The cave was silent, the tense kind of feeling that it had adopted stifling and smothered the beings inside. Talon sat tall in the entrance of the large gaping mouth of the shelter, eyes narrowed as he looked up into the sky carefully, tail twitching every so often as he shifted restlessly. Although the sky was starting to clear up finally, it did nothing to shed light over his weighted-down heart. Ears swiveling back and forth a little tiredly, he gave a small sigh, shuffling his paws closer to his chest as his shoulders hunched slightly. Suddenly, he wished for the silence to be broken, to be shattered apart. He would take anything over the silence that they had been enduring these past few days. It was suffocating, this silence. He wished that it would end.

As if on cue, a sudden voice spoke up behind him, the soft, tinkling tone immediately giving away its identity. "Are you alright?" It chirped, light footsteps padding up behind him to take a seat beside the dragon. Talon gave a chuff of affection at the sight of the light brown Night Fury, feeling a rush of warmth at the sight of her earnest green eyes. Out of all the Night Fury that were left here on this island, she was the best, in his opinion. Not in looks or grace. But of heart. He could almost feel her aura radiating off of her sleek coat, giving out happiness and optimism. Nowadays, Furies tended to ignore dragons such as her.

"Hello, Leafdapple." He purred, turning back to observing the sky with a calculated look. The younger dragon shifted back and forth a little nervously, a small tremor going through her as a particularly sharp wind gusted over the valley. As another beat of silence passed, Talon stiffened, anxious to break it as he grew uncomfortable. Glancing over in her direction, he had to look down slightly. He wouldn't consider Leafdapple a 'youngling' anymore; her height was up past his shoulders, and her eyes had that sharpened look of an adult. But she was still prematurely little, like she always had been. "How are you?" He prompted, surprising her as she turned to look at him with a tilted head. "Are you settling back in well?" He asked, remembering how her mother had dragged her along to Nightflight's island instead of staying behind like he had.

The girl's eyes flashed at his words, but her voice came smooth and easy as she replied politely. "Yes, I am. It's not so easy, dealing with others. Especially those who didn't leave the island with me. I think they still look a little down on me when I try to talk to them." Her voice turned slightly bitter at this, reaching out and tracing a faint line in the sand as she mumbled out the words. Talon pricked his ears, having to make an effort to listen as her voice lost volume. She shrugged carelessly as she went on. "I dunno." She sighed. "I guess it's just something that I'll have to cope with for now."

"That's unreasonable." Talon replied after a moment, wings twitching as his tone sharpened. "If it weren't for you and that other dragon," Leafdapple tensed slightly at the last few words, eyes widening as if the Night Fury had slapped her across the face. But he didn't pay any heed, not noticing the odd change in behavior. "things would still be the way they were. We'd have half the number in our family that we have now. You brought us back together. They should be thanking you, not rejecting your attempts at trying to readjust!"

"It's Shadowclaw." Leafdapple hissed suddenly.

Talon blinked, confused. "What?" He asked, lost.

"I said: It's Shadowclaw." Leafdapple repeated, more firmly this time. "His name was Shadowclaw. You just said: 'that other dragon.' He deserves more recognition than that. Without him, I wouldn't have shown him the way back to this island, and therefore, we wouldn't be here right now." When Talon still looked a little miffed, Leafdapple sighed through her nose, coming out as a sharp huff. "…Sorry." She offered, forcing herself to stop bristling as she looked away. "It's just that I've been feeling a little uptight these past few days."

But Talon only gave a laugh. "I never would have guessed." He said, the girl looking back over to him anxiously. "You seem pretty happy going around through the caves. You looked happy enough to be home." When the dragon didn't answer, he pressed harder, a little more concerned. "You are happy, aren't you?" He hedged out, tossing a glance over his shoulder and into the empty cave behind them. His wings grew limp slightly as he did so, and he tried to hold back a small hint of irritation that bubbled up behind his throat. "It seems like a lot of dragons don't want to be here."

"Can you blame them?" Leafdapple asked, looking at him skeptically. Talon switched his gaze back to her, the brown Night Fury studying the ocean stretching out below them. "They just lost the only dragon that really inspired them. Whether or not she did for the right reasons, it's still a huge loss for them to lose her. And they didn't even get to see why." Her nose wrinkled as she remembered the scene back a few days ago. "And with Fleetfoot barging in here with only his side of the story of Nightflight leaving…that couldn't help much either."

"So you think it's not the full story?" Talon asked.

Leafdapple shrugged yet again. "Think of all the stories that were only pieced together a short while ago. Toothless's, Mistyeyes's, and even Shadowclaw's. Before, they all looked like traitors. Even to you. But it turned out that Toothless and Mistyeyes just found where they belonged. And Shadowclaw was only with Nightflight for that short time to try and find somebody to help him out like I did. There's always more than one side to a story. If we go around jumping to conclusions, we might as well just start running laps around the island and never stop. Both ways, we'll get nothing done."

Talon nodded slowly in agreement, eyes narrowing as he remembered back to when Fleetfoot had rushed back into the cave. The dragons that had agreed to come back and stay with the ones that stayed originally had only been here a few days. It had been quiet, like it always was, nowadays. The Pack was laying around the stone floor, sharing stories and words before everyone retired to sleep. The feeling in the shelter was actually one of peace and calm, for once, there was no angered looks or gestures floating around in the air. But it had all fallen apart when Fleetfoot had burst through the doorway.

His eyes had been wild and crazed, blood scabbed over on his scales, marring his features and making him look ghastly. He had been heaving for breath, pain and betrayal alive in his wide orbs as he took in the sight around him. At once, a smoky-gray Night Fury had leapt up to her feet, recognition thrilling through her at the sight of the second-in-command for Nightflight. "Fleetfoot!" She had gasped sharply, looking as though she wanted to dash forward to him. But she only took a step backwards, looking him up and down wearily. "What happened?" She asked.

He took in a few gulps of air, unable to reply as he tried to sort out his thoughts. "It's…Nightflight!" He panted, Talon's forehead creasing as he too got up to his feet. Over to the side, he remembered seeing Leafdapple exchanging a startled look with the dragoness sitting next to her, he thought that it had been Shadowclaw's mother. But he hadn't been all that sure. At the moment, all that mattered was hearing Fleetfoot out. The dragon was going on, doing his best to talk through his gasps. "She attacked me, told me…told me that we should leave Berk alone if we know what's good for us."

Others gasped with surprise, though Talon noticed that it was all of those who had once followed Nightflight closely. The dragons that had stayed back from her ruthless nature didn't seem all that fazed, te only reaction going through them was a small jolt of mild surprise. But others looked confused and shocked, mouths open wide as they looked at Fleetfoot with a sense of wild disbelief. At once, voices erupted like a volcano, questions being fired at the wounded Night Fury like bursts of flame.

"What!?"

"What is she doing!? That's the exact opposite of what she told us!"

"Is she going back on her own advice!? Where is she now!?"

"What do we do?"

"I don't know what to think anymore!"

Talon's ears had slicked back firmly to his head, feeling anger and frustration like claws inside of his stomach. The questions were far from intelligent, and the stupidity of the moment was almost enough to floor him right to the stone ground of the cave. But he forced himself to stay upright, listening to the voices of mystified Night Furies as they shouted back and forth frantically. Fleetfoot staggered underneath the weight of his injuries, and Talon had found himself wondering whether or not the dragon needed medical attention, rather than the news he had brought along with him. After all, that was the much more pressing matter at hand right now.

But Fleetfoot looked far from wanting out of the center of attention. He raised his voice, shouting over the yells and shouts of those around him. Gradually, the others became quiet, listening with a sense of desperate concern as all eyes turned onto him. Talon had sighed shortly, turning and sitting down fixedly as he looked over to Fleetfoot imploringly. Might as well see what this was all about, first. "I met here on a cliff." He said, getting his erratic breathing under control gradually. "She had a human with her, and I thought that she was under attack. But when I attacked the thing, she reacted almost immediately. She and Mistyeyes teamed up against me and managed to beat me." His voice grew slightly darker at this, as if reluctant to have to admit to his failure in taking them down. "And before I could go, Nightflight told me that if we wanted to deal with Berk, we'd have to go through her to do so. She was…entirely different. She couldn't see anymore. Something happened to her eyes. She relies on the very same human that we were sent out to kill now for her sight when flying." There was a collective gasp at this, and even Talon managed to perk with surprise. That wasodd of her to do, he had to admit. "She's…" Fleetfoot gulped deeply, swallowing back at lump in his throat. "She's one of them now." He managed.

Leafdapple had started at the information, looking utterly lost as she once again looked over to the dragoness for help. But she looked just as confused. Everybody did. Talon's eyes had swept over the crowd around him, and he came up with all the same expressions. Looks of betrayal, anger, confusion, yearning, and maybe even a hint of jealousy in a few eyes. Jealousy for Nightflight being apart of Berk now, or for Fleetfoot for being able to see her again, Talon couldn't tell. All he knew, is that this was getting out of proportion too quickly. Fleetfoot had to stop before things got too out of wing. He started to step forward, but somebody else beat him to it.

A mottled Night Fury had rushed forward, startling Talon back to his original position as he stumbled backwards. It took him a moment to remember the dragoness's name as she darted to Fleetfoot's side, helping to prop him upright as best she could. But then he had remembered in a flash: her name was Juniper. She was one of the older dragons in the Pack, weathered by time and wisdom as she grunted underneath the weight of the younger dragon. But her eyes were narrowed with concentration as she started forward, helping Fleetfoot along as he winced and grimaced, acting as the dragon's crutch as best she could. "That's enough." She barked out, faltering in her strides a moment as Fleetfoot did the same. She drew herself up tightly, jaw locking backwards. "I don't see why this matters so much to you all, but right now this dragon needs attention, and you're giving him the wrong kind." Her words were sharpened towards the end, and Talon sat back down with a satisfied look on his face.

The dragons around him had murmured amongst themselves at the comment, looking a little angrily over in the direction of the older dragon. But they didn't reply to her chastisement, mumbles and voice dripping away slowly until the place was silent once again. Talon's eyes narrowed carefully as Fleetfoot had deflated visibly at this. He seemed angry at the lack of attention, now. The thought had sent Talon's scales brushing up the wrong way, but he didn't say anything. He clamped his mouth shut tightly as he watched Juniper give a stiff nod, turning and helping Fleetfoot along once more. The Night Fury seethed inwardly as dragons slowly went back to their original conversations, but he went along, nonetheless. He allowed himself to be herded away like a sheep, and Talon had watched him go carefully, eyes narrowed as he looked after him.

That had been a while ago. He had been wanting to get Fleetfoot on his own to ask him in more detail about what had happened, or see whether or not he was telling the entire truth of the matter. After all, the sudden arrival of his presence and the sudden news of Nightflight's new morals…both were very abrupt. It only added to the confusion, and it didn't help matters with the way that he was always surrounded by friend nowadays. Every time that Talon had tried to approach him, he found that others had already beat him to it. The dragon was always surrounded by followers, talking over his story and increasing the dramatics every time he did so.

Talon had debated either pulling Fleetfoot aside from his groups, or just joining in the listeners to try and figure out more of the background. But both options seemed not to cut it. It seemed like whenever Fleetfoot told his story to another group, it got more and more drastic in his story-telling. Talon had to wonder whether or not he was keeping up a constant story in his lectures over what had happened before he had gotten here. Which, of course, only added to Talon's new founded doubt in the dragon. And he had no right to drag Fleetfoot away from others that he knew better; it wasn't like Talon had any power over the Pack. Now that Nightflight had left, the Pack had remained without a leader.

Dragons went off and did what they wanted, when they wanted. It was organized, yet chaotic at the same time. It was a change from what it usually was. When others had gone to Mistyeyes to ask what they should do for hunting. She had been younger than most when she first started to take the role, and for a while, most dragons doubted her, and made pointed moves to show their distaste for the dragoness's ridiculous attempts at leadership. But in time, she had proved herself a valuable dragon to have and look up to. The thought of her standing tall at the entrance of the cave was almost enough to shatter Talon's heart.

Back then, the Night Furies on the island had been together. Uniformed, and complete as they acted as one. And now, Talon couldn't tell where half of the dragons went, most of the time. It made him yearn for the old days, and wonder whatever had happened to tip the balance so steeply as this. Everything had gone wrong, and it had all started because Nightflight had brought that one dragon back here. The thought was a little venomous, but Talon realized that it held truth. It was the truth. If Toothless hadn't come back here…

"It's not his fault, you know." Leafdapple said flatly, snapping the older dragon out of the past as he stiffened. He turned to look at her, trying to look innocent, as if she hadn't just guessed the exact words going through his head. But she didn't seem angered or put-out by the notion. She merely kept staring at the ocean, eyes vacant, as if she were looking right through the waves and right down to the very bottom of the sandy floor. "Toothless was brought here against his will. If you want to blame anybody for what happened, go ahead and blame Nightflight." She paused, titling her head to the side imploringly. "But then again, she might have changed too, from what Fleetfoot has told us."

"So who's fault is it?" Talon growled under his breath.

Leafdapple tore her gaze away from the water, eyes sparkling with a small hint of humor at his frustration. "I dunno." She giggled, voice suddenly lighter than normal. "I guess we'll never be able to tell, will we?" But then, her grin dropped, the girl deflating as she turned back to look at the stone between her feet. She went back to his earlier question, eyes downcast suddenly as her mood did a 180. "I don't show my frustration, or the way I feel left out because…it wont do any good, I guess." She glanced over at him, look apologetic. "I don't know…moping around? It doesn't seem like it would help things much. It seems like it would just make it worse. I don't remember a lot about the 'old days' or whatever that you like to talk about." Talon's ears flicked as she spoke, eyes suddenly growing concerned at her new crestfallen expression. "But I do remember how everybody used to be so tightly knit. They were the same. When my friends were sad, so was I. And when I was happy, usually everybody else got brighter when I stepped into the room. We were a family, so we fell or rose together. I guess I'm just wishing for that same feeling back."

Talon's eyes misted over, eyes becoming unfocused as his mind was dragged backwards in time. "Yeah." He sighed sadly. "Back then, things were a lot simpler." Leafdapple perked at the hinting of a story, turning her attention over on the wiser dragon as she pricked her ears. "We didn't have indecision and worry clouding each of our thoughts. And we didn't have drama being spread through the Pack like a disease." Amusement lit up the younger dragoness's face at this, and she gave a small giggle. A little of the weight lifted from Talon's shoulders, but he still looked a little depressed as he continued, more for his own sake than anything else. "Sometimes I find myself thinking more about the past than actually living in the present. I guess it's better than facing what's going on right now."

Leafdapple's ears flicked downwards, a saddened expression overcoming the dragon as she tucked her tail tighter to herself. Talon blinked, turning over and looking at her questioningly. But then his eyes cleared, depression lifting as he nodded over in her direction. "You know, you remind me a lot of Mistyeyes." He said, the brown Night Fury straightening visibly at the comment. Her green eyes flared with surprise, and her mouth hung open slightly, as if unable to speak. And Talon realized with a shock that she was honored by the comment. The thought only made his heart swell, and he felt his chest grow warm with pride. Maybe there was hope in things after all. "You two share the same personality, I think. You both think for others and the future before yourselves."

"…yeah…" Leafdapple managed. "Thank you. Thank you so much." She still sounded a little shaky.

"Did you ever meet her? Or remember her?" He asked suddenly.

"Oh, yes. I did." Leafdapple assured him. "Shadowclaw and I found her and Toothless in the fight when we returned to Berk with you all in tow." Talon nodded at the memory. "She kept her eye on me, Shadowclaw, Toothless, and Shadowclaw's mother all while fending off enemies for herself. She was…really stunning. I can see why people would have looked up to her before. Although I don't remember it…she must have held a really good influence over dragons."

"She was." He remarked carefully.

"She seemed really upset at what Nightflight had done to the Pack." She remarked. "She joined Berk to try and help you all, you know that, right?" He stiffened slightly at her words, and yet Leafdapple didn't answer. "She figured that if she were to go out and see all the fuss that Berk was making and saw what was so attractive…she might be able to sway you all into thinking the same way. But her plan failed because of Nightflight." She paused, tilting her head to the side thoughtfully. "I wonder what she'll do now that Nightflight might be on her side."

"I don't know." Talon mumbled, just as considering as he looked out over the horizon.

Leafdapple's nose wrinkled yet again as she turned to look at him a little closer. "Aren't you-?"

"Yeah." Talon sighed tiredly, suddenly looking much older.

Leafdapple nodded slowly, looking away a little guiltily. "I see." She said. "…I'm sorry."

"It's alright." Talon offered weakly in reply.

They sat in silence once more. Thick, suffocating silence. Leafdapple shifted a little uncomfortably, and Talon did his best not to look over in her direction. The awkwardness that had evaporated in their conversation was slowly making itself known once more, and Talon winced visibly as he looked away from the younger dragon. He had thought that he'd gotten over this feeling when the girl had first trotted out to greet him. But now, it looked like it wasn't dead yet. He'd come out here to avoid situations like this; where was he supposed to go now?

Nowhere?

Was he stuck like this?

"Huh." Leafdapple's voice startled him into the present once again, the male turning to look at her oddly. The dragoness's eyes were fixed firmly on the horizon, eyes narrowing slowly as she took in the sight. Talon followed her gaze carefully, eyes widening slightly at the sight that met him. A few of the dragons that had gone out to hunt were now flying back in their direction, looking rushed and hurried, from what Talon could guess. Even from here, he knew something was wrong. And as if Leafdapple shared his thoughts, she got to her feet, stumbling over herself in the process as she looked on anxiously.

Talon followed her actions, though much more smoothly as he pushed himself. His tail lashed back and forth as he waited for the party to get closer, trying to guess what could have had them so worked up. An injury during hunting? A feud that needed to be settled? A sighting of Vikings or enemy dragons? Any of the situations, and much more, flashed through Talon's mind in then blink of an eye. He felt a small pressure in his chest as his heart told him to start panicking. But his mind told him to be calm, to wait and take the situation when it came. There was no use in getting so worked up if it turned out to be nothing in the end.

When the group finally landed on the rock next to them, they were gasping for air, eyes wide and frantic as they look at Talon almost desperately. The dragon steeled himself, forcing himself to be calm as he looked the group up and down critically. They didn't look injured, they looked perfectly fine. No angered looks between one another, or the hint that they had been ambushed by passing Viking armadas. Not a scale seemed out of place. But looking at them now, Talon couldn't help but think that they looked just like Fleetfoot had when he returned himself. And once again, he felt the scared sort of pressure in his chest. "What's happened?" He demanded tensely, looking from one Night Fury to the other.

It was the dragon in the lead of the group that offered him an answer. He shot up to his feet, looking alarmed as he locked eyes with the taller Night Fury. "We were hunting on the edge of the island." He puffed, Talon looking down and noticing the lack of food around them. But his ear just flicked at the empty space, figuring that they must have a reason for that as well. No, they'd betterhave a reason for thatone. "And Frost said that he saw something out over the ocean." He puffed. "So we all went out together to investigate."

"…And?" Talon prompted, looking at the group a little impatiently.

"We think…." The dragon trailed off, looking at the others as he suddenly became lost for words.

Frost took up the story, eyes hardening. "I think that Toothless and Mistyeyes are coming back."

Talon stiffened at once, pupils dilating at once. Leafdapple winced as she caught his new look, stepping forward and trying to distract the others by speaking up. It did the trick, the group turning over to look at her with wide eyes. "How do you know?" She demanded, voice guarded. But she couldn't help but feel a small twinge of hope. Mistyeyes might be coming back!She thought, with a small glance over at Talon. And…would Shadowclaw be there?The thought sent a light fluttery feeling through her stomach, and she hoped that nobody else noticed the heat that rushed through her.

She shook her head mentally to clear it. That didn't matter.

"Almost positive." Frost explained, still wide-eyed. "One of the dragons had half their tailfin a bright red color. I might be mistaken, but didn't Toothless need something like that in order to fly?" Leafdapple quieted at this, ears flicking as she had to give Frost that one. He went on, realizing that he was getting somewhere. "And I couldn't mistake Mistyeyes, Talon. I'm nearly one hundred percent sure that it was her. And there were about two others I couldn't really define."

Talon blinked rapidly, getting over his bout of shock. "Anything else?" He asked tensely.

Frost's ears flicked back and forth anxiously. "They may or may not have humans along with them." He said tightly.

Talon narrowed his eyes at this, turning and looking over the water. Sure enough, in the distance, there seemed to be a small group of dots, just barely visible. It'd be a while before they got here, what with the speed they were showing. "Get into the cave, then." He offered, not trying to make it a direct order. "Tell anybody there to stay inside. Let them do what they came here for. And then if they come into the cave, that'll make it our problem."

"But-"

Frost's objection was cut short at Leafdapple's glare, the dragon shutting up at once as he clamped his teeth together. Instead, he gave a small nod, hesitating a moment as he looked back at the dots far away. But then he steeled himself, turning around and beckoning the others to follow him back into the cave. Leafdapple watched them go, eyes a little guarded as she took in their body language. It was obvious they were more than upset with the lack of excitement. Looking over attentively to Talon, she offered instantly: "I'll go help. I'm not sure whether or not they'll completely follow your instructions."

But Talon's clouded eyes were fixed on the point far away, eyes suddenly downcast.

Leafdapple followed his point of view, frowning a little. "It'll be okay." She assured him swiftly, doing her best to be upbeat, flashing him a sloppy grin. "I'm sure this will all turn out for the better. You never know with these dragons." It was meant as a joke, but Talon still looked a little too far away to hear her. Drooping, Leafdapple's ears flicked backwards once more. "I'll catch up to you later, then." She said weakly. "I've got to go after Frost and the others. Make sure that they're doing what they should."

Still, no reply.

Leafdapple turned, casting back a long look over her shoulder before whipping around and charging back into the cave, leaving Talon alone on the cliff face once more. The wind tore around him, buffeting him this way and that as he winced inwardly. The dots were getting bigger and bigger, and Talon was starting to doubt his thoughts of them taking a while to get there. Maybe that was just him being hopeful. The thought of Mistyeyes coming back here…it was enough to knock him off his feet. Sure, she had her reasons of doing things. She was even right in her actions, that much had been proved time and time again. Maybe not to others…but to him.

But did she know that?

Did she even care?

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

A/N: We'll find out his relations with Mistyeyes soon ;)

If I get more reviews for this chapter than last chapter, I'll update faster ((hint hint))

Anyway, I hope you like this chapter! Sorry if it's a little short! I'm feeling a little under the weather today, I have no idea why.

Anyway: You like Leafdapple? Think Talon is a little confusing? Like/hate where this is going? Don't like my annoying questions!?

ALL OF THESE ARE REASONS TO REVIEW! ;D