How Not To Drive Home for Snoggletog

5:Train Troubles

Five: Train Troubles

"Oh Gods," Hiccup shouted as he scrambled from the burning car, dragging his possessions out urgently. Astrid was staring in shock. "GET OUT! ASTRID! NOW!"

"Son of a half-troll!" she spat. "I knew I should never have let Bryan arrange my car's service!"

"You can kill him later," he told her urgently. "The car is on fire!" She blinked, then scrambled out, wrenching the seat forward and wrestling a huge suitcase off the back seat, grabbing her coat and a holdall.

"Get the case from the trunk!" she ordered him.

"What did your last servant die of?" he grumbled...but limped round and dragged another huge case out. "Gods, did you take a few bricks from the house?" he muttered as he hauled it back. Astrid glared at him as the fire took hold and grabbed a plastic wallet and her bag from her seat. Then she stood back and stared at the burning blue car.

"Goodbye, Stormfly," she murmured. He stared at her.

"Sorry-you named your car?" he asked incredulously as he dragged her heavy case back from the burning wreck, making sure his meagre possessions were safe.

"Hey-that was the only thing that never let me down," she snapped back.

"Until now," he pointed out. She sighed as the fire really took hold and both back up another handful of yards.

"My ex said he'd had her serviced," she said. "I guess he lied..." Hiccup frowned.

"Um...it sounded like the engine was grinding metal on metal..." he pointed out. "When did you last top up the oil? Or even check it?" She looked at him.

"Of course, you would take his side," she snapped. Hiccup sighed.

"Astrid, this is an old car and they tend to lose oil gradually," he explained. "Lubricant has to be checked and regularly topped up and..." He stared at her. "And you've never done that, have you?" She glared at him. "Ever?"

"And how would I know how to do that?" she protested. He rolled his eyes.

"Um...basic car maintenance? Your know the sort of stuff they cover in Driving 101?"

"Really?" she asked him. He sighed. "So what do we do now?" she asked him. He stared at her.

"How come I suddenly know all the answers?" he gaped.

"You're Mr Knows-it-all," she retorted.

"Okay-well I know you won't be driving me back to Berk as you promised because you don't know anything about basic car maintenance..." he snarked. She pulled her coat on, dragged her woollen hat on an threw her holdall across her back, slung her bag across her body and grabbed the extendable handles of the two huge suitcases.

"Fine-make your own way home!" she snapped, turning away and beginning to haul the heavy cases along the side of the road. Hiccup stared after her as she stomped away.

"Do you even know where you're going?" he shouted after her.

"BERK!" she snapped back. He opened his phone and thumbed through the MAPS app. He stared for a few moments, then slung his rucksack over his back with the helmet hanging from it, pulled the holdall over a shoulder and began to limp rapidly after her. It didn't take long to catch her as she puffed and grunted dragging the huge cases along.

"Hey, wait up!" he called and she paused-only because her arms were already aching.

"What?" she growled. He sighed.

"There is a rail station four miles that way...and the line takes you to within fifty miles of Berk..." he told her. "There is a train in two hours...and if we hurry we could catch it..."