Here it is, at last, the final chapter of my Littlefoot/Cera story. I apologize for how long this update took. Until recently, I had no idea as to how I should handle the meeting between Topsy and my OC. I hope you like how I did it. And as always, Land Before Time is © Universal Studios.

The Final Chapter – Pain of the past

"Don't you recognize me? I'm your mother." the threehorn said.

It took a couple of seconds for Cera to comprehend what she heard, but when it sunk in, she was so shocked that she fainted clean away.

"Cera!" Littlefoot cried, as he ran to his beloved.

It was several minutes before Cera came to. When she looked up and saw that the threehorn was still there, she got a little nervous and moved behind Littlefoot for protection. "You can't be my mom. She died a long time ago." was the first thing that managed to come out of her mouth. This didn't seem to phase the threehorn. In fact, the sound of Cera's voice seemed to confirm something to her. "It's true, my little Bambo. I am your mom." she stated.

At the mention of that name, Cera was really taken aback. Only her parents knew that name. It was what she would have been named if she had hatched as a boy. They had only shared it with her; no one else in the herd knew. She decided to ask the threehorn a question that only a family member would know the answer to. "What did I try to ram right after I hatched?"

"A smelly-bug. It squirted you when it was cornered." she said without even having to think about it.

Cera was dumbfounded. Only her family had seen her hunt that bug, and her parents had promised never to tell anyone about it. The fact that this threehorn knew it washed away all her doubt and confirmed, indeed, that she was indeed Cera's long-lost mother. Feeling a rush of emotion, Cera suddenly moved forward and embraced her mom with all the force she could muster. "I thought you were dead!" she cried.

"Did your father tell you that?" Mrs. Threehorn asked.

"Yes. He said you were killed by sharptooth."

"I can probably guess why he would think that."

It was a couple of minutes before a question popped into Cera's mind.

"It's been so long since I last saw you. How'd you recognize me?"

"I think I'd recognize my own daughter. Besides, you still have that mark over your eyes you've had ever since you hatched. And who are you?" she asked, looking at Littlefoot.

"My name is Littlefoot, Mrs. Threehorn." he answered, in the most polite voice he could muster.

"Is he your mate?" Mrs. Threehorn asked Cera.

This insight actually gave them both a scare. If Mrs. Threehorn was anything like her old mate, she would probably explode if she found out about their relationship. On the other hand, she hadn't sounded angry when she asked, so she might be a little more reasonable. Cera decided to just get it out in the open.

"Yes, he is." she answered in a soft voice, expecting a reaction similar to one she had received when she told her father. Instead of getting angry, however, Mrs. Threehorn just gave a little nod, like this news wasn't anything but ordinary. When she didn't give a vocal response, Cera asked "Doesn't his species bother you?"

"Why would it bother me? I can see that you two must have something strong going, based on his reaction when you fainted. It was the same thing with me and Topsy when we first got together. He was so worried about me, he got scared if I was out of his eyesight for even a second. And you should have seen him when I told him I was expecting. He actually fainted twice before the news finally sank in." she responded.

This got a chuckle from all three of them.

"Don't take this the wrong way, mom, but if you're not dead, why didn't you ever show yourself in the valley?"

"Now that's a bit of a story. Why don't you two get comfortable before I start?"

So they all laid down and indicated that Mrs. Threehorn could start.

"When we were first going to the valley, after you got separated from us, I kept trying to get Topsy to turn back and look at you. Unfortunately, he really believed that you were no more, and wouldn't leave the herd despite my protests. When we reached the entrance to the valley, we were attacked by that monster sharptooth who had been stalking us our whole journey. I was separated from the others during the battle due to a cave-in, and was badly injured before I finally managed to make him retreat. Knowing that he would still pose a danger to everyone, I tried to follow him, but he somehow lost me in the caves. It took me quite a while to find a way out of that cave, and when I did, I actually found myself in a place that resembled the great valley, except for the fact that it was misty almost all the time. By then, I was so week from both the battle and all the traveling we had just completed that I was unable to leave. I stayed in that other valley until I had recovered enough to travel, at which time I headed back in the direction of the great valley. It was easier for me to find my way back, thanks to directions I was given by a young longneck named Ali. I actually went there a couple of times, but there was never anyone there."

"What do you mean?" asked Littlefoot.

"Well, the first time I went to the valley, the plants were completely barren, and it was obvious that everyone had left fairly recently. I followed the tracks of the herds, but they were too far ahead for me to catch up. I eventually turned back, out of fear of some big sharptooth with horns I barely managed to avoid. The second time I went there, it was covered with white ground sparkles, but no one was there. I only managed to avoid freezing by returning to the other valley. By then, I'd figured that I'd need to settle down for a while, to give the great valley herds time to return. I was actually heading back to the great valley again when you guys found me. But in all the years I looked, I never gave up the hope that I'd find you again."

After hearing this story, Cera realized how much her mom had missed them, to never give up and find a permanent place to live, but to keep traveling in the hopes of finding her family. This unfortunately put a little doubt into their own journey. She was starting to wonder if they had made the right choice, to embark on this journey. Maybe her father would have listened to reason, if they had given him a little more time. She wished now, more than ever, that she could go back in time and try to convince her father to give her and Littlefoot at least his blessing for their union, instead of flat-out running away from their home. She was interrupted when she heard her mom ask "I'm grateful that you found me, but now I was wondering something: why did you guys decided to leave your home and come out this way?".

"Well, as you could probably guess, we wanted to be united, but when I told my father, he pretty much exploded at me. I knew right away that if we continued our relationship, he would make it impossible for us to live peacefully; and if we broke up, it would absolutely break our hearts. Faced with this situation, we knew that we couldn't stay in the valley. We were originally planning to look for another valley or an island where we could be together without worrying what others think. We didn't want to leave the valley, but it was obvious that my father would never let be together. But now that we found you…" she answered.

"You don't know what you want to do now." Mrs. Threehorn finished.

They both give her a little nod.

"Well, how about this: tomorrow, we head back to the great valley. I will see if Topsy can be reasoned with. If he can, you can just stay there. But if he won't relent, I'll take you to that misty valley I've found. It's still pretty uninhabited. I'm sure you'll be able to live in relative peace there."

"But if my father finds out where we went, I don't think I'll be able to slip out of the valley again."

"Trust me. I knew your father for a long time before we got separated. He has yet to beat me in an argument. I'm sure I can convince him to accept the situation. And if not, I can at least "persuade" him to let you leave under my guidance. So, will you accept this plan?"

It took them pretty much the rest of the day, but they finally saw the logic of her argument and agreed to go with her back to the valley. The next morning, they set out early, hoping to reach the great wall by sundown. It was an uneventful journey until they reached the foothills of the great mountain chain that surrounded the great valley, when they noticed that the bright circle was a lot lower than they thought it would be. At that point, they decided to just climb high enough that sharpteeth couldn't reach them and rest for the night. They managed to find a cavern about halfway up and went in at the last glimmer of twilight.

"Well, this is a nice cave." Mrs. Threehorn noted.

"What do you want to talk about while we rest?" Littlefoot inquired.

"Well, I'd really like to hear about some of your adventures growing up." she answered

It only took a moment until Littlefoot and Cera started talking about their many adventures, including how they and their friends had saved the valley from numerous disasters and helped a lot of strange dinosaurs with various problems. She was really surprised when they told her about their friendships with both a young sharptooth named Chomper and a group of "dragons" from the future. But what had shocked her the most was when they told her how sharptooth himself had finally been stopped by their hand. In this way, they ended up talking until the night circle was high in the sky and they fell asleep from pure exhaustion.

The next day, they got up with the sun and saw that they were actually in an entrance to the secret caverns. Remembering the way from their childhood, they easily found a path through the mountain. A couple of hours later, they reached the exit and were about to emerge from the caves when Mrs. Threehorn indicated that she wanted them to stop.

"Hold on guys." she said. "Please wait for me here. I'll be back in a little while. It's time for me to do what I said I'd do, even though I've been worrying about it for a long time."

"What?" asked Cera.

"I have to go have a talk with your father, and find out what he has against the two of you." She said, with a lot more determination than she'd felt for a long time…

Threehorn Glade

Thanks to directions provided by Cera, it didn't take her long to reach her old mate's nest. She laid down and started to wait for him. A little while later, a teenage pink triceratops approached her from the side of the hill.

"Hello there. Can I help you with something, ma'am?" asked the pink triceratops.

"Yes. I'm looking for Topsy." Mrs. Threehorn replied.

"He's off getting a drink of water. He should be back in a minute." and indeed, it was only a couple of minutes before Mr. Threehorn came back from the direction of the river.

"Hey, Tricia. Who's your friend here?" he inquired.

"I don't know. She said she's looking for you." she answered.

Hearing this, he turned to her and gave her a cursory nod. She responded by saying "Hello Topsy. It's been too long."

This took him back, because at first glance, he didn't recognize her at all. Of course, he didn't want to show any disrespect by admitting that, so he answered "Sure, sure it has." Unfortunately, his tone gave just enough uncertainty to betray him.

"You don't recognize me, do you?" she asked.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm surprised. I shouldn't have to remind you who I am. Especially not after all we went through."

He knew that if he didn't stop her right here and now, this stranger would probably keep insisting that he knew her. Worse, she could possibly say the wrong thing to Tria and get him into trouble over nothing. He decided to gently let her down. "I'm sorry. You don't seem familiar."

When she heard this, she felt a little dejected. "How could he have forgotten her?" she thought. "Topsy, don't you recognize me?" she pleaded. "Please try to remember."

At first, he was at a loss as to what she was getting at. When he took a closer look at her face however, something clicked inside. He suddenly recognized this threehorn. In a low voice, he asked "Ann, is that you?"

"Yes, Topsy. It's me." she replied.

"Excuse me!" exclaimed Tricia. "A few moments ago, you were denying that you didn't know her, and now you just called her by her first name. Do you know this threehorn, daddy?" she asked.

"I should say so. I used to be his wife." Ann answered.

"What do you mean? Is this true, dad?"

"Yes, Tricia. It is true. Ann here used to be my mate, many years ago. She is also Cera's egg mother. I never told you about her because after I thought she died years ago, I was in a big hurt. It was only after I got together with your mother that I managed to move on. I just didn't want to dwell on such a painful part of my life."

This answer really surprised Tricia. Until now, she had gotten the impression that her father had been with her mother for all his life. True, her sister was a different color that she was, but Tricia had always chalked it up to simple coincidence. But if this was true, that her father had a previous mate, what else had she never found out? Deep down inside, she knew that she just had to at least find out what had happened between these two, if not more about her father's past. In a low voice, she asked "What happened back then? Please tell me."

Topsy was taken aback by this. For all of her life, he had tried to keep the darkness he had faced out of his younger daughter's life. When he looked into her eyes to convincingly dodge the question, though, he saw a reflection of the strong inquisitive nature he had had long ago, and he knew she would not stop until he answered her question. He realized then that it was finally time to let go and share his past with his youngest daughter. With a silent acquiescence, he indicated for everyone to get comfortable and then launched into his tale.

"Well" he said, starting slowly, "it all happened when we were on our journey to the valley from our original homeland… "

"One day, we were taking a little break in a rocky plain. It looked safe enough for us to allow the children in the group the chance to explore nearby. As we started to gather them up, the ground started to rumble. It was then that we heard Cera's cry for help. I gave my answer roar, so that she could find us. Suddenly, the ground started opening up in a big earthshake. All of the surrounding dinosaurs started running away from where we saw the ground split. While most of them made it, a few fell down into the crevice. When the area finally settled down, we started looking around for our lost children. We managed to find most of them, but we were still missing Cera. Fearing the worst, we walked back toward the crevice. It was then that we saw her running toward the edge on the other side. We called out to her, but there was simply no way that she could make it across. We waited there as long as we could, but we eventually had to continue our journey, especially when we heard a loud roar coming from the area where she was supposed to be watching for us. Back then, there was a monster sharptooth who was relentlessly chasing all of us, especially those who got separated from the herds. When she no longer showed up, we had to assume that the sharptooth got her..."

As Topsy stopped to catch his breath, he noticed that while Ann was just staring back, Tricia was looking at him in a way he had never seen before. Right now, she was feeling for the first time how hard it must have been for anyone, especially her father, to give up and continue on without their child, and it was really showing on her face. After a few seconds, he had sufficiently rested and continued.

For a few days after, Ann kept getting a feeling that she had to go back. It reached a head when one day, when we were nearing the valley, she finally decided that she just had to go back and look for Cera. I was only able to convince her to stay with us when I reminded her that we still had Cera's sisters to care for, and what could happen to them, especially if they were left alone...

Topsy stopped again for a second to steel himself for what happened next.

It was all for naught, though, because when we got to a cave that led into the valley, who should surprise us but sharptooth himself. We tried to defend everyone, but he was simply too much. He managed to get several others, including all of our remaining kids before we finally managed to drive him back. In a risky move, Ann managed to slip under his guard and rammed him, knocking him back into a wall. Unfortunately, when he hit it, the roof partially collapsed and separating Ann and the sharptooth from the rest of us. For a few minutes after, I heard the sounds of an incredible battle before silence ensued. I called out to her to see if she was alright, but all I heard was an ear-splitting roar. I knew then that Ann was probably dead, and I would probably be alone for the rest of my life...

It was at this point that he had to again stop talking, but not from exhaustion. He actually needed to wipe away the tears flowing from his eyes. It took him a couple of minutes before he could continue.

With a heavy heart, I helped lead the rest of the group into the valley. I was just deciding what to do with myself when I heard a very familiar call. I turned around and who should come running but Cera. I was so overjoyed to see her. As I embraced her, I vowed to myself that I'd never allow anything to happen to her again…

As Topsy finished up his story, Tricia looked up at him and gave a look of absolute awe. It was quite some time before she could get out a simple "Wow". It then took her a while to think of something else to ask. Finally, she decided to break the tension in the air by asking "But whatever happened to that sharptooth?"

"Believe it or not, Cera and her friends managed to take him out." he answered.

"Really? How?"

"She and her friends managed to knock him into a pond with a big rock."

That gave an even greater look of awe in the young threehorn's eyes, hearing how her sister managed to take out a true monster. It was then that Ann indicated that she wanted to be alone with Topsy. He quickly got the message.

"Tricia, would you mind leaving us alone for a few minutes?" he asked.

Tricia was stunned. After his story, what could still be sensitive enough that her father felt that he needed some alone time. She decided to listen in.

"Okay, dad. I'll go join mom in the hot springs." she replied, managing to make herself sound convincing. She started walking off, but at the first opportunity, she slipped into some bushes and crept back to listed in.

It was not until they thought that Tricia was far out of earshot that Ann started in on what she wanted to talk to her old mate about.

"So Topsy, what is this I hear about our daughter, that she had finally found her true love, but you won't approve of their union?"

"So, you heard about that as well. Did you also hear that the boy is a longneck?"

"Yeah, so? I've met him. He seems nice."

"It's just that it's never happened before, a union between a threehorn and a longneck. I was hoping to make her my successor, but I know the other threehorns will flat-out reject her as a leader once they learn that she's chosen to spend her life with someone beside a threehorn. Besides, she'll never be able to have kids with him. I'm sure she'd want them someday."

"I don't actually see why the other threehorns would have a problem. Littlefoot and Cera obviously love each other, and if the others can't see past his species, then they are blind to everything the great valley supposedly stands for. They should be especially grateful to him since he helped take out sharptooth, who I'm sure probably would have destroyed everyone if he'd gotten in here. From everything he's supposedly done, he should have earned enough respect to be one of the leaders of the whole valley. And I'm sure they'll find a way to have a kid, if they end up wanting one."

"But what about the fact that he never came and asked me if he could see my daughter." He rebutted, but not in the firm tone he had in the start of the discussion. This gave Ann a sign that he was on the defensive, and that she should plow forward, especially since she knew the reason he hadn't been approached.

"Remember when you started dating me? How, despite how you act around other species, you were so nervous around me and my father, I had to eventually ask if you could see me. My father thought it was gracious of you to wait for me to be ready for you. I'm sure you told that story to Cera, and she tried to follow your example."

This caused Topsy to stop and think for a minute. Had he actually been wrong about Cera's motives in asking him if she could be with her friend, and if so, what else could he have been wrong about? Could Littlefoot actually be an acceptable mate for Cera, despite his species? Ann saw his self doubt and went in for the kill.

"Besides, what other threehorn would she want for a mate? From some of what I've heard, most of the other young threehorns are either not leader material or are already committed. So, since she has a willing mate who can be a leader, won't you let them be happy together?"

Seeing that she had made her point, Ann finally stopped talking and gave Topsy some time to absorb her argument. He was quiet for quite a long time, for in his mind, there was a fierce debate going on, and at the forefront were two conflicting thoughts that were vying for dominance. On the one hand, he still felt that it was not that smart for his daughter to defy the tradition of the threehorns and possibly deny herself the chance to ever have a hatchling. On the other hand, he realized that his daughter really loved her friend, and that he would be a good leader for the herds. He was just starting to think about how bad some of the other threehorns would react when they found out about this when his mental debate was sidetracked by the memories of all the adventures his daughter and her friends had been on, and on the role Littlefoot had taken in making sure everyone got home safe and sound. These memories eventually gained a foothold in his debate, and to his surprise, he felt his doubt start to wash away. He kept trying to bring up a negative possibility, but every time he started to have a bad thought, he kept getting reminded of the times Littlefoot managed to save his daughter from peril. The debate was finally settled when he remembered his daughter running to her friends after their first journey to the valley, and how close they had been ever since. He knew then that he would never be able to break them apart, and felt an internal peace descend. Looking around, he spotted Ann eyeing the bushes.

"What's up?" he asked her.

"I think someone's been listening in on our conversation." she said in a low voice, indicating a nearby bush. The two of them heard a sudden rustling, like something was trying to back up. Unfortunately, they must have slipped, for who came tumbling out of the bushes but Tricia.

"Tricia, what are you doing?" Topsy asked his daughter.

Of course, Tricia knew that she'd never be able to come up with a convincing lie, so she admitted what she was doing and got ready to receive a tongue-lashing, but Topsy's reply caught her by surprise. Instead of yelling at her, he simply said "Let this be a lesson to you: If you try to listen in on a private conversation, someday you may learn something you'd wish you never knew." Following this, he gently asked "Will you please go and ask your mother to wait for me at the council circle when the great circle is nearing the ground?"

Tricia knew that it was probably a once in a lifetime thing for her father to not get mad at her for disobeying him, so she decided to just do what she was told and headed off towards the mud springs.

After watching Tricia head off, Ann turned and asked in a hopeful voice "So Topsy, are you ready?"

"Yes, I've made a decision. Will you please take me to where Cera and Littlefoot are waiting?"

When she looked at him, Ann knew that she had succeeded, and without a moment's hesitation, she started walking toward the cave where Littlefoot and Cera were waiting.

Secret Caves

It was getting close to early afternoon, and Littlefoot and Cera were starting to worry that Mrs. Threehorn wouldn't be able to come through for them. As they started preparing to head back into the caves, they saw both Mr. and Mrs. Threehorn coming toward them. Taking the fact that they were together as a good sigh, they signaled for them to come over. Topsy then indicated that he wanted to talk, so they went over to a soft patch of grass and waited for him to get comfortable. He silently waited for them to acknowledge him before he looked right at them and slowly started to talk.

"Ann has really given me a lot to think about, and I've finally managed to come to a decision in regards to the two of you. But before I say it, I must ask you both one thing. And please look straight into my face when you answer." He then looked at Littlefoot and asked "Are you absolutely sure about how you feel for my daughter?"

"Yes, Mr. Threehorn. I love her, and I will never want to be with another one for the rest of my life." he answered, without a moment's hesitation.

As he answered, Mr. Threehorn looked straight into his face, and saw in his eyes a reflection of the love he himself had once felt for Ann. This erased most of his lingering self doubt, but just to be sure, he then turned and looked at his daughter.

"And are you absolutely sure about how you feel for Littlefoot?"

"Yes, daddy. I love him with all my heart, and even if I saw the most perfect threehorn in the world today, I'd still want to be with Littlefoot."

When he looked into his daughter's face, he saw reflected in her eyes the love that he knew Ann used to feel for him. This gave him the confidence that he had made the right choice. He started speaking again in a humble voice. "Oh, Cera, Littlefoot, I am so sorry for what I put you two through. I just wanted what was best for you, but I never realizing that you had found it on your own. Please accept my humblest apologies. I know I can't offer much for retribution, but if you want, I'll go and get the leaders of the valley and bless your union myself tonight. So, what do you say? Can you forgive this old threehorn who's been so set in his ways that he couldn't see a good thing, even when it was right in front of his face?"

Cera was taken aback by this. The last time they had talked, he had basically called her a fool when she asked for a simple opinion. Worse, he had disrespected her beloved by stating that he was no good for her, just because of his species. And now, he had apparently had a complete change of heart. Not only was he asking for her apology, he had also offered to bless their union himself. All she could think was that her mom must have said something really powerful to get him to change his mind like that. It didn't take her long to decide.

"Yes, I will" she shouted as she ran to embrace her father. Hesitantly, Littlefoot also started edging closer and closer to them until he found himself swept up in the embrace of several happy threehorns. It was quite a while before the bout of merriment subsided.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" shouted Topsy. "We've got to go get the leaders and have a union ceremony before the bright circle disappears."

As they started walking to gather the elders, despite the release of all the happy emotions, one worry still hung in Littlefoot and Cera's minds: even though her father finally approved of their union, allowing them to be open with their relationship in their own home, they would still face severe challenges in life. They knew, however, that as long as they had each other, they would be able to face the world, one day at a time.

The End

I must say, I never thought I'd be able to finish this story. Again, I apologize for how long this update took. My next update will probably either be another chapter of my crossover story or a one-shot Dragon Tales Christmas story. Anyways, Please R/R. Thanks.