Open My Heart

Trouble with the Police

Astrid's P.O.V.

"What do you mean you can't do anything about it?" Hiccup shouts, standing up in his seat.

I stand with him and place a hand on his shoulder, hoping to calm him down, just a little. Thought with the amount of rage going through him, I doubt I'd be able to do anything. Thanks to the daycare workers, we know Merida took Heaven but apparently, that's not enough to get the police involved.

"My ex-wife took my daughter! She's not on the pick-up list and I have full custody over her. If you'd like to check my facts," He continues, "Ask the judge."

"Sir, we need you to calm down. Please," The officer asks, standing firmly in their place.

"Calm down?!" There he goes again... "You want me to calm down? My DAUGHTER is MISSING! She was supposed to be at the daycare and she wasn't. I know exactly who took her and I cannot get in contact with her. I need to get my daughter back!"

"Sir-"

"Don't try to give me a lame excuse. Find my daughter!"

"Hiccup!" I shout, getting between him and the officer. "Hiccup, we won't get anywhere if we're shouting. I'm sure they'd love to help us but they can't if we keep cutting them off." I place a hand on his cheek, drawing it down to meet my gaze. He breathes heavily as he stares at me. "We need to calm down, just a little bit okay?"

Hiccup closes his eyes and leans in, releasing a big breath. I wrap my arms around him and let him pull me as close as he needs. The officer gives me a slight motion before stepping out of the room, giving us some privacy. With a hand in his hair, I pull him closer, letting him know that I'm here.

"I want her back, Astrid..." he whispers, barely loud enough for me to hear.

I hug him tighter. "I know me too. And we'll get her back. The police will help us."

"But they refuse to help, Astrid," He states, pulling away. "They don't see anything wrong with her biological mother."

"That's because they don't know her like we do. We have to help them see that. They may not check it if we're raging at them."

He pulls away and takes a seat on the couch in the room. His head falls in his hands as a groan escapes his lips. Frustration runs through his body as he aggressively runs his hands through his hair. Taking a breath, I walk over and sit next to him.

"This-this is killing me, Astrid. I don't know where she is, how she is, what she's doing. I don't know anything. I don't even know if she's getting any love from her. She's probably being treated terribly right now and I'm not there to stop it," His voice cracks as tears slowly start to trickle down his cheeks.

My heart breaks at the sight and I pull him into a tight hug. "Remember, she's a strong, brave little girl. And even though we may not like it, Merida is still her mother. I don't think Merida is going to do anything drastic. She might try and be the mother she never was."

Silence fills the space around us as my words dig in. He tightens his grip as each word sinks in. "She shouldn't have to be strong or brave. She should just be able to be herself." He whispers.

"I know... but right now we can't protect her like we want to. So while she's there, doing whatever it is she feels she needs to do, we need to keep our hopes up. She knows we'll never stop looking for her. And I know we won't stop till she's in your arms. But in the meantime, we can't go raging around like a madman. We need to be patient, not just with each other but also with those helping us."

His grip tightens before he pulls away, eyes red from emotion. I gently wipe away his tears and plant a gentle kiss on his forehead before running a hand through his hair. A hand on his cheek has him leaning into the touch and kissing my wrist.