A/N: I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but I promise Valka is not the main character in this story. I love her, but this story is centered around our favorite cinematic pairing of all time—Hiccup and Toothless. I just believe in a very thorough backstory :) P.S.— Thanks to everyone who takes time out of their day to read Come Darkness, Come Light! You are very much appreciated! 3

Disclaimer: I hereby announce HTTYD...still not mine. Darn.

VALKA'S POV

I spent the next fews days glued to Cloudjumper's side, and barely got any sleep when I was separated from him. The cavern seemed darker, and there were moments where I thought I could see a flash of movement in the shadows. I chalked it up to me being paranoid. The black dragon had gotten under my skin, that's all.

I sometimes spotted her in the distance, always with the little yellow-eyed hatchling. She was actually quite tender towards the little dragon. It was a side of her that was never shown towards the other dragons. If one flew too close, she would immediately go on the attack, snapping and shrieking defiantly to scare them off. She had an obvious restlessness to her that I didn't understand, like she needed to be somewhere else. But if this place was a refuge for dragons, why would she want to leave?

Perhaps it was just in her nature to be solitary, like a Skrill. It would explain why she didn't get along with any of the dragons here. Even the Alpha looked upon her with wariness when she was nearby. Yet he let her stay...Why?

One day, while I was leaning casually against Cloudjumper and bouncing Hiccup playfully on my knees, the black dragon—whom I'd named Jade for the color of her eyes—got into a nastier fight than usual. A Monstrous Nightmare had flown too close, drawn in by the smell of fish that she'd recently hunted. The mother lashed out at the much larger dragon, always making sure that her hatchling was behind her and safe from harm. The cranky Nightmare didn't take kindly to her attitude, and blew out a stream of fire at her. She dodged with a flexibility I didn't know a dragon could have, and her hatchling scurried away to hide behind a rock. The Monstrous Nightmare grew more and more enraged as she weaved around it, nipping and swiping at its legs. It let out a roar, and managed to bite the tip of her tail before she could create enough distance. She snarled in pain, yanking her tail out of its grasp, then jumped into the air, igniting a frantic chase. The Monstrous Nightmare was no match for her maneuverability, and snapped his teeth in frustration as he struggled to keep up. She twisted and dived and rolled to confuse it until it was left hovering in place, wondering where she'd gone. It flamed up challengingly, daring her to fight.

My gaze snapped up to the top of the dome when I heard a loud whistling that pierced my eardrums. The black dragon had been cruising at the top, but now fell into a steep dive, tucking in her wings to build up speed. Her mouth began to glow bright purple, and before the Nightmare even realized she was approaching, she unleashed a fireball that hit it directly between the wings. The blast was so powerful that some of the ice on the roof broke off in splinters and fell into the lake below. The Nightmare was knocked out instantly, and plummeted limply towards the ground, crashing into the water with a huge splash. It didn't resurface.

I rushed to my feet, setting Hiccup securely under Cloudjumper's protective wing, and ran to the cliff edge. My expression was frozen in disbelief. The black dragon glided down to meet her hatchling, licking between its eyes as if nothing had happened. Her actions had stirred a memory that I'd completely forgotten until now.

I was just a child at the time, and I'd snuck into the kitchen to get a midnight snack. My parents had been talking quietly in their room, which I would normally ignore, except my dad happened to be telling a particularly interesting story he'd heard that day from one of the traders. It was a story about a mysterious dragon that had attacked the trader and his crew during their trip across the seas. The trader had described the dragon as the offspring of lightning and death, with pitch black scales that blended into the night, and a whistling shriek that ripped through the air right before there was an earth-shattering explosion of fire. He'd called it a Night Fury.

My dad had laughed as he told my mom about it, and no one ever believed the trader. His story had turned into a tall tale, one which was rarely ever told, except to scare children into eating their vegetables.

I gulped, forcing myself back to the present. The black dragon—the Night Fury—continued eating her meal below, every now and then tossing her hatchling a fish. So now I was sharing a home with two legendary dragon species, one of which was an expert killer. Wonderful.

I stomped back over to Cloudjumper, putting a hand on my hip as I pointed behind me. "Did you know about this? That you have a freaking Night Fury in your nest?!" I exclaimed. He lowered his head at my tone, warbling in confusion. Right. He doesn't even know what a Night Fury is, since it's a term that was given by humans. I run a hand down my face, then bent over to pick up my son. He stuck out his tongue and made random babbling noises, reaching back towards Cloud. I rolled my eyes at his attachment to my dragon. "Come on, darling, Mommy needs to lie down. This is just too much." I muttered. He started to cry as I walked into the tunnel, upset at being taken away from Cloudjumper. I patted his back and murmured soothingly in his ear, but it didn't help.

When we reached the cavern, I set him down on the bed. I had hunted and skinned a few deer that lived on the island using the tools I'd stolen from the markets, and switched out the leaves with the pelts to make the bed more comfortable and warm. It was cozier than the one I had on Berk, to be perfectly honest.

Hiccup continued to wail as I filled my cup (which I'd carved by hand) to the brim with water and downed the entire thing. Once again, a flash of black appeared for an instant in my peripheral vision. This time, I didn't ignore it, and slowly crept towards the tunnel that ran deeper into the mountain. I'd never ventured down it. There was never really any reason to, but now I found myself wishing I had. It was always dead silent in these tunnels, save for the constant drip drip drip of the water hitting the ground. I just assumed there was nothing alive in here. I squinted into the pitch black, straining my ears for the slightest sound. It took a few, tense seconds before I realized that it was silent.

Hiccup wasn't crying.

I spun around so fast that the cup went flying out of my hand and bounced off the icy wall with a loud clang. My heart dropped to my stomach and my breath caught in my throat when I saw the little dark shape right next to my son. It was a Night Fury hatchling—not the same one I'd been seeing, since this one had vivid green eyes. It was sniffing Hiccup all over, its little nose twitching side to side like a bunny. Hiccup giggled, reaching out to touch the dragon. Its ears perked up, and it leaned forward, nudging his hand lightly.

My legs refused to move. What if I scared it into attacking Hiccup? It was right there! There was no way I could get to my baby before he'd get torn to pieces. As my thoughts went to war with one another, the small hatchling curled around Hiccup, licking the thin hair on top of his head. Hiccup squealed at the unfamiliar sensation.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I'd just watched Jade expertly kill another dragon, and now her hatchling and my baby were cuddling. I slowly took a step forward, then another. The hatchling paid me no attention, so I continued until I was right next to them, going down to my knees. As much as I wanted to snatch Hiccup away, there was something about their exchange that made me pause.

The little dragon crooned softly, pupils dilating as he nuzzled against Hiccup's cheek. My son giggled, reaching his arms up over his head as he attempted to pet the Night Fury. I simply sat back and stared in amazement at their interaction. The hatchling took one of Hiccup's arms in his mouth, chewing softly. I gasped, jumping forward to push him away, only to notice that the dragon had no teeth. "What the...toothless?" I murmured in confusion. I could've sworn the other baby dragon had teeth. This one tilted his head, glancing up at me with an expression that read, you seriously thought I was gonna bite him? I relaxed with a chuckle, letting him do as he pleased. If anything, Hiccup was enjoying the hatchling's attention, and kicked his legs happily. "Well, Toothless, meet my son, Hiccup." I introduced with a grin. Toothless warbled in a friendly manner, releasing Hiccup's arm so he could nuzzle against his cheek again.

I wondered vaguely why this hatchling was never with his mother. She was so protective of the other one. Toothless was obviously the shadow I'd been seeing the past few days, thinking it was just my imagination. Why would he be hiding out in these tunnels if he had Jade to watch over him? The more pressing matter was his blatant interest in my baby. He seemed harmless now, but maybe it took time for the killer instincts to kick in. The yellow-eyed hatchling was jumpy like his mother, but he was too small to do any damage. Toothless was perfectly at ease around me and Hiccup, though. His posture was confident, his movements gentle. Maybe I shouldn't judge him based on Jade's actions.

An idea sprang to mind, and I grinned, carefully lifting Hiccup into my arms. Toothless whined and jumped at my legs in protest. "Oh, stop it. You can live without him for a few minutes. Come on," I ordered, heading down the familiar tunnel. It felt unnatural to be bossing around a Night Fury of all things, but I figured it was important to set the standard early. I wasn't to be messed with. Toothless followed on my heels, and I narrowly avoided tripping over him. It was getting easier to navigate the tunnels, but I didn't have night vision and Toothless was invisible in the darkness.

Cloudjumper was waiting expectantly at the entrance by the time we came out. He must've heard us, or smelled us. I stopped in front of him, gesturing towards the small Night Fury that was still pawing at my leg. "So...Hiccup found a friend. What do you think? Is he dangerous?" I asked, nervously biting on my lip as I awaited his response. Cloud blinked in surprise at my question, then crept forward to sniff at the hatchling curiously. Toothless noticed the big dragon's approach and narrowed his eyes, his front paws still resting on my upper thigh. Cloudjumper blew a hot puff of air into Toothless' face and nudged the hatchling's tail with his his snout, attempting to get some sort of reaction.

Toothless finally dropped to all fours, launching himself at Cloudjumper's face with what I think was supposed to be an intimidating roar. He gripped onto the Stormcutter's horns with his claws. Cloud lifted up, leaving Toothless scrabbling to hold on, and grumbled in irritation. After a bit of struggling, Toothless managed to climb on top of my dragon's head. He turned and leaned over to meet Cloudjumper's owlish gaze, his tongue lolling out playfully. The Stormcutter glanced down at me with hooded lids, then shook his head roughly. Toothless yowled as he was tossed into the air, and he quickly extended his wings, catching the breeze and gliding down to the ground. I burst into laughter at the sight, clutching at my stomach with one hand while I held Hiccup with the other. Toothless ruffled his wings, sending Cloudjumper a petulant glare as he padded back over to me.

I kneeled and held out my hand, and Toothless rubbed his head against it. As soon as my guard was down, he leapt onto my lap, licking Hiccup's face triumphantly. I chuckled, shaking my head. "You're alright, Toothless. You're alright." I murmured fondly.