The next day, the crew were waiting as Hiccup arrived, cheering and clapping that he had dodged the bullet and escaped suspension. From the other side of the hallway, Astrid and her friends were trying to ignore them and gossip but the arrival of Snotlout and Tuffnut merely ramped up the volume and the taunting by the crew.

"Hey, losers," Snotlout called scornfully. "Got nothing to do? Ah-I forgot...you aren't in anything. All you can do is call names."

"Well there, Snotface, you're lucky we're so skilled at it," Hiccup called.

"What're you looking so cocky about, Fishbone?" Snotlout sneered. "I heard you were all upset because teacher wanted your little booky wooky!"

"At least I can read," Hiccup shot back, loud enough for him to hear.

"What was that?" Snotlout growled.

"Deaf as well as illiterate. Maybe we should tell Coach Rokeby," Hiccup taunted him.

"At least I'll be on the team!" Snotlout shot back. "You'll never be good enough!" Hiccup cast a look at the others.

"Dunno," Thuggory commented. "Maybe we should come and show you Jocks how it's done!" There was a sudden eruption of laughter as Snotlout, Tuffnut, Eret, Fishlegs and everyone else openly laughed at them.

"Can't see why you're laughing," Dagur growled. "I'm bigger, stronger and faster than Snotface here so why would he make the team ahead of me?" Snotlout stopped laughing.

"One word: Grit. Determination. Chutzpah, G U T S!"

"That's technically seven words," Hiccup pointed out.

"And none of them beat S K I L L!" Savage added snidely.

"What are you doing?" Hiccup asked them in a low voice. He couldn't see his friends volunteering for and sticking with a school team. Dagur leaned close and draped his arm around Hiccup's shoulders.

"We're not going to join the team," Dagur growled. "We're going to sabotage it. If the best players don't get in, then they'll be ruined and the team loses." He scowled menacingly. "No one makes fun of Dagur the Deranged!"

oOo

"Can you believe that?" Astrid hissed to Heather in lunch. "I cannot believe that those troublemakers are going to try for the team!"

"What does it matter to you?" the other girl replied, chewing her sandwich. She flicked her jet hair off her face, "I mean...you'll be Captaining the Cheerleaders again so you'll cheer for whatever team we have!"

"But I want us to have the best team possible!" Astrid protested. "And I don't believe any of those guys cares two spits about Football. They'll disrupt the team or play the fool and we'll end up crashing and burning!"

"And the Coach will know that so no way he'll pick any of them to join the Team, Ast!" Cami soothed her.

"And besides-we'll have Cheer selection at the same time..." Heather reassured her. "Do you think there'll be any surprise candidates?" Ruff grinned.

"Don't worry, Heather," she shrugged. "You aren't getting rid of your three blondes!" Heather threw an apple at her and Ruff caught it, hefting it back at Heather, missing and hitting Snotlout. The Jock leapt to his feet, his fists balled to punch whoever had thrown it at him...and then he saw the girls laughing with Ruff bright scarlet. Snotlout forced a smile on his face and handed the apple back.

"Here you are, ladies," he oozed. "You need to keep your strength up for trials!" Cami grinned.

"Yeah-you can see why Ruff isn't in the softball team!" she quipped and got hit in the face by a banana.

oOo

Astrid was almost late for Art class, having been held up helping Cami, Heather and Ruff clean fruit off themselves once they finished their food fight. She slipped in just before the bell, muttering apologies and took the only free station close to the back of the room. It hadn't been her first choice but her careers adviser had suggested Art would demonstrate a well-rounded portfolio for her college applications so she had chosen the subject with little enthusiasm.

The teacher, Miss Sylvester, was a messy woman with wild greying hair, kindly grey eyes and a penchant for ankle-length skirts and sandals. Her lessons, though, were reckoned to be engaging, enjoyable and always productive. She was softly-spoken, very patient and always willing to help any student who wished to improve. Astrid primly fetch out her sketchbook and prepared to listen.

"Have you all brought your sketches?" Miss Sylvester asked. Anyone taking the class had been asked to gather at least five sketches over the summer for the semester. Astrid had done hers in the first week of the vacation, determined to ensure that she did not forget to do the homework and though they were competent, she would be the first to admit they weren't good. She became aware of a hand raised to her left.

"I...er...lost my sketch book," Hiccup said quietly. His eyes were downcast. Astrid stared at him: it was a prerequisite for the class and she prepared herself to see the boy thrown out of another class...but Miss Sylvester sighed. "I'm sorry," he added, the tone genuine.

"I am aware of your standard, Mr Haddock, so I will overlook the omission this time," she said gently. "Collect a new sketch book and try to be more careful? I will expect five sketches by Monday." Lifting his eyes, his face lit by surprise, he swallowed.

"Erm...thanks, Miss Sylvester," he said in shock and rose, quietly collecting a new book from the cupboard. Astrid raised her hand.

"Miss Sylvester? I thought you had specified no one was allowed to take the class without providing five sketches," she said clearly. Stiffening, Hiccup raised his eyes to stare at her, his hands tightening in anger. But the teacher gently patted the scrawny boy on his tense shoulder and smiled calmly at the blonde girl.

"That was to judge the standard of the students entering the class...but I am already familiar with Mr Haddock's standard," she explained easily. Astrid's blonde brows dipped. Miss Sylvester gestured to a beautiful oil pastel picture framed on the wall of the class. "Mr Haddock did that last semester." She walked to a pencil drawing of a young woman. "This was from last Autumn..." And then she walked to a small oil painting of Berk by night. "This was done two years ago. All of these are Mr Haddock's work. He is the most talented artist Berk High has had for over ten years. I know that if he says his book has been lost, it was lost."

"But..."

"It really is none if your business, Miss Hofferson. Whether my best student produces his sketches now or in a week is my decision-not yours." Cheeks flaring scarlet with embarrassment, Astrid looked down at her desk, catching Hiccup's scowl from the corner of her eye. He gave her a look which promised "This isn't over," before turning back to the class exercise.

oOo

Astrid was storming out of class, still unreasonably angry when a hand grabbed her arm and held her back. She spun-to meet Hiccup's forest green gaze. The boy was angry as he dragged her to the side of the corridor and leaned close.

"What was that about?" he snarled.

"How do you do it?" she snapped back, her eyes scornful. "You attack a teacher and any of us would be suspended...but you just get a few days detention. You fail to do the one task we were told was absolutely essential to attend Art...and you get a free pass to continue!"

"Just lucky, I guess," he shot back. "And what's it to you anyway? Why are you so bothered? Why were you so determined to have me thrown out of Art?" A tiny corner of her mind asked her the same thing: it was mean and cruel and really didn't make any difference to Astrid...but the bigger part of her was growling at the unfairness of it all.

"Because you didn't do what you were supposed to do to deserve to be there," she spat back. "I have to stick to the rules. Everyone else has to stick to the rules...but not you. So why are you so special?" He stared at her, breathing hard.

"Haven't you heard?" he asked with a twisted smile. "I'm just worthless!" And with that, he shoved past her and walked away.