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The Mess Hall was made of stone, impressively large pieces that must have been painstaking to gather and carve. The ceiling was high tilted metal like the roof of a tool shed to enormous scale and the tables of long slabs of oak. But despite it's unique architecture that allowed that a monstrous nightmare could stand upright in it... the mess hall seemed small to Astrid. There were shields, oars, and tall tapestries providing it with grandeur, detailing a beautiful history of it's people yet the floor space was half of what Astrid was used to on Berk. And There was no stage, wall to wall it was tables and chairs with serving tables left and right. She followed the girl with golden hair and Hiccup in through the only entrance and to the back she saw large barrels that probably held mead or even wine.
Not even half of the population of Berk could fit in here.
Apparently Berk outnumbered the pirates in more ways than one, astrid thought as she was led to sit, smack dab in the middle of the room with her back to the double doors. The girl with the frying pan placed a plate in front of Astrid and everything else dissapeared. Perhaps it had been chicken or day old turkey, but to Astrid it tasted like the finest quail with poached eggs. Soon she stopped tasting it all together she was eating so fast- then suddenly, Astrid was looking at a very emply plate. Astrid put a hand on her stomach, waiting for herself to feel full. She'd missed only two or three meals, it should be hitting her soon. But then another plate was placed in front of her. She grinned at Hiccup before spearing a chicken breast and stuffing the whole thing in her mouth.
Hiccup smiled to wach her eat, she just sort of attacked it. Some girls tried to be dainty and had a wrinkled nose the whole time they ate, like they hated eating on the whole. But Astrid loved shamelessly smacking her lips and licking her fingers. It reminded him of Toothless when he had first fed him. He crossed his arms on the table top and his eyes wandered to the tall doors, held open so he could see a boar beiing revolved over the fire on a spit. His stomach grumbled and his eye flashed back to astrid, momentarily regretting having given his share away. But then he noticed how Astrid's lip curled upward between bites of seasoned potato chunks. And he just shook it off. He'd eat at dinner. Or tomorrow at breakfast.
"Hicca! Hicca!" called a picilo of a voice, accompanied by a smattering of feet.
"Lily, don't call me that." was Hiccup's knee-jerk response even as he reached out and pulled the scruffy little girl onto his lap. Astrid coughed into a mouthful of potato and chicken and forcefully swallowed, tearing up when she felt a bone force it's way down. And turned to watch Hiccup and the little girl. The girl in Hicca's lap, Lily, was smeared in mud from her arms to her coal grey dress, to clumps in her long brown hair, and around her big green eyes. Two other kids had come in with her, two boys. Each child as dirtier than the last. "Hicca, your dad wants you to drop off the boar," The dirtiest child said, pulling himself up to sit on to of the table.
"But I just got back." Hiccup protested, a hand finding Astrid's wrist. Whether this gesture was meant to be comforting or protective would never be known. Not because Astrid didn't notice but because she finally had enough air to ask, "They call you Hicca?"
He looked at her in confusion and then slowly melted into embarrassment. Astrid tensed, and her hand reached for the hilt of a hatchet that was no longer there. "Hiccup?"

The children looked from one panicked face to the other, one of them even letting out a scandalized, "Oooh..." Hiccup stuck his tounge out at the dirtiest child. But even a he smied lightly, he couldn't meet her eyes, "I... I ask them not to. But y'know kids... "
Astrid nodded, not directly looking at him either, "Yeah, I know kids... but Hicca... as in- ?"
Hiccup suddenly stood up, slipping Lily off his lap, "Listen, Hound, Tell my dad- I'm doing it now." Hiccup tripped over a chair leg as he walked away. "Don't leave me alone!" Astrid, standing up too. "I'll be back in five minutes I swear." He said.
Astrid's voice ptched upward as her surroundings began to really announce thier unfamiliarity and thier danger. "But what if I- What if something happens?" A slim hand fell on Astrid's shoulder. Hiccup was already at the door saw the to blondes looking at eachother and left them, his mind more or less at ease that Astrid Hofferson, Hostge, would be fine.

Tucking a long golden strand behind her ear and flashing a bright smile, the girl tapped her frying pan on the tabletop next to Astrid's unfinished food. "Sit down, sweetie. You need to finish all your food." Slowly Astrid settled back down and continued eating but her enthusiasm for it was gone, nervousness churning her stomach.
Sitting down next to her the girl beamed friendliness and hope, in such huge quantities that it confused Astrid. She'd Never met someone this cheerful and peppy... ever. "I'm Rapunzel. What's your name?" said the girl, pulling dirty little Lily up onto her lap.
"Uhh, Hofferson. Astrid." She said, slightly distracted by the gold sheen to Rapunzel's thick braid. Rapunzel started waving Lily's little hand toward Astrid. "Flower, did you say hi? Say hii"
"I diihhd." Lily said, shying away from Astrid and burying her face in Rapunzel's chest.
" Are you Sure?" Repunzel said, smoothing Lily's hair back.
"Mommm."
Astrid's eyes flew wide open, "You're her mom?" Taking in their similar faces and exact green eyes, "Oh but your so young!"
Rapunzel giggled, charmingly tilting her head. "Am I? I guess so. How old are you, Astrid?"
Astrid reflexively squared her shoulders, "17"
Rapunzel nodded a bit as she talked, "Well, Lily here is almost 5. And I'm 23.."
Astrid didn't even bother trying to do the math, she just immediately shouted, "NO WAY"
Rapunzel let out another little giggle. "Yeah"

"Wow, my parents would kill me if I had kids that young." Astrid immediately bit her tounge, realizing how that sounded.

Rapunzel just giggled, "It's okay! My mother had a thing or two to say about it too." Rapunzel then reached out and pushed some of Astrid's bangs back. Astrid backed up, trying to maintain personal space but when Rapunzel's fingertips grazed her scalp, Astrid suddenly became drowsy.

With a satisfied smile, rapunzel leaned back and patted her lap. Lily started crawling up into her mother's lap and Astrid blinked aat her, eyebrows knitting toogether. When had Lily gotten off Rapunzel's lap before? Astrid shook her head slowly, her eyelids felt heavy and for a moment, as she refocused on Rapunzel, a trick of the light made Rapunzel's long golden hair glow.

Rapunzel continued talking and it took a while for Astrid to get back to what they'd been talking about, "I met her father at a lantern festival and it was one of those most romantic nights... then nine months later, I got a gift from the love of my life."
Astrid smiled watching Rapunzel kissing Lily's head, she'd never heard a mother describe bith so gratefully. Lily squirmed slightly, still shy of Astrid.
The grogginess from earlier was gone now and Astrid chewed her lip for a moment before asking, "So does Lily's father know about her?"
Lily stopped squirming and looked up Repunzel, apparently also interested in the answer. Repunzel sighed a bit, her hair momentarily pulsing with color, "He does, actually. But he never satys wit us, Mother- Ah. Slip of the tounge, I meant that ...he's not a pirate. His work has always kept him on mainlands, demsely populated cities. Thats his thing. Its hard for him to save up enough money to get to us, so far from any trading ports... he tries to come around at least once a year and stay as long as posible. But y'know. He needs work."
"Oh.. yeah, that suucks" Astrid said, patting Rapunzel shoulder briefly. She didn't actaually know, what kind of husband couldn't be bothered to just find work on the island? But it wasn't her place to say. Astrid ended up telling her about an uncle who her family never saw so it was hard on them when for a year they had no idea that he'd been dead. Rapunzel shared a story of a neighbor she had on the island, who had felt Odin was sending her dreams to go out questings to search for the lost love of her life... only to find out that they'd been messages from his ghost. This in turn reminded Astrid of a local legend from Berk... and so in this fashion, time passed. Lily had long since wriggled out of her mom's arms and was playing beneath a table with the other kids when a raven haird woman came in,"There you are! Rapunzel, I'm afraid we need you to let down your hair."

Astrid's eyebrow shot up at this odd phrasing.
"They need me." Repunzel said, flatly- shaking her head and mouthing 'it's complicated'. Poking her head under the table she calls, " Lily! Cal, Hound, stay with Miss Astrid until I get back, alright? Don't leave her alone." The three kids peered up at her like bats out of a cave. Astrid chuckled, "Do I get paid for babysitting?"
"Aw, sweety. your a prisoner, remember? What'ya think?"
"What?" Astrid said looking down at the kids, who all scrambled back under the table. How could I forget that I was a prisoner? It's not important. aughing, she called to Rapunzel's back, "Where will I escape TO? We're on an ISLAND!"

And why would I ever want to leave this spot- What? Astrid's head hurt.

Repunzel just laughed and waved goodbye, And in that moment both Astrid and Repunzel had the same thought.
I like her...

REVIEW IT, YOU SCOUNDRELS! OR TASTE MY WRATH!

could use some advice, I have an extra short scene with Astrid and the kids, Lily, Cal, and Hound. But should we skip it? It just adds perspective and I know you guys probably wanna see something more focused... yay or nay?