to find you. You and Hiccup in question were at the blacksmiths, Hiccup having almost finished that armour he promised you and just needing some final tests to adjust everything. He'd had you try parts on, adjust them as needed, and try them on again all morning.

The shin guards and arm guards fit well, and the chest plate was near perfection. It came in three pieces, the front and two back parts that locked together to allow for your wings easy access in and out. They tied up at the sides holding everything together, and a the back part was slightly curved at the bottom to allow your tail where your spine ended free movement. You'd wear either thick leather pants or a battle skirt around the waist to protect your legs and still allow for movement. As for the helmet, that's what Hiccup was adjusting now.

You'd told him stories of your home land as he'd been asking questions, and the topic of armour had come up at some point. You explained that rather than horns like they had on Berk, helmets often had fringes down the middle to show ranking. Sometimes in red, sometimes in black and white. The size and positioning indicated the rank. It had given Hiccup an idea, to add a dragon decal at the top of the helmet that held up the fringe so you could have a part of your own culture in the Viking made and styled armour he'd made for you.

"Alright, try this" He said, holding the adjusted helmet up for you.

You slipped it on, your dragon horns slipping through the gaps on top and the tie under your chin to keep it stable on your head skilfully tied by by Hiccup. It was a lightweight but strong metal, lined with soft wool to keep warm and be more comfortable. You shook your head a little, testing it's stability and it stayed completely in place.

"Not too tight or heavy?" Hiccup asked.

"Nope, feels stable" you replied.

"Perfect, that's pretty much it then. All that's left is this"

He took a leather utility belt from his workstation, fastening it around your waist. A pocket for any trinkets you wanted to carry, a loop for a sword or knife and hook for a shield.

"We can easily add to the belt if you ever need more weapon room, but for now a loop and pouch should do the trick" he said.

That knife he'd found on the boat? That was yours. It was modelled after a sickle, and was surprisingly useful in a fight despite its shape. You didn't like to kill, a stab with a sickle wouldn't be enough to kill but it could wound very badly if you were in a time of crisis. And it was excellent for cutting ropes, crops and fabrics as well. A good survival tool to have. Hiccup as cleaned it up, and added it to your utility belt in the loop.

"Thank you for all this, you're way too kind to me" you smiled.

"Don't mention it, we don't want anything bad happening to you again do we?" Hiccup smiled back.

As if on ironic cue, you heard Astrid calling your names and when you turned you found her and another girl you'd not seen before rushing over with their dragons in tow.

"Heather!" Hiccup smiled upon seeing the raven headed girl with Astrid.

Oh, so this was Heather? You saw why Hiccup was teasing Astrid about potentially liking her. She was gorgeous.

"Hey Hiccup, sorry to immediately kill the mood but we've got a code red" she said.

"Oh gods- what now?" He replied.

Heather turned to you, giving you a bittersweet smile.

"I wish we could have met under nicer circumstances, I'm Heather, nice to meet you" she said.

"You too, I'm (y/n). The gang have mentioned you before" you replied.

"Hang on does this involve (y/n)?" Hiccup asked.

"It's Dagur. It was HIS ship that kidnapped (y/n). Well, one of them. He wasn't on it thank the gods, but there's no way he's just going to let a hybrida escape" Astrid said.

You'd admit you didn't really understand what was going on. You had no idea who this Dagur guy was, but if he was involved with the hunters that kidnapped you, it wasn't good news. As the girls explained everything to Hiccup, you felt a little lost taking in all this sudden information about people you didn't even know hunting you down. And admittedly your ears were ringing a bit as your anxiety spiked hearing the words 'dragon hunters' and your name in the same sentence. But you got the general idea, you were being hunted.

"That's- fuck, shit! That's not good, at all..." Hiccup sighed in frustration.

"We have time before they figure out (y/n) is here, but they'll definitely figure it out eventually. They know we're a home of dragons and any related creatures, they'll know to come here" Astrid said.

"I know, that's the one issue with being a known dragon sanctuary... fuck, ok (y/n)- don't freak out. We've dealt with this guy before, we'll figure something out ok? You're not going to be hurt again" Hiccup assured.

Even with your heart pounding at the scary news, you trusted Hiccup. If the man who tamed a night fury and loved dragons more than anything else on this earth was on your side, you'd be ok... right?