One: The Prisoner

Her heart was breaking as they arrowed down towards the Hunter base, knowing that he was stubborn and brave, knowing he wouldn't have told them what they wanted and fearing what they would have done to her Betrothed. Stormfly was trilling a warning and the other dragons were responding, rolling to avoid volleys of dragonroot arrows and firing back of their own accord. It never ceased to amaze her that the dragons often acted on their own accord where Hiccup and Toothless were concerned-and it drove home the bald fact that the dragons loved Hiccup as well. But not as much as Astrid Hofferson.

She leaned forward, her axe banging against her back as she rolled Stormfly and felt the agile Nadder avoid the arrows with ease, then launch the volley of lethal spines at the Hunters who dived for safety. As her hands tightened, there was no guilt at the two who fell back, the spines driven deep into their bodies, their life leaking over the deck. Astrid directed the Riders, seeing Heather and Windshear take out men on the raised wall, her silent fury effective. Snotlout was whooping and yelling as Hookfang swooped and fired and Astrid nodded to herself that, for once, he had his game face on. But then, it was his cousin and their leader and friend who was imprisoned inside the fortress,

Explosions sounded from her left as the twins flipped past a trio of ballistas and Astrid saw a couple of Hunters line up a net launcher at them. Instinctively, her hand slapped onto the back of Stormfly's head and a single spine shot forward, impaling the Hunter. He dropped backwards and didn't move as she flew down, leaping from her dragon as the others secured the area. Fishlegs and Heather landed by her and glanced at her as the others circled, keeping their exit free. Astrid nodded, her face grim because her heart was aching at the thought of Hiccup in this place. Brave, stubborn defiant Hiccup who put everyone else ahead of his own self, who believed being a leader meant self-sacrifice and leading from the front. And who would never surrender his friends or his dragon, no matter what it cost him.

Tense with every sense on edge, she pressed her body against the rock of the door frame and listened, trying to calm her breathing. She could still recall how they ended here...

oOo

The Fliers had swooped down, their furious Singetail mounts driving the Riders away from their latest attempts to stop their capture of dragons and even Hiccup was starting to lose hope that he could outfight them. But just as hope was waning, Johann had tipped them off that there was an auction of dragons happening in this remote corner of the Archipelago, distant even from the usual Northern Markets, on a small island where the people were strange and unfriendly and the men wore arm-guards, belts and boots made of dragon skin. Hiccup had insisted on going in with Heather, disguised as a prospective buyer-though not wearing any dragon skin clothing: even his devotion to dragons and desire to save them couldn't force him to wear such offensive items.

Of course, Heather had been far better and more pragmatic than he had undercover because Hiccup was a dreadful liar and relatively poor actor, and it was his ambiguity that had given them away in the end. Astrid and Fishlegs had been at the far end of the market when the sudden increase in the patrols had alerted them to a problem. Sharing glances, the two sped through and markets, ducking past stalls laden with dragon skin products and dragon-meat snacks before converging on the almost scrum of men who had surrounded the two disguised Riders.

A roar sounded as Toothless realised his Rider was in danger and the taller shape started, his head snapping round. Astrid glimpsed Hiccup's green eyes widen in shock and he lurched forward, his hands stretched out in front of his body.

"NO! Stay back, bud!" he shouted in concern, before jerking back as the point of a spear jabbed at his chest.

"I wouldn't move, if I were you," a familiar smooth voice said and Hiccup stiffened, his hand pushing Heather behind him.

"Viggo," he said, his voice level and edged with hatred. He could never forget that the leader of the Hunters had held Astrid as a hostage, threatening her life for the DragonEye...which he had thrown into the volcano on the Edge. But his plan had backfired, for Viggo had survived...and so had the device. The man walked forward, the ruined left half of his face reminding the young dragon rider that his plan had been partially successful. But behind him walked the cloaked shape of Krogan, his cold eyes and cruel.

"It seems you just can't stay away," the Hunter growled.

"And it seems you had to find another ugly sidekick to replace your brother," Hiccup shot back grimly. He was breathing hard, surrounded. He had promised Dagur that he would look out for his sister and though he knew Heather was very capable, he felt responsible for her anyway.

"And Heather...it seems that traitors just don't prosper..." Viggo said smoothly and extended his hand. "Drop your weapons..."

"Are you kidding?" she growled. "I don't trust you..."

"A wise move," the Hunter complimented her. "However, you have no option."

"Now, bud!" Hiccup yelled and the whine and detonation of plasma blasts suddenly surrounded them. Krogan was moving forward even as Hiccup slammed into him, shoving him back into Viggo before turning towards the Night Fury. He yelped as a hand grabbed his one good ankle and dragged him to the ground, hitting with a thud. He kicked out vigorously with his prosthetic leg as he tried to scramble for his Inferno sword. Heather was fighting fiercely with her double-ended axe and with a yell, Astrid broke through the lines and carved into the surrounding Hunters. The locals melted away, suddenly deciding there was other, safer entertainment to be had elsewhere.

"HOLD!" Krogan's growling voice sounded above the chaos and the Riders and Toothless all froze, seeing him holding a knife to Hiccup's throat. "Drop your weapons unless you want to watch him die..."

"And then you...die a second later..." Hiccup choked, scarcely daring to breathe. "B-bud...when he-he moves..."

"I believe we have an impasse..." Viggo said thoughtfully, seeing the plasma glowing in Toothless's that. The dragon recalled his attempt to stab Hiccup previously and had an unremitting hostility to the Hunter. He had no doubt the Night Fury would kill him. "So we need a hostage..." He nodded and Hiccup found his arm twisted agonisingly behind his back.

"Boy...couldn't wait to spend more time with me?" Hiccup gasped. "Should've sent me a letter and I'm sure we could have fitted you into the stables again..." Krogan twisted Hiccup's arm harder.

"I'm certain you could answer certain...questions we require answering..." he threatened.

"Pretty certain I can't," Hiccup managed.

"No..." Astrid growled, tensing and ready to lurch forward but Hiccup looked her straight in the eye and his voice was very level when he spoke.

"Take Toothless," he told her. "We are outnumbered and if we stay, they will get him and you and your dragons as well. Please, Astrid-I need you to do this." He swallowed, the tip of the knife grazing the pale skin of his throat, the faint smudge of red bright against his skin.

"Hiccup...no..." she said, her eyes widening.

"That's an order, Astrid," he said evenly. "There will be other chances. They won't kill me for now...I think they have other uses for me."

"Swear it!" Astrid shouted. "Swear it or we finish this now..." Viggo swept his remaining brown eye over the riders and the enraged Night Fury and read their determination.

"I will keep him alive until he begs for death," he said smoothly. Heather's eyes widened and she opened her mouth to scorch a rebuke but Hiccup nodded very slightly.

"Accepted," he murmured. Krogan nodded, threw him into Viggo's arms and in the same motion, he snapped a blowpipe to his mouth and shot a dart into Toothless. The Night Fury roared then collapsed as the Hunters all turned to the Riders and closed on them. Hiccup's eyes widened and he struggled violently, until he was clubbed over the head by Krogan-as his friends vanished under a scrum of attacking Hunters.

Roaring and enraged at the double cross, Astrid carved her way through a dozen Hunters, uncaring how vicious she was. Hiccup was a man who looked for the peaceful solution, who avoided killing if he could-but Astrid was raised as a warrior, planning her life as a Shield Maiden until she met Hiccup and realised her mind may want a life of battle but her heart and soul belonged to the awkward, brilliant, amazing auburn-haired Viking whose betrothal gift now hung around her neck under her tunic.

Fishlegs gave a cry as a sword sliced his arm but Heather cut down the man who wounded him. Astrid leapt forward and drove the men away from Toothless, checking the dragon was unharmed and still breathing. Slowly, the ranks around them thinned-especially as with a roar, Dagur, Snotlout and the twins joined the fray with their dragons, making short work of the last attackers. Breathing hard, sprayed in blood and exhausted, Astrid lowered her axe and nodded in acknowledgement for the help. Dagur was checking Heather was fine before he turned to the blonde woman.

"Where's my brother?" he asked, his voice edged with steel. She gestured in the direction he had vanished.

"Viggo and Krogan took him," she said in an exhausted voice. "He gave himself up to save us...and then they attacked us anyway."

"We saw a couple of Singetails fly off east," Tuff commented and then he frowned. "They had Hiccup?" Astrid nodded.

"We have no idea where their base is...and we will need to regroup and treat Toothless," she sighed.

"I've got the Dragon Root cure at the Edge," Fishlegs explained, as Heather bandaged his arm.

"Does no one think this was a trap?" Snotlout asked snarkily. "Because I have to say, Trader Johann has really sent us the wrong way this time!"

"Yeah-that seems to happen a lot," Ruff muttered as she helped Heather. Astrid stared at the unconscious Toothless and then walked to rest her hand on the unconscious dragon's scaly head.

"It's okay, Toothless," she murmured. "We'll get him back-and I am going to make them pay for this. I swear on Odin, Thor and Freya."

oOo

Flipping her axe into her hand, she charged down the corridor, taking out the first two men before they could even react. The third man began to run down the passage, heading for reinforcements...before an axe slammed into his back, cutting him down without any warning. Astrid sprinted up, wrenching her axe free and crouching, her azure eyes narrowing. The place was damp and dank, the lights dim and a few heavy cell doors space erratically. Silently, she paced down the way until she penetrated the very furthest reaches and a single door, guarded by two men.

Rage ignited in her chest, knowing who had to be in there and her knuckles whitened around the haft of her axe as she calculated the distance and then she paused and shrank back into the shadows as stepped approached.

"How did they find us?" Krogan growled, pacing rapidly towards the cell. There was a pause and Viggo gave a small chuckle.

"You underestimate the Riders," he told his ally smoothly, a slight steer lifting his scarred face. "Even without Hiccup, they are a remarkably effective and focussed. And they are incredibly loyal to him. This doesn't surprise me. But it seems a shame that we have to end it-when we still have intelligence to tease out of his stubborn head." The other man gave a scowl, heading directly for the guarded door and flipping a weapon into his hand, a strange kind of axe with a ferocious curved blade.

"It will be too quick for him," he said sadistically. "Unless we leave him mortally wounded? That would mean his friends can have the triumph of rescuing him...in time to watch him die." Viggo gave him a curt nod.

"I have already prepared for that eventuality," he said smoothly. "During our last session, I gave him the toxin. I had hoped the effects would render him more pliable but now...well, we will not be available to administer the cure..." Krogan gave a growl.

"Not quick enough," he growled. "It will be more instructive for his friends to find his corpse, knowing they were minutes too late." Pausing for a moment, Viggo paused, and then he smoothly nodded.

"I have enjoyed our battle-but all things pass," he said philosophically. "Do it!"

And then Astrid launched herself forward, screaming in fury as she slammed Krogan aside. She knew he was a dangerous fighter, ruthless and sadistic but she was skilled, fifteen years of training and practice and years of loving Hiccup driving her on. She was determined not to let them kill him, every movement impossibly swift and brutal. Viggo back-pedalled and dived away as the blonde Viking attacked Krogan. He kept forging forward, the clang of metal on metal loud in the corridor as Astrid swore and cursed. The two guards tried to stop her but fell swiftly and she kicked the bodies aside, grasping a sword to help her fight furiously.

And then shouts sounded from up the corridor and the dark-skinned man glanced up-to see Snotlout, Dagur and Heather all racing forward, various weapons raised and eyes fixed on the man. The guards who were coming up the passage backed away, less than enthusiastic as the Riders charged. Suddenly Krogan slammed his weapon at Astrid's head and as she parried, he turned away, sprinting after Viggo. Dagur and Snotlout ran after them but Astrid stopped, breathing hard as she turned back to the heavily armoured door. Then she turned to the metal and rested her hand against it.

"Is he in here?" Heather asked, her tone concerned and Astrid nodded, her face suddenly apprehensive.

"Yes," she breathed. "Now we get him back..."

oOo

Inside the cell, the single prisoner lay on his side, muzzily listening to the sounds outside. There were clangs and yells and he wondered if one of the prisoners had escaped...or if they were coming for him again. And then he heard the echoes of voices that froze his spine: Viggo and Krogan. Trembling he curled up, his legs pulled up against his abdomen, his arms wrapped around his body and head tucked in. His tunic was shredded, like the skin underneath it-but he had still refused to do anything they had asked.

He shivered and tilted his head. They had beaten and whipped him, burnt and cut and scared him, breaking his hand and battering his face. One eye was closed and there was a cut over the eyebrow: they had been aiming to blind him but he had jerked his head away-and in a fury, the blow he had earned had probably broken his cheek. His eye was so swollen that he wasn't sure if it still worked or not and they had threatened to take his other eye, robbing him of ever hoping to see again. And that had almost broken him, at the thought of never seeing Astrid's beautiful face again, never seeing her nose crinkle as she frowned or her eyebrows dip as she smirked before punching his arm or her lips purse just as she was about to kiss him...

He would have loved to have seen her again...but they had taken him to secret base and they had tortured him for weeks for information that he could never give them-even if he knew the answers. They were never letting him go. Viggo had sent bounty hunters after him before, to take him back for the Dragon Hunter to kill...but now, he seemed to enjoy seeing Hiccup suffer.

And then he realised: the voices had stopped and he slightly lifted his head, his good eye peering at the door. And then there was the clunk of the bars and he curled up again, gritting his teeth and trying to prepare himself for the coming ordeal...but his breath was coming in scared pants, his heart fluttering in his chest and hands trembling.

"I'm sorry, Astrid," he whispered, closing his eyes and hearing the door creak as it opened. He knew he would never see her again. But he hunched up tighter as he heard steps close on him, pause...and then accelerate towards him. He whimpered as someone bent over him and he stiffened as a hand, gentle and tender, landed on his lacerated shoulder. He flinched and tried to cringe away.

"Hiccup?"

His eye snapped open and his head jerked up in sudden, dizzy hope.

"A-Astrid?" he croaked. She leaned closer, her blonde hair framing her beautiful face glowing in the backlight and her hand very gently reached to press against his battered face. His eyes fluttered closed and he pressed into her touch, still wondering if he was dreaming.

"I'm here, babe," she assured him, sliding a hand under him and lifting him into her arms. At the sensation of her warmth, of human flesh against his own, offering him safety and comfort instead of pain and fear, he reacted on instinct, wrapping his arms tight around her and burying his face into her chest.

"Astrid," he whimpered as her arms closed tighter around him.

"Hiccup, my love," she murmured, burying her face in his hair. "You're safe now..." There were noises at the door and she felt him curled tighter against her, afraid and ashamed and she kissed the top of his head.

"Is he here?" Snotlout asked from the door and she looked up and nodded.

"Yes," she said firmly. "Now we take him home."