Toothless floated down towards the bottom of their home. Where a hold had been opened up allowing for their sea based dragons a way inside. Along with the path that had been made to allow them easier travel. The path wasn't large enough to get a ship through and was still very well hidden by the fog surrounding them.
Toothless and Hiccup landed on the deck of Stoick's ship. Which had been dragged around and brought inside. When Hiccup's feet hit the deck he was nearly toppled over as fledglings jumped on him and Toothless. But after a few too many weighed him down, Hiccup fell over and could be heard laughing and pleading to be left alone, which was being ignored. When Hiccup finally got the ones covering him off, he saw Toothless smiling down on him.
"What?" Hiccup asked. The group that had been trampling him had settled down next to him.
"Nothing, just watching."
"You like seeing the little ones around me huh?" Hiccup teased. Toothless didn't say anything back. "Having parental thoughts?" Hiccup teased further.
"I told you a long time ago I wanted a family." Toothless said. Hiccup deflated a bit. "So seeing you with all these little ones is simply nice to see." He took a step forward and nuzzled into Hiccup's hair. "You look very natural with hatchlings surrounding you."
"You think?"
"I think no matter what, you'd look natural around dragons. Big or small. You just seem so at home around your own kind." Toothless pecked at the top of Hiccup's head and took a step back. Hiccup beamed up at him and couldn't help but chuckle as a little head poked out above his.
"Okay everyone get off those two." A female Gronckle called out. The tiny hoard of scales and energy jumped and climbed off of Toothless and Hiccup. "Sorry about them. They can't help but investigate anything that comes around."
"Oh that's perfectly fine." Hiccup waved off. Hiccup stood up and brushed himself off. Toothless took a big lick of Hiccup's back to clean him off. Which made him shiver. "We just came down to help finish off the preparation so you guys can get out of here as soon as possible." Hiccup said after recompiling himself.
"Well thanks we're pretty much ready to go. We really just need to make sure that everyone who's going is here. So really just a head count and we're good."
"That sounds easy enough."
"Yeah if these little devils would sit still for even a second. Then it would be." The Gronckle turned around. "If you want to help round these guys up so we can get that count that would be nice."
For the next near hour Toothless and Hiccup help rangle hatchlings and get them on the boat. And with the watchful eye of a few other nest mothers none got away after they were caught. At the end of it Hiccup was hunched over, panting on the deck of the ship.
"You're out of shape." Toothless jabbed.
"Shut up." Hiccup gasped. "You can fly. I had to climb for these little bastards." Hiccup stretched his back and looked at Toothless. The ladder stood there with three hatchlings using him as a perch, and another trying to catch his tail. Hiccup gasped and he blushed at the sight of Toothless being fatherly.
"What?" Toothless asked.
"Nothing." Hiccup looked away. "J-just go." Toothless did as he was told, and as he passed he continued to sway his tail for the one trying to catch it. Hiccup jumped away as the little one dashed and nearly toppled him over. He followed the group from a safe distance, not wanting to get in the way of the ball of energy in front of him again. They were led below deck of the Gronckle they met with earlier. The two decks unter the top were stuffed with hatchlings. Along with them were Queen, The Fireworm Queen, and The Deathsong. Both covered in a healthy layer of small dragons napping against them. Hiccup tiptoed over to them, and Toothless did his best. "You two look comfortable." Hiccup joked. They both looked up to him annoyed.
"You both could go topside you know." Toothless told them.
"Do you really think we have that choice right now?" The Deathsong asked.
"Well you do need to make a decision. When one wakes up, another will surely take its place. Especially you Queen. You're the warmest thing for miles, they're just going to cling to you."
"It's fine." Queen said. She clutched a barrel with her tail. "As long as my little ones stay safe in this, I don't mind so much."
"Never knew you'd get so attached to hatchlings." Toothless chuckled.
"Don't get your hopes up. This is for the good of the flock. A lot of people are making preparations to make bigger sacrifices then having a few hatchlings nap on them." Queen reminded them. Hiccup didn't like the harsh reality of her words and the sternness of her tone.
"You act as though you aren't doing something just as important. Need I remind you that you're still part of this flock." Toothless' voice was strict and commanding. "You best be ready to lay your life down just as everyone else is. Because if this place goes down, any survivors are coming your way and you'll be expected to fight." He looked over the Deathsong. "You as well." He looked back at the Fireworm Queen. "And while you may not like it, you're holding onto a barrel of ticking time bombs. Each one of those Fireworms you look over are just as dangerous as any of us, and you'll be expected to use them. You aren't as docile as you think you look like. We know you're dangerous, just as much if not more so than most of the others here.
Your kind are rare, and with rarity comes uncertainty. And when people don't know how to deal with you, you become infinitely more dangerous to deal with.
So know this. At times like these we need everyone's full cooperation. I don't care how you feel about Hiccup and I leading this flock. And I don't care if you think yourself loyal to us or not. But if you are called on to act, I will expect you to act. And if you don't, and we make it through. I will personally see to it that the things most precious to you are taken away, and then I will permanently banish you from my flock." Toothless gave her a long hard stare. "This isn't about who's making the biggest sacrifice. It's about preserving what we are, and the way we live. It's about our flock living on to see another day. Another day without a tyrannical ruler who won't let you leave."
