Happier

Chapter 8

Hiccup woke up the next morning thinking about Toothless... again. He tossed in turned in bed as he tried to shake the thought of his best friend from his mind, but it was no use. He made up his mind now.

Hiccup walked out of his hut to see the whole council waiting outside, talking. Their heads turned at the sound of Hiccup closing his door.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Astrid said you came home late last night," Gobber began.

Hiccup glared at the blonde that stood confidently beside his mother. Of course, she would tell everyone he came home late. His starred into her eyes for a little longer than he meant to and noticed she looked tired. Her eyes were a little puffy too.

'Strange' he thought to himself, 'I didn't come home that late last night. She should've been able to get enough sleep.'

"We hope with all that time you spent doing who knows what that you finally came to a decision," Gobber finished. His tone was stern and Hiccup had only heard it a few time before.

"We did come to a decision. Stop worrying," Hiccup said firmly. Even to him, it sounded harsh, but what is said is said. Astrid was taken aback.

"We?" Astrid's voice said shakily.

"Yes, Liv and I ran into each other yesterday and talked it out. We are going to go through with this arrangement," Hiccup said softer.

No one spoke.

Hiccup looked at Astrid. Something was wrong. She didn't look like her confident self.

"Astrid," Hiccup called. The woman's head shot up. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" he asked softly. Astrid nodded.

Hiccup lead Astrid away from everyone else. "What's wrong?"

"What?" she asked. She stood far from Hiccup, arms folded across her body, head down.

"Astrid, I've known you for as long as I can remember, I know when something's wrong," Hiccup said. He walked over to Astrid and grabbed her arms gently.

Astrid winced a little but didn't protest.

"It's nothing," Astrid looked away. Hiccup released his soft grip and looked at her arms. He had noticed they were reddish on the boat ride here but didn't think much of it. Now they were bluish-purple.

"Astrid why are your arms bruised," Hiccup asked, his tone serious.

Astrid's hands flew to cover her arms, "It's nothing! Really!" she said quickly. "Kylan just grabbed me a little hard. That's all."

Hiccup's face became red with anger. "Kylan did this to you!" he exclaimed.

"He didn't mean to! He had his hands on my arms like you just did. His grip was a little tighter than yours and I tried to walk away without thinking and he didn't let go, so my arms are a little bruised. It's really nothing," Astrid said.

Hiccup began to calm down. He didn't know if he totally believed her story, but whether he liked it or not, he still trusted her. She would tell him if something was wrong, right?

"Ok. If that's what happened, then I apologize," Hiccup said.

"Hiccup, you don't have to get so defensive. I'm General Astrid Fearless Hofferson. If Kylan was going to intentionally hurt me, you know I'd take care of it," Astrid said, perking up a little.

Hiccup laughed, "Ya I know."

Astrid's face completely lit up, "You laughed! Oh my gods, Hiccup Haddock laughed!" Astrid spun around in excitement. "I guess you're not as cold as you pretend to be."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Hiccup said, smiling a bit.

"It's been too long since I've heard you laugh," Astrid giggled.

"Ya ya, so I don't laugh much anymore. I still want to know what's wrong," Hiccup said.

Astrid's smile faded.

"If it's about me and Liv-" Hiccup began.

"No, of course not," she said quickly. 'Yes of course it is!'

"Ok," Hiccup said.

~

Hiccup and Liv stood in front of the whole Bashem tribe in their Great Hall. They were about to announce their betrothal. Hopefully, everything would go smoothly.

Liv announced to her tribe that she and Hiccup were betrothed and the village erupted into cheers.

Hiccup and Liv made their rounds speaking with everyone. The people here were somewhat nice but what can you expect from a Viking?

They finally made it to where the council stood.

"Everyone, this is Liv," Hiccup said. Liv smiled shyly. "Liv this is my mother, Valka, my best friend, Eret, my god-father, Gobber, and some of the gang, Snotlout, Fishlegs, and our general, Astrid,"

"It's nice to meet all of you," Liv said sweetly.

Liv and Valka immediately began talking.

Hiccup smiled. He was glad they got along well.

"You really like her don't you?" Astrid said.

"Ya, she's amazing," Hiccup said, a lovesick grin settling on his face.

Astrid smiled, "It's good to see you happy again. She brings out the good side of you."

Astrid walked away without saying anything else. She really was glad Hiccup had found someone who brought out his better side. But she hated that it wasn't her anymore.

Hiccup watched Astrid walk away. His gaze shifted to Liv and Valka laughing. He smiled, "Ya, happy again."