The patients at Mara's were startled when the door flung open with a loud bang. They barely had time for their heart rates to slow before a Cliff Smedley was wheeled in on a stretcher, family and friends following close behind.

"Stay back!" Mara was saying, her hand outstretched. "I can't get a good look at him when you crowd around me like this."

"What's wrong with him?" blurted out the boy's mother, Thalia.

Cliff let out a low groan and shifted slightly on the stretcher.

"Listen to me," Mara said, sauntering over to Thalia as Finn and Erick helped lift Cliff onto a bed, "I need you to calm down, Thalia. Panic won't help him."

"Is he going to be okay?"

"Just calm down. Take some deep breaths." Mara put out her arms in a placating gesture. "Vernon, please."

Vernon Smedley put his arms around his wife and stroked her hair. This seemed to have a calming effect on Thalia, who seemed to melt in his embrace, tears falling silently down her face.

"Hiccup, I need you for a second." Mara beckoned to the Hooligan chief and opened the door to a back room. "Inga, keep him stable, okay?"

"Okay." Inga replied, putting some cloths on Cliff's forehead.

Hiccup found himself shoved into the empty room. Mara shut the door a bit too loudly behind her.

"Do you know who would want to poison Cliff?" she asked solemnly once the noise of outside was safely blocked out.

Hiccup felt his stomach clench. "Poison? No."

Mara pulled out a small vial of liquid from a nearby drawer. "Ipecac." she said simply, placing it into Hiccup's hand. "It's meant to induce vomiting. In small doses, it's harmless but that amount in Cliff's drink..."

Hiccup held up the liquid. "So why put it in? Not your conventional poison. It's not even poison, really."

"I suppose an overdose could be dangerous but Cliff seems to have expelled it, thank Thor." Mara said with a sigh of relief. "He should be okay."

"So why are you asking me this?"

"Because I don't want to put Berk on alert." Mara replied. "This could be an accident. Perhaps it got in there by mistake. I don't know but if it was deliberate, that means one of us did it. Someone from Berk. Unless there have been foreign visitors?"

Hiccup tensed, thinking of Roscoe, but quickly pushed the thought from his mind. "There were but they never went near the Great Hall. Far as I know, they left before lunch."

"Then it was one of us." Mara said darkly. "Do you want to go public with the information?"

"No." said Hiccup. "Not yet. Like you said, we want to wait and see. I'll tell the council and Cliff's parents and friends but I think we need to keep this secret for now. If we start pointing fingers, we could cause a riot and no one wants that. Not after..." he stopped himself from mentioning the events of two years previous.

Mara seemed to understand what he had almost said. "All right. Let me go care for my patient. If you don't mind, could you clear out the space? I want to give him some air and he can't get that with people pressing in on him."

"Of course." Hiccup said with a small smile, mostly relieved that Cliff would recover.

They exited the room and were instantly bombarded with questions.

"Later." said Mara firmly. "Now I want the teens to step out. Vernon, Thalia, come with me."

"But Mara-"

"Yes, Erick. I mean you too. Hiccup will update you." Mara beckoned toward Cliff's parents and the three of them entered the curtained off area, from which they could still hear the occasional groan.

"What's wrong with him?" Erick immediately asked Hiccup.

"Outside." Hiccup pointed to the door, eyeing the other patients, who seemed to be listening with interest.

Finn, Inga, Helga, and Erick nearly threw themselves outside in their haste. Hiccup carefully closed the door and beckoned them toward the woods. He didn't want them to be overheard and the last thing Berk needed was widespread panic. Astrid, who was running down the hill to the healer's, gave him an inquisitive look and he jerked his head in the direction he was leading the teens.

"Okay, we're alone." Finn said once Hiccup had led them far enough into the woods that they wouldn't be overheard. "What's wrong with Cliff?"

"Poison." Hiccup replied simply. "It's not deadly and he'll recover but I need to ask you all if you have seen anything suspicious. Anything at all."

"You don't think... not one of us!" Erick looked around at his friends, his eyes wide. "We'd never-"

"I'm not asking if it was one of you." Hiccup clarified. "I'm asking if you can think of anyone who would poison Cliff. Anyone with a grudge against him."

Astrid and the teens were silent for a moment. Erick furrowed his brow in concentration.

"No one." Inga said finally. "He's one of the nicest people I know."

"A little annoying maybe." Helga added. "But not enough that anyone would want to kill him."

"I don't think he had any enemies like that." Finn finished. "Erick? You're his best friend."

Erick sighed deeply and shook his head. "I can't think of anyone would would want to target him, Hiccup. Not like that. He never gets into fights and he usually stops if someone tells him to. Honestly, I have no idea who could have done this."

Hiccup's heart sank. He trusted Erick. Heck, he trusted all of them completely. If they didn't know who had done it... maybe it was an accident.

"You can go, guys." he said after a long pause. "Thanks. Just don't... don't crowd him, all right?"

"Got it." Erick nodded.

As the teens traipsed away, all looking slightly downtrodden, Astrid turned to her husband with a worried expression.

"You don't think this was an accident, do you?" she asked in a low voice so the teens wouldn't hear.

Hiccup shook his head. "Ipecac isn't the kind of thing you put in someone's cup by mistake. I could understand if he ingested soap by mistake but how do you accidentally drug someone?"

Xxx

Erick couldn't believe just how horribly this day was going. He didn't know what he did to be punished by the gods so cruelly, but he simply didn't understand it. First, Adrianna had to crush his heart and soul without any explanation. Then some jerk had to poison his best friend? He was sure jolly good fun times were just around the corner.

He tried to ignore his pessimistic thoughts, but he'd been through a lot in his eighteen years of life. Both his father's and sister's unexpected deaths had taken a toll on his formerly optimistic nature. Months of self-loathing had nearly shredded his self-esteem as much as the blade had against his flesh. It seemed when bad things happened, they could only get worse from then on.

Through the next few hours he tagged along with Finn and another boy, Thorein, trying to occupy themselves while they waited for word on Cliff. Erick only half-listened as the two boys discussed various things like dragon racing skills and girl talk. He was finding it difficult to concentrate. Small talk was never his thing after all. He always liked the deeper content.

Erick focused on Thorein as he spoke. The sociable teenager always seemed to be smirking about something, whether he was getting himself into mischief or flirting with the girls. Between all the boys, Thorein was probably the "ladies' man" out of the lot. From speaking to Adrianna in the past few months, Erick had discovered that the girls considered Erick the big brother type anyone could get advice from, Finn was the rugged, hot one with the glory and esteemed future, and Thorein was the handsome, likable, easy-to-talk-to guy who could get along with anybody. Then there was Cliff, who was a category of man in his own complete way.

Erick's heart panged sadly. He wished he could be with his friend.

"You're off your rocker," Finn snorted in response to something Thorein had said.

"Oh please," The brown-haired boy scoffed. "Like you wouldn't go for her if the opportunity arose."

Finn shrugged. "I mean, she's nice and all, but she's not really my type. Besides, I don't try on every sock until I find the right fit."

"Ouch," Thorein snickered, seemingly unoffended. "What about you, Larson? You've dated her. Got any advice for me?"

"Huh?" Erick asked in surprise. He thought quickly. "Oh, Taryn?"

"Yeah, weren't you listening?"

"Sorry, my mind's on more than just girls."

Thorein gasped, a hand on his chest. "Geez, two for two. You two are a hard case. No, but seriously, would Taryn go out with me?"

Erick made a face and shrugged. "Taryn knows what she wants and, more specifically, what she doesn't want. If you want to know, I'd ask her if I was you."

"Everything's cool between you two?"

"Yup." Erick nodded, feeling rather bland and neutral about the conversation.

"Intriguing advice there," Finn smirked.

Erick rolled his eyes. "Not really in the mood for dishing out dating advice right now, fellas. I've got my own girl problems to deal with."

"Ohhhh drama!" Thorein bounced on the balls of his feet excitedly. "Do tell!"

"Nah that's okay..."

"Oh come on! You can't say stuff like that and not spill the beans!"

Finn held up a finger. "Umm bad things happen when you spill the beans."

Thorein rolled his eyes. "That's fresh, coming from you, Fearless Finn."

That got Erick to smile, at least a little bit. He shook his head and decided it was time to make his exit before they made him unload his baggage.

"I'm going to go take a walk," He turned toward the forestline nearby. "I'll catch you guys later."

"Aw, but you still have to teach us all your wise dating advice!" Thorein called after him.

Erick turned with his hands akimbo. "Thorein, the girls flock around you as if you're Thor himself! Even more than they do for Finn! What do you need me for!"

Thorein smirked "One should never stop learning!"

Erick rolled his eyes. "Yes, because all my dating experiences have just been flawless."

"Exactly why we want to hear your advice! You're the most successful failure here!" Finn grinned.

Erick frowned, fighting a smile. He knew they meant it as a joke, so he shouldn't be hypersensitive. But in light of his most recent failures and Adrianna's decision to ditch him for Brandyn...

He rolled his eyes and turned away, leaving them cackling in the street. "Make your own mistakes!"

"But I would much rather learn from yours! It's easier that way!"

"No, thank you!"

"At least tell me what Taryn's favorite flower is!"

"BYE, THOREIN."

Erick quickly marched into the woods, ignoring the two boy's laughter until finally the serene atmosphere of the forest enveloped him. He slowed to a walk and sighed, trying to sort out his thoughts.

Adrianna. Brandyn. Cliff. None of it made sense.

He didn't know why Adrianna had so suddenly cut him off, like they had nothing. He knew there was something there, and the way she'd kissed him back she had to know it too. So what reason would she have to cut ties? If she just wanted to be faithful to her boyfriend, that would be fine. If she wanted time to work things out with him and decide who she wanted to be with, that would be totally fine. Any explanation would have been nice, regardless of what said explanation could be. But he'd gotten none.

Maybe when she told Brandyn about the kiss, he'd gotten mad. Maybe...

Erick stopped in his tracks. Maybe Brandyn had told her to stop talking to him. But that would be ridiculous, right? He wasn't her husband so he didn't hold any jurisdiction over her. She didn't have to do what he said.

Was he just being a control freak? Or did he really care about Adrianna so much that nothing would get between them, including her childhood best friend?

He'd never considered himself a threat before. But suddenly everything became clearer in the grand scheme of things. He and Brandyn had always held a general dislike for each other; Erick could never decide if Adrianna was the reason or just no chemistry to create a general friendship. No similarities, shared hobbies, or common interests.

Except Adrianna.

Erick growled and kicked a loose pebble into the nearby bushes. He hated feeling like a vulture fighting another vulture for a piece of meat. He didn't want to fight over her like that. She wasn't a prize to be won; she was a person, an amazing, smart, beautiful young woman who they both cared about! Why couldn't they put their differences aside and learn to get along for her sake, and let her decide how to make her next move?

However, over the last year, Brandyn had been getting increasingly more dominant when it came to his girlfriend or group activities. He didn't seem to come across as abusive, but little by little things began to bother Erick. Most of the time it was subtle, but the little glint in the guy's eye whenever he saw Erick looking, like he was the king of the universe with his prize, was enough to make Erick want to punch him in the face.

So what if Brandyn had gotten really upset that Erick had kissed her, and Adrianna had kissed him back, and he'd forcefully told her to stop talking to him?

If that was the case, it would explain the lack of explanation. But why the fear? Erick knew when she was afraid. He could identify it in every subtle facial expression.

Erick's thoughts drifted to Cliff, and a sudden thought occurred to him. What if Brandyn had poisoned Cliff? The thought was absurd at first; why would he have any reason to hurt Cliff, who was basically harmless? Sure he talked a lot and he could drive even the chief up the wall sometimes, but if the situation was serious enough, Cliff could put a cork in it. It was impressive that he could stop at all, knowing how much the boy could talk.

But that's not ample reason enough to kill him.

A series of thoughts flooded Erick's mind so much he struggled to grasp for one to focus on. What if Brandyn told Adrianna to stop talking to everyone? Was he that much of a control freak? Was she even safe with him anymore? The poison in the cup wasn't enough to kill Cliff, or he would have died. What if it was just enough to make a point? What if-

A cry of laughter interrupted Erick's montage of thought processes. Luckily, he knew that laugh anywhere and ducked behind some thicker trees before the couple ran by from a few yards away. He rolled his eyes at Brandyn's flirty comment to the girl. He wanted to puke, assuming it was Adrianna. However, when he mentally prepared himself to look around the tree and see Adrianna with another guy, he didn't expect to see Dana in her place.

Erick stared in open shock as Dana replied to something Brandyn said, slapped his chest, and then roughly grabbed him by the shirt and kissed him. Brandyn instantly backed her into the nearest tree and began kissing her hard and fast.

Things started heating up so quickly, Erick whipped around and stared at the other trees with wide eyes. He was pretty sure his face was flushed; to an extent, it didn't matter who was making out, he certainly didn't want to watch.

But this...

He was going to kill him. He wanted nothing more than to run over and knock the guy to high heaven for this. That Brandyn would dare freak out about his and Adrianna's kiss and force her to stop talking to him for cheating, and he'd been cheating on Adrianna this whole time? The way they were kissing, it was obvious this wasn't their first tryst.

Erick crept out of his hiding place as quietly as possible and went back to the village the way he came. How he managed to hide from them and not look back at the same time, he didn't know; he suspected they were too wrapped up in each other to think anyone would be out here.

Finally, he stomped back into the village, thoughts awhirl. He wanted to find Hiccup, but knew the chief was busy all afternoon. And now with Cliff sick at the healers and a fiend on the loose, Hiccup's plate was probably even more filled.

But he could tell Adrianna. Erick turned tail and ran to the Haddock's house, not stopping once. He nearly bowled over a few people in the process, which he shouted apologies over his shoulder in his haste. His stump began to hurt by the time he reached the Haddocks'.

He walked the last several yards until he reached the door. He wiped the sweat off his face and checked his hair, wondering how he was actually going to say this. In his haste, he'd forgotten that she'd been dating him for the last almost two years. That's a long time to give your heart to someone. She'd already been hurt by so many people in her life. She didn't deserve this! But he couldn't hide the truth from her. He had to protect her.

Erick raised a fist and knocked on the door. He heard shuffling coming from the inside and his stomach twisted into knots. The door swung open to reveal Astrid.

"Hi Erick," The matriarch smiled and swung the door open. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, um..." Erick brushed his hair back again. "I... need to talk to Anna."

Astrid twisted her lips as she thought. "She's not here; I think she's out for the rest of the day. At least until dinner."

"Oh." Erick remarked flatly.

"Everything okay?" Astrid asked as she marched over to the kitchen table, where a large assortment of weapons had been laid out. Erick looked over the collection with a mixture of interest and trepidation.

"Not really..." Erick sighed, wondering if he should tell her. She'd be the next person to tell after Adrianna and Hiccup, after all.

"What's going on?" Astrid asked.

"Well-"

A loud squawk interrupted him as Sharpshot zipped into the room through a hole in the ceiling. He landed on Astrid's shoulder and stuck out his foot; Astrid accepted the note and sighed at its contents.

"Sorry Erick, I have to run to the Academy." Astrid frowned, scooping up her favorite axe and strapping it to her back. "Do you want to come with me and tell me what's going on?"

An emergency at the Academy was never a good thing. He knew she'd be too distracted by him or the other circumstance to be able to focus on both. He battled with himself on which was more important (obviously Adrianna), but she couldn't shirk her duties as the chief's wife, especially if Hiccup himself sent his personal Terror to call.

"No, you go ahead," Erick waved an arm. "I'll catch you later."

"Are you sure?"

"Yep. It's fine." Erick followed her out to the porch and watched as she jumped into Stormfly's saddle.

"All right, I'll talk to you later then." Astrid smiled, then directed her dragon to take off.

Erick sighed as he watched her leave, wishing for once that his best friends' parents weren't the leaders of the tribe.

Xxx

A common favorite Berkian meal consisted of roasted chicken, potatoes and gravy, hot rolls, warm cider, and Grandma Ingerman's homemade brownies. With every tasty treat and delicacy accounted for, everyone was happy and content to sit around the table with friends or family, partake in good food and happy discussion.

All except one.

Erick picked at his food with an angry scowl. Originally he'd chosen to sit at a table alone to stew in his anger, but soon his table had filled with random teenagers without his consent. Obviously the table wasn't really his, so they didn't need to ask his permission to sit there. But still, just about everyone knew that when Erick Larson sat alone, it was more than likely on purpose.

The teenagers cracked up about something Thorein said, especially the girls. Erick resisted the urge to fling a gob of mashed potatoes at him. Literally everything anybody said right now drove him up the wall. There were serious issues going on right now and all they had time for was jokes and games. Granted, none of them knew about the problems with Brandyn and Adrianna, but they knew about Cliff. Finn joining in the fun and games wasn't helping his mood.

They still hadn't received word yet if Cliff was okay. If Mara didn't send him a message soon, he was going to barge in there himself and demand answers.

He glared through his bangs at the couple sitting across the room. Brandyn had himself all up in Adrianna's business as if her discomfort made no difference to him. It didn't help that the only other people at the table were Dana, Cale, Frey and a few other teenagers whom Erickknew she despised. Why did she insist on hanging out with those people?

Brandyn had to be forcing her into it. She seriously couldn't put up with this forever. But he knew once she found out about Brandyn was cheating on her with Dana, she'd surely dump him. Hiccup would get involved. Things would be okay.

It was these thoughts alone that had kept him in his seat for so long.

He'd wanted to approach Hiccup before dinner, but found the chief to be extremely busy. In fact, he'd only just arrived at the Great Hall a few minutes ago, looking rather irritated. He wasn't sure why. Maybe he'd had just about as rough a day as Erick.

Erick gritted his teeth together when he saw Brandyn slide his filthy hands around Adrianna's waist and pull her even closer. She wasn't even hiding her discomfort anymore. Now why didn't somebody do something, that was the real question.

He looked around for Hiccup and Astrid, a council member, or anybody who claimed to be close to the Haddocks. Even Finn. All of them were completely occupied in their own little worlds, oblivious to Brandyn's blatantly obvious mistreatment of his best friend, the chief'sdaughter!

The thought nearly choked Erick. He'd had it. He wouldn't wait a second longer for a moment with the chief or for the "right time" to talk to Adrianna herself, or heck, wait for Finn to wake up and look past his own nose. He wasn't going to wait for someone else to take care of this.

He was going to take care of it right here, right now.

As if on cue, Brandyn promptly stood up from his table and marched toward the drink stand. Erick saw his chance and nearly slammed his palms into the table in his haste to confront the other teenager. He vaguely registered a comment in his direction from somebody, but he was so caught up in his mission that he didn't catch it.

Brandyn didn't seem to notice his approach, so he stood off to the side and waited. But then, Brandyn smirked and said, "What's up, Larson?"

Erick gritted his teeth. So he had really good peripheral vision? So what?

"What did you do to Adrianna?"

Brandyn narrowed his eyes and gave him a flat stare. "Um, I didn't do anything to her."

"And I suppose you didn't do anything to Cliff either?" Erick hissed.

The taller boy turned to him, arms crossed. "What now?"

"Don't play stupid with me." Erick growled. "You think you're so suave and perfect and nobody notices your little schemes."

"What schemes?" Brandyn retorted. "Dating the chief's daughter is a scheme now? Because really Erick, that's all this comes down to! You're just jealous! So back off!" Brandyn turned to grab the two cups he'd left on the table and prepared to leave.

Erick stepped in his way with a defiant glare. "No."

A smirk rose to Brandyn's face. He glanced over Erick's shoulder and quietly said, "Back off, Larson. You don't want to do this."

"Oh, I think I do." Erick muttered. "Since the day you showed up you've projected yourself like some kind of angel manifest from Valhalla, like you're the gods' gift to mankind, able to get everything you want and please the people watching you, all while acting completely different when the adults aren't around!"

"You're delusional!" Brandyn glared.

Erick stepped closer so they were nearly nose to nose. "Get off your high horse and look me in the eye." Brandyn smirked and look down; Erick felt like the height difference didn't even exist. "You can fool every single person on the island, but you can't fool me. I will not sit by and watch you destroy by best friend's life. Do you even know what her favorite color is? Or what kind of books she likes to read? Or that she couldn't care less about that table full of jerks, and she'd rather be with-"

"You?" Brandyn shot. "What, she'd rather be with you? A poor leather shop boy with a peg-leg who meddles in her relationships?"

Erick rolled his eyes. "Her dad has a peg-leg, I don't think she cares about that, so it's stupid to even mention. Or did you forget that detail in that big brain of yours?"

Brandyn's face began to redden. "You'd better step aside before things get messy."

Erick smirked. "A little dirt never bothered me."

"Clearly." Brandyn snipped, pushing past. "But for the record, Adrianna told me that after your little escapade the other day that she completely regrets it. She wouldn't go for you if you were the last guy around."

"That's not true and you know it."

"Oh trust me," Brandyn smirked. "She'd do me long before she'd do you."

Erick fumed, his hands balling into fists. "Don't talk about her like that!"

"Like what?" Brandyn antagonized.

Erick closed the gap between them again, ignoring the few people telling them to calm down nearby. "Like she's some kind of... of object that only exists for your benefit! Because she's more than that! She's-"

Brandyn grinned wolfishly. "Aw, look at you. Trying to be her personal little guard dragon. Well let me tell you something: You're wasting your time. That girl is mine. And you know how I know that? Because I can get her to do anything for me, anything, you hear me? And by the time I'm finished with her she won't even remember your name-"

WHACK!

Brandyn flew backward and slammed into a table. Erick shook off his hand, feeling the digits swelling already. He couldn't even remember pulling his fist back or considering the action. But the look of utter pride and power in Brandyn's eyes was enough to make him sick.

People jumped out of their seats in shock. A man tried to help Brandyn to his feet, but he hopped up and shoved the man back. The Anderson boy wiped blood off his lip and, within a second, had launched himself at Erick.

Erick braced himself for the collision, but the force still knocked the wind out of him, especially when they disrupted a second occupied table. The wooden edge dug into Erick's spine as Brandyn hauled back a fist and punched him hard in the face. Erick growled and threw up his knee, catching Brandyn in the stomach hard enough to make him stagger. Erick took advantage of his moment of distraction to tackle him to the floor, where they continued to fight.

Erick blocked another hit to the face, catching it on his forearm, but Brandyn was definitely stronger than he was. Brandyn glared at him murderously as he continued to attack. Erick managed another offensive hit when suddenly Brandyn slammed his hand against Erick's open throat and squeezed.

People started yelling at Brandyn to let go as Erick grappled at his arm. Suddenly two pairs of arms were around Brandyn, pulling them off the ground. Erick fought to breathe, feeling like the skin of his face was going to burst like a balloon filled with water.

Finn was there, threatening to break Brandyn's arm if he didn't let go when suddenly a certain Night Fury jumped into the fray and roared in Brandyn's face.

Finally, Brandyn released Erick, who dropped to the ground hacking. Erick choked on air, his throat throbbing. His heart pounded in his chest and blood pulsed in his ears. He hadn't known Brandyn would be so violent.

Somebody was talking to him, he realized. He focused and saw Gustav squatting in front of him, looking worried.

"Talk to me, Erick, are you all right? Should we go to Mara's?"

Erick shook his head. "I'm f-" his voice cracked painfully and he bent over into a series of coughs. He could still feel Brandyn's fingers wrapped around his throat like a vice.

When the coughing subsided and he accepted a cup of water from a worried Horst, he noticed the yelling. He looked over to see Finn and Snotlout holding Brandyn back while Hiccup tried to calm him down.

"Are you serious?" Brandyn shouted. "He hit me first!"

"How old are you!" Hiccup interjected. "Six? I don't care who started it or even what it was about: You could have seriously hurt him!"

Erick rubbed his throat. "I think that was the point." He winced when his voice kept cracking.

Hiccup turned a look at him over his shoulder, but Brandyn spoke before he could. "Maybe you should've used a little common sense than to hit an Outcast-"

"Last I checked you live on Berk now," Hiccup stated calmly, though Erick could tell his patience was wearing thin. "We have different rules here."

"It's a reflex, Hiccup!"

"I suppose all the rest of your garbage is a reflex too, then?" Erick asked smartly.

Hiccup gave him a warning look that spoke volumes. Then a certain blonde shoved into the group, her green eyes wide in shock. She looked like she wanted to run to Erick to see if she was okay, but she looked at Brandyn with a look akin to fear. Like she was afraid to go to Erick or there would be consequences.

Judging by the swelling of his vocal chords, Erick knew there would be consequences.

Hiccup rested his hands on his hips, trying to maintain some sort of composure. "Now what on earth is the problem that you two are handling this like children?"

Brandyn roughly jerked his arm out of Finn's hold. "He won't quit meddling in my relationship with Anna!"

Adrianna seemed to shrink in on herself, which wasn't lost on her father.

Erick glared. "Like you really care about her anyway."

"Yes, I do actually! A heck of a lot more than you!"

Hiccup scowled. "Stop arg-"

"No, Hiccup," Brandyn interjected, which only made the chief stiffen. "I'm only protecting my half of the relationship here because Golden Boy over there is the one kissing my girlfriend behind my back!"

The crowd gasped, including Adrianna. Erick was only slightly glad his face was already red, or else it would be going up in flames right now. Even Finn looked shocked at this development. Adrianna's eyes were wide in complete horror.

Erick glared at Brandyn with complete loathing. "Oh, you want to play that game?"

Hiccup said with an edge to his voice. "Erick-"

"Ohhhh no," Erick plowed on, ignoring Hiccup even as he marched toward him. "You don't get to make comments like that when you were razzing it up with Dana earlier!"

The crowd gasped once again, the room exploding into whispers and exclamations. Adrianna's hand flew to her mouth, her eyes wide. Brandyn honestly looked surprised, as if shocked that Erick had punched a hole in his boat of scandal and he was now sinking.

Hiccup was on him before he could notice anything else. "Stop it. Now."

Erick stared into his eyes, honestly afraid of what might happen if he didn't. Hiccup didn't get angry often, but clearly he was at the end of his rope. At this point, he just wanted control over the situation.

"I want both of you boys outside now," Hiccup said loud enough for both of them to hear. "If either of you start smack-talking or fighting, I'm putting you in a cell for insubordination and disrupting the peace and my verydelicatetemper. Now move it."

As he turned to leave, Erick glanced at Adrianna, glad to see Finn ushering her away from prying eyes. Suddenly, he felt very, very guilty. He'd wanted to expose Brandyn for who he was and make him leave her alone. Instead, he exposed her to all the gossip that was to come.

He didn't feel like he made stupid decisions very often. But this had been a huge mistake from start to finish.

Hiccup marched the two boys outside, his jaw working and Erick suspected that he was holding back an explosion. Brandyn sneered at him in his peripheral vision, as if he were the cause of this. But before he could open his mouth, Hiccup spoke, his voice shaking with rage.

"I don't want either do you talking to or touching my daughter. Do I make myself clear?"

Neither boy nodded. Erick thought that this was a bit rich considering he'd nearly gotten strangled defending her honor. As if Hiccup was allowed to make those decisions anyway!

Brandyn spoke up. "You know, this is all his fault!"

Erick's jaw clenched but he forced back the barrage of insults with difficulty.

"Oh, so it's Erick's fault you've been cheating on her?" Hiccup said in a deadly whisper. "I don't think so."

"If he hadn't-"

Hiccup took a sudden step forward, his face dangerously close to Brandyn's. "No, you listen carefully. I gave you a chance but clearly that notion was ill-conceived from the start. Erick having feelings for my daughter doesn't make you run to a different girl. You don't care about Adrianna enough to respect her, and you clearly don't respect me as her father or the chief." he said, practically spitting with rage. Brandyn stared defiantly at him, not looking the least bit ashamed. "Now here's what's going to happen: You are going to go to work, you are going to hang out with your little groupies, you're going to do anything but talk to her. And if I see you so much as blink at her the wrong way, I will ship you back to Outcast Island myself!"

Brandyn didn't respond. Erick wondered why Hiccup didn't lose control and deck the cheating son of a half-troll himself. Clearly the man had a lot more self restraint than he did.

Hiccup leaned in even closer until his nose was in danger of touching Brandyn's. "Do I make myself clear?"

Brandyn stared back smugly, barely blinking. "Crystal."

"Then get out of my sight." Hiccup responded.

"Gladly." said Brandyn, stopping only to send a dark look at Erick before he swaggered away.

Erick barely had time to take a breath before Hiccup rounded on him. "Have you completely lost your mind?"

"Hiccup-, I didn't-"

"No, don't. No excuses from you. You know better how to handle conflict than like that," he gestured to the Great Hall as he spoke, "and you know better than to be kissing girls who are dating, let alone my daughter-"

"I know!" Erick shouted before the chief could continue, his nerves already strained enough. "I know that!"

'Then why?"

Erick shook his head, not quite sure how to explain himself. "I don't know! It's not like I went up to her, took her someplace secret and made out with her for-" he stopped himself and sighed deeply, feeling his adrenaline ebbing away. "I regretted it the second it happened.

Hiccup crossed his arms, staring down at him stony faced. "I don't buy that for a second."

The flicker of anger returned. "Fine. Don't believe me because I did feel bad. But I'd do it again if it meant getting that scum away from her."

"That right there proves my point." Hiccup said, straightening to his full height and looking down at Erick like he was some kind of criminal. "I understand your intentions are good, but this isn't about solving all of her problems, whatever they might be. That's what I'm here for. You know I'm an observant guy, Erick, so I know-"

Erick actually laughed at this. It was a mirthless laugh that caught even himself off guard for a split second. "You? Observant? Give me a break!"

He was almost pleased to see Hiccup's face turn red with fury. "Don't speak to me like that."

Erick knew that what he was doing was akin to poking a sleeping Red Death in the eye but he plowed forward anyway, his limbs shaking with anger. "I'll speak any way I want to someone so oblivious that he can't even see that his own daughter, who he claims to love, is beingabused!"

"Don't you dare-"

"I will dare if I have to be the one standing up for her!" Erick bellowed. "If you want to be her protector so bad, why did you completely ignore her while she made a dangerous mistake?"

"I won't have you giving me parenting advice!" Hiccup yelled back; he had clearly gone way beyond reason by this point.

"Oh? Afraid of admitting you were wrong? Well don't apologize to me, apologize to your daughter." Erick turned on his remaining heel and started to stomp away.

"Come back here, Erick, we're not finished!" Hiccup shouted after him.

"Put a cork in it!" Erick turned back to see Hiccup trembling, his face red and his teeth gritted. "You can't tell me what to do. You're not my father, chief."

And with that, not caring one bit about what he had just said, he marched off without bothering to look back.

Xxx

Adriana traipsed up to her room and shut the door. She didn't want to talk to anyone. She'd probably punch the next person she spoke to if she tried. Kicking the nightstand next to her bed, she sat down and put her head in her hands. She just needed to calm down, she thought, and she'd be okay. Adrianna Miracle Haddock was always okay eventually.

So much had happened in the last two days. And it all started and ended with Brandyn. A new feeling coursed through her like fire ripping through a dry forest. Rage.

It was rare for Adrianna to become angry and even rarer for her to act on it. But today, she couldn't hold it back. It seemed to flow through her veins, forcing her to act lest she explode from inactivity.

Suddenly, almost of its own accord, her foot slammed into the nightstand again. It was this or throw things around but she didn't want to break her possessions.

WHAM!

That was for stupid Erick blurting out her secrets to the whole town.

WHAM!

For her best friend being poisoned and her being unable to do anything. For always being so helpless!

WHAM!

For Brandyn...

She paused, taking deep breaths and yanking on her hair. Her heart was pounding in her chest at the thought but she needed to think it. To keep it locked up would cause her to implode and she couldn't afford to do that right now. She dry swallowed, finally allowing the barrage of thoughts and memories to rush through her brain.

Rape.

Brandyn had raped her.

Her anger mingled with despair as she finally sat back down. She hardly even noticed the throbbing in her foot from slamming into the nightstand so many times. It felt like the memories were crushing her, like her sanity had caved in completely. All her dreams seemed to slip through her fingers.

She wasn't a virgin anymore.

She'd lost her virginity in a barn.

And worst of all, her virginity had been stolen from her.

She'd never known how much the loss of something intangible could hurt so much. Nothing had ever made her feel so empty, so used, and so filthy than this. She was going to have to tell her future husband. How could she enjoy sex knowing how painful it could be? How disgusting it felt? If that was intimacy, she wanted no part of it.

Just as the grief at what she had lost began to overtake her, she heard something clatter to the floor behind the nightstand. Thankful for the interruption, Adrianna stood up and reached behind it, grasping something cold and metal in her hand and yanking it up.

She sharply inhaled when she saw what it was in her hand. A beautiful, ornate necklace with perfectly cut purple stones in the shape of a rose rested in her palm, thankfully untarnished from its time between the wall and nightstand.

Instantly the memory of that Snoggletog four and a half years previously entered her mind. The final Snoggletog she had shared with Benen. And the necklace, this necklace... it was the last gift he'd ever given her.

A wave of sadness overcame her at the thought. She didn't often think about Benen anymore. It was too painful. But now that she held the necklace in her hand, all the memories came flooding back. Skipping stones at the lake, tea at his house, even just sitting across from him and talking over dinner, these memories made her smile faintly through her heartache. Benen had always been a listening ear when she needed him, an advocate who always encouraged her if she wasn't feeling capable. With a pang, she realized that if anyone could tell her what to do now, it was him.

Running her fingers over the pretty rose design, Adrianna closed her eyes and willed herself to remember the warmth of his smile, the wisdom of his words, and the compassion he embodied through everything he did. More than anything, she wanted to walk over and ask him what to do but he was gone. For the first time, she felt as Finn must feel every day. Like the one person in the world who was wise enough and kind enough to help her was gone forever. She couldn't tell her family about this. Not Erick or Cliff or Taryn either. Benen may have been Finn's best friend but he had been her friend too.

A memory flashed through her mind almost like Benen himself had sent it straight from Valhalla. It had been a dreadful day; she'd been mocked and pushed in the mud by the other girls and she was quite upset about it. Benen had come and helped her get cleaned up. Then they'd had tea and he had told her something she never forgotten.

"Courage is a lot more than not being afraid. It's about facing your fears and still fighting for what's right. And I see you do that every single day. Oh, you'll make mistakes and get hurt plenty more times but I'm not worried about you."

He'd known she would have the courage to do what was right, even when she was a child. How could she let him down now?

Her fingers closed around the necklace. What was it that Benen used to say to Finn?

Fortis.

She was going to have to be strong. Like Benen. This time she wasn't going to run crying to daddy or Erick or anyone. She could do this herself. It was in that moment, in her cluttered dusty bedroom, that she made a decision which would change her life.

No more.

She wasn't going to run away and cry over her problems. She wasn't going to be a burden on her family. She was going to grit her teeth and do what had to be done. And if there were consequences, they were for her to deal with, not anyone else.

No more pity. No more excuses. No more letting people walk all over her. The sweet little victim was gone. She was going to do this alone. She was going to save her loved ones or die trying. She didn't matter anymore, not rally. She wasn't worth anything but they were wortheverything. She couldn't turn on them like Finn had done, she loved her family and friends far too much for that, but she could keep them at arm's length now. Getting close to anyone had only caused her pain and now it had taken away something valuable to her.

She had made her decision. She wasn't going to stay with Brandyn. She wasn't going to give her heart to Erick. From now on, she was going to stand alone. Adrianna Miracle Haddock, the unshakable.

She felt a surge of something she'd never felt before coursing through her. Was it strength? Perhaps it was just adrenaline. But she knew that she would have to act now lest the feeling subside. She stopped only to clasp her necklace around her neck and tuck it under her shirt. As long as she could feel its cool metal against her heart, she would be reminded of a man who believed that she could be be strong no matter how frightened she was.

As she descended the staircase, she spotted a dagger on the windowsill. A nearby rock indicated that it had been recently sharpened, which was perhaps why it was still lying there. She recognized it as one of her father's. Hiccup was a pacifist but, due to his chiefdom and role as the family protector, he was frequently armed when he went out.

She found herself staring at the dagger, mesmerized for a moment. She wasn't the sort of person who felt the need to be armed at all times but after what had happened in that barn, she certainly didn't want to take any chances. Her plan was unsafe and potentially terrifying. She was going to have to take some precautions. She picked up the dagger and stuck it in her belt. It felt odd against her pants but she knew she'd grow accustomed to it. She would have to ask Finn or Erick to make her a sheath.

Today was the day she took her life into her own hands. Not only was she going to break up with Brandyn, she was going to make him leave so that he couldn't hurt anyone else.

Pausing only to take a deep breath, she opened the door and faced the setting sun. This was it. The end of the pathetic victim and the birth of a strong, independent woman. With a small, confident smile, she marched down the hill to the village with her head held high.