The path back to his home was lit by the scattered torches throughout the town. At first, they had been a way to ward off and see the dragons, now, they were merely for more recreational use. Hiccup was going over all that had happened in his mind, since his father had gone away, to now. Why had Alvin specifically used that island, instead of having the meeting on Outcast Island where he would be sure to have the upper hand? Why had his father agreed, instead of fighting it and requesting if Alvin wanted to speak, to come to Berk himself?

"None of it makes sense" Hiccup sighed, kicking a stone over a bit.

This mess might have seemed like relatively nothing but a typical trial of Berk, but below the surface, a lot of the questions that arose once one thought about it were something that was getting at his mind. He made his way back up to his home at the top of the hill, pushing open the door. It was silent and dark inside without his father there or himself and Toothless. He had been used to many nights alone back in the day, now being alone like this was kind of eerie. He climbed up to his room, moving to the small desk that housed his journal. Opening it, he scanned one of the more recent pages.

He had been doing a bit of research with the book of dragons, though he made sure to keep dire information out of his journal just in case. At the moment he had been looking into dragons that were believed to be extinct, those who had vanished a long time ago or within the past. He had thought he had read something about a similar subject, and having the twins bring up the skeleton on that black island had made it click a bit. He ran a hand through his hair, turning the page to the next, staring at it.

"Perplexing…aint it" came a voice from behind.

Hiccup jumped, turning and ducking, in time to avoid a sword coming down at his head. It caught in the desk, causing the lone candle to fall to the floor and go out.

"Who's there" Hiccup called, his voice threatening to give away the nerves that were growing inside.

The moon shown through the window, but whoever it was, was smart enough to stay out of the light at least for now. That voice had been familiar though, Hiccup's mind attempting to place it, as his body tensed a bit on guard and ready to defend himself or bolt if needed. A throaty laugh was his answer.

"I underestimated you boy, I thought Alvin would be able to handle you and that damn father of yours, seems I was wrong" the person behind the voice moved a bit to the side in the shadows, as if circling him like a wild animal would its prey.

Hiccup moved in turn, "so you have something to do with Alvin hmm? Sure that's a smart decision?"

The voice laughed, "A quick witted one, though not good enough to know you're trapped."

Hiccup glanced past the voice, sadly he was beginning to realize the other was right. Positioned behind whoever this was, were the stairs. Behind Hiccup, was the window. Unless he could get past the other, his only exit was blocked. The other had the added bonus of the dark room and a sword. Darkness….that voice…ugh why was his head not working the way he wanted it to at the moment? He shook his head, trying to clear it. The other took the distraction as a chance to swing again. Hiccup heard the sword moving through the air, stepping back. He lost his footing a bit, which was a bit of what saved him, causing him to fall back to the ground. The one who stepped forward made his heart skip a beat.

It was the dark Viking from the forest and with Alvin. He placed the smooth side of his blade in his hand, pretending to inspect the blade a bit.

"I guess a pesky kid like you is what I get for getting involved with him and this mess of dragons" the Viking spoke, glancing a bit sideways at Hiccup.

"What is it exactly that you're after?" Hiccup tried another question, since the one as to who the other was was not getting him too far.

The dark Viking laughed, chipping a bit of dried blood from his sword.

"What do you think?" he asked, "dragons are a menace, but they are power…with them stretching the boundaries of the seas, there is a need for such power."

The seas? Hiccup looked at the other, trying a bit to gauge him and what he was saying. The dark Viking smiled a bit, and pointed the end of the sword at Hiccup.

"Answer something for me now, it was you in the forest that day wasn't it...when I came to visit that old coot of a Viking?" he asked.

It was true, Hiccup had been there when the other went to see Mildew, he had overheard them and been the one to escape them. Why did it matter though? Why ask that now?

The Viking laughed, "yer one of the few who have ever managed to get away from me, though if I had really set my mind on it, you would have been in trouble boy."

Hiccup blinked a bit.

"That won't happen this time" the other's voice turned eerily serious with that one sentence.

Hiccup knew it was time to move, sitting here was not a good idea. He pushed himself to his feet, and the other moved forward to grab him with a large hand. Ducking under it and to the side, Hiccup barley managed to slip away from his grasp and towards the stairs. Until the back of his vest was grabbed that is. His feet were lifted from the ground.

"Oh boy..." he was turned so that his face was in view of the other.

The sword was lifted a bit to his throat as the other spoke, "we have some unfinished business dragon boy."

Hiccup's heart was racing, it took a lot just to swallow since his mouth had gone dry.

"Sorry, places to go and all that..." he let his arms slip through the vest, leaving him only in his usual green shirt.

The Viking gave a roar of annoyance, tossing the piece of fabric he held aside. Hiccup had moved down the stairs, jumping as many at a time as he could, without losing balance. The thunderous sound of the other behind him, was enough to make him speed up. He managed to the door, closing and leaning against it as the sharp sound of the sword making contact with the wood was in his ears.

"Great, dad is going to have a fit" he sighed, moving off down the path.

He needed to get to the hall, back to the others who were sadly all at their party.

"Idiot" Hiccup cursed himself, "I should know by now that wanting to ever be alone is like a big welcome to try and capture or kill me sign for enemies."

That did not help any, really it only served to tick him off a bit more. Was he honestly never going to be able to go for a walk or time to himself? Just plain sad. He glanced behind him and slowed a bit. There was no sign of the other who had been chasing him. Where had he gone? He had been chasing him, and Hiccup doubted he could allow him to reach the others. If this is what he wanted, Hiccup alone, it would be one of his only chances. If his father found out, Hiccup would probably be watched more than he often already was. So where had he gone? Now was not the time to think of that, Hiccup had to focus on getting out of here. He continued on his way, before a black shape moved out into the path before him.

Hiccup slid to a stop at the sight of the Viking smiling before him, stepping back a bit as the other took a step forward in his direction.

"Come on now, don't make this harder than it has ter be…especially on yourself and those friends of yours" he laughed.

"What do you mean?" Hiccup glared.

"Oh I dunno…it would be a shame if one of them had to be the target of someone wanting dragons hmm? Or if Berk got caught in the crossfire of all of this" his smile was dark.

This guy was not like Alvin. Alvin was a killer and ruthless, but he had his limits and was more self-prone. This guy gave hiccup a lot darker feeling than he had ever gotten from the other. The Viking placed his sword in its sheath, looking at him.

"I'll make you a deal" he said.

"Why does hearing those words always mean something bad" Hiccup sighed a bit, though he was listening.

"I want to show you something, then you can make up your mind" he smiled.

Hiccup's already bad feeling grew. He did not trust this guy at all.

"Only if I am allowed to bring Toothless" it was not much, but at least with his dragon there, he would have a fighting chance and a warning if anything happened.

The Viking glared for a moment, then nodded. This was foolish, but Hiccup had a feeling from what the other had said, if he did not at least do something, someone else was going to pay the price. He walked back to the hall, the other following though staying in the shadows. He opened the door, glancing around. Astrid and the others were across the room laughing, Snotlout flexing once more for Astrid. He noticed Toothless in the corner, giving a light whistle. The dragon's ears twitched a bit, his head turning to look at his rider. Seeing Hiccup, he gave a grin and came bounding over.

"Easy buddy" Hiccup put a hand over his head to calm him a bit and keep him down, glancing at the people, before leading him out.

The Viking moved in the shadows and Toothless caught sight. He hunched down, growling a bit as his eyes narrowed.

"Shh…it's ok boy" Hiccup reassured him.

The dragon shot him a look, before looking at the other before them. The Viking laughed.

"Alright, now let's get going" he turned away towards the cliffs.

Hiccup was tempted to sick Toothless on him while his back was turned, but he had more heart and honor than that. The two of them followed, Toothless making sure to stick to Hiccup like glue. The three of them moved through the forest and out onto the cliffs of Berk. Stopping at the edge, the Viking gave a wave of his hand.

"See for yourself what awaits Berk" he laughed.

Hiccup stepped forward, as he did, his heart sank. Coming into view from the cliff was a large fleet of ships. Those were not Outcast flags from them either. Hiccup swallowed a bit, looking to the other next to him.

"Berk is in for one hell of a ride boy…..but it's up to you in the end"

His laugh filled Hiccup's ears, as he looked out at the ships, Toothless growling beside him.

"No…"