Darker than Night

Prologue

A/N

First and foremost, this is a warning to new readers. Until I have the time to edit, most of this story is written well below my own (current) standards, and as such will not appear to be worth much of your time. But if you bear this in mind and read on, you'll find the story and technicalities refining as you go.

Until then, please enjoy. "Berq" is on purpose. I am not illiterate. Only eccentric.

A loud fear-instilled roar pierced the cold night air, disrupting the previously-peaceful inhabitants of Berq from their slumber. Townspeople awoke, babies began to cry, and torches began to be lit as the people slowly trekked up to the chieftain's house; the house of the accused disruption.

Inside the house a large body of black was covered with beads of cold sweat, emerald eyes dilated and limbs curled up in a defensive posture. It was shuddering in fear, almost hyperventilating, and tears slowly began to form in the corners of the fear-glazed emeralds.

"There, there, Toothless. It's ok bud, calm down," a voice said. The voice continued as the person whom it belonged to slowly moved next to the cowering Night Fury. "Another nightmare again?" he asked as he leaned upon the black mass, giving him comfort.

"You're ok now..." Hiccup slowly trailed off when he heard the banging at the door... the banging that seemed never to cease every night.

He then turned to Toothless, and noticed the dragon sleeping peacefully once more thanks to his comforting presence. He smiled before getting up and walking through the house to the door, taking a deep breath before opening it.

"Hiccup... this has got to stop," was the first thing he heard as others chorused in agreement. "We can't keep living like this, some of us have children to support!" another cried out.

And so the conversation ended much like it had the countless nights before.

"I promise it'll stop, I'll find a way to fix it. Good night."

They would all walk away, some with scowls, before returning the very next night to be unsatisfied with Hiccup's answer.

However that night it was different.

Valka was there, standing behind the crowd, a concerned look on her face.

"Hiccup, this is serious," Valka said as she sat down on the opposite side of the table, an expression on her face not one she'd ever normally bestow.

"Why, mother? Surely you've found a way to fix this by now?" Hiccup asked, the most experienced dragon trainer he knew.

"I have," she said simply, "but you're not going to like it."

Hiccup sat on the edge of his chair, a frown already apparent on his face. He knew he wasn't going to like it, knowing his mother wouldn't say such a thing without reason, but he didn't have to like it. It just had to work.

"I'm all ears for anything that'll help because it doesn't matter about me or my opinion," Hiccup exclaimed profoundly as he looked over to the peacefully sleeping dragon by his window, "all that matters is that it helps him."

Valka smiled, happily impressed by her son's resolve. However, it quickly dissipated. She didn't have the luxury to smile in the dire situation, so her face remained stoic.

"Alright then. Let me give you a run-down of the situation," Valka began, taking a deep breath. "Toothless has been waking in the night with a cold sweat, roaring and carrying on, right?" she asked, and Hiccup nodded. "I know you've tried to hide it from me, but I also know about the scar you now bear on your back," she added and Hiccup froze.

How did she find out?

"Astrid told me," Valka stated calmly as if she read his mind. "She said she was concerned about this whole ordeal and wants to help Toothless as much as you or I."

Hiccup sighed. "I guess it can't be helped, but it's not Toothless' fault-"

"-Of course not dear!" Valka exclaimed, making a point that she would never think that. "Look, the point is, Toothless is having some sort of bad dreams or visions from the whole ordeal with Drago. I assume that when he struck out at you, he was blinded by his fear and was indeed seeing a vision of something. He struck you when you woke him, didn't he?" she then asked.

Hiccup could only nod as his arms moved around to his back and he touched the small mounds alongside the deep cuts. "I agree with you," Hiccup said. "I think it's got to do with what happened and I've noted he's become a lot more withdrawn and doesn't seem to express much anymore."

"It's entirely possible that when he was being controlled by the alpha… when he killed Stoick… that he saw your face when you told him to leave and go away," Valka continued and Hiccup nodded, the pieces coming before him.

Of course, it wasn't Toothless' fault that Stoick was killed, but at the time Hiccup's judgment was clouded and he lashed out angrily at Toothless, telling him to leave him alone and to get away. That could have severely damaged Toothless on a mental level, but that was why Valka was there. She had a plan to help.

Hiccup wiped the tears from his eyes and looked to Valka. "Tell me what you know and how you can help Toothless…"

As Toothless laid in the darkness, listening to their plan, he realised that he was indeed becoming more detrimental than ever. What would happen if he was blinded by his visions again, and killed someone? The village wouldn't be able to forgive him, and despite all that he'd done, he would still be considered broken.However, this plan was something that put a smile on his face, despite the tears that rolled down it. He knew it probably wouldn't amount to anything, but he could no longer stay on Berq.

Perhaps this is for the best... Toothless thought.

"Cloudjumper."

The large four-winged dragon turned to the sound of the soft voice beside him with a smile. "Hey Toothless, how are you?"

"I'm sure you already know the answer to that…" the black dragon trailed off with a sigh. In fact, all of the dragons would know about his outbursts, but none of them came to ask or do anything. He was the Alpha, he could take care of his own problems. Despite being the most kindred Alpha the other dragons ever had, he was still responsible for himself.

"Now, don't pull yourself down. You went through a traumatic experience for the sake of someone you cared about," Cloudjumper soothed, trying to cheer Toothless up. "I'm sure we can work this out-"

"-You're the Alpha now, Cloudjumper," Toothless stated, and suddenly he felt something lift off his shoulders. That statement and the will that was behind it made it a reality. Toothless had transferred his Alpha status to Cloudjumper.

"W-What!? But you're the only one who can…" Cloudjumper trailed off as he felt the power of an Alpha reside within him. He really was the Alpha. "Why, Toothless?" was all the shocked dragon could ask.

"I cannot be Alpha unless I've rid myself of my problems, Cloudjumper," Toothless replied solemnly. "And I'm leaving."

The night before decided his fate.

"Is that really our only option?" Hiccup asked, completely distraught.

Valka sighed before she nodded and replied, "I'm sorry Hiccup. Through all my time in the company of dragons, I cannot foresee any other option that will end well."

Hiccup took a deep breath and wiped the tears from his eyes. "I'll go talk to him."

Hiccup then walked over to the "sleeping" form of Toothless and Valka thought it best she took her leave, out of respect. She turned from the door just as she was about to leave, and gave a parting message.

"I'll see you in the morning. It's best that we get it over with as soon as possible. The sooner he leaves, the more chance he'll be able to come back sooner."

Hiccup then smiled and farewelled her, then sat down next to Toothless as he heard the sound of the door shutting softly.

It was then that Toothless turned around and looked at his companion and friend. Hiccup smiled, unable to stop the tears from falling. "You listened the whole time, didn't you bud?"

Toothless didn't reply, and instead, moved forward to nuzzle Hiccup with his nose as if to say "It's OK."

"Thanks, bud… but not knowing where you are or if you're alright… "

Hiccup trailed off as he turned his head to see a bit of Toothless' humour return; the dragon raised his brow condescendingly.

"Well, I know you'll be fine, it's just…"

He trailed off again when he realised what he was doing. He didn't have to worry; Toothless was going to sort things out by himself; Toothless was going to find his own way by being free. Of course, Toothless was free, Hiccup would never say he owned him, but Toothless would always be restricted and unable to express himself naturally. He needed to roam the world on his own.

"I'll miss you bud, now get some rest. I've got work to do."

And so, Hiccup had spent most of the night in the forge, making something he'd never thought he could. An artificial tail-fin that operated via the muscle in the tail; where the tail-fin would normally be operated from. Hiccup didn't know why he hadn't thought of it before, but knowing Toothless, the Night Fury would never accept anything; always wanting to fly with Hiccup. But the situation had changed. In all honesty, Toothless didn't think he could rid himself of his problems. He didn't think the plan was going to work, yet he went along with it anyway. Because if he stayed in Berq, he would eventually end up endangering the village; destroying and possibly hurting. That would be when they forcefully evict the dragon from the island, despite Hiccup's pleadings. Toothless didn't want that to happen, so he had decided to leave on a friendly plea.

Now it was morning, and the time had come as Hiccup approached him. Few were present, including Hiccup, Valka, Astrid, Cloudjumper and Stormfly. The sun was only just peeking over the edge of the horizon and the rest of Berq was silent.

"Toothless, I've made this for you," Hiccup said as he presented the tail-fin to him. Cloudjumper and Stormfly watched, fixated, wondering what the new tail-fin would do. They knew Toothless couldn't fly without Hiccup, but when they heard the news he was leaving, they didn't understand. But as they watched Hiccup fix the prosthetic on Toothless' tail, saw the dragon flex his tail as if he were flying, and watched in amazement at how the fin acted as if it were his actual fin, they realised just what the new fin was. Toothless too, watched in amazement at his friend's work, smiling a sad smile. The tail-fin had been painted precisely by Hiccup to match Toothless' black scales and camouflaged well with the rest of his body.

Despite being Alpha, Toothless didn't really have any dragon friends. Stormfly was an acquaintance at most, and Cloudjumper was more of a mentor and confidante than a friend. The other dragons wouldn't dare to have any sort of friendship with him, out of fear. Especially an Alpha Night Fury.

"I really appreciate your enthusiasm, but in all honesty, I don't think that I'll be able to rid myself of these ailments."

"Why not?" Cloudjumper questioned as he walked up to him, concerned. "Surely this will help, won't it?"

Toothless sighed with a frown on his face, looking to the ground. "I doubt it, but there's always a possibility..."

"Exactly," the larger dragon told him with a smile as Astrid turned to Hiccup, a question on her lips.

"What do you think they're talking about?" she asked Hiccup, who was also watching silently.

"I'd assume that they are encouraging him, possibly saying farewell at the same time," Hiccup replied softly, softly so he wouldn't alert Astrid to the growing weakness in his body. He'd become very upset over the whole deal, with the fact that Toothless being away from Hiccup would supposedly help made him feel all the much worse.

Valka, seemingly reading her son's thoughts once more, moved over to comfort him. "You know that it's not being away from you that will help him, it's being free and able to roam without restraint," she said as Hiccup turned to look at her. "He hasn't been able to fly without you. I believe he just needs to make his own way for a while, and that doing so will help him."

"I know, but still I…" Hiccup couldn't find the words as he realised that he was being selfish. Why should he keep Toothless there to suffer? He shouldn't. That's the only answer. He couldn't deny Toothless from freedom for his own personal reasons. As the dragons continued their conversation, Hiccup, Astrid and Valka could only sit and watch for they couldn't understand a single word being said.

"We'll miss you here," Cloudjumper sighed with a sympathetic smile. "I do hope you'll be feeling fine soon and I'll be watching over Berq for you whilst you're gone."

"Thanks…" was all Toothless could reply, feeling drowned in his sorrow.

"Goodbye, for now, Toothless," Cloudjumper told him, turning to go back near Valka. Unlike humans, between dragons, anything physical, including embraces, were normally reserved for mates. That was why dragons always stuck to verbal goodbyes.

Such is the lonely life of a Night Fury, Toothless thought with a sigh. I wonder if Stormfly will have found a mate by the time I return? There's an abundance of Nadders. Just... no Night Furies.

Hiccup sighed as he moved towards Toothless and removed the saddle gear that was on him, patting and stroking him gently whilst whispering words of comfort to the black dragon. Before long, Hiccup had finished and he smiled warmly at Toothless, only a hint of sadness upon his face.

"It seems that we must part for a while bud," Hiccup said softly as Toothless nudged him with his nose. He looked into the dragon's emerald eyes. "Goodbye."