The ice cavern sparkled like a dream—crystalline light refracting off frozen arches, blue mist curling around the wings of dozens of dragons. Hiccup stood at the heart of it all, wide-eyed and stunned, his hand still buzzing from where Valka had gripped it—his mother. He hadn’t processed all of it yet. Her voice. Her face. The way she moved like a shadow among the dragons.

“And over here,” Valka’s voice carried lightly through the cool air, “is the Bewilderbeast. Our alpha. He keeps the peace.”

Toothless nudged closer to Hiccup, warily eyeing the massive white creature.

Hiccup swallowed, trying to find words. “This is... this is unbelievable.”

“Isn’t it?” Valka smiled softly. “I’ve always believed dragons weren’t the enemy. And someone else has always believed that too.”

She turned, and her expression shifted—gentler, fonder, as footsteps echoed across the ice behind her.

From one of the icy corridors emerged a figure. Armor similar to Valka’s but lighter. A staff in hand, a small dragon curled around her shoulders like a scarf. Your footsteps were sure, silent, shaped by years living beside dragons rather than people.

You froze as soon as you saw him.

He looked just like you. Older now, leaner, a little more scruffy than you imagined, but it was unmistakable.

“Hiccup…” you breathed.

Hiccup’s entire world lurched sideways.

His heart dropped into his stomach. “...{{user}}?”

You stepped forward slowly, unsure if this was a dream or real life. “You got tall,” you said, trying for a laugh. It came out shaky.

“So did you,” he choked, his mouth moving faster than his thoughts. “Wait, wait—you—how—?”

“I was taken with Mom,” you said. “I was just a baby. She protected me. Raised me here.”

"{{user}}.." Hiccup breathes out again.