I am sorry that I did not get this up when I said that I would. I've been working a lot and I also had to complete some online training for one of my jobs. However, I am back and so is Wheel! Looks like it's Astrid's turn again. I wonder which is the most anticipated of the POVs…Astrid's or Hiccup's? Which do we most look forward to reading? Anyway…

Review Replies:

Ferdoos: That he is. How will Hiccup get himself out of this mess? Guess we'll find out soon enough.

aaquater: I wondered if anyone would get worried…but I couldn't kill Toothless. He reminds me too much of my cat. Haha. Is the island truly deserted? I dunno…Haha.

kitty.0: Very true, because I can guarantee that Hiccup did not bring any medicines or healing ointments with him either. He was definitely not prepared for this trip!

Guest (anonymous): Yep, those two got off pretty easily. I wonder how they're going to get off the island too. Haha. More Astrid drama coming right up!

Next chapter starts…now!

Chapter 10: Surrogate Leader of the Academy

Astrid had intended to begin leading academy classes the day after Hiccup left. That way, she decided, the responsibility would stray her thoughts away from her boyfriend's absence. However, Berk's wonderful weather had other plans. The storm that had woken Astrid from her nightmare had lingered for several days, continuously dumping its heavy rainwater over the village. Finally, the storm clouds were gone and the sun had returned; it was now time for her to begin leading classes.

On her way to the academy with Stormfly that morning, Astrid found the rest of her friends and reminded them that classes were resuming, making sure to tell them what time she wished to start that day. With nothing better to do, Astrid just decided to head to the academy early and prepare for the day ahead of her. Viking and dragon entered the academy together. Stormfly walked into the open center, but Astrid lingered back in the doorway for just a bit longer, surveying the space in front of her. Hiccup had put much of his free time into this place, creating an environment conducive for learning. Thinking of Hiccup's passion and love for dragons brought a smile to Astrid's face. It was truly amazing. What was even more amazing was the looming realization that she would soon be teaching her friends. Even though Hiccup had almost instantly made her his second-in-command regarding Berk Dragon Academy business, she had never really done all that much. There were no complaints from Astrid, though. She knew that Hiccup's knowledge of all things dragon related far exceeded hers; he had studied them while she had been solely focused on fighting them. The only time Astrid would have ever needed to run lessons at the academy would be if Hiccup was ever too sick and bedridden. That never happened, though; Hiccup seemed to have some strange immunity. Even when all of Berk was sick and delirious with Eel Pox, Hiccup managed to be that one Viking who'd stayed completely healthy. Even Astrid herself, strong as she is, had been hit with a touch of the sickness, but, luckily, Hiccup had returned in time to give her medicine before she could get too delirious with hallucinations. Now, though, Hiccup was not sick and, yet, she would be teaching the rest of their friends. Hiccup had taught her so much since Berk had made peace with the dragons and she felt confident that she would uphold the traditions that Hiccup had set in place when his father turned the former arena over to the young heir.

Soon the others would be arriving (that is, if they arrive on time as they are supposed to), so Astrid pushed her thoughts aside, locking them in the back of her mind with the rest of her stored memories of Hiccup and the times they had shared. Until he returned, the memories were all she had, so she had to cherish them. Preparing the arena for the day's lesson, Astrid, with the help of Stormfly, had a confident set-up in place by the time the others entered the academy. A cold wind blew through the academy and Astrid shivered. Ever since that rain storm passed through, temperatures on Berk had dropped even lower. How nice it would be to have Hiccup here! His embrace, she knew, would warm her in an instant. Instead, she had Stormfly, the dragon sheltering her rider with a wing. Though it was warmer, it still wasn't the same. Gods, she missed Hiccup!

The other riders slowly began to filter into the arena. As expected, Fishlegs arrived first and Astrid smiled slightly. There were just some things that would never change and that was comforting to the young girl. Snotlout and the twins arrived together and finally they were all present.

"Good. Everyone listened when I told them that academy classes were resuming again," Astrid began. "As you all are aware, Hiccup is away and will be for quite some time. In his absence, he has asked me to carry on with the daily activities here at the Berk Dragon Academy. So, until Hiccup's return, I will be leading your lessons, got it?"

Everyone nodded, but Astrid did not miss their true feelings about what she had just said. They all sounded to be holding back groans. Even Fishlegs, who normally enjoyed the lessons and all things dragons-related, looked less than enthusiastic about the new surrogate teacher. Astrid did not know why they would feel this way, though. She had not yet taught any academy lessons (though she had threatened to at times), so the others did not know the way she would be running the daily lessons. Maybe that was it; they figured that she would drive them much harder than Hiccup. It was true that her personality definitely contrasted Hiccup's. Hiccup was soft and tended to run the academy in a passive-aggressive way. In fact, Astrid could not recall many times when Hiccup had become seriously upset about anything; most times, he would get frustrated by the lack of attention from his "students" but he tended not to get angry. Astrid, however, would never stand to just be pushed around and that must be the cause for the lack of enthusiasm from the others. Well, like it or not, this is how it's going to be until Hiccup returns. Odin give me strength and knowledge.

"In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm not Hiccup and I will not run lessons in the same way that he does. Like it or not, though, you're just going to have to deal with it until he gets back. From what I've heard, the quest that his father sent him on was pretty important. Now, let's get started."

Astrid had begun the lesson only a mere half an hour ago and already she could feel her head beginning to hurt. She'd definitely need to grab an ice block once she got home. Her perfectly-planned lesson was shattering right before her eyes as Snotlout and the twins took turns challenging her authority. Those three always seemed to think that they knew better and that was never the case. Thank the Gods that nothing had gotten blown up…yet. Yes, yet. The day wasn't over. Gods, how does Hiccup put up with this every day? Well, I did agree to do this every day, but how am I ever going to get anything accomplished? When is Hiccup supposed to be back again? I don't think it can come soon enough…

Oh, Astrid, if only you had known what you were getting yourself into when you agreed to take Hiccup's place as leader of the Berk Dragon Academy! Well, it's almost 4 AM already, so I'm gonna cut this ending AN short tonight. Just wanted to get this up since it's been awhile since the last chapter's update.

Coming Up Next: We return to Hiccup and Toothless as they find out more about this island on which they have found themselves stranded.

Next Chapter: I'll try to aim to have next chapter posted up Wednesday after 10 PM US East Coast time.

Posted: March 1, 2014