Disclaimer: Don't own, don't make profit.

Thank you to everyone!

Enjoy.

Like Father, Like Daughter

6 months later

"Stop crushing my hand."

"Shut up and straighten up your shirt collar."

"Now, Astrid, we talked about this...ow!"

"What did I say?"

"Why would you do that?!"

The maître d' coughed awkwardly between them.

Hiccup glared back at an equally irate Astrid while rubbing his neck. Her eyes flashed as she gritted her teeth back at his stare.

"Now it's sorted."

"It was fine in the first place!"

"Sir? Madam?"

Hiccup inhaled deeply and pinched his nose; forcibly cooling down his frustration. This was a big deal for Astrid. Her fussing was just an outlet for her own stress – meeting her father for the first time in years had set her on an edge he had never seen before.

When she'd barrelled into his cabin all those months ago with her voice cracking in angry fear, he'd learned that her father had rang her at the office; enquiring about her life.

"He said he wanted to become a part of my life again!" She seethed. "Two-faced bastard! Who does he think he is? Crawling back into my life when I've got it good!"

"Uh, Astrid..."

"He can go to hell!"

"Astrid!"

Those blue eyes peered up at him. Tears were threatening in those pools; but they were denied an exit. Astrid smashed her head into his chest with angry frustration. He let her; holding her close and crooning soothing noises into her ear. Eventually she wiped her nose and told him quietly he sounded like Toothless; which he took as a positive sign she'd calmed down.

"Astrid...he might have changed.. You are his only daughter, after all."

She glared stubbornly at his chest. "He wants to meet up."

"Then meet up."

"I don't want to." Her hands gripped his in an iron grip as she vented her fears through crushing his tendons. "I...I don't know what to do."

Hiccup smiled softly, returning to her quivering lips and lightly kissing them straight. Feeling her relax and smile back, he shook off her hand to flick her nose with his thumb and forefinger.

"Ow!"

"You're being melodramatic. Where's the headstrong woman I know? If you're not sure, don't meet up. Worst comes to worst, bring him here and I'll get Toothless to soften him up before you see him."

She rubbed her nose and pouted between rubs. "You're mean."

"No, I'm Hiccup. Have we met? I'm sure I started dating this crazy blonde woman...oof!"

Astrid rarely missed her signature shoulder punch.

And here they were. A man Hiccup had never met had reduced his Astrid to a pile of quivering nerves; holding it together through controlling her appearance, Hiccup's appearance, where they ate, what they had to say, and how they were going to show off how successful they now were. Personally, he didn't plan on following any of her previous orders – he'd meet the man, and make his judgement before making up his mind. Astrid could be vindictive when she wanted; and he was determined not to be rude to someone who didn't deserve it.

"If you follow me, I'll take you to your table. The third member of your party is already here."

Astrid let out a faint squeak under her breath. As they walked through the reasonably well to do restaurant, Hiccup slipped his hand into hers and pulled her to a stop; pressing his lips into her shaking ones. She trembled under his ministrations for a moment before melting into the embrace; finally relaxing into the kiss with a breathed sigh. He pulled apart and rested his head gently on hers; blowing gently onto her nose to see it wrinkle at the attention.

"We're good." He told her softly. "Stop stressing. Or I really will call Toothless."

That got a smile. He let her slip away to stride in front of him with renewed confidence; rigidity fading from her spine as she walked.

Astrid's dad was not...what Hiccup expected. In his head he had imagined a fast talking businessman; shallow and cynical from his lack of family life with a neatly pressed Armani suit. But the person that greeted them painted an entirely different picture. He wore a shirt, yes, but the jacket lay folded over his chair and there was no tie. The casual blue shirt was tucked into comfortable looking dark jeans; smart casual in every sense of the word. The man himself had sleek black hair pulled back into a low ponytail; suiting the aristocratic features of his high cheekbones. Even his belly was gently rounded; showing his age. The similarity was found in the piercing blue eyes; fixed upon Astrid as she marched up to the table.

"Astrid." He breathed, hastening to stand and extend his hand awkwardly. When she refused it to sit ramrod straight in the opposite chair, it left Hiccup to pick up the normal greeting trail.

"Hey, you must be Astrid's father. I'm Hiccup."

The man's handshake was firm and warm; a reassuring pressure instead of a dominance deathgrip. "Good afternoon...Hiccup, is it? I'm Arthur. Yes, Astrid briefly mentioned you during our previous phone calls – she said you owned the Nation Exotic Park just out the way?"

"Yes," Hiccup darted a glance to his girlfriend as the two men sat. Her hands were folded tightly onto the table; elbows splayed with an almost bored expression on her face. Well. As least one of them was playing the dominance game. "I'm actually the owner's son – I took over management a good couple years ago."

"Which is where you two met, I take it?" Mr Hofferson asked, sparing a hopeful glance to his estranged daughter in the efforts to make her speak. When she did speak, however, it wasn't in the same polite tone her father was using.

Hiccup sent a prayer upward to the gods; whoever was listening.

"Yes. I took over management of the park's internal business infrastructure just under a year ago."

Her words were colder than she wanted them to be. Despite her attitude, she still felt the warmth in her chest at seeing family; greedily taking in the differences as she would a possession she'd thought she'd lost. He looked good. Really good, actually. Questions began to pile up on her tongue; demanding answers to heal the burning rift in her heart.

"How's university? You wanted to do Business, didn't you?"

"Graduated a couple months ago." Astrid waved her hand dismissively. "Full Honours Degree."

The fact she barely passed the last year due to not attending classes didn't need to be said – she got the degree; that's all that matters. Telling Arthur of how successful she'd been didn't lessen the sourness in her mouth, however.

"How is the family business?" Again, with her past attitude of concealing genuine interest with bored commands. She mentally gave herself a slap. Warrior Astrid. Channel Warrior Astrid!

"I, uh, actually don't do a lot of the contract chasing anymore." Her father admitted with a shaky laugh. Her surprised retort was cancelled by the waiter coming over to ask for their drink orders. Coke for Hiccup, water for Astrid, and a half shandy for Arthur. "I'm driving, so can go all out." He gave them a wink; immediately downing half in a nervous action.

When he was distracted, Hiccup nudged her with his foot and forcibly grinned wide at her sullen face. She got the message. Stop being a bitch.

His comforting, however abysmal, still made her feel better – enough to calmly ask the questions she'd prepared in advance. "But...you're still working, right? Twenty four seven?"

"Barely." The table trembled as all three became aware of his leg bouncing under the wood. "I got sick of it. So I handed it all to that associate of mine and offered my job to a promising apprentice. He's doing really well – and I still get the profits as the owner."

"But why?" Astrid couldn't help but demand this one. "The business was everything to you. It dominated our lives. How could you just throw it away like it didn't matter more to you than me?"

Shit.

The silence that followed her jibe made Astrid acutely aware of the abashed father opposite her, and the quiet presence of Hiccup in the chair next to her. Hiccup not saying a word meant he wasn't going to bail her out this time – she had to do it herself. However painful; she had to face this.

She allowed her hands to press into her lap to release some of her inner tension. Knocking back some of her cold water, she plunged into the thick of it. "That was uncalled for. I'm sorry, father." She stumbled over the unfamiliar term. "It's...been a hectic few years. I should have called."

Hiccup's hand was suddenly there to cover hers. She gripped it under the table; eyes never leaving the trickle of condensation on her tall glass of water.

Her father chuckled; breaking the silence with his laugh. "No, you're perfectly valid in asking that, Astrid." His fingers began to drum an unsteady beat next to his shandy. "The thing is...I have a couple things to tell you, actually. You might not like them, but that's why I'm here. To mend past mistakes."

Astrid refrained from asking if she counted as a mistake.

"I won't beat about the bush. I've...met someone, actually. One of the secretary's to another company came by to deliver some important files about a year ago. We began to see eachother after that."

Hiccup's hand tightened warningly on Astrid's own. Don't freak out. She breathed deeply through her nose to control the molten rage.

"You organised this meeting...spent ten minutes bullshitting your way with small talk...to then reveal you're happily having an affair?"

Her father gawked at her in shock. His face turned somewhat puce in the course of a minute; contrasting with the whites of his wide eyes. "Jesus, Astrid, you don't know?"

"Know what?" Astrid snapped back. By her internal clock, they'd been here far too long. This had been a mistake.

Arthur exhaled gustily and slumped in his chair. His age showed in the tired wrinkles by his eyes; plus the faint white strands barely visible in his dark locks. He was a handsome man for his age. But right now, he looked like a defeated soul. "Your mother and I finalised our divorce not long after you...ah, left for university." He told them. "I finally tracked her down to a large cooperation in America. She just signed the papers and sent them through her lawyer. I asked her to get in touch...did she?"

Astrid mutely shook her head.

Arthur swore under his breath and picked up a menu; angrily perusing it while muttering choice words involving his former wife. Astrid just stared blankly at the table; not seeing the polished wood at all.

"Astrid." Hiccup whispered into her ear. She shook her head again; still shell-shocked. "You want to go?"

That surprised her enough into turning her head to look up at Hiccup. Even sitting he was taller than she was, lanky and strong in his own wiry way. She couldn't imagine a better person to be by her side.

That thought strengthened her; hardening her weakened resolve into inner steel. The hurt she felt wasn't genuine – it was the backlash of seeing her father that poisoned any information he gave. She didn't really have any affectionate feelings towards her mother – it was the faint tinge of warmth at seeing Arthur, however, that gave her an inkling of her unresolved emotions. She still wanted to know him. Even after all these years.

Feeling remarkably less bitter, Astrid leant up to peck Hiccup on the lips. "No, I'm good." She picked up her own menu and, after hesitating slightly, lent over to nudge Arthur's one clenched in his hands. When he looked up, she smiled softly, hoping he'd be willing to forgive her behaviour.

"Will you tell me what she's like?"

Arthur stilled. Then, like daybreak through stormy clouds, a dazzling smile brightened his face into a devilishly handsome epitome of happiness; clearly showing where Astrid got her heart-stopping grins from.

"I'd love to."

Thank you to all.