Thank you to the new followers and reviewers. I am readying for midterms and three plays on my end, so I am sorry if the flow of chapters is not as fast as you would like! I am trying my hardest. Anyhoo!
Chapter Five: Bloody Lips and Bloody Knuckles
"This isn't good," Fishlegs groaned in the Academy. He put away the weapons from the Dragonlings and looked back to Tuffnut. He and Ruffnut glanced at each other with frowns on their faces. "You're sure?"
"Stoick is sending us out to tell the eastern clans," Ruffnut said with a tinge of disappointment. "This is really happening."
News that Hiccup was betrothed stayed among the messengers being sent out to the other tribes to spread word of the wedding. That meant everyone but Astrid since Stormfly was still recovering, and no one thought it was wise to tell her the one man she was comfortable kissing in public was to marry a woman from another clan. And no one knew who it was. It made it worse.
Fishlegs was to go north, Snotlout south, the twins east, and Stoick forbade western travel towards Outcast Island. Snotlout had already left and told the twins, who told Fishlegs. They prepared to travel from the island, but they weren't happy.
"At least he's okay, hey?" Tuffnut said, falsely chipper.
"Apparently he hasn't eaten in days. The moment he can walk, Stoick's going to announce it to the whole village. I'm not surprised he's trying to not get better."
Fishlegs sighed and scratched Meatlug under her chin. "Let's go, then, girl. Before we run into Astrid."
"And why would that be an issue?" a voice said behind him.
All three of them jumped when Astrid entered the Academy with her bow slung over her chest. She glared at all three of them, arms crossed and eyes narrowed into slits. Fishlegs squeaked and the twins tried to hide behind each other, failing miserably.
"No reason!" Tuffnut squeaked. "Trying to avoid conversation so we can be on time!"
"On time for what?" Astrid growled.
"Something important, duh," Ruffnut snorted. Astrid cocked her head to the side and pursed her lips.
"You're not going to tell me, hmm?" Astrid challenged. Fishlegs looked away and the twins cleared their throats. She scoffed and turned around swiftly. "Fine, then. Keep your secrets. I'm going to go for a hunt and have way more fun that all of you."
She left the arena and Fishegs relaxed. "That was close… Can you believe what she'd do if she found out?"
"I don't want to know. I kinda don't want to come back if it's going to be anything like I imagine," Ruffnut replied. "Let's go."
"Wait, what am I supposed to even say to the northerners?" Fishlegs scrambled. "Something like, 'hey, your daughter may be the lucky winner of our chief's son's hand, come along and find out'?"
Tuffnut laughed under his breath as he climbed onto Belch's neck, securing himself to his saddle. "Try that and tell me how that goes. Seriously, though, I have no idea. Just the basics, I dunno. Tell them we have food and the wedding we've all been waiting for and they'll set sail soon enough."
They took to flight and went their separate directions while Astrid stood against the wall outside the arena, eyes wide and heart frozen. Her knuckles were snow white and she forgot how to think.
Astrid didn't return to Hiccup's bedside for weeks. She fixed her roof with newfound determination secretly fueled by her anger. She smashed the hammer over and over into the nails that held the wood to her roof in the rain, grunting and gritting her teeth as blisters on her pals cracked open and made her hand hurt more than a Terror bite.
Why was she even mad? Why should she care? She had her chance at marriage, she gave it up. She knew the answer in the back of her head: because I love Hiccup. But she shoved it away and banged the nails into the wood harder as if it would replace her thoughts. It didn't help. She wanted it to.
Town folk talked among each other, wondering why she spent hours on the roof alone, rain or shine or even snow until blood ran from her palms down her arms. No one knew, no one else was told yet of the engagement. And she wasn't supposed to know, either. But that was stupid; of course Hiccup would have an arranged marriage. Of course they would marry him off to better the clan. She shouldn't let it get to her. But she did and it was ruining her hands, if anything.
The roof was done faster than anyone expected, especially since Astrid refused anyone to help her. She wanted to be alone. Even after the other returned from their mission, they acted as if nothing was amiss, though they suspected she knew something. Why else would she be so angry at shingles and nails? Why else would she avoid Hiccup for over a fortnight?
Then one day, she found a new outlet for her rage. She went to her home to clean up the rest of the internal damage when she found a note on a table: meet me where you met him.
She recognized the symbols and ran her bandaged finger over them. Hiccup's writing was almost unmistakable: the symbols had the straightest lines as if they were blueprints of themselves. She ripped up the note and tossed it into the hearth before she left the house slowly. She climbed onto Stormfly and secured herself, giving her a small rub to the head. They lifted off and Astrid flew silently to the cove, where Astrid had first met Toothless.
It was a cold day, but clear, so she had no trouble finding the small break in the ground, the shimmering pond, the huge trees that seemed to grow from nothing. When she landed, she immediately felt sick. She only ever returned to the cove when she needed to; this place held bad memories for her. Her stomach cramped at the thought of how she took her knife, hid behind a boulder, breathed deeply, prayed to the gods, and took away her innocence as messily as she could handle, hoping it would be ugly enough to prove she had been touched. How foolish that was. Gothi healed her up just fine, the cuts too clean to make sense. It only bought her time; that was her understanding of it.
She found Toothless drinking at the far edge of the pond. He peered up and looked away as if she were a bird – nothing of consequence – and continued drinking.
"What do you want?" she asked bluntly. She didn't know where Hiccup would be.
"Tree," was Hiccup's muffled reply. She was nearest to the largest tree in the cove and walked around it, unamused. She found Hiccup leaning against the trunk, holding his side for reassurance and staring out at the water. He smiled at her and greeted her. Astrid didn't return the grin.
"What?" she repeated coldly.
Hiccup's smile faltered and he furrowed his brow. "Why so harsh? Everything okay?"
"What do you think?" she retorted. Hiccup frowned.
"Someone told you, didn't they?" he said quietly.
Astrid scoffed and placed her hands on her hips. Even that hurt her fingers. "Sucks when your scouts also happen to be my scouts. So you're standing, that means your bride will be revealed."
"Don't call her that," Hiccup interrupted. He faced Astrid with newfound annoyance.
"Why not? That's what she's going to be. The wife of Hiccup Haddock Horrendous III, heiress to the tribe of Berk and all her resources, the woman who has no name or residence on this stupid island –"
"Stop," Hiccup muttered.
" – the woman you will fill with as many children as your house will fit –"
"Stop it!" Hiccup sneered angrily. Astrid liked him angry. It made her feel better, finally.
" – the woman who will beg you to get rid of your dragon to focus on her and her foreign ideals –"
"Can you not hear me?!"
" – the woman who was simply born, named, and specially selected to breed with you because of her looks or etiquette or whatever other horseshit they've fed her to prepare her for this."
Hiccup threw up his hands in anger. "What the hell are you getting out of this?! You think I wanted this?!"
"I dunno, Hiccup, why aren't you trying to stop it?!"
"I can't stop what's already been decided! I've tried not eating, I've tried reopening my wounds just to avoid today, but I couldn't help but talk to you!"
Astrid glared and flared her nostrils. She shoved Hiccup back. "Why would you want to talk to me about this?! Does your brain not work or something? Did that Skrill burn out all your sense?! Have you been absolutely blind to everything?!"
"NO!" Hiccup cried. "AND THAT'S THE PROBLEM!"
Astrid threw the first punch and hit her mark. Hiccup's head snapped to the side and his nose began to bleed. He steadied himself and held the tree for support. Astrid puffed out her chest and crouched. He flicked his gaze at her and he blinked painfully, wiping away the blood from his lip.
"You hit me."
"Yes I did. It felt wonderful."
Astrid smiled horribly, her body vibrating with anger and rage.
"Why would you do that?" he asked, exasperated.
"I needed to hit something, it's what I do. Some people are not pleased to hear certain things, and you marrying a foreigner is not pleasing."
Hiccup stood up straight. "Yeah? You're angry about her being foreign? Not the fact that she isn't you?"
That hit Astrid in the stomach like a fully grown Gronckel. She hadn't expected that. Hiccup wasn't one for fighting back or for being bold. He was supposed to take the blows, show how much pain he was in, and make her feel better. He wasn't supposed to hurt her instead. And that made it even worse for Hiccup, mark her words.
She screamed out in tearful turmoil and lunged for Hiccup, grabbing his collar and shoving him down to the ground. She lifted his shoulders and smashed them down again and again as if she wanted to make a new cove. Hiccup growled and grabbed onto her and rolled them over and over, trying to restrain her. Astrid bit his arm with all her might and Hiccup hit her cheek to make her let go. They both threw fists at each other, yelling and screaming and cursing and growling. Their legs became entwined and Astrid took the opportunity to bend her knee as fast as she could, shoving her thigh into Hiccup's groin. He fell back off her, holding himself for a moment, trying to catch his breath.
Astrid took that time to grab a rock and hurl it at him. "You take that back!" she shrieked. Hiccup rolled out of the way of the flying rock and struggled to his feet. Both of their faces were bruising and bleeding, the pair of them catching their breath. She hurled another rock.
"Why should I?!" he yelled back, ducking away. "It's true!"
"SHUT UP!"
"MAKE ME!"
"THEN STOP DODGING MY ROCKS!"
"Admit it!" Hiccup challenged.
"Why would I ever want to marry someone like you?!"
Hiccup faltered and a rock hit his torso. He hissed and grabbed his side. He fell to a knee and hugged himself. Astrid had another rock locked and loaded.
"You're nothing but a boy who lets himself get pushed and pulled around by everyone because you have no purpose!"
Hiccup fell forward and caught himself with a hand. He was in a lot of pain, both from his wounds and her words.
"Why would I love you?!" she choked. Hiccup sneered and stared up.
"Because I'd love you back," he spat.
Astrid stumbled back and her mouth fell open. She forgot to breathe. Hiccup glared at her in anger and pain.
"Because I would protect you with my life, my soul, and I would let you beat me into a pulp to feel better about yourself – I'd let you break my bones if it gave you any relief. You have lived through misery and I wanted to be the one who pulled you from it."
He forced himself to his feet while Astrid felt her eyes fill with tears of shock.
"Because I know what you've lost, what you've done, who you are. I didn't let a Skrill maim me to give me a pretty scar, I did it so you wouldn't lose the only person you have left. Because I couldn't let that happen to you."
His eyes, too, filled with tears as he gritted his teeth.
"I don't want to get married to her. I don't want to force myself to love someone in a month when I have tried to not love you for seven years, before you even noticed me as being something other than the town disaster!"
His voice cracked and he looked at her with pleading eyes.
"I can't," he sobbed.
He took the first step and grabbed onto her face, holding her cheeks, pressing his lips on hers with all the force he had contained in his being. Astrid gasped under his breath and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, kissing him back and sobbing against his face. He held onto her and kissed her over and over. They parted their lips to taste each other further, to feel the others' tongue for the first time.
Passionate and desperate, Hiccup pushed her back against the huge tree, the taste of her so irresistible that he wanted more. Not sexually, but more. She held onto him as they pressed against each other through their riding suits, tragically tasting each other's tears and muffled moans escaping their lips. Hiccup pulled back to catch his breath, kissing her face all over and returning to her mouth. He pulled away again to rest his forehead on hers and they held each other for what felt like an eternity and yet not long enough before the horn from Berk shattered the veil of their newly-confessed love, announcing the arrival of Hiccup's bride.