Waking to the feeling of someone's lips on his sends an alarm to Hiccup's brain. He blinks a couple times, and whoever it was pulled back. When she did, he had to close his eyes because they needed to adjust to the sunlight the suddenly appeared from behind her head.
But something must've gone wrong, because he heard the girl gasp and there was the sound of hurrying footsteps, a slamming door, then complete silence. Hiccup blinked a couple times before his eyes settled back into focus and found himself completely alone.
What happened? He thinks to himself.
He pushes aside the covers and places his feet on the wooden floor with a gentle tip. He ruffles his fingers through his hair and stretched out his arms.
Where am I? He thinks to himself.
As he peers around the room, the orange blaze of fire provided warmth once the blankets were discarded. His heartbeat suddenly skyrocketed. A Night Fury lays a few feet away from the bed. He scoots himself back until he's pressed against the headboard. His body shivering. A pounding headache that hammers Hiccup's temple from the inside.
The dragon soon sees him, and his ears perk up and eyes widen. He springs up from his resting places and dives for Hiccup. Yelping.
"No!" Hiccup screams as he dives off the bed and onto the floor.
He scrambles off the floor as a splinter embeds itself into his palm, and heads for the front door. He grabs the rusted knob and yanks it open. The Night Fury running towards him, he zips out and slams the door shut just as the Night Fury was about to dive for him again.
His breathing heavy and heart racing, Hiccup slides down to the threshold of the door. "I pass out for a few minutes and wake up in a hell house." He says to himself.
He can hear the Night Fury clawing and wailing for him to open the door. Although its cries sounded pleading, Hiccup sprang up from his seat and raced down the stone steps. He zipped through the Plaza, racing as fast as his groggy legs could carry him.
Toothless burst through the wooden door and looked all around but could not find hi owner. He lifted his nose to the air and sniffed. The smell was faint, but he followed it as best he could.
Hiccup raced through the village, looking for someone who could possibly help him. His lungs began to sting so he allowed himself to rest, unknowingly, in front of the blacksmith's shop. He looked all around as he tried to catch his breath. The entire Square was deserted.
Where is everyone? He asks himself again.
The village didn't seem abandoned. The shops were well kept. Homes were lit. There were even still the remains of coal left in the blacksmith's shop. Hiccup felt all around his body, no weapons. How was he to defend himself if the dragon was to return?
But something felt weird. It was as if he . . . knew that dragon. It certainly seemed happy to see him. Probably for lunch. But what was it doing in a home?
As Hiccup explored his thoughts, over on Outcast Island the Changewing has somewhat recovered. It slowly lifts its head as Alvin and Mildew approach.
"What is it, dragon?" Alvin asks. The Changewing's eyes spiral.
"I think the boy's awake, Alvin." Mildew says with an urging elbow to Alvin's side.
"Right. Men! Ready your disguises, we're headed for Berk." He says. He turns to the Changewing. "Make sure he knows we're coming."
The dragon's eyes spiral and it roars into oblivion.
As Hiccup ruffles his fingers through his brown hair, suddenly, he stops and holds his head. The pounding headache increases for a brief second, then slowly becomes muted. Hiccup's body relaxes and the pain from his running ceases to exist. He slowly rises as the world becomes a blur.
The Changewing focuses on Hiccup's whereabouts and the two had just made an official link, when a hand suddenly reaches from behind and grabs Hiccup's shoulder. It startles him, breaking the connection between him and the dragon.
Hiccup winces and the Changewing yelps; suddenly squeezing its eyes shut from the pain from the disturbance.
"What's wrong with the thing?" Mildew asks.
"Something must've broken the connection." Alvin says with a frustrated tone. "If you want something one, you've got to do it yourself." He grumbles as he throws on a hooded cloak.
Hiccup feels the pain return, his vision bluing in and out of focus, but there's the sound of someone calling his name. He shakes his head to clear his thoughts and listen to the voice.
"Hiccup. Hiccup." It says.
He turns around and finds a young Viking girl with blonde hair with long bangs that cover the left side of her forehead, with a braided ponytail in back. She wears a leather band across her forehead, and a skirt with spikes surrounding it with a pouch on her hip and also wears skull emblazoned shoulder pads.
"Hiccup, I've been calling you but you never answered me." she says.
Hiccup couldn't help but stare at her. She was beautiful no doubt, but how did she know him? And how did he know her?
"Hiccup!" she says, her tone frustrated. "What's wrong with you?"
"Um, I, I, um . . ." he didn't know what to say. What could he say?
"Well?" she asks growing impatient.
"Uh, who are you?" he asks. It's stupid but that's all he can think of.
Suddenly the girl's shoulders relax and she takes a deep breath. "Look, about what happened before, I know it was really rather creepy and I don't blame you for not liking me a while lot right now . . ."
"I don't like you?" he asks cutting her off. "Then go away!" he tells her and shoves her aside running past her.
Stunned, Astrid stares for a moment before chasing after him. "Hiccup! Hiccup, wait!"
He doesn't turn around; instead, he skids around a corner. Astrid follows, but soon slams herself into a hard built body. She's thrust back and lands on the dirt, skidding her elbow. She looks up and finds Fishlegs.
"Whoa! Sorry Astrid. I didn't see you there." He scrambles to say, scared she might hit him.
"I-it's okay, Fishlegs. Did you see Hiccup?" she asks, but is given a confused look in return.
She peers past him and sees a small alleyway between two houses. He must've escaped.
Back at the house, Gobber and Stoick walk into the house, but find Hiccup's bed bare.
"Hiccup? Where is he?" Stoick asks as his nerves grow, and Gobber only shrugs his shoulders in reply.
Gobber looks around and notices Toothless is gone too. "Where's Toothless?" he asks.
"Probably looking for Hiccup. Come on Gobber, we need to find Hiccup before he gets even more hurt. And with that, they leave the home slamming the door behind them.
"I'm telling you, I've never seen Hiccup like this. He acted like he didn't even know me." Astrid explains to the other Vikings at the Academy. She had brought Fishlegs back and gathered everyone around so she could tell them.
"Well didn't you go to the meeting?" Fishlegs asks.
Astrid shuffles her feet. "Well, no. I actually went to go see Hiccup." She says brushing her bangs out of her face.
"What?!" Fishlegs says in frustration.
"I just wanted to make sure he was okay!" Astrid counters.
"Astrid, Hiccup's mind is highly unstable. That mental battle could've given him amnesia! He's so fragile, anything could set him off or make it that much more difficult for him to remember!" he explains.
For once in her life, Astrid is left with nothing to defend her side of the argument. It was wrong for her to deny the meeting, especially with information that valuable. She denied the possible outcomes of her actions only for her selfish purposes.
"You're right." She admits. "I was wrong. I'm sorry. Bu now we need to find him and help him remember." She puts her thumb and pointer finger between her lips and howls a high-pitched whistle, summoning her dragon. "Come one guys, we've to find him and talk to him." she says as they fly off around the village.
"And let's remember to be careful and patient." Fishlegs reminds her.
Meanwhile, Hiccup had managed to find his way toward Mildew's old home. He sits on the rooftop, legs drawn into his chest, elbows gripping his knees. A soft breeze kicks up and his hair dances along the waves as he thinks.
"What's happening?" he asks. "Who am I?"
Over in the brush, Alvin and Mildew observe the boy as they knot a rope into a lasso.
"All right, we'll lasso the boy, gag him, and drag him back with us to Outcast Island." Alvin explains as he readies the rope.
"I really like your thinking, Alvin." Mildew compliments and his sheep fungus bahh's in agreement.
Up above, the children soar in the clouds, and Astrid soon sees Hiccup. "There he is!" she calls and she swoops down and scoops Hiccup up using Stormyfly.
She didn't notice, but Alvin had just flung the rope, but it landed on the chimney of Mildew's home as she grabbed Hiccup.
"Drat, those kids!" Alvin screams to the sky as the group of dragons fly off.
A terrified yet irritated Hiccup sits in front of Astrid as they ride on Stormfly. "What are you doing?! Please, let me down!" Hiccup sternly says.
"I only want to talk to you, Hiccup." Astrid tries to explain.
"I don't like you!" he says.
"Look, I know what I did probably upset you, but a-aren't you overreacting?" she asks.
"I want off this thing now!" Hiccup orders.
He shoves her away and jumps off of Stormfly. "Hiccup! Wait!" Astrid calls.
Hiccup drops down and grabs hold of the main feeder located in the Town's Square and spirals down. He shoulder-roll's onto the dirt and takes off running. He sees the shadows of the Vikings flying over head, but quickly loses them in the crowded Plaza. Meanwhile, Alvin and Mildew creep their way through the village as they try to locate Hiccup.
"This way." Alvin says, but when Mildew suddenly sees Hiccup run out of an alleyway between two buildings, he steps on Alvin's cloak and Alvin is slung back to his starting point.
He glares at Mildew, but Mildew only says, "Try this way." Pointing to Hiccup.
"That was my next guess." Alvin says.
Hiccup doesn't seem to notice them as he continues to run. He weaves his way through the crowd of people who don't seem to be alarmed by his presence. Unaware of his pursuers, Hiccup continues to run and refuses to look back.
Mildew becomes short of breath in no time and stops himself at a food cart. But Alvin simply grabs him by the wrist and yanks him forward. Up in the sky, Astrid tries to locate Hiccup without any luck.
"I don't see him." she says.
"And I get the feeling he doesn't want to see you either." Snotlout interjects.
Once Mildew and Alvin find another vacant booth in the Plaza, ititMildew rests his elbow on the edge of the booth and speaks trough his heavy breathing. "You capture him Alvin, I'll wait here."
Alvin was about to protest when he sees the children coming. "It's the kids." He says and he yanks Mildew behind the cover of the booth.
The kids don't seem to notice them and simply zoom past them. Alvin slowly peers around a corner. "Why would Hiccup run away from his girlfriend?" he asks.
"Perhaps he has forgotten how much he means to her," Mildew assumes with an eerie smile.
Hiccup continues to run as Astrid hovers over him. She steadies Stormfly as she leaps off, carries herself off the cover sheet of a booth and lands right in front of Hiccup.
"Now you have to give me a chance." She says.
But Hiccup refuses. Instead, he slams his shoulder into her, knocking her back into the vacant booth behind her. He then grabs the prop of it and knocks the post holding the cover down and onto Astrid. As she struggles, he takes off again.
"Look out!" Snotlout says as the other kids come charging.
But Hiccup pole vaults over them using the post and crash lands on a fruit cart right next to Alvin and Mildew. The cover smothers Mildew and Alvin. Hiccup gasps when he sees them moving.
But when Alvin reveals himself saying, "Ah-ha!" Hiccup covers his mouth and shushes him. Completely unafraid of his presence.
Fishlegs and Stormfly help pull the cover off of Astrid.
"Where's Hiccup?" she asks.
"Uh we, uh, we lost him." Fishlegs says.
Astrid helps herself off of the booth and calls. "Hiccup! Hiccup!"
Hiccup and Mildew and Alvin observe from behind the shelter of the fruit cart.
Finally Astrid gives up and mounts Stormyfly.
"He didn't even ask for a ride home." Snotlout mocks. "Yep, it's the old, Dump-a-roonie!"
Hiccup watches as Astrid and the others fly off. Behind him, Alvin tries to grab him, but when he turns, Alvin retracts his hand.
Hiccup suddenly hugs Alvin. "Thank you for saving me from . . . from . . . whoever they were."
Alvin awkwardly pats Hiccup's back while Mildew talks. "My dear boy, Alvin would never abandon his. . . Son."
Hiccup and Alvin jump back. "Son?!" they say in unison.
Alvin turns to Mildew with an aggravated look. "Mildew. . ."
"Stoick, Gobber, those impudent children. Even the dragon. None would dare lay a finger on their beloved Dragon Conqueror." Mildew explains.
Alvin mischievously smiles, "With him on our side, we can't lose." He turns back to Hiccup. "Son! My boy! My warrior! Heir to my tyranny!" he grabbed Hiccup's hand in mid-sentence, but Hiccup yanked it back.
"I'm the heir to your tyranny?" Hiccup asks.
"Of course you are, my boy." Mildew says as he places a bony hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "You are the Hunter of the Gods. The Hatchet of the Night. The blackest, most twisted heart in all the world."
While Mildew was explaining, Hiccup's soft, confused expression changed and twisted into that of a dark parody of evil. His face mimicking the darkest of the dark.
"Really." he said. His heart could be seen changing as Mildew morphed him into a new being. Soon to be made of stone.
Alvin's smile was mimicked as he placed his hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "Come my boy. We have much, much to discuss." He said as he led Hiccup to his ship.
And with an evil laugh of victory, all three sailed back to Outcast Island.