Still keeping up with my weekly schedule, YAY. So here's the next chapter guyyyys, and I'm sorry for leaving you with a cliffhanger last time! Hopefully the fluff in this chapter makes up for it C: and thanks again, all of you, for the wonderful reviews 3

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"Seasons May Change"

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Chapter 4: "Transformation"

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Hiccup rubbed at one eye tiredly. "Who?" he asked through a yawn. "Who found wha-"

He stopped. Didn't breathe. His eyes flew wide open and he stared at his father, who nodded silently at his son's expression. There was a second that passed where Hiccup couldn't remember how to move. Or maybe he was scared to. Scared that if he moved, he'd wake up again. That it was a dream. A second was all he could stand though and he all but lept out of his bed and began to sloppily attach his metal leg.

"Where? When? Is he okay? Where is he now? Who found him? What-"

As the words spilled from his mouth, he went to get up, and almost tripped in his excitement. He quickly caught himself on the bed and pushed himself back up without a second thought. He was already down the stairs before he felt a hand on his shoulder, halting him just before the front door.

"Dad, I need to go, come on, we-"

"Hiccup."

He froze at his father's tone. It was serious, almost.. ominous. His mind reeled. Something was wrong, he was about to tell him something wasn't right, that Toothless wasn't..

Hiccup swallowed the slowly building panic that was rising in his chest.

There was a moment where Stoick looked like he was unsure of what to say. Then, in the calmest tone he could manage, he said, "Before we go, you should know that Toothless, he.. well he's not.."

Stoick noticed the stricken look on his son's face. "He's alright!" he added hastily. "He's breathing, and he looks unharmed, he's just... extremely weak. Not moving very much."

Hiccup stood there, unsure of whether he felt better or worse. It didn't matter, though. "I need to see him," he said firmly. Stoick nodded, and they left the house together.

As they walked down the hill, his father told him that they had taken the dragon into one of the back rooms behind the mess hall. It was closest to shore, where they'd found the dragon, and they hadn't wanted to move him too far without knowing what was wrong. He told Hiccup that it had been Gobber who'd spotted Toothless lying on the shore, as though washed up from the ocean. The image that appeared in Hiccup's mind at this made him a little sick. Stoick kept talking, said that it had taken him, Gobber, and two other men to hoist the dragon onto a cart and wheel him up to the village

The journey down seemed to take hours, days, weeks. Hiccup's heart pounded harder within his chest as the towering building came closer and closer. His father was still talking to him, but he was only half paying attention at this point.

".. came around a few times, opening his eyes, moving a little, but that's about it."

Hiccup ran up the stone steps as fast as he could and all but threw himself against the large double doors. He stood blankly in the entryway, realizing that he didn't know where to go. Trepidation crept up within him, for he felt that every second standing still was time wasted, that he needed to get to Toothless, and just standing here like an idiot wasn't going -

"Come on, this way," his father said, coming up behind him, and led him forward, one of his hands on Hiccup's back, gently pushing him along. They walked to the other end of the hall, and down a corridor where, just a few feet away, a door was ajar, light creeping out softly into the dark. Again Hiccup ran ahead of his father, and in through the half open door.

Hiccup stopped. Stared. One second, two seconds. He remembered to breathe.

There he was. Toothless was lying in a mass of blankets, some sort of makeshift nest, just a few feet away from him. Behind him, the fireplace was alive with dancing flames, casting shadows all across the room. The scene in front of him seemed so simple.. Toothless lying there as though asleep, as though nothing had happened. Hiccup didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Slowly, he took steps toward the still dragon, and dropped to his knees before him. Part of him was still petrified that he would wake at any moment, at home in his bed, Toothless still gone. He reached out a trembling hand though, and placed it on a spot above the dragon's eye. Heat radiated through his hand and into him. He took in the sounds of Toothless' breathing, his heat, the tiniest movement behind his eyelid.

He was really here, Hiccup thought, and something like relief but thousands of times stronger washed over him, almost knocking him clear over. He almost cried. Wanted to, but he didn't allow any tears to fall while he knew his father was nearby. Though he couldn't prevent them from welling up around his eyes, he tried his best to blink them back.

Stoick came into the room a few moments later, but didn't move toward his son. Hiccup felt him lingering in the doorway, and was unsure of what to say to him. Well, he knew what he wanted to say, he just didn't want to sound as though he was rushing him out.

So instead, he turned and said, "Thank you, Dad." He couldn't have felt any more sincere.

Stoick smiled. "I know how much he means to you. Everyone does."

Hiccup nodded, noting to himself that he'd have to thank Gobber and the others in the morning. But for now.. "You don't have to stay here, Dad. You can, er, head back up to the house if you want."

".. You're staying here, then?"

Again Hiccup nodded, and Stoick seemed a little unsure of what to do next. "Well, there's more blankets in the closet at the end of the corridor," he told him. "Do you want me to.."

"No, I'll get them. Thanks, though."

The larger man hesitated for a moment, then walked forward a few steps and ruffled his son's hair. "Goodnight then, son."

"Night, Dad," Hiccup said back, the smile on his face mirroring his father's.

And with that, Stoick was gone. Hiccup turned his attention back to Toothless, and breathed out a long sigh. He moved his hand to a spot behind the dragon's head and began to caress his neck.

He did that for a while. Minutes passed, but how many, he did not know. He muttered Toothless' name a few times, but he didn't stir. Hiccup tried not to worry too much, or think about how on earth he'd ended up on shore out of nowhere. Toothless was here now, he was alive, and that was all that mattered.

For now.

Hiccup's hand stop moving and he just looked at the dragon for a moment before getting up. He walked over to the doorway, looked out, saw nothing but darkness in each direction. Then, quietly, he shut the door, and walked back over to Toothless.

As gently as he could, Hiccup silently crawled into the pile of blankets and situated himself next to the warm body of his friend. He found a comfortable spot within the contours of the blankets, and closed his eyes.

He was almost asleep when suddenly, he felt something warm and heavy fall across his body. His eyes snapped open, looked up, and was miraculously met with the oh so familiar green of those eyes. He felt his heart skip, and this time he really couldn't prevent the tear that fell down his cheek.

Toothless was looking at him, his eyes half-lidded, but still looking at him. He knew he was there. He had moved his front leg up and around the boy's body, bringing him closer.

Hiccup smiled as wide as he could. Slowly, he brought one of his hands up and let it rest on the dragon's jaw. He wanted to say a million things, meaningful things, but all that his mind could come up with was:

"Hey, bud."

Toothless purred and nuzzled his snout against the top of the boy' head. Hiccup laughed. He truly thought he might die from how happy he felt. It was washing over him in waves, nonstop, until he was intoxicated by it. Drenched in some euphoria that he didn't quite understand, but didn't really care to at the moment. Because right now, Toothless was here. Right now..

Not really knowing what he was doing, nor thinking, Hiccup shifted closer and planted a kiss a few inches away from where his hand was, on the side of the dragon's mouth. The warm scales felt odd against his lips, but nice, and he lingered there for a few seconds before backing away again. He stared at Toothless, and it wasn't until a moment or two had passed did he realize what he had just done. He felt embarrassed, but only a little.

Toothless actually looked surprised, his eyes fully open for the first time, but quickly recovered, and gave a small, light lick to Hiccup's cheek. It tickled, and Hiccup laughed, his heart all but soaring. He buried himself in Toothless' neck, his forehead pressed well up against the large expanse of scales.

It didn't take long at all for him to fall asleep. He lost himself in the rhythm of Toothless' breathing, and the very fact that he was there with him. It would be the first peaceful sleep he'd had since before Toothless had left him eight days ago.

For the second time, Hiccup was abruptly, and quite unpleasantly, woken up. Though this was much worse than the previous night. There was shouting on all sides of him, and he was practically thrown a few inches across the room.

Wincing, he sat up as quickly as he could, looking wildly around. He saw Gobber and his dad rushing from the room, struggling with something. Then, above their shouting, there was a blood-curdling screech. The sound seemed as though it were too loud for where they were, and it bounced violently off the walls, hurting Hiccup's ears.

He looked around the room again, and it was then that he noticed that Toothless was nowhere to be found.

Hiccup stood up as quickly as he could and went running out into the hallway.

"Dad! Dad!"

Ahead of him, Stoick stopped and turned around. Hiccup saw Gobber disappear into another room down the corridor, something large thrashing wildly around. It only took Hiccup a second to realize that those awful noises were coming from whatever that was. He stood, dumbfounded in front of his father, staring wildly after the thing.

"What.." he gasped. "is that?" He looked back up at Stoick. "What's going on? And where's Toothless?"

Stoick had an odd expression on his face. He looked extremely worked up, almost angry, but confused at the same time. "Hiccup, I'm.. I'm not entirely sure what.. maybe you should look for yourse-"

Just then, whatever was in the room emitted an entirely different sound. Though just as loud, this was what could only be described as a cry. It was desperate, as though asking for help, and it cut right through Hiccup like a knife. He recognized that sound. His eyes went even wider, his gaze fixed upon his father.

"That's Toothless," he breathed. In an instant he was running toward the door. His father yelled after him, but he kept going.

Toothless.. he needed to get to Toothless. That was the only thought his mind would comprehend. When he at last turned the corner into the room, Hiccup was unsure of what he would see, but what met his gaze was too unreal for words.

Gobber was giving it his all trying to restrain.. something, and whatever it was, it was putting up one hell of a fight. The room was barely lit at all, so Hiccup couldn't make out more than a wildly thrashing, dark blur. The most alarming thing about it was its size. Just as tall as Gobber, and apparently just as strong.

Hiccup's arrival into the room went unnoticed for only a few seconds before the - whatever it was - happened to look up and spot him. Hiccup froze, and oddly enough, so did the creature. Now that it was still, he could make out two rather large eyes that almost seemed to glow in the dim light. Hiccup stared timidly into them for a moment before a wave of realization crashed into him. He grabbed hold of the doorframe to keep from tipping over.

Those eyes.. large, dark wings that Hiccup could now see protruding from its back, a set of elongated ears.. Hiccup shook his head. There was no way. This creature had a human body, arms, legs, hands, and feet. But still, those dark scales covered its entire body, head to toe.

"Toothless."

As soon as the name fell from Hiccup's lips, the creature smiled that oh so familiar smile. Hiccup gripped the doorframe tighter.

Then, in one swift movement, Toothless broke free of Gobber's hold, and leapt straight for Hiccup. He jumped back into the hallway at the sudden proximity, but clawed hands clamped down onto his shoulders to prevent him from retreating. And it was then that Hiccup really noticed the look on his face.

He looked sad.

"STOP!" Hiccup shouted to both Gobber and his father, who both had begun running toward them. He turned his gaze upon Stoick. "I need to.. just, hold on for a minute."

As he turned his head back to meet Toothless' eyes, it felt as though everything around him had come to a standstill. The half-dragon stared back at his rider and emitted a low cry as if to say, 'Why don't you recognize me?'

But he did. Hiccup was still having an immensely hard time trying to keep his mind from spinning out of control. Desperate to find an anchor, he lifted his hands to the familiar, yet alien face. Green eyes widened a little at the touch, but he didn't move.

Hiccup didn't really know what he was doing, his hands seeming to move on their own accord. They made their way up into a mop of messy, black hair, and from there to those familiar ears. Down against his jaw line, chin, and finally, brushing softly against Toothless' nose, to which he pushed lightly into the boy's hand. Hiccup smiled in spite of himself.

He didn't know how, and he could hardly believe that this wasn't some insane dream, but it was really Toothless standing before him. There was no doubt about it. He knew it, felt it even. And he..

Was naked.

Hiccup blushed, and did his best not to freak out in front of Gobber and his dad. As calmly as he could, he took Toothless by the hand and lead him back in the direction of the room they'd spent the night in. Hiccup walked past his father, determined not to make eye contact with the man, because he could only imagine the look he was giving him. Once inside the room, Hiccup left Toothless by the door and went to grab the blankets that had been piled on the floor. One by one, he draped them over the dragon. One over his shoulders, one over his head like a hood, another to try and cover his wings.

As he did this, his father stormed into the room.

"Hiccup! What're you doing? That thing, it-"

"This thing," he spat. "Is Toothless. And I'm taking him up to the house."

Stoick faltered a bit at his son's tone, but his face quickly changed to express anger. "You can't take that.. him outside! What will the villagers think?"

"What do you think the blankets are for?" he retorted, raising his voice. "And what else is there to do? Incase you've forgotten, he lives there too."

From underneath the blankets came a muffled chirp, as if in agreement. Hiccup turned away from his father, and double checked to make sure the blankets weren't going to slip off. It looked absolutely ridiculous, though. All you could see of Toothless were his legs, and the end of his tail. Other than that, he was a giant white blob. It would do the job though, and hopefully there weren't too many people out yet.

Hiccup took hold of the dragon's arm from underneath the layers of cloth, and began to guide him forward. Stoick didn't move out of their way, and Hiccup wondered for a moment whether he would, but after a brief staring contest, Stoick hung his head.

"I.. I'm trusting you with this, Hiccup. Do what you think is best."

Hiccup didn't answer for a brief moment, then settled with a small, "Thanks, Dad."

He continued his way out into the hallway and into the main hall. Luckily the place was still empty. Once outside, he saw that the sun had only come up maybe half an hour ago, which again, was lucky. They only came across two other people on their way up the hill, who stopped and stared, but Hiccup just gave them an uneasy smile and kept walking. Every so often Toothless would make some kind of noise, to which Hiccup would softly pat him on the back.

When they finally reached the house, Hiccup felt extremely relieved. "Well, that could've gone a lot worse."

Toothless made another noise, and Hiccup led him up the steps and inside the front door. He didn't remove the blankets until they were safely inside his room. He left one blanket on over his shoulders for obvious reasons, and went looking for extra clothing. Finally, he found an old, worn pair of trousers, as well as a spare tunic with the sleeves torn off. Hiccup handed them to the dragon, who eyed the clothing with interest.

"Put these on, alright? Er, like me." He gestured to the outfit he was currently wearing. Toothless looked like he understood, but Hiccup wasn't entirely sure. Nonetheless, he turned on the spot, determined not to see any more of Toothless than he already had.

He listened to the rustling behind him and stared intently at the wall. There was a small 'thud', and Hiccup could only guess that Toothless had stumbled in his attempts at putting on pants. Once or twice he was tempted to turn around and help, but..

Again his cheeks flushed pink.

Then, suddenly, there was a weight on his shoulders. Hiccup jumped nearly a foot in the air and yelped in alarm as strong arms, dark as night, wrapped around him from behind. Toothless cooed softly and rested his chin in the crook of the boy's neck. Hiccup felt his entire body grow incredibly warm, and whether it was from Toothless' body heat, or the blood rushing to his face, he did not know. He squirmed, turning himself completely around within the dragon's hold in an attempt to break free, but just ended up with his face buried in the now clothed chest.

Well, Hiccup thought, at least he wasn't naked anymore.