A/N: Hey guys! Had been a long time since I posted. Sorry, but there were personal issues that needed to be dealt with. So, I guess I had made a promise to a certain friend to write this fic. Although they told me not to mention their name. Sorry for taking so much time to finish it (I promised to write this one on November if I'm not mistaken). But at least I'm not late for New Year's.

A shout out to all of you loyal readers. Sorry if I had been on hiatus lately. I've said once that this semester is going to be a bit rough so please excuse me. I hope you'll be satisfied with this small piece I've managed to write just this morning. Thanks for Veyonce, his/her word encouraged me to write again and hopefully I'll continue being an author on ffnet.

This chapter is just a recount of Defenders of Berk: Live and Let Fly episode with a bit of alternate scene I imagined to happen. But a little more from Astrid's side and some fluffs and feels. You'll find out. On to the story...

And also, I've missed Cyclone20, HiccupHaddockLover, ZefronsAngel, and all of them who had supported me from the start. Thanks for those who followed and made this story his/her favorite. I wish the best for all of you.

Read and Review!

Summary: After an argument gone worse with his father, Hiccup decides to run away from the problems surrounding him. Can Astrid convince Hiccup to stay?

Disclaimer: I do not own How To Train Your Dragon, it respectfully belongs to Cressida Cowell and DreamWorks Animation Studios.

Leaving

"From this point forward, there is a ban on flying!" Stoick said sharply. His father's words struck Hiccup with shock.

"What?! What about patrolling? Training?!" Reasoned Hiccup.

"What part of ban on flying did you not understand, Hiccup?" Stoick retorted with irritated look.

"But that's— that's ridiculous!" Responded Hiccup angrily.

"I want that wall higher!" Shouted Stoick to a nearby construction Viking. He once again turned to his prestigious son. "Are you calling your father ridiculous?" Asked Stoick, who was running out of patience by the minute.

"Of course not. I would never call my father ridiculous," Hiccup gathered the courage to meet his father's gaze. "I'm calling my chief ridiculous." Taunted Hiccup in a sarcastic manner. Stoick sighed in exasperation before walking away from the debate.

"Careful son. You too, dragon." He said firmly before continuing his patrol on the docks.

"Dad, Alvin has his own dragons," Said Hiccup as he trailed behind along with Toothless. "Changewings, Scauldrons, Whispering Deaths— I-I saw them with my own eyes!" Stoick calmly faced his son and replied,

"Yes," His facial contour hardened in an instant. "When you were kidnapped and locked up in an Outcast prison!" Snapped him. Hiccup winced before continuing to reason with his persistent father.

"He's also read the Book of Dragons, he's seen Astrid train a Monstrous Nightmare, and, he still has Mildew, who—by the way—I'd really doubt will hold up under questioning." Bombarded Hiccup. Stoick stopped in his tracks and tried to reject his son's plea.

"Hiccup—"

"If Alvin learns how to train his dragons, and he attacks with them, our only chance is to fight back with ours." Stoick raised both hands and placed it upon Hiccup's tiny shoulders.

"I understand that," He fixated his eyes on Hiccup. "But I'm not going to risk your life or the lives of your other dragon riders!" He removed his large arms and brushed past his son. "This is my final word." Stated Stoick as Hiccup finally gave in to the situation. Hiccup frowned in desperation and released a sigh.

Later that night.

The moon is beautiful. I'm sure Hiccup would like to go flying in a night like this. Astrid's thoughts wandered over to the conversation she and the gang had had this evening.

It's definitely injustice to ban flying. What are we supposed to do now? She mused silently as she threw a fish at Stormfly. All of the sudden, she heard a familiar roar and Stormfly squawked in alarm.

"What is it Stormfly?" Questioned Astrid. She looked up at the sky and spotted a silhouette.

"A dragon!" She rushed outside of her dragon's pen and observed the figure more carefully.

"And someone's riding it." She noted. "Wait a minute," She paused as realization dawned on her. "That's a Night Fury."

She quickly saddled up Stormfly and took off to the skies. The cloud was covering her vision but thankfully the full moon made it easier for her to search her target. As she looked around, a shadow went past her and abruptly breaking her from her thoughts. She grabbed the saddle's front and motioned Stormfly to chase whoever that was.

"Alright, Hiccup. What are you up to?" She whispered to herself.

The chase went more intense as both Astrid and Stormfly and the mysterious figure flew around the sea stacks and maneuvered left and right while constantly going upwards and downwards.

"Come on. Come on!" She hissed in a low voice. They almost caught up with the person they were chasing when unfortunately the stacks of rock had ended and the figure gained the opportunity to fly higher. Astrid acknowledged in a flash and ordered Stormfly to keep chasing at a faster pace.

They flew past the outer boundaries of Berk and passed the lighting tower shaped as a giant Viking. After a while, Astrid lost track of the figure and landed on the rock axe of the stone Viking. Astrid cursed in defeat as she gave up on the chase.

"That was a close one." Hiccup muttered to his dragon. He spotted a nearby terrain and motioned Toothless to land.

"Nice flying bud." He rubbed his dragon's neck in appreciation. "I think we lost her." Hiccup said as he looked around in alert.

"Think again, Hiccup." Hiccup froze as the flapping sound of dragon wings approached him.

"Astrid! We were just talking about you…" Hiccup attempted to cover his stutter.

"So..." Astrid started while addressing the boy in front of her who was looking clearly anxious and a bit startled by her appearance.

"I guess this is the part where I ask if your father changed his mind," Astrid shifted on top of her dragon. "And you tell me he didn't," She raised her eyebrows in a fake surprise while still talking to Hiccup. "And you're going behind his back," She trailed off whilst rolling her eyes. "Again." Hiccup's eyes widened for a moment before responding,

"Actually… No. This is the part where I tell you my dad is wrong." He replied with half confidence.

"So, he…knows?" Astrid asked in quite amazement.

"I, didn't…say that," Hiccup turned his gaze to the ground. "Look, you were there on Outcast Island just like I was. You know what Alvin is capable of." He reasoned logically.

"So, you were just gonna fly around at night, all by yourself, and say nothing?" Astrid replied harshly. Hiccup's eyes landed on the horizon.

"That…wasn't my plan." He said quietly. Astrid stopped her ranting and listened carefully.

"I was…supposed to be running away. Not until you caught me though." Hiccup gave a ghastly chuckle before returning his somber look to the cold ground. Astrid was taken aback. Her Hiccup—well, not actually hers…yet—who always find a way to deal things with, who always had a calm nature when facing a problem, was actually thinking of chickening out from this situation?

"Wh—What?! What are you thinking, Hiccup?!" Astrid shouted in pure shock. Hiccup flinched slightly before looking at Astrid from the corner of his eye. He sighed.

"It doesn't seem too crucial. I mean what's the difference if I'm here anyway?" He asked in a bitter tone. Astrid's jaw dropped to the ground at hearing him say that. She was beginning to sweat in panic.

"I can't stand it anymore, Astrid. And I can't just leave Toothless flightless. Helping him fly is the only thing left I can do to repay all the things he had given me. And if my dad wants to ban flying, then I wouldn't want to be a hindrance. The best option is to run away—"

"No it's not! And of course it would be different! Just who is the head of the dragon training academy?! Who is the heir of Berk?! Who would teach people about dragons on Berk?!" She spluttered so fast that she tripped over her own words. Hiccup kept quiet and looked at the sky.

"Well, you can always replace me as the headmaster. And as for Berk's next ruler I could hand that position over to Snotlout. And of course Fishlegs would be more than happy to run around the village telling everyone about everything he knows about dragons." Hiccup tightened his grip on Toothless' saddle. Astrid was at loss for words. She only had a few seconds or Hiccup would be gone forever. Her Hiccup. And that was what she went with.

"Well, what about me?!" She shouted desperately. Hiccup stopped in an instant after she said those words. Toothless lowered his wings and let his front feet to touch the ground. Astrid's face was burning red. But she braved herself to face things head on or she'll lose her chance of a lifetime with the boy she'd fallen for.

"W-wh-what?!" Hiccup stuttered as his eyes widened in disbelief. Astrid clenched her knuckles and took a deep breath.

"Are you going to leave me just like this? What do you think I'm supposed to do if you're gone? Didn't you think of what I'd probably do if you're missing? Didn't you think of what I feel when you're not beside me?!" She snapped outrageously. She finally stopped and lowered her head in embarrassment. On the other hand, Hiccup was speechless.

"W-would you actually m-miss me?" Asked Hiccup timidly whilst he still observed Astrid as if he were in a trance.

"I-I…" Astrid cursed herself for not having the courage to say those three words she wished so dearly for him to say.

"No matter what happens, I'll always be here for you, Hiccup. I'd always back you up. And when you're down, I'll pull you up again. I'll make you stand higher than the world and accompany you to overcome the problems that we will face together…as one." She finished her speech. Both Astrid and Hiccup had jumped off their dragons and were standing just an inch apart from each other.

"I promise, Hiccup. We will find a way." She reached her hand out to touch his. Her soft and warm fingers made Hiccup remember what it's like to have someone like her to reinforce him. He gently squeezed her hand stroked his thumb on the back of her palm.

"I-I don't know what to say. Thank you, Astrid." His eyes softened and Astrid smiled brilliantly. Her face closed in on Hiccup and she cupped his cheek with her free hand.

"It's okay. And it's okay to be angry now and then. Blowing off steam is what everyone does to relieve their stress. But just remember that you have me and I won't ever leave you." She slowly kissed his lips while stroking his cheek. He hummed in pleasure and returned the kiss. She grinned into the kiss and parted.

"That's my dork. Now, c'mon. Let's get back to Berk before anyone finds out and find a way out of these circumstances as fast as possible." Astrid rushed atop of Stromfly and ascended to the sky in a blink of an eye. Hiccup gave a lopsided smile and joined her for the return trip.

After the whole predicament had been settled, Hiccup realized, that with such a gorgeous Valkyrie waiting for him on Berk, he wouldn't consider leaving for a very long time.

A/N: It was a bit short I guess. But I hope it's good enough for those who are reading. You can send me a request for a chapter if you want, though like I told you before, I couldn't finish it immediately. But now that I'm on school holiday I think I can write just fine. And news for the new story I'm publishing, I'm sorry for those who had been waiting but it's not ready yet so I think I'll move the publishing date backwards. I'm truly sorry.

Well, stay up to date and keep on reading! See ya'll in the next chapter (I hope...). Bye!

-MDzkM