We Go To Extremes

Chapter 3: Bedridden

A/N: Here's the fourth chapter! Sorry this one didn't get out earlier, I've had a lot of school work to do. It has been exhausting for me. I was also experiencing writers block, so I had to restart this chapter many times. Remember to vote and comment on the story, and thank you for for all the reads! Enjoy~!

Astrid's POV:

I could barley remember a thing. All that came to mind when I looked back at my time in the forest was pain. I vaguely remember something sounding like an axe being sharpened. Or the quick flash of orange and purple. After that, nothing really...

"Mmmh." I groaned as something picked me up off the cold ground. I wanted to fight back and protest, to be able to defend myself from the potential danger. It was like instinct. But I couldn't even open my eyes, much less defend myself.

After only a few minutes of not knowing if I was in peril or not, I worked up the energy to open my eyes.

Not surprisingly, when I opened my eyes everything was blurry. My sight had been off like that since I had fallen off Stormfly. It wasn't too bad, so I didn't bother anyone with it, as they had much more important things to do.

My sight was worse than before, but not by much. I could roughly make out the image of Hiccup. He was right in front of me and it looked like he was talking. I strained my ears and I could hear his muffled questions.

I tried to respond, but I couldn't find the energy or strength to do so. Before I knew it, my vision tilted upwards and back. And soon after I blacked out.

---

I woke up on the hard wood of a bed. There was no pillow under my head, but there was a small blanket, covering my waist and legs.

The first thought that came to mind was, where am I? I got my answer soon after, as I opened my eyes and immediately recognized the familiar space of Gothi's hut through my blurried vision.

I tried using my arms to push myself into a sitting position. As soon as I put weight on my right arm, I collapsed, a searing pain shot up that arm. I gasped in surprise. I hadn't expected that.

"Astrid!" Hiccup's relieved voice reached my ears, as he quickly made his way to the bed. "Here let me help."

He gently put his arm under my back and pushed me upright. I set my left hand on the bed to help keep me sitting up.

As soon as I lifted my head and we met eyes, all the pain came crashing onto me. I doubled over suddenly, my stomach felt like it had been stabbed, my legs were on fire, my head was throbbing, and my arm was aching painfully.

"Woah! Astrid, are you okay?" Hiccup asked. Worry etched every feature of his face.

My breaths came in and out ragged and uneven. Hiccup crawled up on to the bed and gently held me as I suffered through the pain. After a moment or two, through what felt like an eternity, the pain started to fade to a dull throb. Me and Hiccup just stayed in that position, finding comfort and love in each others hold. 

I let out an involuntary whimper. I could feel Hiccup's face knit in concern. He turned me around and we met face to face.

Every corner of him was encompassed with worry. "Astrid... what happened?" He asked.

I cocked my head to side in question. "What do you mean?" I replied. I was surprised to hear my voice; it was scratchy and horse. I could barley hear myself, yet Hiccup seemed able to know exactly what I said.

"What happened in the forest? What did this to you?"

I wasn't exactly sure what he meant. The pain was mostly at bay as of the moment. Sure I was hurt, but being alone in the woods with the rain was bound to bring injuries.

I decided to reply to the question I knew the answer to. "When we were-" I paused to clear my throat, it was still horse, "-when we were searching the forest, I-I saw Stormfly... in the trees, she was just standing there, staring at us..."

I shivered at the memory. I knew I should have waited and informed the others before approaching, but I didn't want to lose the chance.

Hiccup sat up a little straighter on the bed. "If she was out in the woods last night then we should go search for her."

I nodded my head in agreement and prepared to lift myself off the bed. I felt weaker then usual. Like really weak. And tired.

"Oh no, you are staying here, in bed, and resting," Hiccup stated firmly. When I still tried getting up he held me down by my shoulders. I was surprised when he was able to keep me down. I've always been stronger than him, and this task should have come easily.

Even with my show of weakness I tried to protest, "Hiccup, she's my dragon..." I said, my voice cracked at the end. "And anyways, I'm fine, so I'm going to come with you," I said sharply, in a monotone voice.

"Astrid you are anything but fine. Your arm is in even worse condition than before. You probably have a big bump on your head. You have two bruised ribs. And I doubt you can even walk as it is."

I couldn't help but feel aggrieved as he listed off my visible injuries. It was like he was insulting my ability to help myself. I was more than capable of doing that.

I looked down from the oblivion I had stared into. The blanket was a dull green-grey color and had rough, ragged edges. My hand hovered over it for a split second before folding the sheet over.

The deep and wide cuts littering both legs were still red, but not bleeding. I immediately felt nauseous at the horrible sight, and the pain started to come back as I focused on my legs. Each and every cut was long, wide, and achingly deep. They stopped just below my hips, and even my feet weren't spared.

I could feel Hiccup's eyes move between my legs to my face and back again. It was obvious he was worried about how I would react. I payed no mind to him and instead attempted to move my legs. The right leg moved just fine, painful, but fully functional.

The left leg however was a different story. It wouldn't follow the commands I made. It just stayed there, limp and unmoving. I couldn't even feel it.

Hiccup let out an exasperated sigh as I continued in my attempts to move my leg. "Astrid, you can't even move your leg, let alone walk. You're not going to go looking for Stormfly." I knew he was right, but it hurt to hear it out loud.

"Hiccup... I'm worried. What if we never find her?" My voice started to break again, as I voiced my thoughts aloud.

"We will Astrid. We'll find her." Hiccup hugged me again trying to calm my nerves. My mind screamed at me about how useless I'm being, sitting here, reminiscing about what could happen, instead of actually going out and doing something. But as of the moment I had no choice.

And besides, I liked being held in Hiccup's arms. It gave me a sense of security and comfort I've never felt from anyone else before.

I lightly lifted my head from Hiccup's chest, tears staining my cheeks. "Okay." I said plainly. It wasn't like me to give up so easily so quickly, but our situation demanded we make some sacrifices.

Hiccup smiled down on me, clearly relieved I would be out of harms way. "I'll go get the other riders. I promise we'll find her, Astrid. You don't have to worry about a thing," he said.

With that he got up and exited through the door.

I sat there for hours, wondering how the search was progressing. Gothi had come up to me several times within the hours of waiting, and offered me some food.

I declined. I felt like I would throw up if I ate anything.

I sat there in worry till past nightfall. I was seriously injured in the time span of less than a single night.

I couldn't even begin to imagine what could happen to Hiccup or anyone in twenty-four hours.

As midnight neared, my eyelids began to fall. I was exhausted and needed rest. Soon I gave in to the impending sleep my body craved.