Alright, since I'm not working on the weekends, I may be able to update… maybe. My boyfriend and I always hang out on the weekends, so there's a good chance I'll be busy.

Anybody who has not watched The Night and the Fury has got to be super excited for it because it is one of the best episodes I've seen! Not saying anymore, no spoilers.

Thank you all for your support; sorry for any typos I missed…

Disclaimer: I own nothing

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In Time of Need

Chapter 8

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Astrid helped lift Hiccup up onto Toothless' saddle, the struggle causing more pain than Hiccup wanted. Once on, he used what muscle he could to stay balanced and not fall back off. As soon as he was up, Astrid jumped on, sitting in front of Hiccup so she could steer Toothless. Wrapping Hiccup's arms around her torso and holding on to them with her left hand, she searched the stirrup with her foot until she heard a rewarding click, wiggling it around in order to check and make sure everything was set. Toothless twirled around and faced the ocean, wings spanning out.

Astrid turned over to Stormfly who stood off to Toothless' left, "Stormfly, follow." Astrid commanded, motioning her hand to better clarify. When Toothless jumped up into the air, Astrid turned the stirrup and Toothless flapped his wings to gain more height. Stormfly took flight, following Toothless as they made their way back to Berk; the moon full in the dark midnight sky.

Hiccup closed his eyes as his head unconsciously bowed; his hands clenching together tightly. Astrid felt the sudden contraction and glanced back at him.

"Hiccup, is everything okay?" The pulsating pain that seared through his body gave him little power to speak, his replies being only grunts.

"Toothless, level off!" Astrid hastily commanded. The ascent was stopped and Toothless leveled his flight pattern. He cooed and tilted his head back to see what was wrong with his Hiccup, worry evident in his eyes. The pain began to leave as the motions of Toothless' body smoothed.

"Hiccup…?" Astrid asked one more time, her head twisting back as far as it could reach. Hiccup's head was leaning against her back, his face concealed by her.

"I'm fine now," he answered in a low raspy voice.

"Are you sure? You don't sound okay…" Astrid pushed.

Hiccup opened his eyes and looked straight ahead, "Astrid…" Hiccup said weakly, his eyes becoming too heavy for him.

Astrid sensed this, "Hiccup, stay awake."

"…Astrid…"

"You have to stay awake for me—"

"Look…" Hiccup interrupted her making her turn her head straight. A group of dragons were traveling towards them, following below was a ship. Astrid's heart jumped down to her stomach as the first thing she thought of was Alvin and a group of his trained dragons, but her emotions calmed when she recognized a certain blue Thunderdrum and a certain Viking chief riding it.

"It's Stoick, and the others!" she called out happily, their predicament finally taking a turn for the better. Toothless roared with joy as well as Stormfly as the four of them flew over to the others.

Stoick spotted Toothless and Stormfly, a little worried about the fact that Astrid wasn't riding Stormfly and instead controlling Toothless' tail. As the two got closer, his heart dropped when he found that answer. His reaction, being his skin seemingly dropping its color as his eyes widened and his jaw dropped, was the same for the other riders as they saw Hiccup's beaten form. His head was resting against Astrid's back, face turned to the right. The rapped cloth and obvious cut on his temple turned on Stoick's fatherly instincts immediately.

"Hiccup!" he shouted, steering Thornado over so they were flying beside Toothless. Stoick got another look at his son and didn't like what he saw.

"What… happened…?!" Stoick demanded with severe anger.

"The Outcasts are what happened… Hiccup needs medical treatment quickly!" Astrid replied, more willing to share her story later. Stoick agreed and pointed down at the ship.

"Down to the ship." He ordered, Astrid nodded her head and led Toothless downward.

Landing on the wooden deck, Toothless limped slightly as he tried to rebalance his weight off of his injured paw. Astrid grasped both of Hiccup's arms, waiting until one of the passengers on the ship came up to them; Sven. Sven held his hands out, him and Astrid working together to get Hiccup off of the saddle as gently as possible. Astrid leaned his body downward, Sven catching him in a cradling position and carried him over to the mast. Astrid hopped off right when Thornado landed and Stoick jumped off. The other riders and dragons landed on the ship.

Stoick ran over to Sven and Hiccup, taking his son's limp form from the man and into his own arms. Stoick didn't move from his spot, instead knelt down on his knees and used them to pillow Hiccup's head as he laid him down on the deck. He looked him over again, his hand lightly touching Hiccup's cheek.

"What's wrong with him?" Stoick asked in a soft emotional voice.

"I'm not sure if he got his cuts from the crash, but when I found him and Toothless, they were trapped under a tree." Astrid answered her voice almost impassive when she recalled the details.

"Tell me everything that happened…" Stoick said as he looked at her with a stern expression.

Hiccup lay on the table near the forge's fire pit, a blanket draped over his lower body as his chest and midsection was covered with renewed bandages; his skin slightly pale. Stoick sat beside him assisting Gobber whenever he needed the help. His left hand held Hiccup's, occasionally his other would comb through his son's hair.

Hiccup's condition changed little when the accident occurred. The Outcasts, from what Astrid told him, did little to help—not that it was surprising—and despite the care and medicine already given to him when they got back to Berk, his body seemed to reject it. Hiccup has been unconscious since Stoick and the other dragon riders found him and Astrid; the only other time he remembered something like this was with the aftermath of the Red Death, when Hiccup lost his leg. There wasn't any signs of bone damage; he had numerous cuts and bruises on his skin, but nothing they couldn't handle. Why didn't Hiccup wake up?

Stoick kept asking this question over and over again in his head, his own face expression showing it as Gobber caught on. Setting down the wash cloth, he walked up to Hiccup and Stoick and placed his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Don't worry Stoick, he'll be fine." Gobber reassured him. Stoick didn't reply but instead closed his eyes and bowed his head. Gobber looked at his friend with sorrow, seeing Hiccup like this made him want to go kill a chicken, but he couldn't imagine Stoick's pain... his only son...

A small knock sounded off of the exterior wall of the forge. Walking over to the orange curtains drawn over the doorways and windows, Gobber peeled a flap back and found the teens standing outside.

Astrid brought her hand away from the wood from which she knocked on, Fishlegs, Snotlout, Ruff and Tuff standing behind her all sporting the same expression.

"Can we see Hiccup?" She asked, speaking for all of them. Gobber stepped aside and motioned them in, one by one they entered. As the kids came in, they each got a look at their closest friend.

"Whoa..." Snotlout said sorrowfully. He's seen people get beaten up before, but his cousin's wounds were more than bad.

Fishlegs squeaked, his hands coming up to his chest as he saw his friend lay in pain, his mind possibly lost in a limbo.

"Oh man..." Ruffnut said, her voice low as her and her brother looked at Hiccup's beaten body.

Astrid was the only one who understood the severity of the situation. Hiccup was near death the entire time they were trapped on Breakneck Bog. Being attacked by Smothering Smokebreaths, captured by the Outcasts, constant movement to his battered and sore body, Hiccup's condition wouldn't be as bad now if she had just been able to keep him still and out of harms way. She knew she couldn't blame herself, there wasn't much she could do with all that happened, but it didn't change the fact that she felt semi responsible.

She looked at Hiccup, then at Stoick, and finally up at Gobber whom she direction her question to.

"Do you think he'll be alright?"

"He'll be fine, might take a while for him to wake up, but he needs the rest. It's getting late, I'd let you all stay, but your parents will kill me if I let you stay up any longer." Gobber stated. All five of them sighed, but complied as they filed out, Astrid being the last. She got a last minute glance at Hiccup before she left the forge and headed home.

"Gobber," Gobber turned his head when he heard his name called, Stoick continued, "Can you help me bring him back to the house.?"

Gobber shook his head and uttered, "Of course Stoick."

"Thank you."

Stoick seemed impassive at the moment, but Gobber knew he was holding his anger, anger that would have to be released sometime soon. Until then, Stoick would be able to stay stable enough to function properly... and think clearly. He was stubborn and strong, two traits Hiccup clearly possessed as well.

As Stoick bent to pick Hiccup up, Hiccup's left hand tightened in Stoick's grasp and he looked down. Two forest green eyes looked back up at him, tired, half open, and full of pain, but his lips adorned a smile.

Stoick smiled back, carrying him out of the forge and up to the house with Gobber following with some supplies.

Hiccup was safe now, and everything was going to be alright.

Happy ending!

I honestly thought there was going to be more, but I was able to actually end it here. I'm in the process of creating another story, over the weekend I should be able to come up with the entire idea and possibly post the first chapter on Monday. Not sure what it's title is yet, but I'll put it up on my profile before posting.

Thank you all again for reading!