Yes, yes, these three all need some sense shaking in to them!
-HTTYD-
Astrid stared at her phone for a while. Then stared at it some more. Henry played happily by her feet, acting out some kind of fierce battle between his chewed-up giraffe and a rubber duck (that Astrid had disabled the squeaking capability of for the sake of her sanity).
"So, are you gonna do it or not?"
Heather asked, stirring honey in to her tea. Astrid turned to glare at her, then went back to looking at her phone.
"I don't even know what to say to her. And besides, why should I trust her? She went behind my back after I made it clear how I felt about her telling the twins."
Heather frowned, lifting her cup to take a sip before she answered.
"I thought you were glad that they are in his life now."
"I am, but that's not the point!" Henry looked up at her sharp voice, and Astrid smiled reassuringly before forcing herself to stay normal volume "she still did something she knew I didn't want at the time."
"Then don't call her."
Astrid sighed, but didn't lower her phone.
"But am I just doing that because I'm angry? Would Henry be better with her in his life?"
To her credit, Valka had given Astrid her space, hadn't tried to contact her again other than to send gifts for Henry through the boys. So she knew Astrid was upset with her, and hadn't pushed the issue. But, well, Astrid had started to think about it. She hadn't wanted the twins back in her life, but it hadn't all fallen apart the way she'd feared, and Henry was enjoying having them around each week. So she'd started wondering if perhaps, maybe, she should call her mother.
"Well, only you can say that for sure. But she did beg to meet him, and sent him gifts even though you aren't talking. Gifts she made, even though she didn't know if she'd ever see him with them. That's time and dedication. And Henry did seem to like her."
Astrid sighed again, tapping her phone. Henry turned around and struggled to his feet, gripping her knees and giving Astrid a drooly smile.
"Hi baby boy, what's up?"
"Up!"
He held his arms up to her, making Astrid laugh as she put her phone aside and pulled him up into her lap. Henry tugged at her t-shirt, and Astrid still felt her cheeks flush when she thought of how he'd gotten overzealous with that before.
"Ok, ok, I get it. Someone's hungry."
Henry settled once he was nursing, and Heather laughed as she sipped her tea.
"He's always hungry. As Hiccup and Eret found out recently."
Astrid glared over Henry's head, biting back her more colourful response and she knew Heather was amused by that.
"Yes, thank you for reminding me. Like that wasn't awkward enough just to experience, let's relive it again."
"Oh, come on! I'm probably the only person who's seen your boobs more than them, and that's just from being here while you feed the guzzler there. It's not like they'd never seen them before!"
Rolling her eyes, Astrid wrapped an arm around Henry so he'd not topple off her lap, more focused on feeding than whether or not he'd fall. At least he wasn't biting her so much lately.
"That's not the point. It was so awkward, and this was after the... kitchen incident, so things were already awkward."
Heather stifled a snigger in her hand, shaking her head.
"Is it a genetic thing to be this dim and obtuse, or is it just coincidence you're all so damn pig headed?"
Astrid raised an eyebrow, not impressed by her friend's amusement at Astrid's expense.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, we already know you want them back. Don't waste your breath denying it."
Astrid grit her teeth and glared some more, and Heather seemed completely unapologetic.
"No, I don't."
"Sure. That's why you're having those se- ah, steamy dreams about them, huh? And why accidentally kissing Hiccup for half a second had you in such a state?"
"Being alone and... frustrated is not the same as wanting them back."
Heather didn't answer, and that only served to raise Astrid's ire more. If Henry wasn't perched on her lap, she'd have had more to say, but Astrid didn't want to upset her son. Henry finished up and gave Astrid a big Henry-hug, then clambered down to the floor to go back to his playing. Astrid couldn't help but smile fondly down at him, adoring her sweet little boy.
"So, are you calling your mom or not?"
"Not. I'm texting her."
Astrid debated over what to say for a few minutes, before typing out a simple "Thanks for the gifts for Henry. He loves them." and sending it. She'd lost her nerve too much to call, but at least she'd reached out a little bit. That was something, right? Heather gave her a comforting shoulder pat, then reached down and ruffled Henry's messy black hair. It still stuck up in all directions most of the time, looking just as messy and chaotic as Henry usually was.
"Are we gonna talk about how badly you want them back now, or shall I go home and wait for you to call me about it later?"
"I hate you."
Heather simply laughed, checking her own phone.
"I know. But I'm only here until after we eat, so if not now, it'll be later."
She'd come over for a late lunch, cooking up two big trays of lasagna so there'd be some for them to eat then, and more for Astrid to keep in the fridge or freezer to eat later. Astrid was probably going to have to learn to cook one day.
"I don't want them back! Damnit, I wish I hadn't told you about any of it."
Astrid was lying, but Heather didn't need to know that.
They were always buzzing with anticipation when it was Henry-day, and both of them admitting how they felt about Astrid and what they wanted had only added to that. But they weren't going to let on about that, the two agreed - they didn't want to scare Astrid off again.
Eret was in the shower, and Hiccup was on the phone to their mom. She'd gotten a text off Astrid to thank her for Henry's gifts at last, which Hiccup supposed meant Astrid was making a tiny little baby step toward being back in touch with Valka.
"Did you call her?"
"No, if she'd wanted to speak on the phone, she would have called."
"I guess. Did you at least text her back?"
"Of course, but no reply. I'm glad to know Henry enjoyed his gifts."
"He did, we've seen him with the blanket. Likes to hold it when he's sleepy."
He heard her make a small, happy sound.
"That's very sweet."
"I'll see if we can get a picture later. How are things back there?"
"Oh, same old, same old. He spends most of his time in the garden when I'm home now."
They were still in separate beds, from what Hiccup gathered, but now Valka no longer trod on eggshells around him, Eret Sr had stopped picking fights and so they largely just cohabited in silence. He wondered how long that would limp on.
"Are you still coming over here for dinner tomorrow?"
"So long as I'm still invited."
"Of course. Oh, Eret's just got out of the shower, wanna say hi?"
He handed the phone over to his brother, enjoying the view of a wet Eret clad only in a towel for a moment before he went to get a glass of water. When he got back, Eret put the phone on loudspeaker so they could both say bye to Valka, and then Hiccup very reluctantly told Eret to go get dressed. It was for the most important of reasons, at least.
Hiccup was taking a chance that day, and taking food with him. He'd waited a little while after Valka's gifts, so Astrid didn't feel overwhelmed by it, but he was hoping to at least put a smile on her face. Henry didn't have all his teeth and still seemed to be mostly on soft foods for the moment, so Hiccup planned on asking what was good to make for him if Astrid accepted the things he took that day. He'd wanted to make her some gingerbread, but wasn't sure how well Astrid would receive the reminder of a family favourite.
They headed over, his heart thundering with anticipation after the awkwardness of the previous week. Astrid was not likely to bring it up, and after talking it out with Eret, they had agreed not to either. It was an accident, after all. Best not to make a big deal.
He didn't recognise the person who answered the door when they knocked, short and blonde and looking up at them in confusion.
"Astrid! There are cute guys at the door and they appear to have food. Did you order breakfast or strippers?"
Oh. Hiccup supposed the woman must be Heather's girlfriend, Cami. His suspicions were quickly confirmed.
"Cami, shut up and get inside!"
"Shu'up!"
Henry tried to mimic his mother, giggling when she chastised him. Heather was sat on the sofa, tying her shoes.
"Cami just came to pick Heather up, her car wouldn't start this morning."
Hiccup gave a nod, watching how Cami eyed the two of them up. She glanced a couple of times from them to Henry and back again, and Hiccup wondered if she'd worked it out, but the small woman said nothing. Heather hugged Astrid and kissed little Henry goodbye, waved at the twins and then dragged her girlfriend out of the flat quickly.
"Bye!"
Henry called after them, waving though they couldn't see. Astrid ruffled his hair, then looked up at the twins at last. She didn't meet Hiccup's eye.
"Don't mind Cami. She's always like that."
"Huh. Uh, want me to take a look at Heather's car?"
Astrid frowned, then shook her head.
"No need, she's already called someone out to it."
Hiccup nodded, still feeling pretty awkward. Eret elbowed him, then rolled his eyes.
"Hiccup made snacks! You said we couldn't buy stuff, but you let mom make you stuff."
Astrid looked up, bemused before she spotted the box in Hiccup's hands. After a minute, she gestured to the kitchen.
"Thanks. Go put them in there? I don't want Henry getting ideas."
Hiccup obliged, heading to the kitchen and putting the box down on the side, trying not to think about the last time he'd been in there. With her. He could still feel the warmth of her in his arms when he'd hugged her... He shook his head to try and clear the thoughts, turning to head back. Henry had already tottered over to Eret to say hi, tapping Eret's tattooed chin and giggling to himself. Eret was grinning at the little boy, clearly thrilled Henry was happy to see him.
"Hey little man."
"Hi!"
Henry turned to Hiccup, beaming up at him as he approached. Hiccup got down on the floor too, and got a fierce squeeze around the neck which he was pretty sure was Henry's version of a hug. Henry was definitely more energetic than he'd been the week before, his little trifle with a cold seemingly long gone.
"What are we playing?"
Eret asked, and Henry squealed happily before gesturing to the corner. He had some kind of... Hiccup wasn't sure what to call it, but it was a big thing with lots of little games on, like a wiggly line to push shapes along, and little buttons that made noises. If he had to guess, it was meant to stimulate learning and use of senses, but he imagined it mostly stimulated parental irritation if it made so much noise. There was a walker toy in the corner too, though Henry didn't seem to need much help getting around on his feet. He did have a habit of trying to rush along and overshooting it, but Astrid had padded all the sharp corners Henry could knock in to. Chunky wooden blocks littered the floor, but he seemed mostly enamoured with his toy animals.
Astrid got up a little while after they arrived, but she was back quite quickly with Henry's teething ring, and Hiccup noticed he'd started chewing on his toy block rather than building with it.
"That better?"
"Yeah!"
He beamed up at Astrid, love clear in his face.
"Is there anything he doesn't chew on?"
"Nope. I've replaced that giraffe of his twice already, otherwise I'm worried he'll chew the legs or head off and choke on it. He doesn't do it as much now, but for a while if you tickled his chin he'd bite your fingers. He almost managed to behead one of his teddy bears by chewing the fabric until it ripped."
Hiccup couldn't help laughing, imagining Henry being put out by a sudden appearance of filling when he'd been happily gnawing away at his toy. Now happily chewing away at his teething ring - which was new, Hiccup noticed, so he may have already chewed through the previous one - Henry appeared quite content. It did amuse him that Henry seemed to have inherited Astrid's destructive tendencies - she'd been pretty tough on her toys as a child. And Hiccup and Eret's... she'd never really been one for dolls, which their parents had figured out pretty quickly and warned their relatives of.
After he'd built up and knocked down a few more towers of blocks and banged out some more loud noises on his multi-activity toy, Henry had obviously worked up quite an appetite as he headed over to Astrid, whining and pulling at her shirt. Eret and Hiccup both quickly averted their eyes, just in case.
"No no, we talked about this. You wouldn't eat breakfast this morning, so you're eating lunch. He's being a right little terror about weaning lately."
Astrid added to them by way of explanation, and bade them to wait a couple of minutes while she went to try and feed him. Henry grumbled all the way along, and Hiccup heard what sounded like a fight to get him in to his high chair, followed by what sounded like Astrid making up some food for him. He was teething, so Hiccup expected he was only getting soft things - he'd seen Astrid give Henry things like mashed banana and yoghurt, which Henry had downed happily before.
Apparently, he wasn't in the mood for it today. Hiccup heard a very clear "no!" from Henry, followed by the clear sound of plastic clattering on the floor.
"Henry Erik Hunter, what do you think are you doing?"
Both Hiccup and Eret looked over to the kitchen in shock, then to each other, before jumping to their feet and heading over to the door. Astrid was cleaning yoghurt off the floor, and didn't really notice them approaching over the sounds of Henry kicking at his high chair, apparently on his way to a bit of a tantrum. She straightened up and recoiled slightly in surprise, then turned away to rinse the cloth in the sink.
"What did you call him?"
Eret asked, and his voice was a little strained. Hiccup was sure he'd have been little better.
"What do you mean?"
Astrid asked, but she didn't sound nearly as off-handed as she'd obviously meant to.
"You... you named him Hunter? Even after you changed your own name?"
She sighed deeply, shoulders sagging before she turned around.
"Of course I did. I'd never take his heritage away from him. It just... wasn't mine anymore."
Eret made a low, choked sound in his throat before he crossed the kitchen and threw his arms around a very surprised Astrid. Hiccup wished he could do the same, but was certain Astrid would bolt after what happened before. But he knew what had Eret so emotional, feeling much the same - they'd been worried only recently that their son would never know their family history, as Astrid had little to no signs she'd been raised by a Sami man in her flat, and she'd voluntarily given up the family surname.
But she'd given it to their son.
Hiccup didn't notice that she'd given him a first and middle name that meant he had Hiccup and Eret's initials either, and he wasn't far off crying himself. Henry refused to be denied attention any longer, and started wriggling so much in his chair Hiccup quickly got him out for fear he'd topple the whole thing over. Eret finally let go of Astrid, his eyes wet as he turned back to look at Hiccup, who was stood with Henry in his arms. They both looked over at Astrid, and though the words were woefully inadequate in expressing their feelings, both had the same sentiment.
"Thank you."
-HTTYD-
Aww, the name got Eret and Hiccup right in the feels!