A/: So, the next-to-last chapter, and an important one for me again... Maybe the last will be up later today as well.
Astrid
Astrid looked down at Hiccup's face and had to admit he really looked peaceful. Or at least he looked way more peaceful now than he had during the past two hours. She wanted nothing more than to reach out to caress his face and run her fingers through his tousled hair but contained herself least she'd wake him up again. Not now, after he'd finally agreed to take another dose of painkillers…
She had told him what had happened to him, of Eret and how it was all her fault. She'd told him of how his brilliant snap decision to call Heather had saved him from Eret inflicting even more pain on him. And, after that one short interruption, she'd told him of how he'd almost bled to death, of how easily he actually could be dead now, all because of her and this stupid flaw in his prosthetic. Just talking about it had been enough to make her break down then…
She'd told him what his mother had told her earlier, too. That she refused to build another one of this flawed prosthetic for him. But what were the alternatives? He could wear a simple standard prosthetic for now but for that to work the wound would need to heal a great deal more. He would need to spend weeks in bed for that to happen and would again need weeks thereafter for a rehab that would be completely useless as he would need to start all over again as soon as the improved leg was ready.
Of course, Astrid agreed on this one point… she wouldn't want him to wear another one of these deathtraps. How easily something could have happened already. It hadn't even been necessary to break the leg, a slightly more severe bruise would have been enough, as they now knew. It was true, they really did agree on this point.
No, there was only one sensible solution and that was to overwork Hiccup's plans for his leg, to eliminate this flaw and get this improved prosthetic on him as soon as possible. She had come to this conclusion on her own before and had expected someone at the lair would already be working on this. Learning that this was not the case had made her angry, had made her even yell again. It had been a good thing that Heather had been there as well at that moment, or she didn't know what else she would have done. It appeared, that Hiccup was even more special than she'd already known. Because there simply was no one else who was actually capable of overworking these plans. Not even Fishlegs, who'd worked out those with Hiccup in the first place, was smart enough to make these alterations.
For a moment, Astrid looked fondly at Hiccup again. Of course, she knew how special and unique he was, had always known that. But learning just how capable he really was… She shook her head in amazement. Brilliant mastermind, Heather had called him and now she knew just how fitting this nickname was. But of course, this was exactly the reason for this quandary right now.
Because only Hiccup himself was capable of overworking the plans for his leg. And how could he do this in his current state? He was either in pain or under the dizzying influence of painkillers. How should he be able to concentrate enough? This was too important to risk him making another mistake. He needed more time, a few days at least to come around enough. Maybe, if the pain lessened he would have about one or maybe two hours between every dose to work on this. But then again, even that was a lot to ask, in her opinion at least.
After she'd explained this dilemma to Hiccup, he'd immediately wanted to take a look at the packet his mother had brought. She'd already known what it was as Heather and Fishlegs had told her about that before, during the days she'd waited for Hiccup to wake up. Fishlegs especially had been enthusiastic about it as he'd waited for this for months, or so he told her. It was an improved working tablet and every nerd (Heather's word…) at floor 50 got one this week. As far as she understood, it contained enough high-tech to run an entire space shuttle, or something equally demanding at least. It hadn't really mattered to her and Heather had just laughed and had told her to let the boys enjoy their playthings. If only…
After Hiccup had taken a look at this he'd wanted to start working immediately. He, too, understood, after all. The longer he needed to alter these plans, the longer he would need to stay in the hospital. He'd winked at her and had said he'd really like to go home again, soon. The way he'd said the word 'home' had made her blush and she hadn't been able to convince him to take it easy after that. For two hours she'd watched him work then, had watched him suffer in pain only to get reacquainted with these plans as fast as possible. It had been obvious however in just how much pain he'd been. Every movement had been careful and deliberate, his face covered in sweat. His breathing had turned into panting and he'd groaned in pain every now and then, probably without even realizing it.
Astrid had taken the tablet away from him then, had refused to give it back and had called for the nurse. If necessary she would have restrained Hiccup herself but he'd agreed to let the nurse inject him with the drugs, finally seeing reason. The effect had been instantly again, his whole body had visibly relaxed as the pain subsided and his eyes had gotten that dreamy gleam again. He'd reached out for her, inviting her into his arms again and she hadn't been able to resist this invitation. She'd nestled up against him, basking in his warmth while his breathing calmed down further. He'd hummed contently, drawing her closer and then, right before he'd completely drifted off into sleep, had whispered drowsily against her hair. "I love you…"
She'd jerked upright instantly, had stared at him, eyes wide and heart racing. But he'd been out entirely, a relaxed smile on his peaceful face. "Not fair…" she'd whispered right back, knowing he couldn't hear her anymore and had nestled up against him once again. "But I love you, too" she'd mumbled against his chest and for a moment it seemed like he'd hummed contently in his sleep.
She hadn't been able to sleep again as well, though, had gotten up after she'd soaked up enough of their closeness and was now standing by the window, looking out over a small park, arms closely wrapped around herself. She knew she wouldn't be able to keep Hiccup from working on these plans. Oh, she could try, she guessed. She could refuse to give the tablet back, which should be enough, considering he couldn't walk and all. But somehow she knew this wouldn't work. He would find a way to get it back, even if it meant he had to jump on his one remaining leg through the room, ripping off all the tubes and wires in the process. He has a history of endangering himself… These words kept popping up in her mind then and it took her conscious thoughts a while to remember where they came from, to realize what her subconsciousness tried to tell her. She had heard these words before, hadn't known then that they related to Hiccup. But know she knew. She knew and understood them. Mrs. Dragonite had been worried for him all along…
Valka!, she berated herself. Gods, could this whole situation really get any more awkward? Not even Heather was allowed to call her that… But she had to admit, there was some connection between her and the older woman. They synchronized on a strange, deeper level, even though Astrid could not understand or explain it, not even to herself. She'd been determined to hate this woman. This person who'd deliberately inflicted so much pain on her own son. And although nothing had changed really, she found she could understand her. Not forgive her, never forgive her! But understand… She hadn't left Hiccup because she didn't care for him… She'd left him because the grief over her husband's loss had been too great to deal with. She had left him, which was the crucial point, but… well, Astrid could at least accept her efforts now without feeling too bad about it. Especially as they served her purpose. Because in the end, they both had the same goal. Keeping Hiccup save!
She shuddered and a moment later picked up her blanket from the uncomfortable plastic chair and wrapped it around her shoulders. She wasn't cold, not really. But it comforted her nonetheless as unbidden memories haunted her.
She thought about how this one week had changed her life so thoroughly and how easily it could have been destroyed again by now. No, she wouldn't let any harm get to him if she could prevent it. She cared too much for him and was looking forward to what the future might hold for them. Yes, she did understand Valka. Loosing Hiccup… that would destroy her!
Her life had been a mess up until last week. Of course, compared to what Hiccup had endured, her life hadn't been all that bad, but still… She'd been devastated by her parents' death and Hiccup's disappearance, as he appeared to have changed his plans and she hadn't known to which college he went. She had holed up in her apartment and had almost done nothing but crying for three weeks straight. Without any family or friends left who would have cared for her, Mrs. Ingerman, Fishleg's mother, her neighbor had been the only person who'd even bothered to look out for her. She hadn't done much, had knocked on her door on a daily basis, asked how she was and brought her leftover food from their table. Retrospectively she suspected the plump woman had cooked an additional portion just for her and was grateful for it, but back then it had only annoyed her. As if she wasn't able to care for herself…
But truth be told, she hadn't been, not at that time. Maybe she would have drowned in her grief then and waiting, hoping for a certain letter to arrive that never came, hadn't helped her much as well. She'd remembered how she'd dreamed of traveling, of seeing the world but hadn't dared to leave least she'd miss his letter after all. Again, it had been Mrs. Ingerman who'd saved her in a way. Astrid had bought her plane ticket months ago, back when her life still had been reasonably happy, but as the day grew closer she thought herself unable to leave. But her neighbor had apparently noticed her impatiently checking her mailbox multiple times every day and had promised to contact her, should this certain letter arrive.
This reassurance had been all she'd needed, she'd packed her backpack and left without looking back. For two years she'd then worked and traveled all around the world, had tried all the things, she'd dreamed off and this time could have been a happy one. But she'd always regretted having lost the contact to Hiccup. During all her traveling the thought of him nagged at her. She dreamed of meeting him by chance on the streets or in a club or bar, found herself even looking for his patch of tousled auburn hair wherever she went. After two years then she gave up. Running away from her memories didn't work and all the new things she saw and learned lost their appeal to her. So she returned to her home, to the apartment that she'd inherited and tried to go on.
She took various jobs, as a waitress in a bar for example, but lost it again, when the bar closed a few months later. She tried to turn her hobby into a profession and became a personal trainer in a gym, but being a young woman, and not an ugly one, had led to too many customers groping her and after she'd broken that pig's arm she'd been asked to resign her job. An old friend of her parents had offered her help as well. He had proffered the possibility of a job in his corporation if she'd get additional qualifications in handling various computer programs. But in the end, that job had been canceled before she'd even had the chance to start it as the corporation suffered severe losses due to the ailing economy. And those had been only a few examples of her bad luck. The apartment belonged to her and her parents had left her with a certain heritage but even those reserves couldn't last forever.
She'd tried to flee this life occasionally, had saved up every scrap of money she could spare to buy gear, equipment and pay for vacations where she'd be able to pursue her hobbies. Everything to distract her from her dreary life.
She had been with a few men as well. Had tried to engage herself into earnest relationships, to distract herself from the one she could never forget. But she had no luck there as well. There were the sportsmen with whom she at least shared her hobby but most of them were too much in love with themselves, too determined on their goals to entertain a relationship. That was alright in a way, she at least understood that. But there were also these men she occasionally met in bars and clubs, that were only looking for a reasonably pretty body and nothing else. And then there were men like Eret… Men who had the confidence to deal with a woman who wasn't the usual weak damsel in distress. Men who had the physical strength to not be afraid of hers. Maybe it was unavoidable, or maybe she only really had a lot of bad luck… But she found that more often than not, these men turned out to be abusive brutes as soon as they realized she wouldn't yield to their every wish. Eret had only been the last in a long line of men like that…
She gripped her blanket tight and drew it closer around her, shivering again. The memories of Hiccup had always been like an invisible sun, warming her from the inside, even though on the outside her life had been cold and meaningless. She'd never stopped wondering where he'd went, had never stopped hoping for his letter to arrive. And then, after this horrible day one week ago, she'd read his name beneath hers at the doorbell.
She looked back to where he lay on his bed, connected to all these machines, wires and tubes everywhere around him. No, she would not let anything happen to him again! He'd called her his light in the darkness but the same went for him as well. He was her light, too. Suddenly tired after all, she crawled back to his side, cuddling up against him once more and, wrapped in her blanket and his arm alike, she closed her eyes.
They would have to face a lot in the near future. Hiccup would not contain himself when it came to overworking these plans. He would try to put off taking the painkillers in order to keep his mind clear as long as possible and she would have to convince him to take breaks every day anew. And after he accomplished this, there would be the time of rehab, of synchronization with his new leg. He'd mentioned it before, that part had taken a years time and had been quite painful. But he hadn't shown any signs of reluctance to go through this again. And he wasn't alone this time… Together, they would be able to face everything no matter how long it took or how hard it would be.
This left one problem to be solved… A problem that would need time, patience and comforting, she guessed. She hadn't told Hiccup yet what she knew about his mother by now. And she had concealed the fact that it had been her who'd saved his life as well, for now at least. It wasn't like she didn't want to grant this to her, not at all. But Hiccup seemed not to be ready yet to deal with this topic, she'd seen this during their earlier encounter with her. But she'd also noticed something else. Heather might have seen this before but then she was not in a position to do anything about this.
She would need to ask her for confirmation, though, but… She had noticed how both, Hiccup and Valka, behaved completely out of the ordinary around each other or, in Hiccup's case, when the other one was only mentioned a well. They both were armored heavily against the emotional pain the other one was able to inflict upon them, not realizing that this armor was what hurt them and kept them apart in the first place.
Yes, they had a lot of work lying ahead of them. But hopefully, they also had all the time in the world to go about it.