Keeping the Peace

Warning: NSFW, dark, rape, M/M/M, sort of follows after Life as I Knew it available on Archive of Our Own jettara1 where this will also be in case it goes missing on fanfiction.

There were few things Hiccup hated more than when his father dragged him from island to island for nearly a month every summer to renew peace treaties with their allied tribes. It was usually the same, hours in the Great Hall negotiating this and that or challenges that lead to the ring were two chiefs would pretty much try to kill each other then come out laughing, the peace renewed. Sometimes Hiccup would get lucky and the chief they were visiting would have an heir his age that was nice enough to hang out with without challenging him. Right now Hiccup would give anything to go back to those days.

It was that time of year again and it was Hiccup going out to renew the treaties. It was his first year doing so alone and so far it hadn't been so bad. The chiefs did not challenge him like they did his father, considering him a grieving child even though he was in his early twenties. Or maybe it was his small size that they feared causing serious injury to. Where his father was a large man built like a bear Hiccup was lithe and wiry, almost the exact opposite. They still treated him with respect; after all he was considered a hero in most circles, not only for destroying the Red Death but defeating Drago Bludvist who threatened to enslave all the Archipelago, dragon and man alike. Many of the chiefs insisted he and his faithful companion, Toothless, stayed for a night or two where they would try and "fatten" him up, fearful he wasn't eating properly and that was why he was so small. Declining wasn't always an option…many tended to be offended if he didn't at least sit through one whole meal, which often consisted of six servings if Chief Bertha had anything to say about it. Thankfully Hiccup didn't have to visit all twelve tribes, the Hooligans only held alliances with seven and of those seven only four were close enough that Hiccup would even consider spending the night and he often saved them for later in the day so he could complete two treaties in one day.

Now he and Toothless were speeding from Bog-Burglar Island toward Outcast Island, the last stop on the treaty tour and closest to Berk. He was a few days early due to an argument with Dagur, the Berserker chief, over Toothless that lead Hiccup to packing it in rather than spending a day or two and working it out. He didn't even sign the treaty which was most likely a mistake knowing Dagur and his temper. He had gone directly to Bog-Burglar Island to calm down but he still had no answer on what to do about Dagur than he did when he first arrived. It left him with only one other option, calling in an old favor in case the Berserkers attacked. It was not something he wanted to do.

Toothless warbled as Outcast Island came into sight, pulling Hiccup out of his contemplations as he lay on the dragon's back. He didn't really much attention at first, too absorbed in his thoughts. He needed to go home after this and prepare. The Berserkers had a far larger armada than Berk but Berk had dragons that were prepared to fight to defend their home. That being said he didn't really want to go into battle with Dagur. They weren't really friends but they weren't enemies either, they hadn't been in years. He was kind of like an annoying older brother…like Snotlout.

Toothless warbled again and this time shook his shoulders, causing Hiccup's lower half to bounce a little.

"Uh…what? Oh!" Hiccup sat up and grabbed the edge of the saddle. "Sorry, bud. I didn't realize we were already here. Take us down in the center of town, I guess."

He wasn't enthusiastic about seeing Alvin. He was one of those chiefs that had been Berk's enemy for a long time. Unlike some of the other tribes his reasons had been more personal, due to a misunderstanding between two friends that turned them into enemies and got a lot of people hurt. Luckily the two had made up after twenty years and earned Berk a new alley. That didn't mean Hiccup liked the man but he could afford to have him as an enemy right now either.

The Outcasts weren't overly surprised when the landed in the center of the two, at least the part that was above ground. Most of the town was built underground and in the mountains due to the barren landscape and endless tunnels. The island was not what one would call hospitable, a virtual waste land yet this was where the Outcasts chose to be. It was no wonder they raided other tribes for supplies. The one thing they had plenty of was fish and Toothless made a bee line to his favorite Outcast with a huge basket of fish just waiting for him.

"Viggo!" Hiccup chirped as he twisted his prosthetic foot from riding mode to walking mode then hopped off Toothless's back. Just in time too, the Nightfury dunked his entire head into the basket.

"Hey half pint," Viggo laughed, patting Toothless's neck as he walked toward Hiccup with a big happy grin. "You're not supposed to be here until tomorrow."

Hiccup grinned. "First, I'm pretty sure I'm a full pint, and second, how did you know we were coming?"

"Air mail," the older man joked, gesturing to a purple Terrible Terror that another man was tending to. "Came in last night. We were waiting for you two to land before sending it back to Dagur. He wanted to make sure you were safe."

That was surprising and Hiccup's eyes widened slightly to hear such a thing. "I…you can tell him we're fine. Toothless AND me."

Viggo nodded. "I get it." He nodded to the man with the Terrible Terror who immediately began writing a return letter to the Berserker tribe. Viggo threw an arm over Hiccup's shoulders. He was almost two inches taller than Hiccup with massive shoulders that could easily hide the younger man behind him. He walked with a slight limp and had an artificial right leg that no one would notice at first due to the boot it was hidden in. "And by the way, you ARE still a half pint."

"Am not. I'm almost as tall as you."

"Almost isn't the same."

Hiccup rolled his eyes. This had been going on since he was sixteen when the Outcasts captured him and Viggo was the one stuck watching over him. He spotted Alvin and Savage talking heatedly by the new dragon training ring and instantly felt his stomach knot and the urge to turn around and grab Toothless fill him. Play nice, sign peace treaty and go home, he told himself, not wanting to stay any longer than necessary. Alvin still gave him the creeps.

"Hey Chief, half pint or full pint?" Viggo called, placing a hand over Hiccup's head as if measuring him.

"Viggo…" Hiccup whined, not wanting Alvin to weigh in on such a silly thing.

Of course Alvin was always one to join in when it came to measuring Hiccup. "Half," he said absently, barely sparing Hiccup a glance. "Make sure those Whispering Deaths have enough fish. I don't want the female becoming ill again. Last thing we need is the Screaming Death going wild on us again."

"Problems?" Hiccup asked, knowing a ploy when he heard one.

"Nothing a certain Dragon Trainer couldn't fix," Alvin grumbled as he turned away from his second in command to face Hiccup.

"And that's my cue to leave. Later, Hic," Viggo said, patting the Hooligan chief's back.

"Yeah, thanks," muttered Hiccup as his friend smartly fled. He squared his shoulders and stood up to Alvin. "I'm not training your dragons, Alvin."

The elder chief exhaled slowly, as if he were counted in his head, as he usually had to when it came to Hiccup not doing what he want – which was all the time. "Of course not. Is that why Dagur's all pissy again? You refused to help him as well?"

"That's different," Hiccup muttered, folding his arms across his chest and cocking one hip. He barely slept the night before because of Dagur and now Alvin knew all about it and was bugging him. "Look, I'm just here to sign the treaty and then I'll be out of here."

Alvin straightened a little and looked Hiccup over with cunning dark blue eyes. "Hiccup…" he purred, his whole demeanor changing. He walked over and placed a large hand on the young man's slim shoulder. "You don't need to be running so soon. You're our guest. Toothless is being cared for. You can relax for a few hours and eat. You look smaller than ever."

Hiccup brows furrowed at the comment. "I'm fine." But the last few days had been hard on him and despite how much many of the older chiefs had tried to "fatten" him up a lot of their food hadn't exactly agreed with him and he only had a small breakfast before leaving the Bog-Burglars because of his worry about Dagur following through with his threats.

Rubbing the back of his head he gave in. "I don't know," he said softly. "I guess a few hours won't hurt."

"That's my boy." Alvin clapped him on the back, making Hiccup stumble a little. "Prepare the feast!" he bellowed to his men as he ushered Hiccup into the Great Hall. "You don't visit enough, Hiccup. I rather miss our conversations."

"Okay…" He tried to duck under that large arm but Alvin had a firm grip on one of his shoulder pads and had him tucked next to his large body.

"I had hoped after your father's untimely passing that you would look to me for guidance. I am a chief, as well."

The boy made a face of distaste before remembering where he was and trying to look passive again. He failed miserably and sighed. "I know…things have been a little crazy. I told you about Drago Bludvist, right?"

"Uh huh…" Alvin answered, pretending he didn't see Hiccup's reaction.

"We've been preparing to fight him. He's made a few attempts over the last year and half."

Alvin raised a brow. "You should have come to me for help."

"I suppose."

The youth ran a hand through his hair, looking tense and ready to run. He hadn't looked so stress in a long time, as far as Alvin could remember. But then the boy was always antsy when he came to sign the peace treaty on his own. When his father was with him he would stay next to Stoick almost the whole time. Alvin had assume it was to learn how to go about being chief and keeping the peace between the tribes and most importantly keeping the other chief happy but he was starting to suspect that Hiccup simply didn't trust him or his Outcasts, with the exception of Viggo who Hiccup would rather spend with than Alvin any day.

Alvin squeezed the young chief's shoulder. "Come, we'll eat and celebrate our good fortunes."

"Fortunes?" Hiccup asked, perplexed.

"There's no war between our tribes or our allies, is that not good fortune?"

Okay, he had a point, Hiccup had to admit. "Look, I really can't stay long. Right now we may not be at war but things between Dagur and me aren't so good and I should put Berk on high alert as soon as possible. Astrid isn't expecting Toothless and me back for a few more days. Dagur might us that against them."

Alvin nodded in agreement. "The boy may be insane but he's also incredibly smart."

The Great Hall wasn't nearly as large as the on Berk or as welcoming. The smell of sulfur always clung in the air making the room stuffy, hot and almost unbearable. Yet Alvin sauntered in without a care, seemingly not noticing the heat. Was it supposed to be this hot? Hiccup wondered, trying not to tug at his armor. Maybe that was the problem; he'd only begun wearing armor the last few years and this was only the second time he been in the Great Hall wearing his full armor, before that he really didn't have to worry about armor, his father was always with him. But Stoick the Vast was no longer with him and it was time he learned to deal with these things alone and stand up for himself.

The side table was loaded with food, most of which were Hiccup's favorites. He glanced at Alvin with a raised brow. There was even chocolate pudding on the table. "Okay…you realize I'm not a little kid anymore, right?"

Alvin raised his hands. "Don't look at me. Your old man said if I wanted to get on your good side go with what you like. And I remembered you had a thing for chocolate."

As tempting as it was Hiccup was not a fool, he knew Alvin was up to something. "Ah…thanks but Bertha made sure I had a big breakfast before I left." It wasn't a lie, Chief Bertha had been adamant he eat before leaving Bog-Burglar Island.

Alvin frowned at him but instead of getting mad he shrugged. "Have it your way, Hiccup."

The youth nodded. "Let's just sign the treaty and then talk about Dagur. I may need to call in a favor."

"Well, you know my men are at your command if you need them," Alvin offered surprising Hiccup. There were only a very few times the man had ever made that offer and it was usually when they were about to go to war, such as when Hiccup first told Alvin about Drago and offered to hunt the man down.

Hiccup gave another curt nod. "Hopefully it doesn't come down to that."

"You sure you don't want to eat?" Alvin persisted as he loaded a plate with food for himself. "We can enjoy a meal while signing the treaty and talking about Dagur."

The Outcast chief wasn't going to Hiccup very many choices. It was either eat something or insult the man. Normally Hiccup could care less about Alvin's pride but right now he needed the Outcasts on his side, not just because of Dagur but also Drago. He needed all the Archipelago prepared for anything. Besides, Alvin was already digging into his food which meant it wasn't poisoned or drugged in any way so…

Taking a deep breath he put a little food on a plate then took a seat next to Alvin…where his father used to sit. He didn't start eating right away, just picked at the food, lost in his only thoughts as Alvin chattered away, anxiously waiting for the treaty to be brought so he could sign it and go.

"I have been meaning to talk to you," Alvin said through a mouth full of roasted boar. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I recently made a treaty with a new chieftain."

"Oh?" Hiccup muttered, not really paying attention. What was taking so long? Toothless should have been joining them by now. As much as the Nightfury loved Viggo he was never gone this long from Hiccup, especially on Outcast Island.

"He'll be joining us to help me pound out a new treaty with you."

Hiccup looked up in surprise. "What? What do you mean? Why do we need a new treaty? My father may be gone but nothing else has changed."

"A lot has changed, Hiccup," Alvin purred, pushing away you plate as the great doors opened.

Hiccup squinted, unable to make out who was entering with the glare of the sun behind the large man. But the silhouette was very familiar, almost burned into his memory. He stood, automatically reaching for Inferno strapped to his thigh. "Drago," he breathed as the man's features came into view. But before he could draw his fire sword a red dark flew through the room and pierced his neck. Almost immediately his vision began to blur. His yanked his sword free, still willing to fight. "Oothlezz," he slurred then shook his head. No…no this wasn't right. He placed a hand to his forehead, trying to steady himself then looked to Alvin in disbelief.

"There's a reason they call me Treacherous, boy," Alvin said in that strange silky texture he got when he won something he thought precious. He caught Hiccup as the young man began to fall. "Relax, Hiccup. We're going to take good care of you."

If Hiccup could he would have yelled for help but his mouth felt like there was cotton stuffed in it and his vision swirled so bad he could barely make sense of what he was seeing. Nor could he fight when Alvin threw him over his shoulder and placed a big hand on his rear, hopefully only to hold him in place. Something deep in Hiccup doubted that but before he could think more of it his mind went blank and he was trapped in darkness.