Sacrifices

A Perfect Moment

***

"Okay, you got this," Oakley assured herself as she psyched herself up in the mirror. "No big deal. Just... be yourself." StarGazer appeared on the wall beside the mirror, making a few strange sounds. "Right." Oakley thought. "Myself is a freak of nature with superpowers. Maybe not. Ugh!" She groaned. She spun around and slumped on the couch. "Why is this so hard?" She muttered. StarGazer made his way to the coffee table. "I know, Bud. I've never been this nervous around her before but, this is different." She sighed. "With Astrid, I can be a freak of nature. I can be nervous and girly. I can show her that side of me. But, around our friends, I'm a completely different person." She continued. "We agreed to go to the Valentine's party together, but I don't know which Oakley to be."

Knock knock.

Oakley raced to answer the door. She immediately grasped Heather's arm and pulled her inside, shutting the door behind her.

"What took you so long?!" Oakley shrieked.

"You mean other than the fact that I had to fight a freak snowstorm to get here?" She gestured to the window. Oakley's eyes opened wide as she spun to the window to see a flurry of snow, whirling outside. "It's really that bad?" Oakley let out a sigh, closing her eyes to calm the raging winds. "Girl, you have got to relax."

"I can't!" Oakley cried. "That's the problem."

Heather led Oakley to the couch to sit down and left to fetch her a glass of water.

"Okay. Take a breath." She advised. "Now, what is it that's got you so freaked?"

"Astrid asked me to be her date for the party tonight." She exhaled, taking a sip of water.

"You've told me that already." Heather reminded.

"A party. With people."

"Oak, what are you getting at?" Heather wondered.

"I just-" She hesitated. "A lot of people." She sighed.

"You're scared to go public?" Heather thought. Oakley nodded. "I thought you were excited?"

"I was... I mean, I am!" She quickly corrected. "But, things are different now. There's a lot more to lose."

"Hiccup?" Heather realized. "That's what you're worried about?"

"I just don't want to lose him. I can't. I just found him." She rambled.

"Oak, listen to me. Hiccup loves you." Heather assured. "And he's always accepted and supported me. And this won't be any different."

"I wish I could be that sure." Oakley shrugged.

"Oak, what's really going on?" Heather noticed Oakley fiddling with her hands, which were glowing with white magic.

"My life has this tendency to go wrong, just when everything is perfect." She admitted. "I just have a really bad feeling about tonight."

"I'll tell you what..." Heather decided. "Let's just take it one step at a time. Step one, ditch the bath towel and put your dress on, okay?"

"Got it."

***

Heather walked Oakley through it step by step, even helping her with her hair, leaving it flowing free, with the exception of a small braid on either side, leading to a flowery bun at the back of her head. Her dress was pure white, with a golden tie around her middle and golden wrist bracers to match, of course, she was wearing Astrid's locket too. The first dress she had ever worn, and she just hope that Astrid liked it as much as Heather did.