Rider on the run

Girl Talk

Astrid was wandering on the shore, away from the camp. She needed some space for now. Her thoughts kept wandering back to a certain Dragon rider, making her feel worse. Even with the reassurance of her friends, Astrid couldn't have as much faith in her fate.

Her eyes were fixed on the waves crashing on the seashore while she walked along the sandy shore. She thought about the meeting she had with Hiccup's friends. She was unsure how to feel at their reassurance that they will talk to Hiccup. On one hand, she was hopeful that she might be able to fix her relationship with Hiccup. But on the other hand, she was scared that Hiccup might not ever forgive her for that.

Suddenly, she heard a twig snap behind her. Astrid spun around, her body getting into a fighting stance out of instinct. But then she noticed the intruders. The intruders were none other than Camicazi and Heather. Their dragons stood not too far behind them.

"Hey." The raven haired girl greeted.

"No need to get feisty. We're just here to talk." Camicazi said.

Astrid relaxed a bit at the declaration, but kept her guard up.

"You're Astrid Hofferson right?" Heather asked.

"Yeah...." Astrid replied, unsure of where this was going.

"Oh, we've so much about you from Hiccup. Most of them are actually good things. He actually said a lot about you, before all this.... Uh, mess happened." Camicazi said with a little awkwardness.

Heather glanced at her friend and slightly shook her head in disappointment. She then looked back at Astrid.

"Would you mind if we join you?" Heather asked her.

Astrid, despite feeling really awkward about all this, agreed to it. Camicazi and Heather joined her in the walk and the trio of girls strolled along the shore, while Camicazi and Heather's Dragons were playing on the beach.

"So, how do you know Hiccup?" Astrid asked.

"Oh, well, I met Hiccup when I was a kid. Chief Stoick brought him to my island during a peace treaty signing. We quickly became friends." Camicazi said.

"As for me, Hiccup rescued me from an Outcast ship. I stayed with him for sometime before we found out that Dagur is my brother. I then moved in with him." Heather said.

"Guess, you both had some happy memories with him from the beginning." Astrid quietly said, remembering all the bad encounters she had with Hiccup during their younger years.

The girls were quiet for some time before Camicazi spoke,"He still loves you, you know."

"Huh?" Astrid looked up at the heiress.

"Hiccup. He still loves you. No matter how hard he's trying to deny it, deep inside he still has feelings for you." Camicazi repeated.

"You might not feel like it, Astrid. But believe us. We know Hiccup better." Heather said "He's hurt Astrid. He thinks that you betrayed him, but he can't let go of you."

Astrid looked up at both of them. A hundred thoughts ran through her mind after hearing what they said. "Oh Gods....." She gasped out "It's, it's my fault. If I..." Before Astrid could continue further, Heather came forward and grabbed her by her shoulders. She gently shook the shieldmaiden while calling her name, snapping her out.

"Astrid, listen to me." Heather said "I know you feel guilty. But you can't change the past. What is done is done. The only thing you can do now is move forward and try to correct your mistakes."

"She's right. You can't let your guilt crush you." Camicazi added.

"But how can I fix this?"

"You're a strong person Astrid. And I'm sure that you will make it through this." Heather said. Her warm smile gave Astrid a much needed reassurance.

"Th-Thanks." Astrid said, thankful for their friendly gesture.

"And Hiccup can't resist you for long anyway. He has got a thing for blondes." Camicazi said.

"Oh really? I remember him preferring girls with darker hair too." Heather said, her attention at the heir of Bog-Burglar.

"Wait, how do you two know Hiccup's preference in women?" Astrid asked.

"Oh, well, you see...." Heather began, but Camicazi beat her to it. "We both had dated Hiccup in the past." The heiress bluntly said.

"What!?" Astrid couldn't help but exclaim.

"Cami!" Heather snapped at her friend.

"What? She would have learnt about this someday." Camicazi said. She then turned her attention back to Astrid "And don't worry girl. Hiccup and I didn't work out quite well. We soon got busy with our duties and responsibilities and later realised it was better to end it all."

"As for me, I and Hiccup dated for a while but then realised we weren't exactly attracted towards each other in that way. Our relation was more of a brother-sister like. So, we broke up." Heather admitted.

"Still, I won't mind getting back with that hunk." Camicazi suddenly said.

"Camicazi!" Both Heather and Astrid snapped at her.

"Oh don't worry Astrid. I won't try to steal Hiccup away from you. But then again, I can't promise I won't try something." Camicazi said, with a mischievous smile plastered on her face.

"You better not." Astrid said in a feisty tone.

Beside them, Heather giggled at the interaction between those two blondes. "Yup, Hiccup found a good one for himself." The raven haired girl thought as she watched the banter between Camicazi and Astrid with amusement.