"This is New Berk at Snoggletog, the greatest time of the year. The lights, the hunting songs, the holiday shopping, the yak nog shooters. The only thing missing was dragons. It's been ten years since Vikings and dragons agreed to live apart, but that doesn't mean we've forgotten our flying friends. And the best part of it all, Kjartan, was on Snoggletog Eve."

I removed a knife from the sheath on my side and stabbed it into the garland I was hanging up, in order to keep it in place. Our son, Kjartan, stared up at his father with wide eyes, completely mystified by the story of the Vikings and dragons.

"I'd make Toothless his favorite meal."

"What was it?" he asked, some of his bright red hair flopping in his eyes.

"Lake trout with a side of sea trout, on a bed of brook trout."

"We all like trout!" Kjartan exclaimed.

"And even though he's gone, I still make it for him. A lot of families do stuff like this. It keeps our loved ones in our hearts, even though they're far away." Hiccup glanced over at me, and I offered a smile. That youthful light never left his eyes, even all these years later. "So, wanna help me catch some fish?" Kjartan jumped up excitedly.

"Good on you! We're gonna feed Toothless! I don't need a fishing pole, Dad. I'll just butt the wee fishes on their own wee head." I chuckled and made my way over to my husband, resting a hand on his shoulder.

Suddenly, Kjartan charged forward, ramming his head right into the wood that surrounded our lit fireplace. I jumped in surprise, suddenly retracting my hand and rushing over to my son. He shook his head, as though trying to just get rid of the hurt, while I crouched down and inspected the top of his head. Thankfully, there wasn't any bump, so he probably didn't hit his head hard enough to hurt him. I warily looked back at Hiccup, who made a concerned face before trying to distract Kjartan.

"Come on. Let's get Toothless a snack." Hiccup grabbed his fishing pole, then leaned over and kissed my cheek before heading toward the door. Him leaving, on the bright side, would give me time to finish up his Snoggletog present. I was working on a drawing of him and Toothless from not long before he left, since Hiccup already had one from when we were younger.

But then, the moment he opened the door, he went flying out to the side. I quickly rushed over to the door, trying to figure out what happened. In front of the door dangled a large log, suspended by a string, functioning almost as a battering ram. I pushed my way past and knelt down, offering Hiccup my hand to help him stand up.

"Yes! It worked." I looked over to see Kerrigan pop out of the snow, wearing some of the white powder on the top of her head.

"Kerrigan, what are you doing?" I rushed over to stop the battering ram's motion, propelled by Kjartan swinging it back and forth.

"Testing my dragon defense system." I watched her wind a crank to pull the battering ram back again. I looked up Hiccup, who seemed shocked his daughter was building things to protect us from dragons. "You and all the grown-ups in New Berk are leaving them snacks. What if one shows up?"

"What-- that would be great! We love dragons," Hiccup explained.

"Why? They're monsters." I helped usher her inside. Alith, thankfully, still sat on the couch, unmoving since I had suddenly sprinted outside. Immediately, Kerrigan sat down next to her twin, removing a book from her hands and flipping through the pages. I peered over her shoulder and gasped. She had found the old Book of Dragons, before Hiccup, Fishlegs, and I had made all the revisions about the true natures of dragons.

"Oh... Uh..." Hiccup and I looked to each other, trying to find a way to explain that wouldn't make Kerrigan even more afraid than before.

"I found this in the attic. It was grandpa's." I rested my hands on my hips.

"What did I tell you about locking the attic?" I hissed.

"I was in a rush, I'm sorry. I didn't think she was actually gonna go up there."

"How come you never told us the truth about dragons?" Alith asked, looking up in the general direction of Hiccup and I. Although she couldn't see us, I'm sure she had gotten an idea of where we were.

"But we did. Dragons are wonderful. They're our friends."

"Tell me this-- are they giant?"

"Well, yeah."

"Razor-sharp teeth?"

"Uh..."

"Breathe fire?"

"I suppose so."

"Claws?"

"Yes."

"What happened to your leg?"

Both of us went awkwardly silent. There was no way to explain the difference between the good dragons and the bad dragons, and the twins were certainly too young to understand predatory behavior and the survival instinct that actually had propelled them.

"That's what I thought. Maybe we don't leave fish snacks around to attract them. 'Because you know who doesn't want to be dragon dessert? Me!" Kerrigan slammed the Book of Dragons down and took her sister's hand, dragging her close behind. "Kjartan, do you wanna be dessert for a dragon?"

"Mm... methinks I don't. Let's kill the dragons!"

Once they made their way out the door, I let out a long sigh, slowly closing my jaw.

"How did this happen?" I shook my head, slumping down on the bench at our dining table.

"She found the book, that's how." Hiccup sat down beside me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "She's already paranoid because of Alith... this didn't help at all. She doesn't remember the dragons, so she doesn't know they're friendly creatures." I leaned my head against his shoulder.

"What are we supposed to do if the dragons show up?"

"As much as I hate to say it, babe... the dragons haven't been here in ten years. I don't think they're coming back anytime soon."

"You never know, Reign."

I sighed and stood, reaching down to take his hand. We headed out onto our porch, and I lit the logs in the fire pit, signaling the kids to come back. Hiccup was still deep in thought, trying to figure out how it could be possible that his daughters were afraid of dragons.

"Our ancestors were terrified of dragons because they didn't understand them. Reign, we cannot let our kids go down that road." I watched for a moment as Kjartan lit a stick on fire and began to run around, when an idea popped into my head.

"Remember when we were kids, back in Old Berk, how we used to put on a pageant at Snoggletog?"

"Oh, yeah. Those were fun."

"What if we brought the pageant back? We showed the children of New Berk how humans and dragons became friends." He shot up out of his seat, smiling at me.

"That's a great idea! But we've only got four days until Snoggletog. Three if you don't count Black Plague Friday."

"Yeah, nothing gets done. Everybody's shopping and coughing."

"I think we can do this! Let's talk to Gobber." He leaned forward to kiss me, when his eyes caught movement behind us, causing him to spin me around. I watched as Kjartan, wearing a head that looked like a dragon. I jumped as he charged toward the door, only for another one of Kerrigan's devices to smash into him, sending him flying back into the snow. I gasped, but thankfully, he spoke as though nothing was wrong.

"You got me!" I rested a hand on my chest, sighing in relief.

"Kid can take a hit," I muttered. Only now had I noticed Hiccup's touch had left my shoulders, and my eyes wandered over to the railing, where Hiccup was looking out toward the horizon. Quieting down, I made my way over and wrapped my arms around his waist from behind, resting my head on his back. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. It's just all this talk of dragons kind of makes me miss him." I shifted so I could grab his hand, lacing my fingers through his and squeezing. "It's hard at the holidays, you know? I wonder if Toothless ever misses me."

"Of course he does. Even though you're apart, you're still his best friend." He sighed and turned his head, kissing my cheek gently. "Now, come on. We need to eat."

The next morning, Hiccup and I went off to talk to Gobber about the pageant. We went by his smithy, but it was still closed down from the night before. We began to wander through the village, finding him at the statue of Stoick. Three kids rushed past us as Gobber continued to stare, muttering something to himself.

"Uh Gobber?" He turned around and waved at us.

"Hey, kids. I was just talking to a statue of your father as if he were really here." Hiccup and I glanced at each other nervously. I felt as though he were starting to go a little off the deep end lately. "It pains me how the wee ones of this town have forgotten Stoick."

"I know, and Alith and Kerrigan are afraid of dragons," I sighed.

"That's why we want to bring back the Snoggletog Pageant." Gobber's expression suddenly brightened.

"That's a great idea, kids! Hold on, I think I might have something." I wrapped my hands around the crook of Hiccup's elbow as we followed Gobber back to his place. He reached down and dug out an old book, blowing the piles of dust off in our faces and causing us to cough. "You're in luck. The script I wrote for the last pageant."

I leaned over and scanned over the script, reeling back slightly. This script was all about how the Vikings could kill the vicious dragons. I glanced over at Hiccup, whose wide eyes confirmed my horror. This one wasn't going to work.

"This has not aged well," he whispered to me, pointing down to the book.

"Mm. We may need to start from scratch. Why don't we show when everything changed?"

"Oh, that would be fantastic! Uh, like when I met Toothless, and--" I reached over and lowered Hiccup's arm from in front of my face, out of fear he would accidentally hit me.

"Maybe more big picture, love. When all Vikings and dragons became friends."

"Oh, Reign, I love that," Gobber complimented. "I'll start writing immediately. This is gonna be just what we need to honor our friendship with dragons, and, of course, my great friend... Stoick." Hiccup and I stared in slight horror as Gobber pulled on a string behind him and unfurled a large tapestry of Hiccup's father. Why did he have that?

And with that, Hiccup and I headed back home so he could get to work. I knew he wanted to construct some sort of mechanical Toothless, which would give me time to keep on drawing. He kissed me, then headed off toward his workshop, and the moment the door shut, I sprinted upstairs and grabbed my parchment and charcoal. I sat down by the fire and started to shade in the outlines, trying my best not to make a mistake. Erasing was a complicated process.

Thankfully, I had the pencil lifted off the paper when the door burst open. Kjartan ran up to me and grabbed onto my legs, while Kerrigan carefully led Alith inside.

"Mom, mommy! Kerri's got another dragon trap idea!"

I stared down at him for a moment, trying to debate whether or not to discourage this. I knew, no matter what, they would try and build it anyways, so I just flashed him a wary smile and watched as he and Kerrigan began to gather up a ton of rope and a net. Alith made her way over to me, and I reached down and helped her up onto the bench at the table. She swung her legs, resting her head against the wood, while her siblings started to set up another dragon trap. I went back to drawing for a while, until Alith spoke up.

"Mom?" I set down my drawing materials and turned to her.

"Yes, sweetie?"

"Are dragons really as scary as Kerrigan says?" I paused. Now was my time to explain, even if it was just to one of my daughters. I knew Alith's protection was the reason Kerrigan was so worried about dragons, so maybe, if she wasn't afraid, Kerrigan soon wouldn't be, too.

"Well, they look scary, like your sister described, but they're some of the gentlest creatures on the planet. I know you can't see what they look like, but that just makes it easier to love them. In fact, Toothless is part of the reason I fell in love with your dad. He took me on a flight on the back of Toothless, it was beautiful." I sighed, thinking back to that time. Things were easier then. "You don't remember this, because you were a baby, but Toothless loved you and your sister. He wanted to protect you two, from the moment I found out I was pregnant with you. In fact, he's the reason I found out. And from that moment on, he wanted to make sure nothing bad happened to you or Kerrigan."

"Dragons don't sound so bad when you talk about them." I leaned down and hugged her.

"They were wonderful. But I know when they're not there, it can be hard to see how they're lovable."

The door opened again, this time with Hiccup returning home. Unfortunately, he was unaware of the trap his children had set up, so he ended up trapped in a net, dangling upside-down from the ceiling.

"Yes!" Kerrigan cried, trying to keep her auburn mop out of her face. "It works!"

"We're going to catch a dragon, Dad!" Kjartan cheered. "Knock him cold so he can't eat us."

"Kerrigan designed the whole trap herself." The wavering in my tone, hopefully, indicated to Hiccup that this was getting more and more concerning.

"D'ah, so proud." Hiccup laughed awkwardly, unsure of what to say.

"C'mon, Kjartan! Let's go set some traps outside." Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Kerrigan holding something shiny in her hand. My eyes widened, and quickly, I rushed out and snatched the knife from her hand. She glared at me, but sometimes, I had to be the assertive parent.

"What did I say about using the good knives?" Her knife was still in my sheath, so I pulled it out and placed it in her hand. The blade was slightly dulled, so that if she accidentally got her skin, it wouldn't bleed.

With that taken care of, I headed back inside, still finding Hiccup dangling from the ceiling. I chuckled and shook my head at him, crouching to meet him at eye-level.

"You got tied up by your twelve and nine-year-old children."

"Ah-ha-ha, yes, so funny." He let out that sarcastic laugh, rolling his eyes. "Can you help me down, please?" I went over and got one of our chairs, using the knife I had just taken from Kerrigan to cut him loose. He landed with a loud 'thump' on the ground, causing me to grimace.

"Sorry, love." I got down and helped him up as he dusted off his clothes.

"At least I'm down. That's what matters." I reached up and kissed his cheek, then he reached out and took my hand. "Gobber needs us to help with setting up the pageant. We should get the kids and bring them with us."

"Alith?" Hiccup and I made our way over, and she took her father's free hand, allowing him to lead her outside. Once we'd managed to round up Kerrigan and Kjartan, we made our way to the center of New Berk, where Vikings were beginning to construct the stage and props for the pageant. Kerrigan sat on a log, trying to sharpen a stick into a point, which was always concerning. Alith, on the other hand, remained glued to her father's side. I had an arm wrapped around one of his, the two of us almost creating a shield behind Alith.

"Great news, Chief." I looked over at Gobber to acknowledge him, despite the fact I wasn't the chief here. "After exhaustive casting, we've found our Hiccup."

"Yeah, Gobber, I actually wanted to ask you about the whole Hiccup character in the story."

"Hiccup, present yourself!" Up stepped Tuffnut in oversized clothes, wearing a massive set of twigs on his head.

"Tuffnut?"

"Tuffnut, give us a taste." Tuffnut cleared his throat, as though preparing for some great monologue.

"Uh, a dragon is coming," he said, absolutely no passion or enthusiasm behind his tone whatsoever. "Aah. Help me, help... uh... line?"

"Me," Gobber sighed.

"Right. Me."

"Are you--"

"Great. Now let's see you run away in fear." Tuffnut started to jump around, rather than running, and shouting a little to indicate he was meant to be afraid. "Oh, look at those knock knees. The splayed gait of a newborn lamb."

"I do not run like that." He looked down at me. "Do I run like that?"

"You used to," I shrugged.

"Which brings me to my next-- really? I did?" He shook his head. "Which brings me to a bigger point. I've read the script, Gobber, and I have some notes. I'm not sure the character of Hiccup is coming through, uh, quite as heroic as I was. I--I was pretty heroic, no?" I scoffed.

"Heroic? You were gonna run away until I found you out."

"Oh, mate, I think we get the gist of it."

"But that's not, in any way me." At that moment, Astrid walked by, reading over some of the notes for scene transitions. She wasn't really paying attention as she walked through.

"Hey, Hiccup, I was-- oh." She looked up and realized she was, in fact, talking to Tuffnut in a wig.

"Are you serious?" I smiled up at him.

"If it makes you feel any better, I know that's not you." He huffed.

"You're my wife. You know why that doesn't count." I shrugged.

"True, but I've also gotten to know you over these last 16 years. You weren't exactly the bravest person at first, but you grew into it. You just had to get out of your awkward phase. And hey, I fell in love with that dork, so clearly, you were doing something right." I watched a smile ease onto his face, and he leaned down to kiss the top of my head.

The hours passed by at the rate of months. Hiccup and I had been here who-knows-how-long, watching as Gobber cycled through auditions for roles. I leaned against his shoulder, trying my best not to fall asleep.

"Better luck next time, Haggis. Nice effort. Who's next?" A very nervous Fishlegs stepped up.

"Fishlegs Ingerman, reading for the role of Stoick the Vast." He took a moment to compose himself, then started reading the lines. "If I don't return-- nope, nope." He cleared his throat. "If I don't return, know that all that I am, all that I do, is for you... my precious Hiccup." The two of us stared at him in astonishment. Somehow, I'm really not sure given his natural voice, he sounded exactly like Stoick.

"Wow. So are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Yes, I am... this isn't working." Hiccup and I gawked at him.

"What? Not working?"

"You're right, I should do it." Gobber made his way up onto the stage, standing right under the glare of the spotlight. "No, no, don't try and talk me out of it. I knew Stoick best." He pushed Fishlegs out of the way, getting rid of our best option. "If I don't return, know that all that I am, all that I do..." Before he could even finish the monologue, he burst into sobs. "I miss him so much," he whined. "I just need a moment."

"Da da da, we're doomed," Hiccup sighed, throwing the script aside.