Uniting the Tribes 10
Drago watched as one by one people left the makeshift hospital. He had noticed Hiccup being carried in by that large Viking who had the audacity to attack him with that rare Screaming Death that Drago planned to make his own, but the boy chief had not left when the others had. Drago kept to the shadows, the hood of his cloak over his head and obscuring him from those who dare come near him. Thankfully there were so many tribes now on Berk that no one really gave him much mind and he was left alone. When that Snotlout boy finally left with some red hair girl he went to make his move but stopped when that irritating blonde shield maiden ran past and into the tent without so much as a second glance at Drago or acknowledging the other two young adults. Drago frowned in annoyance. He would have that Dragon Master even if he had to kill every Viking on the island.
. . .
Sleep had finally tugged at Hiccup's mind and he let himself relax into the cot. He left worries of Drago and Dagur behind him and tried to sleep and probably would have succeeded if a pair of familiar lips didn't press against his own. He hummed softly as he opened his eyes to look at the most beautiful person in the world. "Hey…" he whispered with a tired smile, reaching up to touch Astrid's cheek and brush back a rogue strand of hair.
"Hey yourself," she answered, sitting on the edge of the cot where Snotlout had been minutes earlier. Her blue eyes regarded him with that penetrating look of hers that said he was in trouble for hiding things again but there was still that concern and worry she always had for him. "So how long were you planning on not telling me you were hurt? I have to hear from my mother?"
He flinched at the scowl she gave him. He hated making her worry and it seemed that was all he ever did to her. But he loved her and rather than go into detail about possible broken ribs he just shrugged and gave his best smile. "Well I wasn't expecting her to be here. I thought she'd be preparing with the other warriors. You know how she loves that axe of hers, almost as much as you. Besides, she's just over reacting. I'm fine. It's just a little bruising."
Astrid raised one disbelieving brow. "And that's why your ribs are wrapped?"
He shrugged. "Just a precaution?"
"You're a horrible liar." But a smile tugged at her lips at his endless bravery and need to prove himself, as if by failing he would be letting everyone down. She moved to lay next to him, careful of his injuries and placed her head on his shoulder. "You don't need to be jumping in and saving me. I can take care of myself. Hell, it's my job to protect you…even from yourself."
Toothless looked up over the bed and gave her a disgruntled look.
"Alright, alright, it's our job," Astrid relented, reaching out and scratching one ear.
Before Hiccup could object to this she pressed her lips to his once more. It turned from a soft chastised kiss to one full of heat and passion until she straddled his hips and leaned into him. The long fingers of one hand tangled in his auburn locks as the other stroked his cheek and neck. His nimble fingers did much the same. His hands roamed up and down her back, pulling her close as he returned the kiss. They would have gone further had Astrid's knee not accidentally hit Hiccup's injured hip causing a shot of pain to race up his back. He tried covering a cry of pain with a simple gasp but Astrid knew him far too well to be fooled and immediately pulled away.
"I'm fine!" Hiccup insisted but it was no use, Astrid was eyeing him wearily. "It's fine, really."
"No you're not," the shied maiden said, her brows furrowed and real worry in her eyes. She chewed on her lower lip, silently debating what to do and ended up hugging herself. "I…I should let you rest. Well talk later."
Hiccup shook his head and went to get up. "No…no, I'm fine. Honestly. Astrid…"
"Just lie down and rest. We'll talk later. I just…there's something we need to talk about but this isn't the right time." She hesitated and looked down at her feet. Then before Hiccup could say anymore she dipped down and gave him a quick kiss. "I love you."
"Love you, too," he answered feeling a little out of sorts by her strange behavior. Usually he was the weird one. But this time it was Astrid who hurried off with no explanation. He sighed and lay back down. This was proving to be the strangest day of his life. He brushed his fingers through his hair and stared back up at the canvas ceiling. Okay, he needed to think and try fingering all this out but now he was even more confused than ever. What was that all about with Astrid? How long before Dagur went all big brother and kills Snotlout for even attempting to form a relationship with Cora? And what were they going to do about Drago and his Alpha? All those questions and thousands more raced through his mind and he didn't think he would be able to fall asleep again.
When he awoke again it wasn't to the pleasant fell of loving lips to his own but rather the crushing pressure of a very large hand covering his mouth. His eyes flew open and he immediately bucked, trying to throw the much larger man off him but it didn't matter how much he moved and wiggled he couldn't break free of the iron grip covering his mouth and holding his head down. All he could do was cling to that large muscular arm holding him down.
Drago Bludvist held him down with complete ease and sneered at the young man's attempt to escape. "Be still," he growled.
Where was Toothless? Why hadn't he warned Hiccup of Drago's approach like he normally would? The Nightfury hadn't so much as growled. Hiccup struggled to glance over the edge of the cot and just barely caught a glimpse of Toothless with several bright red darts sticking out of his thick scaly hide. The dragon was out cold and could not come to his aid. Hiccup was alone with Drago and the man could easily break his neck without so much as a second thought. So despite how hard it was he made himself relax and still under Drago's grasp.
"Scream and I kill the dragon," Drago warned before slowly drawing his hand away from Hiccup's mouth.
"What do you…"
"Be silent," Drago ordered in his raspy voice.
Hiccup made a face but did as he was told for Toothless's sake.
The Barbarian watched him with barely concealed amusement. "Now you will listen and not speak, understood?"
The young chief's nose twitched in distaste, noting more scars on the strange man then he had the first time they met. But that didn't change the hatred Hiccup felt for this man, the man who by all rights murdered his father. But he kept silent, wanting to see what this man was up to. Perhaps he could find a peaceful way to end the war.
Drago studied Hiccup's lithe form for several minutes, his dark gaze searching as he took in the bindings around the young man's ribs. "You were hurt," he purred, a sick grin lifting one side of his mouth. His hand went from Hiccup's mouth down his chest until it reached his ribs. He pressed his fingers into the broken ribs, his grin growing as Hiccup fought not to make a sound. "More than you let on."
Hiccup fought to school his face but the more Drago pressed into his ribs the harder it became to keep silent.
"You will surrender to me," Drago instructed, his voice almost fatherly and sympathetic as if dealing with a small ill-informed child.
"Like hell," Hiccup spat only to be slapped across the face.
"Silence. I will not warn you again, boy."
Hiccup only spat at him which made the big man laugh.
"Ah…your father was feisty as well. Avoid his fate and surrender to me. Meet me on Dragon Island and I will spare your little tribe. Defy me and I will hunt down your mother and woman and make you listen to their screams and watch as I rip out their beating hearts before feeding them to a pack of ravenous Sharkworms. And if that's not enough to break you then I will take great pleasure in gutting your dragon and destroying this island then make you mind in the most unpleasant ways." He leaned low until his face was close to Hiccup's. "And I will take great joy in breaking your woman before she dies."
That made Hiccup stay silent better than anything else and he stared up at Drago with large fearful eyes.
"Dragon Island, noon," Drago finished as he stood back.
Then he was gone and Hiccup wasn't sure if he had dreamed the whole experience or not. Nonetheless the fear he felt was real and he was left panting and nearly in tears as he imagined all the horrible things Drago could do to his beloved Astrid. He covered his face. No, he wasn't going to let that happened. He wasn't going to let Drago take her like he did his father. He had no choice, he had to surrender to Drago to protect those he loved.