Title: Gonna be Happy
Summary: Hiccup tries to make things better and Toothless isn't having any of it, but when push comes to shove, do they have what it takes to go the distance?
Disclaimer: I do not own, this is true. I make no money, please don't sue.
The people of Burk were brave. Not just 'brave-for-the-sake-of-the-greater-good' brave, but 'let's-surf-volcano-lava-on-dragon-backs-because-it-looks-fun' brave. That said, none of them wanted to get in the way of a near-hysterical Night Fury.
Toothless, fed up with waiting for Hiccup to apologize, had decided to go to the boy and make him apologize. He'd marched up to their house and poised to throw open the door (hoping Stoick wasn't inside, otherwise he was dead for being so careless with the furniture). He opened the door and wished Stoick had been there. The home that greeted him was cold and empty. The hearth contained only white ashes. Hiccup's scent was muted and so was Stoick's, as if neither had been there in a while.
Toothless stood at the threshold, as his mind ran wild with possibilities.
'Maybe he's at that house…' the dragon tried to calm himself. 'That boy…what's-his-face?... Fisheggs. Right.'
Toothless ran helter-skelter through the village. It was extraordinary thing to see, a Night Fury running at full speed, but besides being too busy ducking and being used as a stepping stone, all people saw was a black blur.
Fishlegs opened the door to see what the commotion was all about, and nearly had a heart attack when Toothless dropped out from Nowhere to push his way into the house.
"T-Toothless?" Fishlegs asked, hand on his chest to keep it from bursting. "What happened? Is Hiccup Alright?"
Toothless paid him no mind, sniffing the air in the house, but Hiccup's scent here was staler than it had been at home. He left as quickly as he came, leaving Fishlegs scratching his head. One by one, he went to the houses of the other humans that spent time with Hiccup or Stoick, but some of their houses were empty, and none of them contained Hiccup or Stoick.
'I knew this was coming,' Toothless told himself, even though he hadn't. Why did Hiccup leave? Without even saying goodbye? Toothless knew he'd left willingly; there wasn't a single sign of struggle in that house that used to be his, no-- their home. And there wasn't a single Viking looking for him. Hiccup had left, and he hadn't even said goodbye.
Was it his fault? He would have worn the box-thing, if only Hiccup had asked. He'd only reacted like that because…because it reminded him of the fact that he was defective, a dragon that couldn't even fly on his own. He couldn't protect Hiccup as well as he deserved. It reminded him that while Hiccup had helped him fly again, he hadn't helped Hiccup walk again, merely caught him when he fell.
He would have worn it, even if he knew it meant that Hiccup wanted to replace himself with a cold metal box. He'd made his intentions clear. Hiccup had spent less and less time with him, working on the box, so he could leave Toothless without any guilt, and get on with his life. And Toothless didn't want that. A tailfin had been a fair exchange (he got the better end of the deal, actually) for meeting Hiccup, and he wasn't letting his human go without a fight.
Except, in the end, it was Hiccup's decision, not his. While he would trade the skies for a chance to stay by Hiccup's side (his happiness), he'd trade it all for his human, for Hiccup's chance at happiness.
Even if Hiccup's happiness didn't involve him.
He walked to Their Lake, dejected. He was mildly curious to see Astrid waiting there. Maybe she didn't know that Hiccup was gone. He ignored her and kept on walking until he reached Hiccup's Safe Keeping Boulder. He peeked inside.
'His things are still here.'
Feeling both a little bit better and a lot worse, he laid down. For a long while, neither he nor Astrid moved. But when the sun began to set, she walked over to him. He was too depressed to care as she fiddled with his fake fin. She could take it, if she wanted.
"Hiccup wanted you to have this." She said. Toothless felt the weight of the metal box thing on his tail.
/Nope,/ He said, although he knew she couldn't understand. The only one who understood him was Hiccup. His human.
/Still Don't Care./
The girl sighed, and shivered as a cold gust of wind blew around them. She left, muttering to herself.
"…told him this would happen…"
For seven days, Toothless stayed there, not moving an inch. The only signs that he was alive and awake were his sad eyes that looked at nothing, and his slow breathing. Hiccup's friends brought him fish every day, but he wasn't hungry.
For seven days, he stayed there, but on the eighth, something happened. He smelled Hiccup's scent! Toothless got up, trying to find out where it was coming from. He was just about to give up and declare himself insane when Stormfly landed, smelling like Hiccup. Stormfly was Camicaze's dragon, which was the only reason he wasn't (too) jealous.
/Toothless!/ Stormfly said. /I overheard what happened!/
'Great,' Hiccup thought. Already, news of Hiccup in the market for a new dragon was spreading.
/Wonderful./ Was Toothless's sarcastic reply.
Stormfly was clearly very, very tired, so she drank some water and settled down before she continued.
/No, Not Wonderful! You should go over to there! Hiccup's staying with Camicaze./ She said.
By this time, Toothless was more than a little bewildered. It didn't sound like Hiccup was in trouble, or Stormfly would have opened with that. Did…did Hiccup want him back? His heart leapt.
/Now,/ Stormfly was saying. / I'll push Astrid onto your saddle. She can control your fin, right?/
But Toothless wasn't listening. As Stormfly went on, he spread his wings and leapt into the sky.
/Thank you!/ He called out behind him, before flying full speed to the island of the Bog Burglars.
/HOW ARE YOU DOING THAT?/ Stormfly called out, but Toothless was already gone. She decided to rest a bit, and eat a few of those tasty looking fish before following the Night Fury. At a much slower pace.
A/N: My god, how much longer can I drag this fic out? It was supposed to be a oneshot! Also, just to be clear, predators like Toothless can probably go long times without eating. Even zoo kept lions are only fed around once a week. Toothless is much more awesome than any old lion!
Anyway, I'm still surprised this is getting as many views as it does. It's surprising, but makes me happy on the inside.
As always, feedback is what I need to keep writing and improve! Thanks for reading!