Hello again, guys! :) So, this is chapter 3, and this is where the story really gets interesting. Well, I guess that's really chapter 4. This is just Gothi's hut scene...well, okay, no spoilers. ;) I hope you like it! :D

"I hate leaving Stormfly here, Hiccup," Astrid said, crossing her arms. She, Hiccup, Toothless and Stormfly stood on the platform outside the Clubhouse, Astrid, Hiccup and Toothless to the far left while Stormfly was sleeping away on the far right, as far away from Astrid as possible. "Who knows. Dagur could attack while we're gone, and if he takes Stormfly-"

"Astrid, Stormfly will be fine, I promise," Hiccup assured, laying his hand on her shoulder. She thought about pushing him away, but decided against it. "Right now, we really need to focus on getting you back to Berk. Gothi should be able to help you. If she can't, no one can."

"It makes no sense," Astrid snapped back; Hiccup took a step away from her, retracting her hand, and she felt bad. She sighed; it wasn't Hiccup's fault. She had to remind herself that. "I really don't understand," she said, her voice calming down dramatically. "I can't be allergic to Stormfly."

"Well, unfortunately, Astrid, you are," Hiccup said. Well, way to be obvious about it, Hiccup, Astrid thought bitterly, although she said nothing out loud. She knew Hiccup was only concerned about her safety. With the spin she'd taken earlier while they were trying to fight off Dagur, it wasn't hard to see why he would be concerned.

He just didn't want to admit it.

"Look, Astrid," Hiccup said, "you'll ride with me and Toothless to Berk, and we'll be back here with Stormfly as soon as Gothi can think of something, alright?"

"And what if she can't?" Astrid asked. "What if there's nothing Gothi can do?"

Hiccup looked at the ground as if he'd considered that possibility before yet decided not to bring it up. "She'll figure something out," he said. "And if she can't, I will. I promise."

Astrid shook her head. "You promise too much, Hiccup," she said. "Can you keep all the promises you make?"

Hiccup lifted his finger and opened his mouth to answer, but Astrid cut him off.

"Forget it," she said. "Let's just go." She turned towards Toothless and sighed.

"Astrid-" Hiccup began again.

"Hiccup, forget it," Astrid turned back towards him as she spoke angrily. "Let's go. After you." She gestured to Toothless with a fake smile plastered on her face.

Hiccup sighed, but complied, mounting his dragon and gesturing for Astrid to get on behind him. She did so instantly, looking sadly at Stormfly the entire time.

"Hold on," Hiccup suggested, although it was more of a command. Astrid obeyed, her arms snaking around his waist. She was already having a bad day as it was; she didn't need to go flying out of the saddle to make it worse. "Toothless, full speed ahead."

Toothless nodded, spread his wings, and launched into the sky. Snotlout, the twins, and Fishlegs took to the air behind them, and the riders soared towards Berk, leaving Stormfly behind.

…

Explaining their problem to Gothi wasn't that hard to do; of course, they were in the company of Gobber the blacksmith all the while as they explained their dilemma to the village healer. For the longest time, Gothi did nothing. She simply stood, a pile of sand scattered in front of her, her staff raised over her head, her eyes closed gently.

Astrid was beginning to grow anxious. She really wanted this to be over with already. She wanted to be back on Stormfly with the other riders and their dragons again, kicking Berserker behind and taking names. Or, as Snotlout put it, "Kicking names, and taking butt."

Either way worked for Astrid.

Hiccup stood behind her, tapping his foot. "So, Gothi," he said after clearing his throat. "Do you think you can help her?"

Gothi opened her eyes, nodded in Hiccup's direction (which really could have meant anything), and began drawing runes in the dirt with her staff.

"Ohh," Snotlout said, coming up to stand behind Fishlegs. "I gotta see this."

Gothi continued writing, and Gobber leaned over the runes. "What's she saying?" Fishlegs asked nervously.

Astrid hated the others worrying about her, but she didn't say it out loud.

"Hhmm…" Gobber said. "Huh…"

"What?" Fishlegs blurted. "WHAT!?"

"Calm down, Fishface!" Snotlout snapped. "Don't be such a worry wart! Have faith in the old lady with the staff! She knows how to use it!"

Gothi raised her staff threateningly for a moment, and then went right back to writing in the sand.

"So, Gobber," Astrid said, "what does she say?"

"She wants to paralyze you," Gobber said, lifting his head.

Hiccup gasped. Astrid knew he was more worried about this than anyone, and although she knew it, she pretended not to notice it.

Behind her, Snotlout pumped his fist into the air. "Yes!" he shouted triumphantly.

Gobber raised her staff and smacked Gobber upside the head with it, and Astrid knew in a heartbeat that Gobber had misread Gothi's runes. "Agh!" Gobber shouted, straightening his helmet. "Check that! Hypnotize! Sorry, she wants to hypnotize you."

"Uhh!" Snotlout groaned. "Come on!" He stomped his foot angrily and stormed to the other side of Gothi's platform.

"Wait, hypnotize?" Hiccup questioned. "Gothi, are you sure that's safe? Not that I'm questioning you, or anything, it's just…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "It sounds...unsettling."

"Hiccup." Astrid stepped forward and put her hand on Hiccup's forearm. "It's okay, okay? I'll be fine. Just let Gothi do her thing, and Stormfly and I will be back in the air in no time. Besides…" She released Hiccup's arm and took a step towards Gothi. "It's just hypnosis. Nothing to be worried about."

It sounded odd, to be hypnotized, but Astrid trusted the village's elder and healer. Gothi would never do anything to intentionally hurt anyone for no good reason.

Gothi aimed her staff forward, directly in front of Astrid's face. Astrid flinched, but didn't back away. She focused on the movements of the staff; she expected the entrancement to come instantly, so when it didn't, she grew confused.

"Uh, guys, I don't think it's working on me," she said. "Because I'm way…" She felt dizziness plague her mind, and she swayed. "Way...too…" Sparks danced before her vision, and before she knew what was happening, she felt her consciousness being stripped away. "Okay," she said breathlessly, and then, her eyes rolled back in her head, and she collapsed.

…

Hiccup was the first one to react; he surged forward and grabbed Astrid, managing to lower her too the ground before she hit her head on the floorboards and caused herself bodily harm. He thought about unstrapping her axe from her back, but decided against it. The hypnosis wasn't going to last long. The axe wouldn't bother Astrid.

Snotlout leaned over her. "Way too what?" he asked. "Oh wait, let me guess...unconscious! Hahaha! Quick! Someone hand me some paint! I want to draw her a beard!"

"We're not going to do that!" Hiccup snapped.

He was about to yell further at his cousin, when Gobber's voice cut through his angry thoughts. "Okay," the blacksmith said. "Now that she's under, Gothi wants us to tell her that she's not allergic to Stormfly."

"Does that really work?" Fishlegs asked nervously.

"I guess we'll find out." Hiccup knelt down in next to Astrid. What was he supposed to do now? He moved his hands over her face. "Here goes," he said. "Astrid," he continued in a dramatized, sing-song voice, "you are not allergic to Stormfly. You are not allergic to Stormfly."

Astrid tensed, but then, her features smoothed out, and she was peacefully unconscious once again.

Snotlout looked disappointed. "So, that's it?" he said.

Hiccup shrugged. "Hypnosis is very powerful," he said casually. "Okay, let's bring her out of it."

"Now, now, now," Snotlout put his hands forward. "Hang on a second there, Hiccup." He put his hand to his chin. "This could be an opportunity. I mean, clearly, there are a few things about Astrid that could change."

Hiccup glared hard at his cousin. He, for one, liked Astrid just the way she was. "Oh, really?" he said. "What do you want to change?"

"Her violence," Snotlout said, crossing his arms. "She's too violent. If you ask me-"

"We didn't ask you, Snotlout," Fishlegs stepped in. "We really should bring Astrid out of it now. Like Hiccup said, hypnosis is very powerful. We should-"

"Oh, seriously, Guppylegs?" Snotlout snapped. "You guys are no fun at all, you know that? You're both so scared of everything! Worried about everything! Is there anything you're not scared of!?"

"Snotlout, that's enough," Hiccup said. "Gothi, bring her out of it, now, please." He didn't think Gothi's hypnosis was dangerous, but he didn't want to take any chances. And plus, Snotlout was already talking about "changing Astrid", and Hiccup didn't want Astrid to change. She was perfect the way she was.

Gothi nodded. She put her hand in front of Astrid's face, paused, and snapped.

Instantly, Astrid's eyes flew open, and she sat up. "Ouch," she moaned, clutching her head. "What happened…" She looked at her surroundings. "Wait," she said. "Wh...why do you all have...weapons?"

Her eyes widened, and she shot to her feet. She staggered backwards, and looked over her shoulder. She gasped.

"Why do I have a weapon!?" she cried. "AH! GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OFF ME!" She ran back and forth across Gothi's platform, trying to claw the axe off her back desperately. "GET IT OFF!" she screeched. "HELP ME, SOMEONE! AAAHHH!"

"Oh boy," Gobber moaned.

Oh boy was right. "Snotlout, you fool!" Hiccup shouted, grabbing Snotlout's shoulders and shaking him back and forth violently. "Look what you've done! You've created-!"

"An Astrid Hofferson the Not-Fearless," Snotlout gulped. "Whoops."

"WHOOPS!?" Hiccup blurted. "That's all you've got!? WHOOPS!?"

Except, that pretty much described their situation. Thanks to Snotlout, Astrid had been changed.

And definitely not for the better.