Pairing: Jack x Hiccup

Genre: Romance, Drama + Angst

Warning: NC-17/T

Warning: only half beta-read

All characters belong to Cressida Cowell, William Joyce and DreamWorks Studio. May contain some OOCness.

Graham's law – the rate of diffusion or of effusion of a gas is inversely proportional to the square root of its molecular weight.

"Are you ready boys?" Professor Robinson asked as he closed the trunk of his car and then brushed his hands.

Was there still time to back away? Hiccup didn't think so.

Finally the day came and here he was, in the school parking lot with Dagur and Professor Robinson, hours away from presenting his useless project.

"Yes, we are." Hiccup mumbled in the same time as Dagur made a weird movement which Hiccup wasn't sure how to interpret.

But it looked like the teacher somehow could understand the teen, because he clasped his hands together and ushered them into the car.

Deciding on the seats wasn't really difficult. Professor simply asked who wanted to ride shotgun. Dagur simply shrugged and said that he was okay with being in front. And Hiccup, to be honest, preferred to sit in the back, alone.

It would be pretty weird if the two of them would be sitting in the back. Hiccup wasn't sure what they would've been talking about, if they even needed to. So he was glad it turned out like that.

This way he could still calm himself in the back, because, to be fair, he was kinda nervous.

(Dagur looked like he simply didn't care.)

They all sat down in their respective seats and the teacher slipped into first gear.

"If you need anything during the ride, just tell me, don't be afraid." The man warmly said, peeping at Hiccup in his rearview mirror.

Hiccup nodded.

"Did you bring some money? There is a fast food bar nearby, I think it would be great to eat dinner there."

"I have some with me." Hiccup this time voiced out his answer, instead of only nodding, because the teacher looked at the road.

Dagur one more time shrugged and then turned to look out of the window.

Professor Robinson again interpreted it as a positive answer.

"Great!"

And with that they drove away from the school.

The ride there was definitely… peculiar.

At first it was kinda awkward. At least for Hiccup.

Professor Robinson turned on the radio and for a few minutes hummed happily to the tunes played there, occasionally tapping his fingers on the steering wheel to the rhythm of the beat.

Then after a while he asked Dagur about something, to which the teen replied while turning his head to the teacher.

And after that it simply smoothened out.

Hiccup still didn't talk much. He occasionally spoke when someone asked him a question, but maybe two or three times he added his two cents to the conversation.

He was content with sitting in the back and listening to Dagur and Professor Robinson talking in the front.

It was actually… nice to see and hear it.

Dagur still often answered with short sentences, occasionally speaking longer when he was explaining something or giving his point of view on some topic.

Mostly the teacher talked, but Hiccup had noticed long time ago that the man could do it for an infinite amount of time. Or maybe when he spoke time simply didn't exist for the man.

Like he suddenly lived in another dimension.

But Hiccup liked to listen to him. Sometimes he couldn't really grasp what the teacher wanted to say, but even when someone asked the man to repeat it, he never felt ashamed or mad about doing that.

It felt like Professor Robinson simply liked to talk.

The ride there surprisingly passed faster than expected.

nervous? (°͈o°͈)

A little bit D:

Hiccup took a deep breath and looked around.

The hall where the contest was held was enormous. Literally. But it was pretty understandable as the contestants had to have place for their projects. Tables prepared for the participants littered every possible spot behind the white lines. Some people were still taking out their projects, some already were done and now happily or not chatted with other people while standing close to their assigned table.

Hiccup had 42nd table. Dagur had 41st.

At this point Hiccup wasn't sure if it was a blessing or a curse. On one hand he would have someone familiar next to him, but on the other he wasn't sure they would even talk a lot.

Professor Robinson helped them find their tables and then accompanied them as they took out their projects, together with a poster with a short description – which they both have to put on separate tripods prepared for this occasion.

Hiccup's robot wasn't big, it was small in comparison to what other people did, but he was proud of it nevertheless. A rod with a compartment at the top which consisted of all needed electronic things to make the robot work. Hiccup put it inside a flower pot and then he was done. Almost.

He didn't come here to win anyway.

When they finished putting Hiccup's robot out, it was time for Dagur. And to be honest Hiccup was really interested. But on the other hand he didn't want to stick his nose in so he stood a few steps away in case Dagur would want his help.

"Hiccup, would you mind holding it for a second?"

Hiccup quickly ushered closer to hold a tablet for Professor Robinson.

Okay, he was pretty sure this was not the robot Dagur had made as it definitely looked used. Plus it was a tablet, so… yeah.

Hiccup stepped away when the teacher kneeled and moved his hands into the box to take out a poster. Dagur waited for him to straighten his back and only then dove down to take out an actual project.

Hiccup hold his breath for a second, waiting for…

Well he definitely didn't expect Dagur to take out a teddy bear.

What the hell?

Hiccup stared as Dagur put the teddy bear on the table. It looked like a plushie, kinda like this one people could buy in cheap shops or win in amusement parks, but the longer he stared the longer he noticed that something was kinda off about it.

When other stuffed toys Hiccup had seen in his life had been kinda plump, this one was… not so much. It still looked like it was stuffed, like when you would hug it, it would be soft, but it was kinda weirdly thinner than normal toys.

Dagur moved his hand and then adjusted the bear's paws. And normally it would be impossible, but in this case they moved and then stayed in place. Now it looked like the teddy bear was waving at the people passing by.

Professor Robinson put the poster on the tripod, then moved it a little so it would be standing more evenly and then moved back to smile proudly at the both tables.

"Looks good to me." He said.

"How much time do we have before the presentation?" Dagur asked, looking up at the teacher.

The man glanced at his wristwatch and hummed for a second under his nose. A finger tapped the wrist for a moment before he opened his mouth to speak:

"I think around twenty minutes? But probably more. It should start at 12, but to be honest I doubt it will. There is this opening ceremony and then the jury has to walk around the hall and see every project, so you probably still have a lot of time for yourselves."

Great…

Hiccup sighed internally and turned to his table. He had already done anything he could. He also had checked if his robot (or machine actually) worked a few times. A lone plant stood beneath it to prove his point, looking almost as tired as Hiccup.

"Okay." Dagur nodded.

"Do you need me here?" Professor Robinson asked instead, looking at them.

Hiccup blinked, but also this time Dagur was quicker to answer, shifting his weight to the other leg.

"No, not really."

"Great! I saw some old friend walking around and I wanted to say hi. Plus you know, there is a small buffet with free cookies and cakes near the main entrance and to be honest I was dying to eat some of them."

Hiccup wasn't sure how to respond to that.

Dagur shrugged at that as he leaned his hip on the table.

"I'm fine with that." He murmured.

Professor Robinson then turned to Hiccup and – oh boy – those puppy eyes. They could tear his soul from his body and eat it while still looking adorably innocent.

"I-I'm fine with it too."

The teacher grinned to them.

"Okay, if you need me you know my phone number. I will be back before the time for you'll come."

And with that he turned on his heel and almost ran to the front entrance.

Well, that was definitely peculiar.

Hiccup turned to his table, moved the poster so it was standing more straight, stepped away to look at it from far away (and almost crashed into someone during this process) and then moved forward once again.

He had nothing else to do.

He grabbed the free chair and slumped on it. His hand moved to his pocket to take out the phone to maybe write to Astrid –

(Or maybe Jack?)

– When he caught a glimpse of movement to his right.

Dagur was still working in front of his table.

The teddy bear sat in the middle of it, but now it was turned with its back to the teen and oh… it was opened and Hiccup could see metal, wires and computing boards inside of it.

Hiccup curiously moved his chair forward so he could reach with his head and see more of Dagur's project.

The boy's fingers moved inside the plushie methodically. It looked like he was correcting something, with his eyes focused solely on the task and forehead filled with wrinkles. Once he let out a short curse, but then something soft appeared on his lips and finally moved his hands away from the inside of the teddy bear.

He closed the back with hook–and–loop fastener and then moved his hand through the artificial fur like he wanted to make it look more presentable.

(Or it kinda seemed like the movement someone did when they wanted to comfort other.)

Dagur turned the teddy bear around and then grabbed the tablet laying nearby. His fingers moved on the screen, pushing things, clicking buttons and a few times writing something.

There was a short pause before Dagur clicked something.

The teddy bear twitched and then from somewhere inside of it a sweet, feminine voice rose into the air.

"I hope your day will be amazing!"

Hiccup was too surprised to do anything than open widely his mouth and just gape at the teddy bear and Dagur smiling weirdly proudly to himself, as his fingers yet traced something on the tablet screen.

The plushie just spoke!

He knew there had to be a mic hidden inside of it and the voice was pre-recorded, but still, wow!

Hiccup then blinked as something caught his attention when Dagur swiped his finger on the screen and the teddy bear spoke once again.

"It's a good day to take a break!"

The voice coming from the belly was very familiar. Hiccup knew he had heard it somewhere, he knew the sweetness, the kindness seeping from syllables, he knew that kinda soft tone at the very last word.

His brain quickly processed the data base in his head, trying to combine the recording with the memories of the voices he had heard in his life. He knew he had heard it somewhere, it was so familiar that it made his stomach tingle with desperation to know the answer immediately.

His brain whirred inside and then there was a brief pause before the answer appeared inside his mind.

"Was that… Heather's voice?"

Dagur twitched and his hand froze midair. There was a short break, before he quickly glanced at Hiccup who was looking back at him, and then turned to his tablet.

"Uhm yeah, it's her voice."

Hiccup knew he remembered it.

He looked down at the teddy bear sitting patiently on the table, almost like he was awaiting some other orders. The black eyes reflected the sun light coming from the windows and the mouth smiled softly at the people passing them by.

"What else does it do?" Hiccup suddenly asked.

Dagur looked at him and for a second Hiccup felt utterly lost and embarrassed.

"I mean, if you really don't want to tell me even now I won't mind, but I guess I'm just really curious, because it looks like you've put a lot of time, thoughts and passion into it." Oh, yeah, he was babbling, while moving his eyes around the hall, just to look at anything or anyone who wasn't Dagur. "Well, I'll probably find out about your robot later, at the presentation, but if you want I can go away for it. I mean, it will be kinda weird, as I am immediately after you, but just give me a word –"

"I don't mind."

"- and then I'm going to walk away – wait, what?"

Hiccup had never seen amused Dagur, but the one he was seeing right now was damn close to be called that.

He blinked and then, like he finally fully registered the answer, spoke.

"Are you sure?"

Dagur shrugged.

"You'll find out sooner or later anyway." He added after a second, glancing down at his tablet and only then back at Hiccup.

He looked unsure, but Hiccup couldn't quite pinpoint why he would feel that.

Nevertheless the excitement suddenly buzzed in his ears as Hiccup quickly stood up from the chair – making it topple backward and almost destroy someone's project too, but Hiccup quickly apologized – and then he was already moving to Dagur to look curiously at the teddy bear.

(Just one agreement was enough of a catalyst for his curiosity to peak.)

"So what is it then?"

Dagur lifted his eyebrow as Hiccup stared at him, but then only cleared his throat and moved his gaze back down.

"Well, it's a… friend of sort." Dagur started, almost immediately stopping at the very beginning. His brows moved, forming an ocean of thin wrinkles on the forehead – resembling an IR spectrum*. "Or a helping companion, as it's said on the poster. And well… she… I mean…"

Hiccup looked up at the poster and indeed the words were written there. He could always read the whole poster now and be done with the explanation, but weirdly… he wanted to hear it coming from Dagur's mouth. Plus it could be a good practice for him before the presentation.

What could be said later in the presentation then? Ah yeah, the purpose.

Hiccup straightened his back, put his both hands behind his back and then looked at Dagur who stopped speaking altogether after the very first few words.

"Imagine me as a jury." He proposed, hoping that the smile on his lips was encouraging. "Maybe this will help."

The teen glanced at him, lifting his one eyebrow, but when he noticed Hiccup standing there officially, back in perfect line and eyes cunningly looking at the project, he also inhaled deeply.

(Seeing stressed Dagur was definitely something new.)

"First let's start with the name?" Hiccup started, lowering his voice, trying to sound as manly as he could.

"Her name is Alice."

"Okay, what is her purpose?"

Dagur cleared his throat. There was a brief pause before he spoke the next sentence.

"It is a robot made to help kids and people from abusive homes and dealing with mental problems."

Oh, that was not what he expected. Definitely not.

"Could you… elaborate on that?" Hiccup didn't like how his voice wavered a little bit in the middle. He didn't like the sudden tightness in his throat.

Dagur's fingers fiddled with the sides of the tablet for a moment, before he inhaled, straightened his back and then turned to Hiccup.

"Yes, yes I can. Alice has programmed forty uplifting quotes, all activated by saying special sentences." Dagur looked at the teddy bear. "Alice, I feel bad."

Hiccup stared at the teddy bear and listened to the sweet feminine voice seeping from her belly, vibrating warmly through the air.

"Remember that after every rain comes the sun!"

Now Hiccup simply couldn't not imagine Heather standing here and saying it.

"The teddy bear can be connected to your tablet or phone via special app. So for example if you don't want to wake anyone up you can simply write to her on the tablet." Dagur waved the device in front of Hiccup. "Here on the app you can also put your schedule and she will remind you about things – like taking medicines, doctors' appointments or times of meals. Unfortunately now she can only remember five things per day." Then Dagur took a deep breath. "And if you are feeling down you can call a suicide line by pressing its front right paw three times."

Hiccup swallowed and nodded.

"Of course, in the app you can change the number to some friend's one if you want."

Hiccup's heart was beating fast and nervously inside his chest. Like it was chasing some feeling, some kind of sensation, but he couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. He knew that his tongue suddenly felt like osmium and that air was too dense in his lungs, making it hard to breathe.

"So these functions are designed for not so young people." Hiccup said slowly, feeling that every word barely wanted to leave the warm imprisonment of his chest. "How about kids?"

Dagur nodded.

"Alice can tell seven different stories to lull kids to sleep. She can also call the nearest police station or a family member the kid trusts if she or he feels that they are in danger by pressing the left paw three times."

This sounded pretty… pretty cool.

Hiccup looked up at the poster and noticed a short word after the name of the robot.

"It is written there that it is only a prototype." He pointed out.

"Yes." Dagur nodded, looking down at his tablet. "I've been trying to make Alice able to measure your heartbeat to check if you are stressed so she could automatically say something or call someone, but for now I wasn't able to get the programming right. Two out of five times she usually gets the heartbeat rate wrong."

Hiccup was impressed.

He wanted to ask more questions, but Dagur cut him as he started speaking.

"I wanted to make something which would help other people. We know that mental problems and abusive households happens, but not many people do anything about it. And maybe it isn't much, but every bit of help matters."

Hiccup could only stare for a few moments at Dagur who was staring hesitantly at the device in his hands.

He didn't know much about the teen. Most stories he had heard from other people and not many of them were nice.

Dagur had been angry, mad, crazy and brash. But now there was a part of him which was kind, compassionate and hopeful. Maybe this part had been always there. Maybe it had been buried under the dirt of repressed negative emotions, of fury and anger at the not fair life.

Hiccup didn't know what had happened to Dagur during the last few months, but whatever it was, it had a good influence on the teen.

"If you don't take the podium, I will be fucking surprised."

Dagur turned to him with wide eyes, perplexed, open mouth and eyebrows raised high on his forehead, to this point even the thin, white scar was pretty visible on his cheek.

And Hiccup wasn't sure about which part of his sentence Dagur was mostly surprised – the positive meaning, the fact that Hiccup rooted for him or simply the curse word.

"I mean… it would be nice, but well I saw some fucking good robots here, so I'm not sure about taking the podium."

"If they don't give you a prize, then the jury will be blind as hell." Hiccup said.

Dagur one more time looked down and Hiccup saw a small smile hiding in the corner of his twitching mouth.

"I don't know." He mumbled.

The screen of his tablet turned dark, so Dagur moved his hand to the side and clicked the button. The light flooded his face, which looked nervously down.

Hiccup's project in comparison was insignificant. It was small and felt so unimportant, that for a moment Hiccup wanted nothing more than to hide it far away from the cunning eyes.

Dagur's robot was different. It was made with love, with pure need to help someone. It was a fight, a fight with the shadows of the past, it was a battle, a thrown glove on the ground in front of the dark silhouette standing behind you all this time.

It was a scream, a shout, a whisper, a plead. A darkness and a hidden light. A warmness of cup with hot cocoa on a rainy day with hurt cheek and tearful eyes. It was something much more than a simple robot that could guess the pH and the hydration of the soil.

It was a spark of hope.

Hiccup didn't know what had driven Dagur to make exactly that. He had a few ideas, theories, suspicions. And he was very intrigued, some scientific part of him needed to know the truth, needed to disassemble the problem into ten thousand different parts and look at them, asses their roles and see from what they had been made of.

However it was the logical part of his brain.

But what if it isn't just white and black, but simply gray?

Everything would be easier if the world was painted in two colors. But it wasn't the case. The world was filled with different shadows, different tones, with spectrum of different colors, with different electromagnetic radiations with different wavelengths.

Hiccup was painted not in white, nor in black.

Neither was Dagur.

Neither was anyone.

But something in Hiccup bloomed, something in Hiccup stirred and something bubbled and the sudden need to do something, do something nice and meaningful made his arm move and bump Dagur's side.

The teen looked at him with surprise from beyond this world, looking as lost as he was flying through Messier 51a* galaxy, with only far away stars as his companions.

"But I know." Hiccup said, holding tightly onto this warm light growing inside his stomach. "You're gonna blast them off their feet."

Dagur didn't look convinced.

Maybe the world wasn't white and black, but the scientist still lived inside Hiccup's veins. Dagur's project was amazing, but there was some other part which needed some meddling with, needed small changes and repairs.

"But first we need to change a little bit your presentation."

"How is Hiccup hanging?" Tooth suddenly asked, looking at the phone laying in front of Jack.

"I'm not sure, he said he's stressed, but then stopped answering my messages." Jack answered, stabbing the fries with a fork and then lifting them to his mouth.

They… didn't taste that good, but weren't horrible either. It was probably one of the best meals they could give them today.

"Oh." Tooth nodded and then moved an apple closer to her mouth, but only kept it there for a second or so. "When is the contest supposed to start anyway?"

Jack was already opening his mouth to answer the girl, when someone was faster, slamming the tray down and making Jack's milk box twirl a little on the surface.

Jack jumped in his seat, but Tooth didn't look surprised. Maybe because she simply had seen Astrid coming to them in the cafeteria.

The girl sat down between them.

"It started fifteen minutes ago." Astrid said, looking at them. "Hey by the way."

Tooth smiled at the girl with her eyes sparkling with mirth.

"Hello."

"Hi, Astrid." Jack said, grinning and then putting two fries in his mouth and munching quickly on them. "Feeling alone because Hiccup isn't with you?"

The blonde haired girl shoved him hard and Jack had to grab the table to not fall down immediately and probably hit his elbow and back quite painfully.

Note taken – don't mess with Astrid Hofferson. Of course some part of him already had known it before that, but only when he felt her strength and power on himself, he really started to believe the rumors going around the school.

"I wanted to sit with my teammates, but they dispersed somewhere." The girl said, darting her head up.

"Don't you want to sit with us then?" Tooth asked, making the saddest eyes she could muster.

Uh oh, even Jack felt bad and he was sitting with the girl.

Astrid probably did too as her shoulders tensed when she glanced at the colorful girl and she quickly shook her head.

Man, those eyes were a powerful weapon. Jack needed to learn how to make those, he would have an upper hand in some situations.

"I want to, I want to. But you usually sit in your own group and I didn't want to interrupt you. But then I saw that you were missing one party member so I decided to take his place." Astrid quickly explained. "Coming to this, where is Aster?"

Jack shrugged.

"He told us that he had some things to do." Tooth answered instead, finally biting into the apple she had been holding all this time.

Astrid hummed under her nose, but then stabbed the fries with the fork and put them in the ketchup, only to end their lives in her mouth.

"Uh okay." The girl said, glancing at Jack for a second, but then fully directing her eyes at Tooth.

They started to talk about a series they were both watching and Jack smiled at seeing them wave their hands excitedly and grinning to each other with shimmering stars jumping from their eyes, with fast comets moving through the galaxies of their irises.

Jack occupied himself with eating and observing them.

He patiently waited for his phone to peep up, but nothing like this happened. And no wonder, if the contest already started then Hiccup had probably a lot of things to do.

But he couldn't stop himself from being curious how he was doing there. With Dagur.

He would be lying if he said that he wasn't worried, but Hiccup had told him that he had nothing to worry about, that weirdly Dagur wasn't so aggressive anymore.

He really wanted to believe Hiccup, his words and Dagur, but there still was some hesitation inside his mind and heart, some kind of irrational fear gripping his insides and twisting them painfully.

But the teacher was with them so it should be okay.

Jack could only wait, keeping his fingers crossed for his friend and hoping for the best.

Hiccup was more stressed while Dagur was presenting his project than he was while he had to present his own.

His fingers were twitching hesitantly as he observed Dagur speaking and showing different parts of the robot, explaining what its purpose was and showing a few examples.

Sometimes Hiccup almost mouthed the answers when he saw Dagur stopping for a second to pick the perfect combinations of words to use in this or that situation.

The jury observed the robot, writing something down from time to time. Pens squeaked heavily on the paper as the pressed tips made a swirling motion, forming sentences and words, hopefully good ones.

Hiccup's fingers hurt from how much he crossed them for the teen.

It surprised him how much he rooted for Dagur, but it was worth it. His cause was worth it.

It felt like an eternity passed before Dagur finally ended his presentation and jury started to ask simple questions.

Hiccup fidgeted in his chair as he listened to Dagur slowly trying to answer as many inquires as he could. He could see that the stress was pulling on the teen's muscles, he could see the fatigue on the mouth and creases on the forehead.

Just a few more minutes.

Hiccup observed as one of the jury in the back scribbled furiously something in his notepad when the woman at front was interrogating Dagur. Hiccup could only hope that he was writing only good things.

He wanted Dagur to win. Or at least take the podium, but seriously, he deserved the highest prize. Hiccup's robot in comparison looked almost dumb, but that didn't stop him from feeling proud of himself.

He had done it. He had built it, with help from other people, but he still had done it and he was going to be happy about it.

The jury finally left Dagur alone and moved to Hiccup. And, uh oh, maybe in hindsight he should prepare himself more.

In the end his presentation was… not good. It wasn't terrible either, but he was so invested in helping Dagur polish to perfection his own, grind the surface of his presentation so hard that it could show the clearest reflection to the world, that he totally forgot about his own presentation.

He stuttered a little (okay, a lot), but he more or less managed to describe his small robot to the three pairs of piercing eyes.

And not fast enough, this part of the contest was finished.

Now they needed to wait for the jury to see every project, then they had time to decide about the winners and after that there was the official Awards Ceremony.

In the middle, while everyone waited for the jury to make their minds, there was a lecture about robots and the new AI possibilities. Professor Callaghan was going to give the lecture and Hiccup had heard some excited voices around him at this information.

"So how are you feeling?" Hiccup finally asked, when the jury moved further away and he was finally able to approach the teen.

Dagur looked at him and then shrugged. The scowl which had been kept away from the jury returned to his face, wrinkling his nose and forehead.

"Like I fucked it up."

"I'm sure you did fine."

Definitely better than Hiccup. He had been a disaster and he was so glad that it was finally behind him.

Presentations were still terrifying for him, no matter how many times he had already done them in his life.

"I messed so many things."

Hiccup was sure that wasn't the case, because his own presentation had been ten times infinite worse than Dagur's one. At least Dagur's presentation was more or less logical, not fully polished to perfection, because they didn't have enough time, but it had a beginning, a middle filled with explanations and the end with a good moral.

Hiccup's presentation was shit.

But maybe… it was better this way.

"You didn't."

"I so fucking totally did."

Hiccup sighed.

It was weird to see Dagur so hung up on something, on a mistake that he thought he had made, but in reality it could only be a small slip, unimportant to other people.

Hiccup approached Dagur and lifted his hand, moving it closer to the teen's back and stopped just a few inches before he actually touched the shirt.

He wanted to pat Dagur on the back. Like literally he had approached the boy and had lifted his hand to do exactly that, but had stopped. Why had he done that? Why had he wanted to do that?

He knew Dagur looked totally stressed and miserable right now, but was it enough of a reason?

No, maybe it wasn't the reason in the end.

(Damn, Jack's ways of behaving were brushing on him, leaving small atoms of his mood everywhere on his skin, mixing additional molecules with his own and making him do new things. But were those bad things? Hiccup knew he usually wasn't the one to lift someone's spirits up, but was it bad to try to do it? Even if Dagur had been his enemy at some point? But now… didn't things change a little bit?)

World was complicated. Morals were complicated. Some people change, but some don't.

But during the last few months Dagur had showed a lot of good things – he had showed a caring side, a hard-working side, a guilty side, a nerdy side, a nervous side – he had showed thousand different faces, behaviors, moods. He looked like he wanted to improve and he did, slowly, day after day.

Hiccup wasn't really keen on giving people a second chance, he had problems with trusting people after they had betrayed him or had done something terrible. And no, he didn't trust Dagur, he probably will never do that.

But he decided to give him a benefit of trust. A small credit. A tiny chance.

Hiccup patted slowly, strangely, hesitantly, nervously Dagur on the back. Three short pats, nothing more, nothing less, a barely needed time of contact.

It was all Hiccup could do right now.

Dagur immediately froze. Like literally his whole back tensed – a spark of time, a sudden burst – and everything stilled.

Hiccup moved back, feeling the need to jump, but he held strongly and only stepped away when Dagur turned to him with wide eyes.

Of fuck, had Hiccup done something wrong? He definitely had done that! What the hell was he thinking about? He should just stay in his place!

Dagur stared at him still with his hands hovering in the air, not really sure whether he should put them down now or later on.

There was a short break, a sudden pause between, filled only with them glancing hesitantly at each other and not saying a thing, only processing the situation.

It had to look ridiculous from the side. Bizarre. Strange.

Gladly the sudden part of broken space continuum was busted by a low rumble coming from Dagur's stomach.

At this Hiccup simply couldn't not blink and let out a nervous, hesitant chortle, still looking kinda perplexed by the whole conversation? Situation? Whatever they had right now.

"Sorry…" Dagur finally said, breaking the most awkward contact of the whole decade – no, century – as he looked away. "I didn't eat today."

So Dagur had to be way stressed even before coming here.

"Soon we will be able to eat something." Hiccup added.

"If I don't die first of hunger, that is."

He wasn't sure what else to add, so Hiccup let out a weak laughter and then they returned to their phones.

Professor Robinson was really interested in their presentations. He wanted to know every detail, every small bit of information, every question the jury had asked.

At some point Hiccup thought that maybe it would have been way easier to record it all than retold what had happened.

Gladly his own story was way shorter than Dagur's one, so he could dig into pizza, waiting not so patiently on his plate before him. The sweet and sour taste spread through his tongue, making him almost hum in approval.

Yeah, he hadn't eaten much in the morning either. Only a sandwich, a cup of coffee and that was all. So no wonder he was starving now.

Dagur only managed to eat one slice before the teacher got to him and held him captive under his puppy eyes and begs to tell exactly what had happened, not allowing to miss a single thing.

Hiccup almost felt bad for the teen as he eyed the pizza with pleading and hungry eyes, but he was under the attack of another and another and another question.

When Dagur was finally able to eat, the pizza probably was only mildly warm.

"So what did you do, Professor?" Hiccup finally asked, when the interrogation was over and they could all eat normally.

The pizzeria was packed with contestants and other normal customers so every table was taken. Gladly they had been the first one here so they more or less had managed to snatch a table, but other people didn't have much luck later on.

The waiters ran around the room, holding trays full of food or dirty dishes.

"Oh, me?" The man asked and then took a giant bite of the pizza. "I well… definitely ate half of the things on the free buffet."

Dagur looked up from his slice at the teacher, but then quickly returned to his food, like he was afraid that by staring he could make the man ask him a question.

"And then I met some of my old friends. We talked a little bit, exchanged experience and all that." Professor Robinson said, smiling to them. "So yeah, nothing too interesting for you guys."

Hiccup made an uncoherent nose at the back of his throat, which could be an agreement or disagreement, depending on how someone wanted to interpret it. The teacher smiled to him in the end.

They ate for a few minutes in silence, taking occasional sips of cola and coffee, when Professor Robinson opened his mouth once again.

"Do you want to go to the lecture?"

"You mean the one about AI?" Dagur asked.

"Yep, this one."

"It couldn't hurt to do so."

Professor Robinson nodded at that, grin stretching his mouth wildly as he turned to Hiccup who was in the middle of swallowing the last bite.

"Sure, it could be interesting."

The lecture hall was, well, almost packed to the brim when they finally reached it. Most of the seats were already taken by the contestants and guests. And the only free left were in the middle of the rows or in faraway points of the hall so before they could get there, someone would surely snatch it away.

So yeah, it looked like the fate was already decided for them.

Standing it was.

Professor Robinson looked around and it seemed like he spotted someone familiar once again, because he smiled wildly and then waved heavily at some head in the crowd. He looked at them and asked if it was okay to leave them for the lecture alone, so he could go there and talk with other people.

And once again both of them shrugged, showing that they didn't mind. Maybe it was for the better in the end, because knowing Professor Robinson he wouldn't be able to stop himself from talking during the lecture and the last thing Hiccup wanted was to feel embarrassed because his own teacher interrupter a pretty important lecture.

So yeah, in the end it wouldn't be a bad idea.

Dagur found a small place near the wall where they both could stand. He pointed at it, looking at Hiccup expectantly, like searching for his approval.

Hiccup shrugged.

At this point any place that wasn't in the middle of the crowd, where he would be surrounded by people, was good.

They shuffled in that direction. It was near a giant window, but the window sill was already occupied by two people – a boy and a girl – sitting there and talking in shushed whispers while glancing at the main part of the lecture hall.

They stopped near the wall and then leaned their backs on it. It wasn't the perfect place of course and sitting would be way better, but Hiccup could see the scene from here. And if he really felt tired he could always slump down. Plus the main door wasn't that far away if he suddenly felt lightheaded. So looking at it objectively it was the perfect place they could pick in this very moment.

Dagur stood next to him and fiddled with his pockets or maybe with the insides of them.

The lecture was about to start in eight or so minutes, but for the remaining time they didn't talk.

Robots weren't Hiccup's main interest. Of course, he read about them when he found some interesting article or he read a few sci-fi books, but he wasn't obsessed with them as he was with other things.

But even he had to admit that the lecture was pretty interesting.

A man, maybe around his fifties or forties, walked on the stage and suddenly the whole lecture hall went quiet – though Hiccup had a feeling he still somehow heard Professor Robinson's voice in the background, trying to finish some story. The man looked at the crowd, then smiled before he introduced himself and slowly started to get them invested in the story.

Hiccup knew probably little or nothing about machines, robots and AIs, but it all didn't matter. Professor Callaghan managed to explain the basic knowledge of the topic at the very beginning, so everyone could understand the further parts of the lecture with no problems.

Even from time to time he managed to intertwine some movies' and books' titles into his lecture, gaining a few sparkling eyes from the audience. He had some tone to his voice, some unwavering determination, some kind of kindness, yet full certainty of his words that most of the people simply listened.

Hiccup included.

A few times there were some shadows moving behind the curtains of the auditorium and Hiccup had a vague feeling he heard some whispers, but that was all. Maybe, in the end, it was only his imagination, because other than him no one else seemed to be paying attention to that.

Even Dagur, who usually looked disinterested, was staring at the scene and almost devouring every word that was reaching him. Hiccup could see his eyes and mind focused on the man, on the explanations, on the meaning and Hiccup could almost hear the gears moving in the teen's head, whirring, spinning, clicking, helping the whole machine run.

It seemed that if Dagur could, he would start taking notes, so nothing would slip by. But unfortunately the lecture wasn't even recorded, so it was an one way thing. As much as they could gain from it would stay in their heads.

So after an hour and a half, when Professor Callaghan told them that it was all he had prepared, some people almost sighed in remorse and honestly Dagur simply looked sad that such long span of time disappeared in the blink of an eye.

After that there was a round of applause, a loud, booming one that made the windows shiver and for a second Hiccup was simply afraid that they would break. But gladly, somehow, miraculously they managed to live through the strong and wild vibrations spreading through the air.

And after that came the part everyone anticipated. Well, most did.

Hiccup not so much. He didn't plan on taking the podium, he didn't even plan to get some kind of a honorable mention. He just had done his part, had learned something new, but mostly he was simply glad it was all behind him.

But he kinda wanted Dagur to win. Okay, maybe not even kinda, but a lot. And he was actually pretty stressed – his hands were shaking and there was a pounding, an echo of a beeping sound inside his skull as jury came to the scene.

He and Dagur heard a flow of apologies, a sudden voice and then after a second Professor Robinson emerged from the crowd and approached them, correcting his askew glasses.

"Oh, the time has finally come! Are you excited? Nervous? Because I'm definitely both!"

Hiccup tried to smile at the man, but Dagur only stared at the scene and it didn't look like he even noticed his teacher approaching. Which didn't stop Professor Robinson from talking more and gaining a few weird glances from the people around them.

"I'm sure that you will both win. I mean there were some other cool projects too, but your two were the best. Oh god, I'm so nervous!"

Hiccup doubted that the jury even paid attention to his robot, but it was nice to know that Professor Robinson fully believed in him.

First the jury tried to quiet the crowd, which didn't go as planned for the first minute or so. But steadily everyone started to shush their voices, whispers, conversations and monologues so the people at the front could speak.

Hiccup could almost sense Dagur tense next to him when the woman in the jury started to speak.

At first they talked about how proud they were of every robot and project. How every person was astonishing for building something. How incredibly surprising were some of these projects.

(Hiccup knew they weren't talking about his own, but he was damn sure they were talking definitely about Dagur's one. They had to, he couldn't believe they weren't.)

The introduction was pretty long. Or maybe it felt like that because Hiccup was stressed. Professor Robinson on his one side was twitching and still mumbling to himself like crazy. Dagur was rigid as steel on the other side and Hiccup was sure that if he looked back, he would see the teen glare.

People around started to get anxious too, some started to speak, some hesitantly played with their phones, clothes, hands and hair. There were a few people who looked disinterested – people like Hiccup, who probably didn't believe in winning even the smallest trophy like a participation award.

But most of the contestants were anticipating, waiting for the next words that would follow through the jury's mouth.

"So let's start with honorable mentions!'

Some people in the crowd groaned, but in overall the sudden whispers dissipated.

A person moved a trolley onto the scene with a pile of diplomas and small trophies. The other person from the jury brought a mic closer to his mouth to call people to the podium so they could get their small prizes.

Names were called. People rose from their seats and moved to the stage and creaky stairs. Some people clapped, some whistled. After one girl in the back got up there was a loud, bizarre moment when the circle around her yipped happily and patted her back.

(It was a nice view.)

But they all waited. Some part of Hiccup was really horrified that maybe Dagur's name would be called, that the very next one on the list would be familiar, that the whole anticipation would end now, way before it all could start.

Professor Robinson next to him started to bite into his knuckles, nervously tapping his foot on the floor.

Dagur didn't move an inch and for a moment Hiccup was almost sure that the male stopped breathing, but a short glance back told him that Dagur was still, gladly, breathing. He only crossed his hands on his chest as he leaned on the wall with his one shoulder.

This part was pretty long. At least twenty people were called to the podium and it wasn't an easy task to get from the middle of the crowd to the stairs, so it took good forty minutes for this part of awards' ceremony to end.

The noise rose once again when empty trolley was pushed away. People started to talk with each other as the jury moved the mics away and quietly whispered between themselves, flipping papers and pointing at things on the pads.

"Oh gosh, I think I'm going to be sick." Professor Robinson next to them whispered, one hand moving to his mouth as his eyes pierced the stage.

Hiccup swallowed hard, feeling that the bottom of his shirt was totally messed at this point from wrinkling it too much. His hands couldn't stop sweating and his heart beat so loud in his ears that he had problems with hearing from time to time.

It was going to be okay. Only three names mattered now. And he hoped that one of the called ones would be familiar. It had to be.

Dagur deserved it.

The jury nodded to each other and another trolley, definitely heavier one, was pushed onto the stage.

"And now the part everyone waited for. The main three prizes." The woman once again spoke, her stern, but really happy voice floated through the air, making the hairs on Hiccup's arm stand up. "Let's start with the third place, which goes to Gratuity Tucci*!"

There was a shriek in the audience. A girl with a mop of curly brown hairs jumped from her seat and started to run toward the stage.

Hiccup searched in his memory if he had seen her project somewhere in the main hall, but his memories were blurred, fuzzy, like he was staring at them from behind a fogged window.

Next to him Dagur tensed and then let out his breath in a low huff.

People clapped as the girl almost jumped onto the stage, missing four or so steps. There was a whistle coming from the back rows and someone shouted happily, chanting her name. The girl looked like she could cry any minute as her trembling palms shook jury's hands and then grabbed the third place trophy. Then a man with a camera came forward and snapped a few photos, putting people's smiles on the cards of history for some time.

Dagur inhaled then exhaled slowly. His hand started to play with the sleeve of his shirt.

Hiccup's fingers hurt from how much he fiddled with and crossed them. He could sense his breath getting lost, utterly, inside his lungs. He couldn't remember the last time he was so stressed over someone – and not in the kinda bad way, but this time weirdly in a good, optimistic way.

Professor Robinson looked like he could faint any second now, his mouth was hidden behind his hand as he observed the scene and did nothing more than inhaled loudly a few times.

The girl on the scene showed the trophy high up and another round of applause rolled through the hall – some people even stood up, clapping their hands loudly in an uneven rhythm for the girl.

Then the jury told something into her ear. She nodded and stepped away a little bit, still grinning like crazy, like it was the best day of her entire life.

And maybe it really was.

One of the jury took the mic and then gave a brief description of the robot the girl had made.

Dagur looked like he was going to pass out. His face turned pale – much paler than Hiccup had ever seen – and his hands now barely could grip anything as the air left his mouth in low hisses sneaking between his teeth.

The girl took the microphone when one of the jury gave it to her and in a pretty cheerful voice started to give her own description and the reason why she had built exactly that, moving around the stage, still with that blinding smile on her face.

Hiccup's eyes jumped from the stage to the teen next to him. Should he do something? But what could he exactly do? Say something? Do something?

The last doing something hadn't gone… that well. It hadn't been utterly terrible, but yeah, it had been still the most awkward situation he had had in a pretty long time. So he wasn't sure if that was a good option here.

But maybe it had helped. Hiccup wasn't sure. But after that Dagur hadn't looked so stressed. Or maybe it had been wishful thinking.

So maybe he should say something? But what exactly? Something funny to ease the mood? But he couldn't be funny, well not intentionally, so maybe something else?

It was all too complicated, all too much, his mind couldn't come up with something good to say, with something to do. Like his brain was missing something, some kind of program, some kind of subroutine, some kind of file, anything that would help him cope with the situation.

What would Jack do in a similar situation?

He definitely would smile. So Hiccup did try to smile, but the muscles around his mouth were so tense that it probably came out like a grimace, not an honest grin that would split his lips.

But okay, that was one thing off the list. What else would Jack do? Probably do something, like maybe he would ruffle someone's hair? That was out of the question. Maybe he would pat someone on the back? No, that hadn't worked earlier, so maybe Hiccup shouldn't try right now?

Okay, there was a small thing he could do.

With his elbow he nudged Dagur's side, barely touching him, but he hoped deep inside that it was enough to snap Dagur from whatever far away, probably no pleasant, land he had drifted to.

It surprisingly did the work, because the teen glanced down, the frown on his face wasn't smoothening out, but not getting deeper and darker either. So that was probably a good thing? Hiccup definitely hoped so.

Okay, what was next on the agenda? Oh shit, oh, shit, shit, shit. What would Jack do, what would Jack do? How could he make it look so easy, when in real life it all was so complicated?

No, wait, words! He would say something nice! Something that would lift someone's spirits up! Definitely!

But the words which Hiccup desperately wanted to let out – in any form, in any meaning – were scratching the back of his throat and his brain was lagging and, oh, was it always so hot in here, his hands were sweating and the jury was thanking the girl and Hiccup finally blurted out –

"You're going to fucking destroy them."

Well that was clever as shit!

Dagur blinked at that, like he couldn't really believe that of all things Hiccup could have said right now – and there were at least ten thousand different options which sounded way better than whatever he had spurted just a few seconds ago – he had picked this one.

(Well he definitely hadn't picked it, but his brain just had mixed a few words, giving him the only thing that had wanted to leave his tightened throat.)

But then Dagur's tightened mouth slacked a little and honestly, this day was getting from weird to bizarrely impossible in such short span of time that it was impossible for any computer to comprehend that this actually could happen in real life.

Because Dagur's mouth twitched and he smiled, nervously, unsurely, but truly nevertheless at Hiccup and his miserable try at lifting his spirits up.

He didn't say anything or maybe he did want to say something, but was stopped by the familiar voice coming from the main part of the lecture hall and both of their heads turned in that direction.

"So let's move then to the next place on the podium." The woman cleared her throat and quickly looked through the crowd, asking for silence only with her pleading and stern, both in the same time, eyes.

The whispers died down to acceptable level and the woman nodded. He moved the pad closer to her eyes and opened her mouth to announce the next winner.

Hiccup's heart felt like it could jump out of his chest.

"And the second place goes to…" A short pause. "Dagur Berserk!"

Shit.

What. Wait. This name was familiar.

Wait, wait, wait, wait!

Oh shit! Shit, shit, shit, shit!

Hiccup felt like his heart stopped beating for a second – maybe less, maybe more, because suddenly it all became so slow and too fast both in the same time. The sensation that he had control over his body disappeared rapidly and he was moving without thinking, doing things without planning them first.

Holding his breath in, he turned to Dagur, who surprisingly was doing the same thing.

They stared at each other for a moment and then Dagur whispered.

"I won."

It was the softest sound Hiccup had ever heard coming from Dagur's mouth.

And Dagur stared at him, eyes wide and filled with surprise, astonishment, disbelief and happiness. He just stared at Hiccup as the applause rose around them, as people started to look around searching for someone standing up, searching for the lucky person who surely was approaching the scene by now.

But Dagur wasn't moving. He was still staring at Hiccup like he was frozen in place and time.

Hiccup felt like he was too, like his heart suddenly stopped working, because there was no time, and if there was no time then it didn't have to beat, but Hiccup needed it to move right now.

Because Dagur wasn't moving. It didn't look like Professor Robinson was twitching either and this made him the only one to be able to do something in this situation.

People clapped and clapped, but the sound was kinda weird, crooked, as they searched for someone and couldn't find them.

Hiccup had to do something now!

He forced his hands to move and then put them on Dagur's back, pushing him forward, toward the scene, podium, prize and the jury who still waited and waited. He pushed him and pushed, forcing his own legs and Dagur's ones to move, because it still looked like the teen couldn't do so himself.

"Come on! You won! You need to get the prize."

Another step forward and oh, people finally saw them both moving to the scene and the applause which had died down started to rise once again, overpowering the hall. Another few heads turned to them and Hiccup definitely would be embarrassed if he wasn't so focused on getting Dagur to the stage.

Hiccup was sure he was going to push him all over to the scene, but then Dagur's voice once again reached Hiccup's ears.

"I won…"

Hiccup huffed.

"Yes, yes, you won! It's fucking amazing, but you actually need to get there to receive the prize."

Wow, okay, this was definitely way harder than it looked. Hiccup could actually feel his arms getting tired and heels of feet twitch painfully.

How long did he have to do this? Well, if he had to push Dagur toward the scene then he would be damned if he didn't do just that.

(Though it was still a painful process.)

And when Hiccup tried to make another step forward, getting Dagur closer to the scene, the teen suddenly turned around and Hiccup almost lost his footing, but gladly, miraculously caught himself in time.

He snapped his head up.

"Hiccup, I won."

"Yeah, yeah you did, but it will be all for nothing if you don't go there!" He huffed out, feeling his muscles tense.

That was probably not true. There would be some confusion, but Dagur would probably be able to get the prize after the official part or something like that, but Hiccup wanted to see the teen on the scene, see him receive the trophy, hear him talk about his project and hear the applause shimmering through the air.

Dagur looked back at the scene where the jury managed to locate them, after that back at Hiccup and then – it honestly had to be a figment of his imagination, because Hiccup couldn't believe it was really happening – Dagur simply said.

"Thanks, Hiccup."

And there was something weird, like a sudden halt, glitch, lag happened in Hiccup's world.

Because Dagur reached his hand and moved it around Hiccup.

He tensed and the breath stopped its journey in his ribcage.

But it was a brief moment before Dagur moved away and patted his shoulder awkwardly. Just two pats, nothing more, nothing less, barely even touching his shirt.

"Thanks." Dagur repeated himself.

Then he simply turned on his heel and moved to the stairs directing him to the stage.

Okay that was bizarre and if there was a prize for having the most awkward conversation and situation then they both definitely deserved the first place.

Hiccup slowly stepped back to their place to spot Professor Robinson frantically looking around with tears in his eyes.

"Hiccup, what!? Where is –" But then his eyes caught the glimpse of the teen approaching the jury and he let out the biggest sigh Hiccup had ever heard coming from his mouth. " – Oh my God, he's right there!"

Hiccup looked at Dagur hesitantly and nervously approaching the jury who smiled at him broadly. He shook their hands (he wondered if Dagur was really cautious of his strength), exchanging a few words between each other, still to the accompaniment of slowly dying out applause. The silver trophy was lifted from the table and pushed into Dagur's hands and wow… he never had looked more surprised and weirdly happy than in this moment. Like he couldn't believe that it was really happening, that it was the real life played right in front of his eyes.

Oh, yeah, Hiccup should clap too.

Hiccup's hands hung in the air as people stopped cheering. One of the jury took the mic to give a short description of the winner and his project.

Dagur was standing on the stage, looking as stoic as he could, but Hiccup could see that he was stressed, that there was a rigid tension in his shoulders, that his eyes jumped around like electrons under radiation, trying to find something on which they could stop and ground themselves.

People listened to the description, some nodding along the way, some even smiling at the idea and then whispering something to their companions.

Hiccup observed the scene, feeling his heart pounding in his chest, proudness overpowering his whole brain. Yeah, it was pride. He really was proud of Dagur, of what he achieved, what he reached since… since it all had gone downhill – similar to badly planned experiment.

The mic was passed to Dagur who grabbed it, still a second too late and then his eyes scanned the crowd as hand moved the device to his mouth.

He was definitely tense.

One swipe from left to right, then a little bit higher, another one and another one and then Dagur's eyes finally landed on him and Professor Robinson.

Even from here Hiccup could see that Dagur swallowed hard.

Hiccup lifted his hands and showed thumbs-up, at this point totally having no idea what he was supposed to do anymore. He was sure that Dagur couldn't see the crooked smile he tried to plaster on his face, but it didn't matter right now.

Because Dagur started speaking, while staring at them.

And well, maybe he just needed a point, a stick which he could grab, some kind of rope that would help him get to the surface or to the top.

Because sometimes this was all what some people needed.

Dagur spoke and maybe it was not the best presentation in the whole world. It didn't grab some hearts and squeeze them painfully, making them want to jump out of the chests. It didn't make people tear or laugh. It didn't make people want to be better, for themselves, for others, for the world.

However it was still a good presentation spoken in almost firm voice, without stuttering too much. And at the end, when the applause rose from the crowd and Hiccup had seen a few approving nods, he could actually feel his own heart clenching inside his ribcage.

The first place went to a girl named Katilyn Holt* – a short, blonde girl who almost stormed to the podium, not even waiting a second after her name was called. Like she was sure or almost expected to hear it at this very moment.

When she received the big, golden trophy – a sign of the first place – there was a loud ruckus in the crowd as a group of people shouted, screamed and yelled happily at her.

The girl covered her face, like she was ashamed of them (she probably had to know them), but she was smiling under her nose, so it probably wasn't that bad.

The jury described her robot and then gave her the mic to give her own few words. She spoke without a stutter, like she had this perfected to the very end. She was sure of every word she used, of every sentence, of every sound and tone her mouth made. Her eyes sparkled with mirth, curiosity and intelligence behind her round glasses.

When she finished speaking the group one more time cheered loudly in accompaniment of other people clapping.

After that came time for photos with the winners. People from newspapers, other schools, websites came to the stage and started to take photos of the jury and the winners. The people which had been given other awards were asked to approach the scene so they could also be in the photos.

Hiccup with Professor Robinson stood aside, looking at the scene and a little bit confused Dagur as he was moved around, asked to smile or puff out his chest.

But to be honest the best moment was when the blonde girl approached him with her phone and started speaking. Dagur simply stared at her, dumbfounded, nodded and then he had to crouch so the girl could take a photo with him, so both of their faces would be in the frame.

Seriously, this one, this one was precious.

The girl thanked him, smiling happily and then moved to the third place winner.

People started to seep away from the main lecture hall to their tables to probably start packing their projects, but winners still stood on the scene and talked with each other.

Hiccup glanced at Professor Robinson when he more felt than saw him looking at him.

"Let's go to him." He said.

Hiccup wasn't sure what else to do, so he simply followed his teacher's steps to the stage.

They climbed a few stairs to get to the higher level. Dagur was standing with two people from the jury and listened to them as they spoke to him, nodding occasionally, but awkwardly, while holding the silver trophy close to his side.

Hiccup thought that maybe they should wait for the conversation to end, but their teacher had a different opinion and immediately moved to his student with a grin so big and bright that it could even blind the sun.

"Dagur, I'm so happy you won! Congratulations! I knew you could do it!" He shouted, still while being several steps away from the teen.

They all lifted their heads, but instead of feeling angry or irritated, both jury smiled broadly at Professor Robinson approaching them.

"Oh, uhm, thank you, sir." Dagur mumbled, when the male reached him, grabbed his free hand with both palms and started to shake it violently.

Professor Robinson was still talking, praising Dagur's work, while still holding onto his hand when the two jury moved an inch closer and tore his focus away from the boy.

"You must be Mister Dagur's teacher?"

This finally caught the teacher's attention as he stood to full height and turned to them with yet another blinding grin.

"Yes, yes, it's me. Oh, where are my manners!? My name is Cornelius Lewis Robinson!" The man said and approached the two jury, showing them his hand which they took and shook while also giving their names.

The jury started to ask Professor Robinson some questions, so Hiccup used this time to step closer to Dagur and look up at him.

"Congratulations on winning." He simply said.

Dagur shifted and turned his head from staring at a faraway point in the distance to looking at Hiccup who stood in front of him.

"Uhm thanks." Dagur said, glancing right into his eyes, only to turn his head away in the end.

There was a brief silence, a short pause where Hiccup fiddled with his fingers, not sure what he should say and Dagur painted some random circles on the trophy with his nail. Right, the trophy! It was a good start!

"Can I see it?" Hiccup asked, pointing at the silver statuette in Dagur's hands.

The teen looked down and then moved the silver trophy into Hiccup's hands and well… it weighted more than Hiccup thought it would. So they hadn't fully used some cheap replacement materials. That was good.

It was a statuette of a robot, quite childish one, which was showing a peace sign. Under it was a plaque, also made from silver (or something vaguely familiar) which announced the second winner of the contest.

All in the end it looked nice.

"Do you already have a place in mind where you'll put it?" Hiccup asked, giving Dagur back his trophy.

"No, not really." Dagur mumbled, but suddenly he looked like he was deep in thoughts.

Maybe he was already rearranging in his head his room or garage or living room or some other place where he wanted to put it.

"Did you call Heather to tell her the good news?" Hiccup continued when Dagur's eyebrows moved closer to each other.

At that the teen blinked, snapped his head up and opened his mouth, but was interrupted by another voice coming from not so far away.

"You are Dagur, right?"

They both snapped their heads to the side to spot a man with gray hair standing next to them and looking expectantly at the taller teen.

It took Hiccup way too long to compile the image in front of him with the memories inside his head, but then it all clicked and Hiccup's mouth hung open. But to be fair Dagur didn't look better as he stared at the man with wide eyes.

A full five seconds passed before Dagur finally managed to utter a few words.

"Oh, yeah, uhm I'm Dagur. Dagur Deranged."

The man smiled at him and showed him his hand.

Dagur looked like he couldn't really understand the concept of handshakes. But then like some kind of cables connected inside his head, he surged forward and grabbed the palm in his own and shook it.

If the male noticed the awkwardness and nervousness, then he didn't mention it, only smiled wider.

"It's nice to meet you. You probably already know it, but I'm Robert Callaghan and I'm a Professor at San Francisco Institute of Technology*."

"Uh yeah, I know you, sir, I read a few of your articles." Dagur managed to say without stuttering too much as their hands disconnected.

Robert lifted his eyebrow and a surprised glint appeared in his eyes.

"Oh really?"

"Yes, I really found the new AI tests you experimented on really interesting, especially the bot one."

Dagur definitely had to say something smart or something on point, because the kind smile which had been on the Professor's mouth stretched wider.

"I'm glad to hear that. The results aren't that great, but every day we are making some progress."

"That is true." Dagur admitted and shifted his weight to the other leg, correcting a hold on his trophy which now haphazardly laid on his left arm.

"But I didn't came here to talk about my articles. I came here to congratulate you on the second place. I saw your project, it was very impressive, plus I think it would help a lot of people if it was produced worldwide."

For a moment Dagur was at a loss of words as he only gaped at the man. The words spoken to him in true, honest tone, with a flicker of admiration in the eyes, were slowly processed in Dagur's head.

"Thank you, sir, it really means a lot to hear it from you."

"I'm really glad to find new young talents everywhere I go."

This definitely blew a fuse in Dagur's head, because after that he just stared at the Professor.

Hiccup would feel bad for him, if he simply didn't feel happy about the whole conversation.

"Also one of my students found your work incredibly astonishing and I think he would want to ask you a few questions about it."

"Oh uhm yeah, I mean, sure, I don't mind."

Professor Callaghan smiled and then looked around.

"Well, he was here a few seconds ago." The man's eyes swiped from left to right, then one more time to the left. It seemed like he noticed something, because he lifted his hand. "Hey Hiro, did you see your brother?"

Hiccup looked around, searching in the small crowd for a teacher or some kind of adult that would soon emerge. But instead after a moment he spotted a mop of black hair moving between people, only to finally see a kid stopping next to them.

What?

"I saw him talking with some jury a second ago." The kid said, looking at the Professor from behind his dense, black fringe.

"Can you get him here?"

"Sure can." The kid said, even though it sounded like it could be one of the most boring things he had done in his entire life.

Nevertheless he moved through the crowd in some direction with hands still in his pockets and back hunched, making him even smaller than he actually was.

Three pairs of eyes followed him, until he fully disappeared.

"Oh forgive my manners, I didn't introduce myself to you. Professor Robert Callaghan."

Hiccup turned around and he kinda expected the man to catch a random winner that was standing nearby or something like that, but no. The man was staring at him with kinda embarrassed, sheepish smile and a hand almost touching Hiccup's chest.

"Ah, no problem. I'm Hamish Haddock." He slowly lifted his hand and shook Callaghan's one. Better not to say his full name now – it sounded ridiculous even for him.

(He even used shorted version to sign his tests.)

Robert had a strong grip so Hiccup tried to reciprocate it as hard as he could, still maintaining eye contact and thinking why the hell this man was speaking to him.

"It's nice to meet you. Are you friends with Dagur? I saw you two talking before."

Hiccup's hand fell limp near his side and he was already opening his mouth to say something. Probably to agree, because explaining the whole situation would be pointless and too tiring, when he was stopped by Dagur himself.

"We are colleagues from the same school."

Which was kinda true.

Professor Callaghan sent him another soft smile and then nodded, turning to Dagur.

"Oh I see."

But gladly the sudden emptiness which definitely would appear between them was interrupted by two silhouettes moving forward, one walking with pride in their posture and the other smaller one was slumped and looked like it was the most boring day of their life.

"Did you search for me, Professor?"

Okay, there had to be something wrong with Hiccup because the moment he saw the face, the dark eyes and ebony hair he felt some kind of switch inside his head being flipped.

"I did. Tadashi, I want you to meet Dagur."

The male blinked and then his eyes widened. Some kind of recognition sparkled in his them and a sudden blazing hot smile appeared on his mouth as he literally twirled on his heel, turned to Dagur and caught his hand in his own two and started to shake it violently.

"Oh my god, I'm so honored and happy to finally meet you. I saw your robot and thought that it was an amazing idea and why didn't I come up with it. Seriously! Oh, I'm sorry, I'm Tadashi Hamada!"

So many words in such short amount of time. Hiccups brain had problems processing all of them, so he only picked a few and combined them to form a coherent meaning.

Dagur probably had problems too, because he shook his head and only after a second answered.

"Dagur… Dagur Deranged."

"Oh, I'm so happy to finally be able to talk with you. I have so many question about your project and about other possibilities."

Seriously, how this dude could talk so fast and yet didn't need a break to take a breath? That was impossible, he had to be some kind of machine himself!

Professor Callaghan observed the interaction with a soft smile. The kid stood closer to Hiccup, with hands in his pockets, and looked disinterested in overall. After a second he took out a Nintendo DS from his pocket and flipped it open.

Hiccup wasn't sure what to do and looking above the kid's shoulder to observe what he was playing seemed not nice, so he simply stared at the duo in front of him and tried to decode the words being spoken by the student.

Unfortunately quickly he found out that was a futile job, so he simply gave up as his sentences were filled with too many unknown words to him. Yeah, robots weren't definitely his thing.

So instead Hiccup tried to focus on this weird, familiar feeling inside his gut whenever he stared at the male. What was his name again? He introduced himself a few seconds ago? Ta… Tadashi? Yeah, seemed about right.

Because Hiccup felt like he had seen him somewhere before. But it was impossible. He was a student in San Francisco. Which was… well really far away. He could understand him getting here for the contest, but he couldn't imagine him getting near Burgess for any other reason actually.

Burgess was a small city with only one or two community colleges. There wasn't anything important or breathtaking in it to see. People didn't spend their vacations or even winter holidays there.

But there was no way Hiccup had seen him somewhere else, as he almost never had left Burgess.

The sensation inside his gut and skull was thumping softly, was showing him blurred images swimming through his head. Really blurred, pixelated even, to this point Hiccup couldn't really see what was on them.

Maybe it was a part of his imagination, of his tired from stress mind? It was a possibility, but he couldn't brush away the feeling that he had seen the student somewhere.

(Maybe in the end he had seen him on the internet or some kind of social media site or something like that. He wouldn't be surprised actually if that was true.)

The kid next to him hunched his shoulders and moved the console closer to his mouth. Professor Callaghan excused himself as someone approached him and they moved literally only a meter and a half away. Dagur was still being kept in captivity by the student who at this point took out a small notebook and started writing down some answers Dagur had been giving him.

He wondered what Jack was doing right now. They probably were finishing their classes today. Did Jack have training today? No, he didn't think so. So he could be even already on his way home, unless he had some kind of meeting with friends. That was a possibility. Hiccup had a feeling that he had heard something about Jack's plans.

He probably should call Astrid later so she could make photos of the notes from classes they had today. Hopefully they hadn't given them a lot of homework, but probably knowing Hiccup's luck a few exercises had already been assigned to be done at home, two projects about which he would know nothing and five test that had to be written.

"Oh sorry, but do you mind giving me your phone number or some kind of e-mail? I still have a lot of questions, but we should be going in like ten minutes."

Hiccup glanced up at the two boys standing in front of each other. Dagur still looked as lost as he had looked a few minutes ago, but he still nodded and grabbed the notebook Tadashi gave him to write something down.

The male took it back, glanced at whatever was written there, nodded and looked at Dagur one more time.

"I'll write to you soon. Maybe even today!"

Dagur blinked and then smiled slowly, hesitantly, as he made a small step back.

"Sure, I will be waiting… for it."

Tadashi – Hiccup had a feeling he remembered his name correctly – beamed at Dagur and turned probably to his brother –

(Hiccup could see the resemblance in the ebony streaks standing in weird directions, in the similar shimmer in their eyes or the same nose they both had.)

– When he simply froze as he glanced at Hiccup.

Okay that was totally normal. People very often glanced at Hiccup and simply stopped moving, like they were struck by a lightning and all their processors were fried. Yeah, it was totally normal, it happened to Hiccup everyday.

Of course it fricking didn't happen to him every day, but for a moment Hiccup wanted to believe that it was normal, yet he couldn't deceive himself for long.

Dark eyes found his own and Hiccup could only stare back for a second or so, before he became too nervous under this gaze and he had to look down at his feet. They were pretty interesting, his old trainers with dirty sole. Wow he had been using them for some time now. At least half a year. He probably should buy a new pair. Totally. Maybe he could ask Jack to accompany him to some shop, so he could pick a new pair.

How long was this guy going to stare at him? Did they really know each other? If they did then why he wasn't telling Hiccup anything – not even hi or something like that. He was only staring and staring and staring and gosh it was so confusing and stressful.

"Tadashi, we've got to go." The kid next to him lifted his head and glanced up at his brother.

There was a movement in front of him.

"Oh, yeah, yeah, you're right. Let's go Hiro."

The kid next to him shuffled and pocketed his Nintendo, but not before looking at Hiccup one more time. Or at least it felt like someone glanced at him, because he had a feeling he saw a glimpse of a face in the corner of his eyes.

"It was a pleasure to meet you! Hope to hear from you soon."

"Uhm yeah, sure."

Then footsteps followed and only after half a minute Hiccup found the strength to lift up his head and look at the place where the student just stood a few minutes ago. He glanced around to check that they really were gone and found them moving to the exit with Professor Callaghan next to them.

Hiccup exhaled slowly through his nose and touched his chest.

"Do you know… each other?"

Hiccup snapped his head away to look at Dagur who was looking back at him with one lifted eyebrow.

"Erm, no I mean, I'm not sure. I feel like I've seen him somewhere, but I don't remember where or when."

Dagur hummed under his nose, looked past him at the door and then returned his gaze back at Hiccup, only to cast it down at the trophy in his hands.

Gladly the silence was cut short, because Professor Robinson walked to them, smiling broadly from ear to ear.

"Okay, are you ready guys to come back?"

Hiccup definitely was ready for that.

The ride back was spent in definitely calmer atmosphere. Were, okay, maybe not calm as in quiet, but calm as in not stressed way.

Professor Robinson had met some old friend from High School and when they had been going to the car the man had caught up with them and had asked if they hadn't minded helping him get to Burgess from where he could take a train back to his home.

Neither Hiccup nor Dagur had anything against it, so the man sat in front with Professor Robinson. So yeah, with the two of them in the front the ride couldn't be called quiet in any meaning of this word as every free second was filled with voices, words, sentences and shouts.

It seemed like the two adults paid them absolutely no mind.

Hiccup wasn't sure whether he should be happy about it or terrified.

Both he and Dagur sat in the back, Hiccup on the right and Dagur on the left. Already half of the journey was spent in silence and the soft tapping of their fingers on their phones as they exchanged messages with various people or tried to catch up with the whole world.

Hiccup was fine like that, sitting in silence. Jack hadn't answered him, but he had told Hiccup that he would be pretty offline today, so Hiccup didn't mind that. Now he occupied himself with talking with Astrid and catching up on all the things he had missed today in school and well… the list was pretty long.

He expected for them to remain in the comfortable silence till the end of the trip, but Dagur surprisingly burst the bubble with a few words.

"Thank you."

For a moment Hiccup thought that he simply misheard those words or that they were a part of his imagination. So he simply paid them no mind. But when he felt his skin crawl with uncomfortable zaps of electricity, he lifted his head and looked at Dagur.

The teen was staring at his phone but a few times he stole glances in Hiccup's direction.

"For what?" Hiccup inquired, tilting his head a little.

"For…" Dagur started, only to stop almost immediately. The head which had darted up, moved down as he looked once again at his phone. "For everything I guess. For today."

"But I didn't do anything." Hiccup mumbled, trying to grasp what the other meant.

Dagur huffed under his nose and slumped down on his seat. The seatbelt moved higher on his body and almost cut into his cheek. The phone still laid in his hand and he stared at it, but Hiccup had a feeling his mind was elsewhere.

But Hiccup told the truth, he hadn't done anything. He only had ordered Dagur to focus more on his presentation, had patted him awkwardly on the back and then almost had made him trip while he had pushed him to the stage. Those weren't good things. They just were… things, neutral probably, in lack of a better description.

"You did for me." Dagur finally murmured, this time not trying to find Hiccup's eyes and focusing solely on the black screen of his phone.

Oh.

Hiccup wasn't sure how to answer that. On one hand he had wanted to help Dagur, but when he had thought about it later he had come to a conclusion that he had probably made an even bigger mess out of the whole situation.

Yet Dagur was here, showing his gratitude in weirdly soft voice and hesitant glance.

Wait, he probably should answer that somehow, more normally.

"No problem."

Yeah, that sounded right.

Dagur glanced at him and then looked down at the trophy standing next to his leg.

Hiccup did the same.

"Your parents and Heather will be proud of you." He said, very randomly and without second thoughts.

And maybe it was a wrong thing to say, because Dagur's shoulders tensed for a moment, for a short spasm of reality. There was a sudden blurriness to his eyes, like they stopped focusing on seeing and just started to live in some other world – maybe in different dimension, one simply filled with memories flying by.

"I doubt it." He finally murmured.

Uh oh, dangerous zone, dangerous zone, dangerous zone!

Hiccup could see, feel and hear the blaring red lights and alarms inside his head. He knew that there were some grounds in front of him on which he shouldn't step. He should simply back away, rise his hands and just stay away from all of it. Just to be safe.

"Why?"

God dammit why his mouth couldn't stop moving? This had to be Jack doing! It had to be his fault. He somehow magically updated some virus into Hiccup's head that made him conscious of people's moods' drops. It had to be this virus' fault – making him suddenly worry and want to repair it somehow.

Even though those needs were totally illogical and not to mention ironical.

But the question was out of his mouth before he could stop his body from doing it and yeah, this was definitely a mine field under his feet right now.

Shit.

However maybe Dagur wouldn't answer. Maybe he would only huff something under his nose or tell Hiccup that he should mind his own business and they could return to the awkward silence that was their never-ending companion and old friend. Yes, it could happen.

(But did Hiccup want it to happen?)

"Well… maybe I said it wrong. Heather will definitely be proud of me. My mom maybe too. This will be at least one good thing I brought her..."

Oh, it didn't sound too nice.

"I'm sure this will make her smile. I mean what kind of parents don't like to see their child succeeding in something they like?"

Even Stoick had smiled proudly when Hiccup had won the Physics Olympiad back a few months ago, even though the man barely could understand it. It had been one of the best days of his life. Stoick had ordered pizza and Chinese food and had invited over Hiccup's friends so they could have their own small impromptu party.

(But the best moment had been later that day when he and Stoick had sat in front of the TV during the night and had eaten the leftovers.)

"I definitely could name at least one person." Dagur finally mumbled.

Hiccup looked at the field filled with small, empty patches of naked ground dotting the place and he sighed internally. He still could somehow back down miraculously, jump above a fence surrounding this place and never return.

Or he could step forward and probably detonate something.

Hiccup glanced forward at the two men who were in the middle of a heated conversation and didn't seem to pay them any mind.

Okay, this was probably the dumbest thing he did in at least a year, but well… Someone had to do it.

"And that someone is?"

Dagur glanced at him for a second, opened his mouth, closed it, furrowed his eyebrows, gripped his phone tighter, then shifted in place –

And Hiccup was all about stepping away, because his feet dangerously floated above the bomb, too close, too close for comfort, when Dagur finally spoke.

"My father."

It was a normal word, but there was some kind of venom, some kind of hostility, some kind of nostalgia hanging at the last letter, dripping down and splattering on the ground with low hissing sound.

"He is not… a nice man?"

Even Hiccup had to admit it sounded simply terrible, the way he said that, unsurely. But Dagur still snorted under his nose and closed his eyes.

"Yeah… you could say that if you don't want to use heavier and dirtier words."

Hiccup exhaled slowly. He tried to get more comfortable on his seat, but suddenly everything irritated him – starting from the material beneath his fingers and finishing on the seatbelt which now was too tight for no reason.

"Well if he doesn't want to be happy about his son succeeding in something then it's his loss." Then Hiccup's hand moved to scratch the back of his head. "I mean it's probably hard, because he is your father and all that, but fuck him."

Hiccup didn't actually mean for the curse to leave his lips, but it simply happened. For now he somehow managed to maneuver around the mines, not exploding even once, but now he simply hung above one, shivering and waving his hands around while trying to get his footing back.

It was hard.

But then Dagur chuckled. Not the short snort, not the mean laugh he sometimes did, but an honest, kinda giddy chuckle left his lips as his shoulders moved up and down.

Hiccup snapped his head in his direction.

The laugh was short, kinda out of this place, but Dagur still glanced at him and with sorta funny look on his face – Hiccup scratched the comparison in his head and corrected it – with a small smile on his face simply said:

"Yeah, fuck him."

Hiccup somehow didn't know what to do other than snort, which made Dagur one more time laugh under his nose.

Weirdly, the atmosphere after that wasn't so terrible, even though they didn't exchange any more words.

"Aunt Tiana?"

"Call me that one more time and I swear –"

Jack chuckled under his nose, hearing the familiar voice near his ear.

"Sorry, sorry, force of habit."

"I hope so!" The woman on the other side huffed loudly. "Anyway how are you, Jack?"

Jack bent his one leg and put it down. The other one he hugged closer to his chest with one hand and then started to play with a long thread that was sticking out of the jeans.

"Good, good. School is boring and tiring as always, but nothing new exactly happened. How about you? How is business going? Many customers?"

"It's going good. Naveen is in the restaurant currently and –"

"Oh is it a bad moment to call? I can –"

"No, no, it's fine. He can take care of the restaurant for a while and I need my break." Tiana quickly cut in, not letting Jack finish his sentence. Something he had done a few seconds ago too.

Jack curled the thread around his finger.

"So anyway, I doubt you called just to catch up on things."

"What if I did?" Jack quickly answered, feeling the smirk forming on his mouth.

He could almost see it in his mind – Tiana looking up at the ceiling or the sky and rolling her eyes, only to replace the thin line on her mouth with a small, amused smirk.

"You rarely do and even though it would be nice if you called to catch up, I don't think it is the case here."

"Ouch, that one hurt." Jack said and closed his eye, feeling the pain shimmering inside his chest. Yeah, it was an unpleasant feeling, but the woman hit the spot.

Tiana was always straightforward, no matter how harsh the truth was. She could make you whimper with just a few words, without even blinking an eye. Tara – her sister – wasn't like that. She preferred to speak the truth, but her truth was sometimes coated in sweet honey to make it more bearable, to make it easier to swallow it down and not burst in tears.

Tiana was ruthless.

There was a movement on the other side and it seemed like the woman sat down somewhere.

"So what have been bothering you, Jack?" Tiana asked.

Jack took a deep breath.

"I want to ask you what do you think about an idea of mine."

"Okay, shoot."

"I've been thinking about applying to cooking school after I graduate."

Jack said it all out loud, without making any stops, because he wasn't sure he could gather his thoughts if he made a pause for a moment. Gladly it wasn't a long sentence, so saying it while exhaling wasn't that big of a problem.

But now, after the words were out of his mouth Jack started to wonder if maybe he hadn't said them too fast. What if he had to repeat himself? Oh gosh.

"Oh, that is not… what I expected." Tiana on the other side murmured, but without any emotion in her voice. After a second she cleared her throat, which confirmed that indeed she was taken aback by Jack's information.

"So yeah, I've been curious what you are thinking about this idea."

There was a brief moment of silence, which was followed by a hum.

Jack could totally imagine Tiana patting her chin as she contemplated what to say next. Usually she had the answer to everything in mere seconds, but now she was taking her time. Why?

And with every passing second Jack felt more and more stressed.

"Do you have any particular school in mind?" Tiana finally asked with professional and calm tone.

"Uhm, I found one two cities away, the one in Pittsburgh."

"Oh, I heard about it." Tiana cut in for a moment, but it seemed like it was an information meant more to herself than to Jack.

"Yeah. I googled it and read about it a little and it seemed like a good school." Jack left the thread alone, then sprawled his hand on the quilt under his body and played with the ocean of wrinkles which appeared on it after he had sat down. "I even talked with North about it, but he advised me to call you, so yeah, I'm doing exactly that."

"I had a few cooks from there in my restaurant." Tiana said. "Wait, I think that Colette* also finished that school. I'm not sure though, but I will ask her about it."

"Thank you." Jack said, but then stopped and nervously licked his upper lip. "But what do you think about this idea?"

Another short break, filled with ideas and thoughts swimming through his head.

"I mean, if you like to cook and want to improve yourself then I don't think it's a bad idea." Tiana finally said. "You have talent for it, so if you want to pursue it then it's a good way to do so."

Talent. Jack had talent in cooking.

A few people already had told him so, mentioned it hither and tither and of course he always had felt happy after hearing it. But hearing it coming from Tiana's mouth was something totally different. It didn't mean that during the other times it hadn't been as real as now, but… now it was incredibly fulfilling. Jack couldn't find other proper way to describe it.

"Thanks."

"I can always write you a letter of recommendation. That probably should help you get in. Do they look at those kind of things?"

"Oh uh, I'm not sure, I didn't check it that much." Jack admitted sheepishly, feeling the blush raising to his cheeks.

"Well, let me know if you check it. In the meantime I will ask around about this school and give you a call." Tiana laughed softly on the other side.

"Thank you." Jack said.

"No problem. We cooks need to stick together!" Then she took a small breath. "Plus you rarely ask for any help from us, so I'm glad to be able to do it." Another few seconds of silence. "Did you already tell Tara about it?"

Jack's smile dropped down a little at the mention of his mother.

"No, not really. We didn't talk in a long time." He admitted.

Actually yeah, they hadn't talked in a pretty long time. Last time had been probably around Christmas. So many things had happened in between then and now that it was unbelievable.

But they had to keep strong for a few more months as Tara would be coming back home for three or so months during the holidays. So it wasn't such a long time from now on.

It would be amazing to have her back here again, a full family in one place. Jack missed it gravely – those short moments when he could wake up before school, go to the kitchen and everyone would be there. Of course, he was all up for Tara fulfilling her dreams, but sometimes it was really hard.

For Emma it was probably even more so.

Maybe he should ask North if he had heard something from her.

"Me too… From what I heard last time they had a lot of work nowadays."

Jack nodded and then cleared his throat to murmur some kind of agreement to show that he actually listened to the woman.

"Well, I think she will be enamored to know about it, that's all. So when you talk with her next time remember to tell her that." Tiana quickly continued.

"I will." Whenever it will happen.

Jack had a lot to catch up with his mother. And now that Tiana had mentioned her, Jack felt nostalgia surging through his veins, almost empowering his every limb with the sadness.

"Great." Tiana said. "Do you want my opinion on something else?"

"No, not really."

"Okay. I'll give you a call if I find something. Now I need to check if my restaurant is still standing."

Jack chuckled at that.

"Okay, thank you one more time. Bye."

"Good night, Jack."

And after that a long beeping sound filled Jack's ears.

Author's note:

Yeah, I know, nothing much happened, but trust me, I planned it for a pretty long time. Plus you know Dagur's and Hiccup's nice interactions :3. Don't worry, there will be more Jack in next chapter =DDD! And of course tune for the next time: more Aster!

Some science and nerd facts:

*IR spectrum – it is a spectrum that involves the interaction of infrared radiation with matter. It is very… well messy and wrinkly at some points xD.

*Messier 51a galaxy – the Whirlpool Galaxy, its distance is estimated to be between 15 and 35 million light-years.

*Gratuity Tucci – character from Home.

*Katilyn Holt – Character from Voltron: Legendary Defender (also I wasn't sure what her full name was, so I made one up xD).

*Robert Callaghan, Hiro Hamada, Tadashi Hamada – Characters from Big Hero 6.

*Colette – character from Ratatouille.

*San Francisco Institute of Technology – I decided to change San Fransokyo to San Francisco =D.

And answer:

Jacqui – Yep, Hiccup is really dense… but I love that part about him xD. Aww man, sorry D: But I'm happy you like it :3! Hoho, prom definitely will be memorable… but for what reasons, who knows xD AAAAAA thank you so much :3!

And thank you for being here with me! See ya =D!