There was nothing but silence to start, but into the silence a small noise surfaced. For a moment it stuttered but then the beat picked up until the rhythm was almost a frenzy. The noise was a heart beat, stronger than any human heart but not quiet as fast as a dragons though closer to it than anything else. As the heartbeat settled into its own steady rhythm, torches around the cave began to ignite into life.

Eventually the cave was bathed in the soft glow of over a dozen torches, the flames casting warmth into the chilled air. It wasn't enough warmth though, and on the next beat of the heart a fire pit in the middle of the room burst into life. In the middle of the flames a figure began to move, soaking in the heat that now surrounded her. Lifting her head she finally opened her eyes and scanned around the room. Her purple gaze caught the light and bounced it back, but there was no one there to catch the sight just as she had expected. She had never had anyone reach her inner sanctuary and she was sure she never would.

Climbing to her feet she ran her hands over her body, feeling each of her muscles and the softness of her skin. As she reached the flare of her hips she ran her fingers over the patch of black scales. They were as soft as fur under her fingers, but they could also become hard as stone. She had the same scales over her spine from just above her shoulder blades right down to her tail bone. She also had patches that ran from below her ears and along her shoulders. Though her scales were black they shimmered iridescent in the moonlight. She stood in the middle of the flames for a while her arms out stretched from her sides allowing the warmth to caress along her skin. Once it had chased away the last of the cold from her skin she climbed from the pit and walked towards one of the walls.

Standing in front of the wall she pressed her fingers into the intricate knot work with a symbol at the center. The symbol was her own personal crest, a woman curled in a ball with wings wrapped around her. She didn't even take in the sight though since she had seen it so very many times. As she pressed her hand against the cool stone it heated under touch and she felt the magic slide across her skin. The cavern was suddenly filled with the sound of scraping stone and the wall moved to the side.

She felt air along her skin as the wall finally moved completely back and taking a deep breath she knew that it was night time outside of her cavern. She stepped out into the tunnel that lead to the surface, a tug in her naval urging her to move. She wasn't sure how long it had been since she was last awake, but she knew the last time she had set foot outside of the cavern hadn't gone her way. She woken then with the same feeling but it hadn't panned out the way she had hoped. This time though she could feel a pressure in her mind that hadn't been there before.

As she climbed she wondered what kind of world she would find at the top. Would dragons still fly overhead, or would the humans have finally taken over as the dominant species. She wasn't sure what she would want, but she hoped they had found some kind of balance and coexisted in some way. As she neared the top the passageway filled with moonlight and she looked down at her skin as it lit under the light. Her skin seemed to shimmer and glitter slightly in the moonlight, denoting her as a creature of the night, but she didn't let the sight give her pause. She had seen the effect the moon had on her skin many times.

When she reached the top she stopped on the ledge looking down at the land around her cave system. The trees around the mountain side seemed to have stayed the same and she hoped that meant that her corner of the world was still her own. She ran her hands over her arms as the night air caressed against her, not from the cold but from the electricity she could feel prickling along her skin. Magic had called her from her slumber but she wasn't completely sure why. She had given up all hope of ever finding her mate again, so that thought didn't even cross her mind, so what could have pulled her from her sleep?

Hiccup leaned over Toothless as they rode the night air currents. He hadn't been back to the village in nearly a week, but knew at the moment he wouldn't be missed. His father had things well in hand, and his friends could deal with any dragon related issues. More and more he had been feeling the need to be away from the other Vikings. His home had been a peace for some time now, the dragons and Vikings happy in their coexistence and he knew that only existed because of him but he couldn't help but feel an itch in his skin the be away. Toothless seemed to be feeling the same lately, demanding more and more flights with him, and Hiccup was more than happy to oblige.

He looked down around Toothless' shoulder taking in the sleepy land below him. This far out their wasn't any settlements, the islands around him quiet and only home to dragons. As they rode along the currents he could see little areas that dragons had cleared for themselves and he smiled as he saw them pottering around. Some of them were asleep, and others were up for the night. It always amazed him at the array of dragons there were out there.

Toothless and he had been out in the night air now for nearly three hours, but he didn't feel the urge to set down or to turn around. What he did feel though was a shiver of something rush along his skin. As he felt it Toothless let out a warble and Hiccup patted his head.

"Not sure what that was boy," he said softly know that his bud would be able to hear him clearly.

Sitting up straight on Toothless' back Hiccup looked around them, he was sure someone was watching them but he couldn't see any other dragons in the air and he knew that none would be able to sneak up on Toothless. As he sat up though he could see a mountain range he hadn't seen before. Patting his dragon on the neck again he turned them towards the range and felt another shiver run along her skin. He wasn't sure what the feeling was but he knew he wanted to find out.

Standing on the ledge she knew the moment the dragon turned to make its way towards her. She smiled as it did and she used a small flare of magic to skitter across it to figure out what it was. A smile pulled at her lips as she realised that it was one of her direct kin, a night fury. She was glad that he would be the first dragon she came into contact with from waking, being around night furies always gave her the best feeling. As her magic slid along his scales though she realised he wasn't alone. The night fury had a rider, how very unusual. Nearly every time she had woken she was lucky if she found one true rider. She was even more curious about what she had found now.

Turning slightly she moved back into the tunnel so she would be out of sight of the landing platform carved from the rock. She also used a little flare of magic to wrap her body in a black dress knowing that humans always had a weird sense of modesty, one that she didn't share. She was more dragon in that respect. She waited her hand pressed against the tunnel wall ready to spread her magic if need be. She might have only just woken, one of her weakest moments, but she could defend herself if she needed to.

Toothless circled the mountain a few times and Hiccup could just pick out the outcropping that seemed to be an entrance to a cave system. He patted Toothless' neck, who turned slightly to look at his friend. They both nodded to each other and as one angled themselves for that out cropping. When they landed silently Hiccup simply sat on Toothless' back as he looked at the cave mouth. He could feel the same tingling again across his skin, but now it was multiplied ten fold. Leaning forward he pressed his body along Toothless' back until just the top of his head was above his friend so that he could still see but the rest of his body was hidden. It helped that he had taken to wearing his black leather riding gear whenever they went out now so that he blended right into his buds back.

She watched the newcomers as they landed and her heart skipped a little. The night fury was young, not the youngest she had seen since she had held hatchlings moments after they had broken through their shells, but he was a powerful creature. She could see his eyes shinning in the moonlight and it made her smile. But it wasn't just the dragon that made her smile, on his back she could pick out his rider, even as he pressed himself against the dragon trying to hide. She tilted her head as she looked at him, her eyesight just as good as a night furies in the dark so she could see him clearly even as he tried to hide himself. His eyes were what drew her the most though, they were the exact same shade as his dragons were. The green was so bright that it almost glowed in the moonlight and she wondered if her magic was having an effect on him.

Taking a deep breath she moved, and watched as his eyes snapped to her general direction. He might not be able to see her completely but he certainly knew that she was there. Interesting, this was going to be very very interesting. Moving fluidly forward she stopped just shy of moving completely out but she knew he could see her clearly in the moonlight.

Hiccup felt the breath in his chest freeze as he took in the sight in front of him. He'd been scanning the darkness around them from the moment they landed, he knew there was something there, but he had not expected what had come out of the dark. Standing before him was a vision that had to have been sent by the gods themselves. The girl looked to be about the same age as himself, her body lithe and willowy. Her hair floated around her body, the thick locks seemed black in the moonlight but they could be any colour in the day time. What he was sure of was that it reached her waist in beautiful waves. Her skin was lustrous seeming to glow in the light, it was so creamy that he itched to reach out and touch her to see if it was as soft as it seemed. Her face was what held him though, her high cheekbones and elven features were like drawings of the goddesses he'd seen. The big draw of her face though were her eyes. They seemed almost to big for her face but also perfect when put together with her high cheekbones and plump lips. The colour of her eyes were the most striking though, they were a bright vivid purple. A purple he had only ever seen in dragon form.

They starred at each other for a while, enraptured with each other. Both of them were struck by what they had encountered, obviously for different reasons though. Hiccup slid from Toothless' back but didn't move around his front paws, keeping a hand on his back to steady himself. Toothless turned to look at his rider and friend not sure why his human was being so hesitant.

For the millionth time Toothless wished that his human could understand him so that he could tell him not to be scared. The being in front of them was one of the purest things in all of creation and toothless had never thought to ever lay eyes on her. He warbled at Hiccup trying to convey his feelings but his friend simply frowned. Turning back to the girl he gave her one of his lopsided dragon smiles and she broke into a hug grin. She stepped out onto the ledge and then dropped gracefully to her knees holding a hand out towards him.

Before Hiccup could say anything Toothless bucked against his hand and waddled forwards until she could touch her hand to his snout.

"Hello cousin, I have missed you," her voice was like music to Hiccup's ears and it took a moment to realise how she had greeted Toothless.

He watched as Toothless pushed against her hand, and then he was moving forwards into he had his head leant against her should as her arms came up to wrap around his neck. Hiccup watched as she whispered something to his dragon and Toothless warbled a reply. When she pulled back her smile had deepened and she pressed a kiss to his nose.

Hiccup had never seen anything like it. Never had he seen a human so easily interact with a dragon, except maybe for himself. She touched Toothless like she'd known him her whole life, and not once did the dragon seem like he was uncomfortable with it. In fact he seemed to be encouraging her to pet him more.

"Your friend is beautiful," she said and it took Hiccup a moment to realise she was talking to him.

"He has his moments," he replied earning a huff from Toothless and a small laugh from the mystery woman.

Hiccup realised then that he hadn't moved from where he dropped from Toothless' back even as his friend had ruched forward to the girl. He watched as Toothless dropped onto his belly so that he could lay his head in her lap and she stroked her hand over his dragons head and neck. Taking a breath he moved forwards until he to could kneel down. He kept to Toothless' side, his front leg still between himself and the girl.

"I'm Hiccup and this lump is Toothless," he said eventually watching as her fingers played over the spines just behind Toothless' head.

Her eyes snapped up to Hiccup's face and he swallowed thickly, her eyes were even more impressive close up.

"My name is Nyx," she replied softly and Toothless lifted his head long enough to give her a happy warble and a lick to the cheek.

She laughed again and leant forward so that she could press her face against his head a content and happy smile playing across her face. Hiccup was truly at a loss, he didn't know where she had come from but she was like a miracle. This beautiful woman had appeared in the middle of the night on a wave of power and she seemed to have a way with dragons like nothing he had ever seen.

"What are you doing out here?" Hiccup asked and she opened her eyes to look at him, but didn't lift her face from Toothless.

"This is my home," she said simply her lyrical voice as soft as a caress against his senses.

Toothless gave another warble and an almost purr that Hiccup had only heard him make a few times in their time together.

She lifted her head from Toothless then her eyes puzzled as she took in Hiccup's expression. Nyx was so very happy to meet Toothless and his rider Hiccup, it felt wonderful to have a night fury against her once more. The warmth of his body settled into her skin and seemed to ease an ache she hadn't even realised was there. But as she watched the dragon and his rider interact she realised one crucial thing.

"You can't understand him can you?" She was amazed by this fact even as Hiccup's frown deepened.

How had he become a rider if he couldn't understand dragons. Sitting back slightly she gripped Toothless' face in her hands and looked deep into the emerald orbs of his eyes. Even though no words passed her lips she asked if Toothless would like that connection with his rider and was rewarded with a large dragon grin. She smiled at him and pressed another kiss to his nose.

Hiccup watched the exchange completely puzzled by what was going on. Of course he couldn't understand Toothless, yes he had learned to read his dragon in the years they had flown together, but no he didn't know what his friend said. But watching her it seemed as if she did and that was another enigma that had Hiccup itching to ask Nyx a million questions.

As if she heard the echo of his thoughts she looked up at him, "I know you must have lots of questions Hiccup but there is only so much I can explain right now," she paused and Hiccup saw what he could only describe as weariness pass over her features, "I haven't been awake long and I find myself more drained and tired than I had expected.'

She moved then faster than Hiccup could follow and suddenly she was knelt in front of him as he pressed himself against Toothless' side. She moved up then until she was mere millimetres away from Hiccup and he could feel heat radiating from her, very much life heat seemed to constantly radiate from Toothless. She reached out and all he could was hold his breath as she placed her hands on his cheeks. She locked her eyes with his and Hiccup couldn't move as she slowly closed the gap between them. It took him a moment to realise what she was doing and by the time he did he knew he couldn't pull away. He simply stayed completely still as she leant in and pressed her lips to his.

Heat bloomed from the kiss spreading through his head and then down through his body. I was like nothing he had ever felt in his life. Before he knew what he was doing his arms had come up of their own accord to wrap around him pulling her slight form against his own.

Nyx had only meant to kiss him so that she could pass across the magic that would allow him to talk with his friend. A small gift to these two that gave her so much hope for the time she was now in. As soon as their lips meet though she had felt something stirring in the young man she hadn't felt in so long she was sure that she was wrong. It was as his arms came up to pull her in against him that she knew she wasn't imagining it, he was truly what she had been looking for in more years than she cared to think about. Heat spread through her body then as she moved her hands from his cheeks to circle around his neck and sink into his hair. Under his insistent pressure her lips gave way and she sighed happily giving him the perfect opening to slide his tongue against her. She melted into the kiss as Hiccup deepened it and she could taste his power across her tongue. It was hidden deep, so deep that it would take lots of coaxing to bring out, but she was sure she could do it. She was also sure that he would have no idea what was going on.

When they finally broke the kiss and she moved back slightly so she could see his face she smiled softly at the look of wonder that had painted over his features. Hiccup had never experienced a kiss like it before. He wasn't naive by any means, being the son of the chief and the one to bring peace to dragons and Viking after thousands of years of war meant that many a girl had thrown themselves at him, but this had been nothing like any of them. It felt as if someone had lit a torch inside of him and the heat was just spreading and spreading along every nerve ending in his body. She tasted of wild nights flying in the sky and the deepest darkest crystal clear waters. She was everything he thought of when he was flying high above the clouds with Toothless.

Nyx smiled at the wonder of Hiccup's face even as she felt her body beginning to shut down. She knew she had risked much coming up as soon as she had woken, but the call had been to strong for her to ignore and now she was glad beyond belief that she had listened and followed her instincts otherwise she might have missed Hiccup all together. But that didn't change the fact that she was beginning to fade fast.

"Nyx?" Hiccup's voice was soft and full of concern and she tried to shake her head and pull her thoughts back into focus, but she seemed to have expanded the last of her energy as she tried to give Hiccup a dragon gift.

Hiccup watched as her amazing eyes seemed to cloud over and with a small start she pitched forward thankfully straight into his arms. He caught her against him as she collapsed her body feeling so light in his arms that he worried she must be sick. Next to him Toothless had turned to look at the scene and he gave a worried warble but Hiccup barely heard him, his whole concentration on the girl in his arms. He looked up around them his eyes scanning everything he could see but he had no idea where she had come from. Looking back down at her face he knew he couldn't just leave her hear, it wouldn't be safe.

Taking a breath he made up his mind and pulled her more securely into his arms. She really seemed to weigh nothing as he moved her and he found it easy enough to climb to his feet. Carefully he positioned her so that her head was resting against his collar bone, her arm draped over his shoulder so that he could wrap his own arm around her waist, the other supporting her under her legs. He hoisted her against his body and turned to his friend.

"She's coming home with us bud," he said as he carefully climbed onto Toothless' back and arranged the girl against him so that they would both be safe riding on Toothless.

Once Toothless was sure that his friend and the goddess were both secure on his back he ran to the edge of the cliff and dove over the side taking to the air just as easily as he did when it was just Hiccup he carried. He couldn't believe the precious gift that he now carried wrapped in his friend arms, couldn't believe that she had given a gift so selflessly to his friend. Even as they rode the night in silence Toothless could feel a new awareness blossoming to life in his mind and knew it wouldn't be long before he'd finally be able to talk to his friend, a thing he had wished for from the moment he had taken Hiccup as his. Soon there would be no more misunderstandings between them, soon Hiccup would hear Toothless and he'd be able to tell him the wonder that they had found.

It took the better part of the night for Toothless to reach the village and their hut on the outskirts. The sky was just starting to turn pink with the first rays of the morning when Toothless landed outside of Hiccup's door. Hiccup slid from his friends back and walked into his home, thankful that he had made his home so far away from any other. Even at this early hour there would be some in the village up and he didn't want to have to explain what was going on, especially since he didn't exactly know himself. Carrying her passed the front communal room he took her straight to the back of his home and to his bedroom. It was only a small hut that he had built, he didn't need much since it was just himself, so there was only one place that he could lay her down.

He knew that Toothless was just behind him and was glad that he didn't have to ask his friend to light the fire pit he simply shot a small ball of plasma into it and Hiccup knew the room would be warm soon. Carefully he laid Nyx in the middle of his bed of furs and watched as she sunk into them a sigh leaving her lips as she snuggled into the softness. She looked so small in all of that fur and he suddenly found himself unsure of what to do next. Before he had a chance to think about it though he felt toothless but his head against the back of his legs pushing him forwards. He turned to question his friend but before anything could pass his lips Toothless pushed against him again pushing him towards the bed.

It didn't take a genius to know what Toothless was getting at, and as he nudged him Hiccup realised he really didn't have it in him to fight his friend. Instead he stripped off the leather jacket, dropping it to the floor without a care, and crawled across the furs until he was practically against Nyx. He looked down at her face, even more beautiful this close, and wondered what he was going to do when she woke up. He hoped she would realise that he had done what he could to keep her safe and that he had no ill intentions by bringing her to his home. Before he realised what he was doing he had reached out to run a finger across her face soaking in the softness of her cheekbone. She stirred a little in her sleep and pressed against his hand a small smile tugging at her lips. Before he could think to hard about his actions he gathered her against him slipping down into the furs himself and pulled her until her cheek was resting against his chest. She sighed again but her eyes didn't open even as he hand reached out across Hiccup until her small hand was pressed tightly against his heart.

All at once the night seemed to catch up to Hiccup and a wave of tiredness rippled across his body. Before he succumbed to sleep though he pulled one of the ticker furs up and over the both of them making sure that Nyx was fully covered and safe against him.

Toothless watched as his friend finally succumbed to sleep and knew that what the goddess had given him would have been draining. He also knew that there was more to come for his friend and that the next few days were going to be interesting indeed. So for now he moved forward so that he could wrap his body around the two sleeping forms, his wing going out to drape across them. He knew that his goddess would like the heat he could supply and no one would be able to get passed him and try and harm either of them while they slept. He hunkered down resting his head against his forepaws and set in to watch over the two as they slept.