Being startled awake, Merida opened her eyes to find a hand over her mouth as she was lifted off the ground. Her eyes frantic as they looked over at the dragons who were still sleeping, then down to Hiccup who was still sleeping. Feeling the cold steel of a knife on her throat she gasped as she froze. The small laugh as she was carried from the cave had her heart racing. It was Stench!

Laughing once he was out of the cave, Stench kept his hand over Merida's as he slowly made his way toward the beach. "Now pretty lady you is all mine. We will go somewhere that no one can find us. You is all mine now."

Breathing heavy as they reached the beach, Merida felt him move the knife. Once he did she bit down on his hand making him yelp in pain as he dropped her. Once she was on the ground she let out a shrill scream. Hoping that at least the dragons would hear her.

Stench glared as he pulled a rope and a piece of cloth and grabbed her before she could run, she wasn't going to get away from him. "Hiccup is too far to hear you."

Trying as hard as she could to get free from him, Merida glared at him as she felt him trying to tie her hands behind her back. "I wasn't trying to get his attention you oaf! Get off me!"

Flipping her over on her bac, Stench quickly gagged her as he smiled. "Nope. You is all mine pretty lady." But the snarl he heard from behind him made him freeze. Lifting her he glared at the dragon, the female that was there. Jerking his knife up to her throat as he held her around the waist. "No way little dragon. You can't have her."

"You bastard!"

Jerking her blue eyes up, Merida felt her heart start to race when Hiccup and Toothless fell from the sky also. He was her salvation now more ways than even he knew! 'Oh please you have to get me away from him.'

His eyes set in a resolve that he has never had before, Hiccup glared hard into Stench's eyes. This big fat pig had the woman he knew without a doubt he loved more than anything in his arms tied and gagged threatening to take her away from him! There was no way in hell that that was going to happen. No way. "Let her go and you can live."

Glaring as he backed toward his dragon, Stench shook his head. "No way! Pretty lady is mine! You can't have her Hiccup! No!"

"I told you to let her go or you will die you bastard." Hiccup reached down and pulled his sword as he slid from Toothless's back. "You don't believe me you can try and see what happens."

Feeling his dragon, Stench spread his legs and laughed as his Nightmare went under his legs and then lifted his neck with him and her on it. "I don't think so. Goodbye Hiccup!"

Jumping back on Toothless, both he and Wisp quickly had the Nightmare stopped in the sky. "I am warning you."

Laughing Stench pointed over at Toothless. "You can't do nothin! Your dragon can't fly without you!"

"One."

"Nothin!"

"Two!"

"You don't scare me!"

"Now!"

Stench then let his eyes go wide as he felt a blast hit his back and he let go of the girl, watching with a blank stare as she splashed into the water. Then dove his dragon down to stop Toothless from going in the water! "No! Mine!"

Hiccup jumped from Toothless and dove in the water. If he could just get Merida, when Toothless got in the water to them, he would fly him out and both would be fine. Ten feet in the water he gasped to see that she wasn't moving as she slowly sank. Grabbing her arm he pulled her with him and headed for the surface. Once he broke the surface he turned to see that Wisp had hold of Toothless's saddle and they were hovering. Looking to another side, was the charred remains of Stench and the dragon.

Without another word he swam to Toothless, was on him and they flew to the beach where he and Merida dropped down to the sand. He quickly had her freed and her gag out. "Come on Merida. Come on baby don't you die on me. Wake up!"

When she didn't move he was frantic as he forced hair in her mouth and started to push on her chest. "Come on don't you leave me! Don't you do it! You are a fighter! Come on Merida wake up!"

Wisp joined Toothless in looking at Merida with a worried longing look. Wisp had never had anyone care about her. Ever. Not until Merida and Toothless. She didn't want to lose that feeling after just getting it.

Finally after a minute or two, that seemed like an eternity to Hiccup, Merida coughed as she spit up sea water. Sitting her up Hiccup smiled as he took a deep breath and sighed it out. "You are alright."

Her eyes flying open, Merida jumped then turned to see that it was Hiccup and lost it. Her eyes filled with tears as she fell into his arms and sobbed. She really thought that she was going to die. She was never going to get to see anyone again. Whether Stench got away with her, or she drowned. "I…I…I am…"

"Shhhhhhh. Don't say anything. Just calm down honey. Settle down you are just fine now." Holding her tightly in his arms, Hiccup rubbed her back as she stopped trying to talk and sobbed even harder. He really thought he lost her there for a moment. He had never been so scared as he was in that moment. Once she started to calm down, he sighed. "You alright now?"

"I am. I was so scared. I thought that I would never get to see you…..anyone again."

"I know the feeling. I thought I lost you."

Looking up at him as she eased out of his arms, Merida whipped the tears from her eyes as she looked at him. "What?"

Reaching out and cupping her face, Hiccup smiled as he used his thumb to wipe a tear from her face. "When you weren't moving I thought I lost you for good. That scared me. You see…." Then he shocked her as he leaned in and pressed his lips firmly to hers in a deep but gentle kiss. A moment later he pulled his back from hers as she started shaking. "I love you Merida. I wanted to tell you under a different situation today. But….."

Hearing that he loved her, Merida had wide eyes as she felt her heart singing. He loved her! It wasn't one sided! Shocking him this time she threw her arms around his neck as she pressed her lips back into his. Tensing then shivering when he pulled her closer as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

Pulling his lips from hers, Hiccup smiled down at her. "I take it you feel the same way huh?"

Nodding as she buried her face in his neck, Merida couldn't stop the tears again, but at least these were happy tears. "I do. I just didn't know if I should say anything. I thought for sure that you had a girl that you had feelings for at Berk."

Standing and holding her in his arms, he headed back up to the cave. They needed to dry off before they started to fly so they wouldn't catch cold. Looking back with a smile at the dragons that followed them he laughed. "For this one you can thank them. I just don't know how he got in the cave without waking them up or me."

"He didn't stink this time. He smelled like the ocean."

"I see." Once in the cave he sat her down by the fire and grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her then sat behind her as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "And for the record, since everything is coming out. If this is how your hair would look down, I prefer the wild look."

Laughing as she leaned back against him, Merida sighed. A large nose on her side and she smiled as she moved a hand to rub Wisp. "When we hit the beach, he didn't have the knife at my neck anymore. I bit him and then screamed as loud as I could. I was hoping that they would hear me. I guess they did."

"Yeah." Patting her on the head then leaning back on Toothless, Hiccup sighed. "She woke me up zooming over me with a snarl, and then Toohless forced me on his back and was gone. When we got over the trees was when I saw you with him. That was the first time in my life I resolved to kill anyone. For any reason."

Laughing Merida took a deep breath then let out a content sigh. "So what do we do now?"

"First we get dry then head to Berk. Then to Dunbroch." Hugging her tighter he laughed. "Then I guess I need to talk to your dad. Because you aren't leaving me."

"Perfect."