Follow

A/N: I rewatched HTTYD and was inspired to write this. Please review :)

Toothless followed his human everywhere.

When their secret, glorious meetings in the hidden cove had reached their inevitable end, and the Vikings had thrown wide their arms and welcomed the dragons wholeheartedly into their village, the Night Fury had been perfectly content to do literally everything with the redheaded boy at his side.

So when his boy worked in the forge with the blond blacksmith, the dragon happily curled up at his rider's feet, falling frequently into a pleasant doze, awakening every few hours to demand attention in the form of a scratch or belly rub. When his boy rested upon the creaking wooden structure with the pillow beneath his auburn head and the quilt pulled up around his small shoulders, the Night Fury slumbered peacefully in the corner; yet he always paused to listen before allowing his eyes to close – he must be sure that there was absolutely nothing within the little hut that posed a threat to his tiny, fragile human.

And when the boy sought his mate, when the boy spoke with his father, when he ate his dinner, Toothless was there. When his human bared his body and washed himself, the Night Fury made many ill-considered attempts to join him in the little washtub; admittedly, this had ended in disaster and dark bruises for the pair of them, and Toothless had since been banished to the patch of grass just beside aforementioned tub – but he stubbornly refused to go any farther.

And when his human stumbled upon his leg, slipped on it, cursed it on his way down to the ground, Toothless was there, and he lowered his head in a wordless attempt to ease his boy's frustration and pain, always receiving a small, shaky thanks as if the other were ashamed of himself.

And when his human struggled; when his human failed; when his human accomplished, when his human triumphed; when his human cried or laughed, when he fell ill, when he glowed with health, when he was out on the battlefield or settled quietly by the hearth, through the endless rain and occasional shine upon the little bleak island, Toothless was always there, a constant and unfailing presence at the other's side, never to disappear or depart. Their names – Hiccup and Toothless – had become so deeply intertwined, so utterly inseparable, that to speak of one was to inevitably speak of the other.

The whole of Berk knew this – witnessed it, accepted it, had gained amusement from it, even. Many a time had they spotted dragon and rider sprinting through the streets, the boy attempting to hide from his scaly, overprotective companion, and succeeding only when the other let him; many a time had they chortled over the poor lad's misfortune; many a time had the boy's father slipped him an extra fish or two, in wordless gratitude for the protection he gave the child; many a time had Hiccup whispered, wrapped in the warmth and safety of the black, leathery wings, how glad he was that the other was there, how amazing it was that he did not have to be alone anymore…

Toothless would follow his human anywhere.

Even as tears poured down pale cheeks; as aflame arrows blazed upward, cutting through the damp air, heavy with the scent of rain yet to fall, even as the water lapped lightly at the shore and pebbles shifted beneath his paws, even as the arrows hit the ship, even as fire caught wood, oh, gods, it was burning, everything was burning, even as it sank into the water and the boy's father stepped up to speak, voice soft and sorrowful; even as his human's mate placed a shaking hand upon the dragon's neck to calm him, even as Toothless threw back his great, scaly head and howled as if he were a wild thing, even as he poured every ounce of his pain into the sound, there was a bit of him that still believed he could follow.

Even as his human's mate fell upon the beach and wept; even as those gathered upon the shore lowered their bows or removed their helmets, even as they kissed their fingertips or turned their faces toward the rocky, pebbled ground in silent respect, he still believed…

He broke suddenly away from the girl's gentle, restraining hand, plunging into the ocean – it was cold, bitingly so, and the water splashed up and onto his tongue, filling his mouth with the taste of salt, and even then, a part of him still believed…

"Toothless!" The girl kneeling upon the beach cried out to him, throwing out her hands as if she believed she could call him back by will alone; but he believed, he still believed, he could follow his human as surely as he had in life, he could follow him into death…

He dove beneath the waves then; he plunged determinedly into the icy waters, sharp eyes seeking the sunken ship. This was not a simple feat in the near-perfect blackness, yet he located the wreckage at last, and the still, half-burned body upon it; he was right, he could follow, he had found his boy again, and nothing would separate them this time, nothing…his large, pink tongue darted speedily out of his slightly open mouth, running gently but quickly over the scorched, mangled mess of a face.

C'mon, the seabed isn't a bed you should sleep on…

His human did not move an inch.

No.

No, his human always responded to that, always, always jumped up and wiped at his cheek and said you're disgusting or quit it or you know this doesn't wash out or no salmon for you tonight and then of course he always went back and ate his words and gave the dragon salmon anyway, and everyone told him he was going to spoil Toothless and he laughed and said it's too late for that and Toothless always smacked him with his ear and this only ever made the human laugh harder, that was what was supposed to happen, so why wasn't it, wasn't he moving, why wasn't he waking up, the seabed wasn't a bed he should be sleeping on…

Yet his boy remained motionless.

No, no, you can't do this, you can't go somewhere and leave me all alone, we promised we'd never do that, we said friends don't leave, friends don't just go, friends don't go away somewhere without telling somebody where they're going, you don't do that, you go and you leave the door open a crack so I can get through the gap and follow you, you always let me follow you even when you're mad at me, please let me follow, please open the door…

Despair washed over Toothless as the still body stared back at him; and it was so acute and all-consuming, it made his heart seize within his chest. He could not return to the shore, he could not abandon his human here upon the seabed…

A miserable warble left his mouth – and as his lips parted, as water rushed in and moistened his tongue, a sharp, stinging burn made itself known, issuing from his deprived lungs, demanding breath.

His sorrow vanished.

He did not have to abandon his human upon the seabed; his human had not left him behind, had not barred him from following; he was not left to scratch uselessly at a locked, impassive door. He settled himself against the abused ship, cradling the crumbling body tenderly in his wings, and gave himself up to the coming blackness.

He followed his human.