Symphony of Shadows

28. Mundane

A/N: Guess who found inspo to write? Me! Enjoy:)

She was alive. Astrid was alive.

Those were the only thoughts that raced through his mind the entire week. Hiccup didn't particularly like the brain fog that came from thinking about Astrid, but he welcomed it gladly now that his anxiety eased over her condition. He went through the motions of his daily tasks—mainly tinkering with some new inventions, health checkups on any dragon that needed one, the occasional pillaging (the nonviolent kind), and hunting with the flock.

Five years ago, it would have been Hiccup's dream to be accepted by a flock of dragons and do whatever he wanted, to fly as much as he liked, eat whatever he liked, and say whatever he liked. But now, he wasn't so sure. His days were becoming emptier and emptier, like his actions were devoid of any real meaning. For some reason he always thought that going solo would mean he could be a vigilante with all sorts of cool adventures and discoveries, but that couldn't be farther from reality. The truth was that it was a lonely existence. Yes, the dragons were his friends (really his only friends other than Astrid), but he just wished he could have a conversation with someone.

Laugh with someone.

Share his day with someone.

It was getting harder and harder to suppress the ache in his chest for something more. Something meaningful.

"Rooooo."

Toothless cooed, brushing up against him as if sensing his troubling feelings. Hiccup often wished his best friend could talk; he'd give anything to hear his best bud's advice. He exhaled as he patted his friend's head.

"I know, bud. You and the flock are my future. It's just hard sometimes. I-I can't stop thinking about her."

Toothless shook his head and trotted off to Hiccup's tent, leaving the Viking by himself on the ground.
He couldn't help but roll his eyes at the absurdity of it all and mumbled to himself,

"Yeah, thanks for the advice, bud. Really helpful."

The Night Fury soon returned with something in his mouth and dropped it at Hiccup's feet, panting happily. Even though it was covered in dragon drool, he knew it was his realistic prosthetic, the one he wore to the Eastern Market. The one he met Astrid in. There was a faint memory that pulled at the back of his mind, but he couldn't quite remember. It was something important, something he had to do. Somewhere he had to go?

Hiccup didn't toss his prosthetic to Toothless' dismay; instead, he wiped off as much drool as he could and trudged back to his tent. Pacing, he pressed himself to remember what it was he forgot.

"C'mon, Hiccup, think."

It had something to do with Astrid and the Eastern Markets and something else. It wasn't the bracelet; he had already given it to her. It definitely wasn't the kiss he so desperately wanted to press on her soft lips that he would never get the chance to do. It was...Odin's great ghost. How could he have forgotten?

Hiccup rushed to his day tracker and checked the number of days that had passed since his encounter with Astrid. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw he hadn't missed it. It had been a week and a half, not quite the two weeks he had told Astrid they should meet again at the market. The weight lifted off his shoulders quickly doubled at the obvious realization that she probably wouldn't meet him because of her injuries. How could he be so selfish? Of course Astrid wouldn't go. She almost died not too long ago. She was fearless, but some things were beyond her control.

Yet, he couldn't help but feel disappointed that he wouldn't see her again soon. Now that she was awake, he couldn't show up to Gothi's hut to visit her. It was back to the cat and mouse game that Astrid refused to give up. Hiccup would surrender to her in a heartbeat if it weren't for Toothless and the flock. He barely had anything to live for other than the dragons. Plus, he would pay all of the dragon scales in the world to see every Berkian's face at the reveal that he, the scrawny fishbone, was the dragon rider. That would have to wait, though, because it would be a warning day in Niflheim before Hiccup let them take Toothless.

However, after glancing at his supply chest, a trip to the markets was due. The blue Nadder had also devoured all of the chicken, so he could definitely stock up on that. He could also use some more squid ink for a new design he was working on for Toothless' tail. Hiccup would take a trip to the Eastern Market, Astrid or not. It was time to try and extinguish her from his mind because he would likely never see her again unless she caught him as the Svikari. As much as he liked her, he hoped that day would never come.

A few days later...

The flight to the market was routine, nothing out of the ordinary. Even the unpredictable archipelago weather was calm as the clouds tried their best not to block out the sun. At least it wasn't raining. That's what he busied himself with nowadays: the weather. When had his life become so mundane? You'd think that flying the rarest dragon, who is the alpha to a flock of dragons, would be the most exciting job of all time. Wrong.

He brushed off that empty feeling and covered up the cave where Toothless made himself comfortable with vines. As he trekked through the dense forest, the two empty baskets on his back felt heavier than usual, and he willed himself to keep walking. Odin knew if he would even be able to keep going if he stopped. A fitting metaphor for his life.
Hiccup muttered to himself, "Because who thought it would be easy to lead a bunch of dragons? Why couldn't I just have chosen to be a bread-making Viking?"

Something shiny in his periphery had him stopping in his tracks. His hand went to the hilt of his knife as he whirled his head around to see who it was that was following him. He would much rather encounter a pack of hungry Changewings than some kind of bounty hunter.

His eyes widened at the sight of a blond Viking sharpening her axe while perched on a boulder. Astrid smirked at him as she tucked her whetstone in a pouch and slid down to meet him.

"You look like you've seen Odin's ghost. I thought you'd be happy to see me, Hiccup."