Author's Note:

Hello everyone and here is chapter 4 of this story. It returns to Snotlout this time around and explains what is happening to him, no Toothless this time but our favourite dragon will appear in the next chapter. Thank you for your continued support and I hope you enjoy the chapter.

I own nothing.

Voyage to Outcast Island

Hiccup was up with the dawn and set about rousing the others.

He woke Astrid first and although bleary-eyed she helped him wake the twins who both muttered incoherently on being woken and casually punched each other which seemed to get them wide awake. It took all of them to rouse Fishlegs and they had to keep prodding him to make sure he actually stayed awake while the twins set about making breakfast. They ate speedily and in silence until Hiccup, "Right guys let's head out."

Their progress was slow as they had to check every single possible island, islet or lump of rock that could possibly have Snotlout and Toothless on it. Furthermore they were unsure of the direction the pair had gone so they moved in a slowly increasing spiral around the island they'd started at meaning that they hadn't covered much outward distance by the time noon came.

At midday they touched down for a rest and lunch. As Fishlegs gorged himself on the edible berries around their rest site and the twins tried to belt each other with bush branches Astrid walked over to Hiccup who was sat further away from the group with Hookfang. The dragon looked so mournful that Astrid felt a stab of pity for him and she gave him a gentle scratch as she sat beside Hiccup, it did little to cheer the Nightmare up but he did give her a thankful growl.

Hiccup sighed and leaned back on the dragon behind him as Hookfang rumbled sadly. Astrid could see how worried he was and she fully understood why. Snotlout was effectively Hiccup's little brother and they'd only had each other for so long Hiccup didn't like it when Snotlout was in any potential danger. Plus it seemed that, like the older cousin, Snotlout had a tendency to get into trouble, especially taking into account things that had happened over the last few months. In his search for the Glacial Bloom several weeks ago Snotlout had been held captive by pirates for nearly a week and had almost died more than once, before that he'd spent time as a baby Monstrous Nightmare and several times he'd been captured or kidnapped by Alvin. In all honesty Astrid was as worried as Hiccup despite her reassuring words to him the night before, she kept telling herself that Toothless was with him so he should be safe but she couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't.

Sitting beside Hiccup she tried to reassure both him and herself, "They can't have gone far. I'm sure we'll find them before today is over."

Hiccup sighed again, "And what if we don't?"

She looked at him determinedly, "Then we keep looking tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that, and the day after that. However long it takes we'll find them."

Hiccup managed a small smile, "Thanks Astrid."

She smiled back, "We're not in the business of giving up and neither is Snotlout, we'll find him."

He nodded then stood up briskly, "Okay guys its time to head out again."

He mounted Hookfang and the dragon eagerly took to the air and both dragon and rider hoped that Snotlout and Toothless were on the next island.

Snotlout squirmed uncomfortably in the small hold of the Berserker ship.

Shortly after they left the island he'd been lugged down there and unceremoniously tipped out of the sack onto the hard floor. While glad to be out of the stuffy sack he wasn't in a much better position especially since they'd also re-done his gag so now it consisted of a foul tasting cloth stuffed into his mouth with a second one tied over his lips to keep it in place, he'd tried yelling through it but it muffled him so well he doubted that even the Berserkers directly above him had heard. He wasn't sure how long he'd been down there as no one had come down but he could see daylight through tiny gaps in the deck above him so he guessed it was still the same day has he'd been captured. His stomach growled loudly telling him he hadn't eaten in a while but there was nothing he could do to satisfy it and he tried loosening his bonds again. They remained as firm as they had all the previous times he'd tried and he soon gave up and tried to get as comfortable as he could which was difficult when you were bound and gagged on the floor.

There was a thumping sound and he saw a couple of Berserkers descend into the hold and come towards him with one of them holding a piece of bread and a small cup. This man placed the items he was carrying in front of Snotlout and then roughly hauled the boy into a sitting position and began untying the gag. As soon as the cloth over his lips was removed Snotlout spat out the one in his mouth and flexed his jaw experimentally glad to get rid of it. He noticed that the second man had positioned himself by the stairway up to the deck and was no doubt there in case of an escape attempt.

The Berserker who'd removed Snotlout's gag unbound the boy's hands and loosened the ropes around his torso allowing Snotlout to bring his hands forward from where they'd been held behind him. The man then shoved the piece of bread into them giving a rough command as he did so, "Eat it quickly."

Snotlout did as commanded while both men watched him carefully, when he'd finished the Berserker then thrust the cup, which was filled with water, at him and the teen didn't wait to be told before he gulped its contents down. As soon as he was done the man grabbed the cup from him and proceeded to re-bind him, knowing that resisting was stupid Snotlout sat silently as he did so and it wasn't until he made to re-gag him that the teen spoke, "You don't need to do that, I promise to stay quiet."

Snotlout was actually being very honest about staying quiet, he'd happily have promised to stay completely silent if it meant they wouldn't re-gag him. The cloth that'd been shoved in his mouth tasted horrible and it had been really uncomfortable having the gag on for so long. Unfortunately the Berserker simply smirked maliciously, "Sorry kid, but we've been ordered to make sure ye can't escape or call for 'elp."

He forcefully stuffed another, thick, foul-tasting cloth into the teen's mouth and then shoved another one between his teeth and tied it round the back of Snotlout's head to hold it in place. This seemingly wasn't enough and he tightly tied a third one over the teen's lips as before furthering securing the gag and making it muffle Snotlout even more. The Berserker called back to his crony by the stairs, "Do ye think the kid's secure enough?"

The other Berserker looked thoughtful with his eyes gleaming maliciously, "I'm not sure, we should tie him to something just to make sure 'e can't go anywhere."

The first one's grin grew wider, "Yer right, we've got to be careful with these dragon riders."

The ship's mast actually ran through the deck into the hold and the Berserker dragged Snotlout over to it and viciously shoved the boy's back against it. Producing a good amount of rope the man began quickly and skilfully wrapping it around Snotlout's body and the mast tying it tightly and securely, he used some more to bind the teen's legs above and below his knees adding to the bonds around his ankles. The man checked over his handiwork and tugged the bonds experimentally, after tightening a few a little more he nodded in satisfaction and began to gather up the empty plate and cup, "I think that'll do ye kid, don't ye agree?"

Snotlout gave a barely audible 'mmf' in response and both Berserkers smirked at the noise before they ascended up to the deck again leaving him alone once more. As soon as they were gone Snotlout attempted to squirm in his bonds only to find them even more unescapable than before. He could barely move his upper body because of the way it was bound to the mast and there was no way he was going to loosen any of the ropes on his own.

He closed his eyes in defeat knowing that, for the moment, he could only hope for rescue.

Time passed only marked by the hold becoming pitch black at night and the appearance of the two Berserkers who gave him a small amount of food and water each day.

Snotlout quickly learned to remain silent when they appeared, saying anything simply resulted in them retying his bonds and gag tighter. The two of them seemed to get some sort of enjoyment out of binding him and they were very skilled at it meaning there was no way he'd ever escape on his own. Of course they didn't tell him very much themselves so he had no idea what they were planning or how long they had to go of the voyage, all he could do was sit miserably in the hold hoping that someone would rescue him soon.

About three days after he'd first been captured (by Snotlout's reckoning) they finally arrived at their destination.

The Berserker who brought him his food came into the hold and Snotlout was surprised to see him without food for him. Wordlessly the man untied the ropes holding the teen to the mast but left all the ones binding his body and then the second man appeared holding a very familiar sack. Upon seeing it Snotlout gave a greatly muffled cry and tried struggling, desperate to not be shoved into the sack again. The first man simply growled in annoyance and lugged the boy bodily over and tossed him into the waiting sack. In moments the sack was tied shut trapping Snotlout in its dark interior as it was thrown over someone's shoulder and they carried him away.

The bumping journey was shorter than the one on the island and soon Snotlout just about heard the voice of the man leading the Berserkers that had captured him, "Sir! We've returned from our hunting mission and we've caught something you might be interested in."

Suddenly everything tumbled about and the teen fell into the bright world of daylight as he was tipped out of the sack to the sound of the man's voice, "We've managed to capture one of Berk's Dragon Riders."

Blinking in the bright light Snotlout looked up from his awkward position on the floor and stared directly into the face of Dagur the Deranged.

PS-So that's chapter four done and Toothless will be the star next time. Please let me know what you thought and I'll try to update soon.