A/N: It's been really lovely seeing all your reviews, thank you all! After last chapter's cliffhanger, enjoy chapter 8! :)

Chapter 8

Viggo wasn't limping anymore as he walked through the forest in the direction of the clearing. The small puncture wound to the back of his knee inflicted by Hiccup's prosthetic was only minor. It had stopped bleeding by itself fairly soon after Hiccup had fled and other than the slight bloodstain on the fabric directly around the wound, there weren't any other noticeable effects of the injury.

Why Hiccup had fled so hastily, as if he was scared of Viggo's reaction, was a mystery to the Grimborn. He wasn't offended by how Hiccup had won the fight. Surprised? Yes. And a bit annoyed? Perhaps. But Hiccup had spent two months in a cell, tortured by Johann and was now living with him, a former enemy. There were bound to be slip-ups when repressed anger pushed its way to the surface. He understood that. The main question to Viggo was what the trigger had been. To what extent had this outburst been his fault?

When Hiccup had run, Viggo had followed. After rising to his feet and sheathing his sword, he had realised that Hiccup was heading for the beach and calmly walked in that direction, hoping to be some form of comfort for whatever the young Rider was going through. Though by the time he arrived and spotted Hiccup sitting on the sand, it seemed the boy's Monstrous Nightmare had beaten him to it. He had waited, hidden by the foliage at the edge of the forest, and watched as Hiccup had tried to scold the dragon for the splashing until he got up himself to join in. Viggo had smiled to himself and, not wanting to disturb the moment, had turned around to return to his hut. The reconciliation could wait a bit longer.

As he strolled back through the quiet woods, however, he tensed at the sound of rustling in the bushes surrounding him. He stopped to look around, silently cursing his blind spot for its hindrance. The sounds of movement continued, getting increasingly louder as whatever it was neared. Being careful to make no sudden moves, Viggo slid his fire sword out of its sheath.

But when a figure finally came into sight, he was shocked to see a Dragon Hunter, dressed in the same uniform his own men had donned. Viggo ignited his sword and held it up defensively, not sure what to make of this presence on his island. Was this one of the Hunters that came to collect water from the spring? Had he spotted either Hiccup or himself and come to investigate? Or was this a retrieval mission ordered by Johann and the little that remained of his army?

Viggo was drawn out of his thoughts when he heard Hiccup shout in alarm from the beach, but before he could try to run in his direction to help, the Hunter in front of him charged and it was only when his sword met his opponent's dragon-proof axe that he realised he didn't just have one attacker to deal with but four. Three more Hunters appeared from where they had been hiding behind trees. Viggo scowled, wondering why on earth so many men were out to get him.

However, as he blocked another blow from his assailant, he realised they probably weren't here to get him. Hiccup was on the beach, also being attacked. These men were most likely out to get him. He groaned to himself. If only he'd stayed a few minutes longer or been a bit more aware of his surroundings, he might have prevented this.

But there was no use pondering that now, he told himself as the two weapons clashed again. The man before him had eyes that burned with determination and disdain, as if Viggo was nothing more than a pest standing in his way. Maybe he was. He could hear what sounded like Hiccup grunting and struggling behind him, getting louder, but didn't dare look away from his fight for a second. He was already disadvantaged with only one working eye – he needed to think quickly. So as he pushed his opponent's axe away as roughly as he could, he launched a kick towards the man's stomach and watched as he tumbled backwards into his friend, downing two of them at once. But the other two were approaching and he doubted how well he could take on both of them at once.

At that moment, he heard the sound of weapons clashing behind him. Hiccup was up and fighting, good. But Viggo still had no clue how many men he was up against or how much chance either of them had. He raised his sword threateningly as both of the Hunters in front of him edged forward, axes raised until one of them finally charged towards him. Viggo ran forward a few paces to meet him and a cacophony of clashing noises resounded in the forest. Hiccup's fight was getting closer, he could hear it, and it took all off Viggo's effort not to turn around and look as he swung his sword at the Hunter, who skillfully blocked.

The discord of noise only increased in volume until finally, Viggo felt something hit his back. He dared to spare a glance behind him only to see that Hiccup's back was right up against his. The Rider was also up against two men and apparently wasn't faring much better than he was.

"Hello, Hiccup," Viggo said as pleasantly as he could as he continued to fight his attacker. He could have sworn that Hiccup snorted.

"This is an awkward way to meet again," the Rider muttered and Viggo managed a smile even as he grunted with the effort of blocking a blow. He heard what sounded like Hiccup taking a punch to the face behind him and winced.

"Are you alright?" the Grimborn asked between heavy breaths.

"Just about," came the reply. The sound of metal scraping on metal resounded again and Viggo heard Hiccup grunt. The Rider barely managed to ward off the attack as he panted. "Now what?"

"I thought you were the one with the Maces and Talons battle tactics," Viggo managed to quip in response. Hiccup gave a half-hearted laugh in reply.

"Yeah, well apparently not this time," he said. Viggo paused in thought for a moment. He spared a glance behind him again, spotting a weapon on the floor close to Hiccup's feet and quickly concocting a plan.

"Get that crossbow," he ordered. "Shoot when I saw 'now'." In his peripheral vision, he could just about see Hiccup obey, still staying close to ward off the Hunters' attacks. Good. "Duck," His finger was hovering over the hidden button on the hilt of his sword.

"What?"

"I SAID DUCK!" Viggo shouted, pushing his attacker away with his sword and turning around to kick the Rider in the back of the leg. Hiccup collapsed to his knees, confused but unresisting. He hadn't thought Viggo would get him back for the fight this quickly, but then he watched in surprise as the Grimborn spun his sword around, letting a trail of Zippleback gas form a circle around them both. If Hiccup had still been standing then Viggo's fire sword would have sliced right through him. And as Viggo ignited the gas, creating a wall of fire around them, he shouted. "NOW!"

The penny dropped in Hiccup's head and he aimed the crossbow at the Hunters. The arrows caught fire as they flew through the barrier of flames, flying towards their attackers. One arrow pierced the metal shoulder guard of a Hunter, causing him to shriek with fright and at the sight of it, the other men turned and fled. Hiccup watched them go, watched the cloud of smoke around them dissipate over the scorched grass. He glanced up at Viggo, who sheathed his sword and looked warily at the surrounding forest, then down at him. Only then did the Grimborn appear to see his bleeding lip and bruised jaw. And it didn't help that his hair and clothes were pretty much soaked through from falling into the water after that first punch. Neither of them said anything for a moment.

"What did they do to you?" Viggo said eventually, offering a hand to help him to his feet. Hiccup took it but glared as he reached his full height.

"Oh, you mean the Hunters that you had said wouldn't attack? The ones you said I should stop worrying about?" he snapped. "They tried to capture me, Viggo, capture me. I didn't fight my way off Johann's ship, killing a man, for them to kidnap me from a beach."

"I'm sorry, those men left me in peace until you came along!" Viggo shouted back at him, indignant at the amount of aggression being thrown at him. "You said that you weren't spotted on the cliffs, but the evidence suggests otherwise." Hiccup laughed incredulously for a moment before narrowing his eyes.

"I was mourning, Viggo. Mourning. I don't suppose you'd know what that feels like since you happily watched your own brother drown," Hiccup retorted through gritted teeth, but as he watched Viggo's face fall, he realised what he'd said and shame flooded him. "I-I… sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"No, Hiccup, I should be the one apologising," Viggo admitted, face solemn. "I dismissed your concern too hastily. I've become unaccustomed to patrols and such safety precautions." He peered looked up at him cautiously. "You're not too hurt, are you?"

"Well there's this," Hiccup replied, gesturing to his bruised face. "I probably have some more bruises. But I've been through worse." Viggo cast him a meaningful look. Knowing Johann, that last statement didn't say much. He tried to shake the hateful thought of what torture at the traitor's hand would be like. But when Hiccup ignored his expression, he sighed.

"Should you need any treatment for your injuries, there are salves and ointments in the hut. We should get back and check on the dragons," He turned to leave, but Hiccup reached out to stop him.

"Viggo, we know what this means right?" he said, face serious. "With Hunters on the island, none of us are safe, including our dragons."

"I assume they're only after you," Viggo replied.

"Maybe, but all it takes is for you, Freedom or Stormchaser to be captured and I'll be forced to hand myself over to save you," Hiccup said sternly. Viggo hoped the Rider didn't register the momentary surprise on his face as realised that Hiccup had essentially confessed he'd be willing to hand himself over to save him. The boy really wasn't as ruthless as he thought.

"That's true," said Viggo as he paused in thought. "Though the Hunters didn't seem to be using dragon root arrows. Maybe they're not working for Johann,"

"Why else would they be attacking me?" Hiccup asked incredulously.

"I don't know," Viggo replied thoughtfully. "Maybe if we encounter them again, we can ask them. But there's no use in us standing around here. We can figure out what to do at the hut," Hiccup paused, face conveying reluctance, but after a moment he agreed and they walked back to the clearing.

Despite Viggo's calm demeanour, Hiccup didn't miss his quiet sigh of relief when they reached the hut and found Stormchaser sitting calmly in the clearing. He also noted Freedom's absence but figured that if he had spooked, it was only a matter of time before he returned. He sat himself down on one of the rocks in thought.

"We should burn their ship," Viggo said suddenly. Hiccup looked up at him in confusion but the man was gazing thoughtfully out into the distance.

"Why?" he said. "Don't we want them to leave us alone?" At this, Viggo looked down at him.

"And allow them to report back to Johann, who may send more Hunters?" said Viggo. Hiccup's face fell at his words. "Johann might not have much of an army anymore, but there are enough Hunters that still follow his orders to cause us trouble. And even those who don't follow him might try to sell us out." Hiccup furrowed his forehead at this, confused. Surely after his victory, Johann would have the biggest army any aspiring conqueror could wish for? But Viggo was already mounting Stormchaser. He held out his hand to Hiccup. "Are you coming?" Hiccup nodded, taking Viggo's hand and getting on behind him. He realised that this was the first time he'd ever ridden a Skrill – a thought that was a welcome distraction from their latest dilemma.

It took a while for them to circle the island and find a little hidden bay at the bottom of the cliff where a Hunter ship was docked. It was the only one, thankfully, which meant that the Hunters they'd encountered were likely the only intruders on the island. Stormchaser hovered outside of the cove.

"Hm," Viggo thought aloud. "Seems abandoned. Stormchaser, fire at will." Hiccup's eyes widened.

"W-wait!" he cried. "How can he shoot when we're on his back? Won't that electrocute us as…" He trailed off and watched in amazement as lightning danced over the Skrill's skin, jumping over their legs and neatly avoiding their bodies. "…well," he finished lamely. Viggo laughed at Hiccup's face as Stormchaser released the charge and the ship burst into flames.

"I'd have thought that you of all people would know not to underestimate dragons," he chuckled, looking over his shoulder. "Though I guess we always have more to learn. I wouldn't have survived getting off Johann's base if it hadn't been for Stormchaser's ability to… well…" He laughed again. "…not electrocute me."

"That's amazing," Hiccup said honestly, feeling a bright smile on his face. When was the last time he'd made a wonderful new discovery about dragons like this? It must have been ages ago, what with his captivity and the war…

For a moment longer, silence reigned and Hiccup watched the crest on the mainsail burn away. The flames licked at the mast, causing it to topple and crash onto the deck, leaving a gaping hole in its path. Wherever those Hunters were, when they returned they would find they were stranded. Hiccup wondered whether they would still bother to try and capture him now that they had no way of getting him off the island. Or maybe they would seek him out to punish him for destroying their ship. There was no way of knowing.

Once they were sure that the ship was unusable, Viggo asked Stormchatcher to fly them back to the clearing. The sun was setting by now, so they caught some fish, roasted it over the fire for a meal and then turned in for the night.

But Hiccup didn't fall asleep quickly, tossing and turning uneasily. He knew it was safer to burn the ship and ensure the Hunters didn't bring back-up. But some part of him nagged him, whispering warnings, like he'd just walked into a trap.

And now he had to face the consequences.