Guys, I am SO SORRY this took so long. I started college last semester and it kept me pretty busy plus I had writer's block on top of that. But anyways, we're here now, that's what matters. Enjoy the chapter!

The song is A Tale of Sea Dragons by Marcus Warner.

***

Terror. That was the only thing Hiccup's mind could process at the moment, as he and Toothless plummeted to the sea. All he could do was hang on to the saddle for dear life and pray to Odin that he didn't fall off.

I need you to change the tail soon, Toothless said, astonishing Hiccup with how calm he sounded. Startled, the boy obeyed, remembering the position for flying straight. The dragon shifted his focus to the waves below, quickly coming closer and closer until . . .

Ready, Hiccup . . . NOW!

Hiccup jerked his foot in the pedal the second the word resounded in his brain. Toothless' wings shot wide open, stopping their descent and causing them to rocket forward, creating huge waves on either side of them.

Overwhelmed by the sheer speed of their movement, Hiccup kept his face buried in the saddle for a few seconds until he'd mostly convinced himself that they weren't dead. When he lifted his head, what he saw took his breath away.

Toothless' wings were spread impossibly wide, his strength and speed carrying them quickly over the waves. The ocean breeze smacked him in the face and he had to crouch low over the saddle to avoid getting blown off. He stayed very still, waiting with bated breath for the prosthetic to fail, to send them careening into the water. But, to his immense surprise, it held steady.

Are we really flying? he wondered.

In answer, Toothless looked back at him and grinned. Try it and see.

Hiccup shifted the pedal, making Toothless bank to the left, then the right. His wingtips created tracks in the ocean, spraying them both with seawater. The dragon pumped his wings once, sending them soaring gracefully over a rolling wave. Hiccup moved the pedal, intending only to turn again, but his foot slipped and went down too far, making something happen to the effect of them going upside down. The sudden maneuver elicited a roar from Toothless, a sound that went from total surprise to utter delight in half a second. When they were right-side-up again, Toothless snapped his head around to meet Hiccup's gaze, his face saying, DO IT AGAIN DO IT AGAIN DO IT AGAIN!!

Laughing, Hiccup complied, loving when Toothless cried out with abandon, bellowing his joy to the clouds. He changed the pedal and Toothless cupped his wings and zoomed into the sky. The dragon roared, calling out to his herd.

Several voices answered from further out over the sea. Hiccup and Toothless raced to join them. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning shot down to the sea about ten feet away from them. Toothless jumped, instinctively moving further away while Hiccup scanned the skies. No storm clouds were in sight, so he couldn't understand where the lightning had come from until he heard a familiar voice. Sindri glided above them, upside down, grinning at Toothless. The Night Fury smiled back, sticking his tongue out. Sindri rumbled happily, flipped himself upright again, and roared something that made Toothless growl playfully in return.

He wants to race us, was the translation.

Hiccup looked up at Sindri. "Where to?" he asked over the wind.

In answer, Sindri looked ahead, then back down at them, answering to Toothless, who then relayed the message. If we go straight, there's a group of sea stacks about a half-mile out. We'll turn there and finish where the herd is gathered.

"Sounds good," Hiccup replied. Sindri swooped down to hover beside them. Toothless gave the call. Ready, set . . . go!

Hiccup flattened himself against the Night Fury's back as much as his own body would allow, his mind racing to recover everything he knew about streamlining while also keeping an eye on Sindri's location. Toothless' wings carried them swiftly toward the sea stacks, but not at what Hiccup might have assumed was full speed. Sindri was several yards ahead, already banking around behind the natural rock towers. He was flapping madly, but his mouth was hanging open, gulping in air and panting it back out again, as he had already spent most of his early morning energy before the race.

Toothless, however, was as fresh as a newborn fawn in the spring.

As he and Hiccup approached the sea stacks, he told his rider the plan. Hiccup, seeing in his mind's eye what needed to be done, shifted the pedal so the dragon soared up and over the towers, high into the sky. He changed positions again as Toothless stopped his forward motion suddenly, spinning around and dropping into a dive so steep it was almost a free fall. As they built up speed, Hiccup heard the well-known shriek of the wind rushing past them and almost choked on the awe and exhilaration that filled him suddenly to bursting point. He had enough presence of mind to level them out so they flew straight. Toothless didn't spread his wings out, instead keeping them curled close to his body to get the most out of his speed boost.

Sindri was still struggling to stay ahead when his opponents raced past him, provoking a squawk of surprise. Hiccup whooped in excitement as Toothless carried him back to the herd. As they slowed to hover, the other dragons noticed them and hurried over. A chorus of trills and roars of delight filled the air as the herd saw their Alpha flying once again. Some of them nudged Hiccup in greeting.

Sindri approached, still breathing heavily. He snorted affectionately at Toothless, who gave a friendly purr in return.

"You alright, Sindri?" Hiccup asked. The Skrill tossed his head in his direction, emitting a low-pitched cooing sound, which was probably him saying, Give me a minute to catch my breath.

To say the herd was ecstatic to see Toothless in the air was an understatement. They loved him dearly, but had pretty much reached the conclusion that his time had come. Now, not only had he proven to them that he was strong enough to fend off a challenger, but with Hiccup's help, he had regained his ability to fly. It astounded them that a human would help a dragon to this length, and for that, they respected and accepted Hiccup fully.

***

The herd spent the better part of the morning alternating between fishing in the ocean and dozing on the edge of Gull's Crest. Toothless especially seemed to be enjoying himself, much to Hiccup's delight. He had found a patch of long grass to roll in, which apparently made him extremely happy for some reason. Hiccup checked Alf's notes over lunch but couldn't find anything about a grass that made dragons go crazy-happy.

Before he could think much about what to call it, he heard Toothless call for him from outside. He went to the window and looked out. Toothless stood in front of the smithy, the expression on his face excited, but what kind of excited, Hiccup couldn't tell.

"What is it, bud?" he called out. Toothless roared again, spinning in a tight circle. Still a little confused, Hiccup hurried downstairs and met Toothless outside.

"Toothless, what is it?" he asked again, holding out a hand. Toothless touched it immediately. The eggs! he exclaimed. Crimson's eggs are hatching!

Hiccup gasped. He'd seen plenty of adult dragons in his life, but a hatching!

Toothless was already growing impatient, shoving Hiccup along with his wide head. Come on, come on! The whole herd is going to be there! We have to hurry!

Hiccup jumped onto the saddle and Toothless surged upward the minute he was strapped in, not bothering to wait for the prosthetic to catch up. They flew over the meadow, past the rocky ridge that led into the dense forest beyond. Toothless swerved from current to current for extra speed, only needing to flap his gigantic wings two or three times through the short flight.

There!

Hiccup barely had time to see the herd gathering in a clearing before Toothless dove down into a spiral and landed quickly in a large patch of moss at the edge of the clearing. The other dragons scooted around to make room, but there wasn't much room so nothing really happened. Toothless didn't appear to mind, though; his full attention was on the den made from boulders and fallen trees where, so far, only the tips of two Nadder tails could be seen. The herd tittered and hummed excitedly, trying to keep the noise down. Hiccup leaned forward to hear the parent dragons cooing and squawking gently.

Finally, there was movement from within the den. Crimson's mate, a sort of rust-colored dragon with mottled green wings and feet, pranced out in front. He took a few steps out into the clearing, then checked behind him as one, two, three of the most precious baby creatures Hiccup had ever seen wobbled out into the sunlight.

The baby Nadders were basically little copies of their parents, except the horns on their heads were short and round, and their wings were tiny in comparison to the rest of their bodies. One was a deep red like Crimson, another was a sort of purplish-blue, and the last was a stunning gold with jewel-blue horn nubs. They lifted their heads and squinted at the bright light, their scales glistening. Crimson herself came out last, keeping her three children well within her sight.

Toothless was the first to break the straining quiet. Congratulations, Crimson and Flick. What are their names?

Crimson gently guided the red hatchling over with her wing. This is Hunter, she replied, then nodded to the purple and gold, who were playing what looked like hide and seek around their father's toes, and that's Sky and Dawn.

"They're beautiful," Hiccup said softly, trying not to draw too much of Crimson's attention to him. She regarded him with surprise, as if for once she hadn't noticed he was there. She stared at him for a moment, then nodded her thanks. It might not have been much, but to Hiccup, it was a big step in the right direction.

As the rest of the herd came forward to offer their congratulations, Hiccup could see the pride and the determination apparent in her face and body. He looked at the new babies, then around at the herd, all of them united in one mission to help protect these hatchlings in the hope that this year, Crimson, who had already suffered so much loss, would have the honor and joy of watching her children learn to fly.

What surprised him, though, was the realization that he felt exactly the same way. It was a familiar feeling, that fierce protectiveness, that he'd learned to channel on Berk. He let it envelop him, vowing silently that he would ensure these hatchlings made it to adulthood.

Whatever it takes . . .

***

QOTC: Who is your favorite character thus far?

Mine is basically everyone who isn't Magnus. I could list off their names, but . . . nah.