OKAY, PLEASE READ THIS:

Alrightee, so, I got a lot of requests in the past, and wrote them all down in a notebook. Well...guess what? I LOST THE NOTEBOOK. *gasp* I KNOW, I AM SO SORRY! So, I need you all to give me your requests again. I remember quite a few of them, but if you could give me them once more that would be SPLENDID. Thank you all so much! :D

PLEASE READ THIS, TOO:

I go on a one month hiatus every two months...and so in the month or March, I will not be here. *another gasp* I will be going on hiatus throughout the month (maybe I'll post one one-shot, or somethin', but that'll be it). And so, just so you all are prepared. When I get back in April, I will have many new ideas and things to write about if you all give me your requests. You don't even have to be reminding me of your request in order to request: I'm leaving it open to the group to request all they want. Go for it. It might take me a while either way, but go for it. :) ENJOY THIS CHAPTER, SHOUT-OUTS NEXT ONE! :D BYE!

Stoick paced, back and forth, waiting for Astrid, Snotlout, Fishlegs, and the twins to get back. Hiccup was still unconscious, while Gothi continued tending to him, trying to keep him alive long enough for his friends to return with the cure.

Uneven footsteps broke Stoick from his thoughts, and he looked over at the stairs just in time to watch Gobber hobble up, looking confused and solemn.

"The village has gone mad!" the blacksmith said. "Everyone is outside wanting to know what happened! I figured I could give you a hand in that case, but I don't know what happened."

"Hiccup was shot by Dagur," said Stoick.

Gobber gasped. "That Chief doesn't know his place," he said. "Sometimes I wish he would come over here, just so we can destroy him-"

"It's not just that, Gobber," said Stoick, looking over his shoulder at his dying son. Gothi turned her head, meeting eyes with her Chief for just a moment before she continued to work in earnest.

"Not just that, aye?" Gobber said, raising an eyebrow. "What else is there?"

"The arrow was poisoned," said Stoick. "And...so is Hiccup."

"Poisoned!?" Gobber shouted. Stoick nodded. Gobber looked at his apprentice, and sighed. "Poor lad…" he said. "Is there a cure? Will he get better on his own if there's not?"

"No, he won't get better on his own, and the other kids are getting the cure as we speak," said Stoick.

Gobber nodded. "Ah, I was wondering why they weren't here," he said. "Normally, if Hiccup was sick, none of them would leave his side unless they had to, or were required to. Seeing none of them here is a bit strange, unless they're trying to help."

Stoick nodded. "I'm worried though, Gobber," he said. "They've been gone for hours, and they're not back yet. Gothi has given Hiccup until nightfall...what if the others are too late?" He sighed. "I guess I could be overreacting-"

"You're not, Stoick," said Gobber. "You're just acting like a worried parent. That's what I would say."

Stoick nodded, although he didn't look convinced. "Still," he said, "I'm supposed to be guiding the other Berkians. I suppose I should go tell them what happened, before they barge in here to find out themselves-"

"No, Stoick, let me," said Gobber. When Stoick looked ready to protest that he was Chief and it was his job alone, Gobber continued; "You stay with Hiccup. He needs you here now more than the people need you personally to tell them what's going on. They'll listen to me."

Instead of protesting, Stoick only sighed. "Thank you, Gobber," he said.

"Always here to help," Gobber said while shrugging, and then marched downstairs to tell the Berkians what had happened. While he did that, Stoick sat on a stool parked by the bedside, watching the healer as she worked.

"There's nothing you can do?" Stoick asked. Gothi shook her head sadly, not looking up from whatever she was doing to Hiccup's wound. It looked like she was pouring saline over it, but there was no way for Stoick to be sure. It appeared as though she were trying to make it so there was no risk of infection.

Stoick hoped that the others would get back soon. Because if they didn't, he feared Hiccup wouldn't survive.

…

The dragon riders turned around to face their enemy. Dagur merely laughed, holding a crossbow in one hand, an axe in the other as he eyed each rider with a different expression, smiling when he realized which one was absent.

"So," he said, "the poison took its toll on Hiccup now, didn't it?" He laughed, and Astrid wanted more than ever before to imprison the deranged Chief and leave him there to rot, giving him plenty of time to think about what he had done.

"You shot and poisoned my cousin!" said Snotlout, stepping forward, drawing his sword. "No one can hurt my cousin and live to tell the tale."

Astrid was taken back by Snotlout's boldness, and the fact that he was defending Hiccup, when normally, he acted as though he hated the boy. Dagur wasn't fazed even slightly, and if he was, his barking laughter hid it.

"Oh, you Berkians and your friends," said Dagur. "Hiccup was so easy to shoot. All I had to do is aim the arrow at one of you, and what do you know? He jumps in to save you. He was so easy to get rid of, the Dragon Conqueror." Dagur sheathed his axe, aiming his crossbow at the dragon riders. "How much easier will it be to get rid of you?" he smirked.

"You," Astrid snarled. "You...how dare you…"

"It's just life!" said Dagur, shrugging and gesturing wildly with his hands, crossbow and all. "Getting hurt is part of life, especially when you're someone like Hiccup. Lost a leg at fifteen, gets captured by Outcasts, and now shot and poisoned. Really. He's vulnerable to attackers."

"Well, maybe physically," said Astrid, "but mentally, he's stronger than us all. I bet you if a hundred Berserker soldiers were thinking of a plan that took them two weeks to figure out, Hiccup could do a better version by himself and get it done in a day."

"Oh please," said Dagur. "You and your little dragon riding friends here are hilarious! Of course, though, it's not going to save you, or your leader in the end. I'm not letting you leave the island with that root, just as Hiccup is not going to be cured. He is going to die, and you guys are going to be the ones to blame." Dagur got an evil gleam in his eye, and instantly started laughing once again.

"Oh, well, actually," he said, "maybe I should let you return to Berk. Maybe, I'll just let you all go, that way, you can see how you have failed Hiccup. I'll make you a deal."

"What deal?" Astrid hissed.

"You drop the root," said Dagur, "and I'll let you all go, no harm at all. But...if you choose to hold onto the root, I will lock you in the dungeon, and you will live the rest of your days knowing that Hiccup was dead. It's your choice. Which will it be?"

Astrid looked at Dagur, and then looked to the other riders. They nodded in silent agreement, and she looked back at the deranged Berserker Chief.

Astrid took a deep breath. "I choose…"