Chapter 5: Friendship

Littlefoot soon arrived at the edge of the forest, carrying Chomper along with their Mother's tree-star on his back. Although most of the vegetation was dry, there were still some leafs left on a few branches. There was also water flowing down from a waterfall and into a small pond. The sun had now reached the center of the sky, creating a harsh light orange hue.

Chomper remained completely still on Littlefoot's back, snoring lightly as his chest rose up and down with every breath. His eyes then fluttered open as they approached the pond.

"How was your sleep?" Littlefoot asked, looking back at his little brother.

Chomper sat up on Littlefoot's back, rubbing the tiredness out of his eyes. "It was alright." He yawned, stretching his arms and smacking his lips.

Littlefoot shook his head with a smile. "There's some water right here." He said. "We should drink some."

The little sharp-tooth nodded with his own smile as he climbed down from the young long-neck's back. The two then walked to the water and bent their heads down to drink some of the water. The nice, cool feel of water slide down their throats as they drank, filling them up nicely before they sat down by the edge of the pond.

As they plopped down, their thoughts once again drifted back to their mother. The thought of her instantly filled them with grief. They missed her so much it made their insides hurt. Littlefoot shut his eyes to hold back the tears that were gathering in them. Chomper, meanwhile, gazed down at his reflection in the water, his face full of sadness and slight contempt.

Just then, Chomper felt his stomach growl greatly. The little sharp-tooth whimpered a bit as he placed his hands on his belly. He was so hungry! He had hardly eaten anything in the past few hours. He had to eat something.

Chomper got up and peered into the water, trying to see if there were any fish, but nothing. He looked around, sniffing the ground with his nose before he finally found a large bug crawling across the ground.

Keeping as quiet as he could, Chomper slowly crept up to the bug, getting ready to pounce. He waited as patiently as he could, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike, his instincts taking over.

The bug took a few steps.

Steady...

Chomper's body tensed as he got ready to pounce.

Ready...

He watched as the bug began to come closer to him.

Now!

Chomper lunged forward, jaws wide open as he pounced. But the bug suddenly crawled away before he could nab it, causing him to land belly-first on the ground. Frustrated, Chomper drove his tiny fist into the ground. Darn it!

Determined not to go hungry, the little sharp-tooth rose to his feet as he saw the bug crawl over to the edge of the pond. Slowly, Chomper tip-toed over to the edge of the pond as quietly as he could. He waited for the right moment before pouncing again, but the bug once again moved out of the way, causing him to fall into the pond.

Despite himself, Littlefoot laughed as Chomper lifted his head out of the water, completely drenched. The little sharp-tooth grumbled a little as he stood up in water. However, as he did, he felt something clinging to his tail. Confused, he tried shaking it, but whatever was holding it didn't let go.

"Hey, something's got my tail!" He said, shaking his tail again.

Surprised and a bit alarmed, Littlefoot rose to his feet and walked over to Chomper. "Is it hurting you?" He asked in concern.

Chomper shook his head. "No, but it won't let go!" He replied as he shook his tail even harder this time. As he shook his tail, he looked back to see a green object that was almost half his size holding onto it.

As he shook his tail, Chomper stepped out of the water, his body dripping wet. With one more shake of his tail, the green object finally let go, hitting the ground with a small thud just in front of them. To their surprise, it was a small swimmer.

"Ow, that hurt-ed!" The little swimmer moaned in a cute little-girl voice as she rubbed her head in pain.

Littlefoot and Chomper glanced to each other before looking back at the little green swimmer. Neither of them had really seen a swimmer up-close, especially a little one. The two were silent before Littlefoot took a bold step forward. "Um... are you alright?" He asked cautiously.

The little swimmer finally stopped rubbing her head, looking up at them with bright blue eyes. "I am alright. Yep, yep, yep!" She replied cheerfully. However, when she her gaze fell on Chomper, her eyes widened in fear as she immediately scrambled to her feet. "Y-you are a sharp-tooth!" She cried as she backed away.

"W-wait!" Chomper exclaimed, holding his arms out reassuringly. "I'm a friendly sharp-tooth."

The little swimmer seemed quite surprised by this, and even more so that a sharp-tooth could talk. However, Littlefoot and Chomper could easily see that the little swimmer was also somewhat skeptical. "I have not heard of a friendly sharp-tooth. No, no, no." She said, shaking her head a bit.

"Well he is." Littlefoot spoke, stepping forward. "This is Chomper, he's my brother."

The tiny swimmer's eyes widened slightly. "He is your brother?" She asked in surprise.

"Well... adopted brother, actually." Chomper added.

Surprisingly, the little swimmer actually nodded her head in understanding. "Oh, I see." She then smiled as she walked up to Chomper, making the young sharp-tooth feel a little nervous. "Besides, I think you are a cute sharp-tooth. I do, I do." She then hugged Chomper tightly, much to his and Littlefoot's shock. Was this swimmer so naive as to walk up to a sharp-tooth without expecting to get eaten? And better yet, she actually believed them?

Blushing slightly, Chomper gently pulled away from the little swimmer. "O-oh, t-t-thanks." He stammered, his face quite red in embarrassment. "So, your not scared of me anymore? And you don't find it weird that a sharp-tooth is traveling with a long-neck?"

"No, no, no." The swimmer said cheerfully. "I'm actually traveling with my big sister."

Just then, a loud voice that sounded older than the swimmer's called out, "Ducky, where are you?! Where are you, Ducky?!"

The three of them looked over to a small thicket from where the voice had come from. "I'm over here, Ruby! I am, I am!" The swimmer, now known as Ducky, loudly replied.

As they looked on, the leaves in the thicket rustled before a tall, pink female fast-runner, who looked to be about Littlefoot's age if not older, came bursting through the bushes. "Oh, Ducky! There you are!" The fast-runner exclaimed as she rushed forward and enwrapped Ducky in a tight, protective embrace. "I was so worried, so worried was I!"

Ducky giggled as she happily returned the embrace. "But I am alright, Ruby, I am, I am." She said as the pink fast-runner gently put her on the ground. The little swimmer then turned to Littlefoot and Chomper. "And I found some new friends, yep, yep, yep!"

The fast-runner, now known to them as Ruby, gazed over towards Littlefoot and Chomper, and to say she was surprised would be quite the understatement. Littlefoot and Chomper simply stared back, surprised themselves that a swimmer was traveling with a fast-runner.

The group remained almost completely silent before Littlefoot finally took a step forward. "So... who are you two?" He asked.

Ruby and Ducky glanced to each other before the pink fast-runner spoke up. "My name is Ruby, and this is Ducky." She replied, gesturing to herself and then to Ducky. "We were traveling together when we met you."

"Really?" Chomper asked before his face then turned to one of confusion. "Wait, your a fast-runner, and your a swimmer." He pointed out. "Why are you two together?"

Ruby and Ducky glanced to each other before turning back to the long-neck and the sharp-tooth. "Well, me and Ruby are adopted sisters. Right, Ruby?" Ducky spoke up, looking up at the pink fast-runner.

Ruby nodded happily. "Yes." She said. "Our parents actually found me when I was a hatchling. My real parents weren't around, so they decided to raise me." She then smiled as Ducky hugged her leg. "And we have been like sisters ever since."

Littlefoot and Chomper nodded as they took all that in. To them, it was quite a surprise to see that they weren't the only ones who were family with other kinds of dinosaurs, but it was a welcome one to say the least.

"Um... where's your family?" Littlefoot asked.

At that, Ruby and Ducky's faces saddened. "Well, we don't know where they are, don't know where they are we do." The pink fast-runner said sadly.

"We lost them in the great Earth-shake." Ducky added, tearing up as she sat down at the edge of the pond. "We are all alone. We are."

Ruby sat down next to adopted sister, gently stroking her small back with her hand in an attempt to comfort the little swimmer. Littlefoot and Chomper's hearts immediately filled with sympathy.

"... We're sorry about your family." Littlefoot finally spoke up.

"Yeah," Chomper added quietly, "we lost our mother."

The four dinosaur children were silent, sorrowful looks on their faces as they stared down at the ground. Littlefoot raised his head as he looked at Ruby and Ducky. They were just like him and Chomper, lost and alone with no parents to protect them.

"Do you want to come with us?" Littlefoot suddenly asked.

Ducky and Ruby snapped out of their sorrow as they gazed at Littlefoot with shock. Chomper also glanced up at his big brother in surprise. He was offering for these two to go with them? But then again, it did seem like the best option at the moment. Cooperation was survival out here after all.

"YES!" Ducky cried, bouncing up excitedly. She then noticed how startled they all looked and calmed down with a small giggle. She then turned to Ruby. "Can we go with them, Ruby? Can we? Can we?"

Ruby gazed at her adoptive little sister before looking back up at Littlefoot and Chomper. To be honest, she was a little skeptical about traveling with complete strangers, especially when one of those strangers was a sharp-tooth. But seeing as how they meant no harm, she supposed she couldn't see why not. Besides, these two were just like them; lost and alone without their families.

So with a smile, she nodded. "Yes, we can go with them. Go with them we can."

Littlefoot let out a small chuckle while Chomper smiled. "Alright, come on." The young long-neck said, turning and setting off into the forest with Chomper behind him.

"But you'll have to keep up." Chomper said with a somewhat teasing smile as Ducky and Ruby followed them.

"We will keep up." Ducky replied cheerfully as they leapt onto a large tree root that was half-way in the water. "We will."

Littlefoot then the jumped into the pond, splashing a bit of water as it was quite shallow, only coming up to his knees. Chomper soon followed him, jumping into the water as well. The water was a bit deeper for him due to his shorter stature, so it came up to about his waist.

"So, where are we going?" Ruby asked as she and Ducky jumped into the water after them.

Littlefoot turned his back head back to them. "To the Great Valley." He explained. "Me and Chomper aren't gonna stop until we find our grandparents." He stated, with the little sharp-tooth nodding in agreement.

"Do you think our family went to the Great Valley too? Huh?" Ducky asked, her and Ruby's eyes having a spark of hope in them.

Chomper gave a shrug. "Maybe." He replied as the four of them stepped out of the pond, walking past some dead trees and bushes. "Our mother said that's where all the herds are going."

"Oh, I hope, I hope, I hope." Ducky said, bouncing up and down a little before Ruby gently patted her head.

Littlefoot then suddenly stopped. He turned to the little swimmer and the young fast-runner. "My name's Littlefoot." He said after clearing his throat. "And this is my brother, Chomper." He added, gesturing to the little sharp-tooth.

"Hi!" Chomper cheerfully greeted with a smile, waving his hand.

Ducky happily waved back while Ruby gave a hesitant, but accepting smile as they continued on. As they walked, the ground beneath them became incredibly rocky with many visible cracks. Noticing that the group had now become rather quiet, Ducky decided to lighten the mood as she began hopping over the cracks, humming a little ditty to herself as she did so.

"Dee-dee-dee-doo-doo," The little swimmer hummed as she hopped over the cracks. Feeling a little playful himself, Chomper soon joined in as he too hopped over the cracks while humming with Ducky. And soon, it wasn't long before Littlefoot and Ruby joined in, giggling to themselves as they played along.

"Don't step on the crack or you'll fall and break your back." Ducky said as she finished hopping, causing the others to laugh joyfully. However, their laughter suddenly ceased when they heard a loud low grumbling sound.

The four children froze in their tracks. They looked around for the source of the grumble, their little bodies tense, but there was nothing. The rather dead forest fell silent again.

And just when they were getting a grip on themselves, the grumbling came again... and this time, Ducky felt it.

Ducky looked down, her cheeks turning slightly pink as she clutched her stomach bashfully. "Hehe, my tummy is talking." She giggled. "It says, 'feed me! Feed me!'"

Another grumble was heard and this time, Littlefoot felt it. "Mine too."

The children quickly realized that they were all rather hungry. It was almost eerie how simultaneously starved they were. Looking at the ground, Chomper noticed the bug he had failed to catch earlier.

With a mischievous gleam in his eyes, Chomper slowly crept towards the bug and pounced again, this time finally catching the bug in his jaws. The sounds of crunching filled the air as he hungrily chewed on the bug before swallowing it.

When he turned back to the others, he noticed they looked rather startled, along with a hint of fear.

"O-oh, sorry." Chomper said sheepishly, blushing a bit in embarrassment. "I was just really hungry."

Littlefoot, Ducky, and Ruby still stared at him, though they were a little less tense now. As Chomper walked back over to them, Littlefoot glanced up at what appeared to be a dying fern tree. "Hmm... I wonder what this tastes like." Littlefoot pondered aloud before he clamped down on one of the vines with his teeth and pulled.

Suddenly, a high-pitched screech filled the air, startling the others.

"The tree is talking! It is, it is!" Ducky gasped.

"No it isn't." Littlefoot dismissed, his voice muffled as he continued to tug on the tree vine.

"You should not eat talking trees, Littlefoot, you should not." Ruby said, giggling a little.

But Littlefoot ignored them as he continued to tug on the vine. Soon enough, with a very strong tug, a small dark creature fell out of the tree, shrieking. It slid down the vine Littlefoot was pulling on before landing right on the young long-neck's face. Littlefoot's eyes widened before he screamed, letting go of the vine as it snapped back, throwing the little creature away.

Ducky and Chomper also screamed as they quickly ducked behind their siblings as the little creature crashed into the ground, breaking through one of the rocks in an almost cartoon-like fashion.

Deciding to be the brave one, Ruby stepped forward and peeked into the small hole. Inside was a small brown flyer with small leathery wings and big beady eyes. From the looks of it, the flyer about the same size and perhaps roughly the same age as Ducky.

When the small flyer looked up at her, his eyes widened in fear as he pulled himself into a little ball, practically shivering with fear.

"Oh, do not be afraid." Ruby said assuringly. "I will not hurt you. Hurt you I will not." She lowered her head into the hole as the others gathered around it. "What is your name?"

The little flyer gazed up hesitantly at her for a moment. "M-M-My name's P-Petrie." The little flyer stuttered shyly.

From outside the hole, Ducky giggled a bit, "Petrie, huh?" She asked between giggles as Petrie hesitantly scampered out of the hole. "Funny name."

Petrie looked around at all the new faces, seeming quiet and nervous. However, when his eyes landed on Chomper, his eyes immediately widened in fear as he let out a screech, startling the others.

"GAH! SHARP-TOOTH!" Petrie screeched as he scampered towards another fern tree as fast as he could.

"Wait! It's okay! He's a friendly sharp-tooth!" Littlefoot quickly said, trying to reassure the small flyer.

However, Petrie didn't seem to hear him as he began to frantically climb up the branch of the fern tree. But he was so panicked that he couldn't get a proper grip and as such, kept slipping and falling down.

Deciding to do it himself, Chomper cautiously walked towards Petrie, approaching him slowly as he lightly held up his arms.

The moment he saw the little sharp-tooth approaching him, Petrie immediately backed up against the stump of the fern tree, holding his wings out in front of him. "Please," Petrie begged, his body trembling all over, "Please no eat Petrie!"

Chomper slowed his approach. "It's okay," He said, making his voice sound as soothing and reassuringly as possible, "I'm not gonna eat you."

Still shaking, Petrie cracked an eye open as he lowered his wings slightly. "Y-Your not?"

The young sharp-tooth shook his head as he slowly stepped a little closer, holding his hands out in front of him to show the small flyer that he meant no harm. He then bent down and gently scooped Petrie up in his tiny hands.

Petrie shrunk greatly as Chomper scooped him up. The little sharp-tooth slowly raised Petrie, being as gentle as he possibly could. Summoning what little courage he had, the small flyer finally looked Chomper right in the eyes. Chomper's expression was soft and warm, almost... gentle. Looking at him now, Petrie was slightly less frightened of Chomper than when he first glanced at him. The look in his reddish-brownish eyes was one of kindness.

Then, the little sharp-tooth offered Petrie a kind, welcoming smile. To which, Petrie hesitantly smiled back.

With that seemingly resolved, Chomper gently placed Petrie on the ground before taking a few steps away.

"I-I-I flied?" Petrie asked, his tone of voice almost eager as he almost immediately changed the subject.

"No," Ducky shook her head. "you falled."

"I falled?!" The little flyer wailed as he flopped down on the rocky ground, whimpering almost pitifully.

"You can't fly?" Chomper asked in confusion before looking up to the fern tree. "But how did you get up there?"

"I climb!" Petrie replied, leaping to his feet and flapping his wings to show a sort of climbing method.

"But... you are a flyer, not a faller." Littlefoot pointed out, feeling a little confused by Petrie's rather odd inability.

"Hard thing to fly." Petrie said glumly before his face suddenly filled with determination. Then, as if to prove his point, the little flyer suddenly leapt into the air, flapping his wings rapidly as he tried to fly. However, Littlefoot, Chomper, Ruby, and Ducky quickly noticed his panic as he slowly flopped back down to the ground.

"I guess it is." Littlefoot replied, a chuckle in his voice as the others simply stared at him. "We can't do it."

"No, we cannot do it. Do it we cannot." Ruby nodded in agreement, a small giggle escaping her.

Chomper then smiled as he bent down towards Petrie. "Hey, we're going to the Great Valley to find our families." He said sincerely. "Want to come with us?"

Petrie gazed up at him, seeming surprised by his sudden offer. Initially, had Chomper offered him this chance earlier, Petrie would've outright refused out of his fear of the young sharp-tooth. But after Chomper calmed him down, he began to see that Chomper was not like other sharp-teeth. He was not some mindless monster from his mother's stories that only thought about it's next meal and would stop at nothing to kill everything in sight, no. Chomper... was almost just like any other flat-tooth. He talked like them, acted like them, and even almost seemed like one of them. So, perhaps he could be trusted?

The little flyer remained silent before he gave a small nod, which was all they needed.

Ruby stepped forward and gently picked up Petrie, lightly placing him on Littlefoot's back. "My name is Ruby." She introduced herself before gesturing to the others. "And these are Littlefoot, Chomper, and my little sister Ducky."

With the introductions out of the way, the small herd continued forward, following the bright circle as it slowly crossed the sky in all it's beauty.

Finally done with this chapter. And yes, I decided to put Ruby in this story since so many people in the reviews were asking for it.