Astrid had visited every day, spending hours with the boy as he slowly recovered from his surgeries. He had insisted that she bring their homework along and though he had done relatively little, he had made sure she finished hers. If nothing else, he didn't want to ruin her life like he had his own.

It was now New Years Eve and Astrid was having a party-not a huge everyone-in-the-year-come sort of party but more a close friends only do...just the girls and the Team. Of course, Snotlout had brought an uninvited friend-Lilah-and Eret had infuriated Ruff by arriving with Savannah draped over his arm. Astrid had been amused simply because the pair of girls had been fiercely ignoring each other before Snoggletog but it seemed that Lilah hadn't been able to manage without her brainless bimbo lackey and the two had clearly made up.

Of course, Astrid's parents were at the party which meant even Lilah and Savannah were on their best behaviour but as the evening progressed, Astrid found herself missing the person who wasn't there more and more. She had found walking Stormfly alone wasn't so much fun and she carefully avoided the street where Hiccup had been run down because she kept seeing the car racing by, hearing the scream and yelp...and the thud of impact.

But Toothless was home now, curled on a blanket in the kitchen, exercising his best puppy eyes on Martin and Ingrid, with great success. He was hopping around the kitchen happily, harvesting treats with his doggy toothless smile and a permanently wagging tail.

Astrid cast around and found herself feeling lonely. Snotlout and Eret were dancing attendance on their dates and Heather was talking quietly with Fishlegs. Cami and Ruff were bitching to Tuff about the unwanted and uninvited guests. She sighed a helped herself to a handful of snacks.

"You don't look happy," Heather noted, walking up quietly. Fishlegs offered her a drink and Astrid gratefully accepted the soda. She shrugged.

"I don't know," she sighed. "I mean it's great having you guys here but those two..." and she cast an unfriendly glance at the two intruders, "...well, they put my teeth on edge."

"They're asking lots of questions even though we all agreed to keep your secret," Fishlegs told her. She sighed.

"I guessed," she said flatly, then shook herself. "Anyway, how are you holding up? It must be hard with Dagur and Ozzie...you know..."

"In jail, charged with attempted murder?" Heather asked pointedly. Astrid nodded, taking her hand.

"I'm sorry," she said. Heather gave a sad smile.

"You know, I never thought they would be so...callous," she admitted in a small voice. "I know Ozzie wanted to kill Hiccup's dog because it bit him when he broke into Gobber's garage...and I know Dagur had a huge downer on Hiccup because he rescued you...but I never thought him capable of...that!" Fishlegs took her hand gently and smiled...and she looked up at him and smiled back. Astrid's eyes widened.

"Hey...are you two...you know...together?" she asked and Heather smiled.

"Um-yeah," she admitted though her eyes reflected her happiness. "Look, you showed us it doesn't matter if you're cool or athletic...as long as you're happy!" Astrid blinked and forced a smile onto her face.

"Yeah," she sighed.

"I really am sorry, Ast," Heather told her. "When I spoke to Dagur, he promised to leave you alone, though he said he was still after Hiccup...but I swear I never knew he was planning this!" Astrid stared at her.

"Spoke to Dagur?" she repeated. Heather stared...and then she jolted with realisation.

"So that's how he found him!" she gulped. "Oh Thor, Astrid! I am so sorry..." Astrid stared at her and then squeezed her hand.

"You weren't to know," she said. "No one made them run down a boy and his dog...and they were looking for him. It wasn't your fault!" Heather sighed then hugged Astrid.

"I think we both know where you need to be," she said as Astrid smiled and headed for the door, grabbing her father on the way. Martin willingly got into the car and they headed out for the hospital. Martin drove for a few minutes and then turned to her.

"He's your boyfriend, isn't he?" he said and she nodded.

"It-it wasn't intentional,Dad-it just happened," she admitted, staring at her hands.

"Has he...touched you?" Martin asked. Astrid flushed bright red.

"DAD!" she exploded. "Of course not!" Martin cast her half an eye.

"I have to ask," Martin told her without apology. "I know you weren't really friends originally when he came though he was polite and respectful. But he did protect you...and he has treated you well."

Astrid sighed and a small smile lifted her lips.

"So I have ask if he..."

"No, he hasn't," Astrid told him. "We've kissed...that's it..." Martin sighed.

"You know my concerns, Astrid," he told her gently. "You are my only child and I want what's best for you...and to protect you..." He paused at the intersection then turned onto the main highway. "I don't want you distracted from your schoolwork, Astrid. There are only a few months before you graduate High School and it's so important that you succeed..."

Astrid sighed and looked at him. She knew he had great ambitions for his only child, ambitions that didn't match with her own but she knew to choose her battles. And Hiccup was worth the battle.

"I understand," she said calmly, "but I have to have a life, Dad. If I succeed, if I pass my Diploma and end up where you want me to be, I will make new friends, I will go out to parties and I will have a boyfriend, I guess..." She almost laughed at her father's horrified expression. "Dad...I need to be a human being, not a machine. So I will have a life at college and that will be distracting. If I can't cope with a boyfriend now, I definitely won't at college! But you don't need to worry because Hiccup had insisted that I concentrate on my work and don't skip any of my chores. But I want some normal life as well...and I want my life...not yours."

Martin gave a small shake of the head. "I just don't want you to throw your life away!" he told her firmly. "Hiccup is a genuine and caring young man-but he does have a troubled past and doesn't place as much emphasis on grades that you..." Astrid sighed.

"Dad-when we first started High School, Hiccup was a straight A student," she told him. "He was bright and nerdy and better than me. But once his Mom remarried, he had to concentrate on getting by...and the Principal targeted him as he began to struggle. His grades plummeted and with no one else to turn to, no support from the staff or at home...he joined the worst boys in the year. His grades have really picked up since he moved in with us and he knows what you prioritise. He's not a bad guy...and he wants what's best for me as well..." She unclipped the seatbelt as they pulled up outside the hospital. "Let me have a life, Dad. I am your daughter and I will always try to make you proud...but just trust me, please?"

He paused and then leaned towards her, kissing her cheek. "I couldn't be more proud of you," he said with a smile. "Now go to see your friend. It's nearly the New Year; no one should be alone!"

oOo

Hiccup was lying in the bed, staring at the TV aimlessly. His leg was hurting again but he wasn't due for any painkillers for another couple of hours so he gritted his teeth and muted the TV. It wasn't that long until midnight and he guessed he may as well stay awake...not that he would be able to sleep. He grimaced and shifted his position again as the door opened...and he gaped as Astrid poked her head round and grinned.

"Astrid! What are you doing here?" he asked her in shock. She closed the door and shucked off her coat.

"Let me think...visiting you?" she suggested dryly.

"But...your Dad..." he protested.

"...brought me here to be with my boyfriend," she told him with a smug smile.

"Um...he knows?" Hiccup asked, his green eyes filling with concern. Astrid walked to his side jerked her head to one side.

"Move over!" she commanded him.

"Hey, this is my bed!" he protested.

"And I am your girlfriend wanting to sit next to you so move over!" she repeated firmly. Grumbling, he braced his hands and scooched over the bed, taking care not to jolt his painful leg much. She instantly sat next to him, swinging her legs up to lie alongside his, her body pressed alongside him. She stared up into his face and smiled. "Yes, my Dad knows," she reassured him. "We had a talk..."

"Oh Gods, I'm out on the streets in January 2nd," he guessed. She rested a hand gently on his chest, feeling his warmth through the hospital gown.

"No, my bad boy, you are not going anywhere," she said smugly. She leaned up and kissed him gently on the mouth.

"Well, wouldn't exactly get far," he commented dryly. She chuckled and rested her head on his shoulder as his arm slid behind her and gently wrapped around her waist. "Was your Dad okay?" She sighed.

"He worries you'll distract me," she admitted.

"Yeah, he made me promise not to distract you back when I arrived," he admitted in an ashamed voice. "Hmmm...to be honest, didn't think that would be an issue, since there was no way on Midgard that Miss Perfect would fall for the class screw-up!"

"My boyfriend isn't the class screw-up," she told him determinedly.

"Damn. Tell me where he is and I'll kill him!" Hiccup teased her. She punched his arm gently. "What is it about you and violence?"

"Just communicating," she smirked.

"Owww...someone call the trauma team!" he whined theatrically.

"Wimp!"

"NOT a wimp! I was run down! I almost lost a leg!"

"Let me kiss it better!" she offered with a grin and he looked horrified.

"Um, no...that would be really creepy!" She kissed him gently again and rested her head back on his shoulder.

"My Dad was concerned...but I did point out that I have to live my life and...well, live," she admitted. "He's worried about distractions but the fact is that life is distraction. And if I can't manage to finish my year with my supportive and protective boyfriend, then I'll never survive college." He gently pressed a light kiss on her hair and sighed.

"Astrid, you are clever and smart and determined enough to d whatever you want," he told her softly. "And I certainly won't be allowing you to get too distracted...but you will need a little life outside of work...because otherwise you'll have missed High School completely...and that would be as much of a disaster as failing..." He paused. "But I think we both know that doing the best you can means that you have the most choices and the greatest leverage." She raised her azure gaze to inspect his pale face, his bruises and scrapes fading after almost a week.

"What do you mean?" she asked. His emerald eyes warmed with affection.

"Get your straight As, graduate on the Honour Roll, be the Class Speaker...and then you have fulfilled your part of the bargain," he told her softly. "Because then, you can apply for whatever you want. And you can remind your Dad that Law is often postgraduate. Persuade him to let you do what you want...and that you can consider Law later...offer to work towards your fees...which will also give you vital life experience..."

"You really are subversive, aren't you?" she smiled. He gave a slight lopsided smile.

"I try," he murmured. "Sometimes, you need to compromise to get what you want, Milady. Case in point..." He paused and waved a hand aimlessly over his scrawny shape. "My heart says Art...but I know that won't pay the bills and enable me to make enough to support me and Mom. So I am aiming for Engineering. I get to use my draughting abilities for plans and my mechanical skills. And I can still draw in my spare time...if I ever have any!"

She didn't mention that his Mom had disowned him: she could hear the determination in his voice and knew he hadn't given up on reconciling with her...even though she had refused to answer the phone to her Mom. Astrid hadn't told him that Valka had claimed to be a wrong number, even knowing her son was seriously hurt in hospital...but she guessed he had tried to ring her and had been blanked as well.

"Babe-whatever you do, you'll succeed in...and I have total faith," she told him, smiling. "Just be who you are..." He gently turned to her.

"I should be saying that to you," he murmured.

"Oooh!" she said, grabbing the remote and thumbing the sound up. "It's the countdown to New Year..." Her hand found his and he sighed.

"You know, I don't think in my wildest dreams, I could have imagined this last New Year," he murmured, his emerald gaze sweeping over her excited face. It was true-the previous New Year's Eve, he had been beaten for preventing Alvin hitting his Mom and then locked in his room for the whole of the next day. "I just can't believe how things turned out. I...I really just thought I would have to carry on, find a way to survive and stick things out with Al...to stay with Mom...but you know...I thank Odin for everything you've done for me..." He leaned towards her and kissed her gently.

As they kissed, the fireworks began, both on TV and audible through the windows. Astrid smiled as she pulled back, breathing hard.

"Hopefully-this coming year will be the best ever...and we'll face it together, Hiccup," she said with a contented smile. "Happy New Year, Hiccup." His hand tightened on hers and he leaned forward to kiss her again.

"Happy New Year, Milady."