A Vast Sea

A Vast Sea

by brooksburg





Summary: Astrid's lived many lifetimes, but some things for her are constant.





Disclaimer: How To Train Your Dragon is owned by DreamWorks Animation and Paramouwnt. Highlander: The Series (and Joe Dawson) is owned by Rysher Entertainment, Gaumont, and CBS Television Distribution.





A/N: The title of the story comes from George Eliot's poem "Spanish Gypsy: Book III" Please read and review.





---





"So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."

         - F. Scott Fitzgerald





         The creature moved through the graveyard, glancing around itself warily. Even though it was the gloom just after midnight, that didn't stop thieves from leaving their deplorable impression on the garden.

         It came to an abrupt halt about twenty yards in. The scent was familiar; it turned left, and walked five feet before stopping again. This was it!

         The grave was ordinary, but years of practice had taught it to recognize the person's initials. Using its forepaws, it started the exhumation. A regular person would have broken their back using a shovel, or else deferred the dirty task to their canine companion, but it knew it was better than any canine. The coffin was bare in less than five minutes.

         It dragged the coffin out slowly by its teeth, taking care not to jostle the container against any spare graves. It discovered the box was locked, and huffed, more out of exasperation than anything else. A swipe of its left claw made short work of the lock, and it opened the coffin smoothly.

         If someone had passed, he or she would assume the creature would feast on the corpse. However, it waited. After nearly two hours of patience, a groan came from the casket and the creature grunted happily. It then bent down to lick the person's face.





*****





         The girl woke up slowly, blinking her eyes, and was suddenly greeted by a great, slobbering tongue.

         "Ewwww!" Leaping up from the box, she spun about until noticing the beyond black silhouette with big green eyes.

         "Toothless!" she shouted. She soared through the air, gripping her arms at his neck. The dragon just accepted it, crooning in pleasure at seeing his friend. "It's been too long, buddy." She punched him in the flank. "That's for making me wait."

         The dragon chuckled in his own fashion. Then a buzzing went off in his pouch.

         She took the phone out and answered it. "Hey, Joe...No, it was my idiot mistake of running a stoplight. I got hit by a bus." She scowled. "Don't you dare laugh at me! Those things are worse than taxis." Taking a deep breath, she said, "Yeah, I'll be there soon. Save me a round," before hanging up.

         Ashley Hietbrink, formerly known as Astrid Hofferson, looked down to the dragon wistfully. Even after nearly a thousand years, she was glad he would always come to find her. Not only was he the only link to her past, but the reminder of what she profoundly missed. Hiccup's awkward smile still lingered in her memories and brought the occasional stray tear to her eyes, but his ashes had been spread time immemorial. She...they hadn't moved on, and she never wanted to, but new life came in the style of leaps and bounds.

         The world had changed; Berk no longer existed, but she and Toothless had learned to adapt. Television and department stores she could handle by now. Though she admitted she still had trouble using a cell phone, let alone a laptop.

         Shaking the thought out of her head, she asked, "Let's get out of here, Toothless. What do you say?" The Night Fury grunted in agreement, and the pair of long-forgotten heroes absconded into the dark.





The End