Tangled Vows

Chapter 2

Everything was a mess.

Astrid couldn't even remember the drive home as she was too wrapped up in her own thoughts and worries to care about the world around her. Luckily, Eret was driving so she didn't have to worry about potentially killing someone whilst her mind was melting away in a whirlpool of fearful tragedy.

It was crazy. This whole scenario that she was having to deal with was insane. 

Just when she had thought she had left everything about that place, now she was having to go back. Back to Berk. it had been three years since she had been there, and she had never had any intentions of going back. Even though her family still lived there.

Astrid wanted the big city life, she wanted to live on her own, independent from her family and the life that they had in Berk. Astrid didn't want that for herself, she was happy with what she had in the city, with Eret.

Knowing that she would have to return, knowing that there was no other way, filled her with dread and panic. A mixture of emotions that she had never felt towards Berk before. But perhaps those emotions mainly stemmed from the hatred of having to meet Hiccup again, after they had ended their friendship so bitterly all those years ago.

Astrid wasn't sure she was ready to face him yet.

Unfortunately, the universe did.

So, that was why Astrid was packing herself a bag for the trip over to Berk. It was a long way away, and Astrid wasn't sure how long she would need to be there. A day? A week? It was a wild guess at this point, and that wasn't even taking into account whether or not Hiccup would even be helpful and sign the papers or not.

She couldn't think of any reason why he wouldn't. Presumably, he would hate having to be married to her any more than she did. But when it came to Hiccup, Astrid could never really tell what went on in his head.

"I can go for you." Eret offered, leaning against the doorframe with arms folded. Astrid sighed as she folded another shirt and packed it into the large backpack she was going to be taking.

"No, it's okay. I can do this by myself."

"Are you sure? I don't mind, especially if you guys ended things badly. He might not appreciate you showing your face near him." Eret tried again to convince her to stay. But Astrid was stubborn, it was one of the few traits that hadn't changed about her.

"Eret, I'll be fine. If Hiccup is going to be argumentative or stubborn, I can handle him. I've known him for basically my whole life. I can handle him." She assured her fiance with certainty.

"Then, if you don't mind me asking, why haven't the two of you talked in three years?"

Astrid paused in her packing as the question hit her, her fingers tightening around the shirt in her hands as the memories of that day rolled through her head. It was the one moment in her life that she was the least proud of, and something that she had always regretted. But it was done, and as much as Astrid was willing to apologise about it, she knew it wouldn't erase what had been said.

"It doesn't matter," Astrid shrugged off the question, re-folding the now creased shirt and packing it away. "Look, I can do this. I'm sure it won't take long, and I'll be back before you know it." Astrid assured him, giving Eret a short, hesitant peck on his forehead.

"Okay, I suppose I'll have to trust you."

"Thank you."

"You sure you don't want me to go instead? Get this whole thing sorted out for you?" Eret pushed once more, not wanting Astrid to leave without him anywhere he couldn't keep an eye on her.

But Astrid was adamant, "Eret, this whole marriage thing, it's my thing to deal with. It's my mistake, I have to go fix it. On my own."

"You don't want me to come with you?" Eret offered, already knowing the answer but trying anyway.

Astrid sighed, shaking her head softly in exasperation. "Eret, I'll be fine. I can do things on my own. I can handle myself. Besides, it's my hometown. I know where I'm going."

"I know, it's just... I'm worried about you." Eret grabbed her hand and held it tightly in his, holding it up to his chest to tear Astrid's attention away from her packing to focus on him.

Although it was romantic, and if she wasn't so preoccupied with thoughts and memories of Hiccup, and the growing anxiety of having a train to catch, Astrid would be more than willing to throw herself into Eret's arms. 

Yet, with the way things were at that moment, she couldn't find anything romantic. Eret's touch did little to soothe her anxious thoughts, despite how much they had done so in the past. It seemed as though this anxiety and worry was not something temporary and embodied something much stronger than she had ever experienced before.

"Eret, I promise you, I'm coming home when I can. I'm going to marry you, nothing about that is going to change. This whole thing is just a big misunderstanding and wild hangover three years in the making." Astrid chuckled slightly, easing some of Eret's worried expression. "It was a mistake that I made, and I intend to fix it, whether Hiccup is ready to see me or not."

It was her assertion and confidence in the matter that finally forced Eret to let go, dropping her hand out of his grasp and letting out a sigh of defeat. Taking a seat on the bed, he watched her pack the last of her things into the bag, making sure that she had packed every essential item she needed, and making sure her phone was charged before she went and walked out the door.

"Do you want me to drive you to the train station?" Eret offered, somehow being able to sense the immense swirl of anxiety making its way through Astrid's body.

She smiled and accepted the offer, walking towards the car and waiting for Eret to accompany her. It would be a long journey, after all, Berk was in the middle of nowhere, with no train directly to it, but Astrid was determined to make the journey. With the annulment documents burning a hole in her pocket, Astrid was certain that she could convince Hiccup to sign these papers, no matter what.

She would do anything to be separated from him, once and for all.