Last chance to vote for the Song Contest!

Enjoy!

***

"You can't be serious!" Hiccup cried, aghast. He, Softclaws, Twig, and Toothless were standing in the smithy while Scorch waited outside, apparently trying to talk other dragons over to his side. Thankfully, according to Twig, his plan wasn't going very well. Whoever wasn't fond of Hiccup was too loyal to Toothless to even think about rebelling. "You're sending me away?"

Scorch wants you dead, Hiccup. If he beats me, he'll come looking for you. You need to be far away when the battle starts. Toothless was unhappy as well, but his mind was made up.

"I can't just sit around and do nothing while you do all the fighting. I want to help."

We can't work together this time, Hiccup, Toothless said, flicking an ear. His opponent was coming. Scorch challenged me. I alone must fight him.

"There has to be something I can do," Hiccup persisted.

Hiccup . . . Twig warned.

Toothless lifted his head and stared directly into Hiccup's eyes, saying nothing. Hiccup held the gaze for a moment, then looked down, his mind flooding with memories from the past. How many times he'd been able to take the brunt of Magnus' wrath to protect his friends, and how many times he'd failed. If there was a chance that Scorch could kill Toothless, Hiccup wanted to be there to at least try to do something. He hated being helpless.

Toothless nudged him in the chest, purring gently. He knew why Hiccup was fighting him, and he appreciated that bravery, but he had to do this alone.

"Please?" Hiccup whispered. "Let me try. At the very least, I can be a distraction." A loud roar outside made them all jump.

Toothless looked outside, then back at the boy. I can't risk losing you, Hiccup, he said after a while. When you are away from the battle, I can focus on Scorch completely. Go with Softclaws and Twig. If all goes well, I will come for you.

"And if not?" Hiccup asked, fear squeezing his lungs. That roar had been Scorch. He was ready.

Then look out for Twig and Softclaws. Keep them safe. Do not return to the herd. Toothless waited until Hiccup was seated on Softclaws' back to continue.

He looked at Twig. If I win—

You mean when you win, Twig interrupted, loyal to a fault.

—I will summon you. You are to answer to my voice, and mine alone. That is an order. Toothless looked at Softclaws. Understood?

Both dragons nodded.

Now go.

They slipped out the back of the smithy, and Toothless walked out the other way, toward his fate, whatever it might be.

***

Toothless met Scorch in the middle of the meadow. The rest of the herd surrounded them at a distance. Most were perched on the rock walls; very few were seated on the grass.

"Where's your pet, Toothless?" Scorch jeered. Toothless didn't take the bait. He kept his voice calm and indifferent. "You have challenged me, Scorch, and I have come. Name your prize upon victory."

Scorch raised his head and snarled, thinking. If he won the duel, he would automatically become the Alpha, and he would have a choice to either banish or kill his opponent. Given the Nightmare's violent past, Toothless figured only one of them would be walking away from this.

"If I win," the Titan growled, "the boy's heart is mine. As is yours, Night Fury." He finished with the traditional phrase used before a challenge, spoken in the old dragon tongue. "Nomenoi re sia huvenic, vur si geou tiichi astahi persvek sia vivex." It meant, "These are my wishes, and I will honor them in my victory".

Toothless' stomach twisted. Scorch had a thing for the hearts of his victims, whether human or animal, and it was nothing short of sickening, to be honest. Nevertheless, he bowed his head, accepting Scorch's wishes. "I hear and honor your request. My conditions are as follows: you will leave this island if defeated, and you will not harm the boy. Nomenoi re sia huvenic, vur si geou tiichi astahi persvek sia vivex."

For a moment, the meadow was so silent, you could hear a feather hit the ground. The herd stood frozen as the two dragons readied themselves. Then Toothless growled. "Let the challenge commence."

Immediately, Scorch shot a blast of fire in Toothless' direction which the Night Fury just managed to avoid by leaping to the side. Scorch lifted himself into the air, setting himself alight. Toothless stayed on the ground, protecting his chest and stomach from his opponent's wrath. Scorch's tail whipped around, catching the Night Fury's shoulder. He hissed in pain and fired hard at Scorch's wing. The active blaze protected the Titan from most of the damage, and he dove down toward his opponent. Toothless fired at Scorch's face to distract him, using the smoke to conceal him from view.

Scorch's talons created huge gouges in the earth, and he roared with fury. A huge weight slammed into him from behind, bringing him to the ground, his stomach exposed. Toothless fired repeatedly at the Titan's face. Scorch swung his blazing tail, but missed. Toothless pounced just as Scorch got his feet underneath him. They rolled, biting and clawing, until Scorch freed his wings and shot into the air, but his opponent's weight dragged him down. He twisted his neck around, sinking his teeth into the black wing membrane. Toothless cried out in pain, kicking out with his back legs, right into Scorch's stomach. The Nightmare coughed, sending a blaze of fire just over Toothless' shoulder. The Night Fury dug his claws in, determined to keep his hold. Scorch hissed, writhing in the air, spinning. Toothless hung on tight, slowly crawling his way up. Focusing hard, he wrapped his wings around Scorch's body and then, before the Titan could react, bit down into Scorch's throat.

Scorch screeched hoarsely, crashing into the wall so hard and fast that Toothless could feel the dragon's insides shudder from the impact. Scorch's fire was out now, as all of his focus was now on getting free. Just before they hit the ground, Toothless released Scorch and flung himself away. Without missing a beat, he whirled around and fired at the Titan's neck just as the bigger dragon was about to charge. With a roar, Scorch hit the ground again, the angry passion drained from his eyes. Toothless lowered his head and spread his wings halfway, ignoring the pain the movement caused. "Do you submit to me?" he asked, his breathing heavy but his voice calm.

Panting hard, Scorch laid his head on the ground, eyes closed. "I . . . submit to you . . . Alpha. Do with me as . . . as you wish."

Snorting, Toothless raised his head and folded his wings, addressing the rest of the herd. "Would anyone else care to challenge me?"

No one spoke up. No one even dared move.

"Would anyone care to cast doubt on my mental and physical state of health?"

Still no answer.

Satisfied, Toothless turned his attention back to the fallen Titan. "You have lost, Scorch. Leave this place now, and do not return. I do not want to see you again."

Scorch bowed his head, then turned and lifted himself laboriously into the air. Toothless watched him fly away.

Crimson approached the Night Fury slowly, her head down, her tail dragging and smoothed out, the picture of submission. Toothless regarded her with surprise. "I thought you were back at your nest."

Crimson rumbled softly. "My mate is guarding the nest. I had to see the duel. But I worry."

"For your family? I promise you the Southern Forest is the safest place on the island, but I can set up a patrol if that is your wish," Toothless offered.

The Nadder snorted. "No, no, it's about Scorch. I respect your decision, but I still wonder if that was the wisest choice, letting him go free. He may challenge you again in the future."

Toothless hummed. "I will not kill another dragon, Crimson. Scorch is not one of us anymore. Don't waste your time with him."

Crimson nodded and turned to go home. Toothless stretched his bitten wing gingerly, wincing. He raised his head and used his Alpha power to contact Twig. Come back to the meadow. It's safe, Scorch is gone.

We're on our way! Twig chirped back enthusiastically, only too happy to comply.

They were there within five minutes. Hiccup leaped down almost before Softclaws' feet touched the ground and threw his arms around Toothless' head. "I was so worried!" he exclaimed. "I hated not being able to help."

Toothless shuffled uncomfortably, never having been hugged before, but then relaxed. Scorch has been defeated. You are safe.

Hiccup sighed, relieved. "Thank you. I wish there was some way I could repay you for this."

Toothless snorted amiably. There is no need. Get the saddle and meet me at Gull's Crest.

Hiccup nodded and sprinted away. Toothless called Softclaws over and asked her to fix up his wing. She obliged, hissing her purple gas over the bite marks. She nuzzled the wounds as they healed, huffing gently. They weren't serious, but they would still scar. He thanked her and trotted off to the cliffs.

***

Gull's Crest was the highest point on Dragon Island. It was named, unsurprisingly, from the hundreds of seabirds that called the sheer cliff face their home. It was also the place where young dragons learned to fly for the first time. It was the perfect place to give Hiccup's saddle a test run.

Toothless sat at the edge, enjoying the smell and feel of the ocean breeze in his face. When he heard footsteps behind him, he turned to meet Hiccup, who held the saddle with one arm and a coil of rope over the other shoulder.

What's with the rope? Toothless asked, nosing the coil. Hiccup dropped it on the ground and put the saddle on the dragon's back, buckling the straps together comfortably. "I figured if we're doing this for the first time and we fall, better to fall five inches than 500 feet, you know?" He tied one end of the rope to a tree stump and the other to the strap of leather between the dragon's front legs. "This way, we can practice the tail positions and not get injured in the process."

Very insightful, Toothless commented, sniffing the knot. Well, no time like the present. Let's do this.

Hiccup hopped aboard, fiddling with something on the saddle. Toothless strained his ears to figure out what he was doing, but the sounds were unfamiliar to him. Finally, Hiccup put his feet in the stirrups. When his left food slid into place, however, the prosthetic tail fin—which had previously been folded neatly against Toothless' tail—snapped open with a satisfying click. Toothless jumped as he felt the movement. Suddenly, he could hear the song of the wind again, racing through his veins. He gulped in air, lifting his wings. He needed to fly now.

Hiccup leaned over and looked at him with worry. "Are you okay?" he asked. "It doesn't hurt, does it?"

No, it doesn't hurt, Toothless hummed, barely able to hold back his excitement. I just haven't felt like this in a long time. Remember how you felt when we flew together for the first time?

Yeah.

It feels like that, only ten times stronger.

Hiccup's eyes widened. "Well, then, don't let me stop you!" He checked something on the saddle, then back at the tail as he shifted his foot again.
Fly forward, the tail said. Toothless didn't need to be told twice. He pushed off, finding, to his surprise, that between the strong wind in his face and the rope holding him in place, he could only hover.

And yet he felt better than he had in weeks. His senses were sharper, more in tune with his surroundings. The practice flights he'd done with Hiccup were good, but this blew them all off the map.

He looked back at Hiccup. You doing good? he asked.

Hiccup nodded confidently. I'm going to try a few different positions. Let's see . . . Up?

The prosthetic moved and Toothless rose further off the ground. He was pleased when Hiccup instinctively leaned with him. The tail moved again and Toothless went back to where he originally was. The next few positions featured left and right turns, and landing. They practiced for hours, Hiccup memorizing the different positions, Toothless learning how to fly with the same ease and grace with the prosthetic as he had without. He told Hiccup about sky dancing, when a dragon would execute fancy, complicated maneuvers that, when timed correctly with the wind currents, looked like dancing. Hiccup took to the idea right away, instantly becoming obsessed.

I want to try it! he said, already imagining what it would look like, how it would feel. He could almost see the clouds billowing around them.

Toothless grinned at his enthusiasm, showing his teeth a little when he chuckled. Not today. It's getting late. We'll do it tomorrow morning. For tonight, rest.

"And what makes you think I'll be sleeping?" Hiccup asked mischievously, though he'd hopped off and was carefully unbuckling the saddle and prosthetic, and untying the rope from the saddle and tree stump. When he was done, Toothless bared his teeth playfully and rolled to the ground suddenly, trapping Hiccup underneath him. The boy yelped and tried to crawl out from under him. He ended up laying on the ground with his head in between the dragons forepaws. He threw a couple of fake punches while Toothless returned the favor, batting at him gently with one paw. You will sleep tonight, the dragon was saying, because if you don't—he flopped down on top of Hiccup, who wheezed with surprise—I'll do this!

The next thing Hiccup knew, Toothless' mouth was open, his teeth once again hidden, and his tongue was leaving a long, wide, sloppy trail from his chin to his bangs. The Night Fury continued to lick him while he squirmed with alternating waves of disgust and laughter.

"Toothless, that's gross! Cut it out!" he shrieked, barely able to breathe because he was laughing too hard. "Alright, alright, alright, you win! You win! Let me up!"

Cooing happily, Toothless got up, allowing Hiccup to get out from underneath him and stand. Hiccup shook his arms out like he was a wet blanket. He looked like a wet blanket, too, what with the dragon spit dripping from his face and hair onto his tunic. He looked down at himself, then back at Toothless.

"Seriously, bud? You know that doesn't wash out, right?"

Toothless gave him a gummy grin. I know. But it's fun!

Hiccup scowled, then flicked his hands, sending droplets of spit at Toothless' face. The dragon flinched in surprise, then shook himself off.

"Alright, I'm going to go take a bath. See you tomorrow!" Hiccup said, starting down the path to the river. Toothless watched him go, then turned to glance at the sunset, his gaze slowly traveling upwards towards the clouds. Tomorrow, they'd be up there.

With that pleasing thought in mind, he turned and trotted to the cove.

***

The next morning, Hiccup awoke to find himself a bundle of fizzing, crackling, excited nerves, much to Twig's amusement. He asked her about sky dancing over breakfast, at which point she completely geeked out on him and chattered in his ear all the way up to Gull's Crest. Toothless was already there, and he yipped a greeting to them as they approached. Morning, you two!

Morning, Hiccup returned. Twig hopped off his shoulder to rub against Toothless' leg affectionately. Have you eaten yet?

Toothless shook his head. Not yet. There'll be plenty available once we get in the air.

"As you wish," Hiccup replied, swinging the saddle onto his back and buckling the straps, ensuring that the prosthetic was well-secured.

Ooooh, this is so exciting! Twig squeaked, almost hissing in her delight.

Hiccup hopped aboard and buckled in, his feet sliding easily into the stirrups. The prosthetic clicked open. "You ready?" he asked, resting a hand on Toothless' shoulder.

Toothless looked back at him. Are you? he asked in a way that could have sounded like a threat had it not been for the fact that his pupils were dilated hugely.

Hiccup leaned back, chuckling nervously. "Uh . . . yes?"

Toothless grinned and fully extended his wings, lifting them up. Hiccup leaned in close to the saddle, knowing the power the dragon's muscles held. He tapped the pedal with his foot and the Night Fury rose into the air several feet. Then he changed position, causing Toothless to angle his body down toward the sea.

Let's do this, Hiccup thought. Toothless snorted and clapped his wings to his sides as gravity reached up to them and yanked them down hard toward the crashing waves.

***

QOTC: What's your favorite thing about HTTYD?

For me, it's all the Toothless moments, whether he's being adorable or terrifying. I love it!