Happy Halloween and stuff! You guys have the most interesting names.

This chapter takes place after the last chapter of the first fic.

Chapter: Halloween with Hiccup and the gang

Hiccup took a deep breath. Today he would be starting school. It wasn't the most pleasant thing, as he felt like life had been going pretty quick recently. He had been released from the hospital, had gone on his first date with Jack, and was now off to start his senior year at Burgess High.

Hiccup supposed he had been more fortunate than others, as most of Burgess; students had to start in September rather than the end of October. Of course, Hiccup had spent the extra time re-learning how to walk and falling a lot, so it's not like it was a vacation.

It wasn't the classes he was worried about. He had spent plenty of time studying with Jack and Merida. (Rapunzel had transferred schools to be closer to her family, but he had seen her last weekend) He was sure he would do alright. It was the other aspects of school that worried him. Like staying awake for eight hours. And gym. And all that walking.

He was still wobbly getting around his own house. He wasn't sure if he could navigate the four floors of Burgess High with as much finesse. Regardless of his fears he rose for the day. He washed up, dressed, and headed downstairs. His crutches were waiting at the foot of the stairs, just in case. He ignored them. Guy was right. Either he wanted to walk on his own to legs, or he wanted to rely on something to push him along. He couldn't have it both ways.

His mother and father were waiting with breakfast ready. Hiccup greeted them both before sitting down. It looked as though breakfast had been a team effort. Stoick was doing his best to help around the house more. He had not realized how much Hiccup contributed until after the accident. Valka was quick to aide him once she arrived, but the period without either of them in the house had been hard.

As they ate they spoke about current events, and asked Hiccup the dreaded question: "Are you ready to go?"

Hiccup couldn't answer anything but yes. If he stayed home, one of them would try to stay with him. He didn't feel like being watched like a baby. it was time. He wouldn't know unless he tried. He finished his breakfast and watched the news in the living room. The sound of a blaring horn alerted him that his little vacation was over. He said his goodbyes and left the house.

It was chilly out as he wrapped his mother's scarf a little tighter around his neck. Jack was waiting on his doorstep, grinning. "Hi, Hic."

"Hi, Jack."

Hiccup shivered, and Jack frowned. "You cold?"

Hiccup shook his head. "I'm alright."

He walked over to the passenger side. He knew Jack didn't like him sitting there, but he refused to sit anywhere else. A car could hit him form any angle, so to him it didn't matter where he sat.

Merida was sitting in the backseat. "Mornin' Heccup."

Hiccup turned to face her. "Good Morning."

He settled into his seat. The car was warm and comfortable. Shalamar's "A night to remember" was playing over the speaker. Jack had a sudden interest in late 70's, early 80's music, and apparently refused to play anything else. Hiccup didn't think that was weird at all. The previous summer Jack had been going through a early 90's phase, and before that, everything was Daft Punk. He was glad Jack was so eclectic.

Jack began moving the car out of park, and soon they were off to school. Hiccup stared out the window. Burgess was the same way it was every fall. Pumpkins and autumn leaves, sales at St. North's, candied apples at the drug store. It was nice. They spent the ride talking about school, and the upcoming holiday events. Rapunzel had made them promise to have a Harry Potter themed party not to long ago, and Merida and Jim were planning on going to the costume ball. It was going to be a very exciting week for the five of them.

Soon Jack was parking again. Hiccup looked up at the school. Had there always been so many stairs? Was it always that tall? He shook his head. He had to try. It was like that song Guy always sung. "Put one foot in front of the other and soon you'll be walking across the floor."

He opened the car door, and did just that. It was only two seconds before he wished he could get back in the car. There was a news crew waiting at the front steps.

Jack groaned, shaking his head. "I'm sorry Hic. The school board must've told them you started today."

A perky reporter was headed their way.

Hiccup shrugged. "Nah, we should have seen this coming. It's okay. It's the perfect excuse for being late to class, right?"

Jack smiled. "You're right."

Merida left the car and headed to the left. "Ah'd rather not be on camera today, thanks. It was odd enough when they came to the hospital. Ah'll see y' inside."

"Hiccup! Hiccup! How does it feel to be starting school again?" The reporter asked, finally catching up to them. She was flanked by two other reporters and there camera men.

Hiccup took a deep breath. "It's great."

They went on asking questions like "Are you ready to start class?" "Is it hard adjusting to everyday life?" Hiccup was sure there were plenty of other stories out there they could have been covering, but apparently the public had a interest in him, so he figured he might as well ease a few minds and say he was okay.

School security ordered the news teams off the premises after they started blocking the steps to record Hiccup's first few steps into the school. There was a large banner hanging in the hallway, welcoming Hiccup back to Burgess High. It was nice and unexpected. Hiccup was surrounded by smiling faces. That was not as nice as the banner. It was odd. There had been a time when Hiccup wanted some sort of attention. There had been a time where Hiccup was fine being alone. And now, Hiccup couldn't imagine life without his friends. But these people… He was sure they wouldn't have paid him any mind had it not been for the accident, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that.

Hiccup and Jack showed up late of course. Their teacher was more understanding than Hiccup expected, and looked behind them to see if a camera was still nearby. Hiccup took his new seat, in his new home room. Eilonwy and Merida were there, waiting in the back.

'Welcome back to Hiccup!" Eilonwy was all smiles, and Hiccup told tell they were genuine. 'You were gone for such aloooong time! Jack was so miserable without you! " She lowered her voice. "Like a zombie. He was creepy."

"Hey." Jack was a little closer to the front of the class. "I can hear you."

Eilonwy rolled her eyes and leaned closer to Hiccup. "An-y-way. Are you coming to the school dance? I'm going with Taran! I think. He's so moody lately. I think it's cause his teammates are being so weird."

Something about that bothered Hiccup. "Weird?"

"They're a bunch of morons." Merida said, crossing her arms.

Eilonwy nodded. "They treat Jack like he has cooties."

"Why?" Hiccup supposed a depressed Jack wasn't a fun Jack, but there was no reason to ostracize him. "Because he was 'zombie-ish' before?"

"No." Eilonwy shook her head. "Because you two are dating."
Hiccup thought that was ridiculous. Jack's teammates probably knew Jack longer than Hiccup did. They knew what kind of person he was. It was stupid.

"Taran doesn't care. I don't." Eilonwy shrugged. "Some people are weird."

The bell rang, and the students rose to take their classes.

U.S. Government on the third floor. Hiccup rose and headed towards the front door. Jack didn't have that class with him, so he would have to go alone. Jack was waiting for him outside the class room. "You're headed to the third floor, right? We'll take the elevator."

Hiccup let Jack lead him by hand down the hall. Jack was moving quickly, he looked behind at him once or twice, with a worried expression on his face. Hiccup supposed that Jack had expected him to fall or something. They boarded the elevator in silence. "Three please.' Jack told the teacher sitting in a chair by the buttons.

It wasn't Hiccup's wobbling at all. It was the staring. Jack didn't want Hiccup's feelings to be hurt by some idiot. He held on to Hiccup's hand. When people treated him differently, he didn't get upset. He was glad, actually. It just proved who his real friends were. Hiccup had his wit, but it wouldn't work so well against punches. Jack would have to keep an eye on him.

The day went by slowly for both Jack and Hiccup. Jack waited in the parking lot, leaning against his car. Hiccup would be getting out of AP Chemistry any second now. Jack had a free period at the end of his day. It was ridiculous. Why would anyone stick around to do nothing? Why not just give him 6 period schedule?

Coach Shang appeared from the school's entrance. Jack expected him to walk off, but he headed straight for Jack. "Overland. Head to the infirmary. I told Hiccup to wait for you." As usual Shang sounded like a Captain ordering his soldiers. His expression seemed more serious than usual.

"Infirmary?" Why was Hiccup waiting in the infirmary? "What happened?" Jack asked. Did Hiccup fall again? Was he okay?

Shang crossed his arms. "He'll probably say nothing,. Haddock is strong that way. However…" Shang furrowed his brow. "I believe I saw someone push him down the stairs."

"What!?" Jack's fears were being realized. "Who!?"

Shang shook his head. "I did not see. I was entering the staircase when Hiccup began to fall. He was steady at first, but suddenly he was pushed forward."

Shang shook his head. "I'll see you at practice, Overland."

Jack found Hiccup and Merida talking in the infirmary. As usual the nurse had disappeared. Hiccup was pressing ice against a nasty bruise on his arms. He frowned when he saw Jack in the doorway. "hi."

"What happened?" Jack asked, sitting on a chair by the bed.

Hiccup sighed. "I don't know. I guess I'm not ready for stairs."

Merida rolled her eyes. "Some git pushed yer boyfriend down the stairs."

"You don't know that." Hiccup said. "Maybe it was an accident."

Merida shook her head. "Ah'd like to believe that. Ah would. But this school is full of gits. When Ah first joined the team, It was bad. I got angry letters. There was all sorts of stuff written on m' locker. A couple of guys tried to push me around. The point is, not everyone is yer friend."

Hiccup was surprised. "You never said anything."

Merida shrugged. "Ah didn't have to. Ah let my fists do the talking. No boy wants to admit to being beat up by a girl."

Jack dropped Merida and Hiccup home after that, before heading back to St. North's for work. As much as he wanted to stay with hiccup, he had his obligation to work. He changed into a dress shirt, slacks, and a blue tie. He was working with Sandy up in the bedding area today. He was changing in thelocekr room in the basement beneath the store.

"Having an Off day?" A dry voice asked.

Jack turned, startled.

Standing in the door frame was Pitch, the night manager. Jack didn't talk to Pitch much. As a child, he had thought the man was a bit creepy. He was just so…weird.

"No." Jack frowned. "Why do you ask?"

"You look a little…distressed."

Jack stood. "Eh, I'm a teenager. I'm always distressed."

Pitch smiled at that. "Well, you know I'm always here to talk."

Jack feigned a smile. "Right. Thanks." 'Wrong. You're never here. You're the night manager. What are you even doing here before sundown?'

"Well…" He approached the doorway. "I'm gonna go now…"

"See you around, Jack."

"Yeah…" Jack quickly went back up stairs.

's was once again decorated for the holiday. Fake leaves were scattered around the sore, as well as statues, fall patterned ribbons, and the scent of pumpkin spice. The music selection had been changed to accommodate the season. Jack stopped to greet North on his way to the bedding section.

"Jack!"

"Hey, how's it going?"

"Not so good. Christmas display is still not ready yet."

Jack was confused. Usually the window display was finalized by August. It would mess up the store's budget and schedule if it took too long. "Are you serious? That's horrible!"

St. North put his hands on jack's shoulders. "Yes. That's why it's important to take care of your responsibilities. Even now, you should be working for the future. I can not always be there to guide you, Jack."

"Yeah…I guess you're right."

"Maybe you should start working longer shifts. You will want to get used to it before you start college."

"Yeah. That makes sense."

And jack continued to work long hours. That is, until Wednesday.

Jack was sitting at the Customer Service desk, filing through complaints when Hiccup rang the bell. Jack didn't look up. "Welcome to St. North's, how can I help you?"

"Yeah, I'd like to make a complaint…About my boyfriend."

Jack looked up. "Hiccup!"

Hiccup leaned on the desk. "Not the reaction I was hoping for, but whatever."

Jack smiled sheepishly. "Sorry about that. If you'd like me to announce over the loudspeaker how happy I am to see you, I can do that."

"I'll think about it." Hiccup said. "Didn't you say you get off at five? You promised we were gonna put our costumes together today."

"Oh…right."

Hiccup crossed his arms. "Merida and Rapunzel are waiting at the library."

"Well, I was planning on staying later today."

"How much later?"

"Like…8 p.m.?"

"Why the sudden increase? Did North ask for help around the store? I mean, it doesn't look any more crowded than usual."

"No. It's just…I thought I'd take on more hours to get used to a longer shift. North says I should start being more responsible, and get used to doing more work."

"Jack." Hiccup sighed. "You have the rest of your life to be doing more work. We're high school seniors. We're not responsible for anything yet. Then, in a few months, you start having to make really important decisions. Like really, really important decisions. So don't speed up the process, okay? You've got the rest of your life to be miserable."

Jack put down his pen. "You're probably right."

"Nope. I'm right. Say it."

"You're right. Just give me a few minutes, okay?"

"I'll give you 5 minutes. Just five. That's all the time a busy guy like me can spare."

Jack laughed. "Okay five minutes."

Hiccup waited on a couch in the shoe department. Leave it to Jack to start being 'responsible' a day before a costume dance. He wasn't even that eager to go at first, but Rapunzel and Jack were enamored with the idea of going as Hogwarts students.

So, for both the dance and the party next day, Hiccup was a Ravenclaw. Jack was Slytherin, (and due to a repetitive joke between him and Rapunzel, Jacko Malfoy) while Merida and Jim were Gryffindors. Rapunzel wanted to be a Rvaenclaw, but decided to be a Hufflepuff instead, so they would have all four houses.

As he waited, hiccup could feel a pair of eyes following him. He was used to it somewhat, do to his handy-capable appearance. There was just something about a fake foot that caused people to stare. One kid had asked him what wrong with him once. Jack had told the child that Hiccup "Didn't eat enough broccoli." And that "You limbs will fall off if you don't eat your greens."

That had of course sent the kid running and screaming for his mother.

This time, it felt less like prying eyes and more like resentment. Hiccup could feel it. He looked around. There was nothing out of the ordinary. Smiling attendants, customers, a homeless man sleeping on a couch. So what was this feeling he had?

"Ready?" Jack was suddenly in front of him, smiling.

"Yep." Hiccup stood. "Let's go."

They walked over to the Burgess library. Rapunzel, Merida, and Jim had set up a fort of craft supplies and made three mannequins out of stacked books. Hiccup was surprised a librarian hadn't tried to stop them.

"Not a lot of teenagers come in here, sadly." Rapunzel said. " I guess they don't care, as long as we don't do anything wrong."

"Lucky for us." Hiccup said. "But said for our library system. Let's get to work."

Hiccup was well aware of how nerdy it was that a group of teenagers were building Hogwarts costumes inside a library. And yet, he didn't care. He loved it. He'd never forget it. As much as he had been 'okay' with being alone before, he was glad to be in a group now.

The school dance was a nerve-wracking thing to him. The last dance he had attended was still fresh in his mind, even though it felt like it happened eons ago. Things had happened so fast. He didn't even have two feet anymore, for Odin's sake. Still he walked into the gymnasium, stuck between Rapunzel and Jack, who were just a little too clingy for his taste.

Merida stole the show as a quidditch captain. Keeping with theme, she had 'Weasley' written on the back on her quidditch uniform. Jack insisted on calling every other person a mud-blood. He spent a good portion of the night sitting by the refreshment table. His friends had insisted he dance at least once, disregarding his claims he was tired. So of course he had to slow dance with Rapunzel. And do the robot with Jack. And join the conga line. The half-drunken conga line., that crashed into the refreshments table.

This was his new reality, and he would just have to get used to it.