Hi!
Please note that as of 18th November 2017 Chapters 1-10 have undergone a large rewrite - the plot is mainly the same but I've expanded descriptions, made Berk and characters more accurate to how they are presented in/just before the second movie (it hadn't been released when I first started writing this) and actually taken the time to learn how apostrophes work (I think). So altogether a generally more cohesive and pleasant read (I hope).

This is set roughly a year before the events of HTTYD 2, however Race to the Edge isn't really canon in this universe, mainly because I have neither the time nor the tolerance to sit through five series of Tuffnut and his chicken. Some events from Riders/Defenders will be alluded to though, as will stuff from the four mini movie things.

Disclaimer: (And I'm only saying this once so just assume that between now and when I finish this fic I haven't managed to acquire the rights to the franchise) I don't own HTTYD or anything else you may recognise

The wind whipped his eyes, even through the leather helmet. Hiccup whooped with joy.

It was working! His new leather 'wings' were working!

He pushed the coil that released the fin on his back. It was exhilarating!

Hiccup had flown with Toothless before of course, but this was something else. Usually he was used to the security of Toothless's judgement and skill, but now he was completely free. Soaring far above the sea, amongst the clouds, at complete mercy of the wild nordic winds.

Hiccup glanced back briefly over his shoulder, Toothless was right behind him. Eyes wide, head cocked quizzically watching Hiccups revels. The young man grinned under the mask and turned back ahead as he began to glide down slowly.

The two best friends had spent the rest of the day blissfully flying and soaring around Berk. Hiccup in triumphant relief that his newest prototype of his flight suit had been a success, all he had to do now was hone his landing technique to something a little less… jarring.

Once it was dark they cruised back towards the village, the Aurora Borealis flaring up around them.

Hiccup sat thoughtfully, pondering the stunts of the day and considering improvements to a design for Toothless's tail fin he'd been musing over for several weeks.

Eventually he let out an involuntary sigh and slumped in the saddle slightly, his mood turbulent, despite the sensational light show that surrounded him.

Toothless sensed his friends unease and crooned in a quizzical manner.

"Oh, sorry bud, I was just thinking..." Hiccup trailed off, but this didn't satisfy Toothless who gave Hiccup a friendly slap with one of his ears as way of encouragement.

"Fine, fine. I think I'm close to cracking the design for a new tail that will let you fly alone and have the manual controls in the same rig, able to switch back and forth as we want."

Toothless shifted slightly at the mention of another automatic tail, having smashed the last one to pieces several years ago in favour of flying with his Viking friend.

"I mean, it would make sense. We can still fly together, which is great and I know we both love it, but it also gives you an added independance. It also means we can try to avoid any more accidents like earlier." He shuddered, trying not to think about his close encounter with the ground as he'd dropped too quickly for Toothless to easily catch up and help in any way, with his tail fin locked into a static state for solo gliding. "Now that I seem to have a good design on my flight suit I really want to build from that so we can try and get as close as we can to actually flying together properly. Just gliding with you out there today bud, it was amazing. I just wish I could build something that would let me do more than just glide." He let out a low chuckle, "I can dream, huh bud?"

Toothless let out a low grumble as he listened to the musings of his rider.

All around them the sky flashed with incredible colours, all manner of blues, greens and purples dancing through the inky blackness. Something about it stirred something deep within Toothless, an ancient instinct he didn't know he possessed being awoken by the primal lightshow.

An odd tickling sensation within his chest urged him to bank and glide further out to sea.

Hiccup was drawn out of his thoughts by the unexpected change of direction and swiftly changed the tail setting accordingly. "Bud, where're you taking me? The village is that way." He pointed lamely in the vague direction of the orange flickering torches that marked the location of the Viking settlement as they rapidly receded into the distance.

Toothless replied with a deep rumbling chuckle, Hiccup supposed that he was probably mocking his clueless rider as he kidnapped him.

He gave a playful scowl, "C'mon bud it's been a long day, we really ought to head back. I need to get these ideas written on my notes for your new tail."

Toothless ignored him and carried on, if anything, with more enthusiasm. Closer and closer to the dancing lights, further and further away from Berk.

All criticism died in Hiccup's throat as they drew within touching distance of the Aurora Borealis. He let out an awed breath, his eyes widening and all the hair on his arms standing on end.

Toothless slowed and let the lights dance in a mesmerizing fashion. His ears flattened, eyes dilated, small tremors beginning in his body as a soft croon grew in his throat. It vibrated through his body and up into Hiccup, seeping into him until it felt as if it was rattling his very bones.

The pitch grew and contorted, eventually sounding to the untrained ear a growl. But to Hiccup this new sound was completely alien, Toothless had never done this in his presence. He felt a faint sense of trepidation in the back of his increasingly dazed mind. He had no idea what was going through his friend's head, Toothless hadn't responded to anything he'd said.

Toothless himself couldn't be sure what was happening, being guided by the primal instruction that was being transmitted inside of him, the ancient lights singing to his very being. This crooning grumble in his throat, he knew that was right. Now he could feel a tugging in his gut, as if he were about to summon fire. But instead of blowing it out in a fiery inferno, he held it. He could feel the power building within him, the unstoppable force of a Night Fury churning around his innards, searching, searching for a way to escape and wreak destruction. Toothless could feel the burning dance of the flames creeping up his throat, still holding them back as they multiplied, but then something changed. The burning changed to an icy tickle as he continued to hover in front of a view that could have swept away any man's breath.

Hiccup clung to the saddle in a speechless lightheaded daze, almost struggling for breath as his eyes became lost in the sea of colour in front of him.

All the while, Toothless was beginning to struggle to hold the fire, the icy feeling spreading outwards from within him, chilling his muscles and making it a struggle to keep himself in the air, but instinct drove him on.

With a start the Night Fury noticed a deep purple fog, not quite the same colour as one of his plasma blasts, billowing out in front of him, looking as it was being ignited within as the Aurora shone through from the other side.

As the fog thickened and threatened to overwhelm the pair, Toothless felt himself surge forwards, plunging into the violet haze, spinning into a tight barrel roll as he did so, Hiccup's subconsciously tight grip on the saddle being the only thing that kept the Viking on his back.

As he propelled himself forward, Toothless's eyes flickered shut, as at last the grumble he'd been maintaining rose to an ear piercing crescendo as he plunged through the other side of the fog, releasing the power that he had been holding and sending out a shockwave that rippled through the sky. Spinning faster and faster even as they began to lose altitude, Toothless kept his eyes shut, tendrils of the fog trailing down through the charged atmosphere after the pair as they plummeted.

Once Toothless's ears stopped ringing, his eyes snapped open, throwing his wings out and stabilizing before they could plunge beneath the waves. Instead, skimming lightly atop their surfaces as the last of the odd fog cleared from his body and mind, leaving him feeling oddly drained, almost hollow, from where that icy chill had risen through him.

It was over.

If it weren't for the reassuring weight on his back and the subconscious working of the tail fin, Toothless would have almost thought his rider had fallen off in their unexpected maneuver, so unusually quiet and still was he.

Wearily Toothless flapped his wings, bringing them higher, away from the tumultuous waves, as they both recovered their wits.

"Well… That was, something..." Hiccup murmured groggily, his mind thoroughly addled and all his strength draining away, leaving him slumped in the saddle, struggling to maintain consciousness even with the chill night air whistling past him. "Can we go home now?" He could barely manage more than a whisper as Toothless banked back towards Berk, flight becoming erratic and wing beats laborious as he too struggled against the pull of unconsciousness.

It was all they could do to make it back to the village outskirts, dipping and teetering in the sky. They were both so exhausted that as Toothless's strength finally gave out, they didn't even feel the impact.