Dragons live for a long, long time. Human life, however, is far more fleeting.
Toothless and the Light Fury were sunning themselves on the rocks, not too far from the gaping caldera in the ocean that lead to their home. This was a daily routine, and it had been so for many decades now. Neither of them were young dragons anymore, by any stretch of the imagination. But though their speed and agility had been somewhat impaired by the passing of time, their minds and senses remained sharp.
You didn't stay in charge in these parts if you didn't earn it.
Exposing themselves like this was risky, but its purpose was threefold. The first – and least pressing – was that Toothless had lived all his early life in wide open spaces. Though the Hidden World was seemingly endless, with caverns and tunnels that stretched across the globe – ample space for flying – Toothless had found very quickly that he missed the sky.
Second was for security. True, it was nigh on impossible for humans to enter their home without perishing in the attempt, unless they were on dragon-back. But if it were ever discovered that this was where all dragon-kind resided, they would find a way. Humans were nothing if not persistent. Best to be vigilant, and eliminate threats to the peace if necessary. Though, as of yet, the only boats that had ventured close enough to be worthy of concern had always turned out to be the complete opposite.
Those boats were the third – and truthfully, the primary – reason why Toothless and his mate continued to spend a few hours outside each day, all these years later.
Because those boats always brought Hiccup.
The visits were seldom, and Toothless never knew when the next one would be. The first time, his old friend had looked so different from the young man in his memories that Toothless did not immediately recognize him. In the two visits since, the changes in Hiccup had been less severe. The last time he'd come, his hair was mostly grey instead of brown, and he'd needed a stick to help him walk.
That had been many, many moons ago now.
It was warmer than usual today, even with the ever present breeze that came with living in such close proximity to waterfalls. It was likely summertime on the surface, but it was hard to determine the change in seasons here. It was easier to tell when it was winter, for the sun only appeared for a few hours – sometimes Toothless and the Light Fury would only catch it for a few minutes before it dipped below the horizon again. In summer it never truly set.
The sun was too low in the sky right now for it to be daytime – but it could just as easily be sunset as it could be sunrise. The clouds were tinged in hues of orange and pink, and the light was soft.
The Light Fury closed her eyes, and rolled lazily onto her back. Toothless was rather inclined to do the same, when something perked his ears. He growled uneasily, and rose to his feet.
As a ship appeared in the mist.
In one swift movement, Toothless swooped off of their rocky outpost and onto the bow of the vessel; wary of course, but hopeful that it might be his friend visiting once more.
Instead he was met by an old woman, with long white hair and blue eyes. But his enthusiasm did not waver, for he knew this face almost as well as Hiccup's.
Astrid smiled when she saw him, and put out a hand. He nuzzled against her shoulder in greeting, and she scratched him under the chin affectionately.
"Hey Toothless," she said quietly, and it was only then that Toothless noticed how sad she looked.
Something was wrong.
He pulled away, and glanced behind her anxiously. The deck was empty, save a bearded, blond-haired man that Toothless didn't recognize, who was throwing an anchor overboard. He wasn't close enough to scent, but Toothless knew it wasn't Hiccup.
Toothless looked at Astrid imploringly, and she seemed to understand the question in his eyes, for she said "It's okay, he's here." And a tear slid down her cheek.
She wiped it away quickly, and turned to the man on the deck. "Fink, honey, can you go get them?"
With a jolt, Toothless realized that this was the youngest of Hiccup and Astrid's offspring. He'd been a gangly, clean-shaven youth the last time they'd met.
The blond-haired man – Nuffink – nodded, and disappeared into the belly of the ship, as the Light Fury landed on the deck beside Toothless. She still wasn't comfortable with riders, but over the years she had become more accustomed to Toothless' human family. She sensed her mate's worry and chirped at him once, nudging his side gently.
"You two haven't changed at all," murmured Astrid, as a door towards the back of the boat creaked open.
Nuffink emerged first, holding the door back so that those following him could pass through more easily. First came a cluster of children; three girls and two boys, of varying ages and hair colours. They kept their distance from Toothless and the Light Fury, but none of them looked particularly scared. Mostly they just stared at the two dragons in awe.
"My grandchildren," Astrid said to Toothless with an air of fondness. "We'll get you acquainted another time."
There was a moment of quiet, and then Toothless heard the muted shuffling of multiple pairs of feet, as the rest of the ship's passengers emerged.
Three younger figures (two women and a man) supported a frail and elderly fourth, all but carrying him up onto the deck. Toothless knew instantly that the old man was Hiccup, but his scent was all wrong. He let out a low whine
Hiccup's mouth crinkled into a soft smile. "Hey bud," he whispered.
Astrid took her husband's hand, and he gripped it hard, as the simple effort of saying those two words sent him into a fit of coughing that rattled his entire body.
It was a few minutes before the coughing subsided, and Hiccup sagged further into the arms of the people holding him upright; one of whom, a woman with wild red hair, Toothless now recognized as Hiccup's eldest, Zephyr.
Toothless licked her face once, and she wiped it away with a small, teary chuckle. "Remember me? I'm a bit older than last time, huh." She inclined a head at the two strangers helping her with Hiccup. "This is my husband, Haakon, and that's Nuffink's wife Eira."
Toothless met each set of unfamiliar eyes, and rumbled what amounted to a 'hello' deep in his chest. The strangers smiled warmly back, and Toothless turned his attention back to Hiccup.
The old man was watching his friend closely. "You know something's not right, don't you bud." He said between shallow breaths.
Toothless whined again, nudging Hiccup's chest gently with his snout. Hiccup released Astrid's hand to stroke the dragon's nose. "Of course you do." He coughed violently again, this time leaning hard against Toothless' head.
Astrid stroked Hiccup's hair, her voice thick. "He…um…he's…" she couldn't bring herself to say the words.
But Toothless knew. He'd scented death before. He scented it now.
The Light fury mewed quietly, coming up beside her mate to nuzzle Hiccup's arm. She scented it, too.
"Hey, it's alright, it's alright." Hiccup murmured, but Toothless wasn't sure who the words were meant for. "It was always going to happen sometime." Hiccup looked at Toothless steadily. "What do you say, bud? One last flight?"
Toothless closed his eyes, and wriggled his nose into Hiccup's palm.
Hiccup smiled again, a single tear rolling down his cheek.
"I'll get some blankets," Nuffink whispered to his mother, who nodded.
Before long, Toothless' back was covered in furs. Astrid climbed on first. It took all four remaining adults to lift Hiccup onto Toothless' shoulders, and Hiccup no longer had the strength to hold himself there alone. So he lay against the back of Toothless' head, and Astrid held onto him from behind.
There were no words of goodbye. Perhaps they had already been said. But Toothless felt each member of Hiccup's family embrace the man for a long, long time, before gathering near Toothless' head.
He felt Hiccup pat his neck. "I'm ready, bud."
Toothless rose carefully to his feet, doing his best not to jostle his riders more than was necessary.
Without warning, the Light Fury leaped into the air, and landed on the mast.
And she roared. It was a roar loud enough for the whole world to hear. Her parting gift to the Chief of Berk.
Then she took off; soaring, Toothless knew, back into the Hidden World. So that her mate might have this time alone with his human.
Toothless took one last look at Hiccup's gathered family. He had a feeling that Hiccup was doing the same.
Then he ran the few strides it took to cross the boat, before launching himself into the sky.
The sun did not rise. Nor did it set, not really.
Evening, then.
For a time, Toothless heard Astrid singing, though he could not hear the words.
For long stretches, the only sound was the beat of Toothless' wings.
It could have been hours, days, or years that they spent among the clouds.
Toothless felt Hiccup shift slightly on his shoulders. Then he heard his voice, close to his ears, and quiet.
"Thank you, Toothless. For everything."
It was all that needed to be said.
For so many things, Hiccup was grateful. His friends, his family, his home, his tribe, his life.
For the woman who had loved him since they were fifteen. Who had held him in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, and who was still there, holding him now.
For the dragon who had been his friend when no one else was, and a best friend ever since. Who had given him purpose as a youth, and something to strive to be worthy of as a man.
If Astrid held his heart, then Toothless held his soul.
Hiccup nestled closer into the crook of Toothless' neck, and closed his eyes.
And as he drifted off to sleep, he smiled.