You're the only one I want. My Rider. My human.

Hiccup dropped to a knee and hugged the dragon again, scratching him tenderly. The dragon leaned so hard against him that the dragon almost fell over, closing his eyes and purring in ecstasy. "Thank you, Toothless. I really don't know what I would do without you," he whispered.

Nor do I, Gobber thought sadly, seeing the boy bravely straighten up and lift his chin. He walked to the cold bin. He tossed the little dragon a couple of large cod and watched him munch them furiously, licking his lips and giving his toothless, gummy grin in gratitude. Then he rubbed the dragon again and gave a very small smile before heading for the door.

"Am I being sent back to the cell?" he asked suddenly. Gobber frowned and turned to stare at the teen.

"What?" he asked in shock. Hiccup gave a small, twisted smile.

"The General threw me in jail yesterday after we talked," he said, his hands trembling. "I-I spent the night in a cell, on my own." He swallowed nervously, his eyes betraying the deep hurt and trauma he felt.

"Did they not feed ye, laddie?" Gobber's tone was worried. Hiccup was a minor and though he couldn't override the Base Commander, he had at least assumed Stoick would treat his son like a human being. There was the slightest shake of the head. "No one tae check ye were alright?" Another shake of the head. "Nae facilities?"

"Um...a bucket..." Hiccup admitted, his cheeks flushing in shame. Gobber's unibrow dipped and he stepped forward, wrapping an arm protectively round the young man.

"I'm so sorry, laddie," he said gruffly. "I didnae know-or I would've taken ye from that place." Hiccup nodded slightly, his eyes firmly fixed on the ground.

"I know. Sorry." And that made Gobber cringe as well, hearing the lad so beaten down. He squeezed him affectionately and steered him out of the Pen.

"Let's get ye some brunch, shall we?" he suggested and Hiccup's head snapped up, a sudden look of determination and hope in his eyes. He nodded, a hand ghosting over his middle.

"Yeah...I could eat," he admitted as his stomach growled loudly. Gobber grinned.

"That's me boy!" he said, grinning and he saw the lad raise his head, his green eyes sparkling with gratitude as the Colonel steered then to the Mess. The Riders were there as they entered and suddenly the room fell silent. Hiccup felt his cheeks flare in embarrassment at the intense hostile glares. He walked to the servery and helped himself to bacon, eggs, tomatoes, fried bread, fried potatoes and mushrooms, then tucked in ravenously. Gobber had a plate piled high with bacon, ham, eggs and sausages and sat opposite the boy, munching away and chatting amiably. And all the time, the other Riders and would-be Riders glared hatefully at the skinny teen.

Once he had finished, Gobber gave a grin, promised to bring Hiccup his new ID and Com and rose to lumber away back to his office. But as soon as the Colonel was gone, the Riders rose as one, homing in on the skinny shape at the small table at the very edge of the room. Hiccup looked up and tried to rise...but Eret got there first, a heavy hand slamming onto his shoulder and forcing him down into the seat. HIs eyes widened in fear as the men crowded around him. He was literally a fishbone with no military training and no hope of protecting himself. Dagur swaggered up, his pale eyes vicious as he jerked his head to to Eret and Snotlout, who grabbed the teen's arms.

"Please, Dagur," Hiccup said swiftly, his heart fluttering rapidly in his chest as he pulled hopelessly against the furious grips. "I-I..."

"What was that...brother?" he sneered. "You steal my dragon, you refuse to hand him over and manage to persuade your Daddy to let his precious little boy keep my dragon!" He leaned closer. "So we need to let you know where you are in the pecking order."

"Oh, I already know," Hiccup suddenly said, his tone bitter. "My whole life has been one lesson in learning where my place is! So you're just wasting your time and effort!" His face was pale, his hands trembling and his throat worked as he fought fear. But no one was fooled. Snotlout gave a sharp laugh.

"Don't worry, Useless," he sneered. "We haven't got anything to do...because someone stole my dragon!" His tone was vicious as he helped drag his terrified and struggling cousin from the mess. Hiccup wrestled and shouted for help but no one listened-or came. And then he found himself manhandled down to the lowest level of the base, to the area where the Dragon Pens were bring constructed. He wasn't that far from his dragon...but he might as well be a million miles, because without a security pass, he was still not able to access the pen. And then he was dropped by the Riders. Dagur, Eret and Snotlout grinned nastily.

"You're getting five minutes start," Eret told him. "Starting...now..." Terrified, Hiccup stared at them..then ran in the direction of the main base...but the door was closed and locked...and he still didn't have his ID swipe card. He stared in panic at the soldiers, who were laughing-and then he sprinted in the other direction, his scruffy black converse flying over the concrete floor. He was lanky and awkward, almost tripping over his feet as he skidded round a corner into a much more poorly lit tunnel. He had no idea how long five minutes was or whether they would even wait that long...but he was mortally afraid what they would do to him.

He managed to get to a stairwell and wrenched the door open, panting as he began to scramble up the stairs. There were a lot of flights and he wasn't as fit as he should be because he spent hours bent over a computer screen. He paused, panting hard and bent forward against a stitch-and then heard the door below slam and the thud of feet closing. He paled and began to climb but his legs were burning and very shaky. And he knew with sick realisation that he wasn't going to make it. The stairwell he had chosen rose without any other exit from the basement level to the fifth level. They caught him one level below the only exit, strong hands digging into his ankle and bringing him crashing to the floor, writhing and kicking in desperate self-preservation. Then they were upon him, grips tight on his skinny arms and faces leering menacingly around the trembling teen.

He was unceremoniously dragged all the way down to the base of the stairwell, a dark little space, concrete and cold with the minimum of emergency lighting. And he was alone, a skinny, scared seventeen year old against three angry and vengeful soldiers. He swallowed, shaking with fear, as he backed up.

"Whoops. Didn't make it," Snotlout scoffed.

"Pathetic," Eret sneered.

"You really shouldn't have stolen that dragon," Dagur breathed, cracking his knuckles and closing. Hiccup found himself pressed back against the wall.

"I'm sorry," he pleaded. "It was a mistake. Please don't hurt me..."

"No chance of that," Dagur told him, pulling back his fist and landing the first blow...

oOo

He regained consciousness curled on his side, alone in the semi-darkness of the stairwell. Everything hurt. Biting back against the moan of pain, he wearily lifted his spinning head, then moved his limbs. All were intact...but badly bruised. His chest was sore and breathing hurt, jabbing white hot needles into his side. And he could taste blood.

He had been beaten up more times than he could count at school so he knew the form: pick himself up, check for anything broken, try not to throw up, drag his beaten ass back home and nurse his wounds in silence until he was fit enough to go back to school. And then tears burned his eyes: this wasn't school, there was no home and there was no way he could avoid the people who had assaulted him. He painfully levered himself to his knees and finally his feet and stared upwards. He still needed to get out and that was the only way.

It was a long time later when he arrived at the top, fearfully peering round the door before limping self-consciously along the corridor towards the infirmary. He felt too scared to go back to his room alone and he had no idea how badly they had hurt him. After a long moment of hesitation, he painfully wandered in and winced as a medic immediately turned on him, demanding who he was and what he was doing here. He gulped and backed away.

"I'm h-here because I..." And then he stopped. How pathetic would he sound? How more pathetic could he be? "I'm sorry to have wasted your time," he said defeatedly, turning unsteadily and heading to the door. Then a hand grabbed his. He stiffened and looked round-to see a tiny elderly woman, her hunched back and squint not really deflecting the obvious confidence and authority she exuded. She beckoned and he swallowed, then turned to her. "Yes?"

She huffed, then clicked a button on her wrist com. She typed and then a mechanical voice eerily sounded. "My name is Major Gothi. I am the Chief Medical Office. You are the General's son."

"Um...yes," he admitted. "I'm Hiccup Haddock."

"What happened to you, Hiccup Haddock?"

"Um...I lost an argument." His tone was ashamed.

"Where does it hurt? Let me help you," she said and pulled him back into the infirmary. He gave a small smile and sat where he was ordered, stripped his top off and allowed her to assess and treat his injuries. She paused to type in questions but she insisted that he tell her about himself and he found himself lowering his guard and explaining a lot more about Hiccup Haddock than he had planned on sharing with anyone in the base. By the time she had finished, her kindly smile was familiar and she had very gently reassured him that he was safe, he would live and that she wanted to hear about any similar incidents. He swallowed and made to get up...and then found her hugging him.

He hugged her back: hugs were rare in his life and to receive one from someone who genuinely wanted to help him was a precious luxury. He buried his face in her shoulder for a long moment before letting her go. Then he smiled. "Thanks, Major," he said in a small voice. She wagged a finger at him and beckoned-and he found Gobber ambling forward. Instantly he flinched and his bruised and battered cheeks flared with shame.

"Eh, laddie...what the Hel's happened tae ye?" the Colonel asked.

"Um...some people didn't like me having a dragon..." he admitted. Gobber literally growled.

"That Dagur..." he muttered.

"Um...and Eret and Snotlout," Hiccup admitted. "I was probably my fault because I couldn't run fast enough to to get away from them..." Gobber's hand gently closed around his shoulder though his eyes flared with rage that three men had hunted the skinny teen for sport.

"Laddie...you need tae take care..." he advised.

I was dragged from the canteen just after you left. What more could I possibly do? he asked himself silently. But he nodded anyway because he knew there was nothing more to say. Then Gobber handed him a new ID card, describing him as 'Specialist Hiccup Haddock: IT/ Rider'. The Colonel then fixed a new com around his wrist.

"Yer got access to everything," Gobber told him with a wink. "Yer a Specialist now!" The ghost of a smile passed over his battered face.

"Thanks, Gobber," he sighed and eased himself to his feet. The Colonel kindly grasped his shoulder.

"Call me if anything like this happens, laddie," he said in a low, angry voice. "I canna be havin' one of my Riders being hurt." Suppressing his instinctive response, he nodded.

"You got it, Gobber," he said quietly. "And thanks. I presume I'll be notified about Rider training?" Gobber nodded as they turned for the door. Hiccup thanked Gothi again before leaving and headed down to the Pens once more. With a smile on his lips, he let himself into the Pen and closed the door behind him.

"TOOTHLESS!" he called and the young Night Fury bounded towards him, warbling in utter excitement, his eyes wide with love for his human. Hiccup found himself knocked to the floor once more, but though he winced, he didn't protest except to try to ward off the eager licking that Toothless treated him to. Finally, he sat up and tried to calm down the capering little dragon.

"Easy, bud," he murmured, dropping to his knees and hugging his dragon. "You know...I wasn't meant to get you. It was a mistake, an accident. I came through the wrong door..." The dragon crooned and leaned against him, purring wildly and Hiccup hugged him, his heart soaring with joy at the knowledge something was pleased to see him. Something that refused everyone but him, that refused to give up Hiccup.

"And you know, though everyone has been horrible...and will continue to be, I guess...I won't ever give you up." The dragon gave a little croon as Hiccup hugged him again and rested gently against the warm, scaly body. "Yeah, I know. You're my best buddy, Toothless. And no matter what happens to me, no matter what anyone tries, I will always love and protect you. I'll be your friend forever."