The North Tower

New Wounds

Astrid returned home early morning, exhausted. Her father was kept in the hospital for observation, and the rest of her family checked into a hotel. So now, she was to return home alone.

This was an utter catastrophe.

"I want you to pack up your things and come home right away. That place is too dangerous for you to stay," her mother had stated.

Astrid had protested, and pleaded, saying she was an adult, and could make her own decisions. But the worry and disappointment on her mother's face was hard to argue with. The distant stare in her father's eyes was even harder.

Now, she didn't know what to do. She couldn't rent the rooms out. Not with whatever menace laid within the castle. Who knows what could happen when someone else tried to enter?

When she returned, Hiccup was waiting for her in the lobby. The burned fireplaces and been cleaned of soot, and the castle looked pristine once again. But it lacked the magical luster it had the day before.

"Welcome home, Astrid." He smiled at her. "How's your father?"

Astrid couldn't meet his eyes. "Physically...he'll be fine. But what ever he saw down in the tower...it really messed him up."

"I'm really sorry, Astrid." She could see the guilt in his eyes.

She shook her head, "I don't know what else to do. My mom wants me to leave, but I don't know."

Hiccup was quiet as she thought.

"I think it's best if all the vikings return to the tower. Just for now."

He was still as a grave, his inner turmoil raging within his breast. But as much as it hurt, Hiccup nodded in agreement. "Then, I'll go find everyone."

It was heartbreaking to watch the friends she had made shuffle back into the tower. Though they only spared smiles for her, she saw the hopelessness in their eyes. She wasn't being fair, she knew. But what else could she do? Everything was unfair.

Hiccup stood in the doorway, his impossibly green eyes searching hers. There were no words to say. Hiccup reached his hand up and brushed her cheek, both of them feeling the touch in this realm. It made her shudder, but she did not pull away.

"Thank you...for all your kindness." He whispered. Then he leaned in and kissed her cheek.

She couldn't say anything in return. Not a thank you, not an apology, nothing. She opted to turn away and close the door. After a moment of great regret, she locked it as well, before she turned and fled the barren hall, then locked that door too.

Why was she crying? She barely knew him, right? He was dead after all this time. So why did her heart ache so much?

Eret stood not far from her, a knowing look on his face. "You locked them away, didn't you?"

"What choice did I have?" Her voice broke.

He stepped up and held her arms, in a brotherly way. "Not many, I know. But this was the hardest."

She nodded. "I want to solve the curse. I know that's the solution, but I don't have a clue how to."

"Did you finish reading Finn's journals?"

"Not yet..."

"Then why don't you start there? I'll help."

She nodded, and let him lead her to the library.

—

An hour passed, and as the entries moved forward in time, they became more sparse. Sometimes skipping a year between them. Then finally, and with great horror, she reached the final page.