Author's Note: Hello again! I'd like to thank all those wonderful people who drop reviews. Sometimes the reviews are so funny I just have to respond to them. =) Thanks, mwang for some outrageously hilarious messages. ;)
So, new dinosaur in this chapter. As always, I took some creative license with them. =) So, keep an eye out fo the rhamphorhynchus (ram-fo-RINK-us).
Disclaimer. I own Maggie and Nick. Nobody else. =( Although I really wish Buck belonged to me. =D
Chapter 7
I apologized to Buck, and he was very gracious to accept my apology and he apologized as well. He obviously wanted to talk to me about something else, but refrained from doing so because of Nick and the others.
We let everyone eat the fruit Ellie and I had gathered then quickly moved on. I still didn't agree with the idea of going over Razor Mountain. The plan seemed too dangerous. With every step we took toward the Chasm of Death and Razor Mountain, the surer I became that Peaches had not gone this way.
Maggie looked at the foliage they were passing with a look of concern. The herd was getting closer to the Chasm of Death and as far as Maggie could tell, there was no indication that Peaches had gone this way. She glanced at the back of Buck's head and wondered if she should bring the lack of tracks or tufts of fur that they should have seen by now.
Buck stopped abruptly and began sniffing the air. Turning back to Maggie he shrugged. "I'm beginning to think you're right, Mags."
She smirked. "Well, I will refrain from any sentences that start with 'I' and end with 'told you so'."
Sid snickered from somewhere in the line but Diego hit the sloth in the back of the head with a paw. "Ow!" Sid rubbed his head and returned the saber's glare.
"Well if she didn't come this way, then where did she go?" Manny demanded in an even tone.
"Diego. Nick. You two go right while Maggie and I go left." Buck pointed out two trails hidden in the heavy foliage. "If either of you find something come back the way you came. Don't touch anything." Buck looked back at the mammoths. "Make sure the rest of you stay right heah. No wanderin' off."
"You can count on us, sir!" Eddie declared as he and his brother saluted simultaneously.
With a nod, Buck led Maggie down the trail. She glanced nervously back at the other scouting pair before returning her focus to the task at hand. They kept their eyes trained on the ground or on the leaves hanging in their way. The silence mounted between them.
After what seemed like a long while, Buck sighed and shook his head. Maggie stopped and looked up at him with worry etched on her face. Her mate turned to her, his ears drooping. "Well, the little mammoth didn't come this way. If she had we would 'ave found somethin' by now."
"I hope the others were more successful." Maggie hugged herself. "I feel so sorry for Manny and Ellie."
"Maggie, I have a question for ya." Buck fell into step beside her as they doubled back. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the she-weasel and asked, "Why haven't ya told the others about Nick?"
She began biting her lip as she thought of how to answer. "I - I'm worried." Maggie looked up at Buck's skeptical expression. "Okay, I'm more than worried. I'm scared! I don't know what he'll do if I tell. Or what the herd will do. It happened so long ago Buck - what could they do about it now?"
"Get rid of 'im." Buck mumbled angrily.
"And where would he go, Buck?" she challenged. "If they run him off now, he'll just get stuck down here with us. And I don't want him here! This is our Paradise. Not his. I don't want to live constantly wondering if he'll pop up to hurt you."
"Hurt me? I'd be more concerned about you." Buck threw an arm around her shoulder and stabbed his knife into the dirt before pulling her into a hug. "I can take care of myself. But I see your point. I'd be worried outta my mind if he were down here." He smirked. "If he could survive more than a day down here."
Maggie clung to Buck, thankful for his safe and comforting embrace. "If I could survive five days down here without you, I'm pretty sure Nick could too." She felt tears sting her eyes. "But - it has been so long. Maybe he regrets what he's done? What if he's changed and doesn't go berserk now. He was young and reckless."
Buck pulled back and frowned down at her. "Maggie, you've seen 'ow he looks at you and me."
She shook her head. "He might be feeling over protective of me. I disappeared and then he finds me again but now I'm mated. We were so close. How do you think he'd feel after all these years?"
Buck's frown turned into a scowl. "Don't be delusional, Maggie. You want him to be the friend you remembah. Even if he ain't."
"Isn't it better to give him the benefit of the doubt?" she whispered. "Instead of living in constant fear?"
Buck sighed and released her so he could scratch the back of his head. "I dunno, Mags. We'll be cautious. Like we 'ave been." Jerking his knife out of the dirt, he leveled her with a determined eye. "But mark my words, if he does anything I am goin' to tell the others and he is leaving. Even if that means we have ta send him back with Diego."
Maggie hurried to catch up with Buck and caught his paw. "If you send Diego back, then we could have a hard time protecting the entire herd."
"I'm not sayin' I'm going to do it today, Mags. Just if something happens." Buck assured squeezing her paw in his to give her some reassurance.
The pair returned to where the other mammals were waiting. Diego was talking adamantly and Nick had a very smug look on his face. "I'm telling you, we've found out where she went!" Diego insisted.
"We wait until Buck gets back." Manny replied with a frown.
"What did ya find, tiger?" Buck asked.
Diego turned to grin at Buck. "It's not what I found, but what Nick found."
Buck looked surprised before frowning at the darker weasel. "What did ya find?"
Nick held up a tuft of light brown fur. "Smells like Peaches. It was over on our trail." He smiled. "I'm a pretty good tracker, don't ya think?"
Buck didn't answer but snatched the fur from Nick. Eye narrowed, the weasel examined the fur before sniffing at it. Handing to Maggie, Buck turned to Diego. "Show us where ya found it."
Diego glanced at Nick then back at Buck. "Um, this way." The herd fell in behind Diego but as the group moved, Maggie found herself behind Nick. He glanced over his shoulder at her and the look in his eyes made her shiver.
"Over here, right Nick?" Nick turned his head toward Diego and Maggie released the breath she didn't realized she had been holding.
Ellie, who was right behind Maggie, bent down so she was closer to Maggie's head. "Mags, are you okay?"
"F-fine." Maggie mumbled as she stepped back toward Ellie in an attempt to distance herself from Nick.
She needn't have worried. Nick stepped forward to where Buck and Diego stood. He looked around for a minute to get his bearings before walking slightly to the right of the path. "Here." He announced. "There may be some tracks too. But I believe she slept here last night."
"We're making progress then!" Sid exclaimed. "We could catch up with her!"
"Certainly hope so." Buck mumbled as he pushed Nick out of the way. The darker weasel stepped back with a scowl which he then focused on Maggie. Buck lowered to all fours and sniffed the ground. Closing his eye, he concentrated on the scent before letting his tongue scrape against the ground. Nick's muzzle wrinkled in disgust.
Buck spat whatever he tasted out of his mouth. The spit landed on Nick's foot. Nick jumped back and lifted his foot. "Gross!" He clenched his fists and took a step toward Buck but then he saw the warning and questioning look on Buck's face. Grumbling, Nick backed off and plucked a leaf from a bush to wipe his foot off.
Buck shrugged and turned his back on Nick and faced the other mammals. "She definitely came this way."
"Do you know which way she's heading?" Ellie questioned.
Buck shook his head. "Not exactly."
"What do you mean, 'not exactly'?" Manny demanded.
"Well the theory still stands that she is relivin' the adventure, but since she has just bi-passed the Chasm of Death, then I'm at a loss." Buck shrugged his shoulders.
Maggie looked up at Ellie and patted the distraught mother's trunk. "Don't worry. We're not giving up."
"What do you suggest we do, Mags?" Buck sighed. "We don't know this part of the jungle. No idea where she's goin'."
She glanced back at Buck. "We still have the dactyls. Maybe they've found something."
Diego looked at the ground as if it held the answers to their dilemma. "Maybe we can pick up her tracks. If she found this trail, maybe she's following it."
Buck scratched his chin. "And if this is the way the dinos take to get around the Chasm of Death, then it'll take us to a much biggah path." The group waited in silence as their guide debated with himself the pros and cons of taking this route.
Finally, the weasel grinned and looked up at the others. "We're goin' this way! But if we are, then we'll need to redo the line." He looked over at the saber and nodded. "Diego, you take up the lead and keep yer eyes on the lookout for mammoth foot prints."
"Got it." Diego confirmed.
"Mags and I will be walkin' right behind Diego." Buck declared before pointing at the mammoths. "Then it'll be Mr. and Mrs. Mammoth followed by Sid, possums, and the gloomy fella."
Nick lifted an eyebrow at this. "Gloomy fella? And what happened to rule number ten?"
Buck's grin fell and he glanced around at the others. "Hadn't thought o' that."
"Playing favorites are we?" Nick questioned all too sweetly.
Maggie glanced from one male weasel to the other, seeing tension build between them. "It's okay, Buck. If Manny comes before Ellie, and if I walk beside Ellie, I'll be in the middle of the herd." She smiled at his concerned expression. "I'll be fine, Buck."
Letting out a sigh, Buck shrugged. Straightening to his full height he shouted - practically in Nick's ear, "Move out!"
Nick grumbled as he moved to the back of the line, but shot Maggie a smirk that gave her another involuntary shiver. As they walked, Maggie felt Ellie's trunk on her shoulder. "Maggie, what was that all about?"
"I don't have a clue. Jealous males?" Maggie smiled up at the female mammoth.
"You still haven't told him?" Ellie whispered.
"Told who what?" Sid asked as he loped along behind the pair.
Maggie glanced up at Ellie with a pleading expression before answering the sloth with a quick, "Nothing!"
Buck noticed the change in terrain before Diego stopped to tell the weasel that the dirt was thinning out and Peaches' tracks were disappearing. Staring ahead, Buck pursed his lips into a thin line. Diego's attention followed Buck's gaze at the pass the herd was approaching.
"Any idea what could be in there?" Diego asked.
"As I've said, mate. Maggie and I 'ave never been this way before." Buck flipped his knife nervously in his paws as he contemplated the possibilities of entering the pass. He looked up at the sky as wind whipped through the canyon and ruffled the weasel's fur. "On one side of this pass is the wall to the cave that holds the Chasm of Death." Pointing up at fog that was rolling on the cliff face, Buck said, "And at the very top is Razor Mountain where some nasties live." He mumbled, "I just hope they can't climb down he'ah."
Diego eyed the other canyon wall. "What about that side?"
Buck shrugged. "Not a clue. I'm worried that there may be cracks in the canyon wall that let out fumes from the Chasm of Death. We could be wandering blind he'ah." The wind whipped through the pass again. Buck scowled. "I need ta talk to Maggie."
The saber tooth tiger turned to leave. "I'll go get her." Buck glanced over his shoulder to see the other mammals huddling as far away from the pass opening as possible. He was relieved that Maggie had thought to warn them to stay back until a decision was made.
Diego stayed back with the others as Maggie hurried toward her mate. She slowed to a walk as she approached him, her hazel eyes observing the pass. "Why didn't we ever see this?"
Buck looked back up at the fog rolling over the canyon's top. "Prolly cause we couldn't see it. And we nevah had reason to come this way when flying."
"What are you thinking, Buck? Did Peaches come this way?" Maggie turned to face him, worry on her face.
"The stones here hold her scent." Buck stared forward, challengingly at the pass. "I need ya to listen to the wind, Mags. Tell me what it's sayin'."
Maggie nodded and faced the pass. The wind raced through the pass. Tilting her head and letting her ears twitch, Maggie concentrated on the wind. "Whispering Pass."
"What?" Buck asks.
"Whispering Pass. That's what this place is called." Maggie answered. "Dinosaurs come through here during a certain season. But we need to look out for the - the flying teeth?"
Buck blinked in confusion. "Flying teeth?"
She shrugged. "That's what the wind said. And something about fish and just being a bother. But nothing really specific."
"Couldn't be talkin' about dactyls 'cause they don't have teeth." Buck mused aloud.
"It didn't warn me about anything else." Maggie supplied. "So maybe it'll be all right to go through here?"
Buck nodded. "I guess so." Turning round to face the herd, he waved to them. "Oiy! It's safe!"
When the herd was close enough, Nick asked, "What do you mean it's safe? You said you've never been this way. How do you know?"
Buck shrugged. "Maggie listens to the wind. The wind says it's safe. So it's safe."
All eyes fastened on Maggie. She felt the heat of a blush rush to her face. Shrugging she said, "He talks to rocks. I talk to the wind. You're surprised by this?"
"Um - probably shouldn't be." Manny admitted. "But I am." Ellie punched him in the shoulder with her trunk. "What?"
"Return to the original formation." Buck declared as he pulled Maggie along by the paw.
Maggie glanced over her shoulder before saying to Buck, "Shouldn't we warn them about the flying teeth?"
"I don't think we're going to run into anything." Buck answered.
"I hope you're right." Maggie grumbled as she stumbled over a rock.
Everyone travelled silently through the pass. Crash and Eddie whispered to each other about avalanches of rock while Ellie clutched nervously onto Manny's trunk with her own. Diego watched the canyon walls warily, not trusting the holes in the rock face. Sid walked nonchalantly along, kicking a rock every so often for his own amusement.
Buck looked up at the ice-cap that served as the roof to the Dino World and frowned. "I think the sun is beginning to set."
"Please tell me we'll be out of here before then." Maggie looked up as well
"I wish I knew." Buck said.
Darkness seemed to fall faster and faster as they moved. Maggie's ears twitched and strained to catch any sounds just as Buck's ears did. She clung to his paw and willed their trip through the pass to be over. "Buck, if we were just bi-passing the Chasm it wouldn't be taking this long."
Buck nodded. "I have a feeling we're also going around the Plates of Woe. We may even be in the canyon that has the Cave of Fear."
"If we run into those creatures again, I'm going to kill you." Maggie threatened weakly. Buck chuckled then fell silent.
Suddenly, he stopped. "Did you hear that?"
Everyone stopped as well and all talking stopped. Sid looked around curiously before asking loudly, "Hear what?"
"SHHH!" Everyone hushed the sloth angrily.
Silence once again descended upon the herd. From somewhere high above them the mammals herd a high pitched chattering that echoed off the canyon walls. Everyone strained to see what was hiding in the gloom above them. As suddenly as the noise had started, it stopped.
Crash and Eddie huddled together. Eddie broke the silence with a question. "Is it gone?"
With a high pitched shriek, a dark thing swooped down through the herd. Buck grabbed onto Maggie and shouted, "Duck!" The herd tried flattening themselves to the ground as best they could as more flying creatures dive-bombed them. Ellie was panicking and Manny was trying to swat the creatures away from his mate.
"Buck! What are they?" Maggie shouted over the keening noises the flying assailants were making.
"I dunno!" The blue-eyed weasel answered. "We need to keep moving!"
"How?" Nick shouted from the rear. "We can hardly see them and if we run, we could fall! Or whatever these creatures are could eat someone!"
Ellie looked around frantically. "Please. Please tell me Peaches did not come through here!"
Buck didn't answer her but the grip on his knife tightened as he thought. "We need light!"
"Even if you were able to rub some rocks together we don't have a stick to make into a torch!" Maggie reasoned as she cringed. Something had tried to snatch at her back.
Buck felt his paw tighten around the wooden hilt of his knife. With a determined scowl he said, "Yes we do."
Maggie shook her head. "No, Buck. You can't -"
"I can make a new handle later, Mags! We need to get these mammals out of here. To do that, we need light and we need it now!" Buck countered as he released his protective hold on her. He began crawling around on his stomach in search of the right kind of rocks. "Come on, I know I saw some around he'ah!"
"Aha!" Buck shouted in triumph. With his teeth he chewed the grass off of the bone knife and wooden handle. Once the stick was loose he tied whatever loose ends of grass were still on the stick together. Buck quickly but calmly began rubbing the two stones he had found together and cursed the sparks that flew but did not catch.
Maggie lay on the ground listening to the screeching things flying above her, to the still panicking cries of Ellie, and to Buck's attempts at making a fire. The darkness and the unexpected tugs on her back were making Maggie recall things she didn't want to remember. She desperately hoped Nick was pinned down at the rear and would not come near her.
Ears flat against her skull, Maggie let them flick up only a little when Buck exclaimed in triumph, "Fire!" He stood up brandishing his make-shift torch and had Rudy's tooth clamped between his own mouth so as not to lose it.
The light bounced off the walls and pushed the darkness back. Everyone looked up at the pained cries of their attackers. Maggie gaped at the thin flying reptiles. Diego asked, "What are those things?"
"Rhamphorhynchuses." Buck said after spitting his knife into one paw. "Now enough gawking and more walking." He bit back down on the knife before scrambling on top of Manny. Talking around the knife he said, "Go! Go, mow!"
Ellie scooped up Maggie while Crash and Eddie scrambled up onto their adoptive sister's back. Diego ran beside the two mammoths with Nick clinging to the tiger's back. Manny gripped Sid around the middle and ran as fast as he could while Buck fended off the flying menaces with his torch.
"Trees! I see trees up ahead!" Manny shouted in relief."
Buck's muffled voice said, "Mon't shop pil mey mo!"
"What?"
"He said, 'Don't stop 'til they do'!" Maggie translated. She craned her neck to look back. She wanted to see when they stopped. Wanted to know when the danger was over.
Sid screamed as Manny stumbled. "Why don't they stop?"
Buck looked around frantically. A plan. He needed a plan. His eye latched on vines hanging from tree branches then smiled in anticipation. "Poss Shid u' eah!"
Manny cast a look over his shoulder imploring that Maggie translate the garbled message. She frowned in confusion as she said, "Toss Sid up here. Or there. Whatever! Just do it!"
"Gladly." Manny dumped Sid on his back, still running onwards. Buck thrust the torch into the sloth's paws then made a running leap off of Manny's back.
"BUCK!" Maggie shouted in alarm. She strained to watch Buck grab a hold of a vine and swing. "Diego! Don't leave him behind!"
"Right!" The saber nodded as he skidded to a stop and ran after Buck, who was swinging off toward the pursuing rhamphorhynchuses.
Nick looked from the herd still running away then back at Buck. "Diego, what are you doing?"
"Not leaving my friend behind." Diego grunted as he followed below Buck.
Above them, the one-eyed weasel hoped he was building up enough momentum. He saw the first rhamphorhynchus that was leading the flock and a growl rumbled from Buck's throat. Buck clumsily grasped the sharp edges of his knife in his paw and swiped at the flying lizard before his vine swung away from the dinos. He pushed off a tree and swung toward the attackers again, cutting more out of the sky.
The victims screamed in pain and plummeted to the ground. The remainder of the flock shied away in fear at the loss of their comrades. Instead of going after Buck, the flock wheeled away and made a hasty retreat. Seeing his counter-attack was a success, Buck slid down the vine and landed on Diego.
"Catch up with the others." Buck ordered as he turned to glance over his shoulder - just to make sure that they weren't being followed. Buck's gaze met with Nick's eyes. The male weasels stared each other down. Buck, unfazed by the staring contest, clamped his knife between his teeth. Nick broke eye contact and stared down at Diego's fur that he was clutching to stay stable. Buck smirked at the snarl that marred the darker weasel's feature before fisting his own paws in Diego's fur and facing forward.
Diego sped up and managed to catch up with the mammoths in no time. "Hey! You can stop now! Buck took care of them." the tiger gasped.
Manny and Ellie slowed and deposited their passengers before collapsing to their stomachs. Buck slid off of Diego and turned in time to brace himself for Maggie's collision. "Buck! That was the single - most stupid - thing you've ever done!" She hugged him so tight that he was sure she would never let go. Buck wanted to calm her down, but he wasn't ready to let go of her first. And he still had his knife in his mouth.
Nick jumped off of Diego and glared at the embracing weasels. Diego turned to look at Nick. "Think you could have torn any more of my fur out there, Nick?"
"Sorry." The black weasel ground out between his teeth.
"Buck! What happened to your paw?" Maggie backed away suddenly and brought Buck's paw away from her back. She frowned at the cut that was bleeding.
Finding his other paw free, he spit the knife into it - careful this time of the sharp edges. "Well, I 'ad to get those nasties to leave us alone somehow, Mags."
"We should wash the cut and wrap it up." Maggie mumbled to herself.
Crash and Eddie looked around at the dark jungle. "Where are you going to get water?" Crash asked.
"And what about a new handle for Buck's knife?" Eddie voiced.
Buck shook his head. "It's too dark to look for a water source. I'll just bandage it. As for my knife, I'll make a temporary fix." Maggie looked up at him worriedly but nodded. Taking a deep breath, he exhaled. "Right. Just in case those featherless vultures come back, let's build a fire. They're nocturnal so that's why they backed off when I threw that torch togethah."
"I'll keep first watch." Diego stated. "You need to get some sleep, Buck."
"I'm all right, Diego." Buck shot the saber a warning glare before moving towards Sid. "Hand over the torch, sloth."
Maggie moved to intercept him and shook her head. "Let Crash and Eddie make the fire. I'm going to bandage that paw."
"Mags -"
"No, Buck." She leveled a glare at him and crossed her paws over her chest.
Buck shrugged his shoulders and rolled his eye. "It's just a scratch!" Maggie quirked an eyebrow but remained in the way. He sighed in aggravation before lifting his paws in the air. "Fine! Boys, I trust you know what you're doing."
"I'll watch them." Nick volunteered as he brushed past the pair and snatched the torch from Sid. "Take care of your - scratch." He tossed a smirk over his shoulder at Maggie and Buck before following the possums.
Maggie gathered some leaves before sitting down next to Buck. She made a quick bandage and pressed a quick kiss against his cheek. "I'm going to go check on Ellie real quick. Do as Diego says and get some rest."
Buck frowned at her. "I'm not a baby, Mags."
She froze in standing up before slowly continuing the action. Clearing her throat, she flashed an uneasy smile at him. "I know, but you're the best guide we have. You won't be much help if you start falling asleep on your feet." Maggie hurried over to the female mammoth and away from her mate.
Ellie watched the she-weasel with concern. "Everything okay, Maggie?"
"Yeah." Maggie lied. "I just came over to check on you."
Ellie sighed and turned to stare at the flames of the fire. "I'm worried about Peaches."
Maggie sat down and patted Ellie's trunk. "I know. But I'm pretty sure she made it out of the pass long before we did. Buck said those creatures were nocturnal, so Peaches probably didn't even see them."
"I wish I could hug her right now." Ellie whispered. Maggie's ears twitched, catching the words.
"I wish I could tell Buck." Maggie whispered back, feeling the urge to voice her desire.
Ellie looked down at Maggie sympathetically. "Just tell him."
Maggie shook her head. "I won't leave you guys. If Peaches is at the Nesting Grounds, you'll need me. I know that area better than Buck. And the dinos there trust me."
Seeing that she wouldn't get anywhere with this subject, Ellie asked, "How are you feeling?"
"I was starting to feel a little nauseous when we were running. But I think that was just related to running for our lives." Maggie joked.
Ellie chuckled. "Actually, you'll feel like that a lot at the beginning of the pregnancy."
"Oh, joy." Maggie mumbled.
Glancing over at Buck, who was still awake, Ellie said, "Take Diego's and your own advice and go get some rest. Those little ones are going to need it. You'll need it too."
"Yeah, okay." Maggie stood and made her way back to where her mate was sitting.
Her back turned to the rest of the herd, Maggie missed Nick stepping out from behind a tree and glaring at her. He took one determined step after her, then stopped when he felt Buck's gaze on him. Nick let his eyes flicker over in the other weasel's direction before stepping back and turning to walk over to the glow of the fire. Nick settled down against a rock and stared into the flames.
Author's Note: I wonder what Nick is plotting! D= Well I really don't cause I know. ;) What's in store for the group?
Well, review please! =D
