It was the two-hundredth time I had run the hairbrush through my hair.

I was dressed in a simple blue dress that brushed just below my knees. The maids insisted I wear it to see the queen. They also wanted to see me with my hair down for once, to my dismay, so they let my wavy locks down, cascading like a waterfall down my back. I kept a hair tie on my wrist in case it got too annoying having my hair down. I wasn't used to letting my hair down.

They put a diamond-encrusted headpiece on the crown of my head, to "give it a little spice" as Dory notably commented. My bangs hung loosely above my eyes and tucked snug behind my ear. The maids did a makeup look that tricked the eye into thinking I was wearing nothing, for which I was glad.

I was to visit the queen whenever I wanted at this point, so I sat in my bathroom, in front of the mirror, and replayed my planned words. I said them as I brushed my blond hair, making sure I looked perfect for the queen. I wasn't usually keen on caring for my looks, but if looking nice was able to sway Valka into agreeing, I was all for it.

I set the brush down and gave myself a reassuring look in the mirror. I was Astrid Hofferson, I could do this. I could do anything.

I pushed the chair away and walked out of the bathroom, out of my room, and into the hall. I wore flat shoes, not heels, so I would be able to walk more confidently. I passed other girls on the way who gave me looks, but I ignored them. I had to focus on the request. She was waiting for me.

After walking for a few minutes down to the main hall, I met Hiccup at the doors to the royal headquarters. He bowed to me and offered his arm, a goofy grin playing on his face. "My Lady Hofferson, I am your unofficial escort to Her Majesty."

I took his arm with a humored smile and curtsied. "My, my, how lovely! I couldn't ask for better service!"

We walked to the lounge, the place I had been a few times before. Once with the queen, and once with Eret. Both were quite memorable, but in their own ways. One was a bit less of a, well, positive experience, in my book.

The golden lights and plush, red carpets of the hallways still amazed me. So many expensive things, statues and paintings, condensed into small areas, such as a sitting area off of a hallway that held items worth ten times the worth of my home. Of course, Hiccup paid no mind to this. He walked casually through it, for it was all he knew. It was what he grew up in.

It was almost funny to me to think about the contrast in Hiccup's double-life scheme. On one end, he was an outcast that had endless riches and piles of people waiting to serve his every need, whilst on the other end, he was running a village of poverty-stricken non-humans living out of huts made from mud and twigs. The boy certainly did know how to get himself in trouble.

Seeing a few guards scattered around the quarters, it reminded me of the twins I had seen in the camp just two days earlier. It made me wonder why they were there, along with Snotlout Jorgenson. What part did they play in the rebellion?

"Why are those blonde guards participating in the rebellion?" I asked Hiccup very quietly, before adding, "And Snotlout, too?"

Hiccup cocked an eyebrow, before responding. "You didn't notice? They're all hybrids, too."

I blinked. Of course. "How have they not been caught?" I asked. "They work in the castle, right?"

"They've never been tested by a doctor like I was. And to be frank, Snotlout's dad is a real airhead. Nobody really cares to notice about the guards."

"Their raids on the castle…" I said, trailing off, not knowing where to start with my sentence.

"They participate in them to help the rest of the hybrids. They may seem totally selfish, and Snot is, but they all hate Eret. The raids are attempts to overthrow Eret, and or, find evidence to claim that Eret isn't related to Dad."

I nodded. This made me wonder how many hybrids actually worked inside the castle. It was a huge possibility that multiple maids, cooks, and other guards were secretly hybrid. Stoick and Eret had more people against them than I thought. Hell, one of my maids could be a hybrid for all I knew. What darkened the idea of multiple dragon hybrids in the castle was thinking about how many didn't know there was a rebellion. They had to live their lives in fear of being caught with no source of hope. I sincerely hoped that there weren't many hybrids in the castle, for their sake, and those that were, knew about the rebellion.

We reached the hallway where the lounge was located. I took a deep breath and looked at the prince. He shared my gaze and nodded. I took a breath and bit my lip, praying that the queen wouldn't be able to see my nerves. I shoved my nerves down, rolling my shoulders back and tilted my head, getting the stiffness out of my neck.

"Astrid?" Hiccup called quietly. I looked back at him. "Good luck. And- uh… yeah."

I smiled as I entered the lounge quietly, seeing the queen sitting on one of the sofas. Her gentle aura hit me, calming the all the nerves I had. The last thing I wanted to be was caught. She patted the cushion next to her, so I curtsied and sat down slowly.

"I was told you wanted to talk to me," Valka said in her smooth voice.

"Yeah. I mean, yes, Your Majesty." I cursed myself for that.. "So, the Selected have been in the castle for around two, three months at this point, right?"

Valka nodded, so I breathed in and continued. "The holidays are coming up, and we haven't seen our families in a long time. I was thinking that a nice dance, or ball, would suffice. We could invite our families, plus more guests, and Prince Eret would get to meet our parents, too. You, Your Majesty, would be able to, too. It would be a nice change of pace from what we're used to."

After a few minutes of silence, butterflies invaded my gut once again. Had I asked for too much? It seemed relatively simple, but it was such an important part in the overall plan. It had to work. Valka couldn't be suspicious of anything.

"This is just a thought that I and a few other girls had," I said, not completely lying. I mean, the female guard had agreed to the idea.

Valka leaned back and adjusted her crown, thinking. I didn't want to look at her while she was thinking, so my eyes wandered. There was a mirror above a fireplace that was located in the center of the wall, between the two sets of doors. I saw myself and fixed my posture. I had to look perfect for her. Everything counted in this situation. Slouchy posture would not be acceptable.

While dwelling on posture, I didn't realize the queen staring at me. I spluttered as I regained my composure. "My apologies… Your Majesty…"

Valka waved it off with a smile. "No worries. It is a very creative idea you have come up with. I like it. You are such an interesting girl, I would love to meet your parents as well." My eyes lit up while she continued. "I'll have to get Major General Jorgenson to increase the security, but that shouldn't be a problem."

The corners of my mouth lifted when she slowly, but surely, gave her approval for the ball. She'd be putting Snotlout in charge, of course, he would work the security around the hybrids breaching the castle. Everything would fall into place perfectly.

I felt a little bad, though, going behind the queen's back. She was a genuine person with a lovely personality, who quickly earned my respect upon meeting her. I almost wanted to warn her about the attack, but I knew I couldn't. I wouldn't. Though I cared about the queen, there were hundreds of others that were depending on me as well.

"We shall invite the families over a week before Christmas, and they shall leave a week after Christmas, so there's room for visits and other celebrations as well," Valka suggested. "We can have a Christmas Eve ball! How lovely. Stoick will love the idea."

I quickly agreed to this and she sent me off with a smile. I had succeeded in this part. It was just the beginning of the plan. The pieces would soon start to fall into place.

I walked out of the lounge and turned the corner, where Hiccup was waiting. I nodded, and we set off quickly upstairs. He led me through corridors, up staircases, and down hallways, until we came into a small office across from a large conference room.

Hiccup entered and I peered in, wondering if it was really okay for me to be there. It was just Snotlout sitting at a desk with his feet propped up, so I walked in and immediately regretted it, firstly because of the odor.

It smelled of trash, sweat, and dirty clothes. A combination I would not recommend to anyone, ever. I had to cover my nose and mouth because of the disgusting smell. I didn't even try to hide my discomfort to be polite, I didn't care. I don't think he did either, because of the rest of the condition his room was in. It was quite a filthy room.

No, it was a really messy room.

There were papers filled with sketches and outlines strewn around the place, books falling off shelves, a broken lamp, and even a dirty tunic laying crumpled on the floor next to a teensy window. I don't think the maids have ever seen this room before, and I was glad. It would've caused them nightmares.

"So, what's the plan, Hot Stuff?" Jorgenson asked me, unwrapping a mint and popping it into his mouth. He acted so casual when calling me a derogatory name, and it was infuriating.

"I will punch you in the mouth if you call me that again," I warned, no lie tracing my voice. He put his hands up in defense and I felt Hiccup smirk beside me. I shook my head and answered his question. "Families are staying for two weeks, starting the week before Christmas. The ball is on Christmas Eve."

"Good, good," Snotlout said, tossing the wrapper of his mint behind him, where there wasn't any trash can. Looking down, I noticed many small candy and mint wrappers scattered around, and it made me wrinkle my nose even more.

"Is that all?" Hiccup broke the slightly awkward silence.

Snotlout scratched his chin. "For the time being. We only have a couple of weeks to prepare, so it'd be good if you guys came to camp once or twice in between now and when the families come."

We were about to walk out before he leaned forward with a snotty smirk. "You're allowed to come over here any time you'd like though."

I was surprised that the sound of the slap didn't echo throughout the entire castle.

When Hiccup and I were walking back through the royal quarters to get to the main hall, the hybrid prince stopped abruptly, emerald eyes flashing.

I cocked an eyebrow at him, wondering what he was stopping for. But he then sucked in a breath and pulled me behind a wall. A few seconds later and I could hear the voices and footsteps heading our way.

I looked at Hiccup with wide eyes, and he had the same expression on his face. We would both be dead if we were caught together. I wasn't allowed in the royal quarters without an escort, and Hiccup wasn't allowed to be seen with any of the Selected. Matters turned worse when I heard the gruff voice of the king.

Right. Enhanced hearing.

The prince took my hand and we bolted. We started down one hall, but the march of a few guards halted our steps and we veered back around.

Hiccup and I ran to a hall that was somewhat familiar, but I had no time to process where it really was. He opened a set of double doors and flung me through, him closely behind, closing the doors quickly and leaning against them, listening for the voices.

When the adrenaline pumping through my veins subsided, I took a look at my surroundings.

We were in a huge room, with the outer wall completely glass and with a balcony that overlooked the golf course and the city in the background. There was a large bed that was unmade and desk across from it with notebooks and papers across it. It was a bit messy for a bedroom, but nowhere near Snotlout's mess. I realized we were in Hiccup's bedroom.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Only place I could think of."

"It's fine."

"Don't mind the mess," he added. "The maids don't clean my room anymore."

"Why not?" That explained it. To be honest, if I didn't have maids, I don't think I would be able to find my bed, even with a ginormous room.

"I asked them not to. Partly because of the plans in my notebooks. I have a bad habit of leaving them out."

I walked over to his desk and scanned his work area. "I can tell," I said, looking at another rough outline of Toothless's treehouse.

Hiccup slowly dragged himself away from the door, concluding that the people passing by were gone. He started to tidy the place up, obviously embarrassed of his mess. But I didn't care. I was quite fascinated with his work.

There were sketches of weapons and buildings, beams and support systems of all kind. There were notes on different kinds of materials and structures, things that really made no sense to me but were nonetheless intriguing. Everything was so detailed and the artistry was fantastic, I couldn't help but flip through his book, looking at the time he spent on this work.

I stopped when I saw something quite different from his usual designs. There were two faces. A pair of human faces. A girl's face, next to a boy's.

She had freckles and a wicked smile with a few teeth missing. She wasn't a child, though, so she had obviously had those teeth knocked out. Her hair was a light color, but was huge, tangly, and stuck out everywhere. Her eyes were narrowed mischievously as the big grin plastered on her face. The drawing showed the figures' torsos, and the girl was dressed in a tattered shirt and vest while she was carrying a spear.

My eyes drifted to the boy. Looking closely, I could see it was Hiccup. Younger, though, maybe fourteen years old. His hair flopped more in a mop than its current tousled state. Puberty had definitely hit him hard, I could see all the baby fat he still had in the sketch. He was cute then, but I'd consider him handsome now.

"Who's this?" I asked without thinking.

Hiccup strode over and snatched the book from me, the tips of his ears turning a slightly pink color. I grinned as his embarrassment showed.

"I-uh…" It was funny to see him not able to respond. He clearly wasn't expecting anyone to see the picture. "Thanks. That's my friend, Cami. She's the Duchess of Swedenway, she sometimes visits with her parents on business. She wanted me to draw us a few years ago."

His awkward demeanor melted away as the day wore on. I decided to stay in his room, delighted as he brought out stacks of board games to keep us occupied for hours. He was usually better at the strategy games, but I was dominating at games that focused mostly on the luck of the draw.

As I hid in his bathroom, he had lunch delivered to his room. A plate of small sandwiches, a fruit bowl, and a bottle of sparkling water was laid out in a little setup as I went back into the main room. We ate happily while joking and chatting. It was a wonderfully relaxed day.

"What would you want to do besides architecture, when you get out of here?" I asked, tossing a strawberry in my mouth.

Hiccup scrunched his brow together. "As much money as I have now, I don't think I'll ever need a job."

"Yeah, but still."

He scratched his chin. "I guess an engineer of sorts. Or a pilot. I like to fly." He closed his eyes and spread his arms out. "When I fly on Toothless, I feel like nothing in the world could ever bring me down. Sometimes, I can actually forget about everything that is happening here."

"Hiccup Haddock, the first professional dragon-rider," I joked, punching his arm.

"Oh yeah, you bet." Hiccup rolled his eyes and leaned back on one hand, a sandwich in the other. "So, Astrid, what's your big dream?"

That one was obvious. "Being able to support my family," I answered. That's all I had wanted for my whole life before.

Hiccup shook his head and waved his hands. "No, no, no, that's kind of already taken care of. It's been, like, ten weeks of you being here. They have a lot more money. You're a Three now." He returned to his leaned back position, looking me in the eye with sincerity. "I'm talking, if there weren't castes or anything, no limits, what would you wanna do?"

I chewed the inside of my cheek. I hadn't thought about that much. I never had time to dream, or to think outside of the box. I always had to be focused on the now of every situation. There was no room for big goals in my life. I was busy, being one of the main sources of income for my family. I was a caretaker, relied upon every day for the survival of the Hoffersons. I had been filled to the brim with responsibility.

But now, I was free.

I hadn't thought about it much before that moment. No doubt that my family had more money than we could have imagined now. If one of those checks was able to support them for several months, imagine ten or eleven of those! Plus, I was had become a Three. I could almost any job I desired. I could become a professional writer or a real engineer. I was able to support my family even more.

Thinking of this, I allowed myself to dream.

"I've always wanted to fight for Berk. I've always wanted to join the military," I said, earning a blink from my friend. I let the corners of my mouth twitch up as I thought about myself as an officer. "I've always looked at the soldiers with envy. Their courage, their bravery, is so admirable. Them volunteering, their sacrifice, inspires me every day. I'd want to be like them.

"If I were in the military, I'd be a leader. I would lead a group of the best soldiers into battle, and we'd win every one. We'd train all the time, be hard-working and dedicated, but also be close knit. We'd be friends. Best friends. We'd fight the bad guys, come home to the good guys all intact. I wouldn't want any award, because fighting for my people is a reward enough.

"I'd be one of the first female high-ranking officers. I'd have a badass uniform with some gold pins or whatever, and little girls would look up to me." I thought of Ruby, the little girl back at the main hall in town. "Not because I want attention, but I want them to believe that with enough blood, sweat, and tears, they can make it. They will make it."

I finished, a wistful look of hope on my face. That was my dream. I wanted a job that would be hard on me and test my limits every day. That I would enjoy and look forward to.

"I can see it," Hiccup said quietly, eyeing me. "I can see you in the uniform. I like that idea."

I smiled. I smiled big. I feel like a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. The heaviness of taking care of and supporting my household was slowly fading away as the weeks passed. It was the best feeling ever.

Not that I didn't love my family, of course. But knowing that, before the Selection, and without me, they wouldn't have enough money to survive. It was a lot for each family member to take on, and I was glad to free them from it. Especially Gustav, who still had some younger years to live out.

"I used to want to be a musician, ya know," Hiccup commented, breaking my thought train.

After eating, he told me to stay put while he went into his large closet. I stayed on the blankets he had laid out to sit on for lunch, curious to see what he was going to do. He then shuffled out, carrying a case made out of black leather and shaped in weird curves. He unsnapped the gold latches and pulled out an instrument made out of redwood, a long string bow following.

"I didn't know you played any music," I said as he positioned the violin on his shoulder.

"I haven't practiced in a few years," Hiccup admitted, pulling out a sheet of paper with music notes scrawled carelessly over it. "I'm rusty, but I bet I can still play some."

The room was then filled with sweet, drawling notes blended with quick staccatos. I hadn't heard violins played many times before, and it sounded beautiful. There was a very unique and powerful sound to the way he played, and I soaked up every moment I could.

Hiccup's brow scrunched when he ran the bow across the strings, focusing on the music on the desk in front of him. He was very talented, even if he hadn't played in a long time. His lithe body moved with the music, and he swayed to the beat. It was truly a magical scene to witness. Here was a boy, a man, who had everything going against him, his dad, brother, government, everyone, and he still was able to make an odd beauty of every situation he was in. I admired that greatly.

A small smile twitched at the corners of his mouth when the tune increased to a fun jig of sorts. His feet shuffled to the music, but being his clumsy self, naturally he got tangled with his own legs and stumbled forward. He paused, a bit surprised but then shook his head and continued where he left off.

I stood up and twirled around, the skirt of my dress flowing in a circle around me. I wasn't usually one for dancing- I was utterly horrific- but I knew that with Hiccup, I could be whatever I wanted to be. I let myself be embarrassed by the way I stepped to his playing and spun to the melody. I still wasn't used to wearing dresses, so it amused me every time that the skirt poofed and flowed behind me.

We started laughing as Hiccup's tempo increased and I moved faster around him. I was surprised that the exertion caused sweat to bead on my brow and I began to tire, but my feet continued to bounce and my arms continued to flail.

An abrupt halt in the music caused me to stop and look at the prince. I laughed when he stared, horrified, at the violin, in which a string had broken and caused an awful note to be sounded.

"Damn it!" he said, but with a smile still shown on his lips.

I couldn't help but laugh as his frustration grew.

After Hiccup had placed the instrument back in its place, we sat back on the blankets on the floor and watched the ceiling fan above us spin around.

Staring at the ceiling, the more I began to take in how expensive his room was. There were a few paintings here and there, but I could tell that a few of them were done by Hiccup himself. The floors and ceilings were lined with a gold trim, the countertops in the bathroom made out of the finest granite. The dark wooden chests and desks around the room added to the glory of the setting, along with the luxurious plush of the pillows and the mattress which were on his bed.

Even the platters that the fruit and sandwiches were brought in on were a shiny silver, with small intricate designs carved into the metal. The castle really overdid it on everything.

Hiccup noticed me staring at everything in my surroundings. He watched me as I looked around his room, until he said, "What was your home like?"

I bit my lip, thinking about how I would put it into words.

As a prince, he wouldn't have had a very great look on me if I had called it a "squat shack in the dirt", for what it really was. I tried to describe it best I could, but there weren't many positive experiences that I had with that house. If I could even call it that.

"It was wood. And tiny. A bit unstable, and soggy after each rain," I started, tapping my chin. The memories of my house were wavering, I hadn't been there in so long. "We had no bathroom, only an outhouse by the treeline. Best not to go there after dark. Two teensy bedrooms, smaller than your closet. The rest consisted of homemade wooden countertops, an old stove, a few chairs and a rug I made in school."

Hiccup leaned against the foot of his bed, propping his arm on his knee. "Sounds cozy." I wasn't completely sure, but I think he was being sarcastic. I didn't mind.

I shrugged. "It was all I knew."

"Astrid, can I ask you a question?" Hiccup said, tapping his fingers on his knee. "Do you even like it here? In the castle, I mean?"

I sighed. That was a good question. I didn't know at first, the first weeks in which I arrived. But I think I knew now. It sounded selfish, but I didn't have to always worry in the castle. I had three meals a day, plus snacks, I had a comfortable bed, new friends, and plenty to do, and something to fight for.

"Yes," I said, after thinking for a little bit. "I probably wouldn't be as happy if I didn't have you to talk to, though." I smiled. "You're the only one keeping me sane around here."

Hiccup chuckled and looked out the window. I looked, too, and saw it was already dark. I had spent the entire day in his room.

"I should probably get going," I said, standing.

"I can take you through a shortcut," Hiccup offered, standing alongside me. A flicker of amusement danced in his eyes, and I raised my eyebrow. Hiccup laughed and walked over to the window, pushing it open.

He turned around, his gap-toothed smile ever so contagious. "C'mon, it'll be fun."

Next thing I knew, the cold air was biting me and I was on the roof of the castle, looking several stories below.

Ok, I wanted more Hiccup and Astrid bonding time, hence this chapter. I wanted to see them interact more as friends when they were alone!

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