Author's note: This story occurs within the frame of Riders/Defenders of Berk but is independent of the TV series.

This story is rated T for violence and graphic descriptions. No profanity.

Reviews, comments and suggestions are always welcome. Thanks for reading!

I finally did it. The product of letting my mind wander finally became real. Finally. Like, really finally. I didn't care how it looked, as long as it worked. And therein was the problem: I couldn't test it. There was going to be no practice whatsoever.

How do you practice flying on your own, anyway? The best I could figure, I'd have to get a fast-enough head-start. That meant using Toothless to get me high enough and moving fast enough to use my new contraption.

I was building a flying suit. Well, it sounded really good like that. In reality, I was fashioning a gliding suit. My main concern in actually putting it together was keeping the connections strong. The surface I had put in between the legs and from my arms to my sides was the most flexible leather I could find. I sewed it to the clothing I used to fly around on Toothless to make sure I was still aerodynamic. I was worried about the stitches coming undone, though. In all of my experience flying on Toothless' back, I never saw him fold his wings in any way and still continue flying. Any time he folded his wings, he entered a dive. I had to keep the leather taut. To do that, I had to extend my arms away from my sides and spread my legs. I had to pull on the leather to use its surface area. And if some of the stitching came apart, I wouldn't be able to access that surface area.

Using the strongest twine I could gather, I began sewing the leather to my clothes. It was unbelievably difficult, and after about six inches on my right pants leg, my fingers felt like they were going to burst. The action of sewing wasn't difficult. You push the needle in, it pulls the twine through the hole, you pull several inches, and then repeat the process about half an inch down the line. It turns out that the twine was much thicker than the needle. Which made actually pulling the material through the holes difficult. Several times, I lost my grip on the needle, which scared me each time. A sharp metal object piercing directly through my left thumb? No, thank you. And don't get me started on trying to thread the needle.

After I finished the right leg, I took a short break, letting my hand finish cramping. I stretched my wrist and fingers, trying to get at least some normal motion back.

"You know, it's almost funny watching you struggle to sew," a girl's voice said.

I looked up, although I knew exactly who it was. "Oh, that?" I asked. "It's actually really easy. I just don't want anyone else to know about it."

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Liar." She paused. "Can I come in?" she asked.

I nodded, still focusing on my left hand for the moment. I heard the door leading into the forge creak open, followed by a clicking sound as it closed behind Astrid.

"I just checked on Toothless," she said. "How long did you say he's been like this?"

I sighed. "I guess it started two days ago."

"He's not getting any better. I got him outside before he ruined your house again."

I took a deep breath. "Thanks," I said. There was no feeling behind it.

The flying vest I was dreaming up and creating was the product of letting my mind wander while taking care of Toothless. I hated to see him sick like this, especially for two days. Cleaning the floor after he threw up was horrible, and the inside of the house smelled like rotten fish no matter how hard the wind blew to ventilate it. It was anything other than a great way to start our transition from spring into summer.

The last time Toothless had fallen ill was when I was hiding him in the cove. It was some kind of one-day ordeal, and that was nasty enough. But this was at least two days. Maybe even three, counting the day before I truly noticed he was sick. He was eating less that day and acting a little more tired than usual. The next morning, I was jarred awake by a gagging sound from his rock, followed by a cascade of rotten-smelling liquid pouring from his mouth. You can't fall asleep for a while after hearing that. Or seeing it, for that matter.

After nearly hurling from witnessing that, followed by the nauseating feeling of cleaning up after my dragon, I did what worked two years ago. I brought Toothless water to keep him cool and hydrated. And two days later, he had barely eaten anything, and he was still burning hot to the touch. He was drinking water, but about half of it was coming back up. He could barely focus his eyes, and his breathing was labored. A lot of the time, he was panting slightly. I liked listening to him breathing because it had a slow, relaxing sound, just like the bellows I used in the forge. But the last two days were short breaths, often accompanied by wheezing and occasionally struggling to get air into his lungs.

I had been by his side for the past day and a half, keeping him company. And I was about to go stir-crazy if I didn't do something soon. As I was ambling toward the forge, the idea about the flying suit hit me. It was something to focus my energy on for a while, something to do while my mind reset. Even though I had only one leg finished and my left hand was twisted from cramping, I felt more relaxed. I felt better able to handle what Toothless did in the next few hours.

"Are you hungry?" Astrid asked me.

I shrugged. "Yeah, I could eat something. No fish tonight, though."

"Come on," Astrid told me while turning toward the door leading out. "We'll find something."

I put the flying suit down in my study and followed her out of the forge. I walked behind her as we entered the great hall for supper. Almost immediately, I was surrounded by the smell of cooked, palatable food. And I realized how hungry I really was. I hadn't eaten anything since breakfast, mainly because Toothless' illness wouldn't let me. Both from a psychological standpoint and a taking-care-of-him standpoint. But for the time being, I didn't have to worry about him for a little while.

I paused for a moment, taking the scene in. Dozens of Vikings were sitting at long tables, chowing down on whatever meal they had chosen. Several of them were having conversations with each other about random events on Berk. Still others were silently eating their meal. By the time I realized Astrid had left me standing alone in the middle of the great hall, I saw her heading my direction, precariously balancing two plates and two mugfuls of water in her arms. I took the initiative and sat down at a random table. Glanced around to check for anyone who might disturb us. Nobody I recognized was sitting nearby.

Astrid put a mug and plate in front of me. Chicken meat was her choice for the evening.

"Thanks, Astrid," I said.

"Anytime," she responded as she sat down. We began eating our meals without another word.

Even though we didn't say anything to each other, I still felt calmer in her presence. It was nice to know there was at least one person on Berk who liked being around me.

We ate our entire meals in silence. Just like she had brought the plates and mugs out, I gathered them up and took them to the back of the hall for washing. I returned to our little area and sat back down.

"What were you sewing in the forge?" she asked.

I shrugged a little, not knowing how she was gonna respond to my crazy idea. "A flying suit," I said simply.

Her eyes widened slightly. "So you can fly next to Toothless?" she asked. She didn't quite understand how I was planning on using it, and I wasn't really sure either.

"I guess. I'll have to find out how I can use it once Toothless is healthy."

"It's no good on its own?" she asked. "Hiccup, I don't get how you're going to…fly."

I tried to explain what I was thinking to her. "I…I guess it's not really flying. Probably more like gliding. I think I can take Toothless on a flight and jump off his back, and we can glide next to each other. I guess for a short while." I paused. Looked at her and noticed she was lost in some thought. "It…It's a crazy idea, and I don't even know if it's going to work."

Astrid was still lost in thought, then dismissed whatever was occupying her. "You're always crazy," she said sarcastically. "Sounds like fun though. I mean, if you can train Toothless for it."

I smirked in acknowledgement. "Yeah, there's a lot more than just sewing stuff together. Not only do I have to train Toothless for it, I also have to modify his tail fin so he can maneuver in the air. And a thousand other things I haven't thought of yet."

"Sounds like you got all the basics covered," she said with a wry smile. After a few seconds both of us broke down giggling.

There was a break in our conversation. I took a deep breath and said, "I'm gonna check on Toothless." And stood.

"I'll come with you."

We walked silently toward my house. As I pulled the door open, a wave of rotten air washed over us. I turned my head slightly, trying to keep the meal I had just eaten from coming back up. I sucked in a quick breath through my mouth, but that didn't help because I could taste the air just as easily as I could smell it. I had no choice but to brave it and march inside.

I climbed the stairs and saw Toothless still shivering on his rock. There were no pools of sick around him, but I noticed a small string of liquid connecting the side of his mouth to the rock he was lying on.

I had slept indoors for the past two nights, but tonight required I stay outdoors. The penetrating odor of Toothless' sickness was way too much to handle.

I put my hand on Toothless' neck and gently massaged his skin. He was still hot to the touch, and I felt him shaking underneath my hand.

"Hey, buddy," I whispered to him. "Let's go outside."

Toothless slowly craned his neck and looked at me with a sideways gaze. He groaned slightly from the effort, telling me his joints were stiff as well. But he tried to get to all fours anyway. Toothless began panting, but he eventually slithered off his rock and haltingly stepped toward me.

"He looks worse than earlier tonight," Astrid said quietly.

"Hopefully the fresh air will help," I said quietly. I kept eye contact with Toothless as his legs buckled each time he took a step down toward the floor. The staircase was difficult for him to negotiate, especially after about the first three steps or so. His breathing became more labored as the strain to move and brace himself against gravity increased. If I could just get him outside, we'd be okay. There'd be less worrying about having to clean up after he hurled.

"C'mon, buddy," I pleaded with him. He nearly crawled through the doorway. I got him about fifteen feet away from the entrance to my house when his back legs gave up. Toothless' hips met the ground first, soon followed by his chest as his front legs gave way, followed by his head. He groaned weakly as exhaustion set in. His eyes were unfocused, like he was staring past the horizon.

It was a shock to see this much effort just to get out of the house. Normally, Toothless was a ball of energy, always looking for the next flight or another romp with Stormfly. But not tonight.

"The air smells so much better out here," Astrid observed.

"Yeah, that's why I wanted to get him out of the house," I replied. "I don't know if I can survive another night with that smell." I took a deep breath, thankful for the fresh air. "I'm gonna get some water. Can you stay with him?" I asked Astrid.

She nodded. "I'll be here when you get back."

Before I could take a step toward the great hall, I heard a violent, hurking sound come from Toothless. He already had his eyes squeezed shut as he opened his mouth. He gagged as a small river of foul-smelling liquid trickled down his tongue. I forced my vision to un-focus on the scene, but not before I saw the inside of Toothless' mouth was much whiter than it should have been.

Through pure luck, I guessed, this particular heave wasn't a torrent of liquid spilling out of Toothless' mouth. I could clean this up with a bucketful of water in no time.

I groaned, trying to suppress a wave of nausea. "You can move him somewhere else," I told Astrid. And walked off without another word. I walked back into the great hall and filled two buckets with water. It was mostly empty, except for the few Vikings who were still gossiping about happenings in the village. Everybody was on a schedule, it seemed, and that schedule was the same throughout Berk. You eat meals at a particular time of day. You wake up and go to sleep at particular times of day. And for me, I made frequent trips to the great hall for water throughout the day. Toothless being sick was really upending my schedule. And when I say "schedule," I'm talking about flights.

I took the buckets out of the great hall and walked back toward Toothless and Astrid. When I had left them, they were near the right side of my house, if you were facing it. Astrid had moved Toothless about twenty feet to my left, away from the smell. I put one of the buckets down in front of Toothless' snout. I saw the tip of it curl, and soon after that, he lifted his head and began lapping slowly at the water in front of him. I let Toothless drink at his pace, knowing everything was gonna happen sluggishly for the next few minutes. Once he finished the water, I moved the bucket away from him and began spreading water from the other bucket onto his side, using a cupped left hand to transfer the water to his skin.

Toothless took a deep breath and sighed as soon as the water met his skin. I felt him relax under my touch, and I realized I could harness the magic he always had, even if it was just for a fleeting moment. Granted, the water was doing most of the work at relaxing him, but I felt immensely better about Toothless' predicament when he gave that sigh. Astrid and I smiled at the same time. I gently rubbed the water over his skin, spreading it so it would evaporate faster. Which translated into more cooling.

I didn't say a word to Toothless because I wanted to lock myself in the moment. For whatever reason, I was content for now just by massaging water into Toothless' flank.

I looked toward Toothless' face and noticed his eyes were closed. But there seemed to be a little relaxation in his face. His mouth wasn't drawn into a slight grimace, and he wasn't trying to squeeze his eyelids shut. All this time, I had been wondering how to access the magic Astrid and Toothless could channel at will. And I learned just now that you don't ever "access" or "channel" it. The magic comes to you without you realizing it. And it often leaves just as quickly.

"Looks like he's feeling a little better," Astrid said. She was standing with another bucket of water in her hand. It was about halfway empty. "I took care of our previous spot, by the way."

I took a deep breath, my mind coming back down to earth. "Thanks. I hope he's feeling better. It's a lot easier to take care of him when he's healthy," I said with a hint of sarcasm.

Astrid scowled slightly. But she only paused. "Okay if I bring Stormfly over?" she asked after a short moment.

"Sure."

Without a word, Astrid stood and began ambling toward her house. She left the water near me. I let Toothless drink out of the bucket while we waited. About five minutes later, I heard two pairs of footsteps approaching, one pair light and the other pair heavy in the grass. I looked up and saw Astrid with her dragon.

Stormfly stopped near Toothless and eased downward. She sniffed at him for a few seconds before settling nearby with a soft warble. I heard her breathing, slightly higher pitched than what Toothless sounded like normally. Stormfly adjusted her position slightly and sighed. I watched as Astrid shuffled over to her dragon and placed a hand on her snout. She sat down, and Stormfly moved her head toward Astrid so that she could protect her. It was comforting to know we had dragons who would defend us at a moment's notice.

I continued massaging water into Toothless' flank until my muscles got tired. I was on my hands and knees, having to reach often with my left arm. After a while, there was a deep burning feeling in my back and hips. If I continued too much longer, I'd lose all the fine control I had, which wouldn't be comfortable for Toothless.

I stood, stretching my back and hips. Walked over to Astrid and Stormfly and sat down. The sky was mostly black with a thousand points of light fading in. And in a few minutes, the stars would be joined by a lazily drifting glow.

As I predicted, the skylights were right on time. A green misty glow settled into the sky, making me grateful it wasn't blue. I didn't want to go through all the craziness that happened with the Flightmare last year. Especially now, considering Toothless was sick.

I reached to my left and stroked Toothless' head. He didn't respond, but that was fine with me. He was probably asleep by now.

"Thanks for your help, Astrid," I said quietly.

"Any time."

I watched the hypnotic dance of the skylights over us. I heard Stormfly breathing steadily, joined by Toothless' quicker breathing. Thankfully, it sounded less labored than a few hours ago. I fell asleep knowing he was gonna be fine within a couple of days.