EXT. DOCKS-DAWN

[A lone, battered ship is pulled into a slip, overloaded with equally battered-looking men. They disembark to a crowd of onlookers, looking like a team of hometown heroes who just had their butts kicked]

Most vikings either winced, or shuddered, or did both, at the remembrance of the dragon attack. It wasn't pretty.

[Gobber hobbles through the mumbling crowd to find Stoick - last to disembark and glowering with battered pride]
Viking: Where are the other ships?

Some of the vikings that had stayed, agreed with the question. What had happened?

Spitelout: You don't want to know

"Yeah, you don't." Spitelout grumbled.

[Stoick lumbers past Gobber, leaving him staring at the trashed ship]
Gobber: Well, I trust you found the nest at least?
Stoick: Not even close.
Gobber: Ah. Excellent.

Despite the somber atmosphere, some people couldn't help but to slightly chuckle. Oh, Gobber...

[Gobber follows Stoick up the ramp and snags his duffle bag with his hook appendage, sharing the burden]
Stoick: I hope you had a little more success than me.
Gobber: Well, if by success, you mean that your parenting troubles are over with, then... yes.

"If you say that way, it kind of sounds like I've died!" Hiccup pointed out. Gobber nervously laughed.

[Stoick stops. What does that mean? A group of merry villagers rush past]
Viking #1:Congratulations Stoick! Everyone is so relieved
Viking #2: Out with the old and in with the new, right?!
Viking #3: No one will miss that old nuisance!
Viking #4:The village is throwing a party to celebrate!

Hiccup winced. He knew that almost every viking hated him, but still, hearing it always hurt. At seeing his rider's discomfort, Toothless nuzzled him. Hiccup smiled sadly. "Thanks bud." Toothless cooed.

The said vikings just stared at the ceiling at this awkward moment.

[Stoick is stunned, overwhelmed by the insensitivity. He turns to Gobber]
Stoick: He's... gone?
Gobber: Yeah...most afternoons.

"Thanks for almost giving me a heart attack, Gobber?!" Stoick complained.

"You're welcome!" Gobber said, grinning as he saw Stoick's facepalm.

Gobber: But who can blame him? I mean the life of a celebrity is very rough. He can barely walk through the village without being swarmed by his new fans.
[Stoick is doubly confused]
Stoick: Hiccup?

"No, your other son. You know, the one that is big, brave, courageous, and everything that I'm not!" Hiccup blurted out, irritated and bitter. Stoick frowned. He really needed to have a talk with Hiccup when they got back.

Gobber: (beaming):Who would've thought, eh? He has this...way with the beasts.

"No. I have a way with the dragons. They aren't beasts like we thought they were." Hiccup stated, ignoring the earlier little outburst.

CUT TO:
EXT. SKY - AFTERNOON

[Toothless and Hiccup soar through a perfect blue sky. Billowing clouds rise like mountains. The ground seems miles below them]

The vikings stared at the screen with awe. The impossible had become, well, possible! Stoick had a weird expression filled with anxiety and fascination. While impressed with the view, he was worried for his son's safety.

Hiccup: Okay there bud, we're gonna take this nice and slow.

[Hiccup checks a leather cheat sheet, clipped onto his harness. Inscribed upon it are several tail positions and their pedal position equivalents]
Hiccup (cont'd):Here we go. Here we go...position three, no four.

[He presses the pedal, causing the tail to flare]

"So that was what you were working on earlier in this… uh, movie?" Gobber asked. Hiccup nodded.

[They roll off into an arcing bank, gloriously lit by the late afternoon sun. Hiccup tucks tight against his neck, thrilled that his new harness and vest are holding. The foot controls make the tail appendage quick and responsive. He watches Toothless' every fluctuation, trying to match it with the prosthetic]

[Hiccup sizes up a target - a towering arch of stone, rising from the sea]
Hiccup (cont'd): Alright, it's go time. It's go time.

"Go time for what?" a curious viking wondered out loud.

[They dive toward it, lining up to pass through the arch]

"Oh."

Hiccup (cont'd):Come on. Come on buddy. Come on buddy!
[They zip through the arch. A perfect maneuver]
Hiccup (cont'd): Yeah! Yes, it worked!

"Did you expect it not to?" Gobber curiously asked. He got ignored.

[The triumph is short-lived. They smack into one of several sea stacks as Hiccup tries to keep up with the turns]

The trio snickered.

"Can any of you do any better?" Astrid challenged, glaring at the three. They remained silent. "Thought so." She said smugly.

Hiccup (cont'd):Sorry.
[They hurtle into another rock pillar. Toothless grumbles]

"Fussy, aren't you?" Hiccup asked Toothless in a playful tone. Toothless just gave his signature toothless smile, and made some weird sounds that only Hiccup seemed to understand. He laughed and tried to imitate dragon noises. Eventually, both he and Toothless fell to the floor laughing.

The vikings that witnessed that moment thought to themselves, Could we be wrong about them? About those beast? I mean, look at those two! They are showing a deep level of friendship that even we don't understand.

Hiccup (cont'd):My fault.
[Toothless swats him with his 'ear' plate]

Hiccup (cont'd):Yeah, yeah, I'm on it.

(referring to the cheat sheet) Position four, no three.

"Make up your mind, will you!" Tuffnut exclaimed.

[They pierce the clouds. For the first time, Hiccup can see the whole of the island below them. It shrinks with every passing second. He swallows hard and tightens his grip on the handles]
Hiccup (cont'd): Yeah! Go baby! Yes! Oh, this is amazing! The wind in my...
[He spots the leather guide tearing free in the turbulence]

"Oh no." Hiccup mumbled, remembering that scene too well.

At this, Stoick started panicking. The situation already looked pretty bad, but hearing Hiccup mumble "Oh no" just added more worry and alarm. And no amount of reassurement from Gobber helped him at all.

Hiccup (cont'd): (panicked) ... CHEAT SHEET! STOP!
[Hiccup grabs frantically for the airborne sheet…]
Hiccup (cont'd):No!

"The wind in your cheat sheet is amazing?" a very confused Tuffnut asked.

"And if it was amazing, why did you yell 'No!'?" Ruffnut added. "And people say that we're weird."

"What? No. What I meant was...well… nevermind." Hiccup rambled.

[... and NABS IT before it's carried out of reach. Toothless, however, obeys the command and suddenly STOPS beating his wings. As they slow to a stop, Hiccup goes weightless. The rings of his vest float off of the harness hooks. Hiccup suddenly finds himself detached, free-falling]

"That doesn't look too good." Gobber commented.

"It wasn't." Hiccup answered. Stoick just stared at the screen with wide eyes.

Hiccup (cont'd):Oh gods! Oh no!
[Without Hiccup, the tail loses control. Hiccup and Toothless spiral downward. Toothless fights to get back under Hiccup]

Snotlout snorted. "Yeah, 'cause that's totally working" He received some glares, Stoick and Gobber specially.

Hiccup (cont'd): (trying to calm Toothless) Alright, okay. You just gotta kinda angle yourself. No, no...come back down towards me. Come back down-

[Hiccup extends his arms and legs, giving himself as much surface area as he can. He angles back towards Toothless as the tumbling dragon WHACKS Hiccup with his wing]

Hiccup winced.

[After a few more misses, Hiccup finally GRABS HOLD of the harness and manages to lock in - just in time to pull Toothless out of his dive... barely shy of the tree tops]

Stoick looked slightly relieved at seeing that Hiccup had at least managed to get on top of Toothless.

[They careen past the wooded cliff and directly into a treacherous slalom course of jutting sea stacks. Hiccup pulls the cheat sheet from his teeth and attempts to check positions. It flaps violently in the turbulence, making it impossible. Toothless almost fainted]

"Wait, were you about to faint?" Hiccup asked Toothless, astonished. Toothless looked away, trying to avoid the question. That didn't stop Hiccup from chuckling and adding "well, there goes the fearless Night Fury!" Toothless didn't find that funny.

[With no time to think, Hiccup throws it away and steers Toothless' tail on instinct... with perfect intuition. Together, they manage a tight, hair-rasing series of split- second turns, making it to the open water, unscathed. Hiccup takes a breath and glances back at the death-defying obstacle course, now safely behind them. He beams, relieved. He sits back and throws his arms up in victory]
Hiccup (cont'd):YEEAHHH!

At this, some vikings, like Gobber, gaped at the screen. That was just so...wow!

Stoick finally let go of the breath he didn't know he was holding. Hiccup was safe. His son was safe. His son. Guilt swell inside Stoick. He needed to apologize to Hiccup. Fast.

[Toothless concurs with a happy SQUEAL and a fireball. Hiccup's glee turn to dread as they fly directly into it]
Hiccup (cont'd):Ah, come on.
Most vikings couldn't help but to at least chuckle at this.

Hiccup huffed in frustration, but he couldn't hide his grin after Toothless laughed in his own dragonese way.

EXT. BLACK SAND BEACH - SUNSET
[Hiccup and Toothless lounge on a sprawling, deserted beach, snacking on freshly caught fish. As Hiccup cooks his over a fire, Toothless suddenly regurgitates a fish head. Hiccup smirks with forced politeness]
Hiccup: Uh..no thanks. (gesturing to his fish on a stick)I'm good.

"Yeah, I would be too" a random viking commented.

[Several Terrible Terrors land like seagulls, hissing and nipping at each other as they approach Toothless' pile of fish. One grabs the regurgitated fish head and drags it away. Another attempts to steal it from him. They face off and last fireballs at each other to settle the fight. Hiccup and Toothless watch, amused. That is until... Toothless spots one of his fish leaving the pile. A stealthy Terrible Terror is exposed as the thief]

"Busted!" whispered Tuffnut.

[They tug on the fish, and it snaps back into Toothless' mouth. He swallows it back tauntingly. Irate, the little dragon paws at the ground and blasts Toothless. He opens his mouth, the gas hiss comes, and Toothless fires a tiny flame straight into its mouth, causing the gas to backfire into the little dragon. It coughs up smoke and staggers away, looking ill. Hiccup laughs]
Hiccup (cont'd): Not so fireproof on the inside, are you?

Many vikings looked up. Could that be a weakness that could aid them in battle?

[Hiccup throws the hapless Terror his freshly cooked fish]
Hiccup (cont'd):Here you go.

"See! I'm nice! I share, unlike some people…" Hiccup trailed off, pointing at a certain Night Fury. Toothless just snorted.

[The appreciative little dragon gulps down the meal and approaches Hiccup cautiously. He curls up next to him. Hiccup is amazed]
Hiccup (cont'd): (pensive) Everything we know about you guys is wrong.

"Yeah" Hiccup agreed, while looking at the faces of the poker-faced vikings.