Tidings of Comfort and Joy

Chapter Two

A/N: Yes, this is a multi-part (but not a very long) Christmas-themed story. Enjoy!

...

Two.

The soft sounds raised her from sleep, whimpers and low wordless cries and for a moment, her mind struggled to work out what was happening-until she recalled her guest. The homeless man. Hiccup.

"NO! Get away from me!" The cry was desperate and she leapt up, grabbing her pepper spray because the shout was so persuasive that she feared there really was an intruder in her apartment...but as she silently opened the door, she saw him sitting upright, his ashen face lit by the weak light from the side lamp, eyes dark and staring with fear. She leaned silently forwards, seeing him shaking, his breaths fast and desperate.

"Please...don't..."

The words broke her heart and she had no idea what he had suffered but whatever it had been, it must have been horrible. And then she heard a whine. Toothless had scrambled up to sit in front of the distressed man, resting his front paw on Hiccup's hand, whining. His ears were pricked and his green eyes were loyally fixed on his face as he shuddered and finally sagged.

"Th-thanks...bud..." he gasped as another bout of coughing wracked him. He ran a hand self-consciously through his hair and then reached out a shaking hand to rest on the dog's head. "Don't know what I'd do without you." He paused. "You're the only one who cares," he sighed as he lay down and arranged the blankets round his body and then patted beside him. The dog eagerly jumped up and lay alongside him, pressed against the trembling man. Astrid's eyes softened as she saw him drape an arm gently over the warm canine body and then slowly fall asleep.

Softly closing the door, Astrid rested back against the wood and chewed her lip thoughtfully. One thing was certain: some horrible things had happened to the boy who had been her friend. And she needed to find out so she could help him. She was already feeling some very uncomfortable guilt that her actions may have contributed to the choices he made...somehow, she had a second chance to be the friend she should have been.

"In the morning," she murmured to herself. "I'll ask in the morning."

oOo

When she emerged from her bedroom, jaded from fractured sleep as his nightmare rolled around and around in her mind, she found him still asleep. Yawning and walking quietly to the window, she peered outside to scan the snowy world. A foot of fresh snow had fallen overnight and her guest would not be alive if he had remained where he was. And there was no way he could go back out into the cold world any time soon-not that she wanted to let him anyway. How many times had she walked by the homeless men, huddled up and sometimes begging on the sidewalks...? Had she walked past and ignored Hiccup in her travels round Berk? Logic dictated yes and that scourged shame through her.

Quietly, she walked to the kitchen and began brewing some coffee, then glanced in her fridge: she was light on meat and foods that would be suitable for a dog or a skinny guy who needed building up. She closed the door thoughtfully and retrieved a couple of mugs, pouring herself coffee and leaving the rest warming in the pot on the stove, her eyes trailing to the curled up shape. For a tall man, Hiccup certainly could curl up tightly and as she moved slightly, she could see him lying peacefully against Toothless, his arm gently draped over the dog. For a moment, an ear twitched and the dog cracked open a green eye, as if feeling her scrutiny, before his tail wagged twice and his eye closed again. She smiled.

"You don't need to worry," she murmured. "I just want to help your master."

"Glad to hear it," Hiccup murmured, his eyes still closed and she gasped. He opened his eyes and gave a small smile. "You learn to sleep very lightly if you sleep in hostels-or on the streets. You drop your guard and anything could happen."