A/N This story takes place after season four of the Netflix series Dragons: Race to the Edge. (There are a few spoilers if you aren't caught up, so I caution you if you haven't watched. And if you haven't, I highly recommend it!) This story won't be very long; if I had to guess, I'd say five chapters, max. Maybe six.

I hope you enjoy! Please let me know what you think.

HTTYD doesn't belong to me, thankfully!

Hiccup sighed as he entered the Edge's smithy, dragging the back of his forearm across his forehead where beads of sweat left shining tracks. It was a warm day on the island- a rarity, by itself- and the sweltering heat of the forges would often send him off for fresh air on Toothless even on a normal day. Flights on the back of his draconic best friend were, indeed, the best way to slack off from his work, even if he always came back winded and far too exhilarated to properly work.

However, today there had been no Toothless awaiting him at the forge's doors, with his body low to the floor and tail waggling in eager anticipation of a flight.

"Alright, Toothless. Long day ahead of us," Hiccup had said that morning, throwing open the shutters to allow in a piercing ray of sunshine. Toothless whined in protest, shielding his eyes with a wing. "Up and at 'em! C'mon, ya lazy lizard!"

Hiccup's attempts to wake him were in vain, ending when Toothless swiped his tail across the floor to send Hiccup crashing down.

And Hiccup, his backside sore, had elected to let Toothless sleep in.

No, today it had been Astrid who'd managed to pull him away from his work (which so happened to be his latest customisations of the tailfin- though Hiccup now thought Toothless undeserving of the modifications, after his stunt that morning). Astrid's teasing tone and soft lips on the back of his neck made him go all sorts of weak in the knees (or his knee-and-a-half, if he was aiming for accuracy). When he'd turned to meet her lips with his own, each kiss in turn would drive any hopes of productivity that day a little further from his mind.

As he settled himself at his bench, Hiccup subconsciously brushed his fingers over his swollen lips, remembering how soft Astrid's mouth had been against his own. He smiled giddily as he settled in at his crafting table, cheeks still flush with heat and his mind buzzing like it did after he had a few swigs of Viking ale. Astrid kisses were certainly much better than uncomfortable aunt kisses on Snoggletog. (And less hairy, at that. The Haddocks were known to be quite burly and bushy- even the women. Hiccup, as usual, was the exception.)

What a way to start the day.

Absentmindedly shuffling some blank parchments and whistling to himself, Hiccup's mind wandered to thoughts of the new tailfin he'd been designing. Now that they had Gronkle iron at their disposal, Hiccup planned to use it to make the connecting rods and bolts less heavy, and yet more secure. It would be perfect for razor-sharp precision and speed, and even better for feeling as natural as possible for the Night Fury. Hiccup was far too familiar with what grim fate awaited the tailfins Toothless deemed bulky, uncomfortable, or just plainly didn't like. The splinters of his last failed creation still lay, untouched, somewhere near the back of the smithy, a warning that Hiccup was sure to heed in the future.

Reaching for his canteen, Hiccup popped the cork with his thumb and took a deep swig of the water. His nose immediately wrinkled in disgust, and he squinted a halfhearted glare at the offending lukewarm drink. Blech. He really needed to check the cannisters they were using to haul up the freshwater in; there was a slightly metallic aftertaste to the water that was not-at-all pleasant.

Hiccup was just sharping the edges of his charcoal pencil to begin a new sketch when he heard the familiar thumps of his dragon bounding up the wooden steps outside. Toothless appeared in the doorway, warbling warmly, and Hiccup barely spared him a glance as he began to focus on his schematic.

"Hey, bud. Good to see you among the living," he said distractedly, all animosity from the morning's squabble forgotten. (Hiccup never could stay mad with anyone- much less his dragon.)

Hiccup startled, the hairs on the back of his neck rising in alarm as Toothless's feral growl ripped through the air. Hiccup peered up at him, pencil plopping onto the desk as he cautiously stood, one arm extended outwards in alarm.

"Toothless..?"

The Night Fury's hackles were raised, his pupils prin-pricks and his teeth out on full display; Hiccup followed his line-of-sight into a corner where barrels upon barrels were stacked, full of supplies from Berk. He shot Toothless a questioning look that was returned with a gruff snort.

Yes, the look said. There is someone back there.

Heart hammering in his chest, Hiccup's hand flew to his belt to hover just above the hilt of his sheathed dragon sword.

"Show yourself!" he demanded, quietly drawing nearer to Toothless. "There's an angry Night Fury out here, and his fire blasts are useful for more than just roasting marshmellows." Toothless roared to back the claim.

Cowed into action, slowly a brawny form materialised from behind the barrels. Behind the dark-rimmed, sunken eyes and hollowed-out cheeks Hiccup barely recognised the man. His eyes were laden with exhaustion and fatigue, and there was an unkempt air about him that indicated exposure to the elements. If he were anyone else, Hiccup would have been moved to give him a warm meal and place to lay his head; for this man, however, Hiccup felt nothing but incorrigible hatred.

"Ryker Grimborn?" Hiccup took an unsteady step backwards, his fingers tightening into fists. Toothless's nose pressed against his side, chuffing at his hand. "I thought you were dead," Hiccup continued, his voice hard.

The man grimaced. "That was the idea, wasn't it? Didn't wan' you lot to follow me an' finish me off like my dearly departed brother." He ventured a step closer to them but was halted by a curt growl from Toothless. With a brief glare thrown in the dragon's direction Ryker resigned himself to the floor, dropping to his knees with an inaudible sigh. He seemed to have recently lost a good amount of weight; his skin clung loosely to his muscle and bone like a too-large jerkin.

Hiccup's stomach had twisted into knots at the mention of Viggo Grimborn; it took him a moment to find his voice. "That was- I didn't mean for him to die," he defended, then shook his head as if clearing a mental obstruction. "That doesn't matter. There was no love lost between you two, so if you're not challenging me to a duel to avenge him, what in Odin's name are you doing back here? Have you finally lost your mind?"

"Nearly," Ryker snorted, and then he coughed. It was a deep sound, one that rattled deep inside his chest like a rock in a barrel. Hiccup couldn't help but wince in sympathy. Ryker spat on the floor and then wiped his sleeve across his mouth. "I'm dyin', Hiccup. I need your help."

"My help? That's rich." What Hiccup meant to be an ironic laugh instead came out forced and strained. "You tried to kill me. You- you tried to kill all of us!" Toothless began to growl, spurred on by the anger in Hiccup's voice.

Hiccup really ought to call for the rest of the dragon riders, he knew, but something held him back. Why would Ryker have come here? Did he really have no one else to go to for help but to the people who had killed his brother?

Toothless prodded at his hand again and crooned; Are you okay? his eyes asked. Hiccup ignored him, his eyes never leaving the man on the floor. Stepping closer, his head tilted to the side, he asked Ryker, "What- exactly- is killing you?"

Ryker gave him a snaggle-toothed grin that lacked warmth. "You won' believe it."

"Try me."

"Well..." Ryker re-positioned himself so that his back was leaning against one of the barrels. "I seem to have drawn the ire of one of my top competitors when I returned to business. Got a nasty dosing of Hel's Brew in my stew. Didn' get a lot o' it in me, but-"

"You mean to tell me that you've been poisoned with one of the most lethal poisons in the archipelago?" Hiccup interjected incredulously. "Named after the goddess of the dead? And you want me to help you? There is no known cure. You have to have already known that." This felt fishy; no, this felt dangerous. Even if Hiccup believed him- and he had to when he saw the look of death in Ryker's eyes- he didn't believe that Ryker was as helpless, or docile, as he was playing. Hiccup motioned for Toothless's attention, pointing up at the sky. The dragon understood his intentions, firing a plasma blast into the air even as Ryker once more vied for Hiccup's trust, realising he'd lost the inkling of sympathy he'd had.

"I was there with Viggo when he used the Dragon Eye. I saw where there's a cure for the poison in a rare breed of dragons down south. If you'll take me there, if we can find them-"

"You must be crazier than I thought if you think for a second I would put my dragon, or my friends, in danger for a vermin like you. You tried to kill us, or did you forget?" The rallying cacophony of the other Dragon Riders nearing the smithy pulled his gaze away, and when his eyes returned to Ryker inexplicably his heart softened. Something about the pale, sallow face of a man at death's door stirred empathy in him that he couldn't ignore- as much as he wanted to. "How long since you were poisoned?" Hiccup asked.

Ryker took a breath, gave a series of shuddering, quaking coughs, then blearily looked up at Hiccup. "A day, p'raps," he wheezed. "Hard to tell for sure."

"Are you here alone?" A pause in which Ryker seemed to hack up one of his lungs. "On second thought, don't waste your breath answering. I won't believe you, anyway." Hiccup made a mental note to search for any hidden men in the outcroppings of rock on the water. The last thing the Edge needed was a siege.

The heavy thuds of dragons landing just outside sounded, dispersing up his last dregs of nerves. "We'll make your final few days here as comfortable as possible. In our cells." With that, Hiccup turned his attention to his shocked friends, his countenance grim.

It took a fair amount of soothing language and level-headed pleading to talk Astrid out of killing Ryker immediately. (The dragon hunter found that his difficulties breathing were increased tenfold with the blade of an axe at his throat.)

"Escort him to the cells," Hiccup said, after Ryker had been bound with spare rope. "And see to it that he doesn't escape," he said, with a pointed stare at the twins.

"I'm offended by your lack of trust in us, Hiccup," Tuffnut said with mock shock, placing a hand over his heart as he used the other to shove Ryker towards the door. "What have my darling sister and I ever done to draw your ire?"

"Yeah, what's your deal, Hiccup?" Ruffnut echoed, folding her wiry arms as her face squashed into an exaggerated pout. "Snotlout was the one who lost Viggo."

"Just go," Hiccup sighed, wearily pinching the bridge of his nose in consternation. He was beginning to develop a headache, and the concerning, smug look on Ryker's face in the midst of death was doing little to help. The man leered at Hiccup, his brutish features twisting into an expression Hiccup couldn't place, but he wordlessly allowed himself to be herded away, practically collapsed on the twins for support.

As the others filtered out behind them to watch the procession- Fishlegs shot him a harried glance as he left- Astrid lingered behind. Her hands found Hiccup's shoulders as he leaned heavily against a desk. He bowed his head slightly, as if in reverence to the gods, biting back a groan. The dull ache was morphing into a steady throb in his temples. Astrid leaned against him as her fingers kneaded the tense muscle in his shoulders and upper back.

"What a twist, huh?" Astrid said lightly, pressing her cheek against the nape of Hiccup's neck and closing her eyes. "I thought that guy was Submaripper food."

"He was in a dragon-proof ship," Hiccup said. "The Submaripper probably couldn't break it apart."

Do I wish it had? he wondered.

Hiccup shuddered. Of course not. He believed in rehabilitation and reform- he believed that people could change. He didn't wish death on anyone; and that included his worst enemies.

That had included Viggo, too.

But leaving Ryker to die wasn't so different than killing him, was it? Maybe Hiccup Haddock wasn't the one delivering the death blow, but he was the one who was going to sit by as the man's very own body failed on him. Hiccup had seen men die of Hel's Brew before; he knew the look of defeat those men had held in their eyes as they'd died.

Shaken, but hesitant to let Astrid see, Hiccup lifted up a hand and squeezed at one of Astrid's own over his shoulder before he moved to sit at his workbench. "If he really was dosed with Hel's Brew, he'll be dead in a few days."

"You said he was talking about a cure," Astrid began tentatively, after a long pause. "Do you think he was telling the truth?"

"I don't see any reason for him to be lying," Hiccup replied flippantly, "but I'm not risking anyone's lives over that... that..." He took a deep breath; white-hot pulses of pain shot through his temple at random. "I believe that he believes it," Hiccup said finally.

"You're not even going to think about going after it?" Hiccup looked blankly at her. "It's just... not like you, to leave someone to die like this."

Gods. Hiccup really didn't need matters of morality to ponder while his head felt like it was being split open with Mjolnir, the mighty hammer of Thor. He rubbed at his eyes with the heel of his hands. Sparks exploded behind his eyelids in brilliant cascades of fireworks.

"I'll think about it," Hiccup said, if only to appease his skeptical girlfriend, and then, "I promise." Astrid smiled, bumping her knee against his before she turned to leave. She knew that Hiccup would want time alone to sort through his feelings and thoughts about the matter of Ryker's return, and if it was time he needed, it was time she would give him.

In the doorway she hesitated, turning to wave and beam at Hiccup, oblivious to the steadily mounting pain in his head. A commiserating look to Toothless and she was gone.

As soon as she was out-of-sight, Hiccup dropped his head into his hands, groaning softly at the knives in his skull. Toothless warbled worriedly, plodding over to him to nestle his head in his lap.

"It's okay, bud," Hiccup reassured him, scratching at the scales just above his nose. "Just a headache. I've survived worse." Hiccup shot him a toothy grin and stood up- too quickly- and saw stars again. His leg and prosthetic buckled beneath him, but before he hit the floor he felt the warm scales of Toothless's hide catch him. Hiccup gasped for breath, fingers scrabbling at the maroon cloth over his lungs. A constriction in his chest choked the air from his lungs, and his skin felt suddenly inflamed and too-tight. As the edges of his vision tinted black, it occurred to Hiccup that he might be dying.

Toothless gave a cry, pulling Hiccup's inert body into the crook of his wing even as Hiccup spluttered and wheezed, struggling to form a coherent sentence.

"B-bud... Get... Astr... As..."

As Hiccup began to slip out of consciousness, his eyes wandered up to his desk, where he'd been sitting, untroubled, a few minutes before, not knowing how close by an enemy was hidden.

The canteen. His green eyes lit upon it in sudden clarity just before they slid out of focus.

Then, darkness.