Face Value

Part 1

ONE:

No one paid her any attention. She was walking through a hallway full of students and she was almost invisible. Of course, she wasn't completely invisible because she was still jostled and bumped, sometimes by carelessness but more often deliberately because she was a nobody.

Astrid Hofferson adjusted the rucksack over her shoulder and twisted as she avoided an especially exuberant Junior who was showing off to a group of his friends. It was Gustav Larson, an awkward kid with scruffy black hair, bright grey eyes and impenetrable self-belief who wanted to be one of the Jocks with his heroes Simon 'Snotlout' Jorgensen and Derek 'Dagur' Oswaldson. She cast him an exasperated look and moved on.

Astrid was pretty-and would be considered more so if she would conform to the Senior Class definitions of attire for one of the 'In' crowd. But as she stomped along in her brown beanie, wisps of her braided golden hair poking out and framing her face with the cheeks pinkened from the Berk winter cold outside and bright blue eyes sparking, she didn't care. She was short of money because her father had died in Freshman Year so she cycled to school and she had long since realised that a fashionably short skirt, high heels and expensive coat wasn't an option. So she trudged towards the class in her winter ski jacket, a thermal tee shirt and azure blue baggy jumper underneath, her skinny dark blue jeans tucked into moderately beat up mid-calf length boots.

She heard a burst of laughter and she glanced up, seeing the Queen Bee and her entourage occupying the warmest spot at the far end of the Hallway as they discussed their weekends. Atali Winger was tall and confident with bright red hair in a high ponytail and glittering green eyes, her expensive Designer dress flattering her athletic shape. Heather Oswalsdon, Dagur's half-sister who had been Astrid's best friend in Middle School, glanced at Astrid and stared for a moment. Slender and poised, Heather's raven hair was braided over her shoulder and she wore grey, her green eyes briefly meeting the outcast girl's. Unknown to her friends, Heather still sometimes contacted Astrid-though even that was becoming less and less frequent-but in school, she had to ignore the blonde. So then she looked away and turned back to the discussion of the fact that a big Hollywood film was actually being filmed on Berk and if they could possibly get to see the stars.

"That Dane is soooo dreamy," Raquel 'Ruffnut' Thorston commented.

"I'd like to get my hands on Thorbjorn Ulricson-what a hunk," Mindy Mayder added.

"Me likey too," Ruff added.

"It's so thrilling that Fearless Films are making 'Son of Odin' here on Berk!" Heather enthused, feeling the smallest pang of guilt at ignoring Astrid once more-after all, they had sworn to be friends forever. Though that was until... She shook herself to get her head back in the game. "There are film stars literally everywhere!"

"Except here," Atali sighed. "If only we could get onto set...I am sure they would hire us as extras...." She grinned. "One look at me and they're sure to want me in their movie!"

Shaking her head, Astrid walked on. She was a serious student, probably a bit of a nerd, who knew exactly what she wanted in life. Her grades were important because she needed to secure a place at College to study biochemistry and then work on defeating cancer like the one that had shattered her family. She knew that her mother had never come to terms with his death, with her life-partner feeling unwell and going into hospital, with being diagnosed with stage four lymphoma and with him dying two days later. There had been no time for goodbyes, no preparation, no nothing. Ivan had been so strong and then he was gone-and gods, Astrid still missed him. But she had to be strong for her Mom.

She walked into the classroom and was shocked to find she wasn't the first one there. Hiccup Haddock was at the back, his head buried in a book, some old leather-bound tome that was marked with half rubbed-off runic letters in gold. Tall, lanky and a bit awkward, he was handsome with his dark auburn hair and forest green eyes but he kept himself to himself. He had been friends with the jocks until Junior Year when a house fire had cost him his left lower leg, his place in the athletics team and his friends, who had dropped him as a friend. Since then, he had been ostracised and treated as a pariah, bullied by his former friends and casually abused as a 'cripple' by many of the students. He was fully Astrid's equal in the nerd stakes and they vied for top marks but her own little pool of independence and bitterness at her lot in life had pushed away anyone who tried to make friends with her-and Hiccup had been one. After all, pretty much everyone she had trusted and cared for as a friend had betrayed her and she was loath to trust anyone to get that close to her again. Even Heather was finally withdrawing and the familiar blanket of loneliness was firmly wrapped around her.