A/N - Originally, I thought about making this one-shot into something a little longer, but I decided against it. At least for the time being. So, before you ask me to extend it, I'm going to tell you straight up - I'm not writing anything more to this. It's a one-shot, ONE-shot.

P.S. - Contains Race to the Edge spoilers, so if you haven't watched it, and don't want to be spoiled, don't read. I warned you.

Rating - T

Warning - Heathstrid

X

Girl Talk

"Knock, knock," said a smooth voice from the door, accompanied by a quick knock on the wood.

Astrid turned on her heel at the voice, and smiled when Heather stepped inside, the morning sunlight shining in after her.

"You came back?" Astrid said, closing the space between them. She pulled the other girl into a embrace.

"Yeah, I thought about it, and Windshear agreed, that it would be alright if we stayed here just a bit longer." Heather gave a nod to the silvery dragon lingering in the door.

"That's great!" Astrid clapped. "I was just about to head up to the club house. Hiccup wants to have meetings in the mornings. Like debriefings or something."

"Sounds exciting."

"It's not, really." Astrid shrugged.

Heather sat on the edge of the bed. "So, uh, is everything alright between you two?"

Astrid dropped her axe and it clanked to silence on the floor, chipping a large splinter out. "Yeah, why?"

"You said his name with a tone."

"No, I didn't," Astrid denied. Had she?

Heather laughed, "Okay, you didn't. But back to the original question, is it alright?"

Astrid tightened her hands around the grip of the axe. The blade was getting a little dull.

"Astrid?"

"I don't know."

"What's not to know?" Heather leaned back on the bed and padded the seat beside her. Astrid sighed, and set the axe down and sat down. Heather added, "You can talk to me. I keep secrets like an iron trap."

"Well, I kept thinking about what you said, about seeing how we are around each other, and I kept thinking that I don't know what we are."

"You and Hiccup?"

"Yeah," Astrid nodded. "We kissed, well, I kissed him. I thought…I thought that, I don't know, maybe he would do something about it. You know?"

"Like what?"

"Like…his own move. I thought I made my feelings clear, but he's not…he hasn't." Astrid stood up and started to pace. It helped her thoughts and feelings collide. "I don't know what to think. I don't know what he's thinking. Sometimes, I get this feeling like he knows, like he…likes me more than a friend, but most of the time it's like were not. And if I bring it up, or say anything remotely related to feelings, he shuts me out like I'm not even there."

"I would suggest talking to him, but if that's already been done," Heather started, but Astrid interrupted.

"I don't want to keep pushing, you know?" Her voice was softer than she'd anticipated. Her chest was thumping, harder than it should, like it does when she tries to talk to Hiccup about these things. It felt like exposure, and she hated it. She crossed her arms over her chest to hold it in place. "I don't want him to think I'm forcing it on him, and then have him push me away."

"Maybe, and this is just a theory, that his growing up with a single father has left him lacking in the affection department," Heather suggested, standing up. She took several long strides to stand in front of Astrid. "You know, Stoick isn't affectionate either. So for Hiccup it could be both inherited and learned."

"That makes sense, I guess. But…is it really that hard for them to just say what their thinking? I mean, 'Hey, Astrid, I like you more than a friend.' That's not that hard, unless he doesn't."

"Oh, I think he does." Heather smiled. "You might not have noticed, but I've seen the way he looks at you, like disbelief and admiration. He looks away when you look at him, like he doesn't want you to see him staring. It's cute."

Astrid sighed. "I've never seen him do that."

"He does it a lot. But, boys are weird that like," Heather said with a shrug. "They can never just come out and say what they want, it's like they want you to read their mind."

"Well, I can't," Astrid spat. She gave a short laugh and added, "You know, I used to think that it was because I kissed him first, and he thought I was bad at it or something."

"Are you?"

"I don't know, its hard to kiss myself and find out." Astrid laughed, but her laughter was cut short by Heather, who had pressed her lips against Astrid's. The moment was short, but it left Astrid with a fluttering in her chest that radiated out to her limbs, into her hands and to the bottom of her feet.

"I'll give you the benefit of the doubt on that one, because I caught you by surprise," Heather said. She was close enough still that she didn't need to speak very loud; her warm breath fluttered against Astrid's face.

The lack of formalities left her breathless, taken back, and stunned. She blinked at Heather's unassuming smile, sly and tricky. What was she thinking? Her smile flickered, her pale green eyes searched Astrid's face. A slender-fingered hand slid across Astrid's cheek, and this time Astrid was prepared when Heather came back.

Her lips were soft, delicate, and moved with her own in a way that she didn't understand. Heather's other hand pulled her waist closer, and Astrid put her own trembling hands on the other girl, tangling in her dark hair. Heather separated, but didn't move away.

"I don't see the problem," Heather whispered. "You kiss just fine."

Astrid wasn't sure if she should laugh, it sounded like something that should be humorous, but no such feeling emerged. Instead, something else was felt, a heat on her skin, a shake in her chest, a tremor in her stomach. Heather's finger gently caressed her cheekbone.

"Hey," Astrid whispered. She'd never felt so…awkward, although she wasn't used to being this close with anyone.

"Hey," Heather grinned.

What should she do now? Astrid's heart flipped up and down, beating faster than she thought possible, and skipped a beat when she met Heather halfway, feeling her warm tongue on her lips. Their tongues met in Astrid's mouth, an unfamiliar feeling, but oddly pleasant. Heather's hand on Astrid's cheek moved into her hair, pulling her closer still, her hand on her waist slid around her.

CRASH.

They broke apart so suddenly that the loss of contact felt like walking to a snowstorm. Astrid blinked, knowing the look of surprise on Heather's face mirrored her own. Standing in the door of the hut was Hiccup, eyes wide and mouth gapping, Toothless behind him a step, looking as hopelessly confused. He'd dropped a book on the floor.

"Hiccup?" Astrid asked, shocked at her own breathlessness. "What's up?"

She caught Heather's smile. What had she said?

"I-I was just…uh…you weren't at the, uh, meeting, today, right now, and I thought, I don't know, I was just…" Hiccup took a step back, swinging his arms. He swallowed. "Heather, you're back! It's good to see you again…uh, I'm going, uh, I'm going to go."

Astrid looked back at Heather, who had been covering her grin with a hand.

"Well, that was awkward." Heather dropped her hand.

"Do you think he'll be upset?"

"Probably not in the way that you're thinking," Heather said. "He's probably confused. He's never had to worry about me stealing you before."

Astrid laughed, but her chest felt empty and shaken.

X

An Afterthought - Yes, I ship Heather and Astrid, but I ship their bromance a lot more. I love Heather's placement in Astrid's life, because Astrid is a woman in a man's world. She's had to learn not to let her sex be a status, not to let it interfere with being as strong as anyone else, and she's kind of been the only "girl" in her age group, besides Ruff, and Heather gives her a female friends that's kind of her equal. She's never had a girl-friend before and it's awesome.