Chapter Text
`Daenerys glared furiously in Alvin's direction as they walked by cages filled with wild dragons. They were all more aggressive than they were supposed to be, even for being untrained— abuse from the Outcasts had set them consistently on edge. A Deadly Nadder slammed itself against the barricade as they walked past, and her angry scowl softened into sympathy for the creature who could not help its situation. She wondered how many more dragons were in captivity, in terrible circumstances like this, and the thought made her stomach twist in disgust at those who could treat such magnificent beasts this way.
Alvin, of course, paid no mind to the hostility and simply shoved the teens forward. Although he took note of their surroundings, there was only one thing on Hiccup's mind: "where is my dragon, Alvin? Where's Toothless?"
"You'll see him soon enough, don't you worry," the older man replied in a menacing tone that promised they wouldn't like what they saw.
Since the direct approach didn't work, he tried another tactic— flattery. "You know, I have to admit, luring me and Toothless to the Isle of Night, building a fake Night Fury. . . not bad."
The Outcast let out a mocking laugh. "'Not bad. . .' Says the one-legged boy in manacles."
"I'd have to agree with Hiccup," Dany said. Her voice had never sounded less friendly. "That plan almost convinced me that you lot have braincells, but the state you keep your dragons in tells me otherwise."
They were passing by a Whispering Death now, chained on either side to keep it from diving underground— which it was attempting to do. Every time it tried to dig a tunnel, soldiers holding spears would poke at it until it became subdued again. Alvin watched their struggle apathetically before he caught sight of the simmering rage on the blonde's face. "And what would have me do differently, girl?"
Dany wanted to go in there and break the chains herself, but that would hardly be possible with her hands bound and Outcasts all around them. So, she grit her teeth and responded with measured intensity, "you may think you have control over these creatures, but all you're doing is breeding fear and resentment. A Whispering Death is not meant to be chained up like this. Keeping it confined like this will only make it more dangerous when it inevitably breaks loose."
Alvin scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "What do you suggest, then? Letting them roam free to wreak havoc?"
She was surprised that Alvin even knew how to use such advanced vocabulary as the word 'havoc.' The Targaryen eyed the enclosure with obvious distaste. "Well, not spearing it every time it acts on instinct would probably help. There are other ways to keep it from burrowing, you know."
Bored of the 'show,' the leader of the Outcasts shoved them forward again. This time, they were met with a Scauldron. It was drinking out of its water trough but at the sound of their footsteps, it whipped its head up to glare at them with black, beady eyes. The two teens ducked out of the way just in time for it to shoot a blistering hot stream of water at the nearest guard, causing him to fly backwards with a grunt of pain.
Following Dany's lead, Hiccup commented casually, "a Scauldron. . . Impressive. You might wanna cut back its water."
"Write that down," Alvin grunted to Savage.
Did he even know how to write? Daenerys wondered bitterly. Two more soldiers ran across their path to a cage that appeared empty. "It's escaped again!"
"Actually, no, it's right behind you. Changewing." The dragon in question then decided to show itself, clinging to a wall exactly where Hiccup had said. Acid dripped from its mouth and it spat some it towards them. Luckily it just hit the metal bars, which sizzled on the impact. "Wow. . . You guys really don't have a handle on these dragons, do you?"
The bearded man turned to Hiccup and placed his hands on the boy's shoulders. Dany couldn't help but feel relieved that he hadn't done that to her. She imagined the feeling of his big, meaty (and probably sweaty) fingers on her shoulders made her skin crawl just thinking about it. Alvin sounded almost excited as he explained, "well, that's why you're 'ere! Welcome to your new jobs, Hiccup and Daenerys."
They resumed walking now that the tour of the dragons was done. The brunet frowned. "Uh, job? As inviting as that sounds, I have to pass."
"Nothing sounds worse than working for you, actually," the Targaryen added, her characteristic honesty causing Alvin's eyes to narrow in annoyance.
"Girl, one day that tongue of yours is going to get you into trouble that you won't be able to get out of," the Outcast warned her before his tone became more genial as he addressed the boy: "Oh, Hiccup, Hiccup. . . Why do you always have to make things so difficult?"
"That's not the first time I've been asked that question," he admitted. "Or that someone's been put off by Dany's bluntness."
His words earned him a 'did you have to put it like that?' look from the blonde, to which he smiled back sheepishly. It was the first Daenerys was hearing of it, after all, but then again that was part of her difficulty in reading others' emotions— maybe her straightforwardness did put some people off, and she'd just never noticed. Before they could say anything more on the subject, their attention was caught by an achingly familiar black shape in a nearby cell.
"Toothless!" Hiccup cried out, his eyes widening with concern at the sight of his dragon. The Night Fury's own eyes blinked open at his call. Once he saw his rider and friend, he let out a frustrated roar as he thrashed back and forth in his restraints. Despite his efforts, though, he couldn't free himself and he settled back down with a defeated expression on his face. "Hang-hang in there, bud. I'll get you out!"
"He's not going anywhere, neither are you. You two will help me train these dragons."
"And if we don't?" Hiccup demanded challengingly.
"Well, then they're no good to me, none of 'em! Especially yours," Alvin answered with a cruel laugh.
They were, at least, relieved of Alvin's presence as he told Savage to take them to their cell. But that wasn't much better, really, as he enjoyed mocking them on the way there. "Can I get you anything? Food? A cozy blanket? Some warm yak milk?" He chuckled to himself, amused by what he thought passed for humor. "Heh, heh. Yak milk."
"Sons of a half troll, rat eating munge-buckets. . ." Daenerys cursed under her breath, though apparently not quietly enough as Hiccup still heard her.
"Dany!" he exclaimed, a little surprised more by the vehemence rather than the actual sentiment behind her words.
She turned to face him, her violet eyes blazing with the same force as a dragon's flame. "I hate them, Hiccup, I really do."
"So do I, but. . ." he trailed off as she shook her head.
Her expression became slightly gentler as she explained, "I don't think you could truly ever hate anyone. You're. . . you're too noble for that. On the other hand. . . I— if I had Drogon with me, I'd get the other dragons out and then burn this whole place through— with all of the Outcasts still inside it."
The brunet stared at her for a moment as if he had truly never seen her before— and in a way, he hadn't as this was another piece of the Dany-puzzle he had found. He, of course, remembered when she had told him not long ago about her family's proclivity for violence, but except for the rare instances of it during battle (which were perfectly acceptable and she'd never actually killed anyone) he had yet to experience it firsthand. Now, he could see that she fully believed her words as the inferno in her eyes blazed with the desire to right the wrongs done to the species she had sworn to protect.
He didn't know what to say at first, still startled by the intensity of her emotions. Then, hesitantly, he began: "the Outcasts will have what's coming for them, one day. Right now we need to focus on our escape and freeing Toothless so we can get back to Berk. After that, we'll think of a plan that will make them regret ever crossing paths with us. But we'll do it without becoming like them."
Dany closed her eyes and curled one of her hands into a fist, which she placed against her chest— right where she felt the center of that burning anger. She knew Hiccup was right; the answer to violence wasn't more violence. The blonde took a deep breath to calm her emotions. It was only when she felt an unexpected warmth against her skin (not the unwelcome touch of a stranger, but the kind that made her stomach flip pleasantly) that she opened her eyes again.
Hiccup had moved closer when she wasn't looking to stand mere inches away from her. He'd grasped her fist with both of his hands, ready to pull away at a moment's notice if she indicated that she didn't like it (she did.) "We're in this together, remember? No matter what."
Some of the rage melted away— not all of it, since it would always be there, somewhere deep down— enough for her to refocus. Dany straightened and squared her shoulders as determination overtook the anger. "Right. Let's get out of here."
--
Their current plan was to try and pick the lock to spring the cage. Hiccup was working on the latch while Dany kept an eye out for any guards that might come by to stop them.
"Someone's coming," she hissed warningly as footsteps approached, which were quickly followed by the annoying, gravelly voice of Mildew. The brunet hastily stopped his efforts to listen in on the men's conversation.
"Alvin, I gave you what you wanted, we had a deal!" the old Viking protested as Savage pushed him along. They made their way past the teens' cell to another not far from theirs.
"I didn't like that deal, so I changed it," Alvin said with a careless shrug.
Savage glanced at their other captives, a mocking leer on his face. "Oh, I believe you three know each other. Don't get too chummy." The Outcast shoved him into the cell across from ours. "Mildew's hours are numbered, much like yours and the Night Fury."
Then the leader of the Outcasts stalked forward until his menacing shadow loomed over the old man, who leaned away from him with unease. Alvin paid him no mind and snatched the sheep from under his arm. "No! What are you doing with me Fungus?"
Alvin ignored Mildew's distress as he turned his back on the other man to slam the cell door shut. "Preparing your final meal. It's lamb."
Dany gave Mildew a perturbed look at his dramatic display of what she supposed passed for sadness, but it was hard to tell since she didn't think Mildew was capable of such an emotion. He flung himself at the bars in an attempt to get his sheep back, his hands reaching into the empty air even when it was far too late for him to hope to get Fungus back. She felt no sympathy for the man who had tried to banish dragons from Berk more than once. In her opinion, he'd gotten what was coming for him. (It made her a little more confident that what Hiccup had said was right— doing nothing to the Outcasts now would make their fate worse later.)
Alvin scoffed at the man's cries. "Berkians. Still as dumb as the day I left."
"What have I done?"
Glancing over at Hiccup, she could see that brunet was moved by the expression of regret and sighed. Sometimes his noble streak was more trouble than it was worth; she would have been happy to leave Mildew to, well, mildew for the rest of his life down in these dungeons, but now they were going to have to save him, too.
"I know that look," she grumbled to the boy next to her, who turned and gave her a confused one in response.
"What look?"
"You felt bad for that excuse of a pile of dragon dung, so now he's coming with us. Obviously."
Hiccup opened his mouth as if he were going to protest, but then thought better of it. "He just lost his sheep, Dany. That's probably the only friend he had."
"I'd rather rescue the sheep."
He rolled his eyes good-naturedly, though she was hardly joking. "We're still working on a way of getting out of here first, then we'll worry about Mildew, okay?"
"You'll worry about Mildew, you mean," she corrected him blithely. "Personally I think Berk would be better off without him."
The brunet just shook his head before he cast his gaze around the small space to search for a plan B. There were some loose rocks piled off to one side, so he turned his attention to them in the hopes of using it as some sort of trowel. Dany watched him bang it on the ground a few times, unimpressed. "You know you're trying to dig through rock. . . with a rock, right?"
"The girl's right," that irritating voice chimed in from across the hall. Mildew was leaning against the bars of his cage, observing them. "I thought Stoick raised a smarter boy than this. And you'll never save your dragon by sitting in this cell, digging in the dirt. You need to go get him soon."
Daenerys was immediately put off by the old man agreeing with her— she never wanted to have anything in common with him— so she changed her opinion to say defensively, "we weren't talking to you, Mildew." Her tone softened as she addressed the boy: "you're doing great, Hiccup."
"And how would you suggest I do that?" the chief's son demanded.
"By giving Alvin what he wants."
There was a moment of silence as the teens considered his suggestion, then the Targaryen muttered, "damn. It's not the worst idea."
"It's the only one we've got," Hiccup agreed bracingly.
--
They made it out of the holding area probably faster than they would've if they had been alone, but Dany would never admit that aloud. Now they faced the next step: traversing across the island to free the Night Fury.
"Okay, what's the quickest way to get to Toothless?"
Mildew pointed his cane in the right direction. "Through that lava field."
"Let's go."
Before they could head off, the old man blocked their path with his cane. "Wait! You do realize those are wild dragons down there?"
"Yup," Hiccup stated. He resumed walking, more at a jog so as to get to Toothless that much faster. Dany didn't hesitate to follow, completely at ease with traversing through a potentially dangerous path.
When they crested over the hill, they got a better view of the dragons below. Some were calmly resting in sheltered spots where overhangs jutted above the rock. Others fought for food scraps and free space, roaring occasionally to assert themselves. After taking in the scene, the teens continued forward. "Well, come on, then. Let's go."
"Uh, let's not," Mildew said as he watched the dragons warily. He shrank a little behind the protective rocky barrier and clutched his staff closer to him.
The Targaryen sighed as she reluctantly slowed to reassure him. She hated it when he proved to be an actual human, and being afraid of wild dragons was a perfectly normal response. She let Hiccup do the encouraging, though, since she couldn't bring herself to actually be nice to the man. "We know what we're doing, Mildew. Just stay behind us."
"Oh, perfect. A ninety-pound boy and a crazed loony are me human shields," the old man complained, hobbling uncertainly after them.
Any smidgen of sympathy that she had begun to feel promptly disappeared. Dany whipped around to glare at him furiously, her violet eyes flashing with warning. She stepped up to him— grimacing at the odor that emanated from his body— and snarled, "oh, you want loony? I can give you loony."
"Dany, no," Hiccup scolded her, but she only backed down when she felt the warmth of his hands on her arm to pull her away from the man. She continued to glare at him, though, as he smirked smugly from behind the boy's back.
She felt supremely vindicated when they started moving again, only for Mildew to take one step and fall flat on his back as he tripped over some loose rock. "Oh, perfect."
Mildew shuddered and whimpered as they passed the dragons in the field. He leapt out of the way of one Nadder, only for it to take an interest in them. The dragon jumped to its feat and flared its wings before the group with a loud roar. The man started to swing his cane towards the creature, but Dany wasted no time in yanking it from his grasp— hard enough to make him stumble a little. Hiccup stuck his arm out in front of the old Viking. "No, Mildew! The last thing you want to do is threaten him."
The old man gaped at them with incredulity. "Me? Threaten him?"
"We have to show him he can trust us," the brunet explained as Dany approached the Nadder slowly with her hand outstretched.
Her violet eyes met the Nadder's yellow ones. The riot of emotions that she had been feeling throughout the day calmed, which showed in her posture as her tense muscles relaxed in the presence of her favorite animals. The dragon seemed to sense the lack of fear within her and reacted accordingly, dropping its aggression when she showed that she couldn't be spooked. It watched her for a few more seconds, its nostrils flaring as it sniffed her hand.
"You probably smell Drogon on me, don't you, you pretty thing?" she cooed at it, her tone lilting in a way that soothed it further.
Behind her, she heard Mildew scoff. "Pretty?"
She ignored him and resumed speaking: "don't worry, he's not here. If he was, he'd be your friend. We're your friends, too. We're not here to hurt you."
The Nadder's wide, wild eyes slanted nearly shut with contentment as it finally nudged her hand with its snout, purring in a way that only dragons could. She glanced behind her, smiling triumphantly. She met Hiccup's green eyes briefly before hers darted away in discomfort, but in the moment they met she saw the glint of pride in them, which made her face flush bashfully.
The brunet kept his gaze on her, smiling slightly as he watched the Nadder become even more comfortable with her touch. In a low voice so Dany wouldn't hear, he murmured to Mildew, "and that's why they call her the Mother of Dragons."
"Very impressive," the old Viking said weakly. He watched the dragon warily, not trusting its sudden gentleness for a second.
"Think you'd be willing to help us out, boy?" Daenerys asked the dragon. It— he chittered in response and nudged against the Targaryen's hand again, which Dany assumed was a yes. She waved Hiccup and Mildew forward.
The chief's son went willingly, offering his own hand for the dragon to sniff, and it did happily. Mildew was clearly still tense, which the Nadder sensed. It immediately became jumpy again and launched itself towards him with as a growl. The old man yelped in fright and scrambled backwards to get out of the way.
"No, no, he's just getting to know you. They can sense fear, so. . . be relaxed," Hiccup advised him.
"This is relaxed," he said through clenched teeth. He yelped again as it nosed at him, holding himself stiffly as he clutched at his cane for support.
"See?" the boy asked. "He wants to be friends. Isn't that nice?"
"I've got plenty of friends."
Dany let out a skeptical snort. "I highly doubt that." She pretended not to see Hiccup's reproachful look. "He'll get us past the guards at the dragon pit."
"What?"
As Mildew recovered from this unnerving news, the Nadder gave the Viking a big lick against his. . . well, entire body. The man shuddered in disgust.
"Remember, dragon training begins and ends with trust. Both of yours." Hiccup held out a hand towards the old man to guide it to a good place to rest on the Nadder's snout. The dragon remained calm, which seemed to help Mildew's nerves as he tentatively ran his hand against its hide. "Now, climb on."
"What?" he asked again, the unease returning as he eyed the dragon's back warily.
Dany rolled her eyes and leapt easily onto the Nadder's back before she turned and offered a hand to the brunet. He took it (even though he didn't really need the help) and settled himself behind her to provide a barrier between the girl and Mildew. Since Daenerys was already cautious about people touching her, he wasn't about to force her into more discomfort by having Mildew sit between them.
After watching their successful attempts, the Viking grumbled to himself and followed suit— or, at least, tried to as he wasn't very well practiced with getting on a dragon's back. "Okay, uh. . ."
He looked over the Nadder for a moment before he shoved himself upwards to get the upper half of his body over it. His legs flailed uselessly behind him as he struggled to find purchase, and he slid back down. More determined now than before, he used an impressive amount of force behind his second try, and jumped up with more agility than would usually be found in a man his age.
In an effort to help the older Viking's concerns, Hiccup joked, "wow. Mildew on a dragon. This is gonna take some getting used to."
His stab at humor went unappreciated as the Nadder shifted impatiently beneath them, sending Mildew into another fit of panicked squawks. "Eh, why's it doing that? What's happening?"
Dany patted the Nadder between the shoulder blades as she always did with Drogon, calming the dragon so it wouldn't move around so much. "It's okay. He's just never had people on him before."
Hiccup spit into his hand and then placed it onto the part of the dragon that was nearest to him. He rubbed his saliva onto the Nadder's back in comforting strokes. "A dragon's hide is dry. The moisture from your hands will soothe him."
The Targaryen had never been glad for her Hiccup-barrier as Mildew spit wildly into his hand; she grimaced at the thought of the germs that the brunet had probably been subjected to as a result. The Nadder steadied itself once more and only needed a moment to prepare itself for flight. She winced as the old man screamed again and if she had looked behind her, she would have seen him clinging to Hiccup as if the boy were an anchor.
The brunet laughed nervously as the man gripped him desperately. "Uh, you, uh. . . hey, okay. Uh, you know, there's a lot of dragon here, Mildew. W-Why don't you grab some of that?"
But Mildew wanted what was familiar, if not awkward to hold on to, and his arms remained wrapped around the teen. "H-Huh? Oh, uh, I'm fine."
Dany was used to flying through all kinds of weather, so the patchy cloud cover was hardly a challenge for her. It did make seeing the land below difficult, though, so she guided the Nadder closer to the rocky ground in the hopes of being able to spot where the dragon pit was. It didn't take long for her to identify the shadowy place that stood out against the uneven ground. Pointing to it, she announced "that's where they have Toothless."
They flew down into the hole and for once, she was grateful that Drogon wasn't with them; he never would have fit. The tunnels were small and narrow, just big enough to stay on the Nadder's back rather than search by foot. It was dark, too, both because of its location and the time of day, but shafts of moonlight illuminated the path through cracks in the rock above. She used the patches of light as best she could to navigate to the cavernous opening where Alvin had given them a tour.
Hiccup made for Toothless' cage right away, but Dany looked around at the other dragons that were still locked up. She felt the rage bubble back to the surface at the thought of how Alvin was keeping them, and she wondered if there was a way to free all of them. But then the boy's disappointed words drew her back to the present mission: "Toothless is gone. . ."
Daenerys whirled on Mildew, pointing an accusatory finger in his face. "You led us into a trap! You knew Toothless wasn't going to be here, didn't you? I knew we should've left you—"
"Dany!" the brunet interrupted her, grasping her wrist to pull hand away from the old man, who was stuttering with indignant denial. "You saw Alvin take away his sheep. Why would Mildew want to work with him after that?"
"Exactly!" Mildew exclaimed, his eyes wide as he watched her nervously. "Listen to the boy. I've cut all ties with Alvin!"
But the Targaryen was not so easily convinced, remembering how dramatically the old Viking had clawed after his pet, as if he were putting on some kind of show. And maybe she was being prejudiced against him because of how much she hated him, but she didn't think that was the case. She opened her mouth to provide a rebuttal, only to be interrupted by unfortunately familiar gravelly laughter. Their gazes shot upwards to land on the Outcast leader, but they didn't get a chance to do anything as the cages around them swung open to unleash the rest of the wild dragons.
"Let's see what you can do with some real wild dragons," Alvin taunted the teens.
Dany immediately put aside her hostility towards Mildew in the face of the new threat. She moved closer to the brunet so they formed a tight-knit trio with the Nadder protecting their backs. The blonde glanced over at him and muttered, "you got a plan?"
He shot her a grateful look, always taken by delighted surprise at how easily she trusted him. "Do we have to free the dragons too?"
"It would be nice but not a requirement," she answered.
Hiccup nodded since that made their escape much easier. He addressed the only wildcard they had left: "Mildew, whatever happens in the next minute, do exactly what I tell you."
The dragons roared threateningly before they all made their individual attacks. The Changewing spit acid, forcing them to duck out of the way so it hit the metal bars behind them. They used the following confusion to their advantage and hopped on the Nadder's back just as the Whispering Death launched forward. It snapped its many teeth at them, causing them to jump out of the way, nearly right into the Scauldron's boiling spray.
When a head-on attack proved futile, the Whispering Death dove to burrow under the rock to create an uneven surface. Mildew, who didn't know much about the species, took it as a sign of defeat. "At least that one's gone."
Hiccup winced sympathetically as the ground around them became overturned. "Well, uh, not for long, actually."
"Dragon Lessons one-oh-one," Dany said, raising her voice to be heard above the rumbling rock, "Changewings shoot acid, Scauldrons fire boiling water, and Whispering Deaths hunt from underground."
Hiccup, who was now in control, urged the Nadder into a run to propel their flight to avoid that last category. As the Whispering Death shot up to get them, the other two dragons also made their own charges, causing them to have a head-on collision. They fell into a pile of tangled limbs and wings, leaving the Nadder and its humans to escape unscathed.
--
"Well, you know your dragons. I'll give you that," Mildew said once they were safely out of harm's way. Dawn was just breaking over the horizon, night sky giving way to blue, and they could see the faint outlines of their surroundings.
They didn't need their eyes to recognize the voice that greeted them as the large shapes of the Thunderdrum and the chief he carried came into view. "Hiccup! Daenerys! Thank Thor you're alright."
She was pleased to be included in the relief in his voice, which made her think that the apology really had been genuine. Their friends gathered around them and she was all too glad to hop of the Nadder and fling her arms around Drogon, who had apparently not heeded her wishes to go home and joined the search party instead. He let out a rumbling welcome that was paired with a snort of hot steam as a rebuke for being so careless.
"I know, I know," she mumbled into his warm scales. "But Hiccup was with me, so I knew we'd make it out alright."
Drogon had to concede that point, so the matter was settled. She pulled away from him just as Hiccup was finished greeting his father. "I am, but Toothless is in trouble."
Tuffnut approached the brunet to hiss in a surprisingly quiet whisper (the twins were not known for being subtle), "and Mildew is on the back of your dragon."
"We know."
"Weird," Tuffnut commented, making a face up at the older man.
Mildew was suddenly yanked off the Nadder's back as Gobber grabbed him with his real hand. The blacksmith dragged him across the rocks, then held him up in the air so that his feet dangled beneath him. He held his prosthetic hand— this time adorned with a rock for a mallet— threateningly above the Viking's head. "I should run you through right now!"
Dany very much agreed with him, and she would have happily let Drogon be the firing squad; she still didn't trust the man as far as she could throw him, her suspicions about his continued treachery notwithstanding. Unfortunately, Hiccup was still, well, Hiccup, and he held his hands out to stop the older man from decapitating Mildew. "Whoa, whoa, Gobber! He helped us escape." He turned to his father. "Dad, I owe Mildew my life."
Gobber tossed Mildew to the ground in disgust while everyone stared at Hiccup in disbelief. He glanced over at Dany, clearly expecting her to speak up on the old Viking's behalf. She watched the man stonily and didn't say anything, causing the brunet to sigh in defeat. Tuffnut was the first to accept the truth, though he did so with an uneasy grimace. "Getting weirder. . ."
"I'll explain later. Right now, I have to get to Toothless," the brunet amended hastily, knowing time was of the essence.
"Or bring him to you," Astrid suggested, reminding him of their dragon-call practice.
He nodded to her appreciatively, then went to the opening of one of the canyons and cupped his hands around his mouth to mimic a Night Fury's roar. It echoed, bouncing off the cliffs until it reached Toothless' ears. His head jerked up from where he'd been sniffing the ground to find his rider's scent and let out a roar of his own in response. Hearing the answer, the Vikings quickly climbed on to their respective dragons to follow the sound.
Hiccup spotted his dark shape running along one of the rock crevices and the group followed him to land in front of the Night Fury. The black dragon took a running leap and knocked his friend over. He happily covered Hiccup's face in excited licks as his tail swished back and forth. "Toothless! Are you okay, bud?" He purred in response. "Oh, I am so sorry, Toothless. This was all my fault."
Their reunion was cut short as the Night Fury spun around, the purr changing into a growl as he glared at something past them. Confused, Hiccup turned to follow the direction of his gaze. "Whoa. What's the matter, bud?"
The answer soon came in the form of Alvin's mocking voice, which boomed over their heads as he appeared on the outcropping above: "hey there, boy! You weren't gonna leave before we finished our business, were you?"
Toothless' growl intensified as Hiccup stood up, eyes narrowed. Dany glared at the Outcast as well, feeling Drogon shift underneath her. All it would take was one blast, she thought, tempted by the idea of Alvin being defeated by the very thing he tried to control. But Hiccup had said that they could be better than the Outcasts, and she would try, for his sake. She thought that would be the end of that, but of course the Outcast leader wasn't done trying to provoke them.
"That's what I would expect from Stoick's little runt."
And while she couldn't blame Hiccup's response, she wished he had remembered his own words as he leapt onto his dragon's back. Stoick tried to intervene and keep him from doing something reckless, but the brunet wouldn't listen to anyone as he flew straight towards Alvin.
"Do it, boy! I'm right here!" the bearded man taunted him. He swung his axe in response, preparing for the strike. Then, when Hiccup and Toothless were close enough, the Outcast turned to his soldiers. "Now!"
Bolas came flying out from the men who had been hidden on the rocks below. They caught Toothless' arms and wings, causing dragon and rider to careen towards the ground without control. After several rough bounces that made the Berkians wince in sympathy, the pair came to a stop in enemy territory, too far for their friends to aid them easily. Hiccup glanced over each of his shoulders at the sound of the rebel yells that came from the Outcast soldiers as they poured in from either side. Even if their friends could have come, they'd still be outnumbered.
It was hard to tell what happened from his angle on Toothless' back, but he saw the bright orange of flame as the dragons came to his aid. The Outcasts abruptly let out very different yells as they leapt out of harm's way to avoid the fire. When the soldiers were distracted, Stormfly and Hookfang lifted them by the ropes that bound them together and flew the pair back to the Berkian side of the rock. Gobber and Stoick rushed forward to cut the ropes and free them from their confines.
The other dragons were just returning as he looked towards his friends. "What happened?"
"The dragons saved you on their own," Fishlegs answered with obvious awe in his voice.
Dany patted Drogon on the snout as he curled his neck around her in a sort-of hug, proud of the lengths he had come from just acting on his own to being a part of a team. Astrid smiled delightedly at her own dragon. "Looks like they took their training to a whole new level."
Always one to stay on task, Stoick cut in to their rehashing: "we catch up later. Right now, we need to get out of here."
It was true enough as they could see even more Outcasts running towards them with battle on their minds. They all carried various weapons as they anticipated taking on the Berkian force, but the chief wouldn't let it get to that. Stoick led the group, blasting at the soldiers with one of Thornado's soundwaves to keep them from swarming them.
The others followed quickly— a little too quickly as Mildew had only had enough time to grab onto the Nadder's tail before they took off. His flight was wavy as the tail moved with the wind and his grip on it slickened with sweat from fear. Hiccup turned to take in the older man's state, his eyes widening with alarm at the sight of his tenuous position. "Mildew!"
Gobber rolled his eyes at the man's dramatics. "Oh, for the love of Thor. Mildew, get back up here!" But, as he tried to climb up to the Nadder's back, one of his hands released its hold. The blacksmith's gaze narrowed warningly. "Don't you let go, old man."
But he couldn't hold on any longer and his other hand slipped off as well to let him freefall through the air. Hiccup turned Toothless around with the intent to catch him, shouting the man's name in alarm as he did so. Dany remained indifferent as the brunet went back for the Viking and simply urged Drogon to continue flying home. She felt no remorse for leaving such a horrid person in the hands of Outcasts, though Hiccup clearly did.
--
Hiccup stared down at the false map of the Isle of Night with disappointment, remembering his previous high of excitement at the thought of finding more Night Furies. He couldn't help but think that maybe, if he had been a little more aware, he wouldn't have been so easily fooled. But he also knew that he would chase down every hint of Night Fury activity for his dragon's sake, regardless of how slim the possibility of their existence actually was.
"I'm sorry this map wasn't the real thing, bud," he said dejectedly. Toothless didn't seem to mind and purred warmly in response as he nudged the boy with his snout affectionately. With one final look at it, he tossed it into the fire and walked over to the Book of Dragons. "But, hey, there's nothing wrong with being one of a kind."
The door swung open to reveal the welcome view of a young girl with wild, silvery-blonde curls as she stood silhouetted in the doorframe. A crown of red flowers interwoven with green fronds sat perched slightly askew on her head, most likely windblown from her flight. Her bow and quiver were strapped across her chest, the shafts of the arrows sticking up over one shoulder. Dany's bare toes rested on the edge of the threshold as she bounced restlessly while she waited for him.
Now there's someone who's one of a kind, he thought fondly, feeling the melancholy emotions melt away at the sight of her like dew under the bright sun. He looked at her expectantly, half-anticipating that she would come inside to study Bork's notes with him.
Instead, she only let out an impatient huff that indicated he'd forgotten something. "Would you come on?" she groaned. He raised an eyebrow at her, asking her to explain. "Bork Week? The parade? Even my parents are here!"
Hiccup grinned then and set aside the Book of Dragons. "Right."
Toothless followed him close behind as they left the chief's house, but apparently he wasn't walking fast enough as— with another annoyed breath— the blonde grabbed his hand to pull him along, not that he was complaining in the slightest.
END PART 1.