When I Come Back

Are you serious?!?

Astrid 

"How come you didn't want me to look through that box?"

"That's a box that not even myself has gone through yet."

"Hiccup, your a terrible liar."

   He shrugs his shoulders, "Maybe so, but I am good at making plans."

   A frown spreads across my face, there was something he's hiding. He's changed. No matter how many times he tells me that he's the same, he's not. 

   He's older, stronger, more confident, more independent, and a bit distant. He got used to how things were there. He grew accustomed to that life, he did not suffer like I had.

   He sighs, breaking me from my thoughts, "Astrid, I'm sorry."

"Why are you hiding things?" I ask, looking away, "What's the need?"

"I want to tell you some things myself," he says, sighing heavily, "I was hoping I'd get a bit more time..."

"Tell me what?"

"Well, uh...Astrid you have to promise not to get mad..."

"Get mad about what?" I ask, straightening to my full height. Still much shorter than Hiccup.

"This isn't my first day back at Berk..." he paused to watch for my reaction.

"What do you mean?" I balled my hands into fists at my side. 

"I returned to Berk a couple of days before I sailed into the docks..."

"What are you saying?" I bite at my words and take a step forward. 

  I have a feeling I know what he's about to tell me...

"What I'm saying, which you probably just figured out about the look on your face, is that I was the person in the caves with Toothless. I returned the night you held the party for my return, but I wanted to ease my way back into life on Berk. My plan was to secretly do your guys' chores and then start observing everyday life. See if it changed. When you found me in the cave, I was surprised-shocked, I wasn't expecting to see you for a while, and you all put quite the kink in my plans. Eventually, I knew I couldn't keep my secret much longer, and instead of everyone making a big scene out of it, I decided to officially return." 

   I lost all patience I had and finally let the anger, that began to boil up when he started talking, control me.

" Are you serious?!? Are you seriously telling me that you arrived when you were supposed to and instead of coming home, you decided to hid out in caves?!? You left everyone worried sick!!! No one knew what had happened to you, if you had been attacked, killed, kidnapped-we had no idea!!! You left me in charge of taking care of Toothless, who kept running off to you!!! I couldn't find him for days and lost sleep for much longer!!!",  by this time, we were nose to nose, me yelling in his face, "You left everything on me so that you could go to the camp and instead of facing your responsibilities upon your return, you decided to play games and cause trouble!!!"

   Instead of backing away at every step I took towards him and cowering, he straightened to his full height, stood his ground, clenched his jaw, and glared down his nose at me. If I wasn't being fueled by anger right now, I might've backed down. 

"I said that I wanted to ease my way back into Berkian life.", he wasn't yelling, he was staying as calm as he could be, hiding his anger behind a facade, "So that things could be as normal as they could be when I returned and so that I was up-to-date on everything." I honestly prefer for him to yell, him staying calm just built up my anxiety, "My first priority was to free you of the responsibilities that I left on you, which I started doing."

   He was starting to really look and act like a true leader. The Academy most likely just taught then the basics and left the rest up to them. Leaving room for each of them to become the type of leader they choose to be. 

   I didn't know what to say at this point. I was hurt by what he did, along with many others, and he knew that due to his stance softening a bit. I had gotten my point across and so did he, but he had more fight in him while I did not. 

   He must have picked up on this, softening completely while sighing, and putting both hands on either one of my shoulders. Then, walking past me to dig through one of the boxes, he pulls out a big fuzzy blanket. 

   It was blue on one side and yellow on the other, matching Stormfly. It was a few feet taller than me and about three times as wide. 

"Here, I made this for you." He hands me the blanket. 

   Once i feel the material in my hands, I notice that only the blue side is fuzzy and the yellow side is a material that I have never encountered before, but it was cool to the touch.   

"I made it so that it will keep you warm in the cooler seasons and cool during the warmer seasons." he explains. 

"Hiccup, It's amazing! Thank you." 

   I found comfort in the fact that he was still selfless and caring. 

   There was a knock on the door and a holler from the other side, "Hiccup, if we don't leave for patrol now, I will fall asleep, and not wake up until morning!" 

"Oh, right." he says mostly to himself, "I'll be out in a second Snotlout!" 

   Then he turns to me, "So you're welcome to stay here until I come back or you can go home, either way, you need your rest."