Symphony of Shadows

19. Stars

Astrid had never been good at making friends. She was always too blunt, too busy, or too good to be friends with anyone around her. It also didn't help that she intimated most who she came across and the few she didn't scare away weren't necessarily the pick of the litter. When Fishlegs, Snotlout, Ruff, and Tuff were assigned to put out fires alongside her, she hadn't thought much of it. There hadn't been many other kids on Berk so her social circle had been pretty limited. The conversations she had with her group definitely weren't enlightening but they were vikings that she would inevitably spend the rest of her life with and fight alongside so she stuck around. Truthfully, the only reason that she had gotten so close with Ruff was that she was so persistent. Every day, rain or shine, Ruff would chat up a storm in Astrid's ear. Either in the Mead Hall or walking to the woods to train, Ruff would chatter on an on about everything under Odin. When the next merchants would come, what her favorite yak food was, how annoying Tuffnut was and more. Astrid would lash out and tell her to shut up and leave but Ruffnut would show up the next day and keep jabbering. Eventually Astrid found comfort in Ruff's extroversion and decided that it wouldn't hurt to have one friend. She was fine with having only one friend for the rest of her life.

But then Hiccup was resurrected. Thinking that seemed like a cruel joke from Loki himself but it was true. Hiccup was alive. He was alive and well. More than well actually, he was thriving. For a second after meeting him, Astrid had wanted to punch him. How dare he make her go through all of that guilt and mourning when he had been just fine all along? She had refrained because she didn't want to send the wrong signal and have him flee. They weren't that close when he...left. She had felt so happy that Hiccup was alive, she also wanted to cry tears of joy and relief. Seeing him was like seeing a ghost and she only believed he was real when they were palm to palm. It was like the gods had given her a second chance and she was not going to waste it being apathetic.

It wasn't hard trying to get to know Hiccup. He was really witty and awkward but in a cute way. Not that she though he was cute, he had just grown into his features like they all had. When they were younger Astrid always thought he had been whiny so she hadn't held much respect for him but hearing that he was researching dragons and trying to improve on his own really impressed her. She had never met someone as ambitious as Hiccup and felt happy for him that he had finally found his calling. Astrid secretly wanted to watch him take down a dragon and see how his style differed from hers. Maybe she would suggest they would go back to Berk and he could help her with the raids but it would be selfish of her. She could just imagine them fighting side by side, almost like a dance of fire and blade between the two of them, it made her heart flutter. And the way that he had been so gentle with her after her...episode...she felt comfortable around him. She didn't fully trust him but it had been a good start.

Astrid had only experienced a few of those meltdowns before, they had first started after Outcast Island and she thought Odin had come to cast her to Hel. It had taken all her strength to get herself off of the floor onto her bed where she promptly fell asleep and had more nightmares. She didn't like to think about that time in her life often as it made her feel weak and Astrid wasn't weak. She was strong, she had to be strong for herself, for her family, and for Berk. Hiccup hadn't asked why she had been like...that...and she appreciated it more than she could communicate it to him. She felt this...warmth around him and she truthfully couldn't wait to see him again. Staring at the gorgeous bracelet he had gifted her, she felt the corners of her mouth lift and she couldn't help but think of how easily he had made her laugh.

But she should not be thinking of that, no, she had more important things to tend to like that moronic dragon rider. She straightened her spine and tightened her grip on the helm of her boat, mentally evaluating every piece of information she had about the elusive man. It had been a few hours of sailing and the stars had been accompanying her as she made her way back to Berk but she could feel her stomach twisting. She Astrid had been away for a day and she had no leads and no updates. Failing to spot any clues had made her leave the Market earlier than she planned as someone had obviously tipped off the dragon rider and it would be a while before he would be back.

Besides, she was more useful on Berk where she could see him during the raids and get clues on his behavior. How he flew, what his armor was made out of, and what relationship he had with the other dragons were all important clues that she could use to track him down. She was a bit worried Ingrid would be disappointed that her trip had been fruitless, well if they only knew that Hiccup was alive, that part of her trip certainly hadn't been meaningless. It broke her heart that she couldn't tell Stoick that his som was alive but she would run the risk of not only losing Hiccup but also losing the respect of the tribe for raising 'false' rumors. While he hadn't explicitly told her not to tell anyone at Berk he was alive, she couldn't betray him like that, she had earned his trust and couldn't live with herself if she lost him again. Hearing how he had really felt at Berk had left her speechless and she just couldn't imagine the suffering he had gone through. It made her like him that much more that he was able to forgive her and even call her a friend.

She had felt insecure after he had to console her and thought he would want to stop being her friend after seeing that she was crazy but he had gone and given her a bracelet. Entirely the opposite of what she had predicted his reaction to be. It had made her think that she maybe she didn't need to be strong around Hiccup...she could just be Astrid. Hiccup liked Astrid and when confronted with the worst version of her... he had wanted to help her. When she had set sail, never in a thousand centuries would she have thought that she would have ended up reuniting with Hiccup while cutting a man who had attacked her.

Astrid's eyelids began to betray her and she had to slap herself to stay awake. It had to be past midnight, she had endured a long day full of ups and downs so she was truly drained. She couldn't wait to fall down on her bed and let sleep take her under. She hadn't felt this bone-deep tired in a while and guessed it was better than the insomnia that had plagued her often. In the morning she would meet with Stoick and Ingrid to report what little she had learned and plan her next steps.

In the distance, she could see the faint glow of the lit torches on Berk and her heart began to race which only meant one thing. No, no, this couldn't be happening. She could do nothing but wait as the boat drew nearer and nearer to the docks where she could now see vikings running about and the flames of the beast lighting the night sky. As soon as she got in jumping distance, she leaped onto the deck, moored the bot, and ran as fast as she could up the stairs leading to the village. What she saw was chaos unfolding before her. Tuffnut was chasing a Gronckle with a mace while screaming his head off and a couple other vikings were trying to cast a net over a group of Deadly Nadders that seemed set on torching them all.

They clearly needed help so Astrid kicked into action and took out her axe. For Berk.