. II .

A deep, throaty roar came from the dragon that had just tried to eat them, responded with a much less threatening defiant screech. Astra took the moment to stare at the dragon's beauty, while Hiccup took out a crumpled piece of paper he'd stuffed in his pocket and began to sketch the dragon's postures, exclaiming and grinning in delight -typical-.

The dragon was a deep, rich violet, with a cream underbelly. It had a long tail, studded with spikes, which it was thrashing rather wildly from side-to-side. The creature's unnaturally long wings were stretched out, which Astra noted were patterned with rosettes. At the base of its wings, there were two small, but sharp dewclaws each.

The rosettes were black, rimmed with cream and the centres were white. It seemed odd to be inspecting a deadly enemy this closely, but there seemed to be nothing else right to do. The dragon had saved their lives, and they were expected to leap over and stab its back or slice its belly?

Stupid. She started as the opposing dragon beat their wings and took off, shakily, and that gave Astra the time to notice burns on its body; mostly lower back.

Nadder fire was the hottest, after all.

The dragon furled its wings to its sides and turned to face them, squawking gently. Even Hiccup had closed his book, staring in wonder. The pupils of the dragon were wide now, not slitted as before. Astra was certain this dragon was a female.

Two dots of cream were positioned on the creature's brow, above her eyes, which were a striking deep green. Her chin was cream, as well, and a crown of spikes rested atop her head, and it had a beak-like jaw, suggesting an overbite.

Astra smiled warmly at her. She could sense Hiccup beside her frantically capturing the moment, but in her world, he wasn't there. It was just her and this Nadder. The violet dragon gurgled softly in its throat, resting its head in the palm of Astra's hand. She was overcome with amazement, and sighed dreamily, feeling the warmth from the dragon's scales seep into her skin.

But then a loud bang cut through the peaceful stillness, and Astra was flung painfully from her happy place. She fell backwards, Hiccup dropping his book (which he had been ripping paper out of and sticking them up above Astra's desk previously, and had just before been sketching) and catching her. He exclaimed loudly in concern as he helped Astra to stand, but all she could feel was an overwhelming sadness as the Nadder flew away.

Hiccup wasn't sure what to think as they trailed back up the hill, hand-in-hand. That Nadder had saved their lives, undoubtedly.. although why? Why had it gone against its packmate? Why hadn't he been the brave one and stabbed it in the heart?

He didn't know why; although he did know that if only for the look on his best friend's face, he would cause no harm to that dragon. Not that he could, anyway. Him against a huge -okay, fairly small- dragon which breathed the hottest fire known to man?

Yeah.. nope. There was a silence between the two of them, although it wasn't uncomfortable. Hiccup was just thinking before Astra spoke. Not about the dragon, or their village, or anything remotely 'important'; but his contraption.

"So, why did you use the old version of 'The Mangler'?" Astra questioned, "Wasn't it supposed to be a 3D version of what you were making, with a few improvements?"

Hiccup frowned, although he was glad for the distraction. "Well, the 2.O was still on paper. And I panicked, I guess."

"Were you chased around the village by a huge Monstrous Nightmare?! Then, that isn't real panic!" Hiccup paused, and Astra took that as a yes, continuing on with her half-playful, half-serious rant. Hiccup would have listened, but it just went on. He rolled his eyes at the irony, letting her drag him up the steep hill, through the grove of trees and through the still-open door of Astra's shack.

Hiccup let his thoughts wander as she continued rambling on, only pausing for a breather as she bolted the door, which Hiccup wasn't impressed with. He eyed it critically; how did such a weak frame survive the winter? It looked as though it'd collapse if even the slightest wind blew against it.

"Yes." Hiccup caught Astra off guard, letting her ramblings pause.

"What?"

"I was chased by a Monstrous Nightmare while I was looking for a dragon to shoot down."

"Hah- fair enough." Astra finished bolting, jerking it into place with a tug. It was old and rusted, and Hiccup eyed it with a frown. "Don't worry, it won't lock us in, I-"

"-You'll break the door down?" Hiccup finished cheerily, gently taking her hands away and wiggling the bolt further in. "Before, it would have just gotten stuck." He advised, and Astra grinned at him.

"Well, you do know metal." Astra sighed contentedly, leading the way up the flight of steps. Both were careful to stay at the edge, as Hiccup was pretty sure that if he traipsed down or up the middle, it'd break under his weight. And that was saying something, because of his slightness. The two reached Astra's bedroom.

It was bare, with a small, lopsided desk in the left corner and a small bed in the right. A ripped, grass-woven rug lay on the ground, which was all peeling wood. It wasn't mouldy, like the windowsill, which Hiccup thanked, although it was slightly damp. Although his father didn't have time for him, Hiccup still had a comfortable room, big enough for a heavy wood desk and a small mattress in a corner. It wasn't much, but at least water didn't seep through the walls, which were sturdy.

He stepped thankfully onto the grass rug and stretched out on it. Although it was rough, it was a nice change to the wet planks of wood, which were damp and horrible. He eyed the room critically, noticing Astra sit on a teetering pile of books.

Why hadn't his father offered a better room for her? Sure, she was just an orphan, but she was his best friend, the heir's best friend. Even if he was treated like an outcast, that title accounted to something.

"Why do you think that dragon saved us?" Hiccup asked quietly, tucking a wayward strand of messy auburn hair behind his ear.

"I don't know." Astra muttered, "We could go to the hall? Steal that dragon handbook?" Even as she spoke, she was twitching, rifling through papers and shoving aside countless sketches of the Vikings of Berk - Hiccup noticed with horror that she'd discovered the whole folder of photos of Astrid, and was holding one up with an expression of distaste on her face. "How lovesick are you?!" She motioned at the Astrid, which was hugging Hiccup, and then her face moulded into pity.

"This is ridiculous." She muttered aloud, "Look, Hiccup, if you're so desperate as to draw pictures of her hugging you, we need to improve on things!" Hiccup felt as though his father's mighty sword had been stabbed into his chest, and he couldn't breathe. Were Astrid and he being.. a thing so unrealistic? He had hoped... "So!" She pushed aside his drawing of 'The Mangler 2.0' and tossed it to the side, Hiccup scrambling to his feet to grab it and hold it to his chest.

Hiccup thanked Thor that the ink was dry, otherwise, his precious contraption would have been ruined. As Astra ripped a piece of parchment from his book and snatched a bit of the broken charcoal stick from the pocket of his fur vest. He glared at her, but she paid him no mind, simply sketching out something.

Hiccup leaned forwards, overcome with curiosity, but he only saw one word, in messy runes, before Astra pushed him back down again. He scrabbled on the damp boards, before picking himself up irritably and settling down on the woven-grass mat. It took him a moment to process and read it in his mind, and it wasn't even very helpful. Get. He frowned, "You could just tell me, you know?!"

"Nope! It's far more fun this way, just wait." Astra mumbled, bent over the desk. She had (thankfully) had the sense to get off the pile of books and write standing up, not risking to sit on the rickety chair discarded by the desk. Hiccup edged closer to it while Astra was preoccupied. He didn't understand why she hadn't bothered to sell it or get it repaired.. it was a beautiful, well-designed chair. Unlike her door - although he wasn't sure she could get rid of a door. He traced his fingers down the side of a chair leg, knowing he could easily repair it for her, as well as her door; but he wasn't sure he had enough gold to pay for the materials.

To be fair, her whole house would need to be redone.

She finally finished and held it up proudly, and Hiccup didn't bother to read the scrawl; instead, he noticed two stick figures at the bottom. One had a skirt and long hair, the other bald. He narrowed his eyes at it, before taking the time to actually read Astra's hopeless attempt at being neat. Get Hiccup a girlfriend, pt one.

He burst out laughing sarcastically, although he felt touched, "Are you kidding?" He asked her, "There's no way Astrid would date me if I was the last guy in existence!"

Astra wrinkled her nose, "Well, with this guide, you'll get her in a month. And if she doesn't want you, there'll be others. Trust me!" She garbled as he looked unconvinced. "It's true!" She insisted, before taking a tack which Hiccup had left on his desk and pinning up the poster.

"Instructions?" He asked her.

"No.."

"Well, we have to start somewhere?" Hiccup's voice was doubtful, but a small flicker of hope was burning inside of him.

"That's the spirit!" Astra grinned, her cloudy-blue eyes wide with excitement and happiness. "Firstly.." She trailed off, thinking. "We can either go the: make something useful approach, or don't make anything approach."

"What?" Hiccup muttered, "How are you planning to do this?!" Astra frowned, tapping her chin with her forefinger in an exaggerated display of inner turmoil before reaching out and ruffling the brunette's hair affectionately. Somehow, she seemed to have teleported onto her bed, again.

"That isn't for you to worry about!" Astra chatted excitedly, and Hiccup thought with amusement that she seemed to resemble the Nadder in that way. The Nadder! His thoughts began to churn, and he thought about cutting Astra off but decided not too. She was on one of her rampages; pretty hard to stop. "Um. I think you should continue inventing, but stay inside and not use them in a raid. Not cause trouble, see? Make sure they're absolutely foolproof and you have sixty backup plans."

She was chattering for a while about some ideas and pros and cons, that Hiccup absolutely had to stop her and point out and obvious flaw if he wanted to eat or sleep tonight. "Sixty? Astra, that's slightly obsessive, don't you think? Plus, how will I help and not use them in a raid? How else am I going to use it, chop off yak heads for stew and make it even grosser?" Sarcasm was evident in his tone, and it made Astra pause.

"Maybe.." He rolled his eyes at her not acknowledging his second question, before she continued on, "Okay, sure, but at least thirty?" Hiccup shook his head, "Twenty-?"

"Astra!" Hiccup hissed, creeping forwards and shaking her. "Stop! This isn't about trying to make sure I'm not forever alone and get the girl of my dreams, that can come later! We have more important, pressing matters.."

"Nothing is more important than your mental health!" Astra replied stubbornly, although she quietened when Hiccup spoke again.

"The Nadder, Astra. Everything, packed in that one exchange, goes against everything we've been taught! But why? Why would that Nadder risk death, facing up against some huge monster for two enemy kids, instead of munching us up for late dinner - or early breakfast!"

"Maybe it was a mother?" Astra suggested, curling her feet underneath her as she pondered, tapping the desk beside her. "Maybe it saw us as her children? Don't Nadders have blind spots, and not very good eyesight?"

"Perhaps." Hiccup shrugged, although he strongly disagreed. The dragon had seen him and Astra, seen them perfectly clearly. In the reflection of its eyes. He reached out for the sketchbook he was currently filling and flicked to the last page, the one with the last photo, of the Nadder touching Astra's palm. He gently prised open his friend's fingers, swearing under his breath as he saw how tightly she had gripped it and the charcoal dust flaking off of it, powdering the edge of the paper.

Hiccup wiped it off, fairly carelessly, causing a stain on the paper. Oh well; he could just fix it later with some paint. Speaking of which, he'd have to ask Astra to get some of the necessary herbs from the Healer's hut; she seemed dead-set on making Astra her apprentice, and Hiccup could see why. She had a talent for it, even if she pretended and got things mixed up. He willed her to take it because even if she wanted to be a shield-maiden, she was going to be married off anyway.

Stoick was already using minimal resources on her, and she wasn't really contributing solidly to the tribe apart from keeping him out of trouble, and that was just Astra being an overly-protective best friend. Although she was nowhere near as restrictive as Stoick was to him. But, carrying on from his earlier thoughts, she was going to be married to the first boar-head.. but that made him feel guilty. What if she wanted to get married?

The thought made him feel odd, as though he'd eaten yak-head stew. (He always skipped meals then, and Astra never really ate at the hall anyway, and he was taking her example. He liked fish, and it was pretty cheap anyway, all that Astra could really afford, -although he tried to smuggle her some food when it wasn't too gross- and in turn all she had.) She was his best friend; it was hard to imagine her with anyone else, even though they weren't together in a romantic accord. Them time would be Astra-and-husband time, and he wasn't sure he wanted that.

Who else could he share everything with? Who else would stick up for him when she was busy doing more traditional things?

By now, he'd mostly finished the sketch, zooming in in great detail on the exact position of Astra's face, her thoughts reflected and unravelling onto the page. The joy, the kinship.. all emotions reserved for him. He felt guilty. Why was he being so selfish? Astra deserved better than him, and why would she put off getting married so she could stay, chat and have fun with an outcast like him?

"Come on," Astra muttered, who was now crouching by him. He looked up into her worried stare, and felt grateful that for now, she could still read how he felt; a kind, warm, amazing best friend who still put effort and time into his welfare, even when he was being stupid. And he'd return the favour a thousand times over. "Let's go eat."

Hiccup thought of lightening the mood, and smirked at her, "You mean you burning it? Nu-uh, I'll do it today."

"It was your turn yesterday!" Astra whined, and the two winked at each other.

"Well. I suppose you can, this time." Hiccup paused, as though deeply contemplating, before adding, "But you'll be paying for my funeral when I choke to death on one of your fish chunks!"

"How dare you?!" Astra exclaimed, but she was laughing, and as Hiccup took off, keeping close to the edge of the stairs, all worries were shoved to the back of his mind. This was him and his best friend. Together. As they should be.