What's Going On

[summing_it_up]

Who: HICCUP and ~* Asssstrid *~
When: Sometime after Astrid's arrival
Where: At the Tower Apartments. Outside. Somewhere.
Summary: Late to Astrid's welcoming party, Hiccup tries to make up for it by meeting her at the baseball diamond and its starter apartments. Confusion ensues.
Warnings: THESE ARE VIKINGS. VIKINGS.

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The amount of dishes being brought in from the front always had a tendency to look like they weren't going down. Even if he had gone through ten, twenty of them at a time, there were still more to get to. He knew he had to finish doing them, but this day suddenly became very important to him.

Astrid - the star Viking pupil in his dragon-training class and the girl of his dreams - was here.

In his haste, Hiccup made it a point to fish out the rock from the bottom of the metal sink, yanking off the apron and shrugging into his fur vest as he sped out the back door of Nibbleheim, making up explanations for his departure as the shouts of his supervisor faded behind him, thin legs sprinting toward the baseball diamond and its apartments.

The distance itself was something he forgot to acknowledge ahead of time, causing his epic run to falter, slowing to a stop. But with his type of persistence, he caught his breath and continued running the rest of the way.

Once the diamond was in sight, all Hiccup had to do was look for the blond girl with the axe in her hand. And she did say she was going to climb a tree. So the best way to go about spotting her was to glance at the trees in the area while calling her name. "Astrid?" The boy jogged, taking in a few calming breaths while green eyes darting back and forth. "Astrid! Hello?"

Comments

[summing_it_up]

The response didn't come instantaneously.

He heard. He understood. But it was still unbelievable to a certain extent. Possible, but...something he wasn't going to see right away. He still needed plenty of time to let it sink in.

With a small sigh, Hiccup leaned his head against the back of the couch. "You are talking to me."

[axetrid]

"...Yeah. I am."

Which really was quite a change from what Hiccup was used to. After all, all of his peers either openly mocked him or shunned him. Astrid herself hadn't exactly been fond of Hiccup either, even if she didn't actively go out of her way to tease him like the others had, but she still didn't think much of him either. How was she supposed to? He wasn't strong, he wasn't like any of them, and he always managed to make a bad situation turn worse.

Yet, despite all this, he'd become the one to save all of them and fix their dragon problem - two birds with one stone, even if it had cost him his leg in the process. While Hiccup hadn't had the sheer strength that a Viking was supposed to possess, he made up for it in brute stubbornness and complete insanity at times, in a good way of course. He'd taught her that being different wasn't exactly a bad thing. Sometimes, it was just what everyone needed.

"Well, I'm sorry for being a jerk. In the past. You kind of deserved it though...but regardless, I'm sorry for it. That's in the past for me and you should put it behind you too." Her fingers curled around the ones in her hands. "Move forward, that's what we do. The future won't be terrible. Technically, we're in it."

The corners of her lips twisted up then, coyness coating her words. "Besides, I've already done more than just talk to you, haven't I?" If the kiss she'd given him earlier wasn't enough of an indication that everything had changed for the better, Astrid wasn't sure what would be.

[summing_it_up]

She had her moments, and her confrontational directness usually made up for all of the jeers the others threw his way. It was just as hard, but he expected nothing less than that. But ever since she got here -- had it only been several hours? -- she had been treating him differently. Somewhat the same, but different.

And she apologized.

He smiled a little. "True enough," he said. "What kind of Viking thinks about the past, right?"

...He did. But that wasn't a major issue.

However, green eyes stared blankly as she reminded him of what she did earlier. It made his nose wrinkle and the freckles fade slightly into a wash of red. His free hand was quickly placed over his face, turning slightly away from Astrid. "Point. Good point. I guess."

[axetrid]

"Of course it's a good point."

As if she'd kiss anyone who she didn't think of as fondly as she did Hiccup. The red tinge to freckle stained cheeks was admittedly cute, as was the way he stuck his hand to his face, almost as if he were willing his palm to suck away the embarrassment he was surely feeling.

"Hey, c'mon. You can't hide forever now." The hands that held the one she'd taken into custody abandoned it, reaching gingerly for the one covering his face. "What kind of Viking are you if you hide away like that?"

Then again, this really was difficult for Hiccup. She had to keep reminding herself that his level of confidence in himself was probably below sea level. Fingers had curled around his wrist then, giving it a gentle tug but not enough to pull the hand away.

[summing_it_up]

Of course it was embarrassing. Having to admit his crush to his crush and actually gaining that unexpected reciprocation happen was stuff that he had further down the line on his list of things to be awesome at. He really didn't have a chance at this stage, being him, and this was sort of cheating the system.

But not like that could be helped now. As his hand was taken away, he pressed his face into the cushioning. Still, he glanced over at her again, puffing out his cheeks. "I'm a terrible one, but I have plenty of time to get up to speed through other means."

[axetrid]

"Hey. You're not terrible." Hands to cheeks then, pushing them in as he puffed them out, squishing his face gently. Hiccup really was big on self depreciation, wasn't he? That was something that would have to be worked on. It wouldn't come quickly, Astrid knew that much. Old habits died hard, after all. Still, it wasn't impossible.

"Sure, you're not really like the rest of us, but that's not a bad thing." She said, now cupping his cheeks rather than mushing them together. "You've got the...spirit. The crazy spirit. The stubbornness. Those kinds of qualities all good Vikings have. Plus you're smart, too. You solve problems using your head and I don't mean that literally."

Just because some Vikings favoured headbutting their problems square in the face didn't mean there weren't other ways one could put their heads to use.

"We didn't know it, but we all needed a little more of...this." She gestured toward him with a nod. "Myself included. Especially now, here in this place."

[summing_it_up]

"Yeas, I ahm," he replied, his face poked, then molded between Astrid's hands. His gaze remained half-lidded all the while, looking normal once she was done mushing his features together.

Another sigh escaped him, but he was listening to what she was saying. Each point was made, and it was definitely different from what most Vikings would do in similar circumstances.

He then frowned. "You just gestured to all of me..."

[axetrid]

"Exactly." The smile that had crept onto her face held a certain sentimental touch to it then as she gazed at Hiccup fondly. It was an expression the boy before her would see as completely foreign, at least on Astrid. She liked to furrow her brows a lot, after all. That didn't mean she couldn't be sweet and cheery too, she was just...a little intense about it. Like she was with everything she did.

"That's what I need here. You, Hiccup. Okay?"

Vikings were hardy, brutal people. Ones that could survive even in the most dire of circumstances. Would she be able to survive on this island without him? Of course. She was a Viking. Would she be happy to, however? Probably not. The city they'd been cast into was just as exciting as it was frightening - having someone to face off against it, someone who you knew and could trust, someone who you could depend on to always stick with you, well, at least most of the time, was something Astrid wouldn't trade for anything. Hiccup was important. All of him.

He just couldn't see it yet.

[summing_it_up]

It was a different setting. A place where more civilized methods were put into practice along with the roughness and danger Vikings were use to seeing. And he had the best of both worlds. It was going to take longer to change his views, but with what he's learned so far, it's paying off.

One thing was for certain as well: Hiccup wasn't alone here. And while that was worrisome, it was also fine. Astrid was capable of taking care of herself. She just needed help adjusting. She was at least willing to go through with that.

After a pause, he resigned himself to this fate with a tired shrug.

"Okay."

[axetrid]

"Good." Giving him one last glance over Astrid slid her hands away from Hiccup's freckle spotted cheeks. "Chin up too." With that, the discussion of events past and those to come, Astrid moved to stand, straightening her skirt on her hips.

"I think I'm going to go take a nap, alright? All of this has been rather exhausting. My brain feels like it's going to melt."

[summing_it_up]

Chin up. Easier said than done, but it was worth a try. One month didn't kill him. Not yet, anyway. There was still much to go over with Astrid, but that could wait until later.

Hiccup nodded, tilting his head to the side as he involuntarily sprawled out over the couch. "A nap. That sounds like a great idea."

[axetrid]

"Great."

One last smile was flashed toward Hiccup before Astrid moved toward the hall that would take her to their room.

"I'll see you after and we can get something to eat. Have a good one."

[summing_it_up]

A hand limply waved, his neck craned to see how far she had gone. But he didn't need to respond. Everything had already been set. A nap and then food. That wasn't a bad combination.

With a sigh, Hiccup let his hand drop over his chest. Green eyes slowly closed as he drifted off, letting the earlier conversation become the backdrop for some strangely gratifying dreams.