-Hiccup POV-
“Congratulations, Hiccup! You get to kill the Monstrous Nightmare!” Gobber boomed, the words echoing with forced cheer.
Kill a dragon? The irony choked me. I couldn’t even bring myself to kill Toothless. Remaining in Berk was impossible. I had to leave, to disappear with my Night Fury. After slipping away from the crowd, I hurried home, driven by a desperate need to prepare. My drawings—detailed sketches of Toothless’ tail, the curve of his wings—were too dangerous to leave behind. My father would find them, and the questions would begin. I tucked them carefully into my bag, then slipped out of the house, heart hammering against my ribs.
I made my way to the woods, to the hidden hollow where I’d stashed Toothless. A twig snapped behind me, and I spun around, pulse leaping. Nothing. Toothless, sensing my presence, erupted in joyful leaps, circling me with a playful whine.
“Hey, buddy,” I said, voice tight with anxiety. “We need to leave Berk. Now.”
A figure moved in the distance, and panic surged.
“Quickly, Toothless! Go! Now!”
He launched into the air, a blur of black scales and powerful wings. I gasped as he gained altitude, the wind whipping past my face.
“Careful next time!” I shouted, a tremor in my voice.
Looking out at the horizon, feeling the wind on my skin, I could think. Here, above the world, it was peaceful. It was enough.
♤
-Astrid POV-
I crouched behind a house, watching Hiccup disappear into the woods. He was using the same routes, the same patterns. He was getting better at this. He was getting better at *everything*, and I realized with a sickening lurch that these tricks were how he was defeating me. I pushed into the woods after him, but my foot caught on a twig. I ducked behind a bush, holding my breath as he walked past, oblivious.
Then I heard a scream. I raced towards the sound, and saw a dragon—a Night Fury—rising into the sky with Hiccup on its back.
“By Thor,” I breathed. “He’s been taken by a Night Fury!”
I had to tell Stoick. I ran back to Berk, straight to his house.
♤
-Stoick POV-
Valka lost to dragons, and now my son, Hiccup, taken by one. All that remained of my family was gone. After Astrid’s frantic report, I assembled a search party, determined to find him and that monstrous creature that dared to steal him.
Days bled into weeks, weeks into months. The search yielded nothing. The bloody Night Fury had killed Hiccup. And that dragon would pay.
♤
-Hiccup POV-
-THREE YEARS LATER-
Three years had passed since I ran away from Berk with Toothless. We’d found an island—a haven untouched by danger. Along the way, we’d made friends and enemies, though mostly the latter. I had two true friends: Dagur and Heather. Though at first we were enemies, Dagur had changed, I guess. I lost my leg trying to free dragons from the Red Death. I fell into a fiery explosion, but Toothless saved me.
A Razerwhip and a Gronkle circled overhead, and I knew who they were.
“Hey Heather and Dagur,” I smiled.
“Brother!” Dagur called down.
“Hey Hiccup,” Heather replied.
They landed, and we walked back to my place on the island, letting their dragons rest. Heather prepared her famous dinner, and we sat around the table, sharing stories of our adventures since last we met.
Suddenly, a knock on the door. Who could be here? I opened it to Trader Johann.
“Trader Johann, you’re not due for another week,” I said, suspicion tightening my jaw.
“I know, Master Hiccup, but some of BloodFury’s men were trading goods with me—weapons,” he said.
“Why are they getting more weapons?” Heather asked.
“I overheard them saying they’re planning to take over Berk!”
“What? Why would they want to take over a small village that is against dragons?” Dagur questioned.
Johann shrugged, clearly unsure. What were they up to? Even though I’d left Berk for Toothless, I still cared about the people there. I needed to go back, to help them. I *had* to go back.