Chapter 10

"AAAAH" Eret yelled as his hand caught fire. The fire was traveling up his tuxedo jacket and several guests tried to put it out but to no avail. The fire only stopped once Eret had let go of the ring. It fell to the floor and several eyes widened in recognition.

"Eret, you gonna be alright?" Savage asked as the man cradled his burned arm. Alvin, Dagur, and the Grimborn brothers all surrounded him. It was then that Savage turned to Hiccup with a nasty look on his face.

"WHAT IN HELL WAS THAT?!" Savage snarled. "How can you just attack him?!"

"How can he assault a woman?!!" Hiccup shouted back taking many of the guests by surprise.

"How dare you!!" Savage now shouted. "That is a baseless accusation!"

Hiccup gave him an are-you-serious look before pointing towards the ring on the hardwood floor. "Tell me, does that seem familiar to you?" He asked and the guests who had met Astrid before the party nodded. Dagur went to pick it up but the ring flared up again and burnt his fingers.

"AAGH" Dagur muttered while scowling at the ring.

"Those of you who know what that is please tell me who the owner is." Hiccup muttered as he gave the audience a dark look while Eret blanched.

"The Valkyrie's" One of the guests meekly said.

"So then why would Eret here have it?" Hiccup questioned as mutters filled the room now.

"I'll tell you why." He then said as he gave Eret a dark look. "He stole it after drugging her and I walked in on the bastard feeling her up!"

"Now now, let's not get carried away?!" Savage tried to say now as the guests began giving Eret looks of contempt.

"What did you give her?!" Hiccup now asked, his voice filled with contempt, as he took a step closer to Eret, who flinched and would never admit it that the lanky man scared the crap out of him then.

"I.... didn't...." Eret tried to say but Hiccup picked him up by his shirt.

"What. did. You. give. Her?" He asked again, rearing back his fists as if to hit him. No one in the room said anything as they watched wide-eyed someone, many of them had characterized as a weakling, make a weeping mess out of one of their best agents.

"Ketamine" Eret quickly said as he didn't want to get hit again. The kick he received still hurt and he was sure that he had a couple of bruised if not broken ribs. "Ketamine! That's all!"

"I want him out of my house!" Hiccup demanded, dropping Eret back on the floor.

"You can't...." Eret started to say, clutching his injured arm, when Stoick spoke up. "Yes he can! I'll not have someone like you in my house!"

"Leave now" Valka now added as she crossed her arms. "You've outstayed your welcome." She growled.

Eret got up and gave all of them dark looks. "Are you freaking kidding me! You'll regret this!!" He snarled at Hiccup as several men guided him out.

Viggo tried to pick up the Dragon ring now but it burned him as well.

Hiccup rolled his eyes and bent down to pick up the ring. "Hiccup what are you doing? You'll get burned." His mother warned but as he picked up the ring nothing happened.

"Huh" Dagur and others stared at him dumbly.

Hiccup walked back through the ruined door and checked on Astrid, who was still slumped in the chair. He placed the ring back on her finger and gently picked her up. His parents and the gang had followed behind him and they stood in the doorway watching awkwardly.

"Is she going to be alright?" Fishlegs asked.

"Yeh, it looks like the drug just knocked her out." Hiccup told them. His father then turned around and said loudly to the guest. "The party's over. Would everybody please make their way home."

Hiccup took Astrid upstairs and asked his mother and Ruffnut if they'd be willing to change her into her nightgown. Astrid had come to a bit, after she had on her night clothes, but was still sluggish. She smiled upon seeing Hiccup and tried to walk to him only to stumble.

Astrid would have face planted onto the floor if Hiccup hadn't caught her. The problem now was that Astrid had latched onto Hiccup, like a koala to a eucalyptus tree.

"Um..." Hiccup asked not sure what to do as the others tried to keep straight faces. "I'll just get her into bed." He said feebly as his face flushed.

Meanwhile Dagur sat in his room contemplating what he had witnessed at the party. He frowned at the implications and then fished out his phone, dialing a familiar number.

It rang a few times before someone on the other end answered with "I told you not to contact me if it wasn't serious."

"We might have two problems." Dagur stated.

"Which are?" Was now asked.

"The items may be better protected than we thought." Dagur muttered.

"And the other?" The voice on the other end sighed.

"She might have gotten herself a bodyguard." Dagur growled. "A very annoying one."

"How sure are you?" The voice now asked.

"I'll be testing out my theory tomorrow." Dagur muttered.

"Get rid of any pests around her then deliver her to me. Shatter whatever illusion of freedom she has." The voice now ordered.

"Very well" Dagur said as a wicked smile appeared on his face.

Morning came the next day with Astrid blearily waking up and groping the heatsource next to her. "Haha, that tickles" was mumbled from next to her as her eyes snapped open. She quickly lifted up her head to see that she had been groping and snuggling Hiccup, who appeared still half asleep. Her cheeks immediately flared up and Stormfly woke up from her mental shrieking.

"What in th-OH" Stormfly said as she took in the situation before going back to sleep. "Stop with the shrieking woman and enjoy the moment."

"Crazy reptile" Astrid muttered as she looked at Hiccup who was still sleeping. She then suddenly placed a hand over her mouth and quickly stumbled out of bed, taking the blankets with her, heading straight for the bathroom. The noise woke Hiccup up and he looked up with half lidded eyes. The sounds of retching made him stand up and head to the bathroom where he found Astrid hunched over the toilet.

Hiccup bent down next to her and held her hair back as she retched again. "Thanks" Astrid mumbled feeling nauseous. "What happened?" She asked as she held her head. He quickly poured her a glass of water and Astrid gulped it down greedily.

"Eret drugged you and tried to steal the ring." Hiccup told her as she started cleaning up.

"Son of a half troll!" She muttered darkly. "I'm going to skin him alive!"

"I doubt he'll be a problem anymore." Toothless now spoke up as Astrid looked curious. "Hiccup had him regretting it immediately."

"Oh really?" Astrid then laughed. "I'd pay to see that. So how did we end up sleeping in the same bed?" She asked feeling a little better. Hiccup however would not meet her eyes.

"Eh.... Well.... Eh...." He mumbled as his cheeks reddened. "Youlatchedontomeandwouldn'tletgo." He said so fast that Astrid blinked in astonishment.

"....." Astrid said nothing as she kept looking at Hiccup who was getting redder by the second.

"You.... eh.... latched onto me and wouldn't let go." Hiccup now repeated.

"Not only that" Toothless added and started snickering. "At one point you did wake up. Or you were at least semi-conscious."

"TOOTHLESS!" Hiccup warned as he looked embarrassed.

"Okay, and then what?" Astrid asked curiously.

Hiccup could mentally see the big grin that Toothless was sporting and wanted to climb into the deepest hole he could find. "You tried to undress Hiccup. You were pretty aggressive about it too."

Now both Hiccup and Astrid were sporting red faces as both their dragons guffawed.

"I....I'm so sorry" Astrid quickly said as she couldn't look at Hiccup now.

"D..Don't be. You were drugged." Hiccup quickly said as he could not look Astrid in the eye. "Oh, you enjoyed it." Toothless said so that only Hiccup could hear. Hiccup then mentally kicked Toothless down a hole.

"Hey!" Toothless shouted indignantly as he glared at Hiccup, who just rolled his eyes.

"So.... we should head down for breakfast." Hiccup quickly suggested.

"Alright" Astrid mumbled, still clearly embarrassed. "When will you just push the guy against the wall and kiss the hell out of him?" Stormfly mentally asked so that only Astrid could hear.

Astrid rolled her eyes at the antics of her dragon and made the mental mirror Stormfly had disappear, eliciting an indigent squawk from her.

"So I was wondering?" Hiccup asked as they walked side by side towards the kitchen. "Do all mystical items have a tendency to light themselves on fire?"

"Only mine as far as I know." Astrid answered. "So who caught fire?"

"Well obviously Eret." Hiccup told her as she then grinned. "Dagur and Viggo couldn't touch it either."

"Why hello Hiccup" was said when the pair reached the foyer. Hiccup as well as Astrid turned to see Dagur standing there while several men had restrained his parents and friends.

"What the hell are you doing Dagur?!" Hiccup shouted incensed at what he was seeing. "Let them go!"

"Tut tut" Dagur admonished. "That is no way to talk to me."

"I'll burn him to a crisp." Astrid suggested as she made a fireball appear in her hand.

"Hold it princess!" Dagur now shouted. "One move from you and I have my men slit their throats."

"What did we ever do to you?!" Fishlegs squeaked as they tried to struggle.

"All of you are just plain annoying." Dagur stated. "The Master wants to tie up loose ends before I deliver the Valkyrie to him."

"The Master" Hiccup mouthed curiously as Dagur turned back to Hiccup.

"Now you, I'm going to have great pleasure in tormenting." Dagur stated as he grinned. "Frankly, I didn't think you had it in you." Dagur then said making Hiccup frown.

"Who knew a lanky guy like you was so strong that he could shatter a door or pick up Eret easily, who was about twice your weight if not more." Dagur reasoned causing Hiccup to gulp. "I'm sure you've had some help." He stated, jabbing the dagger he had been twirling in his hand towards Astrid. "She gave you something didn't sh-"

Dagur didn't get to finish his sentence as he and everybody else in the foyer were blown backwards when the front door, along with part of the wall, was blasted open.

Hiccup and Astrid coughed as debris fell onto them. Dagur struggled to get up and then he caught sight of a blond woman, dressed in a beige business suit, standing in the hole, where the doorway used to be.

"WHO IN HELL ARE YOU!!" he now shouted but the woman paid him no heed. Her eyes were only focused on Astrid.

"Why hello again Astrid." The woman greeted. "It's been such a long time."

"Astrid you know her?" Hiccup asked as he saw Astrid fiercely glare at the woman who sported a haughty smirk.

Astrid nodded to him before turning back to the woman. "Hello Camicazi" She said in an ice cold voice filled with hatred. "Have you come to die?"