Shadowfire lowered to his belly so his mother could dismount. She and Fishlegs wandered into the ruined village with Meatlug following along. Shadowfire did not miss the glance the Gronckle gave Hookfang before she followed her rider onto the snow covered and debris-strewn main path. Shadowfire turned to the Nightmare in time to duck a sweeping tail.

[Hookie! What are you doing?]

Shadowfire backed up. Hookfang advanced. Shadowfire jumped right. Hookfang's muzzle snapped shut, brushing a wing.

[Hookfang! Stop!]

Hookfang ignored his rider. He spun. Shadowfire ducked another tail swipe. Hookfang snarled. Shadowfire backed up. He was not confused. He was not surprised. He expected this. Hiccup and Astrid may have forgiven him. That did not mean the other dragons did.

Hookfang advanced. An iridescent barrier flashed into existence between him and Shadowfire. Hookfang stopped, looking right. Shadowfire looked left. His mother walked out of the village. Shadowfire winced, recognizing the look on her face. She was not happy.

[Hookfang, do you follow your alpha's will?] she asked, standing right in front of the Nightmare's muzzle.

Hookfang snorted. "Yes, Elder Gyda," he said. "And I'm not attacking your son. I'm trying to break him out of the belief he has dove into."

[Explain,] Gyda said and Shadowfire winced again.

That tone demanded the entire truth. Ancestors welcome Hookfang if he decided to be coy and try to bank around Gyda's request.

"Your son thinks the alpha's forgiveness wasn't for him."

Gyda looked over her shoulder. Shadowfire sighed, lowering his muzzle. He heard his mother sigh. His eyes widen as Snotlout began speaking.

[Oh, brother. All this for a dragon who thinks he's above Hiccup.]

"Snotlout," Hookfang said, a warning note to his voice.

[What? He does. Hiccup said he's forgiven but he don't believe that. He thinks he's above Hiccup.]

Shadowfire blinked as Snotlout stomped across snow and rock. The teen stopped in front of Shadowfire's muzzle and placed a hand on either side of Shadowfire's jaw.

[If Hiccup could forgive me and the rest of the tribe, he can forgive you.]

Shadowfire closed his eyes. "You all hurt him. I endangered his queen."

Snotlout snorted. [Bah! I've flirted with Astrid since I learned Hiccup had a thing for her just to torment him and he knew it! He still forgave me. He told you, Astrid told you!, that you were forgiven.]

[Never thought I would find myself agreeing with Snotlout,] Fish said as he and Meatlug joined them, [but he is right, Shadowfire. Hiccup doesn't lie. He forgave you. Every Viking knows what it means to swear an oath to a god, even if that god is Loki. You had to do as you swore or you would have angered Loki. Hiccup knows an angry god is not a good thing for us to have to deal with.]

Shadowfire sighed again. In his mind he knew and understood their words. His heart, however, was another story. He genuinely loved his alpha and the nest he created for all who bowed to him. As soon as he grabbed Astrid and stood to his hindlegs, Shadowfire knew he had lost everything. His entire flock. His place in the nest. That Hiccup grabbed him once he said he would leave shocked Shadowfire.

Astrid was Hiccup's queen. You did not mess with or harm her. Hiccup did not play when it came to her safety. He had ordered Toothless to ready a plasma blast at Alvin just because the man held Astrid off the side of cliff. Had Viggo harmed Astrid when he held her on the Edge, Shadowfire knew the man would have been thrown into the volcano instead of the Dragon Eye.

Shadowfire had been certain that his actions crossed the line that Hiccup would truly forgive.

[Son.]

Shadowfire lifted his gaze. His mother's tone would not let him ignore her. He found her standing right beside Snotlout. He crooned sadly. His mother's eyes held a sheen she did not deserve to have. He moved his head out of Snotlout's grasp and buried his muzzle against his mother. She wrapped both arms around his snout.

[Oh, my son, Hiccup and Astrid have forgiven you. Please start forgiving yourself.]

Onyxwing glanced at Sunburn then turned back to Hiccup.

[A good portion of the answer you seek will be found when we reach the end of this and you find what that human is looking for,] Onyx said.

Hiccup grunted. Not the answer he wanted but he had been around Toothless enough to recognize the tone of Oynx's voice. There was more but he could not say. He would not say. Hiccup felt an urge to pinch his nose like Gyda did.

They had come to this nest not just to let Toothless reunite with his family and for that same family to meet Hiccup. They also traveled this distance because the Changewing elder believed the answer to why Hiccup's soul held the power it did would be found here where the All Tale originated.

So far Hiccup had gotten more questions than answers to everything. He still did not understand how Onyx was even alive. How Onyx's rider was alive. He had no clue why Silent left a duty the dragons saw a scared just for him. He did not know why Toothless' aunt acted as she did or why she seemed to hate him. Hiccup did not know what it would accomplish for him to find what Skulder sought on this island.

The man had left Berk to seek its history. Gothi taught everyone much of that. Stoick told Hiccup what Gothi could not write out and have Gobber interpret since it was deemed as knowledge to remain with the chief and his family only.

Hiccup had never understood why Skulder believed there was more and certainly did not see that whatever rested in that treasure room he seemed to want to get into would really matter to anyone on Berk. This nest and Berk were so far apart from each other as to be on the opposite edges of the world. Or as Gyda put it, on the opposite side of the world. There could be no link between the two before he and Toothless became brothers and Berk gained the nest as an ally.

[Hiccup,] Onyxwing called and Hiccup could not help but face the dragon. Not when he used a tone of voice that reminded Hiccup of his father calling for undivided attention due to a grave matter. [Just know this, we have waited a long time for you. You are the answer to so much, young one. So much.]

Literally Nobody: Hehe, very interesting. No, Gyda left 'our time' before the first trailer for the third movie ever dropped but after season 6 of Race To The Edge ended so she knows all of that but nothing of the third movie. That was on purpose. I didn't know at the time I started this and now I don't want to spoil the third movie as some of my readers haven't seen it yet. Skulder is awesome. I always enjoyed dealing with him in School of Dragons. As far as I'm aware it doesn't mean anything. I think it was a made up name. Thank you. Have a good day/night as well.

Kirika: Hehe, yep. It was meant to.