Chapter 9: The art project.

Hiccup's POV

I stir the pot of plain alfredo for dinner tonight. I made enough for two in case Astrid wanted to stay over for dinner as well. Probably not, but it's worth a try.

She's coming over today for the art project she wants help on. I told myself it was that and nothing more. I mean who would want to hang out with someone like me? Huh? Nobody in their right mind. That's what.

Toothless moans as he is chewing on his dry kibbles. He's not happy that I am not cooking something with meat in it tonight.

He always goes crazy whenever I am cooking up something with meat in it and would bother me relentlessly to get his way. Unfortunately I am as stubborn as he is and will not give in when I feel like fight. It's not my fault that he gets gassy from eating too much of it.

I finish up the meal and turn off the gas in the stove in time to hear knocking on the door.

" Just a minute." I called. Oh I hope I don't embarrass myself tonight.

I go over and unlock the door to see Astrid with a beautiful orange Shiba Inu beside her. I figure that it must be her dog, Stormfly.

" Hey I didn't expect you." I said in a friendly tone as I pat the dog's head. She's seems to be happy with my reaction. Or at least satisfied.

" Sorry. My mom wanted me to take her out for a walk." Astrid apologized. " You don't mind if she comes in. Do you?"

" Not at all. Come in. My dog is going to love having a playmate." I said.

Both Astrid and her dog come in. Immediately my own dog takes an interest over Stormfly.

Both me and Astrid kinda laugh as we watch our dogs sniffing each other and overall getting along with each other.

" Seems like she likes him. Believe me that's a good thing. She tends to have her preferences." Astrid explains.

" I wouldn't blame her. I would be picky about my friends too." I said. If I had any to be picky about. " I'm going to put them outside in the backyard. Do you mind?"

" Not at all." She responds as I lead the dogs to the backdoor. They immediately dart out like bullets as I open the door for them.

" So do you want to get started? The sooner we start, the sooner I finish." She suggested as she gets out her sketch pad from her backpack. Both Astrid and I laugh at their eagerness.

" Yeah. Sure. We can go up in my room." I said to her as I point in the general direction. She nods as she follows me. I just hope that I won't make a fool of myself.

But knowing myself and me being with Astrid, I probably will be. That is an almost certain.


Astrid's POV.

She leads me upstairs to her room. I was thinking that she may have a typical room with posters of bands or hollywood crushes and stuff animals on her bed. But I wasn't planning to see something like this.

Her room was very small, but very magical. That's how I best describe it. Her walls were covered from top to bottom of posters of famous classical art pieces. One of them being the famous Starry Night painting by Van wouldn't know the color of paint on her walls unless she told you. Instead of a main regular light in her room on, she has strings lights that hang from her ceiling that give off a warm feeling like stars in the sky.

" Sorry about the size of my room." She apologizes as she turns on her main light. " I can't really help it but I make it work."

" It's amazing." I said to her in awe.

She blushes in response. I can tell she's not used to attention like this, " Oh. Thank you. I guess. Many people would think the bigger the better. At least that's what Dagny would say. Or Snotlout." She snorts.

" Then again, both of them don't have that too many brain cells." I joked and both of us laugh at that.

" So are you ready to get started?" I asked her.

" Sure. What is it you need help on?" She asks me. Man is this going to be awkward what I want to ask of her.

Okay. I admit it. I don't really need Hiccup's help on my art project. Well I do, but in a different way. I was assigned for my art project to do a portrait of someone and I have always been somewhat intrigued by her. So I decided to draw her portrait.

" I need you to model for me." I said plain and simple.

" Model!?" She squeaks in surprise.

" Yeah. The assignment calls for a portrait of someone of my choice and I decided on you." I explained.

" Me? Why?" She asks out of skepticism.

" Well…. I guess I just wanted to do something different." I said. It wasn't an outright lie, but it wasn't fully the truth either.

There's just something mysterious about her that I have always been drawn to ever since I first saw her in middle school. I guess it's just the fact that she mostly hides or tries to in plain sight. But whatever it is, I'm curious about her and want to get to know her.

" I just never model for someone before." She admits. Neither have I. Guess this will be a first for both of us.

" Just sit at your desk and put your hand under your cheek. I'll draw you like that." I tell her.

She awkwardly goes over to her desk and leans her head against her arm that's resting on the desk.

I start on my sketching of her. I'm no artist like her. I know that for sure. I always tend to make too many erase marks on my sketch pad.

She glances at me and notices me struggling. She says as she stays in the position, " If you hold your pencil as though you're making a fist instead of like the usual way, you'll be able make lighter marks and have more control."

" Don't tell me what to do." I said harshly before regretting it. " Sorry. I just don't like people telling me what I can and cannot do. It's a normal thing in my house. Not easy being the only girl in a house full of boys."

" Don't worry. I get that a lot too when it comes to my dad." She shrugs.

I take her advice and hold the pencil in my fis position. Well what do know? It actually is working out for me. I should listen to her more often when it comes to art related things.

" So do you and your dad get along?" I asked as I sketch her beautiful eyes.

" We're ok. He just gets a little annoying when it comes to me dressing the way I do. He doesn't understand that I'm not the girl that he wants me to be." She shrugs.

I look at her in her clothes. I always tend to forget how tall and skinny she is from how she dresses in baggy clothes. She could easily pass off as one of those models if she actually tried. But she's not exactly the one who would even want to model if she had the choice.

" I can totally understand. My dad always would try to get me to wear things like a dress all the time. He doesn't like the fact that I take after my grandmother." I smirk as I point at my grandmother's headband that I got from her.

" Only you pull off the shieldmaiden look." She chuckles. " I am not the strong type. Though I want to be. I'm thinking of doing some weight training."

" You should. Especially since you are getting some confidence in yourself. Plus the prevention of osteoporosis is a good benefit too. " I told her as I make the final sketch marks on the portrait.

" Yeah." She said as she looks in another direction.

" There." I said. " I'm done."

She gets out of the position she was in and stretches a bit from the strain.

" So how bad do I look?" She jokes but I honestly think that's how she feels about herself.

" You look fine. Hey if you look bad in this drawing it's because of me." I said as I hand her the drawing to look at.

She nods at it. " It's really good. Maybe if work on the shading a bit, you should have a more dimensional drawing."

" Alright. But as long as I don't fail the assignment, I think it's good." I shrug before a thought came to my mind. " You should show me yours."

" Um… I'm not that good…." She said squeamishly. But I know better. She did get herself into the art showcase as a sophomore. That means she has to be good.

" Come on. You can show me one." I egged her on.

" Well…. I guess I can show you one of my sketchbooks…" She says uncomfortably.

She pulls out one of her desk drawers and pulls out a really stuffed sketch book. I don't think mine has ever been this stuffed before. She lays it on top of her desk and backs away for me to look through.

I open the book and upon the first drawing made my portrait look like it was garbage. It was a simple drawing of her dog. But the shady and the line quality made it look like he could jump out of the pages. It was a master piece.

I look drawing after drawing and each of them took my to another world. One was a beautiful girl in a thorn bush as the rose. Another was of the local playground crowded with happy children. Just everything in one sketchbook was nothing short of an amazing trip into different worlds.

" You're talented." Was all I can say. No wonder why she's going to be in the art showcase this year as a featured artist.

" Thanks." She mutters. I can tell she seems a bit uncomfortable with this.

" Um…. can I use your bathroom?" I asked feeling the need to be with myself for a moment.

She shrugs, " Down the hall. To your right."

I nod, " Thanks." Before I head out of her room.

When I get inside and lock the bathroom, I sigh from all of those feelings inside of me. I don't know why but I feel somewhat attracted to her. I know that I am not lesbian but she makes me so comfortable to be around her despite her being somewhat uncomfortable with herself. I can't help but have feelings for her.

When I turn around from the door, I notice something weird. I see a cannister of pills by her sink. She must be on some medication for something. But when I get closer to the sink, I see the letters on the prescription very clearly.

It says on the label, " Hormone Blockers. For Henrietta Haddock."

I raise an eyebrow. Just what is she doing with hormone blockers?


Done with another chapter. I hope you like it. I decided to do Astrid's perspective for this chapter at the last minute. So please don't get mad for changing point of views from the main character after so many chapters.

I should be able to write this more often now that I finish with one of my first priority stories.

Please review and see you all later.