A/N: So sorry this took so long! But here it is! I'm not giving up on this story, even though it may take awhile to upload chapters, and thank you to all of you who have stuck with me during this! A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all! :)

"Sir?" Astrid stepped forward, the word hanging in the air.

There was silence for a moment as Hiccup left the arena, leaving Viggo alone with the Five. "You did well, Astrid," Viggo congratulated with a single nod of his head, though his expression remained stoic. "If everything goes according to plan, you will soon take his place."

Astrid bowed her head in respect. "Yes, sir," she said.

'You will soon take his place…'

Those words made circles in Hiccup's mind as he walked away from the arena. Master Grimborn must've known that Hiccup had heard him say it, otherwise he wasn't as smart as Hiccup had known him to be. The teacher had then gone on to say more, but Hiccup had turned him out by that point, unable to take any more of it.

Hiccup kicked a rock in his path across the dirt ground. He had to have looked so stupid, and in front of his idols, no less. So, it was decided...this had to be the worst day of his life so far. He kicked the rock once more, and only looked up when he heard a sharp splash.

There was a small pond just a few feet away from where he stood, and Hiccup walked over to it and knelt down before the musty water, then he looked down into it. Though only faintly seen, his reflection stared back at him, and Hiccup frowned in disappointment. Who was he kidding? Even if he did happen to earn Master Grimborn's favor by some miracle, what about the rest of the people?

With a sigh, Hiccup stood and flung off most of the mud that had stuck to his pants. He had to prove himself, but how? Just as he moved to take a step, his foot slipped out from under him on the soft ground, and an even more violent splash rang out in the silence.

Okay. Here goes nothing.

Hiccup took a careful step into the dark hall, gentle drops of water falling off of him and onto the ground rhythmically. On either side of him, separated by thin wooden walls, were the sleeping quarters of the Five.

Why did they have to put mine at the very end? He winced as the wooden boards creaked under him. He had no idea why the floor made such noise in the sleeping quarters, especially under such small weight, but he could ask later when he didn't have to worry about waking everyone up. The last thing he needed was for Astrid to see him dripping wet, where a lot of uncomfortable questions would be raised.

He had tried to stay away from everyone until he had dried off, but by the time he had clambered out of the pond, the sun had already started its descent, not to mention it had just happened to be cloudy. Oh, how the gods hate him.

Hiccup kept moving, slowly but surely, to his own room, and when he finally made it with his hand on the door handle, he let out a breath of relief. He swung it open, then froze.

Sitting on the ground with books and papers strewn about him, was Fishlegs, now staring up at him with wide eyes.

"Oh, um, I-I'm so sorry. I thought this was my room," Hiccup stuttered out quickly, his face growing redder by the second.

Fishlegs gave him a small smile, but Hiccup could see right through it. "It's fine," the warrior said. "I think yours is the next one over that way." Fishlegs gestured to his right, and Hiccup mentally facepalmed. He wasn't at the very end, but one away from it, which made his room closer to the entrance than he had first thought.

"Oh, right, okay," Hiccup nodded. "I'll just, um...go to bed then." He watched as Fishlegs' eyes moved to the floor, and Hiccup looked down. How in Thor's name was he still soaked enough to make a puddle on the floor?

"I'm so sorry," he said, swiping his boot over the water, but he only succeeded in making a streaked stain.

"It's okay," Fishlegs said. "It's just water. No worries."

"Goodnight then, I guess," Hiccup said after a short pause.

"Goodnight."

Hiccup carefully closed the door, then buried his head in his hands. "So stupid," he mumbled.

When he took a step back, he felt himself run into something, and he gasped and swerved around. "Oh! Hi...Astrid." He spoke the name with a sound of defeat as his shoulders slumped. The one person he had hoped he wouldn't run into, and there she was.

Luckily, Astrid was busy eyeing her shirt in disgust, and Hiccup noticed that he had passed some of the water on his clothes over to her.

This day just keeps getting better and better, he thought sarcastically.

"What happened to you?" Astrid asked him suddenly, and the venom in her voice made Hiccup wish he could sink into the floor.

"Freak rainstorm," Hiccup lied hurriedly. "You should've seen it! I mean, there was lightning and everything! Are you sure-?"

"You don't belong here," Astrid interrupted.

"Um...what?" Hiccup frowned, taken aback by the sudden statement.

"If you have any respect for me and the rest of the Dragon's Five, you will go back to your blacksmithing and leave us to do as we were meant to," Astrid finished, and with those final words hanging in the air, she turned around and walked back into her room, closing the door behind her.

Hiccup looked down at the floor in defeat, watching as another drop fell from his hair.

A/N: Oof! Poor Hiccup! Things will start looking brighter soon!

Until next time!