Hiccup and Astrid

one night upon a time part 3

"And where is the part when he fix it" Ruff asked
"I'm coming to that...
A little higher...too high, too-Steady!"
Hiccup clutched at the grooved wood bordering the Hofferson's front door as the head he stood upon jolted.
"Perfect," Hiccup gasped when he thought he caught his balance.
He kept his good foot on Toothless' crown, not wanting to hurt the dragon with his metal one, and continued his efforts in fastening the mistletoe to my doorway. It proved a troublesome task; standing one-legged on a living creature braced only by the wall of a house was an unfavorable situation for a young man who could only seem to find balance off his feet.
A creak sounded from the other side of the door, Hiccup would swear by it, and he stilled, his ears strained.
We were friends for months, but, my parents still terrified him. The last thing Hiccup wanted was for the Hofferson matriarch to find him messing with her house.
His fumbles with the string hastened.
Gods, how did I do this? I tied a detatched, rotting toe, for Thor's sake! A piece of foliage shouldn't cause him so much trouble!
Toothless moaned.
"Almost there, buddy." Hiccup's fingers, still numbed from his morning flight, couldn't quite get the string to loop properly.
A clatter sounded from within. He definitely heard something that time!
"Back up!" Hiccup hissed in a fervid whisper. "Down!"
The door swung open. Toothless reared back and Hiccup lost his balance.
His arms wheeled comically in his final teeter, then Hiccup felt his stomach squeeze in suspension as the rest of his body came crashing into the snow, back first. The ankle-deep bank provided little cushion even for someone of Hiccup's weight. The wind flew from his ribs in a painful rush.
To your credit, you, Ruffnut Thorston hardly spared either male a glance. You stormed from the house with swinging fists.
"Oh, I,that..." Hiccup coughed, fishing for an excuse. He needn't have bothered; you continued past him.
"I quit!" You snapped as you marched. You paused only to thrust a finger in Hiccup's face. "You better have a supply of pants on hand because she's not going to be making any for you."
"What...?"
Before Hiccup could focus on your words or your finger you had already continued crunching through the snow..."
"I remember that"
"Of course you do, as I was saying...
"Maybe I have better things to do than sew pants!" I snapped from the step of my home. Toothless chose that moment to slink away with his tail dragging in the snow.
You spun near the top of the hill you had stormed.
"Everyone can do it but you!" You hollered so loudly a number of people stopped their repair tasks to listen.
Hiccup could see my hackles rise and knew nothing annoyed me more than being bad at something otherwise considered elementary. I only liked to stand out if it put me in a good light.
"Shut up!"
"You fail at life!"
"Ruff-!" I made to step outside but the scene at the foot of my home could no longer escape my attention. I looked down at the bottom stoop to see my suitor picking himself up on unsteady legs and shaking packed snow from his vest.
"Hiccup?"
Even with trapped snow in his shirt burning his skin, Hiccup had to smile at that tone of surprise.
"Hi," he said brightly.
"Hi," I repeated, blinking from the shock of blinding snow and Hiccup's unexpected appearance. I took notice of Toothless kneading the snow at the side of my house with cat-like concentration.
"Uh...what are you guys doing here?"
Hiccup shrugged.
"Just wanted to see you. Still under house arrest?"
The surprise slid from my face and my expression became one of self-awareness. I took a step back into the home and leaned against the doorframe.
"Yes."
The trouble I had gotten in for my egg-scheme had been the most I ever faced by my parents. When I wasn't helping with repairs I was in the strict confinements of my home, limited to chores and lessons. No flying and absolutely no talking Hiccup.
"Are you helping with repairs?" I asked and nudged my chin toward the village full of beating hammers and singing saws. Most of the homes had been repaired, having priority to keep winter sickness from spreading. Barns, fences and docks were now underway.
Still smiling, Hiccup answered, "No."
I pursed my lips, likely taking in his flushed face and wild hair...not to mention a lounged Toothless lolling his tongue at her. Toothless only ever sat that still after he had been flown.
"Your dad's going to kill you," I stated.
Hiccup smiled a smidge wider. "That's why I haven't gone home yet."
I sighed. "Hiccup- you should really help the village out."
The chief's son struck a pose.
"This body wasn't made for building."
I couldn't stop the right corner of my mouth from quirking; he looked more goofy than manly. I would not laugh though. I would not reward the flighty behavior I was trying to help him grow out of.
Hiccup had gotten the reaction he wanted, anyhow, a smile. He sobered and thrust his hands into his vest.
"But really, I think I'm better suited for the new nursery. Situating dragons and stuff. I work better with things I know how to do," he said with a helpless shrug.
"You know how to fix things," I pointed out. I also didn't like it when he made excuses.
Unfortunately, excuses were Hiccup's forte.
"But I'll get distracted," he said with an edge of slyness.
"I'll think of ways to improve something and then I'll go ahead and start improving without asking for permission because I know dad will say 'no', and eventually someone will catch me and they'll have to take it apart and restart the repairs...I'm doing everyone a favor by keeping away."
"Uh huh,"
I said in a flat voice.
He could sense my annoyance but Hiccup had learned to brave my temper long ago. He brushed some hair from his eyes and stepped onto the threshold with me.
"So...do you wanna go for a fly?" he offered. "I bet Stormfly's getting antsy."
I muttered something like 'incorrigible' under my breath before saying,
"Hiccup, you know I can't. I'm under house arrest."
I could read in his expression that he thought I was making up excuses now.
"Why don't you just sneak out? Your parents aren't home, are they?" Hiccup asked.
He leaned into the weapon-laden room in search of said parents. I pushed his shoulder. His loss of balance took him down a step.
"I am not sneaking out,"
I said strongly.
"I'm being punished for...stupidity."
Hiccup gave me his infamous crooked smile. "Snotlout said it was one of your better ideas."
My cheeks colored some and I crossed my arms.
"Snotlout's an idiot."
I knew exactly what Snotlout thought of my ideas. A part of me could even agree with the broad boy-days trapped inside left me plenty of time to think over my actions,but my pride kept me from voicing such thoughts.
"I don't know,"
Hiccup shrugged.
"He has his moments."
I continued to stare at him.
"As do you,"
Hiccup continued on. He stepped back onto the doorstep.
"You really were onto something with some of your tradition ideas. Like that Missing Toe..."
I threw a fist into my palm. Hiccup jumped out of instinct.
"Yeah,"
I said, suddenly animated.
"I don't know why that didn't take! Who doesn't love punching?"
"I think it was the 'getting punched',"
Hiccup inflected. When I appeared to wait for a better reason he went on to say,
"Not everyone enjoys that."
I snorted.
"Well yeah, but it's a great way to keep everyone on their guard."
"Again, not a feeling favored for the holidays."
I seemed to deflate a bit before a scowl overtook my features.
"Okay, so I'm suck at knitting and I'm suck at coming up with traditions? Is that what you're saying?"
The week had been rough enough with the mind numbing lessons and my confinement; I didn't need a stung ego added to the list.
Hiccup held up his hands.
"No, no! I'm sure your knitting is fine. And you had great tradition ideas! I think they just needed to be tweaked a bit to stick around."
I glanced at him, not yet placated, but interested.
"Tweaked how?"
"Well,"
Hiccup began slowly. "I was just thinking...what if we had a tradition that was a little less violent and a little less gross?"
I leaned back. I didn't look to buy into the idea.
"Less violence and less gross...for a Viking tradition?"
"Traditions don't have to be so Vikingish," Hiccup argued.
"It could just be...nice."
I laughed.
"Do you hear yourself sometimes?"
The cold had already begun to pinch my cheeks pink but the added prettiness couldn't hide the jape in her voice. Hiccup heaved a breath, knowing there were some differences they would never meet halfway for.
"Just...hear me out, okay? What if, instead of hanging severed toes overhead, we used something less smelly and more available?"
I tilted my head from side to side as I considered the possibility.
"I guess that makes sense."
"Right, so something less gross," Hiccup reiterated. "And what if we changed that punch to something else when someone walked under it?"
"Something less violent right?" I ventured with my tone betraying my disfavor. "What else would you do to someone's face?"
Hiccup couldn't suppress his next smile.
"Really? You can't think of what I might want to do with your face?"
I narrowed my eyes at him and turned my cheek, though my lips now fought against my own smile.
"Where are you going with this...?" I asked slowly.
Hiccup grinned.
"Look up," he said.
I tilted my head to see the yellow-green leaves pinned by three small berries overhead. They fluttered gently in the breeze.
"What is that?" I asked.
"Mistletoe."
My eyes snapped back to him-first dark with shock at the word and it's familiarity, then lightened by playful understanding.
"I see," I said. "Does this mean you're ready to kiss me for once?" I prodded his chest with my finger.
Hiccup's grin heartened. Warmed by my closeness and thrilled by my words, he leaned forward, touched the soft underside of my jaw and guided my lips to his. We were nearly of equal height by now; I no longer needed to turn my neck to meet his mouth. The kiss was soft and simple-no more than a quick press of lips-but rich for the girl who had not seen Hiccup in nearly a week.
Hiccup drew back slowly and I rubbed my lips together to hold some of the warmth he had left me before the cold stole it. I was noticeably happier than when Hiccup first arrived; my features had relaxed and my eyes half-lidded.
"Well I am all for this tradition,"I told him brightly. "Though I'm not sure it'll be received any better than my version."
"Vikings are weird like that," Hiccup stated, unable to shake his own silly grin. He hadn't realized how much he missed kissing her until just then; kissing and flying were his two separate necessities and one could not replace the other for long. "Giving and taking punches is nothing, but throw in a little public affection and suddenly they're kittens."
I threw my head back and laughed freely. "Kittens!"
"Oi! You're not tae see him!"
The brassy bellow crashed into the moment with all the power and unwelcome destruction as a catapulted bolder. Hiccup nearly jumped out of his skin at the call.
"Oh no, my mum's back," I moaned.
The tall, blonde woman of my brood had just crested the very hill you disappeared over moments before. She stared down at the young couple with flared nostrils.
A shiver of fear ran through Hiccup but my proximity, the refreshment of my touch, left him strangely and suddenly encouraged. Hiccup kissed me again. He could feel me stiffen under the grip he had on my shoulders. As soon as Hiccup drew back I sputtered,
"What are you-? She's-!"
"A kiss for each berry!" the young man breathed and then he kissed me one last time, longer and harder than we had ever shared before. I gripped the front of Hiccup's tunic with both hands to keep my balance. My heart thudded against my throat at the unexpected sensations-at the heat and his smell, at the pressure and the roughness of his chin and the subtle movements of his jaw that drew her top lip between his-
"HEY!"
Then Hiccup was gone. I staggered back against the doorframe, suddenly cold and panting and chuckling in winded disbelief. I turned my head to watch Hiccup ride Toothless bareback-the dragon galloping through snow and Vikings with my axe-swinging mother shouting after them.
Another commotion at the Hofferson household drew even more attention to my stoop. Vikings were now muttering to one another, staring at me, at my mother, at Hiccup...
I craned my neck to see the three-berried leaf cluster still dangling overhead-so innocent, and yet somehow more dangerous than my Missing Toe idea. I laughed; my breath clouded in the air and reached towards the mistletoe like curled smoke. Only he would come up with something innocently dangerous.
"Astrid!" My mother snapped. She was marching back, furious by Hiccup's audacity and his escape. I had to bite my lip to keep from smiling too much but my lips only tingled at the force and I remembered that last kiss. Hiccup likely just cost me another week under house arrest and I couldn't even muster the proper amount of vexation to be very mad.
Maybe I'd knit him a scarf for his trouble..."
"No way, Hiccup kissed you?"
"Yes"
"Three times in the same...well time?"
"Pretty much"
"Wow, why did he stopped doing that?"
"Ruff, we were just kids, things are not the same now, are they?"
"But he still loves you"

"I hope so"
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All fixed...