Title: We're here for you

Summary: Hiccup is still trying to get used to his prosthetic and not having an entire leg. Lucky for him though, when things get tough, his friends and Dad have his back.

Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Family

Rating: mild T for pain

Time-line: Two months after HTTYD 1

A/N: Hi guys! So I contemplated putting this with my HTTYD Requested Short Stories, but I really liked this one so thought I'd do it separately. I also think I'm going to make this longer, not sure how long, that kinda depends on how much you guys want. So let me know in the reviews if you want more, and I'll definitely do some!

Enjoy!

Hiccup opened his eyes, instantly realizing how downright awful he felt. His entire body ached, and his leg- or what was left of it- was giving a sharp pain whenever he moved. He felt oddly and unnaturally warm… but he pushed it aside to having been laying under the covers for so long. It happened from time to time. And the achiness… well he blamed that on the crash he and Toothless had endured the day before.

He glanced over at the window, groaning when he realized it was already morning. Seemed like it had only been minutes ago when he'd laid down… but then again it wasn't that far off. He'd stayed up late last night trying to repair Toothless's tail fin after a little spill they took yesterday. Luckily, he and Toothless had made it out of the crash with only minor bumps and bruises, but Toothless's tail fin had been destroyed.

Hiccup pushed himself into a sitting position, wincing as he moved his leg to swing over the side of the bed. He looked about the room, hoping to see Toothless nearby, but the dragon was nowhere to be found. Probably out looking for some food.

Hiccup stumbled to his foot, making his way to the chair in the corner where he'd foolishly tossed his leg the night before. Hiccup stumbled, and fell against the chair, turning around so he could strap the prosthetic on. After doing that, he proceeded to change into a heavy green woolen shirt- the only dye colored shirts he had. Dye was rare to come by, so Hiccup had just stuck to the easy color- green.

Hiccup shivered, hating how cold it was in his room. Usually Toothless kept it fairly warm by waking up a few times in the night and sending a warm blast into the fireplace, lighting it on fire and warming the room for a few hours. But since Toothless had left, the hearth was stone cold as was the room. Hiccup shivered again, rubbing his hands on his arms as he limped his way to the stairs.

He stared down them, gnawing on his lower lip as he tried to build up the strength and desire to make it down the multiple stairs. He took a deep breath before placing his good leg on the top step, hesitantly bring his other half-medal leg to copy it.

Hiccup was doing fine until the fifth step, when his leg went out on him for an unknown reason. Hiccup reached out to the wall to steady himself, but he crumpled to the ground anyways. Thankfully he only had about five steps to go so he didn't fall very far.

He heard scuffling come from behind him, and he sighed, already knowing who it was.

"Hiccup!? Are you alright, son?" Stoick's voice asked in concern as he hurried over, reaching down and helping his son stand. Hiccup leaned against the wall, kicking out his bad leg in half anger, half embarrassment.

"Dumb leg." Hiccup murmured. He smiled at his Dad, hoping to calm him down. "I'm fine Dad. Just… tripped."

Stoick's face softened and he patted Hiccup's back softly- which actually wasn't as soft as it could've been since this was Stoick, he was strong and didn't really realize how much so when it came to his smaller son. Hiccup still felt the strength in his Dad's hand, even in that soft gesture. It comforted him- in a strange way. It made him feel protected- like he wasn't alone. That his Dad was really there. That he wasn't going to leave. That he'd stay and protect him from any danger. Even from just falling down a few steps.

"You sure you don't want your bed back down-"

Hiccup shook his head, "No, really I'm fine Dad. I've got to get used to it anyways." He reassured. He pushed himself away from the wall, removing his hand. He limped heavily to the table, gripping onto it lightly as he passed. Hiccup could feel his Dad watching him from behind at the steps. "Really… just fine!"

Stoick shook his head doubtfully. "Hiccup… I think maybe you should stay inside today. It's way below freezing temp out there-"

"I'll be fine. I've got Toothless." Hiccup reassured. "I-if you want… I'll even grab a cloak."

Stoick sighed, then nodded. "Alright… but be careful. And no stunts… alright?"

Hiccup's eyes averted and kept darting about the room, avoiding his Dad's gaze. "Uh… yeah! Sure."

"Hiccup…"

"I'll be fine, Dad. Don't worry."

"But I do." Stoick said firmly. His voice wavered, and he stepped forward, once again placing his hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "I… I can't lose you again."

Hiccup stared at the ground, blinking in a mixture of joy and shock. His Dad didn't want to lose him… and the tone of his voice revealed why. He loved his son, and didn't want to lose him. The crack in his voice said "I love you and I can't stand to lose you again."

If only his Dad would just say that. It seemed his Dad thought that saying those three words of "I love you" were just sissy stuff- not things a Viking should say. But Hiccup wasn't any ordinary Viking… and he craved to hear the words for himself. He wanted to hear his Dad say he loved him, that he was happy Hiccup was there. To hear those words would mean… so much. More than his Dad probably knew.

Hiccup pushed his Dad's hand off his shoulder, continuing to stumble towards the door. "Eh, don't worry! Toothless won't let anything happen to me. Besides, I'll be hanging out with the gang today, so won't be alone."

That seemed to calm Stoick down somewhat, and he finally nodded. "Alright. But remember. Be. Careful."

That warm feeling spread through Hiccup's chest again, and he just felt so happy. His Dad actually cared. It was so obvious, and it filled Hiccup with joy.

"Thanks Dad."

Hiccup stepped outside, grabbing a fur jacket on the way. He took in a deep breath of the fresh, cold air, exhaling heavily before shivering. He rubbed his bare hands against the thick fur of his jacket, giving a little shiver and let out a puff of air that left fog in the air before his face.

He was once again met by stairs. He groaned and thought for a moment about just going around them, but then it was a steep hill full of snow. That didn't look all that welcoming either. He figured he'd have better luck with the steps, so took a deep breath before carefully making his way down the hill. Again, as soon as he reached the fifth step, his leg gave out on him. He let out a yelp, reaching out and grabbing the stone wall to keep himself from toppling down the remaining steps. He let himself slide to the ground with a weak groan, sitting on the step as he tried to catch his breath. He reached down and rubbed his leg, trying to get it to cooperate.

He heard a little coo come close beside his ear, and he lifted his head to see a black, scaly snout. He smiled thankfully.

"There you are." He said in mock annoyance. "About time you showed up, you useless reptile."

Toothless gave what sounded like dragon laughter before jumping off the stone wall and onto the steps. He stepped closer to Hiccup, nudging Hiccup's bad leg with his nose. He looked up at Hiccup worriedly, his green eyes wide in concern.

Hiccup rubbed Toothless head before fixing his gaze back on his leg. "Naw, its nothing, bud. Just my stupid leg…"

Toothless cooed before turning and jumping up a few steps, then swinging his head around and nudging his head under Hiccup, practically tossing the boy onto his back. Hiccup laughed, trying to ignore the sharp pain that seared through his injured leg. He fixed his prosthetic slowly into the stirrup, wincing when the pain came stabbing again. He placed his other foot in the other pedal, before giving Toothless a little nudge, the dragon immediately running and leaping into the sky.

Hiccup gave a gasp as the cold and harsh wind hit him full blast in the face. He ducked his head close to Toothless's neck, Toothless's head blocking some of the air flow. He should really think about making a helmet to protect himself from this stinging wind.

The two flew high above the buildings of Berk, the Vikings below nothing but small specks. Hiccup noticed quite a few dragons that flew low and right above the roofs of Berk, but that was all. He and Toothless were alone up high in the clouds, while the sun took its sweet old time in climbing higher into the sky.

After a half hour of flying around Berk, Hiccup turned Toothless and the two headed back to the Great Hall where Hiccup was going to meet up with the others. He also wanted to grab something to eat real quick- seeing as how he'd left the house before eating.

There were already quite a few dragons gather outside the Great Hall when Hiccup arrived, and he immediately spotted Stormfly, Hookfang, Barch, and Meatlug gathered in a small group, trying to block out the sharp breeze. It wasn't a strong wind, but it was cold, making it feel so much fiercer then it actually was.

Toothless touched gently to the ground, making a very smooth landing. The smoothest one they'd done yet. Hiccup was getting better at maneuvering the tailfin- getting used to his prosthetic being his new foot. Well, in the sky anyways. He was still having a hard time on the ground.

Hiccup gasped when his prosthetic touched the ground, surprised by how painful it was. He gripped Toothless's saddle for a few moments more, wondering if he would be able to put any weight on his leg at all. He tested it, crying out weakly when a sharp, hot pain raced up his leg and into his spine. It hurt. A lot.

"Okay, okay, okay." Hiccup whispered to himself. "Just breathe… take it easy." He inhaled deeply, then released Toothless's saddle. Toothless didn't step away though, instead looking back at Hiccup with a worried croon.

"Okay." Hiccup murmured again. "I'm okay." He said to Toothless. The dragon didn't look convinced though, instead just giving Hiccup a very doubtful look.

Hiccup grabbed the Great Hall stone wall, wincing as he limped up the last step. He grabbed the handle, fumbling with it as he pushed it open.

He was met by a burst of warm air, and it made him sigh in relief. He hadn't realized he'd actually been so cold until he was in a warm interior. Now, the Great Hall would never have been this warm in winter's previous. But now that they had dragons, the Great Hall was almost constantly heated. There were about five dragons always inside, and that was all Stoick allowed inside on a regular basis. Sometimes more if the weather was really bad, or if it was a special occasion. Or if it was really cold, and they needed more dragons in order to keep the entire Hall warm.

Hiccup spotted the others almost right away, so tried to hurry over to the table. He hated how badly he was limping, but he was lucky he was able to walk at all. He was having a hard time doing just that as it was, he almost felt like getting down on fours and crawling. But no, he'd never do that. Limping was embarrassing as it was.

Fishleg's was the first to spot him coming, and lifted a hand and waved, a happy smile on his face. His wave caught the attention of Astrid, who was sitting beside him. She also smiled eagerly, waving her hand in a gesture for him to come and sit beside her. The twins and Snotlout, who sat opposite of her and Fishleg's, and had their backs to Hiccup, all turned around when they noticed he'd arrived.

Hiccup didn't miss the worried look Astrid gave him when she noticed his limp, but he chose to ignore it. He didn't want to talk about it anyways… he was a Viking. Viking's didn't dwell on pain.

"Look who finally decided to show up!" Snotlout exclaimed, rolling his eyes. The twins snorted, then resumed their argument over who was uglier. Hiccup ignored them too, for it was a normal occurrence for the two siblings to be arguing.

Hiccup collapsed on the bench beside Astrid, his breathing heavier then he'd had liked. He hurried to get it under control, the entire time Astrid staring him down. He finally looked up at her when she shoved a plate piled high with food in front of him.

"Eat up. I picked out all the food… lots of good meat and vegetables. We need to get some meat on your bones." She explained. Hiccup smiled at her.

"Thanks." He took a bite, nodding in contentment. "But I don't really know if you guys could take any more of this… raw… Vikingness…"

Astrid laughed, interrupting him from continuing. Hiccup grinned at her, liking the sound of her laugh. He'd never heard it before, and it brought a warm feeling to the pit of his stomach. He wanted to hear her laugh again, but wasn't sure how to go about it.

Hiccup's grip tightened around his fork, his breath hitching his throat as the pain came stabbing again in his leg, all thoughts of Astrid or anything else fleeing his mind. All he could think about was trying to breathe, and not throw up his food when the nausea hit him full force. The warmth crashed against him like a wave, and he gasped in shock. His leg felt like it was on fire… and the pain was racing up and down his leg and spine. He'd never… no never felt anything like this before.

"Hiccup?" He faintly heard Astrid's voice say, somewhere in the murky darkness. His mind reeled, only focusing on the pain. Gosh, the pain…

"Hiccup!" Astrid shrieked, and it was only then that Hiccup felt himself falling. Falling… falling… falling…

Pain. Then blackness.

See you in the next chapter! :D Please follow, those really help me along. Also, go check out my other HTTYD stories if you haven't already. Tootles for now!