Ha! New chapter...sorry for the wait, it was giving me some difficulties-not like the next chapter thought! *proceeds to bag head against desk* they're not being very cooperative. Anyway, enjoy!

Shout Outs!:

Guest

Ok so I reviewed back around chapter 9 and 12 I believe. Let's just say I've definitely reread this more than 4 times by now. I love this story so much. It's officially one of my comfort fics. Loki adopting Hiccup makes me all excited and their relationship is sweet. Poor Hiccup and Loki with all their panic attacks and identity issues. At least they have each other. Thank you for taking time to write and thanks to your beta reader as well. :)

Awe, thank you! I love writing it and them, makes me smile so much, glad you're enjoying so much! They have a lot to work through and Loki has planning/scheming to do ;) but they'll be okay if they stick and work through it together.

DragonMasterLoki

Man, that sucks but at least you got to read them all at once! Glad it worked out well. Haha, no. No it does not

Stag-beetle

Yeah, nah, all singing will be left in Tone Deaf but that's actually kinda funny. I'm sorry, I just couldn't help myself, it was just too perfect.
Hm, some good ideas but we'll have to wait and see ;)

CHSHiccstrid

Good! Rewriting whole chapters just for a little scenes wouldn't have been worth it, was slightly worried it would be kinda jarring but it wasn't! Yay! Well, he's not going to remain so minor but I don't think he'd going to push Krogan and Viggo aside in main vilan like he did. Still debating that one, have to wait until that episode.

Jhousa

Asgardian magic, yes; Jotunn magic, no-that's what they're wanting to hide but since Hiccup needs to take off the bracer near the beginning to practice it, he doesn't want to tell them yet. Yeah, poor Hiccup, I can't blame him though XD :(

Writer's Log Supplemental—26 "In Plain Sight"

The door flew open and Viggo looked up from his more and more impossible task of Dragon Eye repair.

Johann marched through, glaring at Viggo, while Krogan walked in at a much more casual pace.

Viggo sat up straight, fixing Johann with a welcoming but resigned gaze. "Ah, to what do I owe this pleasure?"

Johann scowled at him. "I do not like being kept waiting, Viggo. When I said to meet at the island, you knew very well I meant on the island and in my hut!"

Viggo stood and gestured to the table. "Pardon me if I didn't feel like trying to pick all this up."

Johann's nose turned up at the mess. "I don't care about whatever side project you have, Viggo. What I care about is the Dragon Eye and lenses you have acquired."

Viggo's annoyance turned into a snarl directed at Krogan. "You have not told him!?"

Krogan threw his hands up and took a step back, perfectly calm if not a bit exasperated. "I do not have a death wish, contrary to what you might believe."

Johann scowled at both men, his frustration turning into anger as he flicked his eyes between the two men. "What am I being kept in the dark about?" He asked slowly, hands folded peacefully but both men knew it meant otherwise.

Viggo's eyes stayed locked with Krogan's, neither budging, until Viggo growled and gestured to the mess on the table. "There is your Dragon Eye." He picked up two objects of similar size and tossed them to Johann. "And there are your lenses."

Johann stared at objects in hand then at the table blankly before his eyes darkened. "How... did this happen?" He could only hiss it with his teeth clenched, gripping the two 'lenses' so tightly they cut into his hand.

Viggo waved to the table and Johann's hand, answering darkly with no hidden amounts of annoyance. "The Eye and melted lens come courtesy of Loki himself, while the sprocket was Hiccup's handiwork."

Johann took a breath and asked calmly. "And how was Hiccup able to fool you, Krogan, into taking a sprocket instead of a lens?"

Viggo and Krogan shared a look before the latter answered. "It appears that being Loki's Chosen gives you more than just a name or having the god's favor."

Johann scowled at him, eyes screaming that he should not have to ask, 'what?'

Heather stood with a weary sigh. "That is very cool Hiccup, but, I think I need to leave—to see my father. Or his grave at least…I just need some closure."

Hiccup nodded, grabbing her hand gently with a smile. "I understand. I'm glad that you're alright though."

Astrid walked over to Heather. "I'll take you to Vanaheim if you want."

Heather nodded. "That would be great, thank you."

They left and the others walked out of Hiccup's hut, heading up to the Clubhouse for some actual food.

Hiccup rolled his eyes as the conversation turned to their blindness of Heather's Dragon Eye lens and the Tuffnut went off on some tangent of 'could you believe'?

Dagur grabbed a plate and sat next to Hiccup, taking a delicious bite out of the chicken before saying, "Too bad you don't still have the Dragon Eye. At least then we could look at the other lens."

"Other lens?" Hiccup asked, blinking.

Dagur shrugged. "Well, dad gave us both lenses when we were kids."

Hiccup's eyes widened slightly and he stared at his plate, mind far away. "That picture we found... I just thought he drew those from memory of seeing one on his travels."

Dagur nodded, taking another bite, and grinned. "I use mine to look at stuff or start fires with the sun." He chuckled.

Hiccup turned to him. "Do you still have it? I know no two lenses ever have the same information, but maybe it helps us figure out if Krogan and Viggo are after a particular dragon or just collecting as many lenses as possible."

Dagur sighed, glancing away—ashamed. "No. But I know who does. Anyway, what does it matter? It's not like you have another Dragon Eye laying around."

Fishlegs smirked at that comment, but turned to Hiccup. "Hiccup, how would having one lens help? We'd need both to figure that out. Stryke class is the smallest class, but it still has several dragons in it."

Ruffnut cackled and ran out of the Clubhouse with Tuffnut.

Snotlout scooched away from their now empty seats, face awash with rightful worry.

Dagur pointed out the door. "Uh, what are they doing?"

Hiccup shook his head. "I think I know. They should be back in a minute."

As he predicted, the twins were back in a few minutes. Gently dropping a bag on the table while Ruffnut held up a lens, beaming. "Cool, right?"

"Hiccup got it!" Tuffnut grinned.

Fishlegs frowned, pointing at the lens. "But that's impossible, he... You didn't go back last night did you!?"

Snotlout snorted and crossed his arms. "And you guys call me dumb. That's a whole new level of stupid, Hiccup."

"No!" Tuffnut defended. "He had it the whole time!"

Fishlegs frowned, more than slightly confused. "Tuffnut, you were there, just like the rest of us were. We all saw the Flyers get the lens."

Hiccup shook his head, rubbing his eyes because he knew this was undoubtedly going to be the cause of another headache. "No, they're right. I did have it. Or, Toothless did."

The Clubhouse was silent for a long moment before Snotlout threw his hands up in the air, looking like he wanted to strangle someone. "Great. So just what were we all fighting for?"

Hiccup smiled sheepishly, averting his gaze—feeling slightly bad that. "Eh, an illusion'ed extra sprocket for Toothless' tail?"

Snotlout glared at him while Fishlegs' eyes bugged slightly.

Dagur groaned and rubbed his eyes. "Wonderful. You couldn't have said anything sooner to Heather? You're going to be the one to tell her, by the way."

Hiccup winced. "Ugh. I meant to, but with me passing out last night, the panic attack this morning and then her wanting to leave as soon as possible, I forgot. I'll tell her as soon as she and Astrid get back…Astrid's gonna kill me too."

Snotlout snorted in agreement.

Dagur leaned back on the stool, arms crossed. "That's great and all, really, I am happy you got the lens instead of the Flyers but—how does that help us narrow anything down? We still don't have a way of looking at them. It's not like you have another Dragon Eye laying around."

Hiccup smirked and reached into the bag, pulling out the nearly completed Dragon Eye.

Dagur stared at it in disbelief, blinking a few times to make sure he wasn't seeing things. "You have another Dragon Eye laying around." He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Of course he does."

Hiccup held it out for the others to see better. "I call it the 'Dragon Eye Two'."

Fishlegs looked at it with giddy glee while the twins looked less impressed. Ruffnut turned to her brother with a look of slight disappointment. "Oh, 'Dragon Eye Two'. That's some weak sauce right there."

Tuffnut nodded but pointed out, hands on his hips. "We must keep in mind, sister, that this is the same man that named the most feared dragon in all of the Archipelago—Toothless."

"True." She crossed her arms, shaking her head. "But we're still gonna have to give you a CBB on that."

Hiccup frowned, that was a new one. "Uh, I'm sorry, 'CBB'?"

Tuffnut grinned. "'Contrived by a bonehead'. It's a technical term. Let me pitch you one more before you leave. 'The Thorston-Thorston'." He made 'c's with both hands and put them together, looking at Hiccup hopefully.

Hiccup sighed and put the Dragon Eye back in the bag with a small shake of his head and grabbed the new lens to examine it closer. "They both work and serve the same purpose, I don't see the point in calling them two different things."

Dagur frowned at the pair, defending Hiccup. "I, for one, think Hiccup should be applauded for his ingenuity. It works, right brother?" He asked quietly.

"Well," Hiccup shrugged, inserting the lens and pointed to the back of the Dragon Eye, "not quite yet. You see this dial here? You turn it to slide in different color gems for the light to filter through. I still need those gems."

Johann was about half a breath away from either strangling the two men in front of him or screaming his frustrations out to the sea.

Viggo returned to the Dragon Eye, fitting more pieces together and trying to make the mechanism move before making note of where it would not.

Johann paced as he thought, ignoring Krogan leaning against the wall. That boy has been a pain in my side since he took down the Red Death and brought about 'peace'. Bah! He never should have been this much of a problem—he's a skinny, little, rat of a runt!

He finally stopped, glaring at both men but only one paid him any mind. "Did you happen to have a plan before you rendezvoused, empty handed, with me?"

Krogan suppressed a growl but didn't attempt to hide his sneer. "We were attempting to fix it."

Viggo snorted, looking up. "Who was attempting to fix it?"

"Does it matter?!" Johann shouted, livid with both men. "You both let Hiccup get the better of both of you! How hard is it to simply take the lenses from him? You could have easily given chase!"

Krogan's teeth gnashed as he stepped forward, towering over Johann. "And do what?! Touch him how?! He may have looked normal last I saw but he is far from human anymore!"

"Enough!" Viggo shouted, slamming his hands down on the table before growling and shoving most of the pieces off and against the wall. The papers flying off, lazily—mockingly—drifting to the floor. "It does not matter either way because this Dragon Eye is useless! What few pieces remain intact are inconsequential and I have no knowledge of how its mechanisms work well enough to rebuild it!"

Johann scowled at him. "So you let Loki destroy the only thing capable of leading us to the King of Dragons?" He asked lowly.

Viggo bared his teeth, fists clenching—the skin on his burnt hand pulling uncomfortably and painfully. "I did not let him destroy it and had Hiccup not…it matters not. We have a contingency plan."

Johann folded his arms behind him, interested.

Krogan frowned as he finally stepped back into the conversation. "And how do you propose we get it from him, let alone know when it is finished? You got lucky the first time you stole it from him."

Viggo glared at him. "I was not 'lucky', I had a very thorough plan with several back-ups ready for any eventuality. I also had my brother's full backing and my Hunters at full force with Loki not an issue at the time."

Krogan snorted in mild amusement. "Yes, well, unless you can assure me that neither Hiccup nor Loki will be anywhere within the vicinity of the Dragon Eye, I am not going anywhere near it or them. I would like to keep my arm intact."

Viggo eyebrows raised in twisted satisfaction, pacing the floor behind the table. "Isn't that what your Flyers are for?"

Krogan frowned, crossing his arms. "Yes, but they do take time to train. Besides, we both know how well that turned out last time."

Johann growled in frustration. "What are you two going on about!? So what if Hiccup is 'protected' by Loki! Make the strike swift, and there will be nothing he can do about it. He is not on Midgard at the moment anyway."

Both Viggo and Krogan's eyes light with relief and determination but fear still lingered in both. Viggo paced for another moment before he stopped, eyes alight with sadistic glee and he smirked. He turned to Krogan then Johann. "You said he appeared to be normal once again in your last fight against him, no?"

Krogan nodded, confused.

Viggo chuckled. "And beyond that," he glanced to Johann, "they do not know the trump piece that we hold."

"Perhaps my humble, yet vast and varied trading skills might be of some assistance in their procurement, Master Hiccup?" Johann said with a smile, holding a box filled with a few items.

Snotlout frowned, still not happy with Johann even though he knew now that they didn't lose the lens. "Johann, what are you doing here?"

Johann smiled and set the box down on the table. "I come bearing a gift for Miss Heather. A mea culpa, if you will, for her ghastly experience at the Northern Markets."

Hiccup shook his head and fiddled with the Dragon Eye again, looking at the holes the gem would need to go into and guestimating their sizing.

Snotlout held up a hand in exasperation. "Save it Johann. She's not here."

"Oh, pity." Johann said with a frown.

Hiccup looked up, intrigue suddenly lighting his eyes. Something twisted inside of him, something about Johann's tone, but he shook his head and ignored it. "But back up, Johann, to the part where you help find the jewels to finish the Dragon Eye Two."

Johann smiled again, clasping his hands together as he thought quickly. "I have doubt I can obtain these baubles for you, Master Hiccup. I shall personally deliver them to your door in three to four moons."

Hiccup's stomach clenched. No, no that was far too long now that Viggo and Krogan had an Eye as well. "No. No, no. We can't wait that long, Johann."

Johann tapped his chin, thinking. "Mh, there is a slight possibility to obtain them at the Northern Markets. But I think we all know the dangers that place possesses. Ooh." He frowned and shivered.

Hiccup's brow dipped, looking at the Dragon Eye. "Well, we'll just have to risk it."

Fishlegs' forehead pinched unhappily. "Hiccup, there has to be another way. The Northern Markets has just gotten too unpredictable."

Johann sighed. "Shame, really. It truly is a virtual cornucopia of gemstones."

Hiccup nodded and gestured to Toothless. "Toothless and I can protect you Johann. I have to finish the Dragon Eye Two right away." He finished, looking at the group pleadingly.

Snotlout rolled his eyes while the twins frowned, Ruffnut voicing her opinion first, cutting off whatever Johann was going to say. "I really don't know Hiccup-"

Tuffnut nodded, crossing his arms. "-you passed out last night and you said so yourself that you're still tired."

Hiccup's face hardened. "But if I wait any longer who knows what else Viggo and Krogan will do with their Dragon Eye! It's sheer luck that I managed to—to trick them to begin with. And we have no idea what their plan is." He shook his head, eyes distant. "And I don't think it's just to keep trapping dragons. Viggo wouldn't need the Eye for that."

He held both the twins' unblinking gazes and Snotlout shifted uncomfortably while Fishlegs played with his thumbs. Dagur was simply at a loss for everything.

Ruffnut sighed, head falling back in frustration. "Fine. But we're going with."

Tuffnut nodded hard once, eyes daring Hiccup to challenge them. "Yeah, don't need you doing something stupid and keeling over."

Hiccup let out a small huff and stowed the Dragon Eye, frowning at them. "Fine. But I can't just do it willy-nilly. It took a bit of concentration to do what I showed you earlier…let alone anything else."

Johann's lip upturned slightly, not liking the idea of being in the twins' proximity for a prolonged amount of time—too many bad, past experiences. "While I do appreciate the offer of assistance, perhaps a smaller party is a smarter party." Johann tapped the side of his head with a smile before continuing. "I assure you that I will keep careful watch over Master Hiccup and at the first sign of weariness we shall leave with post haste!"

"Hu." Tuffnut breathed out a small laugh, looking over to his sister. "Yeah, good luck on that. When ol' H here gets something in his head it takes a dragon sitting on him to get him to stop."

Hiccup glared at him. "Does not."

Ruffnut frowned and crossed her arms, eyebrows raised challengingly. "Really? Because I remember one time Loki nearly locked your hut down until you got some decent rest—"she jabbed her thumb back towards Dagur, "—then nearly killed Dagur here when he came saying he knew where Berk's gold was."

Dagur chuckled nervously, eying the floor. "Haha, I thought he looked a bit mad…I just thought it was because of, uh, something else."

Tuffnut patted his shoulder, grinning slightly. "Oh, that was part of it too."

Dagur shut up, resolutely refusing to look at Hiccup, as if Loki was presently there and ready to kill him at the first wrong move.

Tuffnut wrung his hands and leaned close to Hiccup, saying lowly. "We also need to pick up a gift for Chicken's birthday. You know how hard she is to shop for."

Hiccup shook his but waved dismissively at the twins. They smirked at Johann, having won the argument and Johann felt his stomach flip.

He glanced between the three of them before eyeing the bag Hiccup was putting away. "One small question: do you know the exact sizes of the gems you need?"

Hiccup's eyes shot up in momentary thought before answering Johann. "Not exactly, but I could bring the Dragon Eye along to measure."

Johann smiled lightly. "Capital idea!" He pointed to the bag of lenses. "And perhaps the lenses as well, so that we can immediately elucidate the efficacy of each stone, hmm?"

That twisted feeling was back in Hiccup's stomach and he could only momentarily frown at it, unsure of why he was suddenly getting strange vibes from Johann. Maybe it's his eyes…but he's probably just nervous about going back—he's liked there about as much as we are. "Will do." He nodded then turned to the rest of the group. "Everyone else, go with Dagur to try and get his lens back…and we might just be able to get back into Viggo's game."

Hiccup took a deep breath and let it out, eyes pinched tightly, saying softly. "That was really something I was hoping I would never have to do again."

Dragon Hunters encircled Hiccup, Toothless and Johann. Johann pressed closer to Hiccup and Toothless while Toothless' tail curling around Hiccup. Hiccup glared at the Hunters and his shoulders tensed, taking quick stock of their situation.

His eyes glanced back as a Hunter behind them ordered. "If that dragon even opens its mouth to sneeze, shoot the peg-leg where he stands."

Toothless growled and Hiccup had to hold his hand out to keep him from attacking the Hunters.

"Oh dear!" Johann trembled next to them.

Hiccup shifted a hair closer to Toothless and wiggled his right ring finger.

Toothless leaned closer to Hiccup but loosened his curled tail. In a split second he whipped his tail around, catching the two Hunters behind them in the chest and smacked them into the wall, and Hiccup ripped Inferno from its sheath on the saddle while shoving Johann to the side. "Look out!"

He swung the blade in a fluid motion from its sheath, blocking the arrows the other two in front of them had fired.

Toothless roared and shot at them, hitting the ground between them and throwing them a ways from the explosion.

"That's enough of that." One the men behind them commanded.

Hiccup turned, clenching Inferno tightly to fight back but paused, seeing the Hunter holding Johann.

"Give me the Dragon Eye lenses." The Hunter pointed his axe towards Hiccup then at Johann's gut, the threat clear.

Johann struggled weakly and said, even though the fear was clear in his eyes. "Don't do it, Master Hiccup!"

"Shut it!" The Hunter snapped, hitting him with the pommel.

Hiccup glanced back and saw the Hunters up again and pressing closer. He gripped the strap of the bag that held the lenses and Dragon Eye, almost at a loss. He couldn't give them to the Hunters. That would be just as good as signing every dragon's death warrant, but at the same time he couldn't just let them kill Johann either. They also would most likely not just let him and Johann go even if he did just give them the Eye and lenses.

He sighed, pained and still unsure of his current thoughts, hand tightening. He supposed it was only a matter of time, anyway, before word started spreading—he just hoped it wouldn't drain him too much.

He slipped the strap over his head, making eye contact with Johann and blinking slowly. "I'm not sure I have much of a choice, Johann."

The Hunter holding Johann nodded towards Hiccup and the other beside him walked forwards to retrieve the satchel.

Hiccup sunk the extinguished Inferno into the ground and held out the bag.

The Hunter holding Johann grinned and Hiccup could see the Hunter coming to grab the satchel from him, eyes crinkled as his mask hid his smile. The Hunter reached for the bag and Hiccup smirked, confusing all three men in front of him for a second until he dropped the bag—the lenses clinking loudly—and held out both hands, just shy of touching, dipped his head slightly and squeezed his eyes shut.

The Hunter twitched to grab the dropped satchel when Hiccup threw his hands apart and a blinding white-green light blinded everyone present.

Hiccup took in a quick breath and leaned slightly as he grabbed Inferno, hitting the nearest Hunter over the head with it.

The other Hunters and Johann cried out in pain, slamming their hands over their eyes and faltering back several steps. The man holding Johann loosened his grip as he stumbled, disoriented and in shock. A second later, air was driven from his lungs as a large and heavy Zippleback all but landed on him, Johann was thrown from his grasp as the man fell.

"Hey Johann!" Tuffnut waved happily, Ruffnut grinning beside him.

Toothless turned with an enraged roar, leaping to the flanking men and hitting them with his wing, roaring once again, teeth bared and pupils narrowed, snorting for good measure.

Johann stood and dusted himself off, shooting the twins with a quick glare but came out as more of a squint as he attempted to clear his vision of black spots.

Hiccup turned around and smiled thankfully at the pair.

Ruffnut frowned, looking at the downed men. "What's their problem?"

Hiccup picked up the satchel, eyes narrowed in worry and slightly out of breath. "Dragon Hunters. Ambush. You just saved us." He finished with a grin.

Ruffnut's eyebrows rose with interest before glancing over to Tuffnut. "You don't say. An ambush, huh?"

Tuffnut looked thoroughly bored. "Wow, sounds exciting. Anyway…what was that!? There was this big flash, like your light ball but-"

Johann rubbed an eye with the heel of his palm, blinking several times. "Yes, I would like to know that as well. Did you happen to train Fireworms or something? A warning would have been nice as well."

Hiccup's ears cooled, he'd never get used to that sensation, as he smiled apologetically. "Sorry. But yeah, Tuff, that's pretty much what it was—just way bigger."

Ruffnut's eyes narrowed. "Are you okay?"

Hiccup nodded, eyes sincere. "I'm fine, was a bit winded for a few seconds but it's nothing like trying to make an illusion."

Johann's face contorted as he made a confused sound. "I-I'm sorry Master Hiccup but, I am most lost. Illusions, balls of light coming out of nowhere. I, I must say I am very confused."

Hiccup frowned in thought for a second before nodding to Toothless. "I'll explain while we get the other jewels."

Tuffnut rolled his eyes and hopped off Belch, digging through his sack until he found the necklace. "Yeah it's all really cool. Anyway...Hiccup! You have to see what I found for Chicken! Johann, you were so right about that store. Oh. Voilà! Look at this beauty I 'pecked' out."

Hiccup smiled, a bit forcefully. "That's nice Tuff, I'm sure she'll love it."

Ruffnut dismounted, still thoughtful. "Hmm, ambushes you say? Ambushes require preparation. Preparation implies pre-knowledge. Pre-knowledge implies…Aha! There's only one explanation for what happened here." She perked up, walking up to him but stopped by Johann. "The Hunters knew we were coming. And if the Hunters knew we were coming…Then there is a mole among us!"

Johann jumped at her unexpected shout, suddenly looking very uncomfortable. Hiccup frowned but minutely shook his head—Johann had been on the receiving end of many of their pranks so he was justifiably wary or afraid of them. He was probably just nervous that they'd turn their detective attention to him, and Hiccup knew how annoying that could be.

Tuffnut gasped, tearing his eyes away from his gift for Chicken. "A spy in our group?"

"A traitor in our troupe!" Ruffnut confirmed.

Hiccup put out a calming hand. "Guys, that's ridiculous."

"Oh my Thor." Tuffnut joined his sister on the other side of Johann who looked like he was going to have a heart attack as Tuffnut leaned against his shoulder. "I was so blinded by my pursuit of Chicken finery that I couldn't see the feathers for the spy. Now it's clear. There's a fox in our henhouse and he's been a very naughty little fox." Tuffnut waggled his finger at no one in particular, looking very much like a mother admonishing her child.

Hiccup shook his head, trying to argue on the behalf of logical explanation. "The Hunters just saw us and decided to take their shot." But even as he said it that nagging feeling he'd been having around Johann came back. "Besides, the only people who knew we were coming here are people we've known since we were all kids. There is no spy."

Tuffnut crossed his arms, face firm. "And it was completely impossible for Loki to turn on us."

Hiccup scowled at him and turned to sheath Inferno, determinately not looking at Tuffnut and walked out from under the archway. Clippedly saying, "look, we need to pick up our pace, find these jewels, and fly out of here."

He walked away, a scowl still set deep into his features, shoulders tight and Toothless followed, bumping his snout into Hiccup's hand.

Ruffnut frowned at her brother. "That might've been too far bro."

He frowned back at her. "But he needs to see it! Just because it's unlikely doesn't mean it's impossible!"

She nodded. "I know, and I think he does too—but you know that's a sore subject, for both of them."

He sighed and hung his head. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

They perused a few stalls, Hiccup and Johann bargaining over prices while the twins discussed the spy, neither willing to just let the subject go.

As Hiccup and Johann walked away from yet another stall, Hiccup mentally began checking off the gems they had and what they still needed. They rounded the tent to find the twins attacking each other, first with daggers, then maces and finally a sword and pike.

Johann watched the insanity with wide, concerned eyes. "My Thor. That descended into the absurd rather quickly."

Hiccup shook his head with an amused smile, though his brow was still pinched in thought. "Actually, it took longer than I expected." He turned back to Johann, letting the twins pummel each other—they did it often enough anyways—he wasn't worried about their new reason too. "We need rubies. Any ideas?"

Johann glanced at the twins and smiled, nodding to the side. Both of them quietly slipped away while the twins fought.

Johann led him to a small stall, a cart really, and he looked around—spying a vendor with a variety of miscellaneous trinkets. He patted Johann's shoulder as he argued with the current seller. "I'll be right back, Johann, I wanna check on something."

Johann barely acknowledged him with a nod, in a heated barter with the vender.

Later, he and Johann left that corner of the market, Johann quite pleased with himself over the price he managed to haggle for the ruby. "What, may I ask, caught your eye, Master Hiccup? Is it something for the Dragon Eye?"

Hiccup smiled but shook his head, hand twitching over the bag of lenses. "No, but it might be something I can use later."

Johann nodded, about to respond when he stopped with a frown.

The twins were approaching them, walking backwards and keeping a wary eye on the other. Tuffnut said lowly, almost glaring at Ruffnut. "Hiccup, those Hunters must've called for backup. I would show you the worried look on my face if it wasn't for the fact that I'm afraid to turn my back on my treasonous sister."

Ruffnut turned so she could see both Hiccup and Tuffnut. "My backstabbing brother is correct. And now, they have air support."

Hiccup frowned, stomach clenching as Singetails roared overhead. This isn't good. He looked at Johann who nodded his head forward, behind Hiccup, eyes worried.

A pair of Hunters were questioning a merchant.

Hiccup frowned, extremely unhappy that they couldn't get all the jewels. Johann's face twisted into a smirk, he almost couldn't see it through his peripheral and his stomach soured—Loki's words from weeks ago ringing in his head. "Look, we gotta go now or we'll never get out of here."

Johann strangely resisted, looking determined. "Master Hiccup, we still require one topaz and a single sapphire as well, which, in my experience, are not found laying on the ground."

Hiccup blinked, forehead pinched slightly as he looked at Johann in thought. "You're right, Johann. They're not. But what about underground?"

Johann's eyes widened slightly and Hiccup nodded to the forest. "Let's get a little distance before we take off for the beach."

They all turned and made their way into the forest, the twins walking close to each other but not so close that it would be easy to stab the other, both keeping a wary eye on their other half.

Hiccup shook his head with amused exasperation and dropped back from his current position by Toothless' head. Toothless' eyes followed him but he didn't turn as Hiccup ran a comforting hand down his back as he leveled off with the twins.

He watched Johann jump at a few sounds and scanned the skies to double check if they were being followed—not yet. He turned his head to the twins who were still bickering—though quietly at least.

"Oh yeah? Well which one of us wanted to check up on Hiccup after we thought we lost the lens, hm?" Tuffnut snapped at Ruffnut. "So concerned about what poor Hiccup might be 'feeling'. Ha! More like you wanted to know his next move!"

Ruffnut hissed right back, eyes narrowed. "Really? So then you weren't at all the one who wanted to prank Astrid by disabling her ballista for an attack!?"

They continued their argument, some points more logical than others, though all descending into the realm of ridiculousness.

Hiccup looked around again, on high alert in case anyone saw them and tried to follow on foot.

Johann jumped as a bush rattled and a small bird flew out, holding his heart.

Hiccup reached over and gently tugged on the strap of Tuffnut's bag.

Ruffnut was still ranting about something he'd done so he raised a curious brow to Hiccup.

Hiccup looked at him with a silent plea and held the strap of his own bag.

Tuffnut's eyes widened and started silently slipping his satchel off.

Ruffnut noticed the exchange and was about to ask but snapped her mouth shut, gaze bouncing between her brothers before launching into another point as to why Tuffnut was the spy.

They eventually made it to the beach, the twins' argument an ever present white noise, finally returning to a normal voice once they arrived.

Hiccup walked over the pale sand, eyes searching. "Toothless and I can find the gems and be out before it even knows we were there. Now, the key is finding the back way we used to…"

A creaking of rusted hinges caught his and Toothless' attention, who'd been sniffing around trying to find a good spot.

Hiccup crossed the beach to Johann who had opened a trap-door adjacent to the beach, face surprised and confused.

"What?" Johann asked, honestly surprised by Hiccup's reaction. "You don't expect a seasoned trader like myself to pass up a convenient cache of valuable goods, do you?"

Hiccup looked up from the hole in the ground and smiled. "Johann, you are full of surprises."

He walked back to the beach, frowning as he heard Johann mutter something behind him.

"Uh, guys?" Ruffnut called, worried. "I'm thinking you should take this discussion underground."

Hiccup followed her finger and saw four Flyers closing fast. He and Johann shared apprehensive looks before he gestured for Johann to climb down, turning only momentarily to give orders to the twins. "Okay, Ruff, Tuff, you guys lead these guys away while we go for the gems."

Tuffnut's face pinched and he crossed his arms. "No way. I'm not going anywhere with this traitor." He whispered the last word, eyeing Ruffnut.

Ruffnut glared with equal ferocity at him. "Says the double agent."

"Now!" Hiccup yelled, his frustration over everything rising.

Tuffnut rolled his eyes. "Fine."

They took off, shouting and being as loud and obvious as possible.

Hiccup crossed his arms and shook his head with a slight frown before mounting Toothless who then jumped down the hole.

They walked a short ways down the tunnel before it began to expand into the underground cavern. Johann paused to look around and glance at Toothless before hopping up onto an overturned table. "Perhaps it would be prudent to have your dragon stand guard in case we need to make a hasty exit."

Johann hopped over and Hiccup glanced back down the tunnel before he and Toothless made eye contact. He circled his finger around and Toothless huffed but walked off, Hiccup following Johann's lead.

They began searching through the abandoned treasure, looking mainly through piles of gold and other such shiny trinkets or chests.

"Eureka!" Johann cried softly, holding the gem up so light could filter through it. "A perfect topaz!"

He tossed it to Hiccup who beamed, we're so close. "Nice! That just leaves the-"

"Sapphire! Right behind you." Johann sang and pointed to the lid of the chest by Hiccup.

Hiccup's heart leapt for joy and he nearly followed it. After all this time of excessive sweat, tears, setbacks and annoyances he'd finally get to finish the Dragon Eye Two. And they could finally try and figure out what Viggo's game was.

He reached for the sapphire and heard a muffled metallic shink-clink. He smiled sadly as he held up the sapphire.

"I'll take that bag of lenses, boy."

He rolled his eyes as he turned around and pocketed the two gems, jumping slightly at how dark Johann's face had become and gripped the strap of his satchel. "Look, whatever Krogan and Viggo are paying you-"

"Paying me?" Johann asked with an almost disgusted tone. "Those two?"

Hiccup backed up a few steps which Johann matched easily.

"I pay them, to serve at my feet."

His eyes widened in confusion, he couldn't decide if this was on par with or worse than Loki's supposed betrayal. At least with Loki he hadn't known him for most of his remembered life. "Why do you even want these? And why now?"

Johann took another step forward, holding out his hand in a silent but obvious demand. "Because they're the next step in finding the King of Dragons and the key to yours truly becoming the richest man on Earth."

Hiccup backed up several more steps, distinctly aware that he was running out of room. "So all that…just to get Heather's lens…"

Johann clapped slowly and laughed, obviously amused by Hiccup piecing everything together. "Well done, Hiccup."

Hiccup scowled at his jab, everything finally clicking into place, and grabbed the satchel tightly with right hand while his left clenched Loki's dagger.

Johann smiled, eyes flickering over Hiccup's still sheathed dagger, and twirled his knife. "Don't be so morose. How do you think it's been for me?" Johann's jovial manner dipped into scorning remembrance, casually leaning on one leg and half turning—but never fully exposing his back to Hiccup and his dagger. "Pretending all these years to actually care about you and your little friends. The number of times I wanted to just scream at the top of my…"

Hiccup smiled as Johann ranted, his hands fisting like an anger toddler—at least Johann had frustrations for years because of them. Least we could have done to serve him right.

Johann paused, taking in Hiccup's change with confusion, returning to his previously calm persona. "And yet, I'm wondering, why aren't you more surprised?" He jabbed his knife towards Hiccup, tone becoming perplexed and aggravated. "And what do you find humorous?"

Hiccup shook his head with a small laugh, laxing his grip on the satchel slightly. "The twins and their rants. You know, I-I ignore most of them—most of the time they're about how many yaks they can stack or something." His shoulders shook from silent laughter of their antics. "But this 'spy' thing got me thinking."

He looked away from Johann and walked to the side, unboxing himself from the corner. "Maybe—maybe it was coincidence those Hunters ambushed us, but how did they know to ask for the Dragon Eye lenses-"

Johann followed his movements carefully, keeping Hiccup only at an arm's reach and no further back, face scrunching in disgust at the direction Hiccup was turning his argument.

"-the lenses I only brought because you asked me to?" Hiccup smiled, gently grabbing the bag's strap.

"Well, then things started adding up. You were there when Heather 'lost' her lens. Your 'distress call', got most of us off the Edge right when the Dragon Hunters decided to invade. You sent us after Dagur, assuring us he'd be alone. Your ship was conveniently docked at Outcast Island right as he broke out of prison. You supplied Mildew with Blue Oleanders—when you out of anyone except possibly Fishlegs or Gothi knew what they would do to dragons. And finally, Loki distrusted you in a way he only disliked Viggo at the time."

Johann glanced to the ground, aggravated at the sudden reminder of all the times in the past he'd tried and failed to dispose of Hiccup. He said with little interest, "The most difficult part was letting Dagger think he actually stole my ship."

Hiccup felt his heart beat irregularly at both his implications and Johann's affirmation. His hand clenched his dagger tightly and he felt the temperature of the metal dip well below freezing. "You've been behind all of this." He fought to keep his voice level but his scowl hardened.

Johann nodded crookedly once, twisting the knife around to reaffirm his grasp on it and started approaching Hiccup again and their previous dance resumed. "Since as far back as Breakneck Bog, I've been doing everything humanly possible to rid the Archipelago of you and your Dragon Riders." He nearly spit out the name, his face taking on a bright shade of angry red.

Hiccup glanced back, not wanting to stumble and give Johann a chance to take a stab at him, and saw his path nearing an end again.

Johann smirked as he saw Hiccup sneak a look back. "But you have a most annoying habit of not dying when you're supposed to!"

Hiccup stopped as his prosthetic bumped against a chest, releasing his hold on the bag to rest on his hip, near a small cloth and metal ball. "Well thank you, I take that as a compliment. But you have your own pesky habit. You never stop talking. You give away pretty much everything, especially when you think you have the upper hand."

Johann chuckled, taking another step forward, forcing Hiccup to lean backwards and try to sidestep the chest, pointing his knife towards Hiccup's abdomen. "You mean your little party trick with the smoke bomb? Clever but that will never give you the upper hand with me. And it doesn't sound like you can do more than put on a little light show without collapsing—oh, that would make my task so much easier." His light smile turned cruel and his eyes darkened maliciously, focusing on the golden bracer. "Or perhaps you mean to use the curse that Loki so graciously bestowed upon you."

Hiccup swallowed thickly. He-he knows. Of course he knows, Viggo and Krogan would've told him—he's their boss. But, oh gods, who else has Johann told?! He could feel the cold sensation seep out of him more as his heart hammered and he took a long shallow breath, forcing a smile on his lips. "Hm, no, not what I had in mind. You see," he twirled his finger around, mimicking what he'd signed to Toothless not five minute ago, "when I did this little move to Toothless to leave, leaving was actually the last thing I told him to do."

Johann's brows dipped into a deeper frown before shooting up as Toothless jumped onto a small mound by them, growling lowly. He quickly refocused on Hiccup. "The Sandbuster will surely hear if a plasma blast is fired."

Hiccup crossed his arms across his chest, smiling but it didn't reach his glaring eyes. "Probably. But I just don't see him needing a plasma blast for this."

He nodded to Toothless and Johann's gaze quickly bounced between the two of them, unsure of who the greater threat was, until Toothless pounced. Johann dove and Toothless over shot him, swiping where his head had been.

Toothless landed on a net, a pressure sensor underneath which caused the net to shoot up, ensnaring him. As the net pulled upwards, Inferno was caught by the outer rope and was ripped off—clattering to the floor a ways behind Johann.

Johann stood, resuming his previous position and smiling triumphantly. "Now, I believe we are all caught up. The lenses, please, now." He growled.

Hiccup scanned the room, one eye still on Johann but slowly released his grip on Loki's dagger.

Johann was reveling in this moment, the moment when this irritating boy finally meets his match—a pity I never took direct action sooner. He grinned, deciding to twist the metaphorical knife even more than making the runt of an heir personally hand-deliver his and his Riders' downfall. "Oh, don't dawdle too much, Hiccup. After all, it is merely the dragon's fates you are sealing—I can be a gracious man when I want to be."

Hiccup paused, holding the strap a bit away from his chest as he prepared to pull it over his head, scowling. "How? You can't honestly expect me to believe that you'll just leave Berk alone, not after 'everything we've put you through'."

Johann's grin was sick and perverted, eyes sliding down to the iced dagger. "Oh, no, nothing like that. Berk will fall and with vengeance."

Hiccup's eyes squinted in confusion, unease roiling in his stomach.

"No, my dear boy—I mean your god's reputation. Imagine what the world, what the other gods, will think once they realize that your patron is a monster even the gods themselves detest and seek to destroy. I know the stories, just as well as you do. And we both know there's no other explanation for it. And with Loki's current reputation…"

Hiccup scowled but it was underlaid with clear worry. He gripped Loki's dagger again, grounding himself. "Loki doesn't have a reputation that bad, not enough for people to believe-"

Johann shook his head with a small 'tut-tut', spinning his dagger with a wicked grin. "Come now Hiccup, I know you've heard the story of Ragnarok. You might not believe that Loki will end the world but everyone else does. And that's all that matters. He's already disliked well enough by everyone, hated by many. Why, I don't think it will be that hard to start a manhunt. Hm…at that point, not even the twins would be safe." His grin softened into an expression of pity and sorrow. "I can only imagine how hard it must be on you, being forced to hide—afraid to tell even your closest friends. Tell me, do the twins know? They are your brother and sister in that supposed god after all."

Hiccup seized in terror, every nightmare and accident flashing through his mind, and the cave blurred. Ice started spiraling under his foot and he attempted to take a retreating step back but nearly toppled over the chest. He shook his head, tightly clutching the strap again as a lifeline. "No, no he's not—they wouldn't-"

Johann relaxed his stance slightly, eyes that familiar pitying look whenever Hiccup had gotten frustrated with an invention that refused to work properly. "Wouldn't they? Then why does he hide? Why do you hide?" His tone darkened again and his previous stance resumed. "Face it Hiccup, you are both mistakes that should never have been allowed to live. Give me the bag of lenses and the Dragon Eye and I will speak a word of this to no one. And, as a gesture of good faith, I will ensure that neither Viggo nor Krogan will ever tell another living soul." Johann's voice dipped dangerously, not boding well for Viggo or Krogan.

Hiccup shook, eying the floor that continued to grow icy swirls, clutching his arm and bracer, hardly able to focus over his pounding heart.

Johann took the final step, holding his dagger just above Hiccup's collar bone, his gaze somehow more icy than the floor. "The lenses. Now. My offer doesn't stand for long."

Johann to a step back so the boy didn't hit him as he started pulling the strap over his head, eyes unfocused. Johann beamed as Hiccup held out the bag with a trembling hand, yanking it from his loose grip. "Now that's a good boy."

Hiccup took a quiet breath, forcing his heart and nerves to calm.

Johann opened the satchel and gasped, outraged. "What? No!" He held nothing but a bag of rocks, frowning as one rock in particular looked out of place. He snatched it out and his face contorted. It was a Maces and Talons game piece, the Traitor to be exact. He threw both away with pent up anger, whirling around to Hiccup but the boy had disappeared.

"Oh, Hiccup." He sighed, looking around. "Why make this any more complicated than it needs to be? Perhaps, for old times' sake,'' his voice dipped into a growl before lightening to his usual excitement of when he told stories, "I should regale you with tales of alligator races with the Sultan of Zanzibar or some such fictional account of my travels."

Hiccup crouched low, eying Johann via a reflection off of glass. All of it was fake? There was absolutely nothing he told us that was true…Hiccup felt his eyes begin to water but blinked away the very much, unwanted tears. All those hours, night and day, he'd spent with Johann before he began following Loki and gaining three friends. He had been desperate to find somewhere to belong, and often looked to Johann's tales of the outside world. It was all worthless. Nothing but a ruse.

"That's right Hiccup. The tales I sold you and your gullible father I plundered from real merchants before I sunk them and their ships." Johann started walking around, trying to find Hiccup—but he personally knew just how exceptional Hiccup was at a game of Hide-and-Seek. No matter, there's not that many places in here to hide. He glanced back at Toothless who was still wrapped up in the net, snarling at him.

Hiccup frowned, taking another breath—no need to give himself away with unwanted ice—and quickly moved hiding spots. He jumped as two cracks from the glass pillar not far to his side echoed throughout the cavern.

Johann made a sound of frustration and looked around, searching for the source of the reflection.

Hiccup darted across a small patch of open space to the safety of another crate but Johann saw the movement and threw another two daggers at him. He hunkered closed to the crate and drew his dagger, popping up quickly—only going so far as exposing his shoulders—and threw the dagger.

Johann chuckled as the dagger flew wildly to the side before it fell as he realized Hiccup wasn't aiming for him. Fear crept into his heart as the Night Fury fell, landing a bit disoriented. He growled, throwing another knife at Toothless' head who deftly dodged it, and ran to Hiccup's hiding place—leaping over the crate and tackling him from where he prepared to run back to Toothless.

Hiccup grunted as Johann's body slammed into him and rolled a few feet.

Johann recovered first and drove a fresh dagger down to his chest, with a mad gleam in his eyes.

Hiccup grasped the thin air between him and Loki's dagger intercepted Johann's. They struggled on the ground for a moment before Hiccup managed to drive his knee into Johann's thigh and the traitor rolled off of him.

Johann stood quickly, placing Hiccup between himself and infuriated Toothless, attacking Hiccup again before he could properly stand.

Hiccup intercepted the dagger again, but only just managed to grab Johann's other hand before he could drive the second knife into his side. Hiccup could feel his hand with the dagger still shaking, though from exertion as Johann pressed harder against it.

Johann smirked, relenting the pressure on Hiccup's dagger and swinging his elbow into Hiccup's face.

Hiccup hit the ground with a cry of pain and Toothless readied a shot.

Johann threw the first at the ground towards Hiccup, and the spare dagger at Toothless, forcing him to abandon the plasma blast,

Hiccup rolled, narrowly avoiding being impaled in the head, and regained his footing—unfortunately once again between Toothless and Johann. He wasn't a fool, he knew Johann positioned them intentionally.

Johann viciously attacked again, several strikes with the two blades that Hiccup was only able to deflect or evade because of Loki's rigorous training. Hiccup's breathing started becoming labored.

Johann kicked at Hiccup's leg which he evaded, but Hiccup couldn't move in time to entirely miss the knife, nicking his upper arm. Hiccup dove and grabbed Inferno off the ground, swinging to drive Johann off as he regained his footing.

Johann grunted in annoyance before catching the blade between his knives and drove it into the ground, smirking. "You really are much better with your dagger. Loki's work, I'd presume?"

Hiccup answered with silence as his arm darted out, Johann just dodging it, but ripping a large hole in his tunic. They parted to an arm's distance and Hiccup took a shaky breath, sweat threatening to drip into his eyes. He was now regretting not waiting an extra day to fully recuperate.

Johann and Hiccup traded a few more blows, neither landing defining marks on the other before they were at a momentary stalemate and Hiccup briefly wondered how the Sandbuster hadn't heard anything yet.

He was wrenched from that thought by Johann. "You know, boy, I really ought to be thanking you and offering you a seat beside me. None of this would have been possible without your intervention and inventions."

Hiccup blocked another strike but knitted his brow in confusion, lashing out when Johann overreached—slicing his tunic and nicking the skin.

Johann's eyes flashed with anger, and he threw the dagger in his left hand at Hiccup who dropped to dodge it. Johann dropped as well, keeping Toothless at a disadvantage. He was growing tired of their dance and, to his delight, so was Hiccup. He lunged towards Hiccup, whose movements were becoming sluggish, and grabbed his left hand, which held Loki's dagger, while yanking it away and seizing his right, wrapping it around the boy's head, keeping it in any position he desired.

Hiccup squirmed as Johann yanked him up and used him as a shield from Toothless. Johann twisted his grip so that his knuckles dug into Hiccup's neck, partially cutting off his air and half his blood supply. Hiccup gasped and began thrashing, pressure building uncomfortably in his head.

Johann hissed when Hiccup's prosthetic drove into his foot as he thrashed.

Toothless jumped around the pair, whining and eyes wide, but Johann deftly turned them, always keeping Hiccup center.

Johann rotated his hand, no longer pressing it into Hiccup's neck but tweaked his arm so it held his neck exposed. Pity he didn't have a third arm to make use of it though, and Hiccup eased in his struggle. Johann tilted his forward to say in a smug whisper, his beard scratching Hiccup's ear. "If only we could have met under better circumstances. We would have made quite the team. Oh, you would have put those pathetic Grimborn brothers to shame, run them right out of business! Indeed! They would be nothing as they were when you and your Riders first encountered them without your help."

Hiccup frowned, wanting to glare at the man, but wouldn't see it. Hiccup scoffed, choking a bit as air rushed through his abused throat. "Never. I never would've helped you."

Johann chuckled. "Oh, but my boy, you already have."

Hiccup blinked, thinking furiously but snapped. "You're not going to use me to get the lenses. There's no way for us to get out without you risking Toothless or the Sandbuster."

A positively delighted laugh bubbled up from Johann, honestly scaring Hiccup a little. "You are really so naïve? Then let me spell it out for you, brightest-mind-of-the-Archipelago. Hm. It was almost two years ago now, just after Dagur escaped, I warned you about my treasures and warned you of a certain ship. 'Nearly escaped with life and limb!'"

Hiccup tensed but his brows dipped into anger, voice quite. "You were never able to get the Dragon Eye."

Johann nodded, his beard brushing against Hiccup's skin uncomfortably, him and Toothless still eyeing each other for the first sign of weakness. "Yes, for years I tried but after the fourth near death encounter with that wretched ship I decided to wait until you could retrieve it for me. But there are other instances…far older than that that you so graciously helped to kill and imprison oh so many innocent dragons."

"What?" Hiccup breathed, attempting to twist out of Johann's grasp but failing miserably.

Johann chuckled again. "Yes. There is one in particular, it was about—mh—twelve, thirteen years ago now? Oh, I remember it like it was yesterday." His voice turned chipper, like he was telling another story to Hiccup and his father and his heart twisted at the sound of it. "You came running into the great hall. Ah, yes, I remember now! You were six, and such a small thing. You were upset. You had just thought of a brilliant new way to help fight off the dragons raiding your village, but all your peers thought it ridiculous and Gobber described its construction as crude and aiming highly inaccurate and spotty at best. Does this ring a bell yet?"

Hiccup had stilled, deep in thought, desperately trying to think of something—anything that could be what Johann was 'describing'. But, honestly, it could have been any number of a million things. What he just described was his daily life for years.

Johann sniffed in dismissal. "I shan't blame you if you don't, it was so long ago and I doubt you ever thought of that design again, given how I stole from you that night. It was a pitifully easy thing to do—distract you with a few wondrous tales about Shangri-La and you'd forgotten about the design."

Hiccup's blood had run cold, and not naturally either. His chest falling heavily as he fought to keep calm. "And what was it?"

Johann looked to Toothless, beaming. "An arrow launcher, rather ingenious actually—even if the sketch was crude and only half thought out. You designed it to fire up to twelve arrows simultaneously and in an arcing pattern to, I believe your words were something to the effect of, 'eliminate multiple directions a dragon would flee'."

Hiccup's breath hitched, his heart nearly stopping as well. He did know that design, that device. It was a favorite among the Dragon Hunters. Astrid had taken an arrow before because of it. His stomach soured and he decided he very much wanted to hurl but Johann kept him pinned.

"Granted, it took a bit of finagling on Viggo's part to actually make it work—but he is good for a little something at least." Johann laughed and it was nasty to hear. "But you see, Hiccup, you have been helping me since you started designing your wondrous devices—I can't tell you how many of your ideas I've nicked over the years." His voice darkened. "Your father was an idiot to never see it. All those ideas—gone to waste."

Hiccup started shaking again, anger and rage from Johann using and abusing his ideas like that. Hurting all those dragons! He could feel his small semblance of control slipping rapidly and yanked hard against Johann's grip, releasing the blade in his left hand while clenching his right fist and jabbing the magically-returned knife towards Johann's neck. Or what he thought was Johann's neck, all he could feel was that beard.

Johann yelped in surprise, the dagger slicing a few hairs off but never reaching his neck, and he was forced to release Hiccup's right hand.

Hiccup stumbled forward and tried to pull his left arm away from Johann, but he still held onto it firmly.

Johann snarled at him and yanked his arm, but Hiccup had had enough.

Red began seeping into his vision and he twisted then yanked his arm free of Johann's grasp. Or, most of it.

Both men stumbled away from each other from the force Hiccup used—with a little unknown assistance of some magic. Johann lifted his head and grabbed one of his knives off the ground, planning to end this dance, when he froze in shock at the sight of the now blue-faced, red-eyed and murderous Hiccup.

Hiccup glared at Johann, but instantly felt his heart drop at Johann's look and glanced at his hands, also catching sight of the floor which now had ice spreading unhampered. His wide eyes snapped back to Johann and instantly locked on the man's hand, still holding Loki's bracer.

Johann quickly shook himself from the start and grinned at Hiccup's frozen horror, how ironic, throwing his last knife at Toothless' chest.

Hiccup snapped out of his fear induced daze as he saw Johann's arm move to throw, throwing out his arm like he could catch the flying knife. "No!"

Johann fell back into a crate, eyes wide in surprise, pain and alarm.

Toothless shot the knife out of the air long before it could reach him or Hiccup.

Hiccup stared at Johann, face a pale icy blue, almost white.

A pained gasp escaped Johann and he dropped the bracer, physically unable to hold it as he reached over with his other hand and yanked out the long and narrow icicle protruding from his forearm. He dropped the bloodied ice, which shattered against the ground—and sucked in a pained breath, holding his arm tightly to try and stay the flow of blood.

A roar from one of the tunnels seized all their attention for a second. The Sandbuster knew they were there and shot a glassy blast towards them.

Toothless shot forward, grabbing Hiccup and rolling away before shooting at the Sandbuster and giving chase.

Hiccup stood and looked at the wall Toothless shot at, temporarily sealing the Sandbuster in, before looking back to where Johann had been. There was nothing there now except the broken and bloody icicle. Hiccup slowly walked forward, eyeing every shadow and nook Johann might be hiding in, but he doubted the traitor stayed for the fight.

After a time, he began looking around not for Johann but for his bracer. He spied Inferno on and floor not far away and re-sheathed it on Toothless' saddle but saw no sign of his bracer. His heart began to pound wildly again and his vision swam. Johann stole his bracer—he had no way to hide now, and who knows how long Loki will be gone.

Hiccup began to tremble again, the nightmares of many nights slamming into him—they would know, he had hurt someone—oh gods, they're going to hate my very being and I can't-

Toothless bumped into his side, eyes wide and cooing.

Hiccup took a shaky breath, his entire body shaking from physical exhaustion and took several steps across the growing ice rink, desperately searching for the bracer.

Toothless bumped into him again and he let out a rattled sigh of defeat, suddenly becoming unnaturally numb—not from coldness either—and mounted Toothless. "Let's get outta here bud."

Toothless turned happily and ran out of the cavern and up the hole they'd used to get down. They shot into the sky and found the twins easily enough, they were beginning to be overrun by the Flyers.

Hiccup tucked himself as close and as low to Toothless as he could physically manage.

They hurtled towards the aerial fight, shooting an unsuspecting Flyer off as they shot past and arced around for another pass.

The twins unleashed a large amount of green gas before flying through and igniting it, scattering the Flyers.

Hiccup and Toothless shot at a Flyer as they led the twins out to sea and away from the Northern Markets.

Ruffnut yelled for him but it was barely discernible over the wind.

He turned his head back just enough to glance at the twins who were struggling to keep up and checked the Market skies, seeing no pursuers, but refusing to turn his head enough for the twins to see him. What little was visible, was covered by his whipping hair. He shouted back, not checking to see if they heard. "Meet back up at the Edge."

He clicked the tail into a position they didn't use often, but both dearly loved. Toothless dipped slightly then rocketed through the air, ignoring the twins' shouts. He buried his face into Toothless' neck, breath beginning to rattle again as his previous numbness faded. Soon he was gasping for air as all his thoughts and implications of the incident started collecting and playing out possible future scenarios. None of them ended well. And he couldn't shake his train of thought, the betrayal too fresh and too raw to try and think of anything good that came out of the last six hours.

They reached Dragon's Edge in record time. The twins were nowhere in sight, but that thought was one of the farthest from his mind. Toothless didn't stop at the Clubhouse or anywhere else, flying straight for their hut. He landed a bit roughly and with no amount of his usual grace but with the speed they touched-down with, he was lucky that a bit of stumbling was all he did.

Hiccup slid off his back before he'd even half-way stopped and ran to the door lever, shoving it up then locking it from the inside as soon as Toothless' tail was through the doorway. He took a few staggering steps back, chest heaving and legs shaking dangerously.

Toothless warbled in concern, bumping Hiccup's stomach slightly as he often did to try and calm his Rider down, but he only succeeded in toppling the boy as his legs finally gave out.

Hiccup slid down the wall, shaking, and drew his knees to his chest, burying his face and locking his arms together over his head. He gasped as he tried to bring in air, all too aware of the ice that was rapidly spreading across his hut, only adding to his panic with no solution.

"Hiccup?"

Hm, what will happen now? Until next time! R&R