A/N: After some deliberation, I've decided to post this chapter a little early. With how chapter two ended, it felt too much like a cliffhanger for my liking, so you get this.

Here's hoping I can bolster my buffer of chapters again after this.

…

Astrid took a sip of her coffee as she watched Hiccup steel himself to speak.

He was wringing his hands together, clearly agitated by what he was about to say. Finally, he groaned and stood, turning to stare out of the window behind his desk.

"Do you do a patient confidentiality thing or is that just the therapists of the non-physical variety?"

"Yes. All therapists do."

"Really?" He glanced her way and she nodded to confirm it. Then he faced the window again. "Well good, because nobody besides me knows about what I'm going to tell you, and I'd like to keep it that way. How much do you remember from highschool, Astrid?"

She cast her mind back. It didn't take long, because her memories from that time were usually always present. Particularly as of the day before.

"You were bullied."

"I was. And you weren't."

"Guess I got lucky."

Her words were met with a look containing the same fury as earlier on. She blushed, kicking herself mentally. "Sorry. I'll just shut up now. Uh, carry on please."

He shook his head. "Not angry at you. You might be right about that. Snotlout and the twins never did go after any girls as far as I know. Anyway, I don't trust people because of them, but there was another. Do you remember Cami?"

"Yeah, she was on the cheerleading team for Berk Academy wasn't she? How do you know her?"

"We dated in secret for a year."

"Oh. Uh, congrats?"

He glanced at her and shook his head again. "It didn't end well, but she was nice at first."

A smile played on his lips before he continued, staring out the window again. "Compared to Snotlout and the twins, that is."

Hiccup hurried down the stairs from the principal's office on the third floor at Berk Academy for the umpteempth time. Moving as quickly as he was, he had almost reached the second floor before realising he wasn't alone.

He looked at the girl who had been silently moving in step with him. "What do you want, Cami?"

"Just wondering what you're going to do now. Are you going to keep letting them get away with it?"

"Not like I have a choice, do I?" Hiccup snapped, then just as quickly deflated. "Sorry."

"It's okay. Do you want to do something fun? To get your mind off of them?"

"Like what?"

"This," Cami said, before promptly kissing him.

Astrid smirked. "Was there tongue?"

"My, how forward of you, Hofferson. I can't remember, honestly."

Astrid could see the corner of his lips were up again, as he faced away from her. "I don't believe you. You're smiling."

"So what if I am, Hofferson?"

"W-what was that for?" Hiccup squeaked, staring with wide, surprised eyes after Cami pulled away.

"Something to keep your mind off them, like I said," she replied, then smirked as she looked at his face, noting how red he had turned. "I think it worked well. Now, give me your phone."

"W-what?"

"It definitely worked well. Your phone, so you can call me later, or I can call you."

"W-w-why would you need that?"

"Well if you want to date me, you'll need some way to let me know, won't you?"

"Uh…"

Cami sighed. "Alright, stand still," she instructed, then reached a hand into each of his pockets.

Hiccup jerked back almost immediately. "C-cami!"

"I said, stay still!" she snapped back, then pulled away, his phone in her hand. "Alright, now unlock it so I can give you my phone number."

"The rest, as they say, is history. And before you ask, yes, we 'did it'"

Astrid sipped some more of her coffee before responding. "Wasn't going to. But you mentioned that it didn't end well."

Hiccup sighed. "Yeah…"

Hiccup stood motionless, staring blankly at the empty table, the picture of his late mother absent from its surface.

"Hiccup," said a voice.

Hiccup continued staring.

"Hiccup," his father's voice repeated, louder.

Hiccup faced the mountain of a man. "Yeah, dad?"

"Did you have anything to do with this?"

Hiccup's glare was answer enough. "No. Of fucking course not."

Stoick levelled his own stern look at his son. "Then do you know who could have taken her picture, and her ring? Whoever did would have to know where both were kept."

Hiccup's glare intensified at the silent accusation. "Or they were simply good at burgling houses. I think that is much more likely, dad."

"This is serious, son-"

"It is? Allow me to take it more seriously, then. I'm moving out."

"No-"

"I graduated. You can't stop me. And frankly I don't want to stay with you, particularly after you got the idea that I stole my mother's ring and a picture of her. Have fun alone. I'm going to stay with Gobber."

"And that's the most we've said to each other since that day."

Astrid's eyes were wide, though Hiccup didn't turn to look. "I take back everything I said about your dad, yesterday."

He faced her and nodded, face grim. "Apology accepted. I'm sorry for snapping at you yesterday as well. You didn't deserve most of that."

She raised an eyebrow. "Most, huh? How generous."

"I did indicate I wanted to be alone. Baby steps, Hofferson."

"Hey, be nice. I'm keeping your secret from everyone. Speaking of which, what are we?"

"Not dating. There's your answer."

Astrid snorted. "I mean, are we friends or simply colleagues? Because your secret is a big one."

"Friends, I'd imagine. Approaching it, in any case. Do you concur?"

"I don't see why I wouldn't. Or why we can't be friends. Let's go with that."

"Alright then," he conceded as Astrid drank the rest of her coffee in one long draught.

He seems rather well adjusted considering what he told me, and how vicious Snotlout and the twins used to be to him.

One day Astrid, I'll tell you what else happened between me and my dad.

"We should get back to my office just in case Thuggory comes looking for you."

"True. Let's go."

…

Hiccup was walking around the room under Astrid's watchful eye, but as it happened, his prosthetic leg locked up and he stopped moving mid-stride as a cramp hit.

His balance was lost and he would have fallen face first, had Astrid not intervened, recognising the sign almost instantly.

Hiccup could only sigh as he was forced to lean into Astrid and with her help, was navigated to a couch in her office.

He sagged into said couch as she returned to her own perch and resumed her observations of him in silence.

The silence quickly became awkward for Hiccup, so he broke it by speaking. "Well, this is regrettable. I knew phantom pain would return, but I didn't think it would be so soon."

"Suck it up, Haddock. This is likely to happen more than once."

"Taking my line, huh? True friendship at last."

Astrid simply smirked, with Hiccup doing the same before he knew it.

Her smile disappeared a short while later. "Hiccup, I think you might need a better prosthetic to help with your phantom pain a bit better. But first, I want you to get checked out by an Orthotist I know."

"You're the boss. Who do I need to see?"

"Well, she's mute for one thing; just a word of warning. Her name's Guinevere Asp, but we call her Gothi, like the old viking village healers. You don't want to piss her off."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Good. I'll talk to Gothi and ask her to schedule an appointment for you. Now I think that's enough for today's session, don't you? I'll see you again in two days. Call me when you're ready, because I have something else I want to try on that day."

Hiccup nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

After she helped him leave, she returned to her office, sat down and took out her phone.

I think Hiccup and I have an understanding now. Thanks for telling me to be civil with him, Uncle. It worked out great.