(A/N: I owe you all an explanation and an apology. Sadly, this story fell apart. First, I got stuck trying to figure out where to go and how to transition from here, then I began losing interest and motivation to continue, and that coupled with me starting the new, much larger HTTYD story that I'm currently working on...well, it all just kinda killed this story, and it kills me to abandon it because I've seen the reviews left for this and I know how much you were loving it. BUT, while it is being abandoned indefinitely, if not permanently, you all still deserve to have what was unpublished and to know my original plan for it. Therefore, I am posting this opening fragment of chapter 2, along with a description of where I planned for the story to go should it have reached completion. I figured it's the least I can do as I really don't see this story ever getting done. Once again, I am very sorry. (If it is any consolation, there are still elements from this story that I have incorporated into the Return to the Edge that will be a part of the narrative I am currently working on.))

Chapter 2

As the ship left the dock and New Berk behind and began sailing east, Hiccup pulled out his map and began to unfold it on the deck.

"Whoa," Nuffink said, marveling at the expansive map before him.

Hiccup and the others looked over the map. The entrance to the Hidden World was at the far left of the map, where Hiccup had marked the edge of the world to be. Old Berk was somewhat near the center, and Dragon's Edge was northeast of it a bit.

"We're never going to make it to the Edge with the supplies we have," Hiccup said. "No matter how sparingly we use them. We'll need to find a place to resupply along the way."

He began looking at the area around Old Berk near where some of their old allies were. Astrid pointed to a spot on the map.

"There," she said, "Berserker Island. It's about halfway between here and the Edge."

"We could definitely make that," Hiccup agreed. "But we'll still have to ration some of the food."

"Why did you bring a chicken?" Zephyr asked Tuffnut.

Everyone turned around to see that, indeed, Chicken had come along for the journey as well.

"Ah, ah, ah," Tuff said, "this is not just a chicken. This is the chicken."

"Just make sure she doesn't eat all the food, Tuff," Astrid said.

"Yeah," Snotlout butted in, "or else we might have to have some chicken wings instead."

Tuff suddenly tackled Snotlout and put him in a headlock.

"No!" he shouted. "You take that back! You take it back right now!"

"No!" Snotlout refused.

"Ugh, not again," Hiccup groaned, as he remembered all the other times Snotlout had joked about eating Chicken and Tuffnut had attacked him for it.

"Should we help him?" Fishlegs asked, pointing to Snotlout.

"Nah, he's fine," Ruffnut said, smiling, before Snotlout passed out. "Oh."

They sailed on for a week, passing by Old Berk along the way until Berserker Island eventually came into view. As they docked the ship, the group was soon met by Dagur and Heather. Hiccup tied the boat to the dock and Dagur walked over to him.

"Brother!" he exclaimed happily as he reached out his hand to help Hiccup onto the dock. "What are you doing here?"

"We're headed back to the Edge for a short getaway," Hiccup replied as the others disembarked. "Just to get away from the busyness of the village. The better question is, what are you doing here?"

"Same as you," Dagur replied. "Just came to visit my sis and take a break from being a king. It's still a little hard going since the Eruptodon just up and left."

"Yeah, I was wondering about that," Hiccup said. "That might be my fault."

"We can talk about it in the great hall," Dagur replied putting his arm around Hiccup's shoulders. "Come, brother. We have much to discuss."

Night fell quickly as the group was led to the great hall. They sat down and started eating a warm meal as Hiccup began to explain what had happened to the dragons.

"Well, that certainly explains a few things," Dagur said. "We were all so afraid when the Eruptodon suddenly flew away. The lava flow completely overran the village. Luckily, we were able to evacuate everyone, but without the Eruptodon to eat the lava, it took over the entire island and we had to relocate."

The rest of chapter 2 would've seen the end of the riders' stay on Berserker Island, the rest of their journey to the Edge, and their first nostalgic reactions upon arriving back on the island.

Chapter 3 would've focused on the attempts to get the base back in a habitable condition as it would've been very rundown after ten years. It would've also featured many callbacks and campfire stories told of the events of Race to the Edge to Zephyr and Nuffink. The main ones I had in mind were, upon arrival, Snotlout comments that his hut feels naked without the S hanging on it and they make a brief mention of all the times Snotlout risked his life to protect his precious S. During the reconstruction phase, they would repair Hiccup's forge and use it to help with repairing the base, although he refuses to let Snotlout use it, saying he doesn't want his hut to explode again. And lastly, the twins take Zephyr and Nuffink on a brief tour of the base, taking extra time to stop in front of Hiccup's door, saying that it is sacred ground and telling them of the time when he punched Snotlout. Pretty much all of these things from chapter 3 will be included in my new story, so don't worry, you will still get to see them play out as I intended.

Chapter 4 would've seen them discover a cave leading to the Hidden World, allowing for them to reconnect with their dragons. As a sort of climax to the story, the riders get back into old habits with their dragons and relive the good old days for Hiccup's kids to witness. They perform tricks, show off training and rescue skills, and things sort of feel like they're back to the way they were, with Hiccup's kids being able to witness firsthand the teamwork and skills that they were told stories about. As a grand finale, the riders all play a game of Beat the Dome.

Chapter 5 simply would've been a relaxing return trip and had everyone reflecting on the getaway.

Part of the reason I abandoned this was largely because it felt empty in the middle. It didn't feel long enough. They just arrive in chapter 3, then in chapter 4, it's over and they're ready to go home. It was too short, but I couldn't think of anything to try to lengthen it. That, plus with the ideas for this new and completely different story beginning to brew in my head, I knew that I wouldn't have time for both. I am sorry about what happened to this story as I know you all were enjoying it. However, I do promise to bring as many elements and scrapped ideas from this into the new story so that you may still get it in some form, and hopefully, you'll enjoy it just as much.