Chapter 31

Hiccup waited in his mother's den, accompanied by his Flight that had reunited after the mission. 

"Captain, how much longer is you mother doing to keep the Sun Sweeper?" Hookfang asked as he lounged on the stone floor. 

"I don't know, Hookfang," Hiccup said, surveying the nest over the edge of the den. "Knowing my mother, she'll either be done in an hour or in a day." 

His question was answered when a roar of greeting sounded towards the den, coming from Hiccup's mother, who was fast approaching with Natius at her side. 

Hiccup got to his paws as they landed, "All done?" 

His mother nodded, "Our  guest has been cleaned and clothed." 

Hiccup turned to Ignatius, "Have fun?" 

He hesitated, "I am very thankful for your hospitality." He glanced over at Hiccup's mother. "It was an...interesting experience." 

Hiccup laughed, "My mother sure can be interesting." 

She gave him a disapproving look. 

"What?" Hiccup asked innocently. 

"The King would like to be filled in on what happened during your journey," she responded, quickly changing the subject. "As would I." 

"I'd be happy to," Hiccup said, looking back at Toothless and Hookfang. 

They stood at once, walking to his sides as Hiccup looked to Natius with a question in his eyes. 

"Would you like to come too?" Hiccup asked the Sun Sweeper. 

He nodded slowly, and Hiccup gave him a small smile before jumping off the ledge of the den. Natius swiftly caught up, visibly not okay with following behind Hiccup. Hiccup still wasn't quite sure what to make of this fact, but he was going to let it slide for the time being. After all, Natius wasn't part of his Flight, and they probably had around the same amount of magic considering that they were both Dragonborn Sky Sweepers. 

Ignatius was still looking around at all the dragons around them, his eyes wide and curious. It was strange that the Sun Sweeper seemed to be so unused to be around a large number of dragons, but of course Hiccup still didn't know how many dragons lived at the Sweeper Nest Natius came from. 

They landed in front of the King, everyone but Hiccup and Ignatius bowing in respect as he stood from his lake. The Sun Sweeper seemed astounded by the King's large size, but showed no inclination to bow before him like the others were doing. 

"Hiccup, Valka," the King acknowledged, nodding to them in turn. 

Hiccup nodded back, but kept his posture straight and high. 

The King turned to Natius, "And you are?" 

"Ignatius," Natius replied, his body just as straight and confident as Hiccup's. 

"A Sun Sweeper Dragonborn, I see," the King said, nodding approvingly in his direction. 

Natius gave a small nod back, looking tense. 

"It does not surprise me that Viggo was so anxious to have you," the King said, studying Natius with a curious gaze. "You are as powerful as my second in command's son." 

Hiccup's eyes flitted back to Ignatius quickly, his instincts instantly making him tense at the words. He had already suspected as much, but hearing it out loud was startling. 

Natius did not respond, only silently accepting the King's assessment. 

"Please know that you are very welcome to stay at my nest if you wish to do so," the King said, "but I will require you to swear your loyalty to me if you choose to stay. I'm afraid I would feel uneasy to let such a powerful dragon live in my nest without knowing that their only loyalty is to me." 

Ignatius gave a small nod to the King's ruling, his eyes critical and calculating. 

"If that is your wish, I'm afraid I will have to decline your offer," Natius said, the amount of practiced diplomacy in his voice almost making Hiccup do a double take. The Sun Sweeper definitely had practice talking to Alphas. 

"So be it," the King nodded, lowering himself back into his pool.

Ignatius seemed to immediately recognize the dismissal, and turned away from the King. 

"Will you be staying with us, then?" Hiccup asked Natius, trotting up to his side as the Sun Sweeper started to walk away. 

Natius hesitated, "If you are still offering." 

"Of course," Hiccup said. 

"Even after what the King said?" Natius asked, staring him down seriously. 

"Well, I already knew you were as powerful as me," Hiccup said, "and I really don't care about what you do with that power on my island." 

Natius's eyes furrowed, "You're not worried about me stealing your Flight?" 

"Would you?" Hiccup asked, ignoring his every instinct to snarl at the idea. 

The Sun Sweeper silenced for a moment. "No," he said. 

Hiccup hummed, allowing his instincts to calm down before answering. "Then we're not going to have a problem." 

* * *

"Finally," Hookfang grumbled as they took off away from the nest, flying just behind Hiccup at his left. 

"What's wrong?" Hiccup asked innocently, "Bit too eager to get home?" 

An irritated puff of smoke left Hookfang's nostrils at the comment. The Blaze Builder had been trying to get them to leave the moment they were done talking to the King, certainly trying to get back home so he could visit Ash as quickly as possible.  

"If you two aren't Mated within the next moon cycle, I'll be shocked," Toothless commented. 

"We haven't even been courting for that long," Hookfang said, almost hiding his embarrassment. 

"You do spend almost waking hour with her," Hiccup said. "I'm definitely not the one to ask about how soon you'll be Mated, but even I can tell that you two love each other." 

"I've seen dragons take multiple Winters of courting to become Mated," Hookfang countered, "and we haven't even been courting for a single moon cycle." 

"Most dragons don't take to each other as quickly as you two have," Meatlug said. 

"Yeah, you were bringing her fish on day three," Barf said. 

Hookfang grumbled noncommittally.

"Not to mention it's Mating season," Belch added. 

Hiccup looked back at the Vapor Spark, confused. "It is?" he asked. 

His Flight blinked at him, confused by his confusedness. 

"Yeah, Hiccup," Toothless said. "It started weeks ago." 

"When?" Hiccup asked, bewildered. 

"Right after the Moon Goddess Celebration," Hookfang said. 

Toothless's eyes widened in realization, "Which was when Hiccup was still asleep."

"Oh," Hiccup said, relieved that something big didn't happen while he was wide awake,

"I'm still shocked that you didn't notice," Toothless said. "All the Mated dragons at the Nest of Spikes haven't been around as often because they've been spending more time with each other. And Hookfang certainly wouldn't have sought out Ash if it wasn't Mating season." 

"Wait, I thought all Mated dragons go to a different place for Mating season," Hiccup asked, recalling what Toothless had taught him. 

"The Queen had Mated dragons go to a different island for Mating season," Toothless said, his eyes darkening. "She didn't appreciate all of the happiness surrounding her lava slumber. I'm assuming that the Nest of Spikes keeps all their dragons in one place for Mating season."

"Wouldn't that get a bit, uh," Hiccup said, "rowdy?" 

Hookfang snickered, "Rowdy?"

"Well, yeah," Hiccup said, his face warming. 

"Don't worry, Hiccup," Toothless said amusedly. "Most Mates wouldn't want to Mate in front of any other dragons." 

"Of course not," Hiccup said, embarrassed. 

"I've seen some dragons Mate in public," Belch said. 

"Yeah, they were really getting at it," Barf added, smirking. 

"That rarely happens," Toothless interjected. 

"But it can," both Vapor Spark heads said at once. 

"Only often enough that all Mated dragons don't have to leave their nests for Mating season," Toothless said.  

"Most Sweepers don't have enough self control to only Mate in private during Mating season," Natius said tensely, breaking the silence he had maintained since he agreed to come with them. 

Hiccup's head whipped towards him, shocked he had spoken on his own accord. 

"What?" Toothless asked, his eyes wide. 

Natius nodded. "We have particularly strong Mating bonds," he said.

"Why?" Hiccup asked.

"Our relationship with the Gods is a lot closer than almost any other dragon species," Natius explained. "It makes every kind of magic we have stronger. Including the magic that ties Mates together."  

"So do you have a separate island for Mating season?" Hiccup asked. 

Natius shook his head, "Too dangerous. We have Mates go on one side of the island and everyone else on the other side." 

"What happens if you accidentally go into the Mating side?" Belch asked suggestively. 

Natius glanced distrustfully at the Vapor Spark. "Take a guess," he replied. 

Belch cocked his head at the Sun Sweeper, sharing a confused glance with Barf. 

Hiccup gave the two a stern look, silently ordering them to let it go. It was clear that Natius took a while to begin trusting people, and he had only just met Barf, Belch, and Meatlug. Hiccup could tell that the transition of being trapped by Dragon Hunters to living with a completely foreign Flight was going to be difficult for the other Dragonborn, and Hiccup planned on making that transition as smooth as possible. 

The rest of the flight was filled with silence, Natius constantly on guard and always scanning the horizon for potential threats. Hiccup was unable to stop glancing over at the Sun Sweeper, worried about his constant state of vigilance. He never seemed to fully let his guard down, and wouldn't really talk even when addressed directly. It felt like the only time that Hiccup had a real conversation with him was when Toothless and Hookfang had fallen asleep when they camped out on that island while traveling back to the nest. But maybe that was how Hiccup would get Natius to open up. Maybe the Sun Sweeper was only really comfortable talking with another dragon one on one. 

As their island slowly began to grow on the horizon, Hiccup decided that the best course of action would be to slowly gain the other Dragonborn's friendship. Then maybe he'd be able to trust the other members of Hiccup's Flight. 

Content with his plan, Hiccup picked up his pace, soaring towards their home. As they crossed over the threshold of the island, Hiccup let out a roar, calling out to Stormfly and Sharpshot. Almost immediately, Stormfly dove up from beneath the trees, flying out to greet them. 

"Captain," she squawked as she flew towards them, her eyes instantly catching on Natius. "Oh, hi! I'm guessing you're who the Dragon Hunters were-" she cut herself off, probably smelling that he was Dragonborn. 

"Yep," Hiccup supplied. "He is." 

Her eyes went wide. "Well that makes sense," she said. 

"Captain," a squeaky voice called out, Sharpshot flying out to them. "You're back! How was your trip? You find what you were looking for?" 

The Singeing Singer landed on Stormfly's head, before finally noticing Natius flying next to Hiccup. 

"Ooh, who are you?" Sharpshot cooed, crawling onto Stormfly's nose to get a closer look, making Stormfly let out an indignant noise and shaking the small dragon off. 

Sharpshot giggled as he regained his flight, but nearly froze mid air when he got close enough to Natius. 

"Wait," the Singeing Singer said, sniffing at the Sun Sweeper, his eyes widening. "You're Dragonborn!" 

Natius seemed incredibly uncomfortable, looking like he was going to snap at Sharpshot at any moment. 

"That he is," Hiccup interjected. "And he was held captive by the Dragon Hunters for weeks, so why don't you guys give him some room, okay?" 

Natius glared at Hiccup, and Hiccup winced as he realized that maybe the other Dragonborn didn't want that information to be openly shared. 

"Oh, of course!" Stormfly gushed, grabbing Sharpshot's tail between her jaws and pulling him away, "Very sorry about that." 

Sharpshot squeaked, sending an angry stream of fire at Stormfly's face. The Sear Spine let go of him, rolling her eyes as the tiny bit of fire fell off her scales. 

"Why don't you guys go back to whatever you were doing," Hiccup offered. "I want to get Natius settled in first, then I'll fill you in." 

"Okie dokie," Sharpshot said, happily flying away.

"Sounds good," Stormfly replied, flying back down into the trees. 

"I'm going to go visit Ash," Hookfang said, looking to Hiccup for confirmation. 

Hiccup nodded, "Have fun, Hookfang." 

"I'll go fishing for a bit," Toothless said. 

"Some rocks does sound good right now," Meatlug agreed. 

Hiccup sent them off with a nod, leaving only Barf and Belch. 

"What about you two?" Hiccup asked the Vapor Spark. 

The two heads shared a look, both of them taking on a mischievous look. 

"We'll figure something out," they said in unison. 

Hiccup rolled his eyes, but let them go on their way. 

"Come on," Hiccup turned to the other Dragonborn, "I'll show you around the caves." 

"Okay," he said hesitantly, looking slightly less tense now that the others had all flown away. 

Hiccup started flying in the direction of the mountain, Natius sticking to his side. They picked up the pace as they entered the cave tunnel, Hiccup speeding through it with practiced movements. Natius seemed to monitor his every move, mirroring it so skillfully that he was able to match Hiccup's pace. They soared into the main cave, both of their wings snapping outwards at the same time, stopping their quick flight. 

"Wow," Hiccup laughed as he leapt to the floor, "you're an amazing flier." 

Natius shrugged, landing in front of Hiccup, "I was taught to fly by copying what other Sky Sweepers were doing." 

"That's impressive," Hiccup said, brows raised. "I learned to fly when Toothless dropped me out of the sky." 

"Really?" Natius asked, his voice taking on a slightly amused lilt. 

"It was an eventful day," Hiccup replied, smirking. "Anyways, let me show you around the caves." 

The Sun Sweeper nodded, hesitantly following Hiccup. 

"This is the main cave, of course," Hiccup said, "but there are a series of tunnels dug by Spinning Tunnelers that take up the entire mountain, with a giant cavern in the middle of it." 

Hiccup led them towards one of the branching tunnels, giving his wings a single flap before diving into it. 

"We don't really have a use for most of the rooms since we all live in the main cave," Hiccup said, taking the other Dragonborn through a couple of them, "but I did put use to one of them by setting up my forge in it." 

"You have a forge?" Natius asked confusedly. 

"Yep," Hiccup said, leading them into the forge and landing in the room. 

"Why?" Natius asked, surveying the various tools and metals. 

"To make things," Hiccup replied. "I get bored very easily, and making weapons and inventions like I did back on my human island really helps get rid of it." 

"Oh," Natius said. 

"Yeah," Hiccup said. "Now come on, you need to see the cavern at the bottom." 

Hiccup flew out of the room, Natius hurrying to follow. They flew downwards, passing through room after room before reaching the bottom level. Getting to his paws, Hiccup began to walk down the tunnel that would lead to the cavern, excited to see Natius's reaction. 

The tunnel opened up to reveal the cavern, and Hiccup saw Natius's jaw loosen at the sight. Above them, the ceiling was covered in glowing algae, like a thousand fireflies crawling across the darkened slate. Green, leafy plants hung down from the stalactites, shedding glowing particles that looked like the light of the Gods Light that shines across the dark winter sky. 

"Wow," Natius breathed, his eyes filling with wonderment. 

Hiccup had never seen this expression on the Sun Sweeper's face before - something that was becoming a strange reoccurrence - and his chest filled with warmth at the sight. He couldn't quite explain it, but seeing the other Dragonborn express happy emotions made him happy too. 

"We think that this is where the Spinning Tunnelers would keep their eggs," Hiccup explained. 

Natius gave a slight nod. "Definitely a safe place to have a hatchery." 

They stood in silence for a few moments longer, Hiccup's eyes never leaving Natius as he gazed around the room. 

Hiccup shook himself out of his stupor. "You ready to go?" he asked, beginning to turn his body back towards the tunnels. 

The Sun Sweeper replied with a nod, falling back to Hiccup's side, matching his pace as they began to walk out.