Author's Note:

• This one is extremely short compared to some of my previous drabbles. But I feel kinda bad for not posting an update in a little while. So here ya go. It's short, sweet, and hopefully isn't too bad . . .

• This takes place sometime after the events with Maleficent. Of which I need to write more about.

• I do not own How To Train Your Dragon or Kingdom Hearts. HTTYD belongs to Dreamworks and Cressida Cowell. Kingdom Hearts belongs to Sqaure Enix, Tetsuya Nomura, and Disney.

One small step forward.

Getting closer to the edge now.

Closer to the near endless abyss below.

. . . Closer to freedom.

He took a deep breath, greedy for life - giving oxygen. His chest swelled with excitement, anticipation, and longing. Bravely, he took another, larger step closer to the edge. His heart rate increased dramatically. Right as the tip of his sneaker went over the edge, he lifted both of his arms up at his sides, spreading his fingers apart and tilting his head backwards. A sharp gust of ocean wind bust forth, cascading over his body, tosseling his hair, and sending familiar chills up his spine. Grinning from ear to ear, he relished in the sensation.

The world smelled of a strange concoction of pine and sea salt. Hundreds of feet below, he could hear the churning waves of a temperate ocean. If he inhaled through his mouth, he could taste the salt hanging thickly in the air. Aside from the mixture of emotions coming forth from his chest, he could also feel the faint pricks of claws against his scalp and shoulders. If he followed those sharp tips with his senses, he could hear their owner chirp softly in delight. If he strained his hearing hard enough, he could hear the sound of flared wings beating occasionally against the wind.

Taking another deep, steady breath, he opened his deep azure eyes to see the clear sky overhead. If he was a resident of this massive island, he would know seeing such a open sky so late in autumn would be nothing short of a miracle. He looked further up to see a wide, tan chin attached to a slender neck. The dragon had his back legs placed firmly on his shoulders, his back claws digging into the shoulder pads of his jacket to support himself. The Terror's front legs clung to his hair with firm yet gentle claws. A long tail had snaked its way beneath the back his jacket and wound loosely around his upper torso just beneath his armpits. The forest green dragon perched on his head had become a familiar sight to him, and he dreaded the day he would have to leave this world and its inhabitants behind. He knew he could not take the Terrible Terror with him. Who knew how many rules he would be breaking if he ever did such a thing.

His wide grin softened at the thought. His arms dropped back to his sides and he subconsciously took a step back, away from the edge. The dragon adorning his skull tittered softly, adjusted his grip, and craned his neck down to look down at the boy. The brunette's azure gaze shifted to the side to look at the dragon's round golden eyes. The Terror's encouraging gaze held his for several seconds before his smile came back to it's former glory. He didn't understand how, but the little dragon always seemed to have an answer despite not being able to speak to him.

"You ready, Spit?"

The little Terror trilled excitedly. Taking this as a "yes", the boy took a steady, deep breath before taking that final step toward the edge once again. He spread his arms out at his sides and allowed the gentle sea breezes to wash over him like before. His knees bent as a particularly powerful gust blew past him as if he wasn't even there. Some would feel insignificant before such a massive body of water. But here, facing the ocean with his eyes closed and his face toward his namesake, he felt at home. Taking one last deep breath, he took the impossible step forward.

And he began to fall.

A look of pure glee crossed his face as gravity took a firm grasp onto his being. Hundreds of feet below were jagged rocks and monstrous waves. But he didn't care. Both of his arms were pressed against his sides as he plummeted face-first. The Terrible Terror continued to cling to his head, his entire body pressed against the boy's head and wings tucked in tightly against the rest of his body. It was nothing short of amazing that the little dragon put so much faith in the foreign brunette after only a few weeks of knowing each other.

About halfway down the high cliff-face, the boy flipped himself in mid-air so that his back was facing the rocky cliff wall rather than his stomach. The pair was gradually gaining speed thanks to gravity's tight pull and their aerodynamic positions. Two thirds of the way down, and the boy opened his eyes again. Deep, happy blue met raging crystal waters. Merely a few seconds before a bone shattering impact, the brunette flipped himself once against and, using a bit of magic to use Glide, propelled himself forward horizontally, almost perfectly parallel with the ocean's surface.

The waves that crashed against the sharp rocks sent sprays of water up, hitting both the boy and his dragon companion. The two let out cries of overwhelming excitement as they careened forward through the salty air. One sounded eerily like a series of small, sharp bells that oddly mixed in with the others tenor notes of blissful, unconcerned wonder. Their cries cut through the air over the sound of the crashing waves as if the raging ocean was nothing more than a quiet sneeze.

Once the pair was clear of the sharp rocks, the brunette gradually pulled his arms away from his torso a little bit to slow down their pace. They were close enough to the ocean's surface that he tilted himself onto his side mid-Glide and ran his right hand through the water, letting the cold salt water rush between his fingers as he went. The Terrible Terror chirped excitedly and extended his slender neck to run one of his horns through the water as well.

After a minute or two of this, the two righted themselves again. They looked directly ahead of them, seeing a massive towers of ancient rocks coming upon them at a rapid pace. A smirk danced across his boyish face while his reptilian passenger tightened his grip and growled softly with anticipation. The two continued on their direct path as if they were confident they could pass through the rocks like they were made of nothing but air.

And right before impact, the brunette spread his arms and tried to perform a back - flip so that he was gliding feet first. The second the bottom of his sneakers touched the rocks, he took off running in a full on sprint on a near completely vertical climb. He pumped his arms furiously at his sides, knowing if he didn't reach the top soon, he was going to plummet back toward the ocean. He passed several small nooks, holes, and small jutting rocks. At first, he thought the sharp chirps and hisses he was hearing was the Terrible Terror still clinging to his head. Had he been paying more attention, he would have known differently.

Thankfully, he had been running fast enough that by the time he reached the top, he had enough momentum left over from fighting against gravity to kick off cleanly without the risk of slamming his head against anything. With his back toward the ocean, he spread his arms and legs as wide as he could, closed his eyes, and just let himself go. He barely heard the Terrible Terror's concerned chirps before they morphed into more gleeful notes. The brunette angled himself to fall face first once again and began to spin with his arms pulled back toward his body. His eyes opened once more to be greeted with not only deep blue rapidly coming to meet him, but several pairs of golden eyes. At first, he thought he was seeing double. But several of the amber eyes were set into crimson red, radiant yellow, leaf green, or faint blue scales. Grinning excitedly, the boy cried out joyously as the small pack of Terrible Terrors spun and fell along with him. The one forest green one that had been clinging to him the entire time almost released his grip to join his kind, but he remained in place behind the boy's head.

Gradually, the spinning stopped. Right before being smashed in the face with icy cold salt water, the brunette righted himself and once again released a little bit more magic to initiate his Glide ability again. The flock of Terrible Terrors remained on their heels. Some flew ahead of them while one or two flew on either side of the odd pair. They continued at their moderate pace before the ocean came a little too close for comfort. The brunette took the initiative and purposely angled himself to dive into the chilly embrace of the sea. Its icy clutches seized his limbs and nearly caused his heart to skip a few beats. He wasn't planning on such a cold encounter for the seas back home were warm and soothing to the skin. His dragon companion held fast despite the sudden change of plans. A few seconds in (and several feet down) the brunette kicked off, breaking the surface of the water with a foolish grin on his face. He instantly broke out into a fit of laughter, his dragon companion nowhere near as amused. It was a strange sensation to laugh while your chest felt constricted from the cold. The small group of Terrors flew around in circles over their heads before taking off toward a cluster of boulders sticking out of the ocean not too far off. Not missing a beat, the brunette swam after them.

The rocks were slippery and hard to cling to, but after a few failed attempts and several splashes later, the boy and his dragon sat on top of the highest boulder. Some of the Terrors from before splayed out on the rocks, enjoying the warm rays of sunlight while they still could before the frigid winter winds were bound to sweep them away without mercy in the coming days.

This whole excursion had been to try and clear his mind. The boy was homesick, longing for the hot summer days and warm, white sand between his toes. He missed going fishing and catching nothing but debris and chasing sea gulls up and down the beach while another friend harvested their eggs. But, most of all, he missed those friends. He missed sparring with his best friend and goofing off instead of doing chores. He longed to pull some pranks on the adults, causing general mayhem for his mother, being shoved off of the docks at random, and burying his friends alive in sand while they slept on the beach.

Don't get him wrong; he liked Berk. The place was full of a slew of differing characters. Ruff 'n Tuff were great little tricksters that, if he ever got the chance to channel their energy and not try and pick a fight with him, he would love to pull a prank or two with them. Fishlegs' curiosity never ceased to amuse and intrigue him. And the larger boy was so interested in dragons and the Keyblade that he was more than willing to just sit down with him and tell him everything about dragons while he informed the other boy about the Keyblade, the monsters he had slain, and the places he had been to. Snotlout, if the two ever settled their differences due to their contrasting opinions over the Jorgensen boy's cousin, would likely be a nice candidate to train with. Snotlout's had a lot of ambition and confidence, but lacked in the skill department. Gobber was a real character. The one-armed, peg-legged Viking could weave some interesting tales about his youth and his apprentice that the brunette couldn't help but like the man. He could see why some of the others liked him so much too.

And that was just scratching the surface of what Berk had to offer. Astrid had a fiery temper and more than enough skills required to lop someone's head off. She made an awesome sparring partner to boot. But despite her tough exterior and unwillingness to open up to him, he had witnessed first hand her protective nature. He had a bruise on the back of his left shoulder from where she had socked him for staring to prove it. So regardless of the fact that she wasn't sure what to think of him, he knew he liked her and considered her a friend. As for Hiccup? The brunette could honestly say he liked the other boy. For being short, skinny, and missing a leg, the guy had more energy, enthusiasm, and more curiosity than should be legal. It was a miracle Hiccup didn't explode simply for standing still for more than three seconds due to pent up energy and raw brain power. And while most of the dragons either regarded him with suspicion or ignored him entirely, there were three that responded to his presence. Birdbrain the Deadly Nadder was wary of the foreign, but she seemed to be warming up to him at about the same rate as her wrathful rider. Toothless the Night Fury always left the brunette wondering just what the dragon was thinking behind those sage green eyes, but he couldn't help but have a lot of respect for the ebony beast. And then there was of course Spitfire the Terrible Terror, who was currently curling himself into a tight ball on his lap. The little green dragon had to have his nose in everything and was curious to the point it drove a lot of villagers mad. But he loved Spit, mischievous twinkle in his amber eyes and all.

But . . . being homesick wasn't the only thing on his mind.

Taking in a deep breath, he exhaled it slowly through his mouth. His spine slumped forward a bit, his elbows propped up on top of his knobby knees. It was about Astrid. He felt terrible and guilty for the ordeal she and the others were going through. If there was anything he could to fix the situation, he would have gladly taken it. That was another reason he was out here; to escape the looks he was positive the Vikings of Berk were giving him. Like they knew it was his fault and that he should be able to do something considering his title and the nature of the situation.

Flying by yourself isn't anywhere near as fun as flying with someone else.

Spitfire may have been too small to take the brunette flying.

But Sora was not too small to take the Terrible Terror for a ride.

And Hiccup hadn't been lying when he said they got a charming view of the sunset in Berk.

Foot Notes

• It was a major pain in my ass to write all but the end of it without using Sora's actual name. I have no idea why I chose to do that for this drabble, but I wanted to try something different. Hope it's not too confusing considering Spit and Sora are the same gender.