Chapter 3: Heiry Problems

Meaning to have a quick jaunt around the island, the Berkians get ambushed by the Meathead tribe.

Already Hiccup noticed how unpopular he and his friends were going to be. Out of all the tribes, they were certainly one of the smaller groups, and while that made blending in easier they somehow already gained a reputation.

"Hey, chicken-boys," A Berserker called to Snotlout and Tuffnut, making everyone who heard him laugh.

"For your information, a chicken-based dance is nothing to be ashamed of–" Tuffnut began, only for Snotlout to cover his mouth and drag him off.

"Wow," Astrid said, sounding impressed. "One night in, and you guys already made yourselves a target of name-calling."

"Shut up, Astrid." Snotlout muttered.

"Chin up, Snotty," Ruffnut said brightly, raising her wooden mug. "The roasted turkey is delectable! Go on, try it."

A Viking slid on the bench next to her. Ruffnut eyed the stranger blankly. "Uh… hello?"

"Hi," the Viking said, shaking Ruffnut's hand and everyone else he could reach. "Greetings, salutations– all those. I'm Edgar, but that doesn't matter. You guys; you arrived a little late to the island, didn't you?"

He was watching them with interest. Hiccup answered, "Yeah, we did. The wind was against us the whole way."

"Really?" Edgar's eyes gleamed. "So you must be from the North… the Hooligan tribe?"

"Wow. Yeah, actually." Astrid confirmed, impressed.

"So you missed orientation. That's okay. You didn't miss much." Edgar said. "I saw what happened at the bonfire. As spectacular as that was, just, you should know, the Meatheads aren't a people you want to trifle with. They have more influence than anyone around here, seeing as– well, of course you must know that by now."

He trailed off, apparently finding whatever he was about to say so obvious it didn't need to be said. "Anyway, thought I'd give you that friendly warning. Beware Beckett's cronies. Oh, and his goons. And his bruisers. And– yeah, probably best to just avoid all of them."

As quickly as he appeared, he went back to his own tribe. Ruffnut stared after him then turned to her friends. "Okay. What just happened?"

"What do you think he was going to say, about why the Meatheads have so much influence?" Astrid wondered, squinting at the tribe table in question.

Fishlegs hummed in thought. "Maybe they're prone to winning in all the competitions."

That was a believable theory; so far, Hiccup couldn't find a Meathead who didn't have an athletic build.

"Well, they better get ready for that to change," Snotlout gloated. "Once they get a load of my skills, they'll look like a bunch of sissies."

"AHHH!"

"HEY!"

Dinner plates were thrown and people were yelling. Three tables away, one of Beckett's 'bruisers' held a helpless-looking boy by the shirt collar, and it took two of the adult Vikings to tear the large boy off the terrified one. Hiccup shared an uneasy glance with his friends. A table away, Edgar caught their eyes meaningfully and mouthed, Beware!

Other than Gobber catching the twins trying to nab a secret stash of roasted turkey back to their huts, nothing else of interest happened at dinner. The Vikings filed out of Mead Hall, keeping to their own tribes, and dispersed once the steps split into three paths, one that led back to the bonfire, another leading to the huts and the remainder going into the woods. Gobber explained it was a hiking trail.

"It goes through the majority of the woods, and there's even a nice swimming and fishing lake. It goes around a few miles, but if you keep turning right you will circle back to the bonfires."

"That sounds nice," Astrid commented, looking to her friends for approval.

The boy Thorston nodded his head rapidly. "Yeah, we should hike down there sometime. Maybe find something dangerous to take as a souvenir."

Gobber chuckled. "If you Vikings-to-be want a little adventure through those trees, have at it. I'm going back to the bonfire to catch up with some ol' friends. Just don't stay up too late, ye hear? All of you will be on your toes come morning."

The six called out obedient acknowledgements at Gobber's exit. As soon as he disappeared with the rest of the Vikings, Ruffnut gushed enthusiastically.

"Okay, am I the only one freaking out right now? That food was so good! So much better than the boring mutton back on Berk!"

Getting just as excited as her, Fishlegs said with a little hop, "I know, right? We should definitely start raising turkeys back at home. That would be so great."

"Sure," Tuffnut added, but he sounded much less enthusiastic. "…as long as someone else has the job of caring for them."

"You know what else would be great," interrupted Snotlout, who was looking impatient. "For all of you to stop talking! Come on, who wants to go back to the bonfire with me?"

The twins crowed their agreement and Fishlegs nodded. Hiccup was about to comply when Astrid shrugged. "Eh, I don't know guys. I think I'm going to hike down the trail; you know, get a look around the camp, find the perfect place for ax throwing…"

Hiccup quickly changed his mind. "Hey, what a coincidence, I was thinking the exact same thing." He looked to the rest of the Berkians. "What do you guys think?"

"Yeah, I like that better." Tuffnut admitted. Ruffnut agreed with the new plan as well, and Fishlegs only went along with it so that he could stay with the majority of their group. The five turned expectantly Snotlout's way, and the Jorgenson groaned.

"Fine. But my bonfire idea? Still good."

The six started for the trail. For a while no one spoke, enjoying the peaceful evening. Throughout the hike Tuffnut found some poison ivy and tried wrestling Ruffnut into it, but the girl twin ended up throwing him into a thorn bush. After Tuffnut had plucked all the thorns off his body they continued, filling the gaps of quiet with their jokes, laughter, and small talk.

Fishlegs abruptly stopped walking. "Did you guys hear that?" He whispered, standing stock-still.

Really loudly Tuffnut responded, "Hear what?" only to get smacked across the mouth by Ruffnut.

Snotlout shushed them. "Listen…"

The six froze in place, and just when Hiccup was starting to wonder if Fishlegs was imagining things from his fear of the dark they heard the crackling of a twig. The crumble of leaves and undergrowth confirmed that someone– or something– was walking through the forest very slowly, and very close by.

Fishlegs whimpered and the twins darted to the left and right. Snotlout held his breath and Astrid tensed, preparing for a struggle if it turned out to be anything dangerous. Hiccup didn't dare blink or breathe as he waited for the inevitable.

At that moment three shadowy figures leapt out of the woods, releasing blood-curdling screams. The Berkians shrieked and leapt away from the figures, namely Fishlegs and Snotlout who were closest to the invaders. Further up the path three more figures crawled out of the pitch-black forest, trapping the six between them all, making strange growling noises and lifting their arms in the air. While the twins, Fishlegs, and Snotlout squealed uncontrollably at the unexpected attack, and Astrid looked plainly shocked, Hiccup started to frown at the figures.

"Guys," Hiccup started, not taking his eyes away as he tried calming his friends down. "Guys!"

His calls were drowned by their screams. Astrid put her attention on Hiccup and realized what he had seen, too, but before they could do anything the figures that surrounded them transformed their growls into laughter.

The Berkians seized their cries immediately. And, just as Hiccup and Astrid had discovered, the familiar face of Beckett appeared in front of them, the rest of the Meatheads congregating behind their tribe's heir, tears of laughter rolling down their faces.

"Ha!" Beckett laughed. "Who knew anyone could have such girly screams!"

Tuffnut, wanting to retain some dignity, said, "If that's the case, it must've been Snotlout you heard." He earned quite the punch across the arm for that comment.

Astrid looked ready to cause some serious damage. "What is wrong with you Vikings? Do you have any idea how late it is?"

"That just makes the joke funnier," Beckett reasoned. "Besides, I couldn't let you guys go without a proper initiation!"

Hiccup, although still bewildered from the situation, felt more irritated than anything. Gently he pushed Astrid aside so she couldn't smash a rock over Beckett's nose. "Okay, well, now that that's done, do you mind leaving us alone? We never meant to cause any trouble with you guys in the first place." Meaningfully he looked at his friends. "Right?"

His friends looked momentarily nonplussed but quickly voiced their agreements. "That's right!"

"We aren't looking for any trouble."

"Yeah, we're keeping our profiles low."

"There, see?" Hiccup said. "And, now that you've gotten even with Snotlout, what do you say? Truce?"

He held his hand out for Beckett to shake. Beckett didn't move, apparently caught off guard. He glanced from Hiccup's hand to his feet to his face. He then looked tempted to laugh. "And, uh," he started, "who are you?"

Hiccup's mouth went dry. The five Meatheads behind Beckett began to snigger. Hiccup didn't see, but Astrid, Snotlout, Fishlegs, and the twins put on defiant faces, and with their chins sticking up they presented Hiccup.

"Oh, he's only Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, son of Stoick the Vast, heir to the throne of Berk." Astrid stated with a challenging look in her eyes. Snotlout put a hand on Hiccup's shoulder, pinning Beckett with a steely glare. Ruffnut and Tuffnut crossed their arms, nodding their approval while Fishlegs shot the Meatheads reproachful looks.

"You– you're the heir to Berk?" The Meatheads stood still, their eyes wide. Then they broke into violent laughter. When at last Beckett caught his breath he said, "At least you Berkians are good for your sense of humor!"

Astrid tore her way in front of Hiccup and stared Beckett down. "Too bad there's nothing good about you Meatheads, unless you count brainless wit."

"Whoa, whoa, take it easy," one of the Meatheads said between laughs. "He was just making a joke."

"You wanna talk about jokes now?" Snotlout snapped, pushing to Astrid's side. "Cause I've got a lot of jokes I can give you– and you're the punchline!" He cracked his knuckles to make his point.

Beckett stepped away in disgust. "Hey, watch it! An heir deserves some space."

Hiccup tried and failed to break the two groups apart. Tuffnut reciprocated Beckett with a growl. "If an heir deserves some space, then maybe you'd give our heir some more respect."

Beckett shot a hateful look Hiccup's way. "The sorriest excuse for an heir I've ever seen–"

The Hooligans snapped, just about to attack the Meatheads when Hiccup broke between the two tribes with his arms out. "STOP!" He shouted.

Surprisingly it had the desired effect and the Hooligans backed down, but Beckett and the Meatheads remained tense. Hiccup continued breathlessly. "Look, pointlessly arguing in the middle of the woods won't solve anything. It's late– everyone's tired– it's due time we head back before we lose our heads."

Beckett narrowed his eyes. It was clear the Hooligans recognized Hiccup as some sort of authority. He noticed in shock that even his own tribe members were calming down, making his anger burn hotter.

In silence the two groups traveled down the hiking trail, though they refused to join ranks. Every once in a while Beckett would catch Hiccup's gaze, trying to provoke him, but Hiccup put his focus on where he was walking. He couldn't care less what Beckett thought of him at this point; all that Hiccup could think about was how his friends had stuck up for him.

Soon enough the bonfire clearing was in sight, only the fires were put out, leaving a bed of ash in each pit. Beckett summoned his tribemates to separate from the Hooligans once they entered the clearing, adding as he was passing by in Hiccup's ear, "This isn't finished."

A hand rested on his shoulder and Hiccup looked to see Astrid's grin. "Hey, that was really cool that you managed to control the Meatheads." Looking slightly guilty, she added, "Sorry that I lost my head at them; that Beckett-guy just makes me want to practice my knife-throwing."

Hiccup chuckled, staring at his shoe. "Yeah… thanks."

He wanted to thank them for standing up for him, too, but the words caught in his throat. He just hoped that his grateful smile was enough to give them the message.

Ruffnut suddenly stretched her arms in a yawn. "Well… I'm drained. See you guys tomorrow." She started to walk in the direction of the girl's huts, tapping Astrid's arm. "Coming with me?"

Astrid nodded and followed in her step, looking at the boys one last time. "Night, guys," she called. "See you at breakfast!"

Hiccup watched her go, a rather starry look on his face. He shook out of it when Fishlegs, Snotlout and Tuffnut exited the bonfire clearing back to the huts. He went to catch up, his stomach tightening in anxious anticipation for the next day. Yes, he was guaranteed to hate Viking Camp, but after facing off the infamous Meatheads and living to tell the tale, Hiccup felt they could face anything as long as they had each other. His only regret was that he couldn't have Toothless with him, too.

It took a while for the boys to remember which hut was theirs. They picked the wrong one at first, having walked clear inside the room only to discover a group of strangers staring at them. They just as awkwardly left and continued the search, and at last Fishlegs remembered Gobber mentioning that they had 'hut four.'

The boys finally found the correct sleeping quarters and dragged themselves inside, relieved and looking forward to sleep. They waved affably at Gobber, only realizing there were other teenagers in the room once Tuffnut shut the door.

"Ah, you're back," Gobber greeted; he was running a rag across his hook while sitting on his bed. He gestured briefly to the waiting teenagers. "I've been told you've already met."

As bad luck would have it, there in the room was Beckett and his five cronies. Fishlegs stared with wide eyes while Snotlout and Tuffnut put on deep scowls. Hiccup glanced from his friends to the Meatheads, his previous hopes about not running into more trouble once again draining out of his mind.

The Berkians reluctantly stepped to their beds. At first Snotlout and Tuffnut refused to defuse eye contact with the rivals, however they had to for a few moments when they got in bed, yet continued the staredown once they were cozy in their blankets. Tuffnut twitched his eye a few times making one of the Meatheads cringe.

Fishlegs and Hiccup didn't bother with the staring contest and settled themselves in their bunks. The room waited in thick silence until Gobber finished polishing his hook and doused the lanterns hanging off the walls.

"You aren't allowed out after the lanterns are out," Gobber forewarned with meaning in his tone. "…unless you need to get to the outhouse. But you'd better come straight back here afterwards, or there will be consequences."

The Blacksmith climbed into his bed. Within time people started to snore, the first being Gobber and the next few unidentifiable. Hiccup tossed and turned in the corner of the room. He could not get his mind off Berk, as he couldn't help but wonder how his dad and Toothless were doing. He wondered how they were getting along in the village and if Toothless would still be able to get his daily flying in. He wondered if he'd be able to keep his promise to his dad, and not let old grudges be stirred up between their tribes.

Little did he know, Toothless was in the same way tossing and turning in an empty room on Berk, wondering why Hiccup had to go and when he would be coming back.

A/N: Yikes, some initiation. Oh well, the Meatheads got even and now everything can go on smoothly! ...Right?

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