Mother and Son -A Dinosaur Train Fanfic

The sounds of the local birds were the first to reach Tiffany's ears as she woke up from a good night's sleep. She yawned and sat up in the nest and looked around. The sun was shining and there were no clouds in the sky for miles. Tiffany looked down and saw that her son Brent was still asleep. She smiled to herself and started lightly shaking him. "Brent, honey, it's time to get up."

Brent mumbled something incoherently and rolled over onto his other side. Tiffany giggled and gently shook him some more. She spoke softly into his ear. "Brent sweetie, it's morning. Time to greet the day." Brent rolled back onto his left side before he opened his eyes and yawned. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Good morning, sleepy head."

"Goodmorning." He said.

"It's breakfast time, Brent. Do you know what that means?"

Brent's eyes lit up and he smiled when he looked up at her. "I do, it means fish for breakfast! Hooray!"

Tiffany giggled. "Yes, hooray indeed." Taking her son by the hand, Tiffany and Brent walked out of their nest and towards the local pond where they got their fish. The surface of the water sparkled in the morning light and a few other creatures could be seen around the pond for breakfast too. Tiffany looked around the pond, remembering the date that she had just had last night with Marco Megaraptor, her boyfriend. She smiled, remembering what a wonderful night she had had with him. Looking around the area, she could still feel the magic from last night lingering through the air.

Mother and son approached the shore and Tiffany released Brent's hand. He stood with the water behind him and gestured towards the water. "After you, Mommy."

Tiffany giggled. "What a little gentleman you are, Brent. Thank you." Tiffany walked over and stuck her foot in. "Feels just fine." She pulled her foot out and looked out over the pond. She could see the rocks that she and Marco had stood upon last night. The sight filled her with her happiness. She couldn't wait for her next date with Marco. "Come on, Brent. Let's go catch us some fish." Tiffany walked into the pond until the water was halfway up her feet. When Brent stopped beside her, the water was up to his knees.

Tiffany stood very still and scanned the water for fish. Within a couple minutes she saw some and plunged her left hand into the water. The fish was wiggling in her hand when she had pulled it out and threw it behind her. It landed on the shore and flopped around for a little bit before it became still. She repeated the process over and over, making a small pile of fish on the shore. Brent was also trying to fish, plunging both hands into the water, but with no success. "Darn," he muttered. He tried again, but the fish slipped out of his grasp. He looked up at his mother. "I just can't seem to catch any today."

"It's okay, Brent. You're not always going to be able to catch them." Tiffany plunged her hand into the water, but the fish got away from her and she pulled her hand out. "See, sometimes the fish gets away. You just have to be patient and keep trying. You're bound to catch one eventually at some point."

Brent nodded. "Okay, Mommy." So the two of them continued fishing for a bit. Tiffany's pile of fish for her and Brent's breakfast got bigger. She looked back at it and smiled in satisfaction. "Well, I think that's enough fish. Let's go eat, Brent."

At that moment, Brent spied a fish and plunged both hands into the water. He grabbed ahold of it and pulled it out of the water and gasped. "Mommy, look!" Tiffany looked and her eyes widened. The fish Brent was holding was almost as big as him. "Brent, you caught that?" Brent nodded, just as surprised as his mother was. Tiffany smiled. "Oh Brent, that's wonderful."

"I know, this is the first time I've ever caught a fish so big!' He threw it onto the shore and it landed beside his mother's pile of fish. He heard sounds of movement in the water beside him and turned to see his mother on one knee in the water, right in front of him, smiling. "Brent, I am so proud of you. Give me three." She opened her right hand and Brent smiled as he hi-three'd his mother. They stood up and walked over to the fish they'd caught. Tiffany had brought a sack to carry the fish in and gathered them up in it. "Would you like to put your fish in the bag, sweetie?"

"Sure thing, Mommy." He did and they walked back to the nest. They dumped their fish into it before they sat down and began to eat. Halfway through the meal, Brent picked up the big fish he had caught and offered it to his mother, who politely declined. "You caught that fish, so it's only right that you be the one to eat it."

"Really?"

"Really." Tiffany nodded and Brent thanked her before he bit into the fish. They soon finished with full stomachs and a few fish left over. Tiffany wrapped them up in leaves and placed them in the nest's sides. She then looked to her son. "Say Brent, where's the skeleton of that fish you caught?"

"Right here, Mommy." Brent held it up and gave it to his mother. "I'm gonna keep it as a momento of the day you caught that big fish." She hugged him. "I'm so proud of you, sweetie." Brent chuckled and hugged her back. "Thanks, Mommy." Tiffany put the fish away in a box she kept sheltered under a bush before sitting back down in the nest. She rubbed her stomach with satisfaction. "Boy, that was all good. I don't think I can eat another bite."

"Same here, Mommy." The two of them just sat there in the nest, relaxing and occasionally looking around their home while they digested breakfast. A while later, Tiffany looked over at her son. "Say, Brent?"

"Yes?" The little troodon asked.

"Is there anything you'd like to do-"

"Can we go on the Dinosaur Train to Troodon Town? We can go see the roundhouse!"

"Brent dear, let me finish. Is there anything you'd like to do around home? I'm sorry sweetie, but we've been going on the Dinosaur Train a lot for the past few weeks. And I don't feel like I want to go on it again today. I'd rather stay near home."

"Oh, sorry Mommy."

"That's okay sweetie. So what would you like to do?"

Brent watched a bug crawl across the edge of the nest before he thought of something. "Could we go see Marco Megaraptor?"

Tiffany could feel herself blush and smiled shyly. "But we just saw him last night."

"Don't you like him?"

"Of course I do, Brent. I like him a lot. I would like to see him again, but we all saw each other last night, it'd be too soon. Besides, you'll be seeing Marco again this weekend for your fishing trip with him."

"Oh, okay." Brent thought some more. "How about we just hang out at home for a while? We could do some things together? How's that sound?"

"Brent, I think that sounds like a wonderful idea."

The activity they decided to do first was making art. Tiffany brought some papers, pencils, and colored pencils over to a wide stump in the clearing they used for a table and began making drawings. Tiffany made one of her and Brent standing together in front of their nest smiling. Tiffany looked over at her son, who was busy sketching away quickly. Brent kept his arms around his paper, shielding it from view, as if whatever he was drawing was too private for the world to see. Tiffany leaned over to her right to get a glimpse and Brent saw this, closing his arms around the drawing more and leaning his head over the paper. Tiffany couldn't help smiling as she got up and stood behind the little troodon and leaned over him. "Say Brent, what you drawing?"

"I can't show you, Mommy. It's not ready yet."

"Okay, when will it be ready?"

"When I'm done drawing it, then I'll let you know. Please be patient, Mommy."

"Patience is a virtue." Tiffany chuckled to herself. She sat down on Brent's right and pretended to tap her claws on the stump's surface while her head rested in her other hand. She looked at Brent again, he was still busy drawing. "Is it done yet?"

"No, Mommy. Not yet." Brent replied without looking up from his drawing.

"When?" His mother asked.

"Soon."

"How soon?"

"Soon." And he resumed with his drawing. Tiffany waited a few minutes and smiled mischievously at her son. She leaned over towards him and tried to see what he was drawing. Brent looked up and saw what she was doing. "Hey!" He turned away and continued drawing with his back to his mother. Tiffany's smile of mischief remained as she got up and sat back down where she was earlier. Brent heard this and looked up to see his mother trying to look at his picture again. He closed his arms around it more and smiled up at her. "Hey!" Both of them laughed. "Why do you have to be so silly, Mommy?"

"Oh because I'm a silly mommy, that's why." Tiffany replied. They laughed some more and Tiffany spoke up again. "Go on, Brent. Finish your drawing. I won't look at it until it's finished, I promise."

"Okay." Brent resumed drawing and true to her word, Tiffany didn't look at either her son or the drawing. She looked around the clearing and saw a couple butterflies flying through the air. She heard the sound of a bird call and closed her eyes and listened. It sounded so beautiful. She smiled as she continued to listen to the sound. Nothing could be heard around the clearing but the sounds of birds, the wind blowing around Tiffany and Brent, and Brent drawing away. The peace and quiet lasted for several minutes before it was broken by the sound of Brent's voice. "Done, you can look at my drawing now, Mommy."

"Thanks, Brent." Brent held up the drawing to her and Tiffany gladly accepted it. She looked at it and sighed happily. It was a picture of her and Brent hugging. "Oh, Brent. It's beautiful. I'm gonna go save this in the box with the fish skeleton, so I can look at it whenever I want to feel happy."

"Really?" Brent asked.

"Really." She said smiling lovingly at him.

"Wow, thanks."

"No, thank you, Brent." Tiffany put the drawing away and they resumed making more. After that they put all the drawings and art supplies away where they would be safe and started playing with slingshots. There was an area in their home where they used and kept their slingshots. Tiffany had showed Brent how to use one some time ago and he had gotten pretty good at it since then. It was one of his most favorite things to do. They both stood before planks of wood placed on top of two rocks to stand behind. Brent loaded a small rock into the ammunition holder/pocket of his slingshot and closed one eye as he held the pocket back. He released his grip and the rock shot away and hit the pinecone onto the ground. He shot four more rocks, hitting three pinecones and only missing one.

"Brent, you've really gotten good at this." Tiffany complimented.

"Thanks, Mommy." Tiffany closed one eye, took aim, and released the pocket, shooting a pinecone onto the ground and repeating the process four more times without fail.

"But apparently not as good as you, you're good at everything." Brent commented.

"Not necessarily everything. I'm not good at things on the ice, like frozen gourd or skating."

"Why?" Brent asked looking up.

"Because I just can't stand on the ice without slipping and falling onto my butt."

"Falling onto your butt?" Brent pictured his mother trying to walk or skate across the ice, only to slip and fall onto her bottom. The thought caused Brent to giggle hysterically.

"Glad you find that funny." Tiffany said shaking her head and smiling at him.

"That's hilarious. Wait till I tell Marco on our fishing trip."

"He knows, I already told him that one time when he suggested that we'd go on a date at the North Pole and go ice skating. He laughed too."

Brent continued laughing and Tiffany shook her head some more and chuckled at Brent's amusement. After shooting some more targets for a bit, Tiffany asked Brent if there was anything else he'd like to do.

"How about we go to the playground near here? Maybe my friends are playing there?"

"Why that sounds like a lovely idea, Brent. Let's go." They put the slingshots down on the wooden planks and Tiffany took Brent's hand as they headed off for the playground. The walk only took several minutes and they arrived in no time. All the playground equipment was made from hard wood. There were wooden slides, swings, teeter tooters, even a small carolsel. Several children were playing there. Three troodon boys, a boy triceratops, and a girl velociraptor.

Brent smiled when he saw his friends. "Hi, guys!" All five of his friends looked at him and waved. "Hi, Brent.

Troy, Billy, and Ted were the names of the troodon kids, Trent the name of the triceratops, and Vicky the name of the velociraptor girl. Tiffany let go of Brent's hand and he ran over to his friends. She went over to the benches where the other kids' parents were sitting. "We were just about to start playing tag, you wanna play too?" Troy asked. "You bet I do!" Brent happily cried. All six kids started playing tag and laughing as they were all running around.

"Hi Tiffany, how are you?" Troy's mother asked. "Oh just fine, Sally." She sat down next to Sally and they chatted for a bit about how they've been. Then they started watching their kids play. A few of the other parents were doing the same thing, keeping an eye out in case a dispute among the kids were to happen, or if they got hurt.

Tiffany watched the kids and spoke up. "Remember being the same age they were, playing and having fun?"

The rest of the adults agreed and a few resumed speaking with each other. Tiffany looked at them and the same usual thought occurred to her, the same one that came to her whenever she saw Brent's friend's parents. That among all the adults in the kids' play group, she was the only single parent. The others were all married. Then the other usual thought occurred to her. Did Brent notice this? Did it seem strange to him that he had one parent instead of two like his friends? Did it bother him? Tiffany didn't know because Brent never mentioned this and Tiffany never brought it up. Why, did she never think to ask or found the opportunity to do so?

She looked over at Brent running around with his friends, trying his best to catch up with and tag Troy, laughing while he did so. Perhaps he didn't noticed and or if he did, he didn't care.

Tiffany rested one hand atop the other while she watched her son. Then Marco popped into her mind. She thought about how she met him, got to know him, and started going out with him. She loved him and she knew that he loved her back. She thought that they had grown so close together since they had met and she thought the same thing was happening between her boyfriend and son. They liked spending time together talking about fishing and now they were gonna go on fishing trip together. Tiffany closed her eyes. Maybe, after some time has passed and they'd become really close, maybe they'd get married. And Tiffany would have a loving husband who would never cheat on and leave her with a child. And Brent, he would have a father who loved him, who cared, and would never abandon him like his biological father had. That would be so nice, for both of them.

"Bye Troy, Billy, Ted , Trent, and Vicky! See you guys next time!" Brent said as he and his mother left the playground some time later, his hand in hers.

"Bye Brent, see you soon!" his friends called back. Tiffany and the other adults said their good-byes as well and she and her son were now walking down the dirt path to their home. They had just had lunch with the group and couldn't waitto get in their nest and nap for a bit. Tiffany held Brent's hand in her right while they walked together. "Boy, that was a fun time. I'm glad that my friends were there to play."

"I'm glad too, Brent. It's good to have friends, right sweetie?"

Brent nodded. Then he looked up at his mother. "Mommy, can I ask you something?"

"Sure thing, honey. Shoot."

Brent knew that by shoot, his mother meant to go ahead and ask his question. "You and Marco are friends, right?"

"Yes, he and I are friends. Good friends, close friends. Really close."

"But you sometimes call him your 'boyfriend' and he calls himself the same thing. And he calls you his 'girlfriend', which is the same thing you call yourself. So what's a boyfriend? And what's a girlfriend?"

Tiffany thought about how to best answer Brent's question. "Well, boyfriends and girlfriends are like friends, friends that are boys and friends that are girls. Marco's a boy and he's my boyfriend. I'm a girl, so I'm his girlfriend."

"So boyfriend and girlfriend are the same as friends?' Brent asked.

"Well kinda, but no. Boyfriends and girlfriends are different from a regular kind of friend."

"How so?"

"Well, boyfriends and girlfriends hang out like regular friends, but they care differently for each other. They express their feelings towards each other differently. They show affection for each other through hugs, kisses, and telling each other that they love each other. The relationship they have is a romantic one, and that's the relationship Marco and I have together. We express our affection through hugging and kissing and saying that we love each other, which we do obviously. We also do nice things for each other. In fact, last night on our date together, Marco had made a wooden carving of me and gave it to me as a gift. And on one of our previous dates, I caught and cooked him a big fish for dinner, which he thanked me very much for."

"Okay." Brent nodded.

"Another thing boyfriends and girlfriends do together is that they go on dates."

"What's a date?"

"It's when they spend some time together getting to know each other whether it's over a meal, or doing an activity together like a game. To see how their relationship together would be. That's what Marco and I do when it's just us hanging out."

"What's a relationship?"

"A relationship is how Marco and I behave around and regard one another, like all other creatures who date each other." Tiffany said answering Brent.

"Oh." Brent said. He was silent for about a minute before he spoke up again. "Well, the reason I asked about the whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing is because I'm a bit curious. I've noticed something, it's just me and you living at home and Marco is just your boyfriend, not your husband and my dad. And the rest of my friends have both a mom and a dad…"

Tiffany could see where this was going, but she allowed Brent to finish.

"So, where is my dad? Did something happen to him?" he looked at her with an expression of concern. Tiffany looked down at him.

"Nothing happened to him, nothing bad anyway. He…he just left and he never came back."

"When did this happen? I can't remember…" Brent's voice trailed off.

"Of course you wouldn't remember, sweetie. This happened before you were hatched, when you were still inside an egg."

"But why did he leave?"

Tiffany closed her eyes and sighed. "Maybe someday, when you're older and better able to understand, I can explain fully to you why, but for now let's just say that some romantic relationships between grown-ups…don't always work out and they go their separate ways."

That wasn't Tiffany's only reason why she wouldn't tell Brent the whole thing. Even though she and her husband had separated over four years ago, the pain was there and it still hurt. The pain of taking a leisurely stroll through the woods one evening while her sister was looking after her egg, and seeing her husband with another female troodon, flirting with and kissing her, was still there. When she had seen her husband's lips locked with the other female troodon's, the words he had once said to her played themselves in her mind: You're the only woman for me.

Tears in her eyes and a heart that was broken, Tiffany snuck away undetected back to her nest where her sister and egg was. There she told her sister what she saw and the next thing she knew Beth was hugging her and saying how sorry she was to hear that. Tiffany held onto her sister and cried for a bit. Afterwards, she calmed down and knew what she had to do. After Beth made sure that her sister was okay and went home, Tiffany found all her husband's things and gathered them up in a suitcase. When he came home, she told him that she had seen what he had done and with who he was with and that she wanted him out of her nest and to never come back. They were through. There was some arguing, but in the end her husband took his things and left, no doubt for the home of that other female troodon. They would later get divorced. Tiffany watched him go and looked back at her egg. She walked over to it and kneeled before it, stroking the surface. "Don't worry, I won't leave you or take you for granted. I'm sticking through with you to the end."

"Mommy…?"

The sound of Brent's voice brought Tiffany back to the present and she looked down at him. "Yes sweetie?" She asked.

Brent looked up at her. "I'm sorry Daddy left."

Tiffany looked away and sighed. "I loved him, Brent. He was so nice when I first met him, when we were dating, when we got married. But I guess he changed over time, at some point."

"Did he make you feel sad?"

"Yes, yes he did."

Brent looked down at the ground. When he spoke up again, his voice sounded low. "Do you wish that it had never happened? That you…never met him?"

Tiffany looked down at her son. She could feel the look on his face as he was staring down at the ground. Looking a little concerned, Tiffany got in front of him. She crouched down and placed her hands on her son's shoulders. "Brent…"

Brent looked up and his eyes were almost level with his mother's. "Brent, I was hurt about your father leaving, but that doesn't mean that I wish that I had never had you as well." Tiffany smiled. "You're one of the best parts of my life. You're sweet, kind, thoughtful, and just as determined to do your best as I am. I feel so lucky to have such a great son like you, I would never trade you for the world. I love you, Brent."

Brent slowly smiled. "Thanks. I love you too, Mommy. I feel pretty lucky to have you as well. You're the best mommy and one of the best fish catchers around these parts. Maybe even in the entire Mesozoic!"

Tiffany's smile got bigger. "Thanks, Brent. You know what? I bet when you're older and meet some special girl, you're going to make her very happy."

"You think so?"

Tiffany placed both hands on the sides of Brent's face. She leaned forward and kissed Brent on the forehead. "I know so." Brent giggled and so did his mother. "Say, would you mind if I carried you home?"

"But I can walk fine on my own."

Tiffany pretended to sound a little sad, even though the expression on her face said otherwise. "I know, but someday you'll be too big for me to carry. I want to enjoy that for as long as I can before that happens. Please?"

Brent giggled and rolled his eyes. "Oh okay, Mommy."

"Thanks, Brent." She scooped him up and held him in her arms. He wrapped his arms around her and she held him a little tighter before walking back home.

Brent was the first to wake up from his nap. He looked over at his mother lying on her right side, still asleep. He smiled and decided that he would do an activity on his own, but quietly while letting his mother rest some more. He got out of the nest and over to where the art supplies were kept in a plastic box hidden in the bushes. He started drawing some trees and rocks and a river flowing in the background. He made a few more drawings about nature before he decided to do something else. He put the drawings and art supplies away and rummaged around a few other boxes in the bushes. He saw the sports box and his eyes widened. He pulled an object out of the box and went over to the nest.

His mother was lying on her back with the right side of her body lying against one side of the nest. Brent gently shook her shoulder. "Mommy, hey Mommy." She opened her eyes and turned her head a little to her right and saw Brent. "Oh hey, buddy. What is it?"

"I'm sorry to wake you, but I was wondering, would you like to play some Dinoball?" He asked holding up the object he had taken from the sports box, which was a gourd. Tiffany saw the gourd and her eyes lit up. "Why I would love to play Dinoball with you, Brent. I've loved this game ever since I was your age."

"I love to play to too, especially with you." Brent said. Tiffany got up, set up the two goals at opposite ends of the clearing, and stood a bit away from him. "Let's go."

Brent threw the gourd to her and Tiffany ran around the clearing towards the goal while Brent was pursuing her. She managed to throw the gourd through the goal and Brent picked it up. He ran for the other side while Tiffany chased after him. "I'm gonna get that gourd from you, Brent!"

"Oh no you won't , Mommy!" Brent threw the gourd through the goal and cheered for himself. Then Tiffany picked it up and smiled slyly at him. "It's mine now." She laughed while she ran away with Brent chasing after her. The game between them lasted over an hour and during it they were having so much fun. One would score while the other got hold of the gourd and ran towards their goal. The game went like this back and forth until Tiffany and Brent were tied at twenty points each.

"Looks I'm going to win just like last time, Brent." Tiffany said, pretending to be so sure of it. "We'll just see." Brent scooped up the gourd and ran towards his goal, but Tiffany got in front of him and was blocking his way each time he tried to pass her. "Give it up, Brent! There's no way you can get past me!"

To Brent, it seemed like he didn't have a chance, But he looked down and he smiled. He ran towards his mother and then underneath her legs. Tiffany was surprised by this move and chased after her son, but he had thrown the gourd through the goal and scored the last point of the game.

"And the winner is…Brent Troodon! And the crowd goes wild!" Tiffany announced. She started making the sounds of a crowd cheering while Brent ran over to his mother. "Thanks, Mom. You played a great game."

"So did you, sweetie." She scooped him up and held him in her arms. Then Brent did something else unexpected, he closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around his mother in an affectionate hug. "I love you, Mommy."

Tiffany closed her eyes and smiled before hugging him back. "I love you too, Brent. Don't you ever forget that."

"I won't." Tiffany's smile widened and she hugged her son a little tighter.

THE END