A/N: I'm back! I'd be lying if I said I haven't absolutely loved reading your reactions to the first chapter! Thank you for everyone who has reviewed or followed the story! Much appreciated! :D

Btw, am I the only one who still isn't getting email notifications for PMs? I'm aware that the site disabled them to avoid spam but that was back in November. Is anyone actually getting those emails again? If anyone is, please let me know in the reviews or PM me!

Anyway, if you hadn't already guessed from the chapter title, things are going to go downhill before they come back up I'm afraid...

This Time for Sure

Chapter 2: A Failed Plan

"… We will get Hiccup back and we will get everything back that the Hunters have taken from us. Bravery will always triumph over cowardice." Cheers echoed through the Great Hall as Stoick finished talking to his people. He smiled proudly as the villagers raised fists and shouted in agreement. Astrid sighed, head resting on her hands. She had expected more of this meeting. There was no plan. There was no strategy. There was no preparation. There was just motivation. But what was motivation without a concrete way forward?

The Berkians started to disperse in the hall, gathering in corners where lunch was being served. Cheerful Vikings chugged down ale and knocked mugs together, all somehow hopeful. Astrid couldn't understand how they didn't see what she saw. Besides the people's mood, nothing had changed. They still had no idea how to get Hiccup back, or how to stop more demands coming, or how to get back the Dragon Eye or the Book of Dragons, or-

"Don't look so sad Astrid, we will get him back," She looked up suddenly to see Stoick joining the teens at the table, holding a leg of chicken in his hand (much to Tuffnut's horror).

"But how, chief? No offence, your motivational speech was great, but it was only a motivational speech. You still haven't told us a plan or anything we're going to do differently to make sure we get Hiccup back!" Astrid blurted out, struggling to keep her frustration under control. But Stoick only laughed loudly, fueling the young maiden's anger.

"Of course I have a plan, lass! How could you doubt me? I'm your chief, for Thor's sake!" The burly man replied loudly. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, almost wondering whether he had had a mead too many.

"How are you so calm? Your own son is in the hands of the enemy, leaving the Hunters to do anything they want with him. And Thor knows how long it'll take before Viggo comes back and demands more than just information sources! For the love of Odin, he could demand one of us! One of your own people! When Hiccup was being chased by bounty hunters, you were worried, why not now?"

"Easy, Astrid, keep your helmet on,"

"Uh," Tuffnut interjected. "I don't mean to point out the obvious, but Astrid hasn't worn a helmet since she was five years old. So… she can't exactly keep one-" He stopped short when Stoick shot him a glare and raised his arms up in surrender.

"Come on guys, be with me here," Astrid looked around at the others, but Snotlout was too busy stuffing mutton down his throat. She glanced at the twins who shrugged nonchalantly, clearly not wanting to be involved and at Fishlegs, whose nervous eyes flickered between the stern chief and the teenage warrior.

"Well… I'm sure the chief has a good idea to get Hiccup back…" The plump boy mustered, giving her a sheepish grin. Her mouth fell open as she looked at everyone.

"Fine." She growled, slamming her mug of mead onto the table, not caring that it spilt the beverage onto the table, before stalking off, beckoning both her dragon and Toothless. Within seconds they were outside, the warm breeze blowing the bangs out of her face. She stopped and looked out to the horizon longingly, wishing she could somehow communicate with Hiccup over the massive distance. Toothless' croon alerted to her to the two concerned dragons either side of her.

"You get me, don't you?" She asked the creatures, seeking some reassurance that she wasn't alone. Stormfly squawked and Toothless crooned again, nudging her hip with his side and nodding to his empty saddle. Astrid smiled gratefully as she mounted the Night Fury.

"Come on girl," She beckoned for Stormfly to follow them as Toothless took off. Within minutes they had landed again, and Astrid realised in surprise that he had taken her to the cove she met Toothless in the first place. As soon as she slid off his back he galloped off towards a small tree, uprooting it with his jaw and bringing it back to Astrid, drawing a squiggle in the ground as he did so. The intention dawned on Astrid suddenly.

"Toothless, you're a genius," She picked up a twig that lay close by and started drawing in the dirt as well. "If the chief won't tell us his plan, we will think of one ourselves."

The sun had only just peeked over the horizon when Astrid's eyes fluttered open and she realised she had fallen asleep in the cove. Toothless and Stormfly sat either side of her, spreading their wings around her to create a dome-like shelter. She rubbed her eyes groggily, sitting up and noticing the drawings in the ground surrounding her, reminding her of the plan she had in place for the next ransom.

I wonder how long it'll take for Viggo to come back… A few days? A week?

The horn went off. A DAY?! It's only been a DAY! That son of a half-troll! The next moment she found herself swinging her axe around violently in fury, only to stop when Stormfly picked her up in her talons and dropped her onto Toothless' back. The Night Fury was on edge, she could feel it, as was she. She just hoped her plan would somewhat work. Who knew what would happen if it didn't… this was getting too repetitive already and it was only the third ransom.

Only a few Berkians lined the docks as the all-too-familiar ships sailed in, among which were the rest of the teens. Astrid grunted as she realised the chief was nowhere to be found, feeling a remnant of frustration from last night. But she tried to suppress it as the crowd slowly grew behind her.

"What's he going to ask for this time?" Snotlout huffed, arms folded as he glared at the enemy crest.

"I don't know. I mean, what else could he want from us? Besides us and our dragons?" Tuffnut answered, leaning nonchalantly on Belch's horns. Fishlegs audibly whimpered.

"If he does that, he'll get all of Berk on his back," Astrid muttered with hate in her voice.

"But he has Hiccup. And who knows how careful he's going to be after the fights last time. Viggo might have him chained from head to toe!" Snotlout said. His words registered with Astrid after a few seconds and sighed as she realised he was right. Thor, help us…

By the time the gangway was being put down, almost the entirety of Berk was waiting impatiently. Viggo looked worryingly excited, Ryker seemed ready to shout for joy and Hiccup… he was in another dragon-proof cage, only this time his wrists were chained to the bars either side of his body, his arms outstretched and his back resting on the green-tinted metal. His wounded shoulder was poorly bandaged with once-white linen and a gag was once again tied around his mouth. His prosthetic leg had been removed, leaving only the stump, which he was hopelessly staring at. Astrid had to resist the urge to run to him and embrace his sorry butt until he told her he was okay…

"Greetings, Berkians! I-" Viggo started, standing casually against Hiccup's cage, wearing a smug smile that showed he knew he was taunting them.

"Just get on with it!" Astrid demanded, taking an aggressive step towards the Hunter. Viggo laughed, clearly amused.

"Ah, your enthusiasm speaks volumes, dear Astrid. I assure you, I will –"

"Astrid's right, just tell us what you want, give us Hiccup and be on your merry way," Stoick pushed his way to the front of the crowd as he shouted.

"My demand today, with the same repercussions if failed, of course, is for the young lady who prides herself as my prisoner's partner in battle," Viggo's eyes scanned the crowd's reaction, his gaze finally landing on Astrid, eyebrow raised.

"WHAT?" Came the teenagers' collective shout of surprise. Astrid's mouth fell open wide. What? He can't be serious, this can't be happening, it can't- This wasn't part of the plan! How am I going to get to Hiccup now?! She glanced around at the teens surrounding her, who all wore similar astonished faces. Viggo chuckled, and Stoick audibly growled. She turned to him, seeing regret and anger in his eyes. See? No plan. Now what? Her brain commented sarcastically before focusing back on the dilemma. She had to go, she had to...

She glanced at Hiccup, whose eyes were wild with panic. He thrashed against the chains holding his wrists, then let out a muffled scream as his shoulder was jolted. He looked up at her desperately, eyes begging her to refuse and shaking his head.

"Come on, Astrid, at least save your leader from dying," Viggo taunted, earning a hard glare from Astrid, but the man remained unfazed. Go, otherwise, you'll be the reason Hiccup dies! How you will be able to live with yourself then?

"No, Astrid, don't give Viggo another hostage!" Stoick shouted, but Astrid whirled around to him furiously.

"You'd rather have Hiccup killed?" She demanded, arms tense and hands curled into tight fists. The chief was silent and Astrid continued to walk towards the enemy's ship. Guards came to surround her, grabbing her arms roughly as they dragged her onto the deck, where another cage was waiting for her. She felt her axe being pulled from her back as they pushed her into the cell and slammed the door. Her eyes stared coldly out as the Hunters removed the gangway and prepared the journey back to their base. You're their prisoner now. Good job, Astrid. Came a voice in her head and she growled, wishing she could see a way out of this situation. But as the ship raised its sails, slowly moving away from Berk as Stoick and the gang watched her hopelessly, she just couldn't.

And she still couldn't.

All that had happened what felt like ages ago. She'd spent hours in this blasted cell, sitting among the dozens of captive dragons. She hadn't even seen Hiccup again, or heard him or seen any indication that he was still alive. The only company she had was the screeching of tired innocent dragons. And to be honest, she felt like screaming as well. She felt hopeless. Truly hopeless. She had failed to save Hiccup, she was miles away from home, defenceless, and just another pawn for Viggo to use against Berk. Viggo. She thought that name with hatred. He had everything planned out from start to finish, from capturing Hiccup to the downfall of Berk. She knew it, and she was sure that he knew it as well. He was bringing his enemies down one by one, making sure each of them knew who they were before killing them.

This was only the start of his plan.

And Astrid prayed to the gods she wouldn't have to see the end of it.

A/N: And the plot thickens...

Unfortunately I haven't been gifted with the ability to read your thoughts, so you'll have to write them out for in the reviews, which would be very much appreciated! XD

Thank you once again to Nishnibbles for beta-reading this chapter!

'Til next time!

~httydfangirl123