Ok, so it's been a few years since I've posted anything on FF and this is my first How To Train Your Dragon fanfic. I hope you all like it so far.

Dragons. They've occupied his mind for as long as he could remember. He'd been fascinated with them since he could open his eyes, had been drawing them since he could hold a pencil, had been studying them since he could read. His whole life was about dragons!

Most people considered people like that geeks, so he was often the target of a lot of torment. But Henry "Hiccup" Haddock didn't really care about those people. He was living in his own world, where those people didn't exist…

… Until they did.

That world was full of vikings and dragons and discovering. In that world, things got better with his dad. In that world, he became a hero. In that world, he had an amazing warrior of a girlfriend.

Which was who he was painting now.

She was beautiful, but, for some reason, he felt like that wasn't the reason he loved her. He felt like he envied her before he loved her. At least, that's what his dreams tell him.

She had beautiful, long blonde hair that she kept in a braid on her side. She had striking blue eyes that would shine when she smiled. Oh, her smile! She had a beautiful smile and sometimes it would turn into a smirk. He found himself smiling, just thinking about it, thinking about her. In all his dreams, he had called her Astrid, and that's what he would call this piece when he finished it.

"-enry. Henry!"

He finally snapped his eyes away from his painting and towards his art teacher. "Yes, Ms." Ms. Gerund was the only teacher that called him by his real name.

"The bell rang," she informed.

Henry shrugged. "Its just lunch." Ms. Gerund was a new art teacher and still wasn't used to him staying during lunch. Not like Ms. Gothi, who retired last year.

"I figured you'd like to eat sometime," she said.

And he could understand her worry. He was as thin as a fishbone. At least that's what his father told him. Or was that just a dream? "I'm not hungry, I just wanna finish this." He wasn't sure what Ms. was thinking, but, as a new teacher, she was probably hoping to spend her lunches alone. It was only 3 weeks into the school year and he had spent every single one of them here, trying to finish this painting.

Ms. Gerund silently sighed. So much for a lunch alone. Again. "Let me see how its coming out," she suggested. She walked around and stood behind him. He heard a gasp almost immediately. "Its-its-"

"Finished," he interrupted as he painted one last golden strip of hair. And there she was.

"Who is she," Ms. Gerund asked, finally finding words.

"Astrid," Hiccup breathed out, a lovesick expression on his face.

"Does she go to this school?! She's going to love this!"

Here came the hard part of his paintings, explaining that these people weren't real. "The only way she'd be able to come to this school is if she popped out from my imagination," he explained. "She isn't real."

Ms. Gerund sighed. "Well, did you know that you can't just create a face in your mind? Your brain remembers every single face you see even if you can't. So there's a good chance she's real."

"I'm pretty extra sure that she's not."

She opened her mouth and,to Hiccup, it looked like she was about to give him some life advice until she was interrupted by two boys barging into her classroom. One had beefy arms and black hair, the other had beefy… everything and had blonde hair. The brunette happened to be his cousin, Scott "Snotlout" Jorgenson and the blonde was none other than his best friend Fin "Fishlegs" Ingerman.

"I told you he'd be in here," Fishlegs said with a smug smile.

Snotlout rolled his eyes. "Whatever! Hiccup," he yelled, turning to him. "Watta you doing here, its Pep Rally Schedule, tomorrow's the homecoming game! You gotta make me look like I got more spirit then the rest of those losers on the team!"

"Hey, I'm one of those losers," Fishlegs smacked Snotlout's arm, offended.

It was Snotlout's turn to look smug. "Exactly."

"Oh, dear," Ms. Gerund muttered. Why did she choose to be a high school teacher? She turned back to Henry, smiling at his painting. Oh, yes, that's why? "Well, Henry-"

"Hiccup," he interrupted. "Everyone calls me Hiccup."

"Well, Hiccup," she tried, sounding like she was trying out the word for the first time. It really didn't matter how weird it sounded to other people, to him it sounded… right. "This is such a lovely painting, you don't mind if I put it up?"

"Not at all," he confirmed. Gothi had done the same thing with his other paintings.

"What painting," Snotlout asked, coming up behind Hiccup. "Odin's beard! She's hot!"

Hiccup wasn't sure why he felt a tinge of jealousy over a girl that wasn't even real. "C'mon, Snotlout," Hiccup said, getting up and taking off his apron. "Let's go and get you all pepped up."

"All right, but seriously, who is that?"

"Astrid," he answered, nonchalantly, exiting the room.

Snotlout ran after him, laughing his head off. "Astrid? You're badass wife you've been dreaming about since you were five?! You know a girl like that would never go for you, right? Girl's like a man with muscle," he said as he flexed.

If Hiccup were honest with himself, he would tell himself that he had known Snotlout would be annoying before he even met him. Just like he had known Fishlegs would be smart and shy instead of a bully. But he wasn't honest with these things in fear that someone might think he's going mad. "It doesn't matter, snotlout, she's not real."

"Actually," Fishlegs budded in, "scientist have discovered that your brain-"

"Recognizes faces that you don't," Hiccup interrupted. "Yes, I know, but, trust me, she isn't real."

"And how do you know that?"

"Gee, I don't know, Fishlegs, maybe it's because I've never left this city and would've known if she lived here."

Fishlegs rolled his eyes. "Hiccup's right," Snotlout said, surprising them both. Snotlout didn't usually agree with Hiccup. "No one would forget a face like that," he explained, a smug grin on his face.

Again, that tinge of jealousy. He rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Snotlout."

Hiccup went straight for his motorcycle the second his teacher let them out for the pep rally. He wasn't really a pep rally guy. He felt like once he might've been, could've been. But that felt so long ago, too long ago. Now, he just hid on the seat of his motorcycle.

When his dad had offered to buy him a car, Hiccup had refused. He and his dad's best friend, Gobber, had been fixing up this motorcycle since Hiccup had shown an interest in engineering. When they finally got it done, Gobber just gave it to him. Hiccup was ecstatic when he first got to ride it. He couldn't understand the feeling he had, it felt familiar, the way the way the wind would blow through his hair as he rode. When he was riding, he didn't even feel the cold, he just felt… free.

Pulling up on the driveway, he noticed that his dad's car was there, meaning his dad was finally home for once. Not that it made a difference, his home would still be as silent as if he weren't there. He and his dad has never had a good relationship. Well, maybe they did once, but that was before his mother divorced him.

He entered the house and stared at the empty walls. Once they were filled with happy family photos, but that was also before the divorce. Lots of things were before the divorce.

When his dad was young, he had met his mother. It was the classic highschool sweethearts dealio. Years later, they came to America for better opportunities. They saw how corrupt this city was and did everything in their power to make things right. It wasn't long before his dad was elected mayor and he fixed up the town to his liking. All in the middle of that, Hiccup was born. He was their dream come true. That was until his dad saw how much more interested he was in literally everything but sports. Hiccup didn't like running, he hated both kinds of football, he couldn't swing a bat, couldn't stand rugby, and he couldn't lift weights. Hiccup just wasn't an athlete. He was everything else. But his dad just didn't see that.

Then came the court sessions and all the confusion. Though his mom tried, she didn't win. She got a few custody weeks during the year.

All the years they had been together and they never noticed how different they were from each other until they both had different futures planned for their only son.

Crappy, wasn't it.

But, it didn't matter. I didn't matter then, it didn't matter yesterday, it didn't even matter now as he was looking through the fridge for something to eat.

"You're home early," his dad said as he entered the kitchen.

Hiccup took out a plate of chicken. "I thought you'd still be at City Hall."

"I finished up paper work earlier than I expected," he explained.

Hiccup nodded. "There was a pep rally," Hiccup explained as well.

After that small exchange, the house went awkwardly silent again. It had been that way for years.

Riiiiing!

Hiccup gladly welcomed the distraction as he brought out his phone. The screen said "Mom" and he couldn't help but smile. That dropped when he glanced at his dad's expecting expression. "A phone call," he explained.

"Ah, yes," he said, nervously.

"Gotta- gotta take it," he explained, nervously.

"Of course, of course," his dad said, backing off.

"So, uh, yeah," Hiccup said before hastily running out of the kitchen and up the stairs, where he answered the phone just before it would go to voicemail. "Hi, mom," he answered, excitedly. And how could he not?! He only ever saw her a few times a year, and he got even less calls.

"Hiccup," she answered just as excitedly. "How's your day been, hon?" It was refreshing to hear her voice.

"It's been great! I'm almost done with that one prototype I told you about. Just gotta fix a few issues and it'll be done."

"That's wonderful, Hiccup!"

"I know! And I aced the math quiz today. Lunch was a little crappy, but I'm managing."

"What time is it?"

"It's, uh," he checked his screen. "Its almost 4:30."

"Oh no!" Valka cried. "I didn't call you during school again, did I?"

"Oh, no, no! There was a pep rally, I just came home early!"

Valka sighed in relief. "That's good. Are there any new art pieces to show me?"

Hiccup smiled brightly. "Yes, mom, you need to see it! It's my best one yet! I love it so much! Every stroke compliments her… Everything! I-I don't know how to explain it, mom, I'll just text you a pic when we're done." He let out a laugh. "So, uh, how has your day been?"

"It's going great, Hiccup. I just got to Brazil, Peace Corp.'s got us building houses. I'll be building in an area where there's no signal, so I wanted to call you before I go."

"Oh," Hiccup let out. "How long?"

"A month, maybe two. But I'll be sure to drive into town for some signal. Give you a call."

"Yeah, OK." He wasn't going to get his hopes up, those were empty promises.

"And after that, I'm coming to see you."

"Really?!" He yelled, his hopes immediately going up.

"Yes, I'll be staying at a motel for a week until Peace tells us what to do next. It'll be a fun little week for us, you know? I'll pick you up from school, we'll go to an arcade or see a show at one of the theaters. Maybe I'll even visit you at school! Does that sound nice?"

Hiccup nodded even though she couldn't see him. "It does, mom, It really does!"

"Alright, Hiccup, well, I'm...have...go."

"What?"

"I'll...you...a…"

"Mom, mom! You're breaking up!"

"Love you!" Were the last words before the phone completely disconnected.

Hiccup sighed before turning off his phone screen. He hated how a smile slowly crept on his face. Though his heart was telling him two months, his mind was telling him to be rational. His mom never really kept her promises, but the times she did were always fantastic. Once, in 6th grade, she had promised to call him the next week, but that never happened. A month later, though, his dad had brought a new computer saying it had a surprise. When Hiccup turned on the screen, his mother's face was right there, smiling. They had talked for hours until it was time for him to go to bed. Now, though, she doesn't have much time to video chat. He wished she did, he just wanted to see her.

His heart told him that he would and he decided to give his brain a break and finally go get something to eat. He had left a plate of chicken downstairs and lunch really was crappy. His stomach made a noise and he took that as a sign to go and eat that chicken.

When he made it to the kitchen, he found the plate had already been microwaved and looking through the kitchen window, his dad's car was nowhere to be seen.

He guessed it was just as well, he probably heard who he was talking to in this silent house. And in this silent house, his ringtone sounded ten times louder.

He looked at the screen and sighed before answering the phone. "What did you do?"

"What," Snotlout sounded offended over the phone. "Why is it that when I call you, you think I did something?"

"Did you?"

"No!"

'Huh,' Hiccup thought. 'I was sure he had done something.' "Then why are you calling?"

"Your painting, dude! People are loving it!"

"Ms. Gerund put it up already?"

"Yeah, dude! Everyone was wondering who it was and some wanted you to do them next!" Hiccup rolled his eyes, people always asked him that. "But I straightened everything out for you, bro, don't worry."

Hiccup furrowed his brows. "What does that mean?"

"I told everyone about the dream thing so they didn't think it was someone's portrait," he explained proudly. "Now people know you can't paint actual faces and they'll leave you alone! Problem solved!"

Hiccup internally sighed. He knew Snotlout meant well, but sometimes he could be such an idiot. "Thank you very much, Snotlout."

"Ay! No problem, man! Always here to help!" He laughed. "Can you believe people thought she was real, though?! Imagine that!"

Hiccup let out a mirthless chuckle. "Yeah, imagine that."

She pulled the last of her luggage out of the car and sighed in relief. "That's the last of it!" She yelled to her mom.

"Thank you, Astrid," a beautiful, blonde woman said, coming out of the house. She smiled down at her daughter and Astrid's anger couldn't help but flare when she saw the black eye. Her mom deserved so much better than that asshole and Astrid was happy that, for once, her mom agreed.

And that's why they were here, moving into a nice apartment. Both she and her best friend had decided to leave their deadbeat boyfriends and move far away from their old lives. Everything worked well for Astrid because her mom's best friend just so happened to be the mom of her own best friends, Surly and Kevin Thortson. Or, as they liked to call themselves, Ruffnut and Tuffnut. But they wouldn't be there for another few days because their mom got the date of the tickets wrong.

Her train of thought pulled to a halt as her mom brought her into a hug. "This is going to be a good thing for us." She pulled away from the hug and smiled. "You're uncle told me he would help with rent until I got back on my feet. Right now, we only have what you're grandpa left me. I'll have to use that sparingly, so expect a whole lot of takeout."

Astrid laughed. "You and I both know you don't cook, period."

Her mom only smiled at her before looking around the apartment complex. "Why don't you go look around, see if anyone your age lives here?"

"Mom, Ruffnut and Tuffnut are coming in a few days," she explained, trying to carry the luggage in the apartment. "I don't need new friends. We'll figure this place out together."

Her mom snatched the luggage from her hand and laughed as she went inside first, closing the door behind her. Astrid stood there for a second, confused. Then she hard a click and she rushed to the door, trying to open it. "Mom! C'mon!"

"Be back in an hour with a friend, and maybe I'll let you in," her muffled voice came from the door.

"Seriously?!" Astrid stood there for a moment, hoping she would change her mind. She sighed when she knew that she wouldn't and started walking away from the door. She was ten feet away when she heard it open. She flipped around with hope in her eyes only to be tackled down. "Ugh, Stormfly," she yelled, pushing her service dog off of her. She glared in her mom's direction only to find the door already closed. She rolled her eyes as she stood up and checked if Stormfly actually had her vest on. It made people feel more comfortable around her, her being a service dog instead of a "dangerous" pitbull. She dusted herself off before waving forward. "C'mon, girl, let's go find someone to talk to." Stormfly followed her happily.

Astrid hadn't had an episode in years, but she kept the vest on Stormfly, anyway. The doctors had told her mom that it was some form of PTSD, which still confused Astrid to this day. She had never had any traumatic experiences before. It was Stormfly that got herself promoted from house dog to service dog because, somehow, she just new Astrid was about to have an episode. The doctors agreed and pulled a few strings to get Stormfly a vest. It was happily ever after for her and Stormfly after that.

She got a treat from her pocket and fed it to the blue and white beauty. Technically gray, but at certain angles her fur looked blue.

"So, where should we go," Astrid asked the dog. She looked around, finding absolutely no one around. There probably were kids her age here, but they were all probably inside on their phones. She could probably use her phone to search up a dog park. "Should we go to the dog park," she asked Stormfly. The dog barked in response and she took that as a yes. She chuckled as she brought her phone out of her pocket…

And then bumped into someone. "I'm so sorry," she said as the other person said, "Oh, excuse me!"

When Astrid looked up at her, she felt...intimidated. Compared to Astrid's 5'4, this girl seemed exactly 6 feet. She had short, blonde hair, a strong jaw, and beautiful, green eyes. She stood up, back straight, and looking like she knew what she was doing. The girl gave her a look. "You look very familiar. Do I know you?"

Astrid shook her head. "I doubt it, I just moved into these apartments."

"Ah," the girl let out, smiling. "These apartments are wonderful, I can guarantee it. We actually care for our tenants here."

Astrid raised a brow. "And you are?..."

Her small smile didn't falter. "I am Mala Queen, my parents own these apartments."

Astrid wasn't sure what to say to that. "I'm Astrid Hofferson," she introduced, holding out a hand.

"Astrid," Mala drew out. "Why do I feel like I've heard that name before?" She muttered to herself. She took Astrid's hand with a smile. "Nice to meet you, Astrid. Is this your dog," she asked, gesturing to Stormfly.

"Yeah! You can pet her if you want."

Mala shook her head and Astrid prepared herself to defend her dog. She didn't need to, though. "I have no desire of distracting an animal on duty. She must be aware of you at all times."

Astrid smiled. She already loved this girl. "I'm so happy you think that way! It took forever to find apartments that would take in a pitbull."

"My family loves all animals. I have a pitbull as well! Her name is Great Protector since she guards our home." She smiled at Stormfly. "May I ask what her job is?"

"Oh! She warns anyone around when I'm about to have an episode, but I haven't had one in years."

"Will you be going to Edge High," Mala asked.

"Yeah," she drew out, slowly. "Are they gonna allow her there?"

"Oh, definitely. I'll even put in a good word for you! You seem like a very nice girl."

"Thanks!"

"Are you busy today?"

Astrid laughed. "Oh, you bet. I have a lot of unpacking to do and I have to figure out which side of the room's gonna be mine. Why?"

"I was hoping to give you some Edge High experience before Monday. The Homecoming game is today. I'll be going to support my king."

"You're king?"

Mala nodded. "My boyfriend and I have been Homecoming king and queen for the past two years. This year will make it the third."

"That is so sweet!"

"Yes, it is. My Snotlout is very loyal to me even though he could have any girl in school."

Astrid smiled at the girls lovestruck expression. "Hey, do you mind if we take a selfie? I need proof I interacted with someone so my mom will let me in the house."

"Of course," she said, posing for the picture.

Astrid took the selfie. "That should be enough evidence."

Mala giggled. "I hope to see you at school, Astrid. Until then," she waved goodbye before walking towards the office.

"See ya, Mala," Astrid called with a wave before she and Stormfly headed home.

"That should be enough evidence, right, girl?" Stormfly barked in response and Astrid laughed. This new life was already coming off to a good start.