A/N: So here it is, the last chapter. Have fun. ;)

Epilogue

(3 years later)

Lissy

When Lissy opened the door to Hiccup's workshop, she was greeted by a stream of unashamed curses. She allowed herself a short grin before she stepped inside to try and calm her father down.

"This thing is horrible! It doesn't work, it must be broken! This shouldn't be so hard, it's just a stupid strip of cloth, for Thor's sake!" Hiccup swore to himself and ran his fingers through his hair. It looked like he'd done so already multiple times and Lissy thanked the Gods that her father's hair was untamable anyway. There wouldn't be enough time left to style it anew right now.

"Do you need any help with this?" She asked cheerily and smirked when his head whipped around, startled. Typical, he was so absorbed that he hadn't even heard the door.

"No, thanks!" He replied sourly. "I should be able to tie a simple bowtie, shouldn't I? It can't be that hard…" He angrily scowled at the instructions, sighed and tried it again. Lissy leaned against the wooden workbench, arms crossed and an amused expression on her face while she watched him. Of course, he was able to tie a bowtie. He was a genius, his mind capable of the most astounding constructions. A simple bowtie was no challenge for him. Except on a day like this…

Today, his nerves were on edge so, naturally, nothing would be easy that was more demanding than tying a bow. Or, well, obviously, even that was too difficult today. But right now, he wouldn't accept any help so she just waited. Her gaze wandered around aimlessly, over the screws and nuts that still lay around from when Bran had wanted to watch daddy work the other day. Absentmindedly, she began to sort the pieces back into their boxes while she remembered that one other day her father had been equally on edge if not even more so.

"Astrid, are you sure you don't want me to call an ambulance? You… is this really normal? Do you need anything? A glass of water? Do you want to sit down again? Gods, I need to call the hospital! Tell them we're coming… Where is my phone?"

Lissy jumped up, picked up Hiccup's phone from the kitchen counter and handed it to him while Astrid leaned heavily on the couch's backrest and breathed through another contraction.

"I'm fine!" she hissed in between two breaths, the pained expression on her face contradicting her words. "And no, no ambulance and no water! Just… get me to the car, will you?"

"Right… car…" Hiccup grabbed his car keys from the board and hurried back to Astrid's side. For a moment, he looked out of place, insecure about how and where to touch her without hurting her further. He'd been through this so many times, they all had been! Did the contractions come regularly? Yes, definitely! How regularly? About every ten minutes. It was time!

But while Hiccup was still running around like a headless chicken, Astrid at least stayed calm. Or as calm as one could be, considering the obvious pain she was in. She grabbed Hiccup's arm, laid it around her waist and placed her hand on his shoulder to have something to hold on to. "Stop it!" she chided and Lissy guessed that, if the situation would have been different, Astrid would have laughed. "Car! Now! Lissy can call the hospital while we're on the road."

Hiccup gulped and made a visible effort to calm down. He glanced up at her and Lissy nodded. "Go ahead!" She reassured them. "I just need to get my phone but I'll be faster than you anyway" Astrid nodded shortly, the pain of another contraction clearly visible on her face before she pulled Hiccup along and out of the door a couple of seconds later.

Lissy disbelievingly shook her head. Who would have thought that Hiccup, who was always cool and composed no matter the circumstances, would lose his nerves like this just because Astrid went into labor! It was the most natural thing in the world, for Odin's sake!

With a light chuckle, she got her own phone from her room, grabbed Hiccup's apartment-keys from the board and Astrid's prepacked bag from its place near the entrance door and followed her parents out of the building.

Time to become a big sister!

Lissy smiled to herself. Yeah, on that day two and a half years ago, her dad had been equally disarranged. And just like then it was kind of funny, for her at least.

"Alright, I give up!" suddenly came his sulky exclamation. "Could you help me? Please?" Lissy bit back a grin as not to tease him further and stepped toward him. "Remind me, why am I wearing one of these again?" he asked, frustrated as Lissy had it tied correctly within a minute.

"Because bowties are cool, dad!" She reminded him with a grin, knowing he wouldn't be able to resist grinning as well at that quote.

"Right…" As predicted, Hiccup's lips twitched suspiciously. "Thanks! What would I do without you…"

Lissy pretended to honestly think about that. "You'd probably still be running around in circles because Bri jumped off the table, pretending to be a dragon while mom would still be lying on the floor, laughing?"

She had started to call Astrid and Hiccup mom and dad shortly after she'd become a big sister. The awkwardness of the first months had been gone by then and it would have been weird to use their names while baby-talking to Bri and Bran when they were all family. It still had taken a while to get used to it but ever since the twins had started to talk as well, those terms came naturally.

Hiccup gave her a flat look at the reminder of that incident but didn't react otherwise. Instead, he tugged at the sleeves and collar of his tux, nervousness already resurfacing, though luckily not as bad as before. "Am I presentable?" He asked with a crooked smile and Lissy nodded.

"Perfect!" she decided and nodded toward the door. "Let's get going, the others are all waiting already!"

Hiccup

With a sigh, Hiccup followed Lissy out of his workshop and into the living room. Automatically, his eyes wandered to the right, to Astrid's former walk-in closet that now held their bedroom. Where she was right now, getting ready as well. His heartbeat quickened at the thought and hastily, he turned away to distract himself. He'd waited to see her like that for more than three years, or for his entire life if he was honest with himself. He would survive waiting for a few minutes longer…

He let his eyes move on and noticed Valka sitting on the couch, her eyes flickering through the room, and Fishlegs standing by the DVD shelf that covered that part of the wall, sifting through Astrid's collection. The combination of just these two here was a bit unusual but aside from that, it could have been a completely normal Saturday afternoon judging by how calm the scenery in front of him seemed. Well, almost…

"No!" Lissy's panicky voice tore him out of his thoughts and his head whipped around. There wasn't much that could make her sound like this. "Bri, stop. Stop!" Hiccup only registered a bluish blur swishing through the room before Lissy picked up what looked like a ball of pink fluff off the kitchen counter and he relaxed again. Danger averted, from the girl and the cake...

"Brianna Carina Haddock! You know you're not allowed to climb on furniture anymore! One broken arm was enough, don't you think?"

"But Sissy….," the small girl whined. "There's chocolate cake! I want chocolate cake!"

Hiccup watched the scene with a bemused smile. Honestly, what would they do without Lissy? When they'd learned that there wasn't just everything alright with Astrid's pregnancy but also that she was pregnant with twins, their joy had been overwhelming! The pregnancy hadn't been easy for Astrid though and Lissy had been a great help already but after the twins were born, she became downright indispensable. Logically he knew it must be possible to cope with two babies at once without an additional pair of hands to help but practically, he couldn't imagine how that worked.

"Yes, there is chocolate cake," Lissy affirmed patiently. "Heather made it specifically for you, little devil. But it's for later, remember? For the party?"

"Oohh, party!" Bri squealed and clapped her tiny hands. "Mommy's and daddy's party! Now?" Her small head with the blond curled whipped around and her piercing blue eyes searched the room. When her gaze landed on Hiccup, her eyes grew wide and her small pink lips formed a perfect O. She fidgeted until she escaped Lissy's grip, jumped down – thankfully without hurting herself for once – and ran toward him.

"Pretty daddy!" She chirped as she threw herself into his waiting arms and ignored that everyone in the room began to chuckle. "I'm pretty, too! See?" She lifted her arms over her head, grinning up at him.

"Indeed you are, little princess!" Hiccup placed a soft kiss on the girl's forehead before he set her down on the floor again. "But where's your brother? Are you playing Hide and Seek again?" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Valka shaking her head and heard her mumbling to herself while she stood up and began to search the room more thoroughly.

"Noooo," she vigorously shook her head. "He's an explorer again! So boring…" With a groan, Hiccup buried his face in his hands for a moment while Bri skipped through the room to where the twins' box of toys stood. If Brandon Stoick Haddock was on an exploring expedition again, he could literally be everywhere! He was about to stand up again and summon everyone to join the search when Valka's voice sounded through the apartment.

"Found him!" She called and a moment later left the bathroom with a sulking but thankfully still clean Bran on her arm. "He wanted to explore the infinite distances of the shower, I think. He even brought provisions and a companion." She said in a light voice while the boy clutched his red cuddly dragon and a cookie to his chest.

Hiccup walked over to take his son out of his mother's arms. With his disheveled brown hair and gleaming green eyes, Bran was an exact copy of his father. Or so people kept saying. Hiccup himself couldn't see it, saw only the myriad of details that distinguished them but then, he hadn't been able to see himself in Lissy either when their resemblance had been striking enough for Astrid to know who she'd been immediately.

"I know you want to explore the whole world," Hiccup said in a low voice so only Bran could hear him. "But not today, bud. I need your help today, remember?" Bran's pout turned into a serious expression and he nodded once. Hiccup nudged his nose and said "Good man!" before he placed him on the floor. He watched as the boy ran toward his sisters, his Hoockfang soaring through the air to where Lissy's Tags and Bri's Stormfly were already involved in an epic dragon race.

As mature and grown-up as Lissy was on every other occasion, when she played with her little siblings she became the child she'd never been allowed to be, for those brief minutes at least. It was good to see her like this, carefree and relaxed and the twins clearly adored her. He hadn't noticed how troubled and anxious she really had been until around a year after the twins' birth she finally seemed to click into place. She seemed to have come to terms with her fate and with Carina's fate as well. No-one of them would ever forget her just like Hiccup and Astrid would always remember her parents, her mother Brenna in particular, and Uncle Gobber and even the to him unknown Stoick had a place in their hearts.

"You can be proud of them," Valka's voice suddenly sounded from beside him and he turned toward her. His mother was a tall woman, in fact even taller than he was but right now she seemed to be looking up at him nonetheless. "Of them and of your whole life here," she continued with shiny eyes. "You became an even better man than I ever could have hoped for. And your father would be every bit as proud as I am!"

Hiccup tried to swallow past the lump in his throat. "Thank you!" He whispered and they shared a genuine smile. After they finally, finally had come to terms in Carlo's Pizzeria all those years ago, Valka had plucked up her courage and had told him about his father, had answered all of Hiccup's question. About who he'd been, what he'd been like and what his dreams had been. It had been cathartic to finally learn about his father, even though Hiccup now regretted more than ever to never have met him.

"My sheep!" Bran cried and dove for one of the white cotton balls they used for their game, tearing Hiccup out of his melancholy thoughts. Right… Today was not a day to dwell on missed opportunities of the past. Today belonged to their future! After another fond smile at his playing kids, he turned again toward the door behind which his future was right now. Astrid was his future, his present, his past. She was everything!

He flinched when the door suddenly opened but it was only Heather, poking her head through the gap. She took a careful glance around the room and then threw him a measuring look before she nodded.

"Well done, Lissy!" she called out and earned herself Lissy's chuckle before she became serious again. "You're all here, good! Stay here! She'll be ready in five minutes!" And then she was gone again, the door firmly closed once more.

Hiccup's heartbeat accelerated. Five minutes… Only five minutes until...

Their official wedding would occur on the roof of the dragon's lair, as it behooved the new CEO of Dragonite Engineering. In the end, they had accepted that they wouldn't be able to shirk their responsibility on that topic. They were public figures, there was no way around it, affronting everyone wouldn't do them any favors in the long run. So he and Astrid had accepted Valka's suggestion in the end and his mother had spent a great deal of the last year by embellishing the roof-deck into their dream location. When she hadn't been occupied by her grandchildren that is… Hiccup had to admit it wasn't the worst option, not at all. Despite the great scale, the lair still felt almost like home to them. And being this high up in the air… Hiccup couldn't deny that it was exhilarating! It wasn't like flying, nothing compared to that. But it was the closest they would get for now and it had only taken one look into Astrid's gleaming eyes to know that she'd felt the same.

So, their wedding would be the great occasion they both hadn't wanted it to be after all. Everyone would be there, their colleagues and friends, business partners and members of High Society, politicians and celebs, the whole entourage. They had accepted that.

Which was why this moment now was so important. Seeing her as his bride, like he had wanted to see her, like he'd feared he never would. Seeing her like that for the first time, surrounded only by their family and closest friends as witnesses. It was this moment they would remember when they talked about their wedding when everyone commented on the beautiful location or the delicious food. It was this moment that mattered.

Hiccup hadn't noticed how everyone had stepped closer, not until a small hand tugged at his trouser leg and two short arms reached up to get carried once again. He obliged, unable to refuse Bri anything. She gave him an almost comically stern look and then began to knead his face like modeling clay. Confused, he endured the treatment but apparently, she wasn't satisfied. "Smile!" She ordered in her high pitched voice and he couldn't help but grin. How had he ever survived on his own?

The door to their bedroom opened once more and Hiccup flinched, heart racing again. But it was, again, just Heather, poking outside as to not let anyone get the slightest glimpse of the room behind her.

"Everyone ready?" She asked but didn't wait for an answer and slipped outside with a graceful move.

"Bri, come over here. You wouldn't want dad to drop you, right?" Bri giggled and climbed over his back into Lissy's arms. It was highly likely that she wasn't the only one chuckling at that comment, Hiccup thought he noticed Fishlegs' and Valka's laughter at least. Somewhere in the background…

He wasn't paying attention to them, his eyes glued to that door. He couldn't hear anything anymore, blood pounding in his ears, couldn't think with his mind so utterly blank. All he could do was stare at the door where Heather stood, her hand on the handle. She nodded shortly at him and then opened the door.

The world could have ended in that moment, could have exploded around him, he wouldn't have noticed. For there she was, his beautiful bride, his divine beauty, his Astrid. A detached part of his mind noticed that Heather and Lissy had been right, the dress was perfect. The way that wide skirt fell loosely around her lower half like an eternal waterfall, moving and flowing and how the bodice clung snuggly to her waist and breasts, it was breathtaking and one hundred percent Astrid.

But the far bigger part of him saw her. He saw her radiant smile and her gleaming sapphire eyes, just like he had seen them for all his life whenever he'd closed his eyes. And yet there was more. He saw Astrid, her beautiful soul, fierce and strong and unyielding, caring and warm and loving. And she was his. Just like he was hers, utterly and completely hers. She took a careful step into the living room and as cliche as it was, he felt like the whole room lit up. It was as if she was glowing from the inside, the joy and love on her face when she looked at him radiating through the room, engulfing him in her light. That's what she always had been after all. His light in the darkness.

Not that there was any darkness left. His whole life had become one of light and it was all thanks to her. She had turned him into the man he was now, a man a father could be proud of. He'd made it through his childhood as a shy and awkward boy without parents because of her, because she'd always been there for him. And he'd made it through the ten dark years of self-loathing and loneliness and pain where only the memory of her light had kept him alive. She'd been with him for these past five years, mending his broken soul and helping him overcome his fears just like she'd let him do for her as well. And she'd given him the family he had never dared to hope he'd ever have. Everything he was he was because of her. Because she was his light.

To Hiccup, it felt like an eternity had passed while they'd been gazing at each other, the perfect moment indeed. It actually was just that, a moment. But a moment that mattered.

"Woah, mommy, you look like an angel," Bran scuttled past him, undeniable awe on his round face. "When I grow up I wanna marry you!" This earnest statement earned the boy general chuckling and when he turned to look at the grinning people around him, Hiccup stepped toward him and leaned down to whisper into his ear.

"Sorry, bud, but she's taken!" He said, ruffled through his son's hair and took the last steps toward his bride. Astrid beamed at him, light amusement and sheer happiness dancing in her eyes as he lifted his hands to cup her face and kissed her with all the love he held for her.

Astrid

Astrid sat on the backseat of their car, her wide skirt taking up all the space and didn't let go of Hiccup's hand. He sat on the passenger seat in front of her with Fishlegs steering them toward the lair, while Heather and the kids drove with Valka.

It was so weird how all their relationships had changed during the last years. Or hadn't changed at some points. Hiccup had succeeded Valka as CEO one year ago or so but that hadn't changed much. It was still Heather who secretly ran Dragonite Engineering as a company while Hiccup spent most of his time planning out his projects. The representative part of his job had become more prominent though and as a result so had Astrid's. Not a fortnight passed without them attending one social event or another but by now, those weren't so hard anymore.

Most of those were charity events and being charitable wasn't hard anyway. Both Hiccup and Astrid had come to know the darker sides of life and now that they were in the lucky position to actually make a difference, they were both all too eager to help others. More than once, they'd even organized fundraising galas of their own to support those in need, for disabled people on Hiccup's part and for sexually abused women and girls on Astrid's. If they had to be involuntary celebrities, they were at least determined to make the best of it. And the fact that it served Dragonite Engineering's reputation as well, as Valka had once called it, was only secondary if even that.

It was good to have a small horde of potential babysitters though. Practically, Lissy would probably have been able to watch over two sleeping toddlers on her own but legally she was still too young for that. Luckily, neither Valka nor Heather and Fishlegs minded accompanying her when their parents were out working. Valka never got tired of helping Lissy with one of her school projects and while Fishlegs probably spent most of his time at their Play Station, Heather actually got along very well with the girl. Only Odin knew what they could be talking about for hours…

Now truly being their superior hadn't changed Hiccup or their friendship. If anything, it had become even deeper during the past months when Aunt Heather and Uncle Fishlegs practically had become an additional part of the family. They fit in perfectly with Grandma Valka, even though Fishlegs still seemed to be slightly afraid of her.

Astrid remembered well how three and a half years ago, she and Hiccup had considered themselves without any family to speak of. And now, their family filled two big cars…

A change in pressure on her hand tore Astrid out of her memories, Hiccup squeezing her hand. He'd turned around in his seat as far as possible to look at her. His emerald eyes were gleaming with the same joy she felt, too, his smile reassuring as always.

"Nervous?" He asked but Astrid just shook her head.

"Why would I?"

"This is kind of your thing, right?" Heather groaned and picked up Bran, who was about to run off into the park. Again! "Arriving at weddings at the very last minute? At least this one can't start without you so everyone has to wait until you're there. They can't simply start and hope you'll be there in time with the rings." Astrid poked her tongue out at her friend and Heather winked, handing Bran over to Lissy to get Bri's chocolate cake out of the trunk while Valka took her basket.

"Yeah, they are not the fastest sometimes…" Lissy mumbled.

Everyone had gotten a bit nervous during the last five minutes or so when the twins had jumped out of Valka's Range Rover the moment the door had opened and had started to play tag between the parked cars and on the adjacent lawn. Recapturing them had taken a while as always as the little devils were well versed in dodging hands by now. Everyone but Astrid, that was. Heather was right, after all, the registrar wouldn't start without them. And it wasn't like they were really late… Just… very punctual! And luckily, they made it to the lifts and up to the roof without further incidents.

"Okay, Legs?" Heather's voice had gotten her usual commanding tone that kept everyone in check, even Bri and Bran occasionally. "You take the cake and bring it over to the kitchen staff. They'll know what to do with it. Valka, you have everything ready?" The older woman nodded at her former assistant with an amused smile and placed her basket on the floor.

"Yes, ma'am!" She affirmed and handed the decorated flower basket to Bri while Bran got the small cushion with the loosely fastened rings.

"Okay... Lissy, you're keeping an eye on them?" Heather mock-glared at her little would-be niece and nephew but that wasn't really necessary. The twins had become serious already, staying close to their older sister.

"Yeah, don't worry. They'll behave."

Astrid observed these last preparations from the background, Hiccup's arms firmly around her waist as he stood behind her, his warmth on her back all the reassurance she needed. It was strange, she would have thought to be jumpier in a way at this point but she wasn't. On the contrary, she felt strangely relaxed, safe and secure in Hiccup's arms. He was there, there was nothing that could go wrong.

"Alright, I'll go and tell the registrar that you're ready. Wait for the signal." With these words, Heather followed Valka out into the open space of the roof garden, leaving the Haddocks behind.

The Haddocks. That thought made Astrid's heart glow. The twins had gotten that name directly, saving paperwork and Lissy had decided to take on that name then as well. Elisabeth was the name her mother had given her, she'd said, and she would keep it. But she was a Haddock now, a part of her father's family. It was only fitting for her to take his name as well. And today, Astrid would officially become a Haddock, too.

Maybe it wasn't really important. It was just a name, just a signature on a dusty piece of paper. It wouldn't really change anything, they were one family, they belonged together. And yet, it felt important to Astrid. Maybe because it was the last step of a long journey, the proof that, finally, they'd reached their goal to be one, in every sense. Or maybe it was just a breakpoint, an intermediate goal and now their next stage through life would truly begin.

Hiccup's arms around her tightened, drawing her in and reflexively, she snuggled closer against his chest. His lips brushed her ear and she shuddered as his breath on her neck gave her goosebumps.

"I love you…" she whispered and with a chuckle, he turned her around in his embrace to look at her.

"I love you, too!" He replied, smiling. "We wouldn't be here if it were otherwise"

"True… I just feel like I can't say it often enough. I love you!"

Hiccup's eyes softened, a knowing gleam in them. He leaned forward to touch his lips to her forehead. "I love you, I love you, I love you…" he mumbled.

Astrid chuckled at the tickling sensation but before she could reply again, the first chords of a soft violin tune waved toward them. She took a step back, interlacing her fingers with his as they turned.

"That's our cue!" Lissy said and kneeled down in front of the twins. "You know what to do?" Two small heads nodded, a serious expression on their round faces before the three of them stepped out and onto the long carpet.

"Ready?" Hiccup asked, beaming at her and she nodded.

"Ready!"

Together hand in hand, they followed their children at a small distance. There had never been a question as to how this moment would occur. There was no father of the bride to lead her toward her waiting groom and not just because her father couldn't be here anymore. Valka or Fishlegs could have taken over that part but it would have felt artificial somehow. Astrid had always been independent and made her own decisions, she didn't need anyone to hand her over into the protection of someone else. She had chosen him on her own accord, not because he protected her but because he supported her and strengthened her in every way.

And then…

Astrid and Hiccup had always made their way together. They'd learned to walk and to talk together when they'd been toddlers, they'd been to their first movie together as kids and had fallen in love with each other as teenagers. And even when separated for years, their thoughts had never left the other one. They'd come this far together, it was only natural that they would make this way together as well. And they would stay together until the end.

Later, much later that day, Astrid sat in the vitreous balcony on one side of the roof garden. The walls, the floor and the small bench of this small gallery were made of safety glass, one of the alterations that had been made on her and Hiccup's request specifically. Not many dared to step onto it and look down the 50 floors into the deepness of the lair but to them, it was exhilarating.

Somewhere behind her, the music of their wedding party shifted into another song, their guests laughing and dancing. It wasn't that Astrid minded really, she would join them again soon.

Valka had taken the kids home for their sleepover in her house some while ago, Bri and Bran still bouncing around from excitement and a sugar rush alike. They hadn't been the only little ones at their wedding. The invitation had made clear this would be a family party and many others had brought their kids as well. But now, those were all gone, picked up by grandparents or babysitters. Now, this party turned into one of dancing and drinking and although Astrid wasn't aversed to either, she just needed a small break.

She heard steps coming closer and smiled to herself. The ever so slightly uneven sound of them had told her already that it would be Hiccup.

"Mind if I join you here?" He asked, handing her a glass filled with a colorful cocktail. Astrid took a sip and smiled as she tasted coconut and mango with a hint of peach schnapps.

"Not at all! I'd like to celebrate tonight, after all. Are you in?" She asked with a playful smile, repeating her own words from all those years ago.

Hiccup chuckled at her insinuation but played along. "Sure, why not. What do you have in mind?" He asked and took a big sip of his (alcohol-free) cocktail, staring at her intently over the edge of the glass.

Astrid scooted over on the small bench, clearing space so he could sit as well. "Do you like sushi?" she asked and on a whim's notice changed her position to sit sidewise on his lap.

She more felt than heard him humming beneath her, his arms closing around her in an instant, cradling her against his chest. "I don't know… I could give it a try, though," she heard him mumbling into her hair before they both began to laugh.

"Seriously though, I think there's still some sushi left," Hiccup said after a pause. "If you want I can bring you some."

She thought about it for a moment but then shook her head. She was satisfactorily full already, any more food would only become a nuisance later. Instead, she leaned her head against his shoulder, enjoying the moment while the music in the distance turned into a soft background tune and the DJ announced the next speech.

With a sigh, Hiccup nudged her up. "I think it's the mayor's turn." He said and made attempts to lift her off his lap. "It probably would be a good idea to listen to that one. I should go and-"

Astrid placed a finger over his lips, efficiently silencing him and gazed down at him with an alluring smile.

"I don't want you to go" She breathed and caught the knowing gleam in his eyes before she leaned down and kissed him.

-The End -

A/N: There it is, the promised Happy Ending! It might not be the last bit I wrote about this AU, there's still at least one story I'd like to tell someday, namely the one about Astrid's past. But not right now, she still hasn't told me everything about it yet... xD

And, woah, it's done! I can't believe it… Thank you all for your support, for continuing reading even when it became darker and for all your helpful and encouraging comments!

Special thanks go to IpperDragon, MistyHart44, and Kine for defending this story and always encouraging me to keep going, it surely was hard in between.

And, of course, the biggest thanks goes to ladyamethyst21. I'm not sure I would have had the strength and courage to finish this without you! ;)

Aside from 'Astrid's Diary', my next project is the continuation of what began as 'Hiccstrid all the way'. I want to try and pre-write that one as I'm still not entirely sure how this will work out and I wouldn't want to upload a story that might never get finished. That means it might take a while, though.

Aside from that: I very much enjoyed to write those few one-shots after prompts from you guys, so feel free to send me those if you want. I can't make any promises but if they spark an idea I'd happily write them!

Yours,

ShipMistress

And even though the story isn't new, I still read and appreciate every comment! ;)