I'm back! I'm sorry that it has been so long… again. I was going to upload this on Labor Day as a special surprise, but then I played Battlefield 4 all day and forgot. My bad. Especially since I left you guys at a bit of a cliffhanger. Well, don't worry, because that cliffhanger is solved in this chapter! Plus, to make it up to you guys for not updating in 3 weeks, I'll be updating NEXT WEEK as well! That's right! Two back-to-back chapters! Hang on to your seatbelts because the next few chapters will be VERY interesting! Hope you enjoy!
Hiccup awoke the next morning to find Toothless gone. Hiccup didn't think much of it, as Toothless occasionally left the room to wait on the roof, but started to get a little worried when he saw Toothless' tail and saddle sitting in the floor. Walking downstairs, he saw his father adjusting his cloak and putting his helmet on as he was about to walk out the door.
"Ah, good morning, son."
"Dad, I can't find Toothless."
"He's probably around here somewhere. Let's check outside." Stoick said as he opened the door. Walking outside, the two Haddoks looked up to the roof to see a Terrible Terror sitting on it, but no Toothless. Hiccup did see tracks in the snow, leading to the woods. "Well, I think you know how to find him."
"Yeah. I'll find Toothless and then meet you guys in the Great Hall for battle strategy."
"Ok. Be careful, son. You know how icy those woods can get."
"Don't worry, I'll be careful." Hiccup said as he took a step and slid on a patch of ice. "Starting now."
Stoick shook his head and walked away as Hiccup picked himself up. Running back inside the house, Hiccup grabbed Toothless' flight equipment and then set off through the woods to find Toothless. Following the footprints in the snow, Hiccup found himself on a familiar path. Now sure of where he was heading, Hiccup wasn't surprised in the slightest to find that the footprints lead him straight to the cove. The footprints disappeared at the edge of it. Peering down, Hiccup immediately spotted Toothless amongst the white snow, curled up in a ball and sleeping.
"Toothless!" Hiccup called from atop the cove. Toothless looked up at him and gave him a mournful look before curling back up. Hiccup shook his head and took a step forward, only to have his metal foot slip on a patch of ice. Hiccup let out a yell as he found himself flying headfirst into the cove, easily a 20 foot drop that could cripple him for months if not for the rest of his life. Before he hit the ground though, something caught him in midair as he felt himself land in the snow. Looking around himself, he found that he was wrapped up in Toothless, who was holding onto him for dear life. Marveling at how fast Toothless had moved Hiccup had just discovered another observation- he was freezing. Hiccup burst out of the snow and started shaking it off of himself.
"Cold! Cold! Oh, so very, very cold!" Hiccup yelled as Toothless watched him in amusement. "Oh, you think this is funny?"
Toothless nodded and grunted in response. Hiccup flicked some snow in Toothless' face in retaliation. That was the straw that broke the Yak's back though, as now it was on. A wrestling match ensued between the two. Hiccup got on top of Toothless' back and rode him as Toothless bucked and kicked, attempting to get his rider off.
"Is that the best you've got? Huh? A little bucking?" Hiccup yelled at Toothless as he laughed. Toothless then tried something new, rolling over. Hiccup soon found the tables turned as he found himself crushed underneath the weight of a dragon. Toothless rolled off of Hiccup and laughed as Hiccup wheezed, trying to get air into his lungs. After a cough or two, Hiccup started breathing again and shakily stood up. "Ok, not bad. A little rude, but effective. C'mon bud, we should probably head home."
Toothless' face went from being happy, back to being droopy as he lowered his head and didn't make eye contact with Hiccup.
"Bud, what's wrong?" Hiccup asked as he attempted to put his hand on Toothless' nose. Toothless bounded away from Hiccup and positioned himself at the other end of the cove. Hiccup walked over to where Toothless was, facing the wall of stone. "Toothless, what's the matter?"
Hiccup put his hand on Toothless' back in an attempt to comfort him. Toothless lowered his head further and grumbled softly.
"What's wrong Toothless? You've been acting weird ever since the fight with the… oh." Hiccup said as Toothless looked at him with big eyes. "Oh, I get it now. You're afraid that you'll lose me this time after what happened last time, don't you? And this is protecting me. You ran away so I wouldn't have a dragon to ride, so I wouldn't have to face the Green Death. Is that it?"
Toothless purred in response, laying down as he did so and putting his head in Hiccup's lap. Hiccup rubbed Toothless on the forehead, calming the dragon down.
"Toothless, you know what happened last time wasn't your fault, right? It wasn't your fault that your tail burned up and we lost control. It wasn't anyone's fault. Things happen sometimes that we can't do anything about. What happened to me wasn't your fault; it was the Red Death's fault. But you know what? We have a secret weapon this time. You know that? We have experience on our side now. The newer tail helps too, but we're faster than ever before now. Nothing is going to happen to me. You won't let it, right?" Toothless nodded and snorted smoke out of his nostrils. "So, what do ya say we get home?"
Toothless jumped up and grabbed his tail and flight gear, handing it to Hiccup. Hiccup smiled and put the gear on him.
"Alright, let's go dry off before we catch our death of cold." Hiccup said as he and Toothless shot up into the air.
In the great hall, Stoick paced back and forth as he, Gobber, the Riders, and the War Counsel waited for Hiccup and Toothless to show up.
"Don't worry, Stoick, they'll be here." Gobber reassured his friend.
"I certainly hope you're right. The fate of the Archipelago rests on Hiccup finding that dragon." Stoick said.
"Nah, we don't need him. We can beat the Green Death without him easy! Right?" Snotlout asked.
"Right." The Twins answered back.
"Odin help us if Hiccup can't find Toothless." Stoick murmured. As if on cue, the doors to the hall opened as a now dried off Hiccup walked through the door. "Son! Did you find Toothless?"
"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Hiccup said as a happy Toothless burst in behind Hiccup.
"So everything is good now?" Stoick asked.
"Oh yeah. Everything is good now." Hiccup said as he patted Toothless on the head.
And there we have it. Sorry it was a little shorter, but I felt that I needed to focus on the Hiccup and Toothless portion of the story this time. We'll get back to Green Death fighting soon enough, don't you worry! Make sure to review!
