Part One: CHANCE

Chapter One

It wasn't supposed to be like this. I wasn't supposed to fall in love. I promised. How could I be so stupid? How could I be so foolish?

I used to think that he loved back. No, scratch that, I hoped he loved me back. I desperately wanted him to fall in love with me the way I did him. But, of course, it just had to end in heartbreak. In tears. In feeling like my heart was smashed into a million pieces, and I just couldn't put them back together. There was no glue in the whole world which could have put me back together. I felt so stupid then. I was just dreaming, and now I had to wake up.

Now I just had to give up on him. Because it was no use crying my eyes out. I was Astrid Hofferson for gods' sake. So why did I still feel so defeated? So . . . broken-hearted?

If only I hadn't taken the job five months ago. My life certainly would have gone a little bit better. Oh, who am I kidding? My life would've been perfect.

××× P.O.V End ×××

Astrid looked up at the building in front of her. Its structure was that of a rectangular box, the walls were painted a bright peach outside - albeit a little bit faded. Windows were placed here and there, and there was a sliding glass door as the main entrance to it.

Furrowing her eyebrows, she looked down at the flyer in her hands. It was advertising that a young entrepreneur - Mr. Haddock - was looking for a personal secretary. Astrid did her research about him and saw that his company was very successful in terms of keeping extinct animals alive and breeding, but that was only part of the job the company specialized in. There was another department for making prosthetics for the disabled. She'd seen photos of some of their prosthetics online, and she had to admit they were good. However, looking up at the building in front of her, it almost seemed as if it were all a lie.

She sucked in a breath and willed herself to enter either way. She needed that job. The flyer claimed to give off three hundred fifty pesos for each day she came to work. She needed the money. She was willing to risk it and take the chance. So she walked to the sliding doors and pulled one open.

The sight which met her eyes was one she knew she'd never forget.

The walls were adorned with beautifully painted murals of dragons flying through the sky. Each and every dragon was so detailed and painted in such a flowing manner that Astrid swore the dragons were moving around her, and she was glad to be stuck in it all. The benches along the sides were a pure white too, making them look like they were made from the clouds. She imagined them to be just as soft.

She looked up. There was a chandelier made of shining yellow alloy and it had the form where it looked like an octupus, but with a light bulb encased in glass on each end. Around it, there was glass, tinted a yellow color, which came from the top of the chandelier and surrounding the chandelier like a gown. Astrid guessed it was made so to look like the sun, judging the dark gold color the light bulbs gave out.

She walked to the front desk, where a pretty young woman with side-braided jet black hair sat typing on a computer. Astrid cleared her throat. The woman looked up and smiled. "I'm Ms. Brown, but you can call me Heather. Do you have an appointment or something?"

"No," Astrid replied, and without saying another word she placed the flyer on the table. Heather nodded and her smile faded a bit.

"Good luck with that job," she said. Astrid could hear the bitterness in her voice that she was trying to keep away. "But Mr. Haddock is picky now after the last secretary screwed up." Astrid swore her smile became sinister, but she didn't hesitate to give one back. Heather frowned. "Mr. Haddock's office is on the third floor, first door to your left. Have a pleasant day."

Astrid hated Heather already, and she rolled her eyes at her the moment she looked away. It was so clear that Heather had some feelings for Mr. Haddock, but they were probably unrequited. Why she wasted her time on him, she'll probably never know. She made her way up the stairs - there wasn't an elevator or an escalator in the building like she expected, but then again she liked the exercise it was giving her.

When she reached the third floor, though, she was panting slightly. Regaining her composture, she immediately noticed two doors on her left and right in the short hallway. She knocked on the one on her left.

"Come in," someone said from behind the door. His voice was slightly deep, but still had that sense of a young boy's voice. Preparing herself to be in a room with a guy, she clenched her fist so she could punch him if he tried something. She entered.

She looked everywhere but at him. Books adorned the walls, there was a window on the side, there was another desk on the side, which seemed almost like a trash can, considering the large amounts of papers which were placed carelessly here and there. The ones pinned onto the walls were what seemed to be drawings.

The walls were painted a soothing shade of brown, the floor two shades darker. Then she finally looked at Mr. Haddock himself.

He was nothing like she expected. She expected him to be a snobby little rich guy with an ego the size of an elephant and a narcissistic personality to match. Instead, he had soft green eyes, a kind smile, and such a relaxed posture that it seemed impossible he was someone who ran a company. He gave off the aura of a laid back and carefree man. But her hand remained clenched, just in case.

"Please sit." His tone wasn't demanding, just soft. But maybe it was just the fact that he said please.

There were two chairs stationed in front of his desk. She sat on one, jaw set, her face expressionless.

"Ms. Brown already informed me you were coming. May I ask you a question?" Mr. Haddock asked, his kind smile never faltering.

She gave a sharp nod, and Mr. Haddock proceeded, "Answer me truthfully. The lobby, was it impressive?"

Her answer was direct. "No, it was not impressive. It actually seemed like a place of freedom in the skies, the dragons on the walls flying around me like they were protecting me. It was not impressive. It was meaningful. They were murals, after all."

Mr. Haddock smiled a little bit wider. "What's your name?"

"Astrid."

He raised a brow. "Your full name. I was asking for your full name."

"It's Astrid," she replied through gritted teeth. "It's a touchy subject, stop asking."

Mr. Haddock sighed and said, "Well, then, I guess I have to introduce myself too. I'm Henry Herald Haddock the Third, call me Henry, and I'm twenty-eight years old. You?"

"Same age," was all she said.

"Perfect, then. From what college did you graduate?" Mr. Haddock pressed on.

Astrid felt herself panicking a little inside. Maybe she wouldn't get the job after all. She never went to school. "No, I never went to college," she said, pushing away all her negative thoughts, "And I never finished elementary either. Don't ask - it's personal."

Mr. Haddock nodded. "But you've had basic education, yes?"

"Yes."

"Current job?"

"Waitress at JJ's Café."

Mr. Haddock merely nodded, and the next few moments were spent in silence as Mr. Haddock - or Henry - debated whether to give her a chance or not. He decided to give her at least one.

"Come here tomorrow morning, five-thirty sharp. I have a meeting with someone at six o'clock, so dress nicely. I give you one chance," Mr. Haddock said holding out a hand.

Astrid stopped herself from beaming, stood and shook the hand Henry held out. "And for the record, Mr. - uh, Henry, I'll call you Hiccup."

He beamed and nodded his approval of the name. Unknown to Astrid, that was the name only friends and family called him. He bid goodbye to her and she left.

The lobby still impressed her while she stepped down the last of steps. The murals which surrounded still knocked her off her feet, and somehow, she loved it. Well, she loved the feeling of it.

She passed by Heather's desk and asked, "You like Mr. Haddock, don't you?"

Heather looked up with a glare and a frown. "Why do you care so much? You want to rub the fact that he doesn't love me back in my face?" she accused, and Astrid scoffed at her sudden hostility.

"I was just asking, Little Miss Know-It-All," Astrid replied, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "But then again, I was just going to ask why you like him so much."

Heather's eyes softened and Astrid thought she was going to cry. "I . . . don't know. I just can't move on, because he's so . . . hot. And sweet." She sighed dreamily, and Astrid regretted asking her such a question. She should've known the girl would say something like that.

"Seriously?" Astrid asked, rolling her eyes. "That doesn't seem like a good enough reason to be in love with him."

She asked herself again and again why she even bothered to talk to Heather.

"What do you know?" Heather sneered, narrowing her eyes at Astrid. "You've only been here for a day."

She shrugged. "I'm leaving. You're sappiness is suffocating me."

"Ugh. So did you get the job? If you did, just know you'll be out the moment you step in, considering that attitude of yours. And maybe Henry would allow me to be his secretary. And we'll have that business kind of romance, where we fall in love as we work together," Heather said, beginning to daydream in the middle of her short speech.

Astrid made a face, looking at the black-haired girl in disgust. "You sicken me with your daydreams. You know that?"

"Who cares?"

Astrid scowled, and turned towards the double doors. "I do, because love is worthless and stupid. And by the way, Heather, just watch me. I will get that job."

Heather raised a brow. "So . . . are you proposing a war for Henry's hand?"

Astrid's scowl deepened as Heather's proposal of fighting for a man's hand registered in her brain. "No, not for Mr. Haddock," she said. "But for personal reasons. Of course, if I did have interest in fighting you, I'm one hundred percent sure you'll lose.

When she walked out, Heather was seething, and the scowl which had formed on her lips just moments aho turned into a victorious smirk.

l~*~*~*~l~*~*~*~l

Astrid had rented a nice little one-story house located in a compound owned by a Ms. Flie or more preferably called "Stormfly" on Nadder Street. It had faded white outer walls and a triangular brown roof. There wasn't much inside except for one bathroom, a built-in kitchen (though she had to pay for the stove) and a small living room where she put a sofa-bed and bought a closet for her clothes. It was like an exposed bedroom.

It didn't seem like a comfortable space for other people to live in, but to Astrid, it was home. And she has lived there for around three years now. However, she forgot to pay rent last month, and after paying up the doubled amount of rent, she became a little low on money.

Before going home, however, she stopped by JJ's Café to tell Josephina Johnson, the store owner, of her change in jobs and the reason why. Josephina, being the kind woman that she was, told Astrid that if she did get the job, she'd get her last paycheck and be able to leave the café. Astrid thanked her.

She spent the rest of the day grocery shopping, and that night she ate some instant noodles for dinner and after brushing her teeth, fell asleep on her sofa bed, as usual. However, the only thing different, was that she was dreaming for once. And all she could see . . . was green.

l~*~*~*~l~*~*~*~l

Hey! Was the Heather part near the end a bit too much? I don't know . . . I really just based it on Heather Report Part 1, where Heather really annoyes the heck out of Astrid. *shrug* And in the fight, I may have messed up a bit, and since I wanted to keep the argument the way it was, I just added the bit on "fighting for Hiccup's hand", where Astrid claims she doesn't have feelings for Hiccup . . . yet. Because saying she did would mess this story up. xD

I hope this chapter did not disappoint, because all you guys who followed/favorited/reviewed really made my inbox full! I hope I made it up to you guys. :)

Anyway, I'd like to take the time to reply to reviews, just because. It feels nice to reply to your reviews. Hehe. :3

I shall call it:

RRT! (Review Reply Time!)

roughgunner: Thanks for the feedback! I'm glad the prologue was delivered well enough - your review certainly made my day. :)

Angryhenry: Is this chapter long enough? I hope it is. I don't want to disappoint. ^-^

Flopi216: I love stories as well. And I love Hiccstrid too! It's actually the reason why I found out about fanfiction in the first place, and I am not kidding! xD

G: A guest review! Ohmigosh. xD Well, I certainly will try not to doubt myself. Thanks for the encouragement - it meant a lot. :D

Special thanks to everyone who favorited/followed this story too! You guys made this first fanfic of mine really memorable. I want to cry. And *drum roll* *tears* I'm crying . . . You guys are AWESOMAZING! :DD *fireworks*