Like a Moth to Flame

[Hiccup]

(ooc: June 9. Closed to Hiccup and Astrid.)

Again. He had messed up again. He'd succeeded in igniting something, for once, but it wasn't what he had intended on igniting. Panic had resulted and had led to Hiccup almost burning down a part of the castle. If Gothel hadn't been there to put it out, the fire could have spread. He had been reprimanded rather harshly and sent into the woods as a result. Gothel had said it would do him good to get some time on his own, but Hiccup saw it as nothing more than her trying to get rid of him. That had been at least an hour ago, but the events still burned in Hiccup's mind. He hated it. If she wanted him gone, why hadn't she just said so? It would have been easier to just say it instead of kicking him out of the castle. So, with a dejected sigh, Hiccup continued to make his way through the thick of the forest. He hadn't been paying attention to where he was going at all, and so didn't realize he had wandered into werewolf territory.

"Once. Just once, can something go my way? It's bad enough I didn't fit in back home, but now I'm an even bigger fool! 'Go outside where you can't get in the way', she says. 'Don't come back until you figure out how not to set fire to the castle', she says." Hiccup grumped. He pushed past a particularly gnarled branch, succeeding in tearing a part of his shirt sleeve, and entered a clearer part of the forest. "Can't kill dragons, can't reproduce a single spell properly... all I'm good at is... is... getting in the way!" Hiccup said, kicking a rock out of the way and watching as it collided with a tree. The sound that followed resounded throughout the air for a bit before things fell silent once more. A long sigh escaped Hiccup as his emerald eyes fell to the ground. Some afternoon this was turning out be.

"All I wanted was to fit in. Why is that so hard?"

Hiccup was so busy wallowing in his woes that he didn't realize that he might not have been alone. In fact, it was the last thing he should have expected in werewolf territory. He was practically inviting something to come out and try to snack on him by being alone at that moment in time.

[Astrid]

Astrid lay, scrunched together in a crouch, paws moving slowly, so slowly the deer she was talking had take two full steps forward by the time her fore paw reached the mossy earth. This continued for quite a while, but the patience which predators were given was enough to keep her attention focused on the scraggly doe. After talking to the squirrel a few days prior, she felt a bit guilty hunting. Guilty wasn't nearly enough to overpower hunger. So, the blonde she-wolf stalked her prey, steadily gaining and finally settling herself behind a small patch of grass. Her tail waving in the air must have alerted the doe that there was another presence. Astrid had forgotten the way deer saw. The doe stiffened, head and neck snapping up and erect, rotating head and ears for the culprit. Astrid sprung, the deer half sprinting, half leaping a second ahead. Astrid was forced to chase the deer from the thin, light green, brown of the forest to the thick. The trees piling closer together, the deer's brown coat blending more into the deep browns, Astrid leaping and twisting and avoiding the trees inevitably in her way.

At one point, Astrid truly believed she had the deer in leaping distance. Coiling her muscles, and springing, another projectile entered her peripheral vision, and her head swung to the side to get a clearer image. It was that deer's lucky day. The curiosity aroused and turned off the hunting switch. Landing in a bed of dirt, Astrid slid, for a bit, blonde pelt bristling and a ferocious snarl leaping from her throat. She was still trying to get a better read on whatever the hell this was.

All she was able to gather was that it was a male, definitely not werewolf.Stupid, stupid, stupid!!! You let a random male waltz into your territory, Astrid you're seriously letting yourself go! Her inner voice chided her. It had come to do that a lot more often. Astrid was bristled, fangs bared instinctively, Astrid took a tentative step forward. A reddish haired, fair skin, freckled teen came into view.

Hiccup?!

[Hiccup]

Well, so far he seemed to be alone. Hiccup was almost grateful for that fact. Almost. The redhead did want some company, someone to tell him that he wasn't a waste of space in Gothel's castle, but having that happen seemed very unlikely. Figured as much. He hadn't had much of an opportunity to befriend many of the other witches and wizards. Making a mental note to rectify that situation at a later date, Hiccup decided to lift his gaze from the ground at long last. Unless he was completely out of his mind, he could have sworn he had heard growling. Maybe he had. The sound seemed to have vanished, though. How odd.

Hiccup seemed almost idiotically unaware of Astrid's presence. It was probably because his mind was clouded by frustration over the humiliation he had suffered by his own hands. Still, a part of his mind told him to be on guard. it was a part of the woods he was unfamiliar with, and with it being possible for anything to happen he didn't see any harm in proceeding with caution. That didn't mean he couldn't keep ranting to himself, though.

"It's like the world is mocking me at this point. Oh, no, I can't be possibly be odd enough by being one of the twiggiest kids to ever grace Berk. No sir. I had to get even freakier with... fire powers I can't even handle." Hiccup said, rolling his eyes a little as he moved just a tiny bit more toward Astrid. Whether or not it was by chance or just plain dumb luck, Hiccup did finally acknowledge the fact that he was no longer alone. He would have to be blind to miss the fact that there was a wolf in the vicinity. A strangely blonde wolf. Could that be...?

Hiccup shook his head. "I really must be delusional. I could swear that that wolf looks like someone I know." he said. He couldn't just assume that because one wolf had blonde fur that it was someone he knew. Astrid was back in Berk, probably climbing to the top of the Viking food chain at that very moment. Still, that blonde fur did strike a cord with Hiccup. He refused to believe it, though. It wasn't like she was going to strike up a conversation with him at that very moment.

[Astrid]

It was. Hiccup, wandering in this godsforsaken forest. She hadn't expected to see him again, hadn't expected the scrawny team to live through his exile. She didn't believe anyone in Berk would. That's why they never spoke of the chief's son anymore. Stoick and the village had banished one of their own for having the strange powers of the creatures they hated. Astrid instantly let her lip slide over her bared teeth, tentatively taking another bristling step towards the teenager. She honestly couldn't believe he was alive.Astrid settled on her haunches, lightning blue eyes narrowed, studying the figure of the teen she'd 'known' once. Hiccup was babbling to himself, a trait she'd never really recognized. Astrid smirked, letting out a half doggy, half human laugh.

"That wolf has a name." Speaking as a human in wolf form was always sort of weird, almost puppet like. It was also an odd think to get used to, forcing the vocal chords, and etc. It was worth it though. Astrid curled her fluffy tail around her paws, ears erect and focused on Hiccup. The hooves of the deer had long since disappeared into the forest, as well as the stench of fear. Astrid's attention had been redirected, Hiccup having unintentionally saved the life of a creature of the forest.

"And ruined my hunt." Astrid added on a slightly darker note, she wasn't starving, but she wasn't full either. The tip of her tail twitched. Astrid was actually curious to see how Hiccup would react, a smirk spreading across her face, hackles only bristling the slightest. Just a little disappointment having lost the hunt. Anyone who knew the girl understood she didn't necessarily like losing. "Or you really could be delusional."

Astrid was still hung up on the thought that Hiccup should be dead. All the laws of nature had clearly stated that they really didn't favor Hiccup's side. Why the teen hadn't fallen off a cliff on his way out, or been eaten by a monstrous nightmare... well that was beyond common sense. She didn't hate the boy, just, in Astrid's head this was how things went on in life. Astrid sat, expectantly. She was either waiting for Hiccup to run screaming, which she would inevitably give chase. Or the look of clear disbelief cross the freckled face.

[Hiccup]

Silence. Stunned, disbelieving silence overtook Hiccup as he took in those words along with the fact that a wolf was speaking to him. By all laws of logic, this shouldn't have been happening. Wolves didn't talk. It just went without saying that wolves didn't talk. Then again... humans weren't supposed to have power to create fire without some kind of reasonable, logical explanation behind it. That voice... it was the voice that he heard often intermingled with those of the other teens, but never heard directly mocking him. The girl he had, secretly, admired from afar. But that was impossible. She should have been back in Berk climbing the Viking ladder to greatness. What was she doing there, and how had she turned into... that?

"...Astrid?" Hiccup finally asked. Part of him wanted to just blow it off as some crazy delusion brought on by frustration or something, but the fact that she was addressing him and hadn't vanished before his eyes just seemed to further prove that she was there. Much as he didn't want to believe it, it appeared to be all too true. "What are you... when did you... how... what?" fragmented questions. That was really the best he could come up with? Brilliant, Hiccup. Brilliant. You haven't seen her in ages and the first thing that comes out of your mouth is a bunch of incomplete sentences. he chided himself. With a shake of his head, the scrawny redhead decided to try again. He crouched down, more so he could get a better look at her, and stared for another couple of moments before deciding to try and speak again.

"What are you doing here? And... and how did you end up like... that?" Hiccup asked. The better question would probably come from her, relating to how the hell he was even alive. He hadn't expected to survive all that long after his fa...

No, he's not your dad anymore. He disowned you. Banished you. He's Stoick the Vast, leader of Berk. Not the father of a failure with the power of the enemies of Berk. he corrected himself. Hiccup hadn't expected to survive for long after Stoick had banished him. In fact, he had almost been certain that he would die. Not many who were banished survived, after all. It was almost unheard of having someone who had been exiled survive. But, somehow Hiccup had defied the odds and found Gothel. He still had no idea how that had happened, though. Probably just fate throwing you a bone for once.

[Astrid]

Astrid nodded her blonde, fluffy head as Hiccup, disbelief plain on his face as he asked. Than, he continued to talk nonsense. She waited, sitting patiently and observing the sounds of the woods. The chattering squirrels warning others of the predators in their midst. The brush of the wind on leaves. It was a foreboding, but relaxing setting to the blonde wolf. Hiccup's thoughts were somewhat on the right track. She should've still been in Berk. Still been one of the greatest teenage prodigies. Waiting for the dunderhead Snotlout to take Hiccup's place as heir.... Maybe it wasn't really a bad thing she'd left. She shouldn't have been a wolf, one who stuck out so much against the greens, greys, and browns of the forest.

"What are you doing here? And... and how did you end up like... that?" Astrid looked away for a second before turning back to the now crouching Hiccup. Striving to be 'on top' Astrid straightened her back and puffed out her chest, trying to look somewhat taller. "Uhm... I ran away? Werewolves aren't exactly the norm of Berk... How'd you end up with fire powers?" Astrid retorted back bitterly. It was harsh, but Astrid was one who could be considered brutally honest and extremely defensive. "Better question. How'd you end up alive? Here. In the thick of the dark forest in werewolf territory. We're not the only things dangerous out here, Hiccup. " Her voice was a low growl, eyes angrily burning as she turned away to look into the forest.

She was now stuck wondering what the villagers of Berk thought of her. Was she simply another face they'd never see again? Another believed to be dead? Or was she just one not spoken of seeing as she might be considered minutely freakier than Hiccup? Astrid couldn't help but bristle at one thought.

She'd ran. She couldn't even stand the words of banishment. Hiccup had, she'd ran. There was no way she could back either. So she'd have to live with it... It might not've been as bad as bad as hearing that all the village didn't want her there... She shook out her head, turning to look back at Hiccup, waiting for the answers she'd bitterly asked.

[Hiccup]

She'd run away? That, honestly, surprised Hiccup. He had never pictured Astrid as the type to run away from her problems. Even if he had never gotten to know her all that well, he could tell one thing and that was that Astrid was a strong individual. Not like him. She hadn't answered a part of the question, namely how she had become a werewolf, but he guessed there wasn't much he could do about it.

"Not exactly the answer I was looking for, but okay. I'll take it." Hiccup murmured. He guessed she didn't know how she had become a werewolf, same as how he didn't know how he'd wound up a wizard. However, she had asked the question he guessed she would ask. The one relating to his banishment and how the hell he was alive. A sigh escaped Hiccup as he searched for an answer. In all honesty, he had no idea why he had been lucky enough to survive. All things considered, he probably should have ended up lunch for some Gronckle or something long before he ended up in Black Castle. But the werewolf girl was looking for an answer. He had to give her one.

"Honestly, I still have no idea. I just... wandered off in the first direction I could think of going and stuck with it. Somehow I got lucky and didn't end up encountering a dragon or anything." Hiccup explained. A pitiful explanation to say the very least, but it wasn't done yet. He had to mention that he wasn't living in the woods. That would be the epitome of stupid moves, even from him. "I guess for once life decided to throw me a bone. I ended up finding this castle, and this woman let me stay with her there." he said. His gaze shifted to his hands, noticing the slight ashy residue that was still left behind from the day's folly. He brushed it away wordlessly before returning his attention to Astrid.

"Not like it's helped much. I still have no idea how to reproduce the thing that made any of this happen in the first place. ...Nor do I have any idea how I ended up getting fire powers." Hiccup finally said. Why did it have to be him cursed with the power of dragons? It made absolutely no sense. He supposed, in a way, it was better than being a werewolf... but he still didn't like it all that much. "All I know is I'm surrounded by people that have powers like me, and yet I'm still the odd one out. Other than this one kid that can't handle shapeshifting powers and keeps getting stuck in one animal form or another, I'm the only one who hasn't figured this out." Hiccup sighed. Of course he had ended up rambling a bit more than he would have liked to. He'd even unintentionally mentioned Arthur. Not like it mattered. The blond boy was safe in the castle at the moment.

"As for why I'm here, well... let's just say the typical 'Hiccup' thing happened and that I screwed up again. I just sort of wandered out here after being kicked out for the day." he said.

[Astrid]

"Very lucky." Astrid acknowledged with a dip of her furry head. "Also pretty lucky that I found you. Any other werewolf, hell maybe even a vampire with your 'luck,' and you'd be dead. Not saying you're outta the water now. I'm actually kinda hungry." A smirk doggedly slipped across her muzzle. I could've been a valid threat... Her ears perked at the mention of a castle. There were castles out there? Well... Hiccup seemed better off than her, she was somehow tied to these woods and the outdoors. The very thought of living in a castle, enclosed with even more of her kind made her uncomfortable. But it was probably better for Hiccup, she was actually able to survive in the raw wilderness.

"Maybe you're lucky you can't reproduce it." She stated casually. "Can't be much worse than being able to go canine at will or randomly." Astrid used her paws to dig out some dirt from the ground for lack of something better to do. It was an odd conversation at least. Wolf to human, both knowing one another from the past and both having been changed into something that had freaked out their village to the point of fear. At the mention of a boy who couldn't control his shapeshifting powers, Astrid's eyes glinted with recognition. Arthur? The one you almost ate? Astrid couldn't help but smile a little. Miss. Wolf.

"That boy, wouldn't by chance turn into a squirrel often, called Arthur, and also lives in the castle?" She questioned, a bit of humor in her voice. "And who's you're mentor?" She batted her eyelashes. She hadn't been able to get it out of Arthur, she hadn't really tried to hard anyway, though she was honestly curious. She didn't like withheld information. Especially if it was withheld from her. It was probably a selfish thing, but Astrid could care less if others thought that of her. She'd eventually be the one whipping them into line if they took it a step to far. She was an open threat herself, the teens of Berk being the only who'd she'd openly joked with. But with Astrid, it still could've been a threat. She was generally a threatening individual. Could one blame her? She was raised to kill dragons with competitiveness bred in her.

Astrid had dug now a little pit where little hairy roots stuck across and Astrid was now tearing away with her claws. The root proceeded to tear and Astrid merrily continued digging further into the ground. China wasn't to far right? "I'm actually kinda surprised you're here, breathing and with a pulse. Who can't imagine all the things that roam here. How long've you been walking? You don't want to be here at night." Her tone turned dark once more. The scrawny teen probably didn't realize all the threats these woods harbored. Anything could easily pop out and kill the two of the distracted teenagers. It was a constant thought in Astrid's mind. A minor defect in her hearing, eyesight, smell, and she could easily be dead or dying. She could have wandered into different territory, and picked a fight unintentionally and unprepared.

[Hiccup]

"Ah-hah... I guess that would make sense. Doesn't look like there's a lot out here in the means of food." Hiccup said. Then again, what did he know? He'd never tried to live out in the wild for very long, and the last time he'd had the chance to throw himself into the wild it hadn't lasted long and he'd been 'saved' by Gothel. In a sense, Hiccup supposed he really was lucky sometimes. He could have ended up lunch for a dragon or, as Astrid had said, another werewolf. Or even a vampire. Hiccup shuddered a little at that thought. The redhead hadn't realized how far he had wandered from the castle. Then again, the castle resided near some woods. He supposed it was possible that werewolf territory and the territory of the castle could intermingle.

Maybe Astrid had a point. Maybe he was never meant to excel at the skill he had randomly been given. That seemed to be the case, at any rate, as he still had yet to achieve anything more than ash-covered hands, burning himself on accident, or setting something on fire unintentionally. The last thing happened very rarely, but if today was any indicator then Hiccup knew he would need more practice. Hiccup had been about to ask how Astrid was holding up, being a werewolf and all, but it appeared as though part of his own rambling had caught her interest. She knew Arthur?

Wait... didn't he mention running into a wolf in town?

It seemed strange to think that he had had the same random luck that had allowed Arthur to get away from a wolf unharmed, but it seemed that was the truth of the matter. Strange as it seemed, the two twiggy boys seemed to have similar amounts of luck. At length, Hiccup nodded in response to the question. "Yeah... that's him, all right. You've met him?" Hiccup asked.

The question of his mentor... well, Hiccup didn't see a problem with answering it. There was no real point in keeping Gothel's identity a secret, was there? Hiccup couldn't think of a reason, at any rate. "I don't know all that much about her, mainly what I know consists of her wanting all of us to get better at our... magic skills for some reason. I've only heard her name said by one of the others. She's called... Gothel, I think. Beyond that, all I really know is that she's more powerful than the rest of us. Why she's taken all of us in, I'll never understand." Hiccup explained. There had to be some reason Gothel had taken in all of the witches and wizards that lived with her. Some reason he was failing to see. What was it?

[Astrid]

Astrid looked around her a little sheepishly. Prey was scarce or nonexistent in some places. Others the best you could find were skin and bone creatures coming down easily having lost enough will to barely manage fighting back. Not like any prey creature would love to return to the forest. It's trees and shrubs, limp and it's ground mostly dry soil. Astrid was lucky to find any game she had. "Yah... prey's a bit hard to come by... but I manage. By that I mean I'm pretty much the top predator around here. Vampires prefer.... you guys." Raising a paw, Astrid gestured to Hiccup and all of humankind. Or mostly human. She still had no clue what made Hiccup so different, besides the obvious magical powers. Even those he appeared to have trouble working at. In a way, it was sad; the boy still wasn't able to fit in, even around others with the same strange abilities. But Astrid could be wrong. Maybe he did fit in.

Astrid's eyes caught sight of Hiccup's charred black hands, almost no different from working in the smithy's shop. Except they were charred and black from fire produced from the appendages in question.... Astrid absentmindedly nodded, the golden squirrel boy. "Twiggy teen boys just aren't on my diet list." She chuckled, "And yeah, he was real nervous. Can't imagine why." She grinned once more. As Hiccup went on about his 'suspicious' mentor, Astrid listened intently. Every stranger was suspicious in her mind. It was just how she processed people, until they could earn being marked as 'unsuspicious character' she'd always make mental tabs to keep eyes and ears for them.

"What crazy bat willingly takes in hormonal, weird teenagers with magical powers.... willingly?" She half growled half mused, trying to imagine a handful of other scrawny, magical teens like Hiccup. It was a bit hard to do, all the while placing a random (she'd imagine older) woman in their midst as this 'Gothel.' "Is she any good? I've yet to meet another remarkable werewolf." She replied sarcastically, getting up and trotting over to sit by a downed tree. She gestured with a paw (she was semi civilized, no head motions for her ) to take a seat on the log.

The forest made the blonde teenage girl edgy, though it was her 'home' it always had a way of surprising her. It was dark, creepy, and held many secrets and ghouls that could pop out in a moments notice. It not only added to the thrill of it, but the paranoia factor as well. She refused to get soft though, a warrior at hard she refused to go into town and eat human garbage as a food source. It was unbecoming and cowardly. Her den was actually about a mile away, thorn bushes guarding it's entrance so when she slept, sometimes slipping into human form, she'd be warned. Paranoid girl indeed... or prepared. Astrid leaned her shoulder against the tree, settling down a bit more comfortably before deciding whether to take human shape once more.

[Hiccup]

"I have absolutely no idea. All I know is I've found a place to call home since... well, you know what happened." Hiccup replied. He had no idea what made Gothel want to take in so many kids that had magical powers, but he fit in to some degree and that was what mattered. No more dragon killing to worry about, no more father constantly disappointed in him, and most of all no more torment from the other kids. Yet, Hiccup wasn't exactly happy with his life at the moment.

"I just don't get it, Astrid. Why did any of this happen to us? I mean, yeah... I was the reject back home but you? You had... had a place there. What did we do to deserve this?" Hiccup asked. Maybe he shouldn't have been asking. It probably was better that he didn't know the answer to that. But... he just had to know, as strange as that seemed.

(ooc: SHORT POST IS SHORT AND CRAPPY. XP)

[Astrid]

Astrid shifted into human form. If anything were to happen, it wasn't like she'd be without the extra sense being part wolf gave her. She was happy that as a human, she wasn't... weird. She looked like normal Astrid, maybe a more feral and rugged, and maybe a bit dirty. But she wasn't furry, didn't have a tail or wolf ears, didn't have fangs digging into her lower lip from the outside. Phew. Astrid continued to lean against the tree but tilted her head to rest on it as well. Her sense were angered by this though, her neck exposed. Being now part of this 'wild' it was a danger. She figured not much could happen at this moment and tried to relax herself. By closing her eyes, if only for a brief few seconds.

Hiccup's words, in a way, stung. She knew he didn't mean it to hurt her, and the gods forbid she admit they did. It was true, Hiccup was the reject, she'd never been. How the tables had turned. Hiccup now had the company of others like himself, people probably more willing to accept him. Astrid was, literally, a lone wolf. Astrid let a low, feral growl rumble in her throat and opened her blue eyes. "Do I look like one of the gods?" She snapped quietly. "I guess Berk hadn't been apart of the gods games for a while. Now.. ta da." Astrid brushed her bangs out of her face and opted to stare out to the dark of the forest. "Nice role reversal, huh? " Astrid was thinking more of how once Hiccup had been a 'lone wolf' and now she was just that.

Damn that boy! Astrid's thoughts sighed, Got you thinking about Berk for the first time... since you ran away. And how being a... werewolf isn't exactly a blessing. Astrid took a deep breathe and brought her knees up to her chest, scowling for a short time. She once again regarded her scuffed up appearance. Slight cuts from running through the forest, her hands calloused and dirty from running. All in all, she didn't look like she just got out of a nice shower and lived the high life. At least Hiccup didn't look worse off. Still twiggy, red headed Hiccup.

((ooc: Naww don't worry bout it, it was good ^^ ))

[Hiccup]

Admittedly, Hiccup was glad to see Astrid back in the form of a human. It was a lot more comforting to the scrawnier of the two talking to a human instead of a wolf. He didn't quite know why that was, but the teen wouldn't admit to it regardless of that fact. Her soft snap did remind him that maybe he ought to think more carefully about his word choice from then on. A part of him wanted to snap back, say that he didn't know who else to ask, but he stopped himself. He was only going on a hunch about his powers, but he thought it would be unwise to let his emotions get the better of him. Instead, he just let a little sigh escape him. She had a point. It was quite a role reversal, especially with where the two of them had come from.

"Good point... though it wasn't as if I asked for my original place in the Viking ladder." Hiccup said softly. He didn't necessarily want it back, not that he could have it back anyway, but somehow... he missed it. Try as he might, he couldn't forget Berk entirely. It had been his home for so long that, of course, it had been ingrained into his very being. "Sorry. I shouldn't have asked that much." he said. He didn't quite know what he was apologizing for, especially since he was asking what had probably been on both of their minds for quite some time, but somehow Hiccup felt the need to at least say it.

"Still, it could be worse. I don't know how it could be worse, but we're still alive. That's got to count for something." Hiccup said. He thought he was making a good point, as Astrid had mentioned it earlier. He was lucky to be alive. She was lucky to have managed figuring out the whole werewolf thing long enough to survive as well. Had neither of those things happened... well, they wouldn't have been sitting out in the woods talking to one another at that moment in time.

[Astrid]

"I couldn't say I don't want my place back on the viking ladder. If that makes sense." It was understandable, Astrid had had a nice place on the viking ladder as well as the viking teenage ladder. She'd been the female prodigy and she was a fierce warrior. She pulled her own weight (if not more) amongst the teens and was well respected and trained. Part of her itched to run back to Berk, the same part holding her back out of a fear of denial of admittance. Another part wished to stay in this new home. One could only guess which two the conflicting parts were. Two legs or four paws. For now though, Astrid was content to sit and talk with the scrawny red-head. "Kay." Her response was abrupt, an acceptance of Hiccup's own, if a bit sarcastic apology. But Berk was now on her mind and Astrid tried to push away suppressed memories. Especially of her last day, the howl of outrage and pain as she lunged... Astrid shivered slightly. Focusing once more Astrid concentrated on Hiccup and his words harder.

"Yeah and in good health." Astrid continued on, "let's hope the gods don't take that as a challenge." Astrid gave a smirk and a cautious glance to the sky. "Score 1 for the mortals." Hiccup had kept his hide and Astrid had lived for so long virtually unscathed. Hiccup was now living with a bunch of others of his... kind, and Astrid was surviving. Why did that sound so normal in her head? Her thoughts felt somewhat normal as well. She'd grown accustomed to this life, and she expected that Hiccup had grown to tolerate his surroundings as well. It wasn't an easy life, but the two real had never had an easy life. With dragons and vikings there was always chaos and fighting. Now there was a different chaos, calm and patient. It was a thing she could taste in the air on the tip of her tongue, like a thought on the edge of you're thoughts. You knew but couldn't quite describe it or speak it unless someone was in your head.

"So wizard you learn any magic tricks besides a bit of fire at your new abode?" Astrid swiftly tried to change the subject. People enjoyed talking about themselves right? The gods only knew how much Snotlout did. You ask a meager question and the burly bob went from when's the next training day to his muscles faster than you could scream Nightfury. Vikings normally screamed Nightfury pretty fast pretty loud. Astrid was surprised to feel that there was little tension in the air around the two, nervousness yes, but no awkward 'Sooo.... watcha been up to?' and repeated topics. Not like the two had really gotten into lengthy conversation. The conversation had already been awfully 'deep' and there had been no beating around the bush when it came to topics of interest. It was good to get things out in the open in the thick of the forest.

[Hiccup]

The change in subject was a welcome one to Hiccup. Discussing things relating to home had made him a tiny bit uncomfortable anyway, especially since he was trying to forgo memories of home for the most part. They had disowned him, so why shouldn't he disown what was left of them? Well, it made sense in his mind. He'd just never admit that fact out loud. Thinking back to Astrid's question, though, Hiccup gave a little shrug. "Other than barely having the basics of my own powers down, I haven't learned much. Big surprise there, huh?" Hiccup asked. He didn't think it terribly out of the ordinary that he was floundering even in a place he could call home. "I'm pretty much on my own with this whole fire thing. None of the other kids seem to possess fire power. We've got some girls that can... heal, I think, Arthur the shapeshifter... who I think is just hanging around with us because he doesn't have anywhere else to go, some dark witch and a dark wizard... and then there's Gothel. She's pretty much a master of everything, I think." Hiccup said. It figured that he would be the only one that could use fire, and that he was failing miserably with it for the most part.

"Not like her being around helps me all that much. I don't know, maybe I'm just trying too hard." Hiccup said. That could have been it. Going based off of what he had been told, fire was related to emotions. Maybe the fact that he was so low in confidence and other aspects relating to that had something to do with it. Fear might have had something to do with it, too. He'd been scared out of his mind the night when everything had started, after all. "But you didn't come out here to listen to me ramble mindlessly, did you? I certainly hope not." a small laugh escaped him as he finished speaking. He had to try and make things seem just a bit lighter, didn't he?

"So, what's it like? Being a werewolf, I mean."