They had searched for what felt like hours, voices lost in the mist, calling for Valka, for Anna. For some odd reason, the whispers of the trees did not guide them, the rivers sang in riddles, and the frost shimmered with memory rather than direction.

Hiccup ran a hand through his hair, frustration simmering beneath exhaustion.

"We need to rest," he muttered, glancing at Elsa.

She nodded, but her gaze stayed distant. She had barely spoken since they had been wandering around, her eyes always searching, always listening. Hiccup understood.

Toothless, now grounded and trailing a few paces behind them, let out a low rumble, his ears twitching.

They found a hollow beneath the trees, where the roots curled into something almost like shelter. It was not warm, not home, but it was enough for now.

Elsa sat with her back against the bark, fingers idly tracing patterns in the frost gathering at her feet.

"She could be anywhere by now," she whispered, more to herself than to him. "It will be getting really dark soon. My brother might come and find us, and my parents might get worried."

Hiccup sighed, resting his elbows on his knees. "We'll find them."

Elsa's gaze flickered to him. "And if we don't?"

He met her eyes, steady. "Then we keep looking."

They moved again.

Hiccup let Toothless lead this time, trusting the dragon's instincts over his own exhaustion-clouded judgment. Elsa walked beside him, silent but present, her fingers twitching at her sides as if feeling the pulse of the forest beneath her touch.

Then, a sound.

Familiar, yet distant. A voice carried by the wind.

Both of them stopped.

Hiccup's heart leapt. "That's—"

A gust of wind cut through the trees, and the mist parted just enough to reveal another figure ahead. Slightly taller than them, lean, cloaked in white and winter. A staff in hand, a smirk playing at his lips.

"Well, well," the boy said, tilting his head. "Didn't think I'd run into anyone else crazy enough to be wandering around here."

Elsa blinked at the boy who always caused mischief in her village. Her adoptive brother, whom her parents seemed to be so fond of. "Jack?"

Jack grinned. "The one and only. Jackson Overland. Resident troublemaker. Professional bad influence. And Elsa's brother."

Elsa narrowed her eyes slightly, not in suspicion, but in quiet assessment. Jack seemed to notice, because his grin turned wry.

"Relax, Snow Princess. I come in peace. Your mom and dad are looking all over for you and your sister."

She raised an eyebrow.

Jack placed a hand over his chest in mock offense. "Ouch. You wound me." Then, glancing at Hiccup, he added, "What brings you two to the middle of nowhere?"

"We're looking for my mother," Hiccup said. "And her sister."

Jack's expression sobered slightly. "Ah. So, you're lost."

Elsa crossed her arms. "We're not lost."

Jack leaned on his staff, unimpressed. "Oh, yeah? Then where are you?"

Hiccup opened his mouth, hesitated, then closed it again.

Jack chuckled. "Exactly."

Elsa exhaled through her nose, stepping forward. "Do you even know your way around here?"

Jack studied her, then glanced toward the mist, as if listening to something beyond them. "Maybe."

Hiccup narrowed his eyes. "Maybe?"

Jack turned back to them with a smirk. "Depends. You two up for a little adventure?"

Elsa sighed. "Why do I feel like we don't have a choice?"

Jack grinned. "Now you're getting it."

Jack turned first, tilting his head slightly toward Hiccup. "You're definitely not from around here."

"I'm not," Hiccup admitted, forcing himself to step forward. "But I've been to a lot of places."

"That so? Then you must have stories."

Hiccup exhaled a short laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. "A few."

Not a few moments later, Hiccup spoke of dragons, of skies filled with wings and fire. Elsa spoke of the spirits, of whispers carried on the wind, of ancient powers too great to be named. Jack, ever the storyteller, wove tales of the northern lights, of the way the frost danced when no one was looking, of the places he had seen from the treetops.

As they followed Jack's lead, a gust of wind rattled the trees, and Hiccup shivered as the cold bit through his furs. Jack, on the other hand, looked entirely unaffected. A low branch swayed into their path. The sudden movement caught her off guard—too many hours in the mist had put her on edge—and before she could think, she clung onto Hiccup's arm.

Hiccup froze, glancing down at her hands gripping his sleeve. A teasing smirk tugged at his lips. "Didn't take you for the jumpy type."

Elsa immediately released him, brushing imaginary dust from her dress with a pointedly dignified air. "I wasn't startled."

Jack snorted. "Sure, Snow Princess. It's okay, we all get scared sometimes."

Elsa huffed, crossing her arms. "It was just unexpected."

Hiccup chuckled. He reached into his belt and pulled out his sheathed knife, crouching near a fallen branch. With careful movements, he carved into a fallen branch, his hands moving out of habit and ease of years spent shaping wood. In moments, a dragon emerged, its wings curved mid-flight.

Elsa knelt beside him, studying it, watching it intently. She reached out and ran a single fingertip over the carved dragon's wing before raising her palm. Ice bloomed, taking the shape of a dragon, glimmering, its frozen wings spread wide—its wings thinner, sharper, its eyes glinting like frozen stars.

Hiccup exhaled softly. "You're amazing."

Elsa lowered her hand, her expression unreadable for a moment, her smile faint but real. She felt seen. She felt like she belonged. Then she said, "So are you."

Jack plopped down beside them, watching the two figures—one carved from wood, the other from ice. "Great. Now I'm the least impressive one here."

Elsa laughed at him. "You always were."

Jack gasped again and scooped up a handful of snow, flinging it at her. With a flick of her wrist, she redirected it effortlessly, sending it straight back at him.

The snow smacked into his face with a soft poof.

Hiccup burst into laughter. Jack sputtered, wiping his face, then turned to Elsa with a look of exaggerated betrayal. "Unbelievable. We better get moving again."

As they picked up their pace, Jack chatted like he had known them forever, despite Elsa's clear dislike of him. "You know, I got lost in this mist once. A long time ago. Next thing I knew, I was in the middle of the Northuldran village, and then, before I knew it—I had a new home. Turns out, getting lost isn't always a bad thing."

Hiccup glanced at him. "You grew up here?"

Jack shrugged. "Sort of. I wasn't born here to say the least, but I might as well have been. I don't even remember where I came from before," He grinned. "So, yeah, I guess that makes me the expert at navigating this place."

Elsa snorted. "And yet, we're still lost."

Jack waved her off. "Details."

They wandered through the forest, dodging low branches, slipping over damp leaves, and sharing the occasional complaint about the mist making everything more confusing. But despite their aimlessness, something about their steps felt lighter. Like they weren't just lost but searching together.

Finally, a sound—urgent, familiar. A voice calling out.

"Hiccup!"

They turned as figures emerged as they walked out of the mist—Anna, teary-eyed and breathless, Valka, steady and relieved.

He sprinted into his mother's arms just as Valka stepped forward, relief shining in her eyes. "Mom."

She pulled him close, her embrace strong, grounding. Behind them, more figures—Elsa's parents stood, waiting for her to be embraced in their arms.

Jack watched them with a knowing smile before his gaze shifted to Anna, who had finally found them again, her eyes shining with relief. She practically tackled Elsa in a hug, squeezing her like she might disappear again.

Jack grinned. "You're really clingy, huh?"

Anna pulled back just enough to glance at him. "Of course, I am. She's my sister."

Something flickered in Jack's expression—fond, a little sad. "Yeah. I get that."

Anna tilted her head, studying him. "What about you? You never had a sister?"

Jack nodded; gaze distant for a moment. Then he smirked. "You remind me of her, actually. Stubborn, a little reckless."

This was new information to Anna. She huffed and resisted the urge to smile after him calling her reckless. "I am not reckless."

Elsa simply raised an eyebrow at her response.

Anna groaned. "Okay, fine, maybe a little."

Jack chuckled, bumping her shoulder. "Well, I think I can handle a little sister again."

Anna smiled at that before running into him and hugging him tightly.

The forest, at last, had let them go.

As they stepped into the heart of the Northuldran village with their dragons now in tow, where warm light glowed between the trees, laughter and murmurs weaving through the air. To Hiccup, it felt like something out of a dream.

They were led into a large tent where they could rest. As they sat, exhaustion slipping from their shoulders, Hiccup pulled something from his satchel—the small wooden carving of the dragon he made for Elsa, delicate and carefully shaped. He turned it over in his hands before hesitantly offering it to her. "Wasn't sure if I'd ever get the chance to give it to you."

Elsa took it, running her fingers over the grooves, a soft smile touching her lips. She closed her hands around it, ice shimmering at her fingertips. "Do you still have the one I made earlier?"

Hiccup nodded and handed the frozen sculpture to her. A moment later, she reached out, placing something cool in his palm—a new tiny ice sculpture of him atop Toothless, every detail crisp and glimmering.

Hiccup stared at it, his breath catching. "Elsa, this is…" He shook his head, marveling. "It's perfect."

It was night now, and the village now hummed with quiet life, a pulse in the heart of the forest. Lanterns and bonfires flickered, their golden light casting long shadows over the earthen paths. Hiccup inhaled the crisp air, the scent of damp wood and fresh pine mingling with the distant aroma of something warm being prepared over the fire. This place, so different from Berk, yet there was something about it that settled in his bones, familiar and steady.

Elsa stood beside him the entire time, still clutching the wooden carving he had given her. The ice sculpture she had crafted for him shimmered in his palm, delicate yet solid. He turned it over carefully, marveling at the detail—the way she had captured Toothless's every ridge and curve, the way his own figure looked mid-laugh, carefree. He hadn't realized she had seen him like that.

Elsa glanced at him and glanced at the work he had gifted to her. "Thanks again for making this for me."

Hiccup gave a sheepish nod, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's just something I do, I guess. Helps me think."

She traced the smooth edges, her touch feather-light. "It's really beautiful."

Jack, lounging nearby with his staff resting across his shoulders, smirked. "You two gonna keep exchanging gifts, or are we actually gonna eat something?"

They followed Jack near one of the village fires, where Anna sat cross-legged beside Valka and her tiny dragons, and Valka eagerly chatted with one of the Northuldran elders. Her hands moved animatedly as she spoke, and even from a distance, her enthusiasm was infectious. Jack plopped down beside her, nudging her with his elbow.

"Making friends already?" Jack teased.

Anna grinned at him. "Obviously. Unlike some people, I actually enjoy talking to others."

Jack feigned offense, pressing a hand dramatically to his chest. "Excuse me, I am very sociable myself."

Elsa snorted, and even Hiccup shook his head with a knowing smile.

Anna leaned toward Jack, lowering her voice conspiratorially. "Though, between you and me, I think my mom and dad were really worried about you when you got lost going after us."

Jack blinked, caught off guard by the sincerity in her tone. Then, his usual grin softened into something gentler. "Yeah, well… maybe I was a little worried about you guys, so."

They settled into the warmth of the fire, sharing stories between bites of roasted meat and spiced root vegetables. The Northuldrans welcomed Hiccup and his mother as if they had always been part of the village, as if their presence had simply been waiting to be remembered. Hiccup found himself watching his mother, the way she spoke with ease, the way the tension in her shoulders had begun to ease, as though a weight she had carried for years was finally being set down.

Valka caught his gaze and smiled. "Feels different here, doesn't it?"

Hiccup nodded slowly. "Yeah. It does."

The Northuldran leader approached them, voice steady and kind. "You are welcome to stay, if you wish. Both of you."

Hiccup felt something shift inside him. He looked at his mother, at the firelight reflecting in her eyes, and then at the friends who found him in the midst of being lost.

Valka's hand brushed his shoulder, a quiet understanding passing between them. They had been running for so long. Perhaps, just this once, they could stay.

For the first time in a long time, they weren't running anymore. They were home.

And so, beneath the northern sky, they let the village welcome them home.