Rex threw himself back in his seat, wanting to yell in frustration. He didn't think he could study anymore! Looking back, he was still amazed that things had ended up the way they had.
It had been a few weeks since the team that had set out on the maiden voyage of the Backlander had returned with the young blonde male, and it had been a very stressful few weeks for said thirteen year old. They had arrived in the year 2127, only five months after they had set out. When they returned, they had gone straight to Dr. Ancient and Dr. Cretacia's home to call Rod and Laura's parents. They had been stunned to see Rex, and after they heard the story of what had happened, both adults rounded very angerly on Dr. Z and Seth. Rex learned then that Rod's father, Ursula, Zander, and Ed were all brothers and sister having been adopted by Dr. Z when they were young. Rex didn't say anything at first, but when the argument escalated, he ran between them, throwing his arms out to shield the two males from the former's latter. It was true that what they had done was horrible, but if it hadn't been for that then he wouldn't have met Max, Aki, Spike, Zoey, Reese, Mr. or Mrs. Drake, Patrick, and most importantly his father Dr. Owen. It had all worked out fine in the end. They both decided they were still mad, but wouldn't say another word on the matter. Instead, they extended an open invitation to Rex to come to their home whenever he wanted to see Rod and Laura. Especially because Rod and Rex were going to be in the same grade at school when Rex started in the fall.
Rex had wondered what would happen to the others at first, but Dr. Ancient had taken care of that. He wanted to keep and eye on Dr. Z and Seth while showing them that no hard feelings were being taken. Therefore he invited them both to continue working with him on the dinosaur project and invited them to stay in their home. Both males accepted, leading to Rex's new living arrangements in the massive house with his parents, Dr. Z, Ursula, Zander, Ed, Seth, Helga, and Johnathan. Helga was overjoyed to have a child to tutor as well, explaining why Rex was currently studying. Helga was intent on getting him up to the level of the other students before the school year started.
It was strange to have a different relationship with them all now. Helga and Johnathan were relentless in his studies, but Rod and Laura would come by once a week to help. It was nice to have people his age around, and they tried to take him out a few times to explore. However the future had been a violent shock to his system and he preferred to be indoors, where things were somewhat familiar. Ursula, Ed, and Zander also tried to help in their own way. Since they were tossed out of the lab often for causing destruction, they decided to help Rex when they could by distracting Helga and Johnathan to give the boy a much needed break. They also tried to help him out adjusting as well, but they weren't very good at it. Dr. Z and his parents didn't get to see him much either, only during meal times. They were mostly focused on their research.
Seth however was much different. Rex guessed he still felt guilty about everything that had happened. He watched over Rex from the side, intervening when he thought it was too much for him. Unlike the others, Seth was much more direct. He simply strolled into the study room and told the androids that Rex was coming with him for a walk, then drag Rex out into the fresh air for a while. It was nice.
For Rex this move had been extremely painful. It wasn't like he had moved to another district, or even country. It was a whole new world! He felt so lost and alien in the world. There was hardly anything familiar left, and he couldn't even call to have a comforting voice from his past because they were all gone. He had grown to be fond of the Alpha gang and Seth, but they still used to be his enemy once. He hardly knew his parents either. After all, until the day before the Space Pirates attacked he didn't even know who they were. He also hadn't gotten to see Ace since they arrived. He missed his little friend so much, as Ace had been there for some of the scariest moments of his life, smiling and offering sounds of comfort. It was something he greatly needed now.
At the sound of the door opening, Rex threw his body forward to look at the screen. "I'm studying!" he said quickly, afraid of Helga's wrath if she found him slacking.
"I think you had enough for one day." a much different voice said. Rex turned around to see Seth in the door way. "Why don't we go outside. There's a surprise for you." he said with a smirk. Rex smiled and stood up. He followed Seth as they headed out. In the back yard, there was a little patio set up. His parents sat at a small table, Johnathan putting drinks down for them. Dr. Z was yelling at Ursula and her brothers, probably a mistake they made. Helga stood nearby, muttering about them needing to be treated like small kids.
"Rex! There you are!" Dr. Cretacia said with a smile. Rex smiled back.
"We have a surprise for you. Seth was very insistent on this." Dr. Ancient said. Rex was confused and Seth looked away, as if he hated the fact that he was ratted out. A small blue blur zoomed by and crashed into Rex's stomach. He looked down to see Ace, chattering away excitedly, and suddenly clutched the tiny dinosaur to his chest.
"ACE!" he cried. A soft bite to his leg made him look down to see Ace wasn't alone. Chomp, Paris, Terry, Spiny, and Tank all stood around him, waiting to be acknowledged. In a yelp of joy, Rex scooped the other five dinosaurs into his arms, clutching all six like a life line.
"Rex, understand you are responsible for them now." Dr. Ancient said sternly. Rex's eyes shone.
"You mean..." he started. All the others were nodding and smiling. He started to cry. It was such a comfort to have them around. He then hugged his parents, grateful for this surprise.
"You should be sure to thank Seth too. He's the one who suggested it." Dr. Cretacia said.
"Well it wasn't all me. Dr. Z said so too." Seth said, a little out of place.
"I only brought it up because these three idiots kept pestering me!" Dr. Z said, pointing to Ursula and the others. Rex just smiled.
"Thank you!" he said, hugging them all, then he and the dinosaurs ran threw the yard, playing. He would be fine, after all, he had them.
Just a little dabble of Rex post series. I have a headcannon where he becomes a paleontologist, like his parents before him. He studies from a school of thought founded by Zoey Drake and Max Taylor all those years ago, and becomes the 'king of the dinosaurs'. Not like he rules them, but because he is the greatest paleontologist and dinosaur expert there is. I don't own Dinosaur King or anything else, but I just wrote this one for fun.