Okay, you guys, last chapter for tonight! Hope you like it!
Astrid hurried home careful to make sure no one was around which for some reason was not a problem today. All the men were off with Father and taking care of the new shipment, and the women were inside doing the chores.
She made her way home now satisfied she did her best to warn the young man-er Hiccup, and she would be able to go about her day. At least she hoped she would, for some strange reason she had a sneaking suspicion that it wouldn't be the last she saw of him. She didn't know how she felt about that.
She pushed all of that to the side and went inside where Hallberta was finishing dinner up, and she rushed to set the table. They waited together while she waited for Father to come home. He was a little later than usual and Astrid couldn't help but worry. Her thoughts went towards Hiccup and she hoped he'd taken her advice.
Her worries lessened as Father entered and he silently made his way to the dinner table and began to eat. Astrid hurried over and Hallberta left the room.
Astrid had expected them to have a typical silent meal but Father spoke up in his typical calm and collected manner," The men and I are heading out tomorrow in search of more dragons."
Before she could stop herself she blurted out," Why?"
For once he didn't berate her for speaking out of turn and simply stated," We've cleared out these woods, we need to move out if we want to keep going."
She knew she should have just accepted his answer but she couldn't help but ask," How long will you be gone?"
"A few weeks at the very least," he said calmly," Two months at the latest."
She nodded and, while she had so many other things she wanted to say and ask, she decided not to push her luck. Having said what he wanted to he rose and left the dining room and she immediately went to go clean up.
She washed everything quickly enough and the servants were nice enough to sweep for her and she made her way upstairs where Hallberta was already waiting for her with a sympathetic smile," I'm sorry, lass."
She shook her head with a forced smile," I'm fine, Hallberta, he'll be back soon enough."
Hallberta gave her a knowing look and simply helped prepare her bath and left.
Once alone Astrid sighed tiredly and prayed to the Gods above that Father would make it home safely. She knew he was Drago Bludvist, and that if anyone would be fine it would be him, but that didn't mean that she didn't still worry. These were dragons they were talking about and they would be sailing and traveling into uncharted territories in search of the vicious beasts.
Her thoughts, of course, went back to Hiccup and...Toothless... They hadn't seemed as vicious or barbaric or cruel as Father had verbally and physically instilled in her from childhood. They'd been friendly and kind, and the dragon hadn't seemed at all threatening. She doubted he was, as his namesake lead to believe, 'toothless'. But the way he treated Hiccup was playful yet fiercely loyal, and from what she'd seen he'd acted almost like an overgrown house pet.
Her mind also went back to the crazed bloodthirsty dragons she'd been exposed to in her childhood, and they only made her mind reel even more. She didn't know what to think anymore, and she wondered vaguely if this was why Father and all the other men had tried to instill in her to avoid thinking or looking too deeply into things. This was why she was told everything she did was for the best.
It didn't matter anyhow, they were both gone, and that was that. Things would go back to how they were and that would be the end of these conflicting thoughts.
...
Hiccup flew for the rest of the day with Toothless and thought about what he would be doing next. The girl-Astrid- had obviously gathered a lot of courage to warn him to stay away. He found that to be pretty courageous and, if he were being honest, pretty endearing, as well.
She was still scared, but he didn't know if it was him or Toothless or someone else... She was scared but she still managed to bring herself to tell him to leave and he'd even gotten her name. Now that was what he called progress!
He was still worried, and didn't know if he should risk either Toothless and himself or Astrid. She hadn't convinced him that she would be fine, and while he didn't want to do anything drastic just yet, he couldn't sit back and do nothing. He was Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the III and he didn't know the meaning of doing nothing in these situations.
He would ask his parents about what to do, even if he had a pretty good idea of what he was going to do anyways. Regardless of what she said, she didn't seem okay, and anyone that terrified had to have something going on. And until he found out what it was he would do his best to help from afar. He would have to get his parents advice before, his mom's particularly.
Toothless made a short sound and he watched as Berk drew nearer and nearer until he was overhead the forge. He headed inside and Gobber waved his prosthetic in greeting," Nice of ya ta join the party, lad..."
Hiccup gave him a pointed look, but it didn't last as Gobber immediately motioned to a pile of weapons and he didn't need to be told twice and immediately began sharpening them.
"So where have you been?" Gobber asked with his usual teasing lilt to his voice.
Hiccup groaned," What did Dad tell you?"
"Oh," Gobber said chuckling," Nothin' much...just that you've been meeting up with a special lady friend..."
"Not this again..."
"I'm just saying," he said casually," Ya wont be young and carefree forever... Pretty soon you'll end up looking like-"
"Like you," he deadpanned hoping he would stop, but he didn't and merely nodded enthusiastically," Exactly."
He rolled his eyes," Gee, thanks, Gobber, for the unending confidence in me. It's nice to know what you expect from me."
Gobber shrugged innocently," Well, someone had to say it around here."
"And thank you," he said," But I think I'm good, for now."
"So who is this lass?" he said as though he hadn't said anything," Is she a pretty little thing?"
Hiccup sighed tiredly," You're getting to be worse than Mom!"
"Well...?" he pressed teasingly.
He gave up and merely said," Her name's Astrid, she had blonde hair, blue eyes, she's beautiful...and oh! Did I mention she wants nothing to do with me?"
"Nothing?" he asked asked incredulously," I seriously doubt that..."
"No she went right out and told me," he insisted," Not in those exact words but she did say I shouldn't go back."
"Why not?" Gobber pressed.
"Something about it not being safe for me and Toothless, and something about her father," he said trying to remember her exact words.
Gobber chuckled good naturedly," Then that means you still have a chance!"
"Did you not hear what I just said?" he demanded.
"But if she bothered to warn ya'," he said," then that means she cared enough to do so, and she might be sweet on you yet..."
Hiccup sighed annoyed," Even if that were the case, which it's not-"he said at the sight of the blacksmith's face," I'm going to listen-"
"For now," Gobber said knowingly.
Hiccup tried to feign innocence and failed miserably," What? I have no idea what you're talking about-"
"Oh yes ya do," he said," You wouldn't be Hiccup if you didn't have some crazy scheme in the works as we speak."
Hiccup couldn't help the grin that made it's way onto his face, and Gobber continued," Just remember to be careful...you barely know the girl and you have no idea what's going on. "
"We're Vikings," Hiccup protested in his best Stoick impersonation," It's an occupational hazard."
Gobber chuckled," Yes, but we're not crazy."
"Oh right," Hiccup said casually," That's just me."
Gobber shook his head amused, and then shooed him outside," Now, off with you, lad! Val will have my head if you're late for dinner."
Hiccup laughed," Yeah, and we wouldn't want that now..."
Gobber only chuckled and the sarcastic yet caring blacksmith's laughter were the last thing Hiccup heard as he shut the door to the forge and headed home.
...
Hiccup walked inside the big house with Toothless right beside him. His parents were already seated and he kissed his mom on the cheek right before taking his seat.
"Did you see her?" Stoick asked teasing.
He gave him an accusing look," I don't know what you're talking about..."
Valka laughed warmly," Oh, please, son! "
He laughed with her and nodded reluctantly," I saw her..."
"And?" Stoick pressed.
"And..." he said trailing off a bit," She was still terrified, and basically told me to leave and never come back..."
"What did you do?" Valka asked in concern.
"I didn't do anything," he protested," I just showed up, and she went up to us, still terrified I might add, and told us that we need to leave for our own good."
"Did she say why?" Stoick asked with a hint of worry in his voice.
Hiccup shook his head," No, but I get the feeling that they aren't very fond of dragons. She was terrified of Toothless, and even said that he was part of the reason."
"That doesn't seem right..." Valka muttered," Did you find anything else?"
"No, " he said," but I did find out her name was Astrid."
"Astrid?" Stoick asked confused," The name seems familiar... but why?"
Valka nodded but waved it off," What are you going to do now? The lass obviously can't do anything, and she already told you as much. What now?"
"I wait," he said," There's nothing I can do, but wait for her, and do my best from here."
Stoick gave him a look," You're not going to do anything? At all?"
"Well..." he said trailing off.
Valka smiled knowingly," What are you going to do?"
"Well," he said smiling gratefully," I can't shake the feeling that something is off about this, and the only way I could get some peace of mind would be to ensure she was okay at all times."
"And how do you propose that would work out?" Valka asked interested.
"I was wondering if we could send a Terror to watch out for her?" he said," They would be small and insignificant enough to not raise suspicion, and if something were to happen we would be the first to know."
Stoick and Valka considered this before he nodded," That's not a bad idea... You can send it tomorrow, right, dear?"
Valka nodded," It would give me some peace of mind, as well. We don't know what the poor lass is going through."
Hiccup beamed and said," Thanks, you guys!"
They nodded and Stoick said," Don't thank us, son, this is nothing."
He smiled nonetheless and was already thinking about what he would be doing tomorrow.
...
Astrid woke early the next morning and took extra care to make sure she looked perfect down the the last curl on her head. Hallberta accompanied her to see her father off.
He acknowledged her presence there with a simple nod in greeting and gave her a warning glance as a farewell and he was off.
Astrid didn't know how to feel when he left. She knew that she should be sad and devastated he was leaving like a good daughter should, but the relief she always felt was imminent. It was as though a huge load were taken off of her shoulder until the guilt settled in.
Hallberta escorted her back home where she was about to go help with the chores as usual when Hallberta and the small staff stopped her and she looked at them questioningly," What?"
"You don't have to trouble yourself, lass," Hallberta assured her," With you father gone, there's no reason for you to do anything. There's little to no cooking to be done except for us, and the cleaning is easy."
Astrid was still confused," So, what do I do, then?"
Hallberta smiled," Go out, and enjoy this time off. You deserve it!"
Astrid hesitated until Hallberta physically ushered her outside with a basket of food and left no room for argument much to the agreement of the rest of the staff.
Astrid pushed her bangs out of her eyes and smiled wryly. This was why she loved Hallberta and the rest of the staff. They truly cared about her, and they did their best to show it.
She made her way towards the woods, and didn't realize she was heading towards the cliff until she found herself taking in the view.
She considered leaving and finding another spot, but decided against it. Besides, she'd already made it quite clear that Hiccup shouldn't come back.
With that peace of mind she settled down on the ground and took out the food and ate her lunch. Hallberta had packed some fruit, leftover chicken from the other night, some fish, and some mead.
She ate the chicken first and took her time. She reached for the fish next and, again, took her time. She must have started daydreaming or something because the more time passed the less fish there seemed to be even though she didn't remember eating any of it.
She found it odd, and frowned. She shrugged it off and was about to reach for more when she heard a small growl coming from the basket and gasped in alarm as a small sneaky Terrible Terror was rummaging through it. She back away in fear and took the basket away and tried to run but to no avail.
The Terror just followed her and she ran faster and faster until she eventually tired out. She looked around and smiled when she saw nothing. She was about to bask in her victory when she felt something on her head and touched it.
The Terror jumped off and she looked at the thing almost accusingly but it just stared back at her pleadingly. Eventually she decided that she only had one chance. She rummaged through the basket and took out a fish. She threw it at the small dragon and said in as calm a voice as she could manage," There! You got your food now go away!"
It stared at the fish and immediately gobbled it down, and made a contented sound. She prayed to the Gods above that it would leave immediately but instead, much to her dismay, it did the opposite. Like a small dog it immediately placed itself at her feet and stared up at her obediently.
She frowned in shock and shook her head," Sweet baby Thor in a thunderstorm, this is not happening..."
It only purred, content to be near her, and she tried to walk away," Go away!"
It didn't seem to understand and only trailed behind her faithfully. She glared at it and instead gave up and decided to wait it out. She couldn't go home with a dragon trailing after her, but she couldn't exactly fight it herself and running away from it was pointless.
It seemed to sense her defeat because it sneakily made it's way to perch on her head and she shooed it away and sat down once more. She pried it off of her and set it down as far away as possible from her," Stay."
Again, it didn't seem to understand, and instead curled itself up next to her and demanded more fish. She sighed in annoyance and gave him the rest of the fish in the hopes that it would take the hint. It didn't of course, and instead fell asleep.
Astrid took this as her chance to escape and she ran for it and stealthily as possible. She'd made it pretty far until a family sound came from on top of her head and she gave an annoyed huff and pried him off once more," Go away! You can't be here!"
It was then when she noticed he had a small piece of paper attached to him and she grabbed it. She set the insufferable lizard down and opened the note. It read:
Don't be mad, but this little guy should keep an eye out for you. He's very friendly, and is pretty harmless. If anything happens just send a note with him and he'll bring it immediately.
-H
Astrid's annoyance only multiplied at the stubborn boy's meddling and she glared at the Terror and said," You're not going anywhere...are you?"
It didn't answer of course and she was left with the question as to how this would work out. The little dragon didn't seem threatening now that she thought about it and she looked at it thoughtfully. It was a sneaky little thing and she immediately dubbed the dragon Sneaky. It fit, but she realized a moment after that she was getting attached to something that if she was caught with her father wouldn't think twice about disowning her or worse.
"You need to go. You can't be here...if anyone sees you... "she pleaded once more," You can't even understand me, can you?!"
It cocked its head to the side and jumped into the basket. She frowned," Get out of there!"
It only nestled in deeper and she looked at it thoughtfully. The small dragon was now completely hidden from sight and no one would be able to tell the difference. She couldn't help the wry smile that appeared on her face," Maybe you're smarter than I gave you credit for... Sneaky..."
It only warbled in reply and she sighed tiredly and returned to the edge of the cliff. The Terror climbed out of the basket and settled itself on her lap and she was too exhausted now to push it off, and decided that if she was going to die because of a Terrible Terror...so be it.
The terror was actually pretty warm but her simple dress didn't provide much warmth, none of her dresses did. They were, after all, made for housework and chores. They weren't meant for the outside or the cold, and if she was cold it was her own fault. She guessed this arrangement wasn't completely awful if he could fend off the cold.
She was brought out of her silent musings by him- Sneaky...prodding at her hand. She raised an eyebrow at it's antics and then realized it wanted her to pet him, the absurd thing. Normally she would have refused but she was in no spirits to do so and obliged. It purred happily and she laughed a bit.
This had been a trying day, and she was just glad that she wouldn't have to deal with Father when she got home. She would eat peacefully, hopefully with the servants, and then take a relaxing bath and go to sleep. Sneaky would have to hide, but she doubted that would be a problem for him and she wasn't worried. She would have prefered to have the small dragon leave, but didn't know how to do that.
She wouldn't dwell on it for long, though, it would have to leave eventually. She wouldn't be responsible if it did get caught, and that was enough for now.
...
Hiccup left as soon as he was sure that the Terrible Terror wasn't going to leave, and that Astrid was fine. She was fine after the initial fear wore off, and was replaced with annoyance and then reluctant acceptance which was more than he could have ever hoped for.
He reluctantly made his way back to Berk, but not without stealing one last look of Astrid. Toothless pushed him along and he nodded whispering annoyed," Yeah yeah...I know, bud, I'm going!"
He got on Toothless' back and they were off. He didn't know what was going to happen, but he felt better having done something. Now all that was left was to see what was going to happen now. He didn't know, but he knew that he had to figure out what was going on.
He couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, and he wouldn't stop until he found what and why that was...
There you go! Please leave a review please and don't forget to fave and follow!:D Bye!