The dragon riders

Chapt 14

Astrid's pov
We soared through the sky, racing with exhilaration. Stormfly instantly took a liking to me and together we ascended above the clouds, my hand gliding through their fluffy embrace. "Follow me," Hiccup beckoned, diving towards the sea stacks. Without hesitation, I followed suit, ducking and weaving between the rocks, sharing infectious giggles and laughter. As we ascended, maintaining a steady pace, we exchanged mischievous glances and burst into laughter.
"Ah this is what it's like to be free, up in the clouds without a care in the world" Hiccup declared, spreading his arms wide to embrace the wind. "If this is freedom then I have been missing out" I replied, gazing at Hiccup with admiration. "Your fast leaner soon you'll be performing tricks and battling alongside Stormfly," he assured me. "I'll give it my all, sir," I vowed.
Hiccup let out a sigh, discomfort evident on his face. "Please, don't call me that. I'm really don't like titles like 'sir' or 'my lord'; they make me uneasy." "We didn't show you respect when you were growing up, those titles are yours, and I will honor them," I insisted. He smiled and responded, "Then think of me as your friend, rather than your leader." "Alright then," I agreed.
The sun began its descent, casting a breathtaking display of colors upon the horizon. Oh, here comes the best part," Hiccup exclaimed, soaring higher into the sky. Eagerly, I followed suit, and together we ventured above the clouds, my breath catching at the magnificent sight, all the beautiful colors of the sky were painted upon the clouds. We playfully dipped and rose through the cloud cover until the sun finally set, revealing the captivating night sky above the clouds. Seeing them from below was more beautiful than I could ever think.
My eyes widened in awe, and I caught a glimpse of Hiccup stealing a glance back at me, a genuine smile adorning his face. "This is amazing" I let out "She is amazing". I patted Stormfly's head, and she purred contentedly. "I'm glad you see the truth," Hiccup acknowledged. We locked eyes in a comfortable silence until he broke it, coughing and averting his gaze.
"Uh, we should probably head back now. It's almost dinner time and we don't want my father sending out a search party," he suggested. I nodded in agreement, and together we descended, landing near the dragon arena and carefully returning the dragons to their rightful places. Toothless emitted a melancholic hum, and Hiccup sighed, saying, "I know, bud, but they can't know we let you guys out, just yet." Toothless slumped and reluctantly retreated to his cage. Hiccup and I then walked to the great hall, laughing and joking the entire way.
     We walked into the great hall, still joking around, and approached Hiccup's crew. There stood Rapunzel, known as Spring because she springs into action without a plan. Next to her was Eret's son, Eret Jr., and Icy, whose real name is Elsa. Icy possessed incredible ice powers and could be quite cold at times. Beamer, also known as Anna, Icy's sister and complete opposite in personality, was there too. Then we had Frost, also known as Jack Frost, mischievous and with his own icy abilities. The siblings of mad chaos, Dagger and Heather Berserker, completed the group. Finally, there was Merida, who couldn't resist running up to Hiccup and messing with his hair.
             "Ah, Merida, please stop," he pleaded. "Okay, hey, let's play," she suggested mischievously, snatching Hiccup's prosthetic leg. "Keep away!" she exclaimed. "Hey!" Hiccup protested. Suddenly, I noticed Hiccup's missing leg. "I hadn't noticed until now," I remarked. Eret threw the leg to Frost, who playfully waved it around. "Really?" Eret questioned. Frost then tossed it to Beamer, and she swiftly passed it to Icy. "Yeah, how did Hiccup lose his leg anyway?" I curiously inquired.
              "No one knows, not even him," Icy replied nonchalantly, tossing the leg to me. I caught it just as Hiccup hopped over to me. I threw it to Merida, and Hiccup chased after her. "How do you not know how you lost your leg?" I asked Hiccup. He simply shrugged. "All I know is that I lost it before I met Merida, so that was about six month radius on when I lost it," he explained, still hopeful as he glanced at Merida.
               Merida threw the leg to Frost, who promptly tossed it to Spring, and she began running off with it. "That's not fair!" Hiccup complained. I sprinted alongside Spring, positioning myself in front of her, while Hiccup closed in from behind. She threw the leg to me, and I continued running, skillfully maneuvering through the crowd. "Come and get it!" I called out, not paying attention to where I was going. Suddenly, I collided with my parents, who didn't look to happy. I could hear Hiccup approaching from behind.
                   "Blondie!" Merida's voice echoed from behind my parents, her hands eagerly outstretched. Hiccup was closing in on me. Without hesitation, I swiftly threw the leg to Merida, and she dashed off. "Oh, that's mean," Hiccup playfully nudged me, and I chuckled. Glancing back at my parents, I noticed their arms crossed in disapproval. "Astrid Hofferson, where have you been?" my mother yelled.
                "Training," I replied. "Training my arse! You weren't in your usual training spots," my father accused. "I was training with Hiccup," I defended myself. Their anger intensified. "You were what?" they both exclaimed. "You know you're betrothed to Snoutlout." "That's so far off my base from what we were doing," I retorted. "Then tell me, what were you doing?" my mother demanded. "Just training," I replied dismissively, attempting to walk away.
                  "Don't walk away, young lady. How would Snoutlout feel if he found out you were spending time with another man?" my father scolded. "I don't know, and frankly I don't care. He's probably too busy trying to flirt with every girl he sees," I snapped back, my frustration evident. "Don't tell me you're jealous," my mother accused. "No, I just don't like him, like at all. I hate him actually," I confessed, my voice filled with disdain.
                  My parents' faces hardened, their disapproval unmistakable. "Well, you have to marry him," they asserted. "But he's an asshole!" I exclaimed, my patience wearing thin. "No 'buts.' You're going to uphold our family's honor," my father declared sternly. I let out a disgruntled sigh and decided to walk away, ignoring my parents' angry calls for me to return.
                I stormed off, my face still etched with anger, trying to find Hiccup's crew. I found them chatting at a table. I went to sit down. "What's wrong, Blondie?" Anna asked, looking at me with concern. It was strange for someone to genuinely ask about my feelings when I was angry. Most people just assumed I was just an angry person. I let out a sigh. "It's my parents," I replied. "What happened?" Anna inquired. "They got mad at me for spending time with Hiccup, even though we're just friends, all because I'm betrothed to a complete jerk," I vented. "Is it an arranged marriage?" she questioned. "Yeah, they claim it's for the betterment of our family's status," I explained bitterly.
              "That's appalling! Hiccup has actually banned arranged marriages in the villages he oversees. He thinks they're ridiculous," Anna revealed. "You see, my parents call it tradition, but it's just awful," I confessed. "If you want, we can help you find a way out of it," Anna offered. "Thank you, really, but I doubt it's possible. It seems to be my fate," I resignedly replied. "Where there's a will, there's a way," Anna said determinedly. "Alright, I warned you," I chuckled. She laughed, accepting the challenge.
                  Suddenly, Merida came out of nowhere still clutching Hiccup's leg, laughing gleefully. "Look at him, hop!" she exclaimed between fits of laughter. Hiccup swiftly tackled her, reclaiming his leg. I couldn't help but giggle. "God fucking damn it! Never do that again!" he exclaimed, trying to catch his breath. We all burst into laughter, the tension momentarily lifted.
                   "Hiccup," anna called out. "Hold on," he replied, taking off his tunic, revealing his bare upper body, he wiped the sweat off his forehead with it. Merida couldn't help herself and yelled, "Cover them up, slut!" Hiccup turned back to her, a defiant look in his eyes. "No," he retorted. Then he turned to us. "Alright, what is it?" he asked. "We have an arrange marriage" she says. "Who" he asks ruffling his hair with tunic. She points at me, "who is it" he asks. "Snoutlout" I said.
                    Hiccup's laughter erupted once again. "Okay, this won't be so hard," he reassured us. "What do you mean?" I inquired, curiosity piqued. "You know, arranged marriages only work if both parties are pure," he explained. "I'm still pure," I stated. Hiccup nodded, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. "Yeah, but Snoutlout isn't," he revealed. I was shocked at first, but then a wicked smile crept onto my lips. "This is perfect," I declared. "But who?" I questioned.
                 Hiccup glanced around, his eyes darting, before whispering a name, "Lillian." "Lillian? The stuck-up daughter of Bucket?" I exclaimed in surprise. "Yeah," he confirmed. "How do you know?" I inquired. "Trust me, he would boast about it so much when we were younger, and I see the way she looks and acts with snoutlout, Anyway, here's the plan."
.
.
.
Hiccup hurriedly slipped into a tunic before we ascended to the Chief's table. I walked alongside him, flanked by his loyal crew. Snoutlout and his parents were already seated, accompanied by Gobber and the Chief, all immersed in laughter and merriment. "Ah, hello, Hiccup! What brings you here?" Gobber greeted with a cheerful tone. "We've come to discuss the arranged marriage between Astrid and Snoutlout," Hiccup replied, his voice resolute.
"What is there to discuss? They shall be wed when Snoutlout becomes Chief," Spitelout interjected confidently. "Unless you're willing to offer a higher bid for her hand in marriage." Hiccup raised his hands defensively. "That's not what I want. In fact, I believe the entire arrangement is sinful." Stoick inquired, "How so?" "One of the parties involved isn't pure," Hiccup stated, his gaze fixed on Snoutlout.
"You harlot!" Spitelout exclaimed, his anger bubbling to the surface. Hiccup's crew instinctively stepped forward, forming a protective barrier around me. Hiccup calmly corrected Spitelout, "It's not her; it's your son." Snoutlout looked visibly nervous, weakly defending himself, "What? No I would never." "Lillian would say otherwise" he said. Now he's really nervous. "Uhm I don't know what your talking about" he says.
Hiccup hands slammed onto the table, his eyes locking onto Snoutlout. Though he appeared intimidating, his voice remained eerily calm. "correct me if I'm wrong but I remember you saying all the things you and Lillian got up to, how you would boast to me Tuffnut and fishlegs. Don't you remember that? I know they do as well, so stop fucking lying".
Snoutlout finally cracked under the pressure, reluctantly admitting, "Okay, fine. So what? That was years ago." "Wrong! We spoke to Lillian, and she mentioned your last rendezvous was just four days ago," Merida interjected. The anger in Spitelout and Stoick's eyes turned toward Snoutlout. "Well, then you must marry Lillian," Gobber declared firmly.
"What?" Snoutlout exclaimed, then directing his anger at Hiccup, he accused, "You're only helping her so you can be with Astrid." "No, I simply find arranged marriages fucking stupid," Hiccup retorted. "What would you know" snoutlout said. "Well the idea of being forced to marry someone who you may not even like, sounds a little fucked to me" hiccup says "and I have meet people in those type of marriages most of them hated there lives".
"So what? That's just a few isolated cases and we'd be a great couple," Snoutlout argued. "And yet, Astrid has expressed her disdain for you," Hiccup replied. "You're ruining my life!" Snoutlout exclaimed. "Nah, mate, you did that all by yourself," Merida chimed in. "Why do you even care?" Snoutlout snapped. "It's insulting how you treat your best warrior as mere property just because she's a girl," Hiccup said.
Before Snoutlout could respond, Stoick's voice thundered, "Enough! Snoutlout, your arranged marriage with Astrid is sinful. You will have to marry Lillian." "But...!" Snoutlout protested before being interrupted by Hiccup. "Hold on there tubby I'm not done, arranged marriages only bring misfortune to one or both parties involved. I believe that no one should go through with it," Hiccup concluded, his voice resonating with determination.
Stoick let out a weary sigh, realizing the weight of Hiccup's words. "Fine, then. No more arranged marriages." "Glad we could come to an agreement," Hiccup responded, a hint of relief in his voice. "I always forget how widespread these types of practices are. I've grown accustomed to your rule, Hiccup, to the point where it surprises me that things you've outlawed in our villages are considered completely normal elsewhere," Rapunzel remarked, her voice filled with astonishment.
"You have a village of your own?" Gobber asked, genuinely astonished. "Sort of, mate," Elsa answered, stepping forward. "Hiccup here oversees a multitude of villages and even a few kingdoms. We have our own home base that serves as the closest thing to a village or a kingdom." "What?!" they exclaimed, their shock reverberating through the room. Hiccup face palmed.