HICCUP'S POV

I couldn't take it anymore. Everything was soar, and it all throbbed, and was achingly tired, and I couldn't sleep. Instead, I remained on my back, staring up at the plain white ceiling, overhead, the tendrils of sleep refusing to pull me under. My mind was too alert. The thoughts in my head refusing to quiet themselves and fade into the back ground. "This is ridiculous," I sigh, throwing the blankets off of me, swinging my legs over the side of the bed. I bend down, dragging my fingertips across the carpeted floor, searching for my metal foot. My wrist bangs against a metal corner, and I pick it up, situating it properly in place. I push myself off of my bed and make my way to the door. I squeeze through quietly, trying to cause the least amount of creaking, since my parents are asleep a little ways down the hall. The door makes a slight echo when I finally bring it to a close, and I cringe, crinkling my nose. I check the hall before continuing forward, heading to my hiding place.

The hall in front of the dining room is lit up, the moon light consuming the whole area. I have just placed my hand on the stairs railing when I see her . The corners of my mouth immediately pull up at the sight of her. I shake my head, walking toward her. I stop when I'm about five feet away, watching in awe. She runs her hands through a section of her hair, repeatedly, it pulled over her shoulder. The rest of the blond waves are splade over her back. Her white night gown is loose on her skin, it complementing her curves. Her elbows are rested on her knees as she sits on the top step of the three, down to the dining room. I take my eyes away from her in order to see what she's looking at.

The moon looks like as if it has been trapped in the glass windows, it taking up most of the sky. I breathe in, in love with the view. I take a step to the side to see her face, wanting to know her reaction. Her lips form a small smile, a pink tint to her pale skin, her lashes casting long shadows on to her cheek bones, but her eyes are what get me the most; the different flecks of blue in her irises.

I clear my throat, loud enough for her to hear. Her head snaps up, looking at me. "I don't think you are supposed to be out here, Miss. Wouldn't want you to get your third strike," I say, walking closer to her.

"Hey," she says quietly, her orbs fixed on me, a light smile on her face.

"What are you doing up?" I ask.

She gets to her feet, standing in front of me. "I was just about to come find you. I couldn't sleep. I couldn;t stop thinking. "

"About what?" I ask casually.

She walks past me, heading for the stairs. I grin, following after her. "I was thinking about how you let us win today. 32:31 ring a bell?" she hints, cooly.

"I... don't know what you're..."  I hesitate, not meeting her eyes.

"Save it Hiccup. I saw you in the act."

"I'm sorry. I--"

"Thank you, by the way. For blocking Dagur so that Jamie could make the winning shot. You don't know how much that goal means to her." She smiles at me and it makes me blush.

"Eh, it was nothing," I shrug.

I open the door to my hiding place, watching Astrid move cautiously about the room; not wanting to trip over anything in in the darkness. We sit down against the wall, staring at the black.

"Why are you up?" she asks suddenly. I can feel her eyes on me, but I don't make eye contact.

"I uh.... I was thinking about what happens after all of this," I tell her, motioning around us.

"What happens after this?" she asks, calmly.

"I don't know," I say. She sighs, and rests her head on my shoulder, intertwining our fingers.

"What are we, Hiccup?"

"I don't know," I answer, still staring strait ahead.

She falls asleep after that, so I decide to take her back down stairs. I heave her up, bridal style, and carry her out of the room. I'm not super stable, but I've done it before, when she would come visit me in the dark. I make up my mind at the last minute, to just take her to my room since it's closer than hers. When I'm inside, I lay her down on the bed, bringing the blankets up to her chin. I sigh, sitting down on the edge, removing my foot, before lying down beside her.  I place my hands behind my head, staring at the ceiling. Astrid moans in her sleep, wrapping an arm around my waist, her head moving to my chest. I lift my head some, watching her curiously. I rest an arm over her shoulders, instantly noticing how cold she is. I rub her forearm, ridding her of her chills. She reacts to my touch in her sleep, tightening her hold on me. I hug her with both arms, squeezing my eyes shut. "Don't worry, Astrid. I'll never let you go."

***

When I wake, she looks up at me. "Good morning," I say.

"Good morning." She looks around, examining her surroundings. "Is this your room?" she asks.

"Yeah," I answer, sitting up and leaning back against the head board.

"It's big," she breathes.

"Yeah."

"Why am I in here?"

"I was lazy," I shrug.

She nods. "I should probably go get dressed for today's activity," she adds after a moment.

"Probably," I admit.

She leans in quickly, pressing her lips to mine as she gets out of bed. She pulls away too quickly, and pats my cheek. "See you later," she coos, messing up my hair. I swat at her, annoyed. "You know you love me!" she calls as she leaves the room.

"That's the problem," I say to myself, before groaning and flopping on to my bed, my right arm over my eyes.

ASTRID'S POV

All of my friends' eyes fly to me the second I walk in the door. "Where were you?"Ruff asks instantly.

"I.... uh..." I'd much rather not tell them, though I'm sure they already know., so I just shrug, blushing. "What are we doing today?" I ask, changing the subject.

"I thought Hiccup was picking today?" Heather chimes in.

"That's a comforting thought. For all we know, he could force us to interact in his horrid dances," Ruff adds, shuddering at the idea. We all laugh, shaking our heads.  I pull a blue tunic on before sliding into a pair of leggings.

***

We gather in the dinning room for breakfast, all the girls buzzing about what they think we are doing today. "So--" Ingrid says, sitting down in front of me.

"Where were you last night?" Ruff cuts in. This of course captured Ingrid's attention, and she leans forward, excited. I evert my eyes from them, grabbing an apple.

"Why... is this so important to you? I've disappeared during the night before. I'm just walking around."

"Uh-huh," Heather adds.  "This time was different. You didn't come back until we were all awake."

I can feel myself blushing, so I jam the apple in my mouth. I don't want them to know I was in Hiccup's bed. They will automatically assume something bad. I don't want them to think less of Hiccup too, if they think he forced me into it. "Well, this doesn't concern you. Nothing interesting happened. I sat in the dining room, looking at the moon and thought, and I eventually went to sleep."

"Did you sleep well?" Ingrid asks.

"Yes," I say proudly.

"Was it late when you fell asleep?"

"Yes."

"Was his bed comfy?"

"Yes. Wait. What?!" I shout.

"Gotcha," she says, smirking at me.

"Nothing happened. Literally all we did was talk and sleep."

"Ok," Heather says, smiling, and i roll my eyes, annoyed, and I feel a rush of relief when I see Hiccup walking down the hall.  I catch his eye and he waves. I smile, until I tur back to my friends, and they are making faces at me.

"Ugh."

***

Hiccup eventually leads us out into the woods and my worry begins to rise. What is he up to? "Hiccup, where are you taking us?" I demand, scrutinizing him.

"It's a surprise," he says, grinning. "Don't you just love surprises?"

"No," I retort, annoyed.

"You know you love me," he says, smirking.

"No I don't. You're just making fun of me anyway." I can hear my friends laughing beside me.

"I know you do. I've heard you say it."

"Dork!" I complain, smacking him in the chest. "You weren't even supposed to hear that conversation. It was between me and the prince."

"Who is also..." he trails off, gesturing to himself.

He suddenly takes a right, and I finally understand where this is going. We are heading to the spring.  And the second we make it to the water, all of my friends share a look.

"No," I say, digging my feet into the dirt, my hands out. "Stay away. Don't even think about it." And, before I can react, Hiccup and Ruff grab my feet, Heather and Ingrid holding my arms. 

"Cami, count down!" Heather calls. All of the other girls gather around the edge, giggling and helping Cami count.

"Guys, no! Put me down!" I shout, wriggling like a worm o a hook as they begin swinging me back and forth. "Let go of me!"

"Five!"

"Stop it!"

"Four!"

"I'm gonna kill you all!"

"Three!"

"I hate you Haddock! Do you really want to leave your kingdom princless? That means Snotlout will be king!" I warn.

"Two!

"I will--"

"One!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!" I scream as I'm flung into the air, feeling like a rag doll as I flail, before landing with a big sploosh in the spring. I surface, coughing and sputtering, everyone else guffawing at my scene.

"Wow Astrid! I only give that one a five!" Ruff calls. I ignore her, zoning in on a certain young man, who should know by now I always get my revenge. I pull myself out of the water, my boots making squishing noises every step I take. I yank them off, pouring the water out, and I do the one thing I know he can't handle. I pull my leggings off first, since that's not a big deal.

"Uh, Astrid. What are you doing?" he asks, a nervous expression on his face. Everyone stops laughing, immediately.

"I'm going swimming. That's what we are here for, right?" All the other girls' eyes are trained on him, not effected by me. I pull my tunic over my head, before dropping it in the grass. I step over my soggy pile of clothes, walking toward him. The  water droplets are cold on my skin, a constant pitter-patter on my back from my hair. I see his adams apple bob in his throat as he backs up.

"Well, he, I wasn't really planning on swimming," he tells me. It doesn't really bother me for him to see my undergarments, having already seen them. But, unfortunately, there's no blanket. I smirk, stepping in front of him, placing my hands on his chest, his breathing ragged. "Astrid. I don't understand. It was just a joke. I'm sorry. I should have asked first, or not done it at all, I presume," he rambles, still backing up.

"Hmmm," I hum. smiling. "But I'm not mad," I say.

He stops suddenly, in surprise. "You're not?" he asks, an eyebrow arched.

"No," I tell him, and he instantly relaxes.  I reach up then, on my tiptoes so I'm closer to his hight, leaning in. He automatically reciprocates the gesture, and the moment he closes his eyes, I shove him backwards into the spring, a loud smack when his back hits the water. "I'm getting you back!" I finish. The other girls whistle and hoot at my victory as we high-five. "Everyone knows there's nothing I do better than revenge!" I say.

"Astrid," I hear Ruff say.

I turn around to face her, grinning. "Wasn't that awesome?" I ask, biting my lip.

"Astrid," she repeats, glancing toward the spring, and her words finally sink in. Hiccup.

"Hiccup!" I shout, scrambling on the wet grass, tearing toward the spring. "Hiccup!" I yell at the water, my knees on the ground, my hands gripping the edge as I scan the water. It never even crossed my mind whether he could swim or not. I didn't even think about if he's able to kick through the water with his metal leg. If he was ever taught. The panic is suffocating as i struggle to find him. "Hiccup!"  And then I'm sucked into the water again. The second he surfaces, I shove him back under.  When he comes back up, he's pouting. "You gave me a heart attack!" I shout. He gives me a sheepish smile, and he suddenly looks like he's fifteen, his messy hair flat and hanging in his eyes. I shake my head, annoyed, but my love for him so much more. We tread water in the center , a silent conversation going through our minds, but it's shattered all too quickly when the rest of the girls jump into the fridged water.