"Toothless!"

There was complete silence after Hiccup's outburst as the other students looked around expectantly. Most of them seemed to have guessed what was going on, and were curious as to what kind of dragon "Toothless" was.

They waited and waited, but the silence stretched on, and they began to get restless, the room suddenly filled with the rustling of clothes and the murmurs of students.

After a moment's thought, Stoick decided to dismiss the other first years.

For all he knew, his son's dragon might be on the other side of the world, and wouldn't arrive for hours.

But then, before he could say anything, there was the whistling of wind, the telltale sound of something approaching through the air at a startlingly high speed.

And the next thing anyone knew, a snarling dragon shot through one of the den entrances, and came to a hovering halt above them all for just long enough so that they could recognize it as the dragon from the Night Fury's Cove.

Within seconds, its roving eyes found Hiccup, and it swooped in, curling protectively around him and snarling violently at Stoick on the ground, who had dived out of the way just seconds before he was squashed under Toothless' considerable bulk.

The dragons in the room had reacted before the humans, most of them shrinking back and whining in distress, their bodies curled around their riders, protecting them despite their fear. Some of the more aggressive dragons were snarling back at Toothless, teeth bared and delicate wisps of smoke curling out of their nostrils.

Stoick's own thunderdrum, Thornado, had jumped off its previous perch and was one of the dragons that had gone on the offensive.

As the students realized what was happening, there arose the murmur of wary conversation as they wondered if they should come to their headmaster's assistance.

Panicking, Hiccup grabbed at his dragon's shoulder, yelling, "Stop it, Toothless! I'm alright~ It's just my dad!"

Hearing the panic in Hiccup's voice, Toothless kept growling at Stoick and Thornado.

After a moment of struggling against Toothless' tail, Hiccup was able to step around his dragon, and get between him and Thornado.

Hiccup turned his back on Thornado, earning him a distressed whine from Toothless, who tried to get around him.

Hiccup was having none of that.

"Stop it, Toothless!" he demanded, placing both hands, one on top of the other, on the bridge of Toothless' nose, between his eyes, and pushing his face back.

As a human, Hiccup was no match for Toothless' strength, but Toothless backed down anyways, acknowledging the stern disapproval in his friend's voice, and his distinct lack of fear.

Realizing that there was no immediate danger here, Toothless huffed out a disgruntled breath, sending a puff of smoke right into Hiccup's face.

Hacking and coughing, Hiccup waved the smoke away, glaring and barking, "Toothless!"

Ducking his head, Toothless retracted his teeth and smiled sheepishly at Hiccup in apology.

Rolling his eyes, Hiccup turned to face Thornado, and saw that his father had stood up by now and was staring at Hiccup with wide, shocked eyes, as was everyone else in the room. Now that Toothless was no longer on the offensive, the other dragons had also calmed down, although most were still shielding their riders.

Meeting his father's gaze, Hiccup chuckled awkwardly and stepped to the side so he could see Toothless, now that he was sure neither side was going to kill each other.

"Dad, this is Toothless," he said, gesturing to the night fury, who was now on his best behaviour, trying to look as harmless as possible with his lips pulled into a large, gummy grin.

Stoick stared at him for a few moments, as if unsure how to react, before turning his gaze on his son and asking, "How long?"

Chuckling awkwardly, Hiccup rubbed the back of his neck and said, "Uh…since I was five?"

He said it like a question, as if he himself was unsure of the answer.

"AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ANYONE!?" roared Stoick, and Hiccup flinched, startled. Toothless wrapped his tail protectively around Hiccup's waist and pulled him back towards himself. He was growling again, and Hiccup laid a comforting hand on his head to let him know there was still no danger.

"I didn't know we were bonded!" replied Hiccup, his voice raising involuntarily.

"How could you not know?" demanded Stoick. "You have the Mark!"

"How was I supposed to know that was a Mark?" asked Hiccup. "It's not like I've ever seen a Night Fury's Mark! No one's bonded with one in, like, a century because of how rare they are! I thought he accidentally hit me when he was protecting me from a wild dragon!"

"A wild-!" Stoick cut himself off with a growl, running a hand through his hair. "What were you even doing in the forest? Your mother and I have told you over and over again not to go in there! It's no place for a child! You could have been killed! And then what would we have-!"

He cut himself off again, only this time it wasn't because of anger, and Hiccup felt suddenly guilty. He'd never seen his father this emotional before.

"You should have told us!" said Stoick once he'd found his voice again. "We could have helped!"

"I knew you were going to freak out!" replied Hiccup, leaning back against Toothless' reassuring warmth. "Anyways, I didn't need help! It's not like Toothless was hurting me!"

"That's not what I meant!" replied Stoick, turning back to the other first year students. Hiccup had completely forgotten about them, and was now feeling suddenly very self-conscious.

"Who here can tell me why child-dragon Bonding is now frowned upon in most countries?" he asked, and several hands shot up. "Miss Hofferson!" he picked.

Astrid stepped forward, back straight and standing at attention. "The younger a Rider is when they meet their dragon, the more powerful their bond is," she says, eyes flickering over to Hiccup for a second before returning to his father. "A child's brain is still developing at that age, so they end up becoming extremely dependant on the bond."

She fell silent, and when Stoick turned to face Hiccup again, his face was hard as stone. "That's right," he said. "And why is that a bad thing?"

Astrid seemed to be in her element, because she replied immediately, "When the Bond is forged that early and that strong, the body forgets how to live without it. So if the child is separated from their dragon for a significant period of time or if the dragon dies, it can severely affect the child's physical and mental health. That's why, in most countries, riders Bond with their dragons as teenagers. By that time, they've gone through puberty, and chances of becoming too dependent on the bond are little to none."

Hiccup cast his gaze downward, feeling thoroughly chastised. He hadn't even considered any of that. He wanted to tell his dad to stop, that he understood his mistake, but Stoick was in teacher mode now, and would not stop until he was sure everyone else had understood as well.

"And what happens to a child who is separated from their dragon, by death or otherwise?" asked Stoick. "Mr. Lalani," he said, pointing to a Pakistani boy, who looked startled to have been chosen.

He stuttered for a few moments before saying, "Physically, their growth may be stunted, and their coordination will be thrown off. Many children who had lost their bonded dragon in the past either wasted away, or were in fatal accidents caused by their lack of coordination."

"Correct," said Stoick, nodding in acknowledgement. "And the mental repercussions? Miss Jheon?"

"Learning difficulties and trouble concentrating are common symptoms," said a pretty Korean girl, who had Bonded with a gronckle. "As well as symptoms of depression and social anxiety."

Stoick was now pacing back and forth in front of the students, nodding in approval. "And can anyone guess why Hiccup isn't displaying any severe symptoms despite Bonding at five years old?"

"Well obviously, it's because the Haddocks and Jorgensons are AWESOME!" called out Snotlout without waiting to be called on; his father was Stoick's younger half-brother, so he was technically in the Haddock clan.

"No, you idiot!" called out Ruffnut Thorston from her place by Astrid and Tuffnut. "It's because his dad is the headmaster!"

This garnered some giggles from the rest of the students, and Ruffnut looked around in confusion for a few moments until Stoick turned to her.

"Elaborate, Miss Thorston," he said, and the giggling stopped.

"Well, you spend most of your summer here, so your family probably comes to Berk to spend time with you, right?" Ruffnut said, as if the answer was obvious.

"Correct," said Stoick, an approving smile on his face.

"So since he was spending time with his dragon every summer, his symptoms weren't that severe!" said Tuffnut, finishing his sister's explanation.

"Thank you,, Mr. and Miss. Thorston," said Stoick, turning back to the students. "Now, I hope you all learned something today!"

"Yes, sir!" answered the students all at once.

Stoick nodded. "Good. I'm sure you're all buzzing to get going. Enjoy your last day of relaxation, but make sure you're prepared for classes tomorrow!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Good. Dismissed!"

The students left, still chattering about what had just happened, most already with their phones out to tell their older friends about it too.

The newly Bonded dragons had left too, following their riders like puppies. And before long, the only people left were Hiccup, Stoick, and the crew from the dragon sanctuary, who were already prepping the unbonded dragons for the journey home.

Turning to his son, Stoick crossed his arms, and frowned down at him.

"Unfortunately, Hiccup, I'm afraid you won't be spending today like your classmates."

Hiccup looked up to meet his father's gaze, suddenly apprehensive.

"Why?" he asked.

"You and I, and…Toothless are going off campus to do some damage control."