NINETEEN:
Friday flew by and Hiccup found himself insanely nervous. He had chatted to his father about the meeting and Stoick had been very reassuring as he had clapped his son on the shoulder and almost knocked him over.
"You don't need to be nervous, son!" he had boomed. "You're a good man, raised with manners to honour your elders. You have treated the lass well…"
"Actually, Dad-I didn't for a while…until a short while before the fire," he admitted. "I mean, I was an ass. And when I was dumped like day old yak dung, I tried my hardest to make things up to Astrid…but she didn't want to have anything to do with such a prize muttonhead." Stoick stared at him before clearing his throat.
"Ah…yes…well…" he fumbled around before staring at his son. "I presume Astrid's mother is aware of this."
"Oh yes…" Hiccup said, nodding wildly. "She's going to hate me…" Stoick shook his head.
"Son, anyone who meets you will realise you are a decent man, someone who acknowledges his mistakes and has worked hard to better himself and learn," he said, inspecting the lean shape.
"And I only have one leg," Hiccup pointed out.
"Technically you have one and a half…well, about one and two thirds…or is it one and three quarters? Maybe five eights…" Stoick suggested, frowning and peering at his son's legs.
"You know that's not helping," he noted and then he sagged. "Astrid is…amazing. I mean she's beautiful and smart and sassy and I just feel complete when I'm with her. If her Mom hates me-what will it mean for us?"
"Finn likes you," Stoick told him. "And that lad, Dane, thought you were a smart man. If she gives you a chance, she will be certain to approve of you…"
"She's a Hofferson!" Hiccup said despondently. "They're fierce and stubborn and bear a grudge and did I mention stubborn? I wouldn't blame her if she hated me but if I lost Astrid…" His voice trailed off and Stoick immediately leaned forward, gently grasping his son's tense shoulder in his meaty hand.
"Son?" he asked gently. Ashamedly, Hiccup looked away.
"I'm sorry, Dad," he murmured. "I just keep seeing myself falling down those stairs. And what they said to me after just keeps going round and round. And I remind myself that I really don't deserve to be here-because I'm not as good as any other student. I am down a leg and I was an asshole before and all my friends rejected me…why would anyway really want to be my friend, let alone my girlfriend…?"
Stoick quietly wrapped his son in a careful hug, feeling Hiccup lean into him.
"How long have you been feeling like this, son?" he asked quietly. Hiccup gulped.
"Since the fall…and especially since…" His voice trailed off and Stoick shook his head.
"Those…people…haven't helped you, have they?" he sighed, not meaning Hiccup's friends.
"I know the Norns treat us how we deserve," Hiccup murmured. "I must have really offended the Aesir by how I treated Astrid…" Hugging his son a little harder, Stoick sighed.
"You were nowhere near as bad as the others and you have shown genuine remorse-unlike your cousin," Stoick told him honestly. "I could not have been more proud of how you have coped." And then he paused. "You know the doctors offered someone to talk to after your fall. They mentioned that this could happen." Hiccup looked up, his bright green eyes ashamed.
"But a Viking son of Berk should be able to cope," he argued. "I should just pull myself together and face this like…"
"Like a human being who is struggling," his father told him gently. "Son-I'll make the call and they can arrange you some sessions to just help you get things back in perspective…though I know that lass of yours will help." But Hiccup shook his head.
"I can't put this on her as well," he said stubbornly. "I mean, how could I look her in the face when she is so amazing and I'm so utterly pathetic?" Stoick pulled back and inspected the skinny shape of his sun.
"Hiccup-you are a stubborn and brave young man," he said honestly. "And I could not be more proud of you. Everyone needs a hand now and then-and I am certain your lass was not as confident and assured when she lost her father. I am certain she and her mother struggled-and though her school fellows didn't help her, she certainly knew you were down and struggling after your fall. And yet she came to help you. A girl like that comes round maybe once or twice a lifetime-so if you meet one, you should do everything you can to hang onto her."
"Not at all awkward…or creepy," Hiccup sassed quietly.
"Not creepy at all, son," Stoick told him sternly. "What you feel for her is genuine and very powerful. I could see it-Helheim, even Gobber noticed it. You are a brave young man but we all need help, now and then. Astrid seems to be willing to give that help. One day, she may need you-and I know you would fight your way through the Frost Giants to help her."
"Because those mean old Frost giants could never hope to deal with all this raw Vikingness," Hiccup shrugged as his father chuckled. "Thanks, Dad. I guess I needed that…" Smiling, Stoick nodded.
"That's my boy," he said and headed back to the kitchen. "Now go and make me proud, son."
oOo
He was sitting in the car for almost five minutes before he reached for the door, his heart pounding in his chest and he had to almost shake himself. What was wrong with him? He had faced everything his former friends had put him through, been the most hated guy in Berk High and had even acted in a movie! What was so scary about opening the car door, walking up to the house, ringing the bell and facing Astrid's Mom?
But he knew. If she hated him-as he suspected she would-then it would be the end. This little pool of happiness he had created would be shattered and sooner or later Astrid would dump him. And realistically, why wouldn't she? She had so much going for her and he…didn't. And what girl would want to hang onto him as a boyfriend…or even a friend…when her only surviving parent disapproved? Maybe he should just turn around now and drive away and possibly leave the country and hide in the French Foreign Legion…if that still existed. Yes, he could see it now…sand, no one for miles, a fort full of losers…exactly the perfect place for him…
He jumped at a tap on the window and looked up-to see Astrid rapping her knuckles on the glass with a smile. Warily, he wound the window down.
"Hey," he managed.
"Hey," she replied, still smiling. "Are you okay? I watched you pull up and was worrying if you were going to drive away…" He gave a false laugh.
"Ah…me? No…I was just…wondering if the French Foreign Legion still existed…" he gabbled as her eyes widened.
"You thinking of going Beau Geste on me, Haddock?" she asked him dryly. He rubbed the back of his neck.
"You picked up the reference, huh?" he replied. She nodded.
"Watched the old black and white movie with my Nana Poo," she explained. "She loved the men in uniform and I found it fascinating because I come from the Archipelago where deserts are some alien landscape…"
"It's just a huge beach…extending for about a thousand miles…" he replied. "And Nana Poo?"
"Mom's Mom…her maiden name was Pulevic…hence Nana Poo…" she explained then smiled. "Look, I didn't say it was in any way logical…" He chuckled. "Look, I promise Mom won't eat you. I'll protect you." He sagged.
"Oh Thor…that makes me sound even more pathetic…" he admitted but she leaned through the window and pressed a brief kiss against his cheek.
"Hiccup-you're amazing," she told him gently. "You were attacked for asking people to treat someone who has been foul to you decently. By the person who was foul to you! You suffered some serious injuries and you just came bouncing back. And I was the biggest fool on Midgard because I was so stubborn and angry at everyone that I refused your offer of friendship. But you kept on being there. Thor, you noticed I was looking sad on the day Mom went into hospital. No one else even cared if I was there-but you did. And my stubbornness meant that we were both alone a lot more than we needed to be."
"What I deserved, I think," he admitted but she opened the car door.
"Come inside. Please?" He unfastened his safety belt.
"For you-anything," he conceded, and slowly got out, grasping the bunch of flowers from the passenger seat. Astrid's eyes widened.
"For me?" she asked but he shook his head regretfully.
"For your Mom," he admitted. "Um…because you should always bring flowers for your hostess…unless you're round there every five minutes when frankly you'd go bankrupt…" She chuckled.
"I don't know what you have to worry about," she told him, taking his hand and walking him into the house. Ingrid was waiting at the door, having watched the interplay with a thoughtful expression. Anxiously, Hiccup tried to smooth his hair down slightly, though the result was to make it even more wild. He nodded.
"Um…hallo Mrs Hofferson," he said. "Thank you for inviting me round. These-these are for you." And he handed over the flowers. Her eyes widened at the gesture: old-fashioned and generous but none the worst for either of those. Smiling, she accepted the bouquet of pink and white blooms and stepped back.
"Welcome, Hiccup," she said clearly, eyeing him up. He had changed from school into his black jeans, black shoes, a forest green shirt and black winter coat, a fluffy green scarf swapped around his neck. "You'll catch your death." He stepped back and allowed Astrid in first then followed, shutting the door behind him. Carefully taking off his coat and scarf, he looked askance and hung them where she indicated.
"Do you want me to take off my shoes?" he asked but she shook her head.
"Astrid explained about your leg,' she told him calmly. "It's okay." He nodded.
"Um…thanks," he said, still looking anxious. "Are-are you feeling better now?" Eyes twinkling, her smile broadened.
"Yes, thank you," she said. "And you?"
"Oh yes," he replied. "I've got a hard head anyway so falling down the stairs was more likely to damage the stairs…" Noting his self-deprecating tone, she led him into the kitchen and Astrid pulled him onto a seat at the table as Ingrid bustled around dealing with the flowers.
"So…tell me about yourself, Hiccup," she invited him as she filled an elegant glass vase with water. He glanced over at Astrid but she was smiling and she nodded in reassurance.
"Well…I live with my Dad and my dog, Toothless. My Mom bailed on us when I was young-about a year old. They never divorced because Dad always said he loved her. And he says to this day he would take her back in an instant because when you love someone, you love everything about them-even their flaws and mistakes. I don't really remember her at all, to be honest-just what Dad tells me and pictures. She never called, just wrote very occasionally from a variety of exotic places, telling about how she was foiling poachers or helping in some remote conservation project. The last I heard from her was when I was ten-it was a postcard from Palau. Dad told me she was some sort of edgy conservationist and eco-warrior and clearly her beliefs were far more important to her than her family.
Dad travels a lot with his job as Managing Director of Berk Co, though he is now settling back on Berk. My Uncle Gobber is a mechanic and is probably certifiably crazy but he's good-hearted and looked after me a lot. A couple of years ago there was a bad house fire-due to an electrical fault-while Dad was away and I was home alone and I ended up losing part of my left leg so I am an amputee. Yeah-sorry. I wanted to be a pilot but that's not happening any more so I'm aiming for Aeronautical Engineering instead because I have always dreamed of flying and realistically, that's the closest I'm ever going to get now. And I used to be in the track team until the fire and then…well, I do run a bit still but I have to use my running prosthetic and I feel the stares of people more than I should. I'm a straight A student like Astrid and we're pretty much neck and neck in class ranking. I used to be a jock and an asshole and I didn't treat Astrid as well as I should-but after the fire I was dropped like a rancid piece of meat by the people I thought were my friends because I was no longer 'one of them'. And I realised how bad it was to be treated like that. And though it was what I deserved, I was lucky to find some other outcasts who accepted me for what I was not what I had been. I tried to make it up to Astrid and be her friend…because she's amazing: beautiful, sassy, stubborn, smart, probably some other S words as well. And I have crushed on her since about Freshman Year but I was too stupid and shallow to acknowledge it. And I thought I had blown my chance to even be her friend-but I promised myself that I would always try to be her friend, even if she ignored me to the end of time because I didn't want to be the ass I had been and I owed her my friendship for teaching me to be a better person. And I think I am the luckiest guy on Berk and probably the planet to be her boyfriend."
Ingrid was staring, slack-jawed, at the candid and honest resume of his life and she glanced over at Astrid, whose eyes were as wide as her own. She didn't fail to notice that her daughter reached out and her hand gently curled around Hiccup's before his fingers gently reciprocated the grip. Emerald eyes flicking up guiltily, he sighed.
"You did ask," he admitted as she snapped her mouth shut.
"I did," she confessed. "That was…remarkable." He shrugged.
"Mrs Hofferson-you know who I am," he said honestly. "I am certain your daughter has come home unhappy or angry or hurt by the actions of my friends and I in the past. And if I could take that back, I would-because the Norns have dealt me some harsh lessons to teach me that such behaviour is unacceptable. I couldn't believe it when Astrid came to talk to me in the Library and when she danced with me at the Valentine's Dance…well, if I could have died and gone to Valhalla, I would have died happy. But you are her mother and I know you and she are close. If you wanted to know about me, I owe Astrid to answer as fully as I should." He paused and chewed his lip. "I mean, I'm not really used to mothers. If my Dad says he wants to know something, it's usually much louder and very direct and he wants to know everything straight away so I reckoned I would do the same. Was that okay?"
"You really haven't seen your mother for seventeen years?" she asked, finishing arranging the flowers. Hiccup sighed.
"When I was about five, I asked Dad if he was going to get us a new Mom but he just said that he wasn't," he recounted. "That she was the only woman for him, that she was the love of his life and he would never love anyone again. And he told me that love was the best, most amazing thing in the world-but that love came with loss. That was part of the bargain-but the pain was worth it." He squeezed Astrid's hand. "I really hope he's right because I've done the losing bit already, with Mom and my leg…"
"You've got me," Astrid told him. "And the twins and Fish and Dagur and Heather." His lips tilted in a smile.
"Milady-you are more than enough for me," he admitted.
"Mom-he was really good in the movie," she told her mother eagerly. "He really looked like a proper Viking…"
"Because of course, no one could mistake this raw Vikingness," Hiccup sassed gently. "Mrs Hofferson, Astrid was awesome. She really really looked like a Valkyrie and she was a natural. I may have to just go hide as unworthy of her…"
"Oh, you are not going Beau Geste on me," she told him. He chuckled.
"My prosthetic would get stuck in the sand so not much chance of my being accepted into the Legion Etrangere!" he told her sassily. "You may be stuck with me a bit longer…"
"Good," Astrid said firmly as Ingrid brought them glasses of soda and smiled.
"I hope you eat yak?" she checked and he nodded.
"Um…with my Dad's cooking and Gobber's, I kind of eat anything as long as it's not raw or on fire," Hiccup explained. "Except Oysters. I'm allergic to those." Ingrid nodded-and then her eyes widened.
"Oysters?"
"Yeah-Gobber's idea of a joke," Hiccup explained. "Dad was coming home and texted Gobber to say that he would love a pie-steak, kidneys, potatoes, thick gravy, full puff pastry…I was happy to make the pie but Gobber decided it would be hilarious not to give Dad the warming pie he wanted but instead to serve Dad with raw oysters with chilli and garlic…Honestly, he was furious. I thought he might explode. And Gobber falling off his chair at Dad's expression didn't help. He refused to even try them so Gobber suggested if even I could manage one there was no excuse… Except the moment I swallowed the horrible slimy thing, my lips swelled up as did my tongue and I suddenly found it really hard to breathe. I was rushed into the Emergency Department and told to never touch them again." The woman shook her head.
"The yak roast is entirely free of oyster," she reassured him.
"Oh thank Thor," he sighed.
"Though if my daughter was making it, it would probably be on fire," she added as Astrid glared at her. Glancing from mother to daughter, Hiccup's brows dipped.
"Um…are you saying there is something the fabulous Astrid Hofferson isn't brilliant at?" he asked carefully. "I mean she's smart, athletic, sassy, beautiful, acts like a professional. swings an axe like a Valkyrie…"
"Cooks like a muttonhead," Ingrid laughed.
"Mom!" Astrid admonished her. Ingrid winked at her and swooped forward, wrapping a one-armed hug around her daughter.
"My love-you are a daughter anyone would be proud of but please-could you explain what happened with your lemon drizzle cake at Aunt Rodinia's birthday?" The blonde huffed and then sighed.
"It looked like a lovely sponge," Astrid admitted. "And I'm sure I followed the recipe. But it went a bit heavy and solid when it was baked and then when I put the lemon drizzle over it, it sort of melted and congealed into lava…" Emerald eyes widened at her downcast voice and then Hiccup smothered a chuckle. Astrid glared at him. "What was that?"
"Nothing…" he managed in a strangled voice. "Sounds….delicious…" Ingrid was grinning as Astrid gave a sigh.
"It really wasn't…" she admitted. "I had put too much baking powder in it and far too much salt and it tasted evil. It probably counted as a chemical weapon…"
"Definitely," Ingrid put in.
"And my poor Aunt bravely ate a huge piece-and ended up in the ER straight afterwards, having her stomach pumped," Astrid confessed.
"I can cook," Hiccup told her generously. "You-you don't have to be good at everything. You and I both know the everyone needs help sometimes. I can cook the cakes and you can be fabulous at everything else…" Looking closely at him, Ingrid realised there was no artifice in his voice or manner: he genuinely cared for her. She refilled their glasses of soda and checked the vegetables on the hob before sitting down, sipping her green tea.
"About five minutes," she said. "Hiccup-is Astrid your first girlfriend?" Her daughter blinked.
"Wow!" Astrid said. "Not at all awkward, Mom!" Shifting very self-consciously in his seat, Hiccup blushed fiercely and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Um…no," he admitted as Astrid swung to stare at him. "It's not what you think though. It was when I was about five? Yeah, five. My Dad was good friends with Bertha Bogby, the Senior Minister of Bog Island and she had a daughter, Camilla…though she preferred being called Camicazi, or just Cami. She was everything I wasn't…bold, outgoing, decisive…and we were inseparable. Boy, she got me into some terrible scrapes and I was always the one who ended up in trouble. I think my Dad wondered if I had gone mad…but in truth, it was Cami…though she always managed to manipulate me into helping her. And she did always help me out with what ever punishment Dad set me…"
There was an inflection in his voice that had Astrid concerned, wondering what would happen if she turned up again…but his next words reassured her.
"It all ended when I was about six, nearly seven. They moved back to Bog and Cami went to Boarding School. We drifted apart…though she still writes sometimes. And don't worry-she's got a girlfriend, Hertha, and apparently they are planning to travel the world after graduation." He gave a wan smile. "It was a very brief thing. We held hands only. I don't think she even ever kissed me! And even then she was eyeing up the other girls…she's a friend friend…nothing more…" His emerald eyes fixed on hers. "You are the only girl I ever think of…or have kissed..."
"Quite right too," she murmured. "And for the record, you are my first boyfriend." He blushed fiercely.
"Oh Thor…." he managed as she squeezed his hand.
"Young love," Ingrid murmured, inspecting him again. He had been very honest and against her own preconceptions, she found herself liking the young man. "Now, I hope you're hungry because I don't want to see any waste!"
"No, Mrs Hofferson," Hiccup said quickly as Astrid rose to help her mother. Ingrid handed her the vegetables to drain and leaned close.
"I approve," she said with a smile. "You're right-he's a nice guy. Now let's try not to poison him…" Astrid handed the colander to her mother.
"Over to you, Mom," she sassed. "I'd probably dust them in arsenic by accident!" Ingrid watched her slide into the seat by Hiccup and take his hand once more, leaning close to murmur a question and seeing the boy smile at her words.
"I think my daughter is in safe hands," she murmured as she began to carve the yak roast.
