I had forgotten about this story, and then WHAM-O! Brain said "you're going to work on this now."

The spirit of motivation is as mysterious as it is fickle. It wants HTTYD right now, so I will feed it for as long as it wants.

Hiccup stumbled home in a love drunk haze. Yeah, he and Astrid had set the entire retinue of dragons in the training arena go free. That was a liberating experience in and of itself! But then after…

A kiss from Astrid! Oh wow! But now what? What did this mean? Were they an item? Did Hiccup talk to his father about betrothals and all that? Or was it just a kiss of appreciation among friends?

Girls were confusing.

As Hiccup arrived at home, he saw the door open and the Berk guards reporting to his father what they had seen. You know, the missing dragons?

"I see. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I will have a word with Ruffnut and Tuffnut in the morning."

"But about the dragons…?" One guard pried.

"What about them? Winter is here, and the other dragons have stopped their raids until spring. No classes for several months. They would have been released or killed by now anyway. Don't worry about replacements. Just get back to patrol."

"Yes sir!" They both saluted. They greeted Hiccup politely before getting back to work.

When Stoick turned to look at him, his gaze was critical. "So. Did Astrid make it home nice and safe?"

"Uh, yep! Yeppers! A great, nice walk!"

"You didn't happen to see the Thorston twins while you were out, did you?"

Of course, that was not the real question, and Hiccup knew it. Stoick had his eyes narrowed and his hands on his hips. 'I know what you did,' his face said.

Hiccup was prepared to go along with it, but he deflated. "Okay, but can you blame me?"

"You and Astrid are both on shoveling duty for a week. You understand?"

"But her arm's still broken! She can't shovel!"

"Perhaps not, but she can certainly keep you company…since I'm sure this was your idea."

Hiccup groaned as his father could see right through him. It was maddening.

"Get to bed, lad. You've got a lot of work to do tomorrow."

Hiccup grumbled as he headed upstairs. Rebellion was overrated.

–

In the morning, Hiccup and Stoick went over to the Hofferson household and knocked.

"Oh, good morning, Chief! How can I help you?" Phlegma Hofferson asked.

"Morning Phlegma. I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Astrid has a punishment she must serve with Hiccup."

Phlegma frowned. "Punishment?"

At that, Axel Hofferson came to the door, looking furious. "What did that girl do now?"

"Dad," Hiccup said with a hushed tone, begging him to be vague for Astrid's sake.

"A prank. A harmless prank on the town. Hiccup's idea, as he has confessed, but punishment must be dealt."

Axel nodded in understanding, but didn't drop it. "As the chief, you are of course obligated to assign punishment to your people. But as a father, I'd like to know the details and dole out my own justice." His voice was cold, and harsh, not the warm tone Hiccup was used to coming from the man. In fact, ever since Astrid had been hurt in the ring, he had been a totally different man.

Hiccup cringed, this was going to be ugly.

"It seems our kids let the dragons out of the training ring."

Axel's eyes widened, as his mouth pulled tight. "...she…let the dragons out? The Monstrous Nightmare she was supposed to kill?"

"Axel…" Phlegma tried to reason.

"Astrid!" Axel hollered upstairs.

Astrid scurried downstairs, her arm still in a sling and her hair done up messily. "Yes sir," she spoke softly.

He grabbed her arm and yanked her, making her stumble and fall over his bent knee. He then spanked her several times, right in front of Stoick and Hiccup. She hadn't been spanked since she was a child, and never this hard.

After several swats, he pulled her up to her feet and started yelling at her. "How stupid are you?! Do you like embarrassing this family?! Can you do anything right? No! One mistake wasn't enough, huh?"

"I'm sorry!" Astrid sobbed.

"It was my idea!" Hiccup shouted back.

Axel turned to Hiccup for a moment and declared. "She knows better than to listen to you, runt!"

"Axel," Stoick said crisply.

The man stopped his yelling and flinched heavily.

Stoick reached out and guided Astrid out of the house to stand with Hiccup. "You two are on shoveling duty all week. I know it will snow more, but just shovel what you can. Make sure the steps to the Great Hall are clear. Astrid, I know your arm is still broken, so just do your best."

"Yes sir," they both said.

"Now," he turned to Axel, "let's have a little chat."

Hiccup led Astrid away as Stoick closed the door to the Hofferson home.

"Are you okay?" Hiccup asked.

"I'm fine. A little embarrassed you had to see that…"

"If it makes you feel better, my dad was still spanking me weekly up until I found Toothless…I kind of deserved it too."

"I miss my dad."

"But–"

"The dad he was before I failed in the ring. I don't know what happened. I'm kind of tired of it."

"I don't blame you."

"What do you think your dad is saying to him right now?"

"Probably telling him not to call me a runt again."

"I'm sorry about that."

"Eh. At least I know how he feels about me."

Astrid frowned. "I swear he talked positively about you before. He actually pushed me to talk to you."

Hiccup shrugged. "Maybe he realized that I'm a bad influence on you."

"You are not!"

"I am! I convinced you to rebel with me last night."

She smirked. "I don't think everything last night was bad."

"Yeah…?" He smiled a little, a blush dusting his cheeks.

"Yeah. The weather was nice."

"Oh."

She gave him a nudge accompanied by a giggle. "Among other things. Now, let's get to work."

Thankfully, it was not scheduled to snow that day, so their work wasn't in vain. Hiccup diligently worked to clear the steps of the Great Hall, while Astrid used a cup and a bucket to spread salt over the little patches of ice.

They worked for several hours, getting all the steps and then the flat stones around the center of the village. By then, Gobber needed Hiccup in the forge, and Astrid had her own chores to get to.

"I'll see you tomorrow for more snow?" He asked with a laugh.

"Like I could get out of it." She gave him a brief smooch on the cheek. "See you!" And she trotted off.

Hiccup stood in place for a moment, the heat on his face melting the snow around him.

He rode that high through work, until the soreness in his arms kicked in. By the end of work, he couldn't lift his arms above his waist. He trudged home, exhausted. He didn't even get to see Toothless today.

At home, Stoick was reclined in his chair, relaxing by the fire.

"Welcome home, son."

"Ow."

Stoick laughed. "Yeah, I remember those days." He beckoned him over and had him stand in front of him. Then he squeezed Hiccup's arm's slightly, massaging his sore muscles. "This will be great for you! You'll be the size of a mountain by summer."

"Oh is that when the rest of puberty will kick in? I'm still waiting on the rest of your genes to activate."

"Well son, you're the spitting image of your mother, and she was a tiny thing."

Hiccup groaned.

After a few more minutes of squeezing, Hiccup flopped into a chair to relax. "Hey dad?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I ask how the talk with Mr. Hofferson went? Did you find out what his problem was?"

"I did, in fact, though I ask you not to tell Astrid."

"I promise."

"Axel is upset not just because Astrid's loss was a dishonor, but because he lost a bet."

Hiccup sneered. "He betted on Astrid's fight?"

"It sounded like he fell into it. He was bragging to Spitelout about how good Astrid was, and Spitelout decided to make a bet with him. Axel didn't think Astrid would lose, so he went all in."

"What did he bet?"

"He didn't say. Just that it was important."

"So he lost a bet. Doesn't mean he has to be a jerk to Astrid about it. She didn't lose that fight on purpose!"

"He knows. He said he'll try to be better. And he owes you an apology for the way he talked to you."

"I'd rather he just apologize to Astrid."

"That, I can't make him do."

Hiccup sighed, knowing it was hopeless.

"You should probably get to bed soon, lad. You have another busy day tomorrow."

—

The week was exhausting. Some days, it was clear, and they were actually able to shovel out significant parts of the town. Some days, there were slight flurries, in which case they had to start over from the Great Hall.

As they cleared the steps, Hiccup was rewarded with words of gratitude while Astrid continued to get the cold shoulder. She appeared to take it in stride, and didn't let it bother her.

Finally, on Friggsday, the last day of their punishment, the sky opened and a blizzard broke out while they were working. Not just any blizzard either. A combination of snow, rain, and ice. It quickly undid all the work they had done, and urged everyone to take shelter.

"Come on!" Hiccup called, pulling her towards the storage barn. "We'll camp in here!"

Astrid followed his lead and went about bolting the door shut to keep out the frigid cold.

There were two thin glass windows that let in a fraction of light, and an oil lamp on the wall. Hiccup used the lamp to light the brazier near the wall.

Soon, nice sized flames were up and warmth began to spread through the space. The barn was one room with a hay loft, and full of crates and barrels. Not very cozy, but it was better than outside, and better than getting reprimanded in the Great Hall.

Hiccup took off his coat and hung it on a nail near the fire. His boots went underneath it.

"Ugh," said Astrid, "I'm totally soaked through."

Hiccup helped her out of her coat so she didn't jostle her arm. "Yeah, me too. Is your sling wet?"

"Yeah. But I can go without it for a little while. My arm is mostly healed." She hung her coat up as well, along with her sling and boots.

Hiccup went about looking through the crates for blankets.

"Hiccup, you can be cool, right?"

"Me?" He glanced at her. "Sure, you know me. I'm the coolest ever." There was definitely some sarcasm laced in those words.

However, it seemed like Astrid either didn't pick up on it, or didn't care. "Good." And she began to strip.

"Wh-wh-what?" Hiccup's voice got lodged in his throat as Astrid hung her shirt and pants, and even her socks, up by the fire. She was now in just her under things.

"Did you find any blankets?"

"Uh…"

"Stop gawking!"

"Right! Yes! Sorry! Here!" He foisted over a blanket.

"Thank you." And she draped it over her shoulders.

His glance shifted to her bare feet and legs. She had very dainty and cute feet, and shapely calves.

"Uh…do you mind if I…?" He gestured to his clothes, feeling overdressed and uncomfortable in the wet clothes.

"Not at all."

He turned his back to her as he stripped as well, going down to his skivvies. As he turned back around, he noticed she was studying him intently. He blushed. "Stop gawking!" He parroted.

She chuckled. "I suppose I deserved that. You're just like…" she poked his visible rib cage. "…really skinny. Do you eat enough?"

He crossed his arms over his chest. "Yes I eat enough, Miss Pinnacle of the Human Physique. I know I'm skinny. Thanks for noticing."

She offered a half smile. "Sorry…"

"Sure you are."

Astrid nudged a crate closer to the fire with her foot and took a seat.

"Oh, you don't have to sit there, come with me."

Astrid stood and followed as Hiccup grabbed his own blanket and then started climbing the ladder to the hay loft. He then led her over to the backside of the loft by the wall. There was a gap between the wall and the loft where light and warmth from the brazier rose above.

The hay had been smoothed into a seat and a few wool blankets and a fur pelt had been thrown over it.

"What's this?"

"One of my hiding spots." Hiccup took a seat on the hay, and beckoned her to sit with him. "Now, you can come here whenever you want. Yak jerky?" He pulled the salted meat out from seemingly nowhere.

Astrid chuckled. "Thanks! And thanks for sharing this with me." She snuggled into the blankets. "I'm sorry that you had to have it. I hope things are getting better."

"It was touch and go for a while. The eels solved a lot of issues I was having. But not everyone is convinced I have the village's best interest in mind. If they found out about Toothless, I'm sure I'd be tossed off of a cliff, no matter what my dad said."

"It probably doesn't help that you're always hanging out with me."

Hiccup frowned, but didn't answer.

"It's okay, I know people are giving you a hard time on my behalf."

"Astrid, you are the most amazing person I've ever known. No stupid fight is going to keep me away from you. You'd have to do something really heinous."

Astrid shifted slightly closer. "Thank you, Hiccup. That's very sweet."

For a little while, they just sat in silence, snacking on jerky. It was a pleasant silence, not one filled with scrambled thoughts of finding something to talk about. Just peace.

"Hey Astrid?" Hiccup asked eventually.

"Hm?"

"What are we?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…earlier this week, in the dragon arena…"

"Yeah?"

He blushed, cursing that she didn't just understand what he was trying to say. "We kissed."

"And?"

"Does that mean we're…like…together?"

Astrid shifted to face him. "Do we have to label it? We're friends. Best friends. Friends that can…do stuff together. I trust you, Hiccup. I kissed you because I wanted to."

"Oh…"

"I'm not trying to bum you out. I just…want to see how this goes, but slowly. If we label it as a relationship or whatever, our parents will move to make a contract, and then marriage, and then babies…I'm not ready for that. I just…wanted to see what kissing was like."

Hiccup chuckled. "Well when you say it like that, I understand completely." It was still kind of disappointing, but time would tell. "You know, it was my first kiss."

"Yeah?"

"So if it wasn't very good…"

"I wouldn't know. It was my first kiss too."

"Oh."

"Did you like it?"

"Yeah! It was awesome–er, good, I uh…I liked it."

She snorted. "You're such a dork."

He blushed.

She gave him a sideways glance, trying to be casual. "So…if you wanted to practice…it's not like we have anywhere else to be."

His eyes widened. "Practice? Like–now?!"

"Sure! Unless you don't want to?"

"I do! I mean, that sounds…nice."

"Then, I'll just…" she scooted toward him, her knees touching his thighs. She was just a touch taller than him, so she didn't have to crane her neck up. She leaned forward, breaking into his personal bubble.

Hiccup squeezed his eyes shut tight and puckered his lips like a fish.

She pinched his nose. "Not like that!"

"Then what?! I've never kissed before! Last time, you snuck up on me!"

She snickered. "Just relax. We're…experimenting. You know how to do that, with your inventions, right?"

"Should I get my notebook?" He asked dryly.

"Hiccup…" she slowly blinked and looked up at him with her big beautiful blue eyes.

He swallowed thickly, leaning forward as well. He felt her warm breath on his lips and broke out in goosebumps.

"This is…kind of exciting…" she murmured.

"And kind of terrifying," he whispered back.

Astrid raised her hand and touched his chin lightly, tilting his face to the side. Her heart hammered in her chest, but in a pleasurable way. Not at all like it had the day of the dragon fight. She was going into this with Hiccup, someone she trusted completely with her heart.

His lips were soft. Last time, she had sort of smashed their faces together, and got more skin than lip, since his lips were so thin.

But now, he was relaxed, eyes closed, and mouth ever so slightly open to receive her. Like a strong pair of arms there to catch her fall.

It lasted a few seconds, probably. It was hard to tell the passage of time over the roar of his pulse in his ears. "Wow…"

"Yeah…" she breathed. She was millimeters away from him, and hesitated to pull away, as did he. There was a magnet between them, keeping them close.

Eventually, the force compelling them together grew strong, and their lips met again, with more intensity.

Astrid pulled away slightly, giggling. "What are you doing?"

She was too close to see his blush. "Uh, kissing?"

"You're like, flexing your lips."

"What am I supposed to do? Just touch your lips with mine? Aren't we supposed to move?"

"Let me try!" She smooched him again, massaging his lips with her own, almost nibbling on him. She hummed, and he returned the noise.

There was a tiny smack as they pulled apart. "You were right," Astrid stated, her eyes half lidded. "It feels better when we both move."

Hiccup smiled brightly, his chest warm as a soupy feeling swirled in his stomach.

"I have another idea," said Astrid, letting the blanket fall from her shoulders.

"Whatever you want…" Hiccup responded in awe.

Astrid crawled on her knees until she could straddle his legs and sit in his lap. "There. Nice and close. Is this okay?"

Hiccup was about to burst. He felt tingles all the way down to his toes as his body burned. All he could do was nod.

She rested her bum arm around his shoulders and then took the liberty to comb her fingers through his hair, dragging her nails across his scalp.

Hiccup let out a moan he didn't know he was capable of making as a wave of electricity ran down his spine, leaving goosebumps in their wake.

"Did…did that feel good?"

Again, Hiccup nodded. He was overwhelmed. The feeling of her bare thighs against his, her arms on his shoulders. It was all so amazing, so wonderful.

"You can touch me, too. If you want. I don't mind."

But where? He started with her upper arms, slowly sliding up to her shoulders. His breath hitched as he whispered, "your hair is a mess."

"Pft!" She laughed, the most beautiful laugh he'd ever heard. "Are you asking to take it down?"

"There's no point in keeping it up, right?" He managed a cunning smirk.

She smirked back, crinkling her nose. "Fine. Just be careful."

Since she had done it up with one arm, it wasn't particularly ornate. He tugged on the cord gently, and the messing bun unraveled into a fluffy golden mess. He couldn't really run his fingers through it, since there were tangles, but he did play with her hair, petting the silky locks.

Astrid went back to studying him. Her good hand reached forward and brushed his bangs from his face, and smoothed her thumb over his eyebrow.

"You know Hiccup…you're pretty cute."

His mouth felt dry. He had to take a large swallow before he admitted his truth, "I think you're the most beautiful woman in the world."

Astrid blinked several times, before breaking into a smile that utterly destroyed him.

Here, in this lighting, in this state of dress and vulnerability, she looked like a goddess. Hiccup felt so full of emotions, they threatened to leak out his eyes. Was this love? It had to be love! All he knew for certain was that he never wanted this to end. Whatever he had to do to keep her in his life, he would. Whether that was making a contract with her family, or never labeling this thing that they had, it didn't matter. He'd do it. She just needed to say the word.

But he was too much of a coward to say any of this out loud, so he just beheld her. His hands traveled from her shoulders to her back, where his fingers traced her spine.

Astrid released a contented sigh, and leaned forward.

Hiccup prepared for another world shattering kiss, but he was rewarded with her pressing her body against his. Warmth like he had never known sizzled over his skin and he greedily gathered her closer in his arms.

"This is really nice," Astrid breathed, her cheek against his neck.

"I didn't know…how much I needed this." He shamefully admitted.

Astrid hummed, and then admitted herself, "I needed it too." She didn't expect inappropriate teenage experimentation with Hiccup would lead to an emotional embrace, but she wasn't complaining. His honesty solidified it. She trusted him, more than anyone. More than family or any other friend.

She might even love him.

Could she love him? They'd been friends for a few months now. How quickly did love grow? How soon could she know?

This required more experimenting, and perhaps just more time.

Astrid raised her head from his shoulder, and met his eyes. With just a scant smile, she went in for another kiss. He was with her, and met her eagerly. They discovered a new technique, a sort of push and pull, creating a series of little kisses that ended with little smacks. It became a game of tag, as they chased each other's lips.

Hiccup pulled away, breathless.

"Why are you breathing so hard?"

"Excited, but terrified."

Her thumb rolled over his lips. "You don't need to be afraid of me, Hiccup."

He wasn't. He was drunk on her. But he was terrified by tomorrow. Of future heartbreak, of when this would end…and he was terrified of finding out how weak he was for this girl. He always knew he was weak, but Astrid could rip his still bleeding heart from his chest and throw it off a cliff, and he would thank her.

She got back to kissing, before Hiccup pulled away again, a moment later.

"You okay?" She asked as her hand rested against his thundering heart.

"Just had a thought…" Astrid watched as his eyes widened and he cringed. "You know what? Never mind!" He went to kiss her again, but she stopped him.

"What is it, Hiccup?"

"I thought about…trying something. But it's gross, so don't worry about it."

"You want to try something?" Her eyes lit up. Up until now, she was trying things with him. It was about time he tried something with her.

He sheepishly bobbed his head 'yes'.

"Then do it. I trust you. You won't gross me out."

Hiccup took a shuddering breath as he guided her into another kiss. This one was slow, a bit more forceful. And then…

His tongue slid against her lips, very briefly, just to make her acquaintance. She shivered.

"Bad?" He asked.

She shook her head 'No' and dived back in, repeating his action on him.

Hiccup let out a squeak in surprise before pulling Astrid closer to him and allowing his tongue to dare to spoil Astrid's perfect lips again. She met him eagerly, sliding and rolling against his tongue, while her hands greedily felt over his body.

Hesitation left the room, and hormones walked in. The two teens explored with touches and kisses, not saying another word as they went. Astrid ended up sucking on Hiccup's neck at one point, and Hiccup got to squeeze her butt cheeks. It was a kind of intimacy that was rare, where the touch was more about healing and comfort over pleasure. Their underwear stayed in places, and it never elevated into dangerous territory.

Eventually, slightly sweaty and very winded, Astrid and Hiccup collapsed on the blankets, still intertwined in each other's arms.

"Hey," Astrid whispered.

"Hey," he returned.

"This was fun. We should do it again sometime."

"I agree."

"And Hiccup?"

"Hmm?"

"Don't tell anyone, but you're a great kisser."

He smirked. "I had a great practice partner."