Disclaimer: Nope. How to Train Your Dragon is definitely not mine.
Author's Note: I hadn't really meant to stop there. It just kind of happened… That was a lame Hiccup-esque excuse. Well, I am Team Hiccup! I had to think about what I wanted him to say. Thanks so much for all the reviews. They keep me going. I found a drabble I wrote a while ago that I based this story off. I'll most likely post it as my next drabble in This is Berk. Enjoy!
Astrid wished she hadn't said anything. Now he was going to think she liked him! Knowing Hiccup, he would probably say something so incredibly stupid and it would probably insult her so much that she would never give him any heirs, no matter how big a fit Stoick threw. Anything would have been a better question than, 'Do you like me?' She had to know, though! The way Hiccup brushed off her rejection so soon was what made her want to know. If only he had blushed and said something awkward like, 'Yeah, so?'
She was making more of a fool of herself than he was. First, she tells a guy that her parents want them to get married. Then, she tells him how much she doesn't like him. But then, she asks him how much he likes her! This is all so messed up, She thought.
Astrid sat down. This was going to be crazy…
After an awkward silence inside the chief's house, the boy made one of his weird Hiccup noises and said, "Kind of."
As he explained himself, there was no place to look but his big green eyes. She never noticed exactly how green they were. "It depends on your definition of 'like'. In truth, I think you're strong, clever, and gorgeous," he muttered, turning a deep red, "but I'm not sure that means that I like you. If this marriage will prove good for anything, it will help me figure out if I actually do like you. I don't really know you, so the things that I like about you might not be things you really are. When you like someone… or kind of like someone, the little things don't matter; they only fuel the emotion itself."
Despite the peculiarity of Hiccup's response, Astrid could not stop smiling. Clever? No one had ever called Astrid that before. Strong? The people of Berk just assumed that she was some sort of Super Viking and never really brought it up. Gorgeous? Now that was a word she'd never heard associated with her name. According to Ruffnut, all the boys ever called her was 'hott'. Gorgeous was a completely different level. Of course, it was Hiccup that was telling her this. She didn't expect him, of all Vikings in Berk, to say something that truly flattering. And he argued he didn't know her, yet Astrid had never felt like anyone had ever been more right about who she was. So this is what the people of Berk were afraid of; Hiccup's thoughts. Suddenly, everything about Hiccup seemed totally different to her. Somehow, he wasn't the awkward loser anymore…
He seemed to be finished his defense and appeared surprised by her reaction. "Why are you looking at me like that, Astrid?"
"I never thought I'd say this," she laughed, "but what you're saying completely makes sense. I like the way you think. You're one of the few people around here who actually does! Most people just get out their axe and charge at whatever they see. Kill first, ask questions later."
The boy looked more surprised than ever by her comments. "Don't you see yourself as someone like that?" Hiccup asked.
Something felt like it was falling from Astrid's stomach. That was below the belt. What a horribly stupid thing to say! She thought! ... Sometimes! She remembered why she had frowned upon the Haddock boy: he always spoke too soon. How dare him! He must not have meant that she was clever if he believed she killed first and asked questions later. Lies, she thought savagely, just trying to get on my good side!
Hiccup realized the damage he had caused and his face fell. "Oh-no! Astrid, no! I-I didn't mean it! You really are clever; it's just that sometimes you're a bit rash! I mean, that whole thing with-with Snotlout! You didn't have to punch him, per say, just-" he blundered, trying to save his case.
Astrid stood up. The hot anger she had felt when her mother first told her of the marriage bubbled up inside her and could not be contained. She let her untold rage out on Hiccup. "Just stop! You're just trying to get on my good side so I won't kill you three weeks into our marriage!" She spat on the floor at the thought. "You didn't mean any of those things you said! You think you're so much better than the rest of us because you 'ask first' and never kill at all! That doesn't make you smart, Hiccup! It only makes you weak! And that's exactly what you are. One of these days, you're going to have to kill, and you're not going to be able to do it! And I'm not gonna be around to save you! Aw, Thor, why did I even ask you that stupid question in the first place?" She stormed out of his house and didn't look back.
She was full of so much hot air! She didn't care if she had a job to do! She had to kill something. How convenient that they were in the middle of a raid. "I'm gonna go slay some dragons. Be right back!" (Author's Note: My best friend says that all the time and I just had to include it!)