A/N: I detest using third person narrative, but sacrifices must be made. I hope everyone is having a wonderful week! P.S.— Writing a story is super difficult! For me, anyway...I have to use 99% of my brain capacity to come up with this stuff.

Disclaimer: I don't own HTTYD \_(._.)_/

3RD POV

Valka made her way through the icy caverns of her home, the sounds of squawks and roars fading the further she went into the dark tunnels. After seven years of living here, she could finally find her way anywhere in the nest—even with her eyes closed. It came in handy, since it was often too dark to see. Dragons had sharper senses, but her many years navigating the confusing passageways helped her along.

Her son's room was deep in the mountain, one of the safest places there was in the nest. Valka could hear the rhythmic pitter patter of water droplets hitting the cave floor along the edges. The icy ceiling allowed the morning light to shine in, illuminating the form of the Night Fury curled up on a warm slab of stone.

She cleared her throat, having not spoken for quite some time. "Toothless, darling, it's time to wake up." She called softly, her tone motherly. The black dragon's ear flaps stood erect and he lifted his head, bright green eyes open wide. His pupils were slitted, as they usually were right when waking up, but after a few sniffs he recognized and accepted her, and they widened to accommodate a friendlier expression.

Permission seemingly granted, Valka walked over to him, crouching down next to him so they were eye to eye. His unblinking gaze never left her. She reached out her hand, and after a moment he pressed his nose against her palm, purring quietly.

Valka waited patiently until Toothless' wings unfurled, revealing Hiccup's small form resting comfortably in the dragon's warm embrace. When the sudden sunlight invaded the boy's senses, he mumbled irritably, trying to hide his face. Toothless leaned down to nuzzle him affectionately, licking his temple to help wake him up.

His mother chuckled at the adorable pout he wore even in sleep. "Hiccup, it's morning. Time to get up for your lessons." Valka had collected a variety of books, and had taken it upon herself to teach Hiccup everything he would've learned on Berk. Other than the usual survival skills he needed, he was also learning to read and write.

She brushed his wild auburn locks to the side, and his eyes blinked open slowly, adjusting to the light. "Can I sleep for five more minutes?" He begged, his voice high and innocent as only a child's could be. Luckily, Valka had dealt with his wide eyed, pleading look plenty of times in the past.

"No, you need to come with me, honey. Don't you want to say good morning to Cloudjumper and Alpha?" She persuaded, knowing her son held a special fondness for the two dragons. Not nearly as much as he felt towards Toothless, but enough that his eyes lit up and he nodded.

Toothless obligingly let Hiccup clamber to his feet. He immediately tried to climb onto his dragon's back, but Valka held out her hand to stop him.

"Remember what I said, Hiccup," she implored. "You need to practice walking these tunnels yourself sometimes, too." The boy had grown up with his reptilian companion, and was used to the leisures of a piggy back ride, but it was her job to teach him how to be independent as well.

Looking sheepish, Hiccup nodded in understanding. Valka led the way out of the tunnels, with Toothless ambling along behind them. He was now full-grown, and had to walk single file in order to fit in the narrower part of the passageways.

When they finally made it outside, Cloudjumper was waiting for them, his eyes wide and welcoming. Hiccup immediately ran over to him, and Cloud lowered his head so the boy could embrace him.

"Good morning, Cloudjumper!" He greeted happily. The large Stormcutter purred, nuzzling him.

*Good morning, young one.* He replied kindly.

More dragons flying overhead noticed the newcomers and squawked out greetings of their own. Hiccup waved to each one. Valka would never cease to be amazed at how well her son fit in here. Of course he's only ever known life in the nest, but the other dragons had accepted him as one of their own from very early on.

Hiccup carefully approached the cliff edge, Toothless not a step behind, and peered over in search of the Alpha. The large dragon always came out at the same time each morning. He'd spend some time checking on all the dragons before calling for meal time. Hiccup liked to wake up early enough to say hello to the Bewilderbeast.

It wasn't long before the water parted with loud splashes and Alpha stepped out of the lake to approach their little platform, the ground quivering with each slow step. He rose up so his head was level with the little group, his eyes shining with warmth. He blew gently, and Hiccup laughed as a burst of icy powder sprinkled over him and Toothless. The black dragon shook his head, letting out a sneeze.

*Hello, Alpha!* Hiccup greeted happily, reaching out to press his palm against the Bewilderbeast's chin.

*Hello. Happy. Welcome. You eat?* He inquired, all too aware of how skinny the boy was. Valka had assured him that human children were often small, so he didn't worry that much. Still, it was his responsibility to ensure that his flock was well-fed.

*My mom will cook me some fish later.* Hiccup chirped. He didn't normally eat right away like the dragons.

*Satisfied. Happy to see you, Hiccup. Must feed flock now.* He informed him. Hiccup bowed respectfully before Alpha retreated back to the lake. The giant dragon released the familiar call for breakfast, and the other dragons of the nest took to the air. Once he was sure everyone was following, Alpha disappeared back beneath the cold water.

"Come on, Hiccup! Let's go to the cavern to work on your reading. I'll make you something to eat in a little bit." Valka called out from her place beside Cloudjumper. Hiccup was happy to follow her. He liked learning, really. It was the waking up part that was hard.

After his lessons were done for the day, Hiccup flew out to the forest with Toothless to practice his archery. Valka had been teaching him sword fighting the last couple years, but he thought it couldn't hurt to have another skill. So far, it had been pretty rough going. He'd been in the forest for hours and had yet to hit his target.

Hiccup took in a deep breath, readjusting his grip on the wooden bow he had carved himself. His hand shook slightly as he pulled back the arrow. "Come on, come on..." he muttered, aiming at the tree in front of him. His eyes squeezed shut in anticipation as he released the arrow, and it wobbled wildly as it flew through the air. It sailed far to the left of the tree trunk, disappearing into a cluster of bushes. Hiccup cringed, lowering the bow to his side.

*Wow...impressive.* Toothless snickered. He was lying on a large boulder a few feet away, chewing on a stick while he observed Hiccup practicing.

Hiccup frowned, walking over to him and tossing the bow to the ground. *This is stupid! Sword fighting is more fun anyway.* He grumbled, crossing his arms.

*You don't have to be perfect at everything.* Toothless pointed out, leaning forward to lick the boy's cheek. He didn't like how much pressure Hiccup put on himself. He was already the smartest, kindest human there was—he didn't need to be anything more.

*My mom is perfect at everything...* Hiccup claimed softly, turning and resting his back against the rock. *She can fight, and she rescues dragons, and she never messes anything up! I just wanna be like her...* He muttered sadly.

Toothless growled lightly, flicking him over the head with his tail. *First of all, no one is perfect, not even Valka. Second, I love you for who you are, and so does your mother. You never need to change for anyone.* He declared.

Hiccup pursed his lips, tilting his head back to look at his dragon, and after a few seconds he couldn't stop a small smile from spreading across his face. *Thanks, bud. I love you, too.* He replied, spinning around and crawling up onto the rock. Toothless rolled over as Hiccup tackled him in a hug, the Night Fury's tongue lolling out to the side.

A loud squawk sounded overhead, alerting the pair to a new arrival. Hiccup looked up from his splayed out position on his dragon's stomach, shielding his eyes from the sun so he could see who it was. He grinned and scrambled off of Toothless when he recognized the familiar, bright scales.

*Shimmer! What are you doing out here?* Hiccup wondered, running over to his friend. She lowered her head so he could scratch under her chin. Toothless huffed in irritation as his rider's attention was stolen, and leapt off the boulder to follow him.

Shimmer ruffled her wings in excitement, shifting from one foot to the other. *I found something on the far side of the island! You have to come check it out!* She squealed, nudging the boy's chest impatiently.

Toothless tilted his head curiously. *What is it?* He asked. He didn't want to fly all the way to the other side of the island for nothing. This island was huge, and it was a long flight.

Shimmer paused, the frills around her head perking up. *I don't actually know...* She admitted. *It kind of looked like a big log with clouds attached...* She trailed off, squinting her eyes in thought.

Toothless raised a brow, sharing a confused glance with his rider. *Uh...are you sure you weren't just imagining things? Maybe you're hungry.* He suggested.

Shimmer nipped at the Night Fury's nose in annoyance. *I didn't imagine anything! It was real! Just come with me and I'll prove it!* She insisted, jumping into the air without another word.

Hiccup shrugged, climbing into his saddle and patting Toothless' neck. *It might be something really cool!* He remarked. Toothless rolled his eyes, but followed Hiccup's lead, taking off after the Deadly Nadder.

When they crested the last hill that led down to the beach on the farthest reaches of the island, the big log that Shimmer had told them about came into sight. Hiccup gasped and stood up in the saddle so he could get a better look, while Toothless growled nervously. *I know what that is! I've seen it in some of my books! The humans call it a ship!* Hiccup exclaimed, his expression lit up in amazement.

The ship was washed up halfway onto the beach, tilted against a cliff. Some of the sails were ripped, while others were strewn about along the beach in tattered pieces. The main mast was broken in half, lying uselessly against the railing.

Toothless rumbled with unease, gliding in a circle far above the wreckage. *That thing belongs to humans? What's it doing here?* He questioned, his pupils narrowing.

Hiccup tapped his chin slowly. *I'm not sure...It carries humans across the water. I've never read about one coming up onto land before, though...* He noted. *Let's go down for a closer look!* He added, sitting back in the saddle.

Toothless glanced back at his rider with wide eyes. *What? Are you crazy? That thing could be dangerous!* He protested.

Shimmer flew over to share her opinion. *I think it's okay...it hasn't moved since I found it, and there aren't any humans around.* She pointed out hesitantly.

*Come on, bud, please? For me?* Hiccup begged, giving the Night Fury his best pout.

Toothless groaned in defeat. He could never deny Hiccup anything. *Fine! But only for a minute! Then we're going back home to tell Valka!* He decided firmly. Hiccup grinned and nodded quickly. Toothless tucked in his wings and dove down to the strange ship, landing on the deck silently. Shimmer grabbed onto the railing, perching there like a bird. Hiccup dismounted, dropping down to all fours as he gazed around in wonder. There were a bunch of different items he didn't recognize scattered around, and he crawled to each one, inspecting it closely. Toothless followed right behind him, eyeing everything his boy touched with the utmost suspicion.

They came across a spilled bucket of fish, and Hiccup sniffed at it. Huh...fresh... He thought absentmindedly. Surprisingly, Toothless completely disregarded the free food. He was too anxious to eat. Hiccup stumbled when the floor underneath him changed, and he glanced down in confusion. He could see through the hole-filled piece of wood to an empty space below. He leaned closer, but it was too dark to make out any details. After a brief evaluation, he discovered he could lift the piece of wood.

*I'm going down there. You'll have to stay up here, bud.* Hiccup said. Toothless whined softly and licked the boy's hand.

*Hiccup, I don't like this...Something doesn't feel right!* He objected, wanting nothing more than to snatch Hiccup by the scruff and fly them out of there.

Hiccup rolled his eyes, already starting to maneuver into the dark hole. *Toothless, it'll be fine!* He insisted, lowering the wooden flap back into place as he descended. Toothless' wings fluttered with anxiety, but he sat down to await his rider's return.

Why did I agree to this? He thought miserably.