Disclaimer: I still don't own this. When I write my own dragon story, I'll never have to type this again.

The sun was starting to set as they reached Berk. Hiccup and Toothless could have made it back sooner, but they were unwilling to leave Stormfly and Anstred behind. Both Hiccup and Anstred apologized to Stormfly for getting her captured, but she told them not to worry about it, as it wasn't their fault. They had freed her, and everyone was unhurt so there was nothing to apologize for.

Besides, we have more important things to worry about, Hiccup, Toothless reminded her gently, feeling her thoughts and impressions buzzing through the bond. Those trappers are part of something big, and we need to find out what.

"I know," she sighed, leaning back to watch the sky above them. "We will, but first, we should talk to Dad." He purred into her mind, soothing her chaotic thoughts and she patted his shoulder. "Thanks, bud." She sat up as the island came into view, guiding Toothless to the forge where she knew her dad would be at this particular time of day. He, Gobber and herself had started building custom saddles on top of everything else that went on there. Gobber's dragon, a rather lazy Hotburple named Grump, was always asleep somewhere near the smith and was often used to relight the forge if it went out. Hiccup was rather fond of him, even if he didn't do much. She'd even caught him falling asleep while flying and she wondered how he stayed in the air.

"Ah-ha, there she is!" she heard Stoick shout as they landed, raising a small cloud of dust as they settled to earth. "The pride of Berk!" Heaving an internal sigh at the newest title she'd picked up and making Toothless chuckle in her mind, she detached herself from the saddle and swung down to the ground. Taking a second to get used to being on the ground again and adjusting her prosthetic, she made her way to the forge after giving Toothless a quick pat.

"Who finally decided to show up for work," Gobber groused, swinging his hammer at her playfully. She smiled as she held up her arms and dodged the nonthreatening blows.

"Sorry, got held up," she replied with a light laugh, thinking just how true those words were. Hiccup ducked under a hanging basket to follow him. "Dad, can I have a word?"

"Something you're itching to tell me?" he asked, putting his hands on her shoulders and giving her a gentle shake before tossing his arm around her shoulders to lead her along.

"Not quite the itch you're thinking of," she answered, "but, yes."

"Good lass." He grabbed the leather apron she usually left hanging nearby and tossed it to her. She hung it back up absently, the motion so familiar that she didn't even think about it. "Now, lesson one. A chief's first duty is to their people." Reaching up, he pulled a small wooden tile with a number painted on it from one hook and put it on another. "So, forty-one!"

"Look, can we just talk in private?" Hiccup tried again, but it was fairly obvious that he wasn't listening again.

"Forty-"

"That's me!" a voice called out from the back of the crowd that was gathered. "I'm next!" Stoick turned and gave her a quick wink.

"If we could just talk-"

"Hey, I was ahead of you." The dark haired Viking that approached had horns almost wider than his shoulders on his helmet, and if Hiccup remembered correctly, a rather large Gronkle. "Ok, I want one of those high seaters, with lots of spikes and a big storage compartment."

"Absolutely," Stoick said as he stepped back, "you've got it, sir."

"Dad, this is a little more important than building saddles." Hiccup said, stifling a groan when he turned back to her again.

"Lesson two, no task is too small when it comes to serving your people," he replied in a sing-song voice as he led the way to the workbench. "Excuse us, Grump." He edged his way around the sleeping dragon, giving his nose a rub as he passed by.

"Could we just talk-"

"Grump, you let the forge die down again!" Gobber hollered, cutting her off. With a pair of mighty heaves, Grump got himself facing the right direction and sent a blast of fire at the cold forge, not noticing or caring that the blast was too large and set most of the forge ablaze and shooting sparks everywhere, before going right back to sleep as if he'd never woken up. Heaving a sigh and pulling on the rope attached to a pipe overhead, Gobber doused the blaze and shook a finger at his sleeping partner. "That's it, Grump. You're going up for adoption." Despite his complaints, Hiccup knew that Grump wasn't going anywhere.

"These?" Stoick asked, holding up a pair of tongs and she nodded absently. He dropped them in a box on the bench and added a hammer.

"Dad," she started as he put a couple more tools in the box before pushing it at her.

"Go on," he urged, waving a hand at the tools still waiting to be used. "Have a way."

"But seriously, I really need to tell you about this new land we came across," she said, picking up the tools that had been knocked to the floor and adding a few more from the bench without thought. Maybe if she talked while they worked, she could explain what happened.

"Another one?" Gobber asked, coming toward them to hear for himself. He pulled the hammer off his prosthetic arm and dropped it on the floor.

"Any new dragons?" Fishlegs demanded excitedly, always ready to hear more about new dragons that could be added to those they already knew.

"We didn't stick around to find out," she admitted, sorry that she had to disappoint her friend, but there were more important things she needed to tell them. "These folks weren't particularly friendly."

"Oh, really? Your Night Fury and Deadly Nadder didn't bring them cheering to the rooftops?" Gobber spun the belt that held his attachments until he found the an empty spot for his hammer.

"No, this was different." She reached up and drew the outline of the saddle on the leather Stoick draped over the dummy they'd fashioned. It could be adjusted to any size, making fitting any type of dragon much easier. "This wasn't the standard 'run for the hills' hoo-ha I've come to enjoy. These guys were trappers. Dragon trappers."

"You should have seen their fort," Anstred put in, almost sounding excited now that they were home and he'd had some time to think about it. "All blown apart and stuck in giant spikes of ice. It was weird."

"I've never seen anything like it," Hiccup went on, steadying herself against the dummy as she turned to look over her shoulder at Stoick. "And worst of all, they think we did it."

"You two are going to get in serious trouble one of these days," Gobber commented, spinning the belt again until he found the brush. Setting it in place, he combed his mustache before moving on to his eyebrows. "Not everyone appreciates this way of life."

"Gobber's right, dear," Stoick said, pulling the leather down from the dummy. "Best we keep to our own. Besides, you'll have more important uses for your time, huh?" He spread it on the table in front of the saw and pulled the lever to activate it before rubbing his hands together. "Once we make the big announcement." Fed up, Hiccup pulled the lever again, stopping the saw.

"They are building a dragon army," she told him, ignoring the fact that the people watching gasped in shock. "Or-or the guy they work for is. Dargo Bloody-fist or something." Stoick froze, his face blank, before turning to look at Gobber who looked almost as shocked as Stoick. Something passed between the two men, something Hiccup had never seen before.

"I'll bloody his fist with my face if he tries to take my dragon!" Tuffnut shouted, popping his head over Gobber's shoulder.

"Or mine!" Ruffnut added, making her twin groan.

"You're such a moron."

"A beautiful moron," Fishlegs said, a loving look on his face.

"Yeah," Snotlout added, making Ruffnut cringe and shudder, trying to get away from both of them. Hiccup wondered briefly how long that had been going on, but realized she didn't really want to know. Stoick put both hands on her shoulders and reclaimed her attention.

"Bludvist?" he demanded, the serious look on his face keeping Hiccup from looking away. "Drago Bludvist?"

"Yeah. Wait." Curiosity reared it's head, making her ask, "You know him?" His face hardened, eyes glinting with determination and he ran out of the forge, shouting orders that had everyone scrambling to obey. She followed, desperate to know what was happening, but he ignored her questions as he set about locking the village down like there was a blizzard headed their way.

"Ground all dragons!" he shouted, making his way down the stairs through the stables. Custom built to house the dragons, there was a section for every type, giving each what they needed to be safe and happy. Each section had a feeding station, helping the dragons keep fed when grounded during the nastier weather that often hit the island during the winter months.

"What's happening?"

"Seal the gates! Lower the storm doors!"

"Whoa, whoa, wait. Why?" Levers were flipped and pulleys activated, lowering the enormous doors that protected the dragons from inclement weather, as the dragons made their way to their sections.

"You heard the man!" Gobber hollered from behind them, keeping up despite his own peg leg. "Lock it down!"

"No dragon or Viking is to set foot off this island until I give the word!"

"Wait, because some guy you knew is stirring up trouble in some far away land?" Hiccup asked, confused as to what had her dad so on edge. Not even the dragon war had done this, and she was stunned that one little piece of news had him jumping at shadows. It wasn't the ice spitting dragon that had caught his attention, it was the man that had done something she once would have thought impossible.

"Because Drago Bludvist is a madman," he explained, turning to face her and putting a hand on her shoulder, "without conscience or mercy. And if he's built a dragon army, gods help us all." He turned and waved to the men scattered around them. "Get them into the pens."

"Aye, Stoick."

"Quickly!"

"Let's ride back out there," Hiccup said calmly, trying to settle both herself and Stoick down a little so they could think clearly. "We'll follow those trappers to Drago, and talk some sense into him."

"No, we fortify the island," Stoick replied firmly, not in the mood to deal with Hiccup's wild ideas right now. There was more at stake here than she knew, and he needed her to help see to the dragons for now. He promised himself that he'd explain later.

"It's our duty to keep the peace!"

"Peace is over, Hiccup." He gestured to the preparations already being made around them. "I must prepare you for war."

"War?" Stunned at first, Hiccup could do nothing but gape at him, but a quick nudge from Toothless had her opening her mouth again. "Dad, if Drago's coming for our dragons, we can't wait around for him to get here. Let's go find him, and change his mind."

"Some minds won't be changed, Hiccup." He saw the irony in that statement almost as soon as he made it, as he hadn't been sure about allowing dragons into the village before, but after many talks with Hiccup and the other teens, he saw just how useful they could be. His point stood, though, as Drago wasn't completely sane. "Berk is what you need to worry about. A chief protects their own." He stalked away to continue giving orders and making plans to keep Berk safe for the foreseeable future.

What do you want to do, Hiccup? Toothless asked, his expression curious but leaving the final decision up to her. He wasn't too sure about this Drago person and if just the mention of his name sent Stoick into a panic, he was more than willing to avoid him, but if Hiccup wanted to go, he would go with her. Something about this whole situation, though, was making his scales itch, and that was a sure sign of trouble as far as he was concerned.

For herself, Hiccup wanted to keep the peace, but she couldn't do that without knowing who Drago was, why he wanted to take over and capture so many dragons and how he was doing it in the first place. Nothing was making sense, and she needed answers that her father wasn't giving her. We're going, bud, she told him, and he crouched to allow her to get on more quickly.

"Hiccup, don't," Anstred objected firmly but quietly, not wanting to let Stoick know what she was up to.

"I have to," she answered, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek and mounting Toothless.

"Hiccup!" Stoick shouted as she and Toothless flew over him, exasperated that she was defying him again. She had no idea what she was getting herself into, and he didn't have the time to chase her down just now. The pair barely made it under the storm door that was closing in front of them. "Hiccup!" Anstred and Stormfly followed, making him growl in frustrated anger at them. Those two always rushed headfirst into trouble, and he wasn't going to allow them to do it alone, not against Drago. He ordered two men to find the other teens, and directed Gobber to get Grump while he found Skullcrusher. They were going after them once everything else had been seen to.

Do you have a plan, Hiccup? Toothless wondered as they flew, hoping to catch the trappers before they got too far ahead. They were over the ocean, searching the area around the destroyed fort for signs of their passage. Hiccup was more worried about what her father was going to say about this latest stunt and hadn't put much thought into what she was going to do when she found them.

Maybe I'll just improvise, she replied with a shrug, making Toothless groan in frustration inside her head.

That's not going to work, he reminded her, giving her quick flashes of other times she'd 'improvised' and wound up getting them both into deeper trouble than before. We need a plan.

Working on it. Heaving a sigh, she tried to do just that, but at that particular moment, the ship came into view. They both heard the order to bring them down, nets and arrows being fired their way. Dodging almost lazily out of the way, the four of them landed on the deck of the ship.

"And here I was worried we'd turn up empty handed," Eret said with a snarky grin as he approached, dagger drawn like he was expecting trouble.

"Nope, it's your lucky day," Hiccup replied evenly as she stood in the saddle a bit. Tossing a quick glance over her shoulder, she motioned for Anstred to lower his ax, before lifting both hands over her head. "We give up." The look on Eret's face was absolutely priceless as his jaw dropped and one of his eyebrows rose almost to his hairline. As his dagger slowly dropped, Hiccup dismounted with a small smile. "That's one Night Fury," she said, giving Toothless' head a rub as she stepped away, "one Deadly Nadder." Bending down, she grabbed a net that had yet to be re-rolled so it could be used again and tossed it over Anstred's head making him grunt at the weight of it. "And two of the finest dragon riders west of Luk Tuk." Taking Anstred's arm in one hand, she grabbed his ax out of his with other and practically tossed it to Eret as she made her way passed. "That ought to keep the boss happy, right?" She heard Toothless growl at Eret, warning him not to try anything stupid, as she pushed a mace out of her way. "Excuse us."

"What are you doing?" Anstred demanded in a whisper as he stepped into the hold below the deck. Hiccup joined him, the grating lowering over their heads.

"Toothless, stay," she said as he attempted to follow her. He gave a curious sounding croon as the grate shut over his nest-mate, knowing that though he could smell dragons in there, the scents were old so the two were safe enough for now. "The dragons don't really care for cramped spaces, so they're going to hang out with you. They won't cause any trouble." She heard weapons being unsheathed and poked her head up through a hole to see Toothless jump like a startled cat before he dropped into a crouch, growling at the group. "Unless you do that. You know, wooden boat, big ocean. Ho-how is your swimming?"

"Not good," one of them sighed, fingering his weapon. Eret rolled his eyes to the sky, wondering just which of the Gods was having a laugh at his expense, because surely only Loki would have him cross paths with this slip of a girl who constantly showed him up and had somehow wrested control of the situation away from him. Suddenly, Hiccup's flaming sword popped up through the feeding hole quickly followed by the top half of her.

"Oops, I almost forgot," she said, giving herself a light bonk on the forehead as she retracted the blade before handing it over. "You can't have armed prisoners."

"How is this a plan?" Anstred asked quietly, looking up at her but she motioned him to be quiet once more.

"Just what every dragon trapper needs," she went on, almost feeling absurdly proud of her work. "One end coats the blade in Monstrous Nightmare saliva," the Viking that held her weapon found the button and a greenish yellow gas began filling the air, "the other sprays Hideous Zippleback gas. All you need is a spark-" She had been dropping back down slowly, still explaining, then pulled her head down just as the gas caught fire, a small boom rocking the boat. "Oh, yeah. There you go." Poking her head back up, she spotted the guy holding her sword looking stunned and more than a little singed. "Once they see you as one of their own, even the testiest dragons can be trained." She spotted Toothless playing with a burning ember, much like a cat batting a butterfly. "Right, bud?"

"Give me that," Eret growled, yanking the sword away from his stunned crew member and tossing it over the side with a grunt of effort. He didn't notice Stormfly taking off after it. "What game are you playing?"

"No game," Hiccup assured him, grinning to herself when she saw Stormfly return and drop Inferno at Eret's feet. He picked it up and threw it again, this time over the other side. Stormfly took off, happy to have someone to play with. "We just want to meet Drago."

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to change his mind about dragons," Hiccup said seriously, one hand clenched into a fist to keep herself from laughing when Stormfly came back, once again dropping her sword onto the deck. Eret and his men laughed at her statement while Stormfly nudged the sword closer to Eret, hoping he'd throw it again while he looked shocked.

"She can be really persuasive," Anstred added, popping up beside Hiccup with a small smile. He was starting to see where Hiccup was going with all of this, and could only hope that it would work, so he felt comfortable adding his own opinion. Toothless put his head over her shoulder, giving her a gentle nudge.

"Once you've earned his loyalty," she said, putting one arm around his neck and giving his head a rub with the other, "there's nothing a dragon won't do for you."

"You won't be changing any minds around here," Eret warned, ignoring the fact that Stormfly had grabbed the sword and was nudging his men, hoping one of them would toss it so she could chase it again.

"I can change yours," Hiccup assured him, reaching for the lever on the saddle that locked the tailfin in place. "Right here, right now." Climbing up through the hatch, she gestured to the saddle. "May I?" Before Eret could reply, Hiccup was snatched off the deck. From behind and below, she heard Toothless roar his displeasure at her sudden departure. The ship listed as something slashed one of the sails, tossing the Vikings around quickly before the boat settled once more.

"Dragon riders!" Eret shouted, reminding his men that they had a quota to fill and there were dragons ready for the taking.

Give back my Hiccup! Toothless hollered, climbing sails and rigging to reach the mast, only to stop with a confused look when he saw who had her.

"Put me down!" Hiccup demanded, glaring up at her cousin and giving Hookfang a stern "now isn't the time for this!" while she was at it. "Snotlout, what are you doing?"

"See how well I protect and provide?" he asked Ruffnut, making her shudder and groan. Hiccup watched as the twins dodged nets fired at them only to suddenly spot Ruffnut giving the ship a look she'd never seen before and opening her arms like the net coming for her was going to give her a hug or something. Swinging her legs up, she pushed at Hookfang's belly with a firm "let go!", dropping like a stone when the Nightmare opened her claws. A quick flip and snap of her arms and she was gliding back down to the boat, quickly shifting to one side to avoid a net shot in her direction.

Using a rope and the edge of a sail, she slid back down to the deck, landing with barely a bump. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We're here to rescue you!" Gobber informed her, Grump dropping to the deck only to immediately fall asleep as usual.

"I don't need to be rescued," she shot back as Toothless came down behind her. She quickly stowed the wing flaps as she tried to think of a way out of this newest mess.

"ENOUGH!" Skullcrusher landed with a thud, shaking the small boat. Stoick dismounted and stalked toward her. Eret took in the hulking brute that had just landed on his ship.

"Well, didn't you just pick the wrong ship, eh?" he said, stepping forward with his usual swagger, but Stoick was having none of it. "I am Eret, son of-" He was cut off by Stoick putting his hand over his face and shoving him backward. Gobber lifted his arm and dropped the mace attached to his arm onto Eret's head, knocking him to the deck. To make sure he stayed there, Grump shifted just enough to pin him without crushing him. "Get this . . . thing off me!" he wheezed out, trying to wiggle out from under Grump but he was stuck.

"Anyone else?" Gobber asked, looking over his shoulder at the crew that had been nicely rounded up by the other teens, kept in place by their dragons. They shook their heads, knowing they were outnumbered. "That's what I figured."

"You," Stoick said, glaring at Hiccup for a moment. "Saddle up. We're going home."

"No."

"Of all the irresponsible-"

"I'm trying to protect our dragons and stop a war," Hiccup defended herself, meeting her father glare for glare at this point. "How is that irresponsible?"

"Because war is what he wants, Daughter!" he hollered back, heaving a sigh when Hiccup stepped back a bit, a confused look on her face. He reminded himself that she didn't know the history between himself and Drago, and unless he told her, she probably never would. While Gobber knew some of the details, he didn't know them all. "Years ago, there was a great gathering of chieftains to discuss the dragon scourge we all faced. Into our midst came a stranger from a strange land, covered in scars and draped in a cloak of dragon skin. He carried no weapon and spoke softly, saying that he, Drago Bludvist, was a man of the people, devoted to freeing mankind from the tyranny of dragons. He claimed that he alone could control the dragons and he alone could keep us safe, if we chose to bow down and follow him." The other teens laughed, but Hiccup noticed that Eret and his crew didn't: either they knew the story, or they just knew the man enough to know that he meant what he said.

"Aye, we laughed, too," Stoick admitted, looking down at the deck for a moment before meeting Hiccup's eyes again. "Until he wrapped himself in his cloak and cried out, "Then see how well you do without me!". The rooftop suddenly burst into flames, and from it, armored dragons descended, burning the hall to the ground. I… was the only one to escape." No one laughed now, all disturbed at hearing Stoick so subdued. "Men who kill without reason, cannot be reasoned with."

"Maybe."

"Hiccup-"

"I'm still going to try," Hiccup declared softly, wanting to let her dad know that she wasn't backing down from this, but not trying to openly challenge him either. She knew better now what she might be up against and she felt she still had to try. "If I can change your mind, I can change his. Come on." With that she jumped on Toothless, and they took off, quickly leaving the little boat far behind.

"Let's go," Anstred whispered to Stormfly, only to be stopped by Stoick.

"NO!" He pinned Anstred with his gaze when he opened his mouth to object, but he wasn't in the mood. "Lead the others back to Berk. I've had enough mutiny for one day." He stalked passed a still pinned Eret who watched him with a bored expression, while seemingly desperately ignoring Ruffnut's attentions. "Ruffnut!"

"Ugh, OK!" she shouted back, obviously annoyed at having to leave her new love behind. Eret was only too happy to see her leave, especially after she kissed her fingers then pressed her fingers to his lips.