A/N: I AM BACK! I said I would be back, and I'm back! Although I took a short little…break-thingy in the middle there, right? So I apologize for that. I've been mulling over a few ideas for this story in my head, and I think that I finally landed on something, and I hope that you all are still watching me to see this new installment! So let me fill you in on some stuff:

I am writing two other stories, and I might add another onto this one. My brain is just spurting out ideas like a hurricane, and so I ask you to be patient with me this time. You wont get the daily updates like last chapter, I'm afraid! But the chapters are long, and hopefully this story will be as good as the other one!

I was so close to five hundred reviews on the other one, and hopefully I will reach that number this time. So I should really start typing right now~! (About a few months' distance from last story. That's where this one takes place) P.S: I'm keeping Shadowclaw's name same for lack of confusion~

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The fire came with a scream, the ball of heat slamming into the ground and making the dry grass around it immediately catch on fire. It was something Berk had never seen before, at least, nothing as bad as this. Fireballs shot down to the earth like rain, while you ran away from one blast, you ran right into another. The Vikings and their dragons were in a frenzy, dashing back and forth, weaving in between the fire to be able and pour water on the houses that were currently aflame.

No dragons swooped down to try and attack the tribe of Berk, and frankly, none could be seen in the sky either. It was as if the rain of fireballs were coming from nowhere but the stars, something that was both impossible and highly unrealistic. It was all the people of Berk could do to try and smother the flames before they got too bad, shooting cannons randomly up into the sky in hopes of striking something important.

The embers flying off from the flames leapt around in the once-cold winter wind, flying in all directions and landing on passing Vikings. The teenagers were busy with the water, so transfixed that they didn't even notice the sharp stings of the small orange things landing on them. It was probably too hot for anybody to notice, after all. What with the two-foot-tall walls of flame surrounding them as they ran past, the embers probably didn't make much of a difference to anybody.

But the loud squalling of a cat proved that theory wrong, of course. Ludi's fur was fluffed out in all directions, claws digging into the shoulder of her owner, eyes wide and dilated, ears flat and mouth opened as large as it could go as she screamed loudly. Hiccup grimaced, faltering in his unsteady run as he reached up and tried to pry her off of his shoulder, her small-but-pointy-claws sticking deep into his skin with an uncomfortable stinging pain.

Hiccup's eyes were watering as he ran, coughing loudly in his elbow as he tried to skirt around the flames that roared loudly in front of him. He tried to feel his way to the blacksmith's shop, the fear that the building had been burned down making the teen determined to go on. The smoke was so thick around him that Hiccup could barley open his eyes without them stinging in pain. Thrusting one hand out to feel what was in front of him, Hiccup raised the other and twisted it upward. His hand floundered on Ludi's fluffy fur for a moment or two as he felt around, but then he finally found her mouth. Reaching forward, he clamped his hand down over her mouth, cutting off the cat's yells abruptly.

Viking's yells and orders became something of a roar of the catastrophe, Hiccup could barley hear himself think, let alone talk. Stumbling forward, Hiccup's hand suddenly met with a large slice of white-hot pain as he pressed it against a burning building. For a moment, he froze, stiffening as his eyes snapped open despite the burning from the smoke. Then, he jumped into motion, leaping backwards, his hand letting go of Ludi's mouth to grab his wrist so tight that his knuckles turned white.

The movement was so sharp, that Ludi let out a small squeak, digging her claws even deeper into Hiccup's skin as she fought for her perch. Closing his eyes tightly, Hiccup sucked in a breath to yell, but immediately stopped, leaning over and coughing into his elbow from the smoke. His hand burned and sizzled, blisters and sores already appearing on the palm by the time he had finished his coughing fit.

Stamping his foot on the ground rapidly, Hiccup closed his eyes in a silent grimace. Ducking his head down, he felt his chin touch his chest as he did so. Waiting a few moments, the image of the blacksmith's wriggled its way into his mind once more. Rubbing his eyes as hard as he could, Hiccup blinked rapidly, trying to get used to the smoke as he made sense of a little of what surrounded him. The walls of smoke were dense, but Hiccup could tell that he was somewhere near the edge of the island. Few more steps, and he would have had a lot more trouble than a burned hand. Sort of.

What kind of thing would be this strong? The whole of Berk was literally on fire! This made all of the other dragon raids they got in the past look like a kiddie game! Hiccup had never seen anything like this, and he hadn't seen the old raids either. Not ever since the other dragons became friends with the people of Berk. So what other dragons were attacking them now?

Ludi's small squeak made Hiccup come back to the present. Jerking, he turned, only being able to make sense of Ludi's shape from her silver-white coat. Or, what used to be silver-white. By now the fluffy mess was tangled, streaked with soot and ash. The cat seemed frightened out of her fur, and Hiccup realized with a pang that being in the smoke was just as bad for her as it was for him.

Craning his arms backwards, he grabbed Ludi and yanked her off of his shoulder painfully, wincing as he did so. Taking Ludi carefully, Hiccup held her so that her face was buried inside his chest, hoping that it would hold her until they got to the blacksmith's, or hopefully at least somewhere they could hide in.

Starting, Hiccup wiped his eyes once more, trying to blink back the wetness in his eyes from the sharp sting of the smoke. Where was he again? The smoke was starting to fog his mind, making him confused as he tried and remember where he was exactly. If he went the wrong way, he could find the ground give away underneath him. Where was everybody else? He could hear them, but he didn't know where they were! Starting to panic somewhat, Hiccup felt the same pressing sensation he felt when he was caught in a tight space.

He reached out to try and feel where he was, when a loud snorting noise behind him made him whirl around, making sense of a large dark blot racing towards him. Out of a somewhat new kind of habit, he flinched away from the oncoming thing, tightening his hold on Ludi as he ducked his head. But the form skidded to a stop in front of him, and when he opened his eyes a little reluctantly, it took him a moment for a wave of relief to wash over him.

Toothless's green eyes were round and concerned as he looked at his human. On Toothless's head, perched like a gallant sentry, was Shadowclaw, the smaller dragon letting out a joyous chirp as he looked down at Hiccup and Ludi. The teen let out a breath that he hadn't realized he was holding as he smiled gratefully up at Toothless with the familiar crooked smile. "Hey, Bud." He rasped, the smoke making his voice rough and scratchy.

Ludi shuffled to the side, poking her head around Hiccup's arm, blinking largely as she saw the two dragons in front of her. They must have been saviors to the small cat, and she let out a happy mew, wriggling and thrashing until Hiccup let her go. The silver kitten gathered herself for a moment before she jumped over gracefully, landing on Toothless's back with an inaudible thump.

Toothless let out yet another snort, and Hiccup coughed loudly in his elbow before he nodded once. Stumbling forward, the teen grabbed onto the Night Fury's saddle, pulling himself up with more difficulty than he thought it would take. Wheezing by the time he finally sat down on his perch, the Viking blinked, titling his head back and looking up at the sky thoughtfully for a moment or two. Blinking rapidly, the teen shouldered to the side, narrowing his eyes as he caught sight of the black tailfin.

He didn't know why he kept the fin there, he didn't know why Toothless had not broken it like he had the last one. The thought of the dragon not breaking the fin made Hiccup slightly unnerved, but the teen shook his head roughly in hopes of clearing it, whirling back around and tightening his hold on Toothless. He hesitated for a moment before he spoke, raising his voice despite the pain that was throbbing in his throat. "Come on, bud!" He yelled. "Let's see what's really going on!"

Toothless did not move, looking back at Hiccup skeptically for a moment or two. It was obvious that the dragon was seriously doubting his rider's motives. But when Hiccup's face did not even flicker, Toothless gave in. Barking over to Shadowclaw, Toothless crouched low to the ground, Shadowclaw doing the same as he leapt off of Toothless's head and onto the burning ground. Hiccup quickly grabbed Ludi, and then they were in the air again.

Almost like a reflex, Hiccup pushed his foot into third position, but faltered as he realized that the brace was not there anymore. Regaining his balance, Hiccup shook himself, sucking in a deep breath of clean air as they broke away from the smoldering fire. Gaining air, Toothless slowed in his beatings, changing to a standstill as Hiccup leaned over to the side, looking down at Berk with something of a sad expression.

The whole thing was aflame. There was no doubt about it. Pretty soon, it would spread back into the woods and then catch from there. Hiccup could make out Astrid and Stormfly flying down below, and he willed Thor to help them stop the fire before it was too late. After all, they didn't really have a growing season in Berk, if everything got destroyed, then what would become of all of them? The thought sent Hiccup's stomach into nervous flips.

Shaking himself for what seemed like the umpteenth time, Hiccup straightened, looking around with narrowed eyes. The sky seemed empty to say the least, the only thing that showed were the stars and the clouds that were rolling in slowly. Shadowclaw's ears twitched nervously where he hovered, and Hiccup noticed Toothless do the same. He knew something was wrong, for both of the dragons to be upset at the same time, but what could it be? There was nothing up here! Hiccup made a move to change his gaze to the left again, when suddenly, a large fireball shot past him, nearly slamming right into his head. Hiccup jerked backwards, loosing his balance as he teetered on the edge of Toothless's saddle. The dragon tensed at the attack, jerking to the side so that his human could right himself.

Heart drumming as fast as a hummingbird, Hiccup's breaths came in pants as he tried to calm himself down. Whirling around, Hiccup held tight to Toothless as he looked in the direction the flame had come from. Nothing was there. It was as if the attacker had melted into the clouds before Hiccup could turn back around. Ludi was starting to squirm, uneasy squeaks coming from her as she did so. Feeling a flash of sympathy for the cat, Hiccup tightened his hold, reassuring her as he snuggled her closer.

Hiccup tensed as he heard a faint noise, something that was very familiar and very bone-chilling. Gasping loudly, Hiccup yelled just as the fireball came into view. "DUCK!" He ordered, not able to control his dragon's movements himself anymore. Toothless responded at once, diving down to escape the flame as it shot past.

Shadowclaw -a little unsteady himself at flying- was slightly slower than Toothless, but managed to get away all the same, eyes wide as he looked over at Hiccup in an almost plea for help. Hiccup didn't see what he could do, without Toothless's tailfin, he was clumsy at this. How was he supposed to have Toothless go where he wanted if he didn't have a tailfin to control? Hiccup had no time to answer before another fireball came at him.

Quick as lightening, more and more fireballs shot out, each one coming from an invisible source. Heart hammering, Hiccup heard more and more of the sounds…the same sound that Toothless made. Before he could think of what he was about to say, it came out in more of a squeak than anything. "Night Furies?" He screamed, horror and uneasiness filling his voice as his memories flashed back to that day in the cave.

Then, he saw it. A flash of dark heading his way. The Night Fury exploded into view, and Hiccup went completely still as he recognized the dragon. It was the same one that had been so quick to first to attack him. Toothless recognized the dragon too, letting out a loud squall as he tried to twist around to face the dragon so that Hiccup wasn't the one to do so.

But it wasn't the dragon that was in front of him that made Hiccup surprised. It was the dragon behind that one. Hiccup's head felt like it was full of water, spinning and roaring where he sat and making him dizzy. His grip on Ludi slackened, and he felt his fingers start to go numb as he went into shock. His eyes were round like dinner plates, and his heart beat a million times per second. Toothless obviously didn't see what made Hiccup so frightened, only concentrating on the dragon at hand.

But to no avail.

Before Toothless could even try and stop him, the Night Fury by the name of Fleetfoot let out a loud roar, leaning over and smacking a numb Hiccup off of the saddle. The boy had been in such a rush, that he hadn't strapped himself to the saddle, and Toothless watched with wide eyes as his human plummeted down to the ground faster than a rock, Ludi screaming after him.

Hiccup didn't even seem to notice it though. The human's eyes were wide as they stared up at Toothless, but he seemed distant. Toothless realized with fright that Hiccup had gone unaware to his surroundings, something was wrong, he was in shock. He didn't even move as he fell, and Toothless forgot all about the other dragons as he dove down in an attempt to reach him human before the ground did.

Shadowclaw let out a screech, doing the same as he went down for Ludi. Toothless's heart hammered, and he prayed that he would reach in time. The ground got closer and closer, and Hiccup expression did not change one bit.

The boy's wide eyes were staring at something that Toothless could not see.

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A/N: PFT. What did he see? HMMMMMMM?

We gonna find out *waggles eyebrows*