Chapter 6

Astrid groaned as she ignored the knocking at her front door. She popped another spoonful of vanilla pudding in her mouth. The knocking stopped before a click of the lock was heard.

"Hiiiiii!" Astrid said, giving a lazy wave, at those that entered her apartment. She must look quite a sight she thought. Clad in her baggiest sweats, draped over her couch with a large container of vanilla pudding in her hand, a half-eaten lemon pie on the coffee table, and several empty containers that once housed tiramisu next to it.

"Thor almighty, she's sugar high." Heather groaned as she saw Astrid. The twins walked in behind her, both wearing Hawaiian shirts. They were slightly wary as a sugar high Astrid was less predictable than a furious-axe-wielding-Astrid.

"I don't know what you mean!" Astrid told them before popping another pudding filled spoon in her mouth.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Heather asked calmly while indicating for the twins to get rid of any other sweet in the house.

"Hey! Leave my desserts alone!" Astrid shouted but the twins weren't deterred. She then looked at Heather "There is nothing to talk about."

Heather scowled and yanked the pudding away from her. "The last time you binged like this was when your publishers forced you to change editors!"

Astrid gave her a look that said 'Return my pudding or face the consequences'. Heather recognized the oncoming sugar high rant. "I binged because management wouldn't do anything about the advances he made towards me! And there was no way that I'd get out of my three year contract unless they fired me."

Heather raised a brow and Astrid answered the unspoken question "No I did not sabotage my new book. I'm still a professional. My old editor would have fought tooth and nail to get it published. Drago just went with whatever those PR people thought."

"But that isn't why you're so upset now is it?" Heather asked.

"No, no it isn't." Astrid sighed. "It's a little more complicated than that."

"How so?" She asked and wondered what the twins were up too. It was suspiciously quiet in the kitchen. "I know you just ended a four year relationship. Do you regret it? Don't tell me you want to take Martin back!"

"No no.... That's not it." Astrid mumbled. "You're right...... I just ended a four year relationship...... I should feel something right, but I just don't."

"Oh Astrid." Heather said before hugging her best friend.

"Heather, I'm supposed to feel sad aren't I? Yet I just feel relieved. Like a huge block has been lifted off my shoulders. I can't even remember when I fell out of love with Martin, and just became the dutiful fiance." Astrid mumbled. "Everything is just so complicated now." she sighed.

"Well you can't stay wallowing here." Heather stated. "Don't you have a date with Hiccup tomorrow night?"

"It's not a date." Astrid told her. "He invited me to a dinner with the person he knows in the publishing business."

"Uhuh, but you're still married to him." Heather told her. "Don't tell me you regret that."

"Heather, I got married after meeting him for one day. I regretted doing something so stupid while I was engaged to someone else, I regret a lot of things, people tend to do stupid things." Astrid snorted. "However, I don't regret meeting him. He's really nice."

"I doubt Hiccup regrets marrying you Astrid. Gods, that night he was head over heels for you." Heather told her. "I never saw you laugh so much either."

Astrid nodded, some things were still a little fuzzy but she remembered most of the night now. After meeting up with Hiccup and Fishlegs they had the time of their lives.

"Now what do you have to wear?" Heather asked as she looked Astrid over.

"Well I haven't really been inclined to get up."

"Astrid get your lazy ass up!" Heather admonished. "I'm raiding your closet and if we find nothing for you to wear we'll go shopping."

"Someone say shopping?" Tuffnut popped his head out of the kitchen suddenly. "Your mom asked me to pick up some new bolt cutters and a new pair of high heels."

"Bolt cutters?!" Astrid shot up. "Tuffnut what the hell do you and my mom have planned?!"

"NOTHING!" Tuffnut answered. Astrid's eyes narrowed as she spotted some custard on his lips. "Are you eating my custard?!"

"Nooooooo, not eating!" Tuffnut quickly said. "More like ate!"

"Tuff!!! Ruff!!" Astrid shrieked.

"You know what! Why don't we go shopping first?" Heather suggested and grabbed Astrid's coat and purse and threw it at her. "Guys are you coming?!"

"But the lemon cupcakes!" Ruffnut whined but shrank back as Astrid's eyes narrowed. Heather had finally managed to get the twins and Astrid out of the apartment and into her car. On the way to the mall Astrid grumbled "You owe me custard."

The next night, nearly seven o'clock, Astrid smoothed out her outfit's imaginary wrinkles for the tenth...... no, twelfth time. This time Heather had literally shoved her and a pile of clothing into the changing room. After several failed attempts which consisted of making her butt look too big, making her butt look too small, not sexy enough, too sexy for dinner, too colorful, too diva, too business, too librarian, too velcro. She was going to kill Ruff for that last one. Through the entire thing Tuffnut wisely kept his mouth shut after coming back with a shopping bag consisting of bolt cutters, a shoe box and a football helmet. Astrid stopped asking a long time ago what hairbrained schemes the twins cooked up. The women finally settled on a blue backless jumpsuit with a sleeveless bodice and a V-shaped neckline. According to Heather it accentuated her legs and made them look like she was about to wrap them around-that was the part where Astrid stopped listening to a giggling Heather and tried to hide the blush she was sporting.

Seven o'clock had come surprisingly quickly, and Astrid grabbed her purse as her doorbell sounded. She opened the door to greet Hiccup who was dressed in a light green button-up shirt with a black vest. "A......Astrid....Hi....hello.....eh....Hi!" Hiccup looked flustered and his cheeks pinked. Astrid raised a brow as she saw Hiccup clearly checking her out. "You look gorgeous." He told her.

"Thank you Hiccup." Astrid said as she stepped out and closed her door before turning to him. "So shall we?"

They chatted happily as Hiccup drove them upstate. He parked in the driveway of a 2 storey New England colonial style house. "Hiccup who lives here?" Astrid asked, curious about who Hiccup knew in the publishing business.

"My parents." Hiccup told her.

"Wait is this some ploy for me to meet your parents?"

"No no Milady." Hiccup laughed. "My mother is the one I want you to meet." Now Hiccup was a bit nervous. Astrid raised a brow when he said "You'll see when you meet her. You have that manuscript?" Astrid nodded and showed him the brown envelope she'd managed to cramp into her purse. Now she was just plain curious about Hiccup's mother. They got out of the care and walked up to the front door where Hiccup proceeded to ring the doorbell.

"Hiccup!!" Valka opened the door moments later and enveloped him in a bone crushing hug. Astrid's eyes widened, then they widened some more. She knew this woman. Most of the writing community knew this woman. She commuted past the billboard with this woman's picture on it almost every day. She was just staring at the CEO of the up and coming and wildly popular publishing company. Her mind screamed at her, then proceeded to whack her so that she'd snap out of her daze. She blinked owlishly as she shook the hand of Hiccup's mother. Once invited inside Astrid got over her mini-heart attack. In the foyer she turned to Hiccup who merely raised a brow "Your mother is the CEO of Bewilderbeast publishing?!"

Hiccup rubbed the back of his neck nervously and said "Surprise!" This caused Astrid to punch him in the elbow. "That was for making my heart almost stop! Wait, I thought your last name was Haddock."

"OUCH" Hiccup rubbed the spot Astrid had punched him as they made their way to the living room. "It is. Mom just uses her maiden name to do business." He laughed. That however didn't last long as a giant burly man with big bushy eyebrows and a big red beard wearing a 'Kiss the cook' apron swept Hiccup into a hug.

"Hiccup me boy!"

"Dad! Can't! Breathe!" Hiccup managed to get out. His father sheepishly let Hiccup go and then introduced himself to Astrid. "Hiccup finally brought a girlfriend!" He said causing Hiccup to blush.

"Dad, mom's in the kitchen!" Hiccup alerted his father as he saw his mother sneaking in. "VALKA GET AWAY FROM MY CASSEROLE!!! SO HELP ME THOR!!"

"IT'S JUST A CASSEROLE!" Valka shouted back.

"THAT'S WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT THE SALMON AND LOOK HOW THAT TURNED OUT!" They heard Hiccup's father shout back. Astrid mouthed 'salmon' but just shook his head and shuddered.

"YOU NEED TO STAY OUT OF MY KITCHEN!!" Hiccup pinched the bridge of his nose. "Does this happen often?" Astrid asked.

"More than you know. Mom is slightly nuclear around kitchens."

"FOR GOODNESS SAKE STOICK! I WAS JUST GOING TO SHUT OFF THE RICE COOKER!"

"LEAVE THE POOR RICE COOKER ALONE VALKA! THIS IS OUR THIRD ONE!" They heard Hiccup's father yell. "What happened to the other two rice cookers?" Astrid idly wondered.

"We don't know." Hiccup mumbled.

"Sooooo........" Astrid was suddenly shy about bringing it up. "You didn't tell your parents that we are married?"

"If I did that then the house would be filled with family members and you'd probably kill me." Hiccup answered as they continued to listen to his parents bicker.

"Oh"

"Besides, in two weeks we'll get an annulment."

This however caused Astrid to sigh. "It doesn't need to be so urgent now." She mumbled. "I called off the wedding with Martin. He wanted me to apologize to his mother for her opening my mail."

"Yikes......" Hiccup frowned. They were interrupted when Valka came back with a tray of drinks. Hiccup guessed that this was his dad's way of getting mom out of the kitchen. "Stoick says that dinner will be ready soon. I'm just going to help him finish up and shall be right with you."

Valka went back towards what Hiccup thought was the kitchen door but just a few minutes later they heard Stoick's booming voice again "HONEY WHY ARE YOU CLIMBING THROUGH MY WINDOW!"

"BECAUSE YOU LOCKED THE KITCHEN DOOR!" They heard Valka shout. "NOW HELP ME! I'M STUCK!"

"So your dad is going to let your mom cook when pigs fly?" Astrid asked curiously. She found Hiccup's family quite eccentric.

"We don't use that expression anymore."

"Why not?" Astrid now inquired.

"Because pigs flew." He simply told her. "We even got it on camera."

"Ah" Astrid said. "So as I was saying. There really isn't much of a rush anymore."

"I have to ask you" Hiccup said as he looked at Astrid seriously. The grunts of his parents could still be heard in the kitchen. "You are an amazing woman....... Do I stand any chance at all with you?"

A light pink blush started appearing on Astrid's cheeks as she placed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. She took a deep breath and looked Hiccup in the eye. "I just ended a relationship and I'm not sure what will happen next. There are some things that i need to work out first."

"Oh" Hiccup said as he started to frown. Astrid saw this and quickly said "I'm not saying no to getting to know you better. I'm just asking if we could take it slow?"

"We have been going backwards." Hiccup said. "First marriage, then meeting the parents." This caused Astrid to laugh.

"I just don't want this...." She said gesturing between her and Hiccup. "To be a rebound thing."

"I can understand that." Hiccup told her.

"Soooo......." Astrid suddenly smiled mischievously. "How about coffee and lunch tomorrow while we get to know each other better?"

"I would love that Milady." Hiccup said and both winced when they heard Stoick shout "MAH FOOT!!"

"Hush Stoick!" Thay could hear Valka try to whisper, but was failing. "You'll probably interrupt their lovey-dovey time!" Hiccup colored spectacularly upon hearing that. "Oh my Thor, my mom, Astrid...... eh......... Oh Thor......." Astrid couldn't take it anymore. She just started laughing at the oddity of the night. 'Things will probably end up well.' Her mind supplied as she looked at Hiccup who was now blushing madly. No, she definitely didn't regret meeting him.

----------------------The End-----------------

AN: Wow, this story actually became longer than I expected.  (Backs away slowly) Please don't kill me for the open ending! That's how most Hallmark movies go!  Also, the rice cooker dialog was based on actual events..... I still have no clue where the other two rice cookers are. 

Definition of the Hallmark AU:

There are only 5 rules to follow in a Hallmark AU. 1) The plot has to be cheesy, 2) It has to be slightly unrealistic, 3) There is always a wise parent/grandparent present, 4) A sassy best friend is there to help, 5) They always end happy (with sometimes open endings)