Guess who's back my lovely readers? Me! Yeah!

I am so sorry for my super long hiatus. It wasn't intentional but life got in the way and I my desire to write just faded to nothing. But I have it back now and figured I continue. I was working mainly on my Big Four story for a while there but I needed a break from it and decided to update this one. I needed to re-read it to remember where I was but it was enjoyable to do so.

So, without further adieu, enjoy this long awaited next chapter!


The dance was going just as expected. Everyone was having a great time. Well, everyone except Astrid suddenly. Ruff noticed the change of her demeanor after Hiccup had accidentally dipped her while stopping her from falling on her butt. Her friend looked as if she was watching out for the devil himself, constantly looking over her shoulder and not joining the rest of them in their merriment.

She made her way over to Astrid and placed a hand on her shoulder causing her friend to jump a few inches. "Girl, what's wrong now? You were just having the time of your life a few minutes ago."

"Nothing," Astrid lied.

Ruff cocked her eyebrow and smirked. "It wouldn't have anything to do with Hiccup dipping you, does it?" Astrid responded with shocked eyes and her cheeks blushing. "You are really afraid of getting caught by your dad, aren't you?"

"Shhh! How many others saw that?" Astrid asked through gritted teeth. "I didn't know he'd be here. I need to head home now."

Ruff grabbed Astrid's arm and prevented her from going anywhere. "No," she said sternly, shaking her head. "You are not leaving. You can't keep running from him. This is no way to live." Astrid began to rebuttal but Ruff held up a finger to silence her. "I know what you told me your father would do, but this isn't some Shakespeare play, this is reality. You can't run from your feelings, girl. And you can't keep missing out on fun events because he may be there. That is no way to live. So you are staying."

"Ruff-" Astrid started.

"You need to come clean, even in secret, to Hiccup and Snotlout," Ruff added. "I knew there was a reason you two didn't behave properly as a couple."

"We are a couple," Astrid tried to defend. "Just not the traditional kind. Hiccup and I are just friends."

Ruff groaned in exasperation as she looked at her friend. "How many times have you repeated that to yourself?"

"Why?" Astrid inquired with a shrug.

"Because you have fully convinced yourself that is the truth."

"It is the truth," Astrid stated as she gently removed her arm from Ruff's grasp. "I'm going to get some air in the hallway."

Ruff watched her friend leave the main gym as frustration and agitation began to gnaw at her gut. Something was really, really off about this whole situation but she didn't know what. Ruff knew her friend; she heard how free and lively Astrid was when she hung out with Hiccup the other night; she could see there was a massive fear behind her actions but she didn't know what really could have caused it.

The blonde's eye turned toward the doors that led to the gym lobby as a bunch of kids entered the dance floor and she got a glimpse of Hiccup taking care of the concessions, making sure everything was stocked for the dancers. An idea popped in her head as she glanced between Hiccup and the door Astrid walked out of and a mischievous grin began to sprawl across her face.

"What are you planning, sis?" Tuff asked, very intrigued with her grinning face. Ruff pulled her brother in close and whispered in his ear, his face contorting into confusion. "But why? I have no need for that tonight."

"Will you just do it!" Ruff commanded as she shoved her brother towards the door.

"Okay, okay," Tuff surrendered as he threw his hands up in the air.

The blonde watched as he chatted with Hiccup who nodded and left the table. Tuff turned around and gave her a thumbs up. Now all I have to do is keep Snotlout away from the hallway. The music changed from it's upbeat rhythm and slowed into a song meant for couples. That's too perfect.

"Hey, have you seen Astrid?" Snotlout asked, approaching her.

"Uh, no," Ruff lied. "She did say something about going to the bathroom."

"Oh," Snotlout nodded. "Well, I'm not going to pass up a perfect slow song. Will you join me?"

Ruff blinked a few times and looked at the hand Snotlout had extended towards her as her mind went through the pros and cons of dancing with her best friend's boyfriend. In the end, she accepted it only to keep him occupied. She felt bad that she was covering for Astrid to, unknowingly, cheat on Snotlout but as she danced with him, something stirred inside of her and she mentally began to kick herself. Oh, shit. This is bad. Very bad.


The hallway wasn't as quiet as she would have liked but it was better than having the loud drumming in her ears from being inside the actual dance room. She leaned against the wall, the cold cement cooling off her warm body, as her mind went to war with itself again.

Only a friend. Only a friend. Astrid placed a hand over her eyes and she leaned her head back against the wall. Her normal coping phrase wasn't working. A part of her was screaming at her that Ruff was right but her mind kept telling her that she was wrong. She didn't understand why it was so hard this evening to convince herself again.

"You okay?" a familiar voice asked.

Astrid's eyes flew open and she saw Hiccup standing a few feet away, watching her quizzically. That's why. Damn it. She quickly tried to gather herself and brush off the butterflies pounding in her stomach. "Yeah," she lied. "I was just taking a break. Getting quite hot in there."

Hiccup nodded as he took a few steps and leaned against the wall next to her. "I can imagine. It's hot in the lobby even with the doors being open for ventilation."

The two of them just stood there in silence for what felt like an eternity to Astrid. She used all of her might to stare at anything and everything to avoid accidently looking at Hiccup but her insides kept doing somersaults and the muscles in her neck threatened to turn her head.

"You look lovely by the way," Hiccup broke the silence. "Your braid is super intricate. Did Ruff do that for you?"

Astrid nodded. "Yeah. And you look lovel- handsome! Handsome too," she corrected. Her head turned to look at him as she corrected herself and she mentally cursed for the involuntary reflex. The butterflies started up again as she looked at him, taking in every inch of his face. So handsome.

She was so caught up in the war between her mind and body, that she didn't even hear the change in music and Hiccup looking up towards the wall as if he could see through it. "It's a slow song. I'm sure Snotlout's looking for you."

"Huh, what?" Astrid asked as she snapped herself out of her mental daze.

"Snotlout," Hiccup said. "He's probably going to be looking for you to dance. It's a couples song."

Astrid listened and did hear the slower melody faintly reaching her ears. She nodded as she looked towards the door. "Yeah, probably. But he's not really a slow dance kind of guy and-"

"You don't know how to slow dance," Hiccup finished.

Astrid snapped her head back towards him, seeing the knowing look on his face. "No, that's not- I mean, not entirely- I have some idea-" she stuttered. Hiccup began to chuckle to himself causing her to get angry at his reaction. "You think it's funny?"

"A little," he replied, slowing his breathing. "You're adorable when you're flustered."

She blinked for a second at his response. He called her adorable, without hesitation and without a hint of sarcasm. First, he called her lovely and now adorable? "I'm not adorable," she denied.

"If you say so," Hiccup shrugged.

Astrid turned away from him, starting to head back into the dance room when felt his hand on her wrist. She turned in surprise, "What are-" she began.

"Let me teach you quickly," Hiccup explained as he pulled her closer to him. "There's going to be other slow songs. Can't have the world knowing that Astrid Hofferson can't slow dance."

She could feel the nerves kicking in again and tried to pull away. "What if someone sees?"

"Technically, only workers are supposed to be back here," Hiccup said. "They're all busy at the moment. I only left because Tuff asked if he could borrow one of my deodorants. Said something about Fishlegs getting worried he was sweating too much."

Astrid grinned slightly at the thought of Fish getting nervous about smelling bad for his date and the idea only making him more nervous. A vicious cycle.

The thought distracted her enough to miss Hiccup placing his hands on her waist and pulling her closer to him. Once she realized that her hands were now also around his neck, the contact he made on her body felt like warm coals, sending shivers through her nervous system and failing miserably to not have her cheeks burn red.

He began to sway her back and forth, explaining that the modern sense of slow dance was actually super easy, not his favorite, but easy to learn. "What's your favorite then?" she asked without thinking.

Now he was the one nervous as she watched him remove one of his hands from her waist and place it on the back of his neck as he chuckled. "Oh, well, a bit more old fashioned."

She had no idea what had gotten into her but she prompted him to proceed. "Show me." Astrid watched as his eyes blinked in surprise, biting his lip in uncertainty, but eventually seemed to cave to her hands motioning him to teach her.

As he slowly approached her, the realization of what she just asked hit her like a freight train and she began to panic. Why did I ask him to teach me? Here! Of all places! There are too many people around. We could get caught. No, I need to stop this now.

But she didn't. She allowed him to place a hand on her waist and gently pull her so close to him, that she swore she could hear his heartbeat. He grabbed her left hand and placed it on his shoulder as he used his free hand to grab her right hand, holding it out towards the right. The close proximity of their bodies and the passion in his eyes completely melted away any doubts as he began to move her across the floor. She remembered him saying something about a waltz but she had completely allowed herself to surrender to his control, feeling completely safe, serene, and happy. She wanted to stay forever like this but it wasn't meant to last forever.

"Huh, what?" Astrid mumbled.

"The song is over," Hiccup repeated. She listened and the music had definitely resumed the pop songs. "I should go get the deodorant for Fishlegs and you should head back to your friends."

"Oh, yeah," Astrid nodded. She noticed that they were still embracing each other and she didn't want to let go. She felt completely comfortable there in his arms but she forced herself to release her grip on him and back away. "Thanks for the quick lesson."

"It was my honor, milady," he smiled as he bowed.

The gesture made Astrid smile and she returned it with a curtsy. "Perhaps another time, you could give me a longer lesson."

"Name the time and place," he smiled even wider, excitement dancing on his face as he passed her to head towards the boy's locker room and disappeared.

Astrid took a deep breath as she prepared to enter into the fray once again and join her friends in celebrating the football team's win. Just a friend. Just a friend. She repeated as she entered and approached her friends.

"What took you so long?" Snotlout asked.

"What?"

"The bathroom."

"Oh," realizing that Ruff probably lied about her whereabouts. "Line."

Snotlout nodded in understanding and resumed his dancing with the group. As the night went on, Fishlegs was beaming at her from a distance every time they made eye contact. She beamed back, happy that he was enjoying himself with his date.


Hiccup took a deep breath to try and slow his heart rate once the locker room door closed behind him. He used every ounce of his being to remain cool and collected as he danced with Astrid. God, she made him feel like he was the richest man in the world.

He shook his head and went to his locker to retrieve the spare deodorant he always kept in case anyone needed it and headed back to the concession tables but couldn't find Tuff. He shrugged and tucked the container in his pocket and resumed stocking the table for the dancers.

They continued throughout the night and before he knew it, he was clearing said tables and packing them away once the dance was over and the teens were headed out. One of the faculty told him to just head home as the hour approached midnight and he gladly accepted, being mentally, emotionally, and physically exhausted from the day.

He was about to unlock his car when he heard a scream ahead of him. Without even thinking, he ran in that direction and happened to see two large men round the corner. He tried to chase after them to see if they were okay but he couldn't catch up. With a sigh of defeat, he turned around and headed back to his car. They probably just saw a cricket.

As he passed the dumpster, he heard a groan on his right and stopped. Taking out his phone and turning on the flashlight, he shined it into the darkness and shuttered. Oh no, not again. He fumbled to open the dial pad and began to press the numbers.

Hiccup approached the figures and pressed two fingers into their necks to make sure if they were still alive.

"9-1-1, what's your emergency?"

"I'm at Hooligan High School by the gym and there are two teens passed out behind a dumpster."

"Do you recognize them?"

"Not really," Hiccup shook his head. "I did see two men running away in the dark but I couldn't get a good look at them."

"Hooligan High School you said?"

"Yes. They may have been mugged," Hiccup added.

"Do you smell alcohol?"

"No."

"What gender are the teens?"

"One's male and one's female," he described. The man moved slightly and he could now see that the shoulder part of the tux he was wearing had been ripped. He moved the fabric away to get a closer look at his skin and his heart began to race. "I think an ambulance needs to be sent."

"Do you see any blood, sir?"

"No, but I do see the male has a puncture wound on his left arm. I think they were drugged."

"Are you sure it's not a bug bite?"

"No!" Hiccup snapped. "Sorry, you're doing your job. This is the same puncture wound my cousin had when he was drugged and almost died."

"Do you see a similar mark on the female?"

"Without moving her, no."

"Authorities are on their way. Please stand by. May I get your name?"

"Hiccup Haddock the Third."

"And what are you doing at the school so late at night?"

"Homecoming dance. I was just leaving when I heard a scream."

Hiccup continued to answer a few questions until the authorities arrived and then repeated a lot of the same answers once the police and medics arrived. Once the teens were loaded and taken to the hospital and the police form filled out, he was finally able to go home.

More exhausted than before, Hiccup entered his home and went upstairs, taking off his tux and changing into his pajamas, then falling into his bed wholeheartedly. Once again, in his exhausted state, he didn't acknowledge the feeling like he was being watched and had completely missed that one of the windows was opened. Before he fell asleep, he grabbed his phone and texted his dad.

Returned home from Homecoming Dance. I'm fine but two teens were attacked afterwards by those drug people. They really need a name. Hope that the Senate Meeting is going well. Love ya.

Hiccup returned his phone to the night stand, turned off the light, and climbed under the covers, sleep almost taking him immediately. He hoped with all his being that those two people would be alright and he wouldn't wake up the next morning with news that two more people had died.


Alvin and Eret tried to sneak their way into the dance but the school faculty had pretty strict rules and attendance policies that they followed, considering the attacks recently. They couldn't pass as chaperones because they weren't on the list, they were too old to be students from another school, and they obviously knew the entire faculty.

"Damn it," Alvin hissed. "We could get some good stuff here. Kids let their hormones run wild at these things and do a lot of blackmail worthy things."

Eret peeked out from behind a pillar and used binoculars to look through the glass doors into the gym lobby. "I don't think so," he said. "It looks like he's just manning concessions."

"Seriously!" Alvin huffed. "Does this boy do anything scandalous?"

"It doesn't seem like it," Eret shrugged. "Oh, wait! He's leaving and going into the back hallway."

The two worked their way around the gym, dodging the late arrivals, security, and cameras. Once they found the side door that led to the back hallway, they saw it was empty. Both groaned in disappointment.

"Well, shit," Alvin pouted. "I thought at least tonight would be eventful."

"There he is!" They watched as he walked towards them, holding something in his hand, and then veered off and opened another door. "Damn. Nothing."

They made their way back to the pillar and continued to watch him from a distance but no change.

"The dance will be letting out soon and it will be harder for us to get away without being seen."

"Agreed," Eret nodded and followed Alvin back to the car. "Now what?"

"I say we head to his house and rummage around to see if we can find anything. Probably nothing on the kid based on his track record but maybe we can find something on Stoick."

Eret thought about it for a second before nodding and driving toward Chieftain Street. He parked a block away and the two approached cautiously, making sure that no one saw them jump the backyard fence.

"This place is a jungle," Alvin complained as he pushed another branch out of the way.

"I kind of like it," Eret smiled as he admired the nature canopy. "Must have taken a long time to get it like this."

"You hippie," Alvin spat. "There's a window up there that I can easily open." He grabbed onto the thick vines on the side of the home and began to climb. Taking out a knife, he slid it under the window and he heard the lock unlatch. Grinning, he flung the window open and climbed in.

"Let's see what we can dig up," Eret clapped after he entered himself.

The two began to go through each room carefully so as not to alarm Stoick or Hiccup with something out of place, looking through books, files, pictures, and everything else in between to find something blackmail worthy but nothing that grabbed their attention.

"How can this be?" Eret asked, completely flabbergasted. He scratched the back of his head in confusion trying to think of anywhere else he could look. "No politician is clean. I mean, look what Drago's paying us to do." He motioned around the home then crossed his arms in defeat.

"Could it be that Stoick is actually a decent guy?" Alvin asked. "No skeletons in the closet? No secret lover? No swindling? Nothing? What you see is what you get?"

"Could be," Eret shrugged. A light blinded him temporarily and he looked outside to see a car had pulled in. "Shit! The kid is back!"

They hurried to put the last few objects they had moved back into their proper place and ran back upstairs just as Hiccup had opened the door. They hid down the hallway opposite of where his room was but it was also opposite of where their exit was. They waited for him to turn the light off in his room before quietly walking by and exiting the home through the window, forgetting to close it as they left.


Keep an eye out for an update soon. Again, sorry for the long update.