The riders had no idea what the dragons were saying, but it was evident this turned into a family reunion.
The older female and the two smaller females appeared ecstatic by Toothless's presence.
After all these years… The older female murmured, nuzzling Toothless, my Ryvir…
He beamed, he hadn't heard his mother's voice in so long, he'd almost forgotten what it sounded like. He could recognize the faces of his sisters, though… they were one short.
Irmessa… The oldest of the siblings, she was about two to three years older than Toothless. They were separate single clutches. She was the one with cooler blue-green eyes. The two shared similar eye shapes.
And the younger one with the shade of green around her pupils in contrast to her light seafoam blue eyes, Vekyss. The acknowledged female beamed at hearing her brother say her name again.
Wait… where's Erleth? Toothless asked, having noticed she was missing. His mother's face fell at the mention of her missing daughter.
She was kidnapped and murdered by hunters ages ago… His mother, Ayry, somberly informed him. She and Vekyss were so little… Erleth was taken not too long after you. For years… I thought I had only two of my children left. But I'm overjoyed to know I was wrong… Warbling sadly, Ayry nuzzled her son against his head once more.
You look fantastic, by the way. Irmessa smirked.
Thanks, Messie. He replied with her old nickname, to which she rolled her eyes, but before I get too ahead of myself. I want you to meet someone.
Toothless made his way to Hiccup's side, nudging him gently, receiving a pat on the head.
The twig? Ayry remarked. Toothless didn't want to disrespect his mother, but she wasn't entirely wrong.
My twig, yes. Mother, this is Hiccup, my rider. And these are all of my friends and their riders. Pair by pair, Toothless introduced his fellow dragons and their riders, all of whom were enthusiastic to meet other Night Furies for the first time.
Fishlegs pulled out his notebook and began scribbling down notes, not caring how late at night it was. He pulled Hiccup over, showing him what he wrote down.
"It definitely seems to confirm that females have cooler colored eyes than males! Look at the other Night Furies, some of them even have yellow eyes!"
"Don't get too ahead of yourself, Fishlegs. We should wait until morning so we can better detail."
"You're right! You're right! And I'm just as enthusiastic, but… we ought to be cautious with them."
"What should we do? It's still really late and I need my beauty sleep." Snotlout announced. After rolling his eyes, Hiccup shifted his attention to Toothless.
"Bud? What do you want to do?" Toothless faced his mother, who looked to be thinking.
We'll return after dawn and do some more catching up. She assured with a smile, and loving lick to the face, to which Toothless grimaced at. The Night Furies then disappeared into the woods, almost like they were a part of it.
"Spooky! But cool!" Ruffnut enthused.
"Gotta agree on that. Let's hope they return in the morning and figure out a plan then."
Dawn finally broke, casting pastel shades of pink and orange over the clouds. And on an island Blueheart hadn't seen in years. It felt invigorating to be home at last, as an added bonus, she could see thin trails of smoke coming from the forest edge. Just as planned, the riders were here, waiting for them.
Shifting her shoulders, she woke Zyrah up. The teenager groggily sat up, causing her back to crack audibly.
"Damn… how long was I out- oh… it's morning already. Great…" With her vision focusing, she then saw the island, "is that… the island?" Blueheart rumbled in acknowledgment, speeding up to land sooner.
At the same time, Toothless perked his ears up hearing a familiar roar in the distance. The other dragons and riders stirred at the sound, Konall, and Rurik were up and ready.
"She's finally here!"
"They both are!" As they got closer to the island, Zyrah beamed upon seeing the boy's faces and how happy they were to see her.
"Guys!" She cried out as Blueheart landed, sending sand flying. She practically tumbled into Konall's arms.
"Gods I'm so glad you're okay!" He exclaimed in relief, hugging her tightly.
"We all are! You and Blueheart, who I can see is unscathed." Hiccup remarked.
"Physically, you're fine, right?" Ana asked, and Zyrah nodded to confirm, but the group could tell something was bothering her.
"Sis, what's wrong?"
"I-... I almost fell into their trap. And it's worse than I thought."
"We know they want to come here and get what they wanted," Astrid said.
"I figured it out, too. But it's not just their plan that's eating at me."
"What is it then?" Came Fishlegs. Upon recollecting her memories, Zyrah couldn't help but tear up.
"Blueheart… she was rummaging around, and she found a chest…"
"What was inside?"
"A head… of a Night Fury hatchling…" She confessed, hugging her arms close to her body. Expressions of horror dawned on the rider's faces.
"Oh, gods…"
"It'd been there for gods know how long… it'd been mummified. It was awful. And then Einar tried to attack me and Blueheart. We escaped, but that image is going to be burned in my brain forever…"
"Hey… it's gonna be okay. We'll figure this out."
"Yeah well… I guess. But I feel so stupid!"
"Why?"
"Because I almost fell for it! They disguised the whole trip, making me think they were gonna show me… show me who I am… where I came from. I thought I'd get answers…" she fell to her knees in defeat, "they lied to me…"
Konall and Rurik were at a loss for words.
"Who you are?" Rurik asked in a confused tone, "what do you mean?"
"Isn't it obvious? My blood comes from a different culture, and… I felt the pull to learn more about it… only for the people who brought me into it to deny me…"
"You're still hung up on that?"
"Do you blame me?"
"To deny one's heritage is the true crime of humanity…" Tuffnut mused from behind the riders, earning a set of glares.
"Look… sis, when we get home we can figure out the complicated stuff. But I'm pretty sure we've all figured out what Einar and Ragnhild have planned for not just your dragon, but Hiccup's as well."
"Rurik… easy. There's a lot of complicated feelings going on."
"No… he's right. I'm sorry."
"Zyrah, don't ever say you're sorry for feeling what you're feeling," Konall interjected.
"Okay okay. Let me refocus myself." Zyrah said, holding a finger up. She spun on her heel and walked a few meters away and stood still.
"Uh… what is she doing?" Snotlout asked.
"Just give her a second."
"AAAUGGGHHHHHHHHHH!" Finally came the ear-piercing shriek.
"Wow… uh… okay. Quite the lungs she's got there." Ana remarked after unplugging her ears, "my sister had quieter lungs when she was a baby." Something occurred to Hiccup after Zyrah emptied her lungs.
"Hey, Fishlegs?"
"Yeah?"
"Remember a while back? When you were looking through Oswald's journal? And you found out about your ancestors?"
"Unfortunately yes I do but- ohhhhhh…" With a sigh, Fishlegs made his way to Zyrah, hoping his words would help her in some way.
"Zyrah, hey, I know what you're going through." She eyed him suspiciously.
"And how so?"
"Because my ancestors were dragon hunters too. Granted they hunted a different species, but I took it upon myself to reverse the damage my family name had done. It doesn't fix everything… however, maybe it heals a part of you. Acknowledge the sins of the past, and write your future. You're not them." Zyrah remained in her spot, letting Fishlegs' words sink in.
"You're not them…" She echoed softly. Fishlegs cracked a small smile, knowing what stuck.
"Like Konall and your brother said, you'll be okay." He assured, "c'mon, we gotta introduce you!" A chorus of roars echoed from deep within the forest as if on cue, startling Zyrah, who instinctively reached for her sword, but Konall shook his head.
"No need! Just wait! You're gonna be amazed by this." He grinned, pulling her to his side.
"Huh?" Zyrah then noticed Blueheart's behavior shift, the dragoness was practically bouncing on her paws.
Before anything could be said further, a shadow practically shot out of the woods, tackling Toothless into the sand, sending grains of sand everywhere, making Blueheart sneeze.
Zyrah's jaw dropped when she realized what it was.
The riders beamed upon recognizing the same eyes of the Night Furies from overnight. Toothless's mother and his siblings. And one of the siblings practically shot itself out of Helheim just to tackle its brother. After a brief sibling scuffle, they separated, playfully growling at each other.
"What-"
"Zyrah, meet Toothless's family!" Hiccup enthused, holding his hand out for the elder female, who sniffed him and then turned away in dissatisfaction, earning a snicker from the twins.
"Can't tame 'em all, Hiccup," Snotlout said.
"So… Toothless has had a family here? The whole time?"
"It's hard to say, if only we could understand them."
Suddenly, Blueheart reacted to another roar she heard, different from the previous one. She roared back and flew into the woods.
"BLUEHEART!"