A Complete Turnaround

Rated; M
Pairing; HiccupXAstrid
Disclaimer; I do not own anything HTTYD related. Everything belongs to its original creator.

The Responsible Party

=Astrid's POV=

{Friday, March 4, 2022-2:20 pm}

(Archian Preparatory)

I didn't know what was wrong with me. How could I have even considered that killing myself would solve my problems? It wouldn't. Hiccup said to me; it would just pass them to the next person in line. And I had a strong feeling that it would go to Hiccup, his friends, and his family. When I let myself fall from the roof of the school, which is about three stories high; I heard Hiccup call for me. I didn't understand it at first because Hiccup wasn't one of the people down on the ground trying to get me to stop like Valka, Stoick, Spitelout, and a bunch of others. However, just like when that guy almost ran me down in the parking lot and Hiccup was the farthest person away; he somehow saved me. Hiccup had Toothless divebomb to catch me, and it was close to the ground, but Hiccup did it. If I hadn't been so upset with wanting to die; I would have probably said that it was the coolest thing I'd ever seen. Something else I had not expected was for everyone to take a few steps back and let Hiccup scold me the way he did. At the same time; I felt no one would be able to stop Hiccup from literally screaming some sense into me.

A lot of what Hiccup said hit me hard, but Hiccup wasn't wrong either. And the most meaningful thing I heard was Hiccup telling me that he just got me back, and he didn't want to lose me again. Aside from that, only moments ago, Hiccup told me that I mean a lot to him, and made me promise never to do something like this again. And by the Gods; I would not. No matter how bad it got; I wouldn't try to kill myself. I could see now after that verbal kick in the ass that maybe I didn't have my parents or my home and car, but I had people here who loved and cared about me. Hiccup went on about being here for me, and that I didn't have to do this alone. And he was right. I wasn't alone anymore, maybe I was after Eret, and the others ditched me, but not now. Hiccup was right about everything he mentioned; all the things I still had. I should never have believed that throwing it all away would make it better. After Hiccup said all those things to me; I felt weak and nearly fell. Toothless made it so I wouldn't, and then he nudged me into Hiccup's arms where I let go and just cried.

I was still like this, crying against Hiccup's chest and keeping my face hidden from sight while he held me. The teachers had dispersed anyone who gathered, and all that remained were Hiccup's parents, uncles, and the Dragon Training class which Hiccup led from 2 pm to 3 pm. The counselor, Throk Wington, and Mr. Meatsen were here too, but that had to be because I just tried to kill myself, and they wanted to know why. Sadly, the most comfort I'd felt since losing my parents was right now in Hiccup's arms; I didn't want to leave the embrace. I felt Hiccup's arms shift, and move to my shoulders, pushing me back a little until I was looking at him.

"Hey, hey…It's alright," Hiccup soothed.

I shook my head. "I'm an idiot," I whimpered, sniffling.

"Yeah, you are," Hiccup stated calmly as I looked down more. Hiccup lifted my chin up so I'd be looking at him again. "But you're only a teenager, and we all do dumb shit and make awful choices during different phases of life, Astrid. I know things are hard right now, but it's going to be okay. You gotta keep pushing through, and sooner or later; you'll become the person you're meant to be. This is how we learn who we are, so don't beat yourself up over one little mistake; it's part of growing up. It won't be like this forever; this is just a storm, and they run out of rain. Trust me; you're going to be fine with time," Hiccup smiled a little, using his thumb to wipe my tears away.

"I believe and trust you," I managed softly.

"Good. Now, go with Mom and Dad to talk to Mr. Wington, Mr. Meatsen, and I'm sure Chief Jorgenson. I'll see you tonight," Hiccup stated.

"Wh-What about work?" I wondered.

"I'll find a cover, but you're in no shape to work tonight, Astrid," Hiccup informed.

"A-And class?" I tried.

"You live with me; I'm sure I can find some time this weekend to run over what you missed today," Hiccup said.

"That's hardly fair to the rest of us who have lost the first half an hour because of Astrid's meltdown," Camicazi remarked.

"And Odin knows that Snotlout, Minden, Heather, Fishlegs, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut will be allowed to catch up as well this weekend," Thuggory huffed with his arms crossed over his chest.

"You're welcome to stay after school today until 3:30 to get that extra half an hour," Hiccup enlightened.

"Why should we have to give up our time after school to learn something that the others don't have to abide by?" Ragna scoffed.

"Because the six of you aren't allowed at my house," Hiccup said openly, not caring. "And I gave you those reasons with witnesses present. However, if you'd like to explain to your parents why and what my terms of you being there are; then be my guest," Hiccup invited. I saw what Hiccup was doing, and being honest; it was a little scary. I've never seen him like this before, but I could tell he was testing the populars to push him. Hiccup knew they wouldn't own up to what happened at the surprise party to get them banned from his house unless their parents were present.

"Dad, tell Hiccup that he can't give private lessons," Thuggory told his father, Mogadon.

"What I do on my time is my business," Hiccup stated.

"While I would agree with you, Hiccup…Unfortunately, if you're training half your students at home; that's not fair to the rest who would be getting denied a chance to hold the same knowledge. If you are going to teach Miss. Hofferson, and your other students at your residence when they miss something, then you need to do the same for all," Mogadon informed.

"I will do n-," Hiccup started as Stoick clamped a hand over his mouth and laughed nervously.

"What he means is that it's fine," Stoick said quickly. I saw Hiccup's eyes widen as he struggled to get free from his father. Hiccup finally pulled his father's hand down.

"What are you doing?" Hiccup asked.

"Keeping you from getting in trouble," Stoick whispered. Hiccup crossed his arms over his chest, glaring. "It will be fine, Mogadon. Why don't they come over tomorrow afternoon? I know Hiccup has work tonight," Before Mogadon could answer, Hiccup's phone rang. Hiccup put it to his ear.

"What?" Hiccup asked. "You run this by Johann and see if he's cool with it?" a pause. "That still leaves no opener or closer for Saturday and Sunday," Hiccup said as I watched him start rubbing his eyes with his fingers, then sigh. "You know what…I don't have Runa this weekend; she's with her grandparents on Liv's side. I'll take the weekend days and nights," another pause. "I'll be fine. Oh, and Astrid isn't coming in tonight either due to personal reasons," he added, then hung up.

"What was that all about?" Valka asked.

"Work-related situation. I now have tonight off, and I'm working doubles Saturday and Sunday," Hiccup stated.

"Hiccup, no. It's too much. You can't work 8:30 am to 10:30 pm two days straight," Stoick told him.

"I'm eighteen; I'm allowed to work whatever hours I want now, and I'm the manager," Hiccup said.

"So, this makeup lesson?" Nadia wondered.

"Your dad already said we could come to the house," Eret grinned a little.

"Keep fucking pushing me…" Hiccup glared.

"Hiccup Haddock!" Stoick warned.

"What, Dad? I'm not gonna sugarcoat it for them. I don't want them over, and you saw why a couple of weeks ago. That is an everyday occurrence, and I'm sick of it. Tell me, Dad, when does it stop? How much more abuse do you want me to suffer? Because to be completely honest; I'm not sure how much more I can take," Hiccup admitted. I felt bad; I could tell he was trying to stay in control of his anger, but it wasn't going to hold for very long.

"Hiccup, it's only an hour of dragon training…" Valka tried.

"I don't care. It's an unnecessary hour that I have to spend with them at the house. I said I'd tolerate it here at school, not at home," Hiccup retorted. "And you know; I'm starting to think I can't deal with it for an hour here either…"

"What are you saying?" Mogadon asked.

"I'm stating that maybe you should consider looking for someone else immediately," Hiccup remarked as me, and a few others gasped. "Because I quit,"

"Hiccup, come now; there's no reason to do this," Mogadon insisted. "I selected you because I know you can do it, and ensure these students get the knowledge they need to be successful trainers and riders,"

"And you picked someone who is bullied day in and day out by those five right there," Hiccup pointed to Eret, Nadia, Camicazi, Thuggory, and Ragna. "Sure, maybe they listen in class, but what about the rest of the day? And for the record; I never said I'd train my friends at home. I offered to stay after and give the lesson then; they are the ones who caused all this because they are pissed I banned them from my house for being inconsiderate douchebags. Tell me again why I should have to deal with people like that? I shouldn't, and I refuse," Hiccup informed.

"Hiccup! Please? I can't find someone else on such short notice…You were hard enough to get in the first place because I couldn't find anyone. They will all fall behind and won't be ready for the trainer and flying exams in June…Please reconsider?" Mogadon begged.

"Can I remind you that they purposely riled up a Monstrous Nightmare to get me removed as the dragon trainer in the start of the year over jealousy? Why should I have to subject myself to the chance of it happening again the next time they get jealous? I refuse. Find someone else to take the abuse because I am done," Hiccup told him. I couldn't believe it; Hiccup was quitting as the head trainer because he truly didn't want them at Haddock Manor.

"Don't you care if your friends end up failing too?" Thuggory asked. Hiccup laughed a little.

"The sad part is that they wouldn't," Hiccup said.

"If you quit, then they lose you as a teacher too," Ragna accused.

"Me quitting as the trainer here doesn't erase my status as a legal dragon trainer for Archia Isle. Students here would lose me as a teacher, but I can train anyone anywhere. Location doesn't matter. Therefore, while Mr. Meatsen is looking for a new trainer for you five; I can still train my friends off campus at my house. So no, they wouldn't fall behind or fail. I'd never leave my friends like that, abandoning them when they need me during a crucial time," Hiccup said.

"Son, we didn't raise you to be this way…" Valka frowned.

"Yeah, well, sorry, Mom. You might have raised me to be a nice guy, but I'm sick of being a doormat. I've been kind too long to those six, and each time I do…They throw it in my face days later. I'm done with it," Hiccup remarked. "Snot, Minden, Legs, Tuff, Ruff, Heather…You six are more than welcome to come over around 4 pm, and I will continue to train you," Hiccup added.

"It's Friday night, where else would we be?" Heather smiled. Hiccup faced Mogadon now.

"Sorry things had to be this way, Mr. Meatsen. My friends and I will leave campus at 2 pm, and then I will continue their training, privately," Hiccup said. "I wish you the best of luck finding someone to deal with them," he added. "Mom, Dad, Astrid; I'll meet you at home," Hiccup put his leg over the saddle, opened the tail, and launched into the sky with a roar from his Night Fury. I still couldn't believe it; Hiccup quit being the head trainer to get back at the populars. I knew it was about revenge because he was still going to train his friends off campus.

"There will be no getting him to change his mind, will there be?" Mogadon sighed, defeated. I saw Thuggory, Nadia, Eret, Ragna, and Camicazi looking nervous and worried almost that Hiccup quit and Mogadon possibly being unable to find a replacement trainer on short notice meant they would fall severely behind, and fail their trainer and flyer tests at the end of the year. It meant that they could own their dragon, but not train or fly until they passed. And if they failed during the school year; they would have to repeat everything from September all over again at an outside school. Hiccup was by far the best trainer on the island because of his skill level with dragons. I'd found articles about Hiccup's training days, and what other professionals have said about him.

Having someone else come in to pick up where Hiccup left off would be about as useful as when Dagur was training us in Hiccup's absence after the Nightmare incident. Dagur fully admitted that while he was qualified to be a dragon trainer; he didn't know everything that Hiccup did, and Hiccup was the one who taught him everything he knew now about dragon riding and training.

"Unfortunately…No. When Hiccup has his mind made up about things; there is usually no changing it," Spitelout interjected.

"I-I don't know what to do…" Mogadon leaned against the building now, clearly panicking on how to handle the matter. "I-I had asked Hiccup at the end of Junior Year if he'd be the trainer for Senior Year, and spent all summer with the board of education on how to allow a seventeen-year-old to teach the class because I couldn't find anyone else…Sadly, no one wants to train high schoolers…"

"Dagur…Can't you-," Valka began.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Haddock. I don't believe I can be the trainer here after how they've all treated Hiccup over the years," Dagur said firmly. "He doesn't deserve what he gets from them, and I don't blame Hiccup one bit for being fed up and quitting,"

"We'll talk to Hiccup, and see if we can get him to change his mind," Stoick sighed. "Come along, Astrid," he added. "We'll also need to have a word about all this too," he said, and I knew that was a reference to me jumping off the roof. I'd be dead right now if it hadn't been for Hiccup. I nodded and began to follow them as everyone was dispersing.

"I just have to get my stuff from the locker," I told him; he nodded, and I rushed back into the school.

. . .

{2:35 pm}

(A-Hall Lockers)

I ignored a lot of the looks I got, and the whispers I heard while I hurried inside to my locker. I grabbed my bag, books, and other things before shutting it to see Eret, Gruffnut, Nadia, Thuggory, Ragna, and Camicazi around me.

"What do you want?" I asked quietly, not making eye contact.

"You better not tell anyone about earlier," Camicazi warned.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I replied.

"You know what, bitch!" Nadia glared. Of course, I knew what it was about; the girls jumping me in the locker room at the gym and telling me that I should die. It's why I was on the roof, to kill myself. I could tell this whole thing now was because they didn't want me telling anyone that it was their fault for putting me in a state of mind where I wanted to die.

"Oh, you mean when you three beat the shit out of me in the locker room and told me that nobody wants me around. And put it in my head to kill myself?" I snarked hatefully.

Camicazi elbowed me in the side as I winced a little. "Yeah, that. You're gonna keep your mouth shut and tell anyone who asks that you let your depression take over. Or you're gonna wish Hiccup didn't catch you in time earlier," Ragna punched me in the stomach. I cringed and panted a little. "We're watching you," she said before the six of them walked away. I took a few moments to catch my breath, then moved to meet Stoick and Valka out front.

=Normal POV=

Unknown to Astrid, a pair of green eyes hadn't been far away and watched the scene and had heard everything. The green eyes belonged to none other than Hiccup, who came inside to collect his books and notes from other classes to do his homework tonight.

So, they're the ones who are responsible for Astrid's meltdown. Astrid never wanted to end her life before those fuckers put it in her head, and now they're threatening her if she tells anyone what happened? Hiccup thought while feeling shocked and pissed off that he knew the truth now. Hiccup had enough of it, and it was time he did something in retaliation.