Hiccup, now eighteen, had matured and grew as fast as a reed. His auburn hair grew, wild and braided at two ends (I think we all know why), he had grown several inches taller (around 5'7" now), and his suit for flying had changed. Now there was more leather that covered most of his chest, and his peg-leg had been modified.
But what had changed the most was his desire for more adventure; to seek out new lands.
Hiccup and Toothless discovered new worlds together in their spare time, sometimes even finding a new dragon species. There were never any other Night Furies, but still the determined Haddock continued to search, always keeping his hopes higher than what he should have.
×°×°×°×°×
Hiccup laid wide-awake in his bed, unable to fall asleep. Lately he barely even got six hours of sleep instead of eight. He had tried the whole counting sheep ordeal, but that only made him more restless.
"Rarr," Toothless silently warbled. His rider gave him a small crooked smile, and motioned for the dragon to come over.
"Hey bud, what do you think about going on a midnight flight to search for some new lands?"
The Night Fury's eyes perked up as he nudged his head against the viking's hand.
"Okay, okay, I'm getting up."
Toothless warbled again, wagging his tail like a dog impatiently awaiting a treat. Only the dragon's treat was the midnight flights he had with his rider. Everything this time of night seemed so serene and peaceful, contrasting the bustling town of Berk in the day.
After Hiccup had put on his flight suit, he slipped on his dragon's back, fastened himself to the saddle, and allowed Toothless to leap out the window and soar effortlessly into the starry sky.
What discovery awaited them now?
×°×°×°×°×
After a while of searching, Toothless' prosthetic tail got damaged by strong winds that tore at it, so they landed on an island, but Hiccup was still wanting to search. He needed a way to get back home anyways.
A small wooden boat in decent condition laid in the warm sand on the far side of the island, thus giving Hiccup a chance to escape. But Toothless wouldn't be able to fit in that miniscule boat. Even if he could, he would sink it. So Hiccup had to go get help on his own.
"I'll be back bud," he reassured the dragon, placing his large warm hand on Toothless' snout.
"Grawr," Toothless warbled with concern, not quite set on the idea of his rider going out in the dark vast ocean alone.
"Don't worry bud. I'll be back for you, just like every time. I promise."
The Night Fury eased up a bit, but he still had a lump in his throat as he watched the boy of eighteen climb into the boat, push it off the sandbar, and glide into the deep dark waters.
×°×°×°×°×
After a long period of time, Hiccup started to go hungry. He reached for the bag that hung at his side, but it wasn't there.
"Oh, suffering scallops," he murmured to himself. He left the bag with Toothless.
"Good thing Snotlout's not here. He'd be driving me crazy on how unprepared I am."
As the young viking rowed the little wooden vessel across the expanse of seemingly never-ending sea water, something startled him. A jerk, a tug almost, brought him to his senses. It felt as if something pulled the oar.
"Ah, probably just a fish or somethin'," he told himself, his arms swaying back and forth as he rowed. Yet again, another tug came...until it was more of a yank.
