All for a Kiss 14

Unlike many of the previous Hooligans who suffered through the Eel Pox it took Hiccup a little longer to heal. It could have been his broken arm hampering him or it could be because he caught a flu on top of the sickness. Whatever the case his immune system wasn't what it should have been. He slept most of the day in Stoick's arms, refusing to move or let him go other than to eat – which was very little – or use the privy and even then he wanted his father with him. He had many nightmares that would wake him up screaming and calling for him mom. It was like when he was very small and wanting his mommy and getting distressed because all the other kids had mothers and he didn't. Stoick stayed by his side and soothed him throughout it all, ignoring his chiefing duties in favor of helping his only child heal. And Gobber stayed with them, making sure they both ate even if it was only a little and taking care of daily household chores. Astrid helped where she could, making sure Toothless got to stretch his wings and had plenty of fish and singing softly to Hiccup when he fell asleep long enough for Stoick to stretch his legs or talk to visiting tribesmen either about tribe business or checking in on Hiccup. Fearing another outbreak of Eel Pox Stoick refused to let any of them inside and did his best to keep his distance since he was the one in the most contact with Hiccup and most likely to contract it again. By nightfall he felt more worn off his feet than a whole day battling dragons, Outcasts or Berserkers even if they were all combined.

Astrid insisted on spending another night to help out if Hiccup had another rough night. At some point during the night the fever finally broke and Hiccup slept peacefully on Stoick's large bed, curled up next to his father's large frame, his good hand curled into the thick red beard and face pressed against Stoick's shoulder. That was how he woke early the next morning before anyone else. The need to pee was almost overwhelming and it drew Hiccup's attention better than a temperamental Toothless on a Dragon Root fix. He struggled to get up but a heavy arm was thrown haphazardly over his waist, pinning him down. It wasn't much of a deterrent, Hiccup may be slight of build but he had ages of experience wiggling out of tight situations – literally in this case. The moment he was out from under his father's arm Stoick rolled onto his back and began snoring loudly, subconsciously knowing Hiccup didn't need him anymore.

The young heir smiled at his father. He could count on one hand the number of times he had woke up in his father's bed since he was eight and still have fingers left over. Stoick only ever let him sleep with him if he was deathly ill and while Hiccup caught the flu easily in the winter it was rarely anything serious enough to warrant climbing into bed with his Dad. Nonetheless Hiccup didn't let a rare opportunity pass him, regardless of his bladder. Ignoring the pain in his obviously broken arm – he'd have to ask about that later – he shuffled closer to his father and placed his head against his father's wide chest, just above his heart. The steady rhythmic thumping of his mighty heart was a comfort Hiccup rarely got to indulge it. It was a sound that gave him courage and eased his fears as a little boy and it still did. He could lie against his father and listen to that might heartbeat forever.

Sadly, his bladder didn't agree. It was too cold to run outside to use the outhouse and as much as he didn't like using his father's chamber pot he pulled it out from the far corner and quickly did his business, thankful his prosthetic foot was still connected to his leg. Of course trying to do his business was a little tricky with only one operational hand. Thankfully he only had to pee, doing the other would have been problematic.

Once he was fixed up he debated between climbing back into bed next to his Dad or finding Toothless and going for a morning flight. Something told him he had slept long enough and another said Toothless was probably sound asleep in his nest and wouldn't be up for a few more hours judging by the fact it was pitch black outside and the chill air smelt crisp like fresh fallen snow. Toothless hated waking up too early on a winter morning, not that Hiccup blamed him. He'd rather hide under his heavy furs until the sun was high and warming the air before so much as peeking outside his window.

The smell of cooking food caused his belly to grumble hungrily. Hiccup pushed back the hanging furs that separated his father's room from the main living quarters. He followed to smell to the kitchen and was happy discover Gobber bent over a large steaming pot.

"Gobber!" Hiccup said cheerfully, limping toward him. He had to adjust the prosthetic but at that moment he didn't care, he was absurdly happy to see his mentor.

"Shh…" Gobber reprimanded, holding a finger to his lips but there was a big goofy smile on his face and he opened his arms to the boy. Hiccup was as close to having his own son as he was ever going to get and he held the boy close when they hugged. After a minute or so he pulled back and looked the youth over. "You're looking quite a bit better. You had us all worried, laddie."

Hiccup gave a shrug. "You know how I am when I'm sick," he said offhandedly as if it was nothing.

Gobber only laughed. "Ah…but Eel Pox is not the flu. I'm sure your father and I now have enough stories to tell your great grandchildren for years to come."

Hiccup gave him a perplex look then glanced toward his father's room. "I don't think I want to know, do I?"

"Most of it probably not," Gobber agreed as he poured Hiccup a large bowl of soup. "Fresh, just made a new batch. Figured you'd be hungry when you woke up. You've gone from eating like a famished Hotburple to being pickier then…" His voice lowered as if telling a secret and glanced upwards to the loft. "Anyone wise enough not to drink Astrid's yaknog."

The youth quickly hid his grin. "I couldn't have been that bad."

Gobber only returned his grin as he placed the bowl in front of him. "So I take it you don't remember anything that happened while you were sick?"

Hiccup poked at the soup, happily inhaling the smell. "No…" A small frown tugged at his lips. "Please tell me I didn't go crazy and start running around acting like a dragon. Dad teased me for days after he recovered that if I got it I'd be a mini Toothless or Terrible Terror or something running around trying to blow things up. Almost as bad as that whole Changewing training incident."

Gobber chuckled. "No…not quite that bad but I'm sure you gave Dagur a good scare."

"Dagur?"

"Aye. Seems the little bugger set a few fires and kidnapped you. You ended up in the tunnels of Outcast Island talking Dragonese."

Hiccup's face paled. "He heard me speak Dragonese? Gobber, that…that…oh sweet Thor…if he didn't have a reason to attack us before he does now! We need to prepare the warriors and heighten the defenses. Dagur's going to use this against us."

"No you sound like your father. Relax, lad, it's been taken of. Your dad's not going to let anything happen to you."

They were quiet for a few minutes, both lost in their own thoughts as Hiccup poked at his food, no longer hungry. "Is that why I was in bed with him?"

Gobber tilted his head to one side. "Well that and the fact you kept calling for your mother. He's barely had any rest in three days."

"Oh…"

"Don't listen to him, Hiccup," a gruff voice called from the bedroom. A moment later Stoick stumbled out looking as if he could use a few more hours of rest. "I've had plenty of rest. How are you feeling, my boy?"

"Better I guess."

Stoick's head bobbed up and down. "Good, good. You're arm?"

"A little sore."

Again Stoick nodded before pulling out his chair and plopping down on it. "Hmm…might need to wait a little longer."

"For what?"

Stoick glanced up at Gobber as the other man set a bowl of soup before him. "You didn't tell him?"

"It must have slipped my mind," the blacksmith said in embarrassment. "Hiccup, your father and I were talking and-"

"We're going on vacation," Stoick said quickly before Gobber could ruin his surprise.

Hiccup blinked and looked from one man to the other then back. "What?"

"A family vacation like what we did when you were little," Stoick continued, beaming proudly. "Anywhere you want."

"I don't understand. Am I dying?"

Stoick gave a bark of laughter and covered his son's small hand with his much larger one. "No, son, although you did give me a bit of a scare. Gobber made me realize that it's been a long time since you and I really had any descent father/son time so I decided we'll take a little trip. Maybe visit the mainland or explore the inner isles?"

"Just you and me?"

Stoick shrugged his massive shoulders. "And Toothless of course. Well Thornado, too. I highly doubt Toothless would want to carry us both such a distance."

"Okay… Did I hit my head when I broke my arm?"

"No."

"The Eel Pox didn't destroy my mind, did it? Or am I imagining all this?"

The chieftain rolled his eyes. "Hiccup…"

"So just you and me camping for a…week?"

"For the most part."

"Anywhere I want?"

"Yes."

"So if I said I want to explore Flashburn's castle you'll agree?"

"I suppose."

"Or sneak onto Berserk and investigate the old city in the trees you'll do it?"

"I might have to put limitations on your choices."

"If I want to hunt for trolls you'll join me?"

"Hiccup, there's no such thing as trolls," Stoick objected and began wondering if his son was indeed well or if this was just another symptom of the Eel Pox.

Hiccup glanced to Gobber and grinned when his mentor mouthed "Yes, there are."

Stoick glared at Gobber. "You're a big help."

"Aren't I?" the older man teased.

Rolling his eyes once more, Stoick sighed looked back at Hiccup. "And you can bring a friend."

Hiccup's face fell. He knew what that meant. "Snotlout?" he groaned. He was often stuck bringing his cousin with him which meant he had to do whatever Snotlout said since he was older and usually in charge of keeping Hiccup out of trouble when abroad.

"Why in Thor's name would you want to take him?" Gobber asked in disgust.

"Gobber!" Stoick snapped before focusing on his son. "I was thinking more of the lovely young lady presently commandeering your bed."

Now Hiccup was confused. Who on earth would be in his bed? He glanced at the ceiling above him before looking back at his father and guardian. They both smiled broadly at him. Neither had to say a word, he sort of got it, at least he was sure he knew who they meant. "Really? What about the Berserkers? If Dagur knows about me speaking Dragonese…"

"Don't worry about it. As for Astrid…If her parents agree then yes," Stoick answered, his voice full of warmth and eyes gentle. "Gobber's coming as well to keep me company when you two run off."

"No getting hitched," Gobber warned, shaking a bog finger at him.

It took a moment for it all to sink in but when it did Hiccup smiled wildly and pushed away from the table. He forgot to fix his prosthetic and hurried toward the stairs. It was a little early to wake Astrid up and he might very well get hit but it was worth it if she could go with him on this little vacation.

He paused at the top of the stairs and stared at the girl in his bed.

There was a girl in his bed.

His bed!

He stared at her for a moment, wondering at her beauty and the way her hair had come out of its braid to fan out messily over his pillow and across her face. She was breathtaking. He almost turned around and went back downstairs, not wanting to wake her but it seemed Toothless had other plans.

The Nightfury's ears perked up when he heard the familiar clank of Hiccup's metal foot. His greengage eyes opened wide and his head shot up before giving a happy chirp and bounding toward his little brother. The clomping of Toothless's feet instantly woke Astrid up and if that wasn't enough Hiccup's sudden laughter as he tried pushing his best friend away from him to avoid yet another tongue bath did.

"Okay, okay…I'm fine!" Hiccup laughed in Dragonese before pressing his face against the Nightfury's. "This must have been as weird for you as it was for me when you ate that eel." He ran his hands over the large black head and closed his eyes, feeling at ease with his dragon brother.

"Hey, you're looking better," Astrid called with a wide yawn. She hid it behind a hand before laying her head back on the pillow. "How to you feel?"

"Much better." He ducked under Toothless and made his way toward her. "Hey, ah…strange question…"

"Can't be stranger than the last couple of days," she joked, gazing at him with a sleepy smile.

"That bad?"

She shrugged.

"Okay…have you ever been to the mainland?"

"No."

He sat on his knees to meet her gaze evenly. "Do you think they'd object to you coming with me and my Dad on a vacation?"

"What?"

"It's a long story."

"Okay…I guess." She stared at him with half hooded eyes, a tiny smile tugging at her lush lips.

"What?" Hiccup asked, finding himself getting lost in her pretty sapphire gaze.

She hummed softly and reached out to brush back a strain of hair hanging over his eyes. "I forgot who cute you were as a kid."

"You didn't like me when we were kids," he pointed out. She had pretty much ignored him throughout their childhood because he was so different from the other Viking children.

"I liked you. I just didn't understand you." She leaned forward while at the same time her hand slipped behind his head to draw him closer.

He pulled back. "I'm not sure if I'm all better yet. I don't want you getting sick again."

Her smile grew as she pulled him to her. "It's worth it."

A grin lit his face and he met her half way. Their lips touched in a tender kiss before slowly deepening to something far more passionate sealing their relationship as official boyfriend and girlfriend and any possible illness one gave the other would be dealt with together just like any other situation they would face. Together they could face anything.

. . .

Back on Outcast Island a strange occurrence was happening, something Dagur had never seen before and was panicking over. Warriors both Outcasts and Berserkers were falling ill due to some mysterious ailment. It started with the old man and quickly passed through one man to another until nearly half his forces were too sick to fight. He wasn't sure the cause but somehow he was certain it was Hiccup's fault. The strange growls and snarls of Dragonese had to be it but he wasn't sure how. There was no force he knew of that could make grown men into mumbling idiots.

Dagur's men weren't the only ones sick. Alvin the Treacherous hid in the caverns deep underground with a heavy fur wrapped around him as he plot a way to capture Big Mama. His head hurt and eyes kept unfocusing and he wasn't sure exactly what language he was speaking because when Mildew hobbled down nothing they said to each other seemed to make any sense. He blamed Hiccup for his illness and cursed the boy for making him sick. He never got sick. Once he had his hands on the boy again he'd make him suffer for doing this to him…or…or…

He gave a mighty sneeze and hung his head. Maybe he would just lie down and forget about dragons and teens and sleep for a little while. He could always make Hiccup train his dragons next time. If there was a next time.

He was pretty sure he was dying.

The End