Soul of the Sky (HTTYD Runaway Fic)

More Than Enough

Astrid
This man is insane.
First, he is given the chance to ask for anything, and all he wants is peace and fish. Secondly, he makes saddles so that we can ride dragons. And on top of all of that, he insists that we don't need supplies.

I was perched on Stormfly's neck, shifting uncomfortably in my seat. The saddle wasn't a bad fit, but I was still adjusting to the fact that you could ride ACTUAL DRAGONS. Stoick was still arguing with the Dragon Master. "Thor knows how long you'll be out there. You'll need food." The younger man shook his head, muttering something about dense Vikings. "I live a day's flight from Berk. We can get supplies there, but carrying a whole bunch of random stuff is just going to wear the dragons down. They're not boats, Stoick. They have a limited amount of energy."

I could have sworn that the dragon under me snickered.

Toothless
Hiccup returned to the cliffside, grumbling about Viking stubbornness. "Ready to go?" he asked. All five dragons - or four if Barf and Belch counted as one - chorused affirmative answers. "I still don't like this plan." I muttered as he vaulted into the saddle. "I don't like it much either." he confessed. "But getting a promise of safety from Berk is worth it." He was probably right, and I was being overprotective as usual, but I didn't want to risk losing my best friend.

"Why are we on the cliff?" Snotlout questioned. "Couldn't we just take off from the square?" Oh, I got his plan now. "Scaring the Vikings?" Hiccup grinned mischievously. "You bet." I snickered quietly. This was going to be good. "We could," Hiccup said in answer to Snotlout's question, "but it's more fun this way." The Vikings looked confused. "What do you mean, this...." Fishlegs asked.

Before he could finish, I launched myself off the precipice. Judging by the screams, the other dragons had done the same. I snapped my wings open just before we hit the water, and we soared into the sky. My worries were forgotten in the joy of flight. I swooped and dived and did crazy stunts. "Easy, bud, the other dragons can't keep up." Hiccup laughed. He pretended to scold me, but I knew he loved this just as much as I did. Together the sky was ours to explore.

We dropped back to the traumatised-looking group. "Have fun?" Hiccup asked teasingly. Astrid looked murderous. "I swear, if you do that again, I really will kill you." Hiccup held up her axe. "I still have your weapon, remember? And you'll have to get used to it. Dragons love doing that, since it's fun and takes up less energy." Fishlegs' face turned green. "What did we sign up for?" he muttered.

Meatlug rumbled reassuringly and Barf and Belch exploded another hapless sea stack. This was going to be a long ride.

*    *    *    *    *

"Toothless?"
I hummed distractedly. "What?"
"Should we go past Helheim's Gate? It's not far from Berk, and I think they could use a look at just what you guys were ruled by. Might give them some perspective."
I snorted quietly. "Way ahead of you. We're flying there now." Hiccup laughed. "You know me better than I know myself. Vikings?" A chorus of "What?" greeted his call. "We're going on a detour." In unison, they asked "Where?" The constant synchronisation was too much for us, and we all started giggling. Even the Vikings.

The mood was abruptly dampened when Hiccup announced "We're headed to Helheim's Gate." Instantly, the five humans (not counting Hiccup) turned pale. "My estimation of your sanity is dwindling into negative seven-digit numbers." Fishlegs...well, estimated, looking very worried. Astrid had a more direct approach. "Are you crazy?" she hissed. "No one comes back from there. That's the Dragons' Nest."

Hiccup sighed. "That's the point. I want to show you why dragons don't raid Berk anymore." Right on cue, we broke through the fog. Dragon Island looked the same as it had six years ago, barren and rocky. The only difference was the gargantuan skeleton that was almost the size of the volcano. Everyone gasped. "That," Hiccup announced grimly, "is the reason. She used to control hundreds of thousands of dragons. They raided Berk to bring her food, because she would eat them if they didn't return with prey."

"W-why is she dead?" Astrid asked, for once shaken. "Toothless challenged her and won." Hiccup answered, patting my side. "If he hadn't, the bones on the beach would be ours." I snorted. "Your crazy plan."
"But you're the one that defeated her."
"I couldn't have done it without you."
"I was a dead weight that almost got both of us killed when I fell."
"We both fell, but you're the one that lost a leg."
"HEY!" Tuffnut interrupted. "Can we go now? This place gives me the shivers." Hiccup looked around. "Seen enough?" All of us nodded, the Vikings shocked into silence by the sheer immensity of the dead queen. "More than enough." Meatlug said softly.

"More than enough."