AN: I wanted to make a longer chapter, but given the current situation we need fanfiction more than ever.

(...)

Dragon's guide to peeing at night at uncle Sig's house.

When you wake up and it's dark outside and everybody else is asleep and you need to pee, this is what you need to do:

Take a cup.

You don't want to pee outside when it's cold, cause then your birds and eggs will get cold and fall off (if you're a girl – you can get frost in your nest, and that isn't very fun either).

Go behind the curtain, so nobody else can see you if they woke up. Pee into the cup. Go outside. Pour the pee out. Wash your hands and the cup.

Remember – do not pee into the hearth. It's fun, but it stinks afterwards, and mom will know you did it, and she will be upset, because she told you not to pee into the hearth. You don't want mom to be upset.

Dragon follows this instruction almost completely. The 'almost' is not his fault. Not this time.

When he steps outside to empty the cup, an unfamiliar shape draws his attention. It's all black, except for the eyes, which are intensively green. It has four legs, two wings and a long tail.

Instinctively, the boy freezes.

His name is Dragon. That name is supposed to protect his from real dragons. He sure hopes it will, because the creature in front of him can't be anything else but a dragon.

He'd never seen one up close – except maybe for those little green ones, but only in the passing.

Then he remembers – dragons are actually nice. That mean Queen dragon who was a bully was already gone. That nice lady Valka, who was a friend of mom's and a hero, said so. There was nothing to be afraid of.

The dragon in front of him meets his eyes.

The boy puts on a nervous grin.

The dragon tilts its head. Its nostrils move. Its muzzle opens slightly, letting out a questioning purr.

The boy is nervous still, but also excited. And curious, oh so curious. This is his great adventure, his special moment, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. How could he not use it?

Like a fly drawn to the fire, he takes a step forward. So does the dragon. Slowly, they close the distance between them. The boy's heart is pounding, like a bird wanting to break from a cage. He is ridiculously happy.

He extends his open palm. The dragon sniffs at it. The air it exhales is warm. Finally, much to the boy's delight, the black nose presses against his fingers. It's such a funny feeling. The dragon's skin is soft and moist around the nostrils, but the scales further up are like cool, smooth bumps. Like overgrown goosebumps.

The dragon break contact. It sits on his hind legs. It takes in the image of the awe-struck child.

And it grins. A toothless smile.

The boy's excitement is at its peak. He moves to get a better look at the dragon's tail. Sure enough, at the end of it, there is a bright red artificial fin.

This has to be Toothless. There is absolutely no way in the world this isn't the real Toothless from the story. And if Toothless is here, so must be Hiccup.

The realization helps the boy find his voice. "Is Hiccup here? Take me to Hiccup. Please. Can you?"

The Night Fury appears to understand him.

Dragon grins from ear to ear. He won't have to wait until tomorrow to meet the hero boy.

(...)

The Night Fury understood the human cub. What he didn't understand was where this human cub came from. This human cub, who bore an uncanny resemblance to the Night Fury's own human, and to the Night Fury's human's sire, the Human Alpha. This human cub, who had the residue smell of the Night Fury's human's dam, the Dragon Whisperer.

Was this the reason the Dragon Whisperer left? Was it to have another cub?

It seemed possible enough. Humans did seek solitude when they needed to do anything that required stripping off their artificial fur. The Night Fury's human was big enough to fend for himself and – judging by the smell – mature enough to have cubs of his own. It made sense that his sire and dam would try for another cub. They most certainly were trying – there was enough of his smell of her and her smell on him to prove it. Four Wings was of the same opinion – he rubbed his head against the Dragon Whisperer every day, expressing concern for the young that could be forming inside her. So far, there never seemed to be any indication she was actually gravid, which bewildered the dragons. With a healthy female and a healthy male, fertility should not be an issue.

(You'd think humans mated without the intention of having cubs – what a waste of energy.)

Upon consideration, the Night Fury decides the human cub in front of him is not his human's brother. It's only been a couple of days since the dam departed with Four Wings. If she had had a cub, it wouldn't have grown so big. The Night Fury most certainly saw human cubs smaller than this one back on the Human Island, and they did not grow a bit over the last three moon cycles. So maybe it's a relation of a different sort? He certainly looks and acts like one.

"Is Hiccup here? Take me to Hiccup. Please. Can you?"

Hiccup. That's how humans call the Night Fury's human. Privately, the Night Fury calls him the Luckiest Accident. A fitting nickname for one who took a part of his body, very nearly took his life, and in the end became his loyal companion.

It should be noted that dragons don't really use names. The way they communicate with one another does not call for monikers. Nonetheless, the Night Fury responds to the name Toothless. That name is a gift he received from his human. When the human calls him "Toothless", the Night Fury understands it as "You have no teeth, and so I am not afraid of you". It is a good name. A name that expresses trust.

The human cub right here is also very trusting. His tiny hands pat the Night Fury's scales, his chubby face radiates with delight, and his whole soft body heats up to the increasing beat of its youthful heart. The human cub is shivering in anticipation, like a hatchling pleading to its mother for food.

The human cub moves to inspect the Night Fury further. His attention falls on the one fragment that isn't black. He definitely wants to touch it.

Instinctively, the Night Fury moves his tail away. He doesn't want anybody touching this highly sensitive area. He doesn't mind showing it off, though, and thus he opens his tail fin. The artificial one opens along with the real one. The human cub is happy to see it, and rightfully so. The artificial tail fin is a gift from the Night Fury's human. A wonderful and thoughtful gift. An expression of trust not even the name Toothless conveyed. Unlike the previous artificial tail fin, this one does not require a human to operate. The Night Fury can move it the way he wants. Thus, he can fly on his own.

His human has given him back his freedom.

The Night Fury wishes to give his human something in return. Something of equal, or at least comparable value. But what could possibly compare to such a selfless act? The Night Fury would have to heal his human's leg, and that lies beyond the realm of what is possible. What else was there? Food? Artificial claws? If the Night Fury hunts down a polar bear, that's a decent supply of meat and fur. His human would appreciate it. Then again, he it didn't seem like anything special.

In the end, due to lack of ideas, the Night Fury decided to try and track down his human's dam. He figured he could help her in whatever she was doing, and maybe she could help him too. This was the plan. Until this strange human cub appeared, asking for the Night Fury's human.

"Please, Toothless. I want to meet Hiccup."

The Night Fury is conflicted. He has a vivid memory from the Training Ring, which used to be a Torture Ring. He remembers the Dragon Whisperer, walking backwards, softly rattling her Special Stick in the air, and a Rock Eater, hovering at that exact height, his eyes fixed on the rattling part of the Special Stick. In this memory, there is also a human cub, a male, sitting on the Rock Eater, making happy noises. There are a human male and female, the cub's sire and dam, watching anxiously.

There are some words said by the Dragon Whisperer afterwards. Something about the Rock Eater's gentleness and stability in flight. Something about the safety of human cubs.

'Do not go flying with a human who does not yet have a mature smell. Not unless I approve it,' the Dragon Whisperer warned each and every dragon. This was the message the Night Fury understood.

His human does have a mature smell. All of his human's friends have a mature smell. The human cub at present does not have a mature smell. And so the Night Fury cannot do what the human cub expects of him.

Unless…

(…)

Dragon managed to climb onto Toothless' back. The Night Fury didn't take off, but instead begun to walk. The boy was confused at first – and a little disappointed – but then decided it was a good sign. There was no need to fly. Hiccup had to be close. Within walking distance. How awesome!

Toothless walked into the woods. Every now and then he stopped, looked around, and chose a direction. Dragon was beginning to worry. They were getting far from uncle Sig's house. It was cold and dark. Every tree looked the same as the one before.

"Toothless, are we there yet?" the boy asked, suddenly wishing he had woken his mother after all. He wouldn't be worrying so much if she were here. Heck, even having Raina around would be better than not having anyone.

At least Toothless was leaving tracks in the snow. They will be able to get back. Hopefully.

Suddenly, Toothless stopped.

Dragon found it alarming. "Hiccup?" he uttered, scanning the surrounding for a sign of human life. There was nothing in here. Just trees and snow. Oh, and that big heap of… rocks?

The heap of rocks shifted. To the view came a head with a flat muzzle, huge eyes and huge spikes. A tail swung to the side. A pair of wings unraveled, and another. A groan – a human groan – emerged from the ground. The massive creature had been shielding a sleeping bag.

The person inside it was not Hiccup. It was Valka.

Dragon flashed a nervous grin. Toothless flashed a toothless smile.

Valka's eyes opened so wide they almost seemed as big as those of her dragon companion.

Sun begun to raise, but no amount of light could make anything about this situation any clearer.