=Normal POV=
{Friday, May 20, 2022-2:45 pm}
(Archian Preparatory)
It had been one hell of a day, but Finals were finally over. Today ended Finals Week; the last test had been taken, which was Dragon Training. The exams were taken in the morning at 10:30 am, at least the first half was; then there was an hour break for lunch at the normal time. The second half began at 1:00 pm. One by one, each of the friends had their one on one test session with Hiccup. Those who finished went to sit with Dagur in the stables while those who waited just sat around waiting to be called. It was nerve-wracking to have the DDA representative just sitting and staring at each student while they tested, but they all kept their focus on the task at hand. By 2:15 pm, the friends were done, and Hiccup started going over grades right away. There were two parts to this as well. The written grade, then the physical portion one. Hiccup would grade them separately, then add them together and divide them by two in order to get their final class grade. In order for them to pass; they had to have seventy or higher as the overall grade.
The written exam had one hundred questions, where the correct answers were worth one point each. The number wrong would be out of one hundred, and that would be that grade. The physical portion was done out of one hundred too, but the segments were graded with a number one through ten. The goal would be to get a ten on each, but nobody knew how they did yet as Hiccup was still grading and had promised they'd have their final scores by 3 pm. The scantron sheets were easy to grade; it went through a machine. The physical part took the longest due to all the adding up that needed to be done. There was fifteen minutes left of class, and Hiccup was in his office that was inside the stables while Dagur watched the students. Hiccup came out with his grade book at his side with the DDA representative beside him.
"I'll get these submitted right away, Mr. Haddock. And it was a pleasure working with you again," the female smiled, shaking Hiccup's hand.
"You as well," Hiccup replied as the woman left the field with her briefcase.
"You know her?" Astrid inquired.
"She was one of the people who took part in testing me a couple years ago," Hiccup informed with a smile.
"Ah. So…How did we do?" Camicazi asked.
"Well, do you want to each come individually to see or want me to go down the list?" Hiccup questioned.
"Did any of us fail?" Eret asked.
"You had me as your teacher, of course none of you failed," Hiccup chuckled.
"True. Okay, yeah. Just give them to us," Heather smiled.
"I'll give you your finals. You're welcome to check what each segment was graded after," Hiccup said. "Heather Bazirk, ninety-three. Nadia Warrier, eighty-six. Snotlout Jorgenson, seventy-eight. Ragna Falk, seventy-seven. Thuggory Meatsen, eighty-eight. Camicazi Boggs, eighty. Minden Guarder, eighty-six. Fishlegs Ingerman, ninety-six. Ruffnut Thorston, seventy-three. Eret Trapp, eighty-three. Tuffnut Thorston, seventy-one. And lastly…Astrid Hofferson…I'm actually very surprised…" Hiccup trailed off looking at her.
"Y-You said no one failed…" Astrid muttered.
"Oh, you passed. I just didn't think you'd beat Fishlegs," Hiccup smiled.
"What?" everyone's mouths dropped open.
"Astrid Hofferson, your final grade for Dragon Training is a one hundred," Hiccup stated as Astrid's eyes widened.
"I scored a one hundred?!" Astrid gaped.
"Yes, you did. Congratulations, Milady," Hiccup nodded. "Well done, all of you," he directed to the rest. "You're all officially Dragon Training graduates, and can fly freely without a licensed guide with you. I have temporary ID's that the Dragon Affairs rep signed off on before she left. I'll fill them out and give them to you later tonight at the sleepover. But for now, here's a little piece that says you can fly; signed by me as your trainer that you passed and awaiting your documents in the mail," Hiccup stated as he began passing out the small paper card with their name, dragon, and a small certification that says they passed dragon training and can legally fly.
"What time should we come over tonight? Or just follow you home?" Snotlout asked.
"Astrid and I have a few things to do first, but we'll text you when to come," Hiccup remarked. The others nodded as the bell rang to dismiss them. "Let's go, Ast," Hiccup motioned as he cleaned up a few things, then mounted Toothless. Astrid gathered her bag up and got on Stormfly; seconds later they were gone and headed for the AIB building in the city.
. . .
{4:15 pm}
(Archipelago Bureau of Investigation)
After an hour of talking and explaining the call; Spitelout, Hoark, and Hiccup were putting their heads together to figure out what these two silver keys were.
"I'm telling you; I never picked up any keys when I grabbed salvageable things from my house…" Astrid said again.
"You had to have grabbed something, or you wouldn't be getting targeted, Ast," Hiccup sighed. "Are you sure? Think hard about everything you have collected from your old house. The guy, assumingly Drago, said it was something you always have…" he tried.
The men sighed. "I'm sorry. I wish I could be more help, but I just don't have anything that would be a set of keys…" Astrid looked down as she fiddled with a heart-shaped pendant that hung from around her neck while Hoark and Spitelout were talking. Hiccup's eyes flicked to the silver heart in her hands; then he lifted his head a bit to stare at it more.
"We can check the house again?" Spitelout offered.
"What good does that do when we don't know what we're looking for?" Hoark mumbled. "We have to assume Drago has whatever the keys open, and that's why he needs her," he added.
Viggo and Ryker said that Drago was after Dragon Eye, but it was lost centuries ago. Colden was working on locating it, but the project was kept secret to very few people. The files were with Colden, so where did they end up after he died; the man wouldn't have left them lying around to get found. I bet they are in the Mayor's Office. However, Viggo and Ryker also said that the key to finding it was with Astrid. Hiccup thought, revisiting the meeting he had with Viggo and Ryker about the matter. Something she always has… Hiccup continued pondering while looking at the silver pendant Astrid was playing with.
"So Drago is after two silver keys. If he needs both; then this must be something with a lot of security," Spitelout stated, then stopped and saw Hiccup's face. "What's on your mind, boy?"
Hiccup heard him but never answered. "Astrid, can I see that a second?"
"Hm? What? My pendant?" Astrid blinked. Hiccup nodded to her as Astrid carefully took it off and handed it to him.
"How long have you had this?" Hiccup questioned.
"Since I was five. My dad gave it to me as a birthday gift, and told me that as long as I wore it; they'd always be with me no matter the distance; I've…Never taken it off," Astrid explained. Hiccup inspected the pendant carefully, then pulled out his jackknife and flicked open the blade and set it on the side before pushing it in a bit, then turning it until the heart split open.
"Did you know this was a locket, Astrid?" Hiccup glanced at her.
"No, actually…" Astrid replied. Hiccup opened the locket more to see a picture of Astrid's parents holding her a newborn, and on the other side was an engraving.
"Astrid Hofferson. 3-9-04. Family Is The Key To Happiness. With you near or far, always and forever. Love, Mom & Dad," Hiccup read as Astrid felt tears well up in her eyes. Hoark handed Astrid a tissue or two. Hiccup closed it up and put it around Astrid's neck for her. It didn't make sense to Hiccup; he thought the necklace might lead him to a key or another clue, but it didn't give much more than a memory to Astrid with her parents.
"Why don't you two head back to the house while we figure more of this out. We'll call if we get any leads," Spitelout told the teenagers. "Keep your guard up; Drago ain't gonna be happy that Astrid was at the school whenever this car came to collect the key from her. And we've downloaded the information from the call; if he calls again…We'll get a hit on it and hopefully be able to trace it."
"Got it," Hiccup nodded as he helped Astrid up and the two of them left the office.
"Should I text the others to join us?" Astrid inquired.
"Yeah, go ahead," Hiccup informed as they mounted their dragons. Astrid sent the text to the others; then she and Hiccup began their flight to Haddock Manor.
. . .
{4:45 pm}
(Berk; Haddock Manor)
Reaching the Haddock house; the friends were already there and inside waiting in the Great Room with Stoick and Valka.
"Hey, welcome back," Heather greeted.
"Hi," Astrid smiled.
"So, we ready to start the Friday night festivities?" Tuffnut asked. A cell phone ringing caught them off guard as Hiccup lifted his to his ear.
"Speak," Hiccup answered. A pause. "Understood," he stated, then ended the call.
"What was that all about?" Dagur asked.
"Business," Hiccup replied while sending a text message, then put his phone away. "Come on; lets set up for the night," he smiled broadly. Astrid eyes him carefully, knowing that he was hiding something. What kind of business call started and ended in less than twenty seconds? Without anyone else questioning what the call was about; Hiccup led everyone to the basement to begin their sleepover routine, which was games, chatting, dinner, more talking, games, and jokes until they started falling asleep between 11:30 pm and 2 am.
. . .
{5:15 pm}
Thirty minutes later, everyone was set downstairs, and the gaming and talking had begun. Hiccup worked on their temporary ID card off to the side and was mostly quiet while doing the work and texting someone an awful lot. Astrid moved closer to him, smiling.
"Hey, need any help?" Astrid offered.
"Nope, just finished actually," Hiccup smiled. "How are you feeling today?"
"Better," Astrid replied. "What was that call about earlier?"
"Just some stuff for work. I may not be on my feet all day, but I do paperwork and stuff," Hiccup responded softly.
"You plan to go back to Archia Burger?" Astrid wondered.
"I might go after High School since I can't join the army now. I'm still getting used to the leg, and can't handle standing on it too long still; that's why I have returned to work full-time yet," Hiccup explained. "How about you? Coming back with me?"
"Someone has to keep you out of trouble," Astrid giggled.
"I think you have that backward. Who is protecting who right now?" Hiccup challenged.
"Well, you trained me in what you know. If you get into a fight; maybe I can help you," Astrid remarked.
"Oh, no. You're staying out of the fights. I taught you all that for emergency situations where everyone got put at a standstill," Hiccup reminded.
"And what if I'm alone?" Astrid leaned closer.
"You'll never be alone as long as I'm alive," Hiccup said as he moved in more. "And no matter what we are; I'll always have your back," he added before giving her a quick kiss before anyone noticed it. Astrid blushed a bit before backing up and nodding to him. "Go on; I'll join in a second after I use the bathroom," he nudged.
"Okay," Astrid answered as she went to sit with their friends again. Hiccup got up and moved past everyone while nearing the bathroom, but he took a hard right and went down the hall to the storage rooms. Once inside; he locked the door and flipped on the light. Hiccup pulled his phone out and redialed Viggo.
"You find out what I asked for?" Hiccup asked.
"Drago has the safe; it was in the Mayor's office. He needs the key Colden's daughter has," Viggo replied.
"How did he get the safe?" Hiccup inquired.
"My brother needs to learn to be more direct. We have the safe as we were sent to recover it from the Mayor's office. Don't worry; nothing will get flagged as taken or a break in. The safe was in a trap door under a carpet tile of the coat closet," Ryker clarified.
"And you need the key to access anything in it, right? Does Drago know you have the safe?" Hiccup questioned.
"No. The mission was scheduled for tonight, but my brother and I got in undercover as journalists for the Archian Gazette. I did the interview while Ryker scavenged the office in secrecy; I got your dad for twenty minutes," Viggo informed.
"Do you want us to bring it to you; we can say it wasn't there," Ryker added.
"If he was sending you to get it; he knew it was there. Giving it to me will only make him suspicious, and I don't need your cover blown; we're too invested. No, here's what I want you to do…Until tomorrow when you're supposed to get it for him; keep it hidden. I want you to send me a video showing me every angle of that safe," Hiccup said.
"What does this accomplish? These documents hold the location of the Dragon Eye…Why do you want Drago having that information!?" Viggo informed.
"I hired you to go undercover for me, not question my methods. Just send the video, and wait for my message. I will text you before midnight with the next set of instructions," Hiccup said.
"Yes, sir. I'm sorry. And will do on your orders," Viggo responded.
"Good. I'll be waiting on your video then," Hiccup stated. The call ended as Hiccup slid the phone away into his pocket; then snuck out to get into the bathroom before he was seen by the others. A few minutes later; Hiccup came out and grabbed the cards off the table where he left them.
"Are those our cards?" Thuggory asked.
"Yep. Temporary dragon trainer licenses. They have your name, address, birthdate, issue date, allowances, and limitations. You're allowed to ride and train your dragon, and you have no fly limits. And remember you can go out for a full license if you want, but that's your call," Hiccup smiled while handing them out to the person the card matched. "You guys earned 'em," he added.
"We had a good teacher," Nadia reminded.
"Come join in with us," Snotlout handed him a controller. Hiccup plopped into his recliner chair and started playing a few rounds. Astrid watched Hiccup keep checking his phone as if he were waiting for something. Astrid knew Hiccup was hiding something; she just didn't know what. The time ticked by as Hiccup handed the controller off when he got whatever message he was waiting for at 6:05 pm. Hiccup seemed to stare at his screen for a while, studying it almost.
At 6:15 pm; Hiccup noticed something strange and paused the video as he made it bigger. It looks like two hearts side by side. Then his eyes glanced over to the pendant on Astrid's necklace. Finally; it clicked. Astrid's necklace was a locket that opened up and reveals two hearts! Her pendant was the key! My theory was right! Colden must have known people might go after him for the Dragon Eye project, so he had the key to open the safe, but Astrid's necklace is the fail-safe because she never takes it off so it can't get misplaced or stolen. To anyone else; it's just a pendant, not a locket. Drago must think Astrid has the key because she got to take things from the house after the fire. And Astrid doesn't even realize it… Hiccup thought. Hiccup got his phone and brought up his messages with Viggo and Ryker.
You[6:18 pm]
Bring the safe to me. We'll meet at midnight, a mile into the woods behind my house.
Hiccup saw the message be delivered, then read at 6:20 pm. By 6:21 pm; a response was being typed by Ryker.
RG[6:22 pm]
Got it.
"Dinner!" Gobber called through the speaker on the wall. Hiccup got up and pressed the button.
"On our way up," Hiccup replied. The group made their way upstairs to eat supper as Hiccup continued thinking about his plan to deal with tonight. His biggest problem; getting Astrid's pendant from her for the night.
. . .
{11:00 pm}
"So…Minden…I was wondering if you'd maybe wanna go to prom with me?" Snotlout asked, which pulled Hiccup from his thoughts.
"I'd love to, Snotlout," Minden smiled bashfully.
"Who else is going?" Nadia wondered.
"We are," Camicazi said while holding Thuggory's hand.
"I'll be there chaperoning with Mala," Dagur chuckled.
"You mean to keep an eye on Fishlegs and me," Heather rolled her eyes.
"He touches you, and he's dead…" Dagur glared as Fishlegs gulped and nodded to Heather's older brother.
"I'm going with Ragna…" Tuffnut announced.
"Wait…Weren't you, Eret, and Ragna a thing?" Astrid blinked.
"Well, we…Kind'a broke up, but staying friends. I'm actually going with Ruffnut to prom," Eret confessed. "I asked her at the start of Finals Week,"
"What about you, Nadia?" Ruffnut wondered.
"Going single, and see what happens while I'm there," Nadia grinned.
"What about you, Hiccup?" Ragna smiled.
"Psh; he won't go to Prom," Snotlout rolled his eyes. Astrid blinked a bit; Hiccup wouldn't? Why? "He didn't even go to Junior Prom,"
"Wait, really? It's like a High School rite of passage!" Astrid exclaimed quickly.
"Um, I'd like to clarify that I was a bit busy with a newborn during that time!" Hiccup grumbled.
"Oh, yeah…Keep forgetting Runa was born in June instead of July…And you were with Olivia, who couldn't attend our prom because she wasn't a student there," Fishlegs remembered.
"You mean a bit busy with Olivia while Runa slept…" Tuffnut chuckled with Dagur and Snotlout. Hiccup grabbed his shoe and chucked it at Tuffnut's head as he held his nose. "OW! I am hurt. I am very much hurt!" he whined.
"How'd you even make that shot in the dark?" Thuggory asked.
"I have a good aim…" Hiccup muttered.
"It wasn't untrue!" Tuffnut complained.
"Uh huh…" Hiccup looked the other way. "First off; it was my business…And secondly; don't be jealous that I got more action than you did that night," the teenager smirked.
"Hey; he would have gotten laid too if he didn't forget the condoms at home," Ruffnut defended.
"Dude, what's wrong with you? Condoms stay in your car or wallet," Snotlout shook his head.
"Rookie move," Dagur snickered. Tuffnut mumbled, ignoring them.
"Yeah, well since we know Mr. No Fun over there isn't going…What about you Astrid? You going?" Heather giggled.
"That's actually up to Mr. No Fun; he's my bodyguard, remember?" Astrid stated softly.
"If you'd like to go to prom, Astrid; then I will be happy to go as your escort," Hiccup informed. "Come on, you didn't think I'd let a small detail such being your protector get in the way or your rite of passage or whatever, did you?" he laughed a little.
"Oh, yeah; I'm sure it won't look weird at all with you just leaning against the wall watching me from the shadows. I can already hear the police sirens with Spitelout and Alvin showing up to arrest a creeper, then learn it's just you…" Astrid rolled her eyes.
"Well, then perhaps I should go as something a little less stalkerish," Hiccup offered.
"And that would be?" Astrid crossed her arms over her chest.
"How about as your date?" Hiccup grinned. Astrid's eyes widened a bit.
"Wa-Was that your way of asking me to prom?" Astrid inquired.
"Is that your way of accepting my offer to go with me?" Hiccup leaned in a bit more as Astrid blushed. "I'll take your red face and stunned silence as a yes. So, I'll meet you at the bottom of the stairs on June 3rd then?"
"Oh, you think that because your so smooth and I blushed my answer is yes, do you?" Astrid huffed.
"I didn't hear you say no," Hiccup grinned a bit. "Shall we say 5:30 pm at the bottom of the stairs?" Hiccup asked.
"It's a date," Astrid replied, though; she was smiling. Hiccup basically asked her to prom in his own way. Now, she could hardly wait for June 3rd to come.
