Flipping the Switch

Chapter 7: Go Vikings Go

this chapter took forrreeever to write! you have no idea...thanks for all your patience! i appreciate all the reviews, i'm very flattered. ;)

xoxo kitty

Fishlegs gazed over at Astrid and I with the book still open in his hands. His eyes were round with fear.

"There are dark forces at work here."

Astrid and I exchanged looks of uneasiness.

"You really think that the norse god Loki..." Fishlegs took in a deep breath. "Is the reason for all this?" Fishlegs asked, his eyes bouncing back and forth between us.

"I did a little research. If you can think of a better explanation, I'm all ears," I replied, leaving out the creepy text message part.

Be careful what you wish for.

I cringed a little at the thought.

"Uhm, hello?" Astrid snapped, raising her hand mockingly. "Am I like, missing something here? I still don't know how I got dragged into all this."

"Weren't you the last person to see Hiccup before his run-in with Loki?"

"Yeah. So?"

"He's the god of mischief," Fishlegs replied, slowly pacing back and forth. "When he met Hiccup, he must have figured that you two were the perfect pair to mess with after your brief little encounter. You two are very different, after all."

My stomach rippled with guilt. Debatable.

"You guys are cursed. And- according to legend- the only way out of it is if you can each perform an act of true selflessness." He paused to glance at the book. "It says that you have till the next full moon to break Loki's spell. That's a month!"

My jaw dropped. "A month?! We can't be stuck like this for a month. No way it will take that long."

"Lifting the curse may not be as easy as you think," Fishlegs said ever so matter-of-factly, still cradling the book in his arms. "An act of true selflessness requires... placing the interest of others completely above yourself. It's more than kindness or generosity. It's... Virtue."

"I'm sure it can't be that hard," Astrid replied with a classic roll of her eyes, sitting back in the couch while crossing her arms and legs. Fishlegs came forward and then turned the book so that the pages faced us. "Well then this shouldn't be a problem for you..."

We both leaned forward to look upon a black and white illustration in the style of traditional Norse art. It was a skeleton in a Viking helmet, holding a sword that he had driven through his chest. Crouching atop a tall rock next to the Viking was a gangly character dressed in long robes, who I assumed was Loki, looking down upon the victim with an evil grin.

Suicide.

Astrid whipped up from her seat and then glowered down at me. "I was right. This is all your fault!"

"Astrid-"

Before I could get another word out, she socked me in the arm. "That's for getting us cursed," she barked.

"Ow!"

Another punch. The cheerleader was stronger than I'd expected.

"And that's for everything else."

I sat there doubled over, gripping my skinny little girl arms when I heard Astrid sob and then storm out of Fishlegs' basement.

"Wait! Astrid!"

"Uhh... Is he- I mean- she- I mean- Is Astrid gonna be okay?" Fishlegs stammered worriedly.

Before I could answer, I ran after her.

"Astrid!"

She had already made it up the stairs, through Fishlegs' living room and out the front door when I finally caught her by the arm.

"Astrid, hold the fuck up!"

"I want my life back," she wailed, yanking her arm from my grip. "I don't wanna die."

"Astrid, listen to me-"

"I am not listening to anything you have to say."

"Would you at least turn around?"

She whipped around to face me, shoulders tense and hands balled into fists at her sides. She was red in the face, on the brink of tears, glaring back at me with my own green eyes. I was terrified of myself.

"Astrid, we can do this," I said, trying to soften my voice. "Trust me on this one."

Her nostrils were flaring. She was like a fucking kid in a candy store that wasn't getting her way. "Trust you? Why of all people should I trust you? You're the one who like, messed everything up in the first place!"

I opened my mouth to say something, but then I was interrupted by the sound of the front door swinging open behind me. "You guys, wait up!" called out a squeaky voice that was unmistakably Fishlegs'. I turned around to see the chubby nerd scampering out to the lawn, waving his hand back and forth. "You guys," he repeated when he reached us, bending over as he caught his breath. He took a quick hit from his inhaler.

"I'm sorry," he breathed between pants. "The truth is-" Pant, pant, inhaler, "You two are more than capable-" Pant, "Of breaking the curse."

Astrid and I locked eyes for a second before she looked away again.

"Loki is just the trickster god. He's not as powerful as you think."

I huffed. "What's the point of all this? Why us? Why couldn't it have been any other asshole in the bathroom?"

Fishlegs simply shrugged. "It was pure chance. He met you, gained your trust, and now he's using you for his own personal amusement." He paused, his face lighting up with a witty smirk. "But that doesn't mean you can't play his game too."

"Well what about school?"

"Therein lies the real challenge," Fishlegs replied with a soft sigh, scratching the side of his head. "You guys will have to learn how to emulate one another. Live each other's lives as if none of this ever happened. But in order to achieve that, you'll have to work together."

"You really think we can pull it off?"

"What other choice do you have? No one will believe you if you tell the truth."

"You did."

The chubby nerd smiled. "Who knows, maybe there's something to learn through all this.

I narrowed my eyes. "So you won't tell anyone?"

He held up his hand in sworn honor. "Your secret is safe with me."

"Promise? Cuz if you fuckin tell anyone I'll tell Ruff about that time you got diarrhea in Barnes & Noble..."

"I promise, I swear!" He squeaked, cheeks flushing. "Come on. I know guys can do this, we're Vikings! We can overcome anything," Fishlegs said with a smile and a playful shrug in attempt to lighten up the mood.

He was referring to our high school mascot, of course.

"True..." I replied. I glanced over at Astrid. She was still standing there with her arms crossed, eyes at her feet, but I saw a smile budding. I knew for a fact that she of all people had more school spirit than Fishlegs and I combined, let alone the entire student body. As head cheerleader, spirit was her middle fucking name.

"What do you think, Astrid?"

She then rolled her eyes. She refused to look at us.

I knew what I had to do. But I didn't want to.

It started with the rhythmic clapping. "Come on crowd, yell go Vikings go!"

Astrid's eyebrows jumped up, and she turned her head towards me as her arms began to uncross.

"Go! Vikings! Go!"

Still clapping, my feet were planted together on the grass beneath me and my arms tight. Big smile. Lots of energy.

"Come on crowd, yell go Vikings go!"

This time I incorporated the motions that I remembered from watching Astrid. With sharp execution, of course.

"Go! Vikings! Go!"

I ended with my arms up in a high V, my breath slightly ragged from the short burst of adrenaline. Astrid and Fishlegs stood there staring at me, slack-jawed.

My eyebrows pulled in as I lowered my arms. "Was it that bad?"

Astrid suddenly beamed with pride, leaping towards me and squeezing me into a hug. "Hiccup, you did it! You cheered!"

"I did?" I squeaked, nearly suffocating. "I mean- Well, yeah, I did."

Astrid let go with a big smile on her face. My cheeks turned hot. Did that actually just fucking happen?

"Whoa. Fishlegs? Are you-"

Thump.

"Dammit, he fainted again!"

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

It was about four in the afternoon by the time Astrid dropped me off at my place. Fishlegs was safe and sound again in his little basement dungeon... We figured he could use some rest after that shitshow of a visit. We had the information we needed, now it was just a matter of assimilating until we could overcome our situation. But in order for this to work, we were going to have to get to know each other a little better. We'd have to spend Sunday educating one another on our day-to-day lives.

"So tomorrow. Twelve o'clock?"

"Can we make it like eleven?" Astrid asked. "I wanna be in and out of the house before my mom notices there's a strange boy living in my room."

I smiled softly and shrugged. "Yeah, fine."

We sat there for a moment in her idle car.

"Well okay, see ya," I said as I hurriedly pushed open the car door.

"Not so fast-" Astrid grabbed me by the hem of my shirt before I could climb out.

My breath caught in my throat. "What?"

Her eyes were now narrowed in a deadly gaze. "I know how you boys are. You better not even think about trying anything."

"Dude! I thought we were past this." I put my hands up in submission.

"You pinky swear?"

I huffed. "Seriously?"

She had her pinky out, waiting, her eyes locked on mine like a target. My shoulders fell as I gave in.

"Pinky swear."

Astrid's cheerleader smile came back in an instant. "Great! See you tomorrow at eleven!"