Chapter 10: Meeting Unusual Friends

As the two walked through the forests that covered the Great Valley so, Cera said to Ramirez "Okay Ramirez, my friends are a little… different..."

"Really? How so?" asked the younger Ramirez

Cera hesitated for a moment before saying "Uh, well, Littlefoot's a Longneck, Ducky's a Swimmer, Petrie's a Flyer, and Spike's a Spiketail, and Ruby's a Fast Runner. We were friends with a Sharptooth named Chomper, but he left a couple years ago, and we haven't seen him or heard from him since." Sighing, remembering the memory of the young Sharptooth leaving the Great Valley to "Find more food, and the fact that all the Leaf Eaters here are those I know, thus, it would be painful for me to hunt them".

"I'm sorry to hear your friend left the Valley" replied Ramirez, a concerned look on his face

The older Female nodded before continuing "Anyway, Littlefoot, Ducky, Petrie, and Spike have been searching for mates recently, same with me."

Ramirez looked at her and replied in a sad tone "Oh…"

Cera smiled at the Male's response and told him "Oh, I haven't found a perfect Mate for me yet. There just aren't any Males that are perfect for me here…"

Ramirez said sympathetically "That's too bad; you would make a great partner. Any Male would be lucky to have you as their mate."

The older Female blushed then smiled and said in a quiet voice "You like me!"

Taken by surprise by what Cera stated, Ramirez replied "No, I don't!"

"Yes, you do!" giggled Cera in a playful tone "You like me! You really do!"

"NO, I DON'T, DAMMIT!" screamed Ramirez in an angry tone

"Oh come on, you deny it, but in your heart, you liiiiiiiiike me!" giggling louder and louder

"Cera, STOP IT!"

"Or what?"

"Or… um…"

Laughing, Cera neared Ramirez's face and whispered "I figured you were gonna say that." And then she pushed him against a nearby tree with her forehead, and she began holding the smaller Male tighter and tighter until he confessed out loud "Alright, alright, I admit it, I admit! I do like you, I do like you!"

Giggling, she let go, and she said "Ha ha, I knew it!"

"Jeez, Cera" grumbled Ramirez "you can be a real bitch!"

"I know" Cera replied, and she smiled back at him, a big toothy grin, and she giggled a little bit. Ramirez couldn't help but smile, there was something about this Triceratops that made his spirit feel uplifted whenever she smiled a big toothy grin or giggled, that was one of the reasons he was beginning to like her.

As the two Triceratopses reached a clearing in the forest, they could see several large Dinosaurs a little ways away on the other side of the clearing. Ramirez easily identified the incredibly massive one with the terrifically long neck as an Apatosaurus, and one rather large Dino with giant plates on its back as a Stegosaurus, although he couldn't identify the tall and lanky one very clearly, though he figured it was some kind of Hadrosaur.

He asked "Who are they?"

Cera excitedly said "Oh, those are my friends, I'll be back, I've just gotta tell them about you!" and she bolted out into the clearing and ran towards the group.

Littlefoot, Ducky, Spike, Petrie, and Ruby had gathered in a large clearing, their usual meeting spot nowadays, waiting for Cera to show up. Their Threehorned friend had told them about the argument with her father, and they were greatly concerned about how her mood would be. They feared she would be sad, distraught, depressed, suicidal even.

Thus, they were surprised to see her run out of the trees, she was excited about something, but what they did not know what it was about.

"Guys! Guys! I have something to tell you!"

"First explain why you're all cheery now." Replied Ruby in a concerned tone

"Oh yes, you were sad and gloomy yesterday, yes you were, yup, yup!" commented Ducky

Littlefoot said "Cera, please explain, you were so depressed yesterday, I want to know why you're so happy now."

Cera looked directly at her friend's eyes and said "I- I met someone."

"Really?" asked the Swimmer

"What his name?" queried Petrie

"Uh, James Ramirez, he prefers it if you call him James or just Jim, no Ramirez."

"James Ramirez?" asked Littlefoot

"That's an odd name, it is, it is!" commented Ducky

"Well, I'm not sure where he's from, but he doesn't seem to be from around here."

Ruby asks "What makes you say that?"

"Uh, he seems to not have heard of the Great Valley before."

"Oh my! He isn't from around here!" commented Littlefoot "By the way, what is he, a Spiketail, Swimmer, Flyer, Longneck like me?"

"Er, he's a- Threehorn."

"Oh, I get it, hee hee!" giggled Ducky

"What?"

"Oh, we're wondering if…" Littlefoot started before he was interrupted by the Threehon "I may have found a potential mate?"

"Um, yeah, I guess."

"Well, he's not! He's just a Male Threehorn I know, alright?"

"Yeah whatever…"

"Anyway, how's it goin' with you guys? You ever… find a mate yet?"

"No" replied Littlefoot

"Nope, nope!" commented Ducky

"Me no find one" stated Petrie

"I gave up my search a long time ago" replied Ruby "simply because there aren't any other Fast Runners in the Valley."

Cera looked at the Swimmer and asked "Let me guess, Spike—"

Nodding, she replied "Yup, he's more interested in eating, yup, yup, yup!"

Ducky then noticed her adopted brother eating from some nearby bushes; he was definitely more interested in eating than mating. She then turned back towards the Threehorn, and asked her "Any luck?"

She glared and snapped "What's it look?"

Ducky nodded, she understood what she meant.

Cera then asked her old friend "By the way, Littlefoot, have you met anyone now?"

Shaking his head sadly, he told her "I never found a mate yesterday, nor have I found one today."

Then, he asked "By the way…Cera, why don't you introduce us to your new friend Ramirez, if he managed to cheer you up after what happened yesterday?"

Nodding, Cera turned around and headed towards the other side of the clearing.

Ramirez stood there amidst the trees, listening to the distant calls of the Great Valley Dinosaurs, he personally wondered… was this the Valley from his strange dream, and if so, was Cera and her friends the young Dinosaurs at play he saw? He pondered this, until the Crème Triceratops that was his new friend Cera ran back towards him, causing quite a stir in the ground.

When she was close enough to him, she cried out "Come on, Ramirez, my friends are waiting!"

Smiling, the Triceratops Male replied "Coming!" and he ran right towards her. Nodding, Cera began walking out into the clearing, with Ramirez following close behind. He was so close to the older Threehorn, he could easily her muscles very clearly as her tail swayed from side to side. His eyes were drawn to her muscles and tail, for he was becoming deeply attracted to the young Female.

For a long time, James had been attracted to women with tomboyish attitudes, problem was, there weren't a whole lot of them he knew with that kind of personality. Now that he was a Triceratops, he got extremely lucky by befriending Cera, after all, she had a tough tomboyish personality and best of all, she was single. Of course, there was still the problem of trying to getting her attracted to him, so he figured they'll just stay friends for now.

The two Triceratopses walked toward the group of Dinosaurs eagerly waiting for them. Ramirez could more easily see the group; he now noticed a large brown Pteranodon with large wings and a pinkish-tinted Oviraptor. He also took a closer look at the Duckbill, he could tell by the crest it wasn't a Parasaurolophus, instead, it looked like a Saurolophus, a much less well-known relative of the famous crested Hadrosaur. He could now see that the Stegosaurus was of a dark Green color, had Purple colored eyes, and, judging by it eating some nearby plants, had an enormous appetite. The Hadrosaur was tall, lanky, had a bit of a mixture of dark Green and light Green, and had shiny sky Blue eyes. The Apatosaurus was of a Tannish color with a dark Purple stripe on his back, a Crème tinted belly, and his eyes were a distinctive reddish color, putting chills down the former Ranger's spine as he had never encountered anyone with eyes that color before.

The Sauropod spoke up "You must be James Ramirez, the Threehorn Cera told us about."

Nodding, Ramirez told the Apatosaurus "Yes, yes, I am, and you are--?"

Smiling, the Apatosaurus replied "My name is Littlefoot"

Ramirez gave the Sauroped a weird look and then asked "Little—foot?"

"Yes, I know it sounds silly considering my size and strength that may seem a little strange, but my mother gave me this name when I had just hatched from my egg."

Ramirez looked straight into the Apatosaurus's eye and said to him "Y'know, your mother has very strange taste."

Littlefoot glared at the former Ranger, and the others gave him scorning looks. Looking around, Ramirez asked in an annoyed tone "What?"

Cera looked at the Male and told him "Eh, I'll explain later…"

The Hadrosaur turned to Ramirez and explained "My name's Ducky, yup, that's what it is, yup, yup, yup!"

Ramirez turned to Ducky and said "Ducky, eh? That's an interesting name for—er, whatever you are."

Duck laughs and says "Oh, I'm a Swimmer, yes, yes, yes!"

Ramirez speaks up again "Hmm, you know, you're awfully pretty for a Swimmer; I hope you find a perfect mate for you, someone as pretty as you deserves it."

Ducky blushed more than she than she ever did, and giggled more than she ever did at the Threehorn's compliment. She smiled a big toothy grin and said in a shy tone "Gosh, you really think I'm pretty? Hee, hee, you're pretty attractive for a Threehorn yourself, you are, you are!"

Cera glares at the Male and growls in a low tone "Ramirez…" annoyed that he had just hit on her best friend.

"What?" Ramirez asks in an innocent tone "All I did was compliment her, it's not like I want her to be my mate!"

Growling, Cera began to huff and puff before Littlefoot stopped her "Cera, leave him alone, how attractive he thinks Ducky is, is his business. Now, come to think of it, Ducky is…"

"Littlefoot!" the Threehorn snapped

"What? What's the matter if I think how pretty Ducky is? It doesn't concern you, besides; you know we broke up our relationship, so it wouldn't affect YOU."

Ramirez turned his head towards his Female counterpart and asked her "Relationship… with Littlefoot? Okay, what the hell's going on?"

Cera grins toward the annoyed Male, his attractive bright Green eyes glowing with anger, and told him "I'll tell you later, James."

The Pterodactyl spoke up "Mine name Petrie!"

Followed by the Oviraptor "I'm Ruby!"

And then finally, Ducky pointed towards the overeating Stegosaurus and commented "And that's Spike, yep, yep!"

Ramirez stared at the giant herbivore and commented "Wow, he sure is hungry; I ain't never seen someone with an appetite like that before."

Giggling, the Swimmer replied "Now you have"

After looking around, Ramirez asked "Now, what?"

"Well, we talk" replied Littlefoot

"Uh, that's it?"

"Yeah, now that we're Grown-Ups, we can't play the games we used to…"

"Oh"

Ruby walked up to the Triceratops and asked "So, Ramirez, do you have anything to talk about?"

After thinking to himself for a few moments before saying "Yeah, I have something."

Cera asked in an excited tone "Really? Let's hear it!"

"Oh yes, yes, yes!" elated Ducky

"Well, Ramirez, let's hear it!" the Oviraptor commented

Ramirez, ignoring the use of his last name, cleared his throat and began saying "I come from a land far, far away from here, where a great conflict is occurring."

A series of gasps exhumed from the young Dinosaurs, appalled at the thought of a conflict in a land far away.

"A conflict? Oh, I don't like that at all, no, no, no!" commented Ducky

Littlefoot asks "Who's involved in this conflict, James?"

Pleased that the Apatosaurus used his first name, Ramirez says "The conflict involves two groups: The Russians and the Americans. I come from the American side."

"And, uh, who are these two groups, what are they? Are they Longnecks, Threehorns, Spiketails, Sharpteeth, what?"

"They consist of every kind, every kind imaginable, and they're tearing at each other's throats."

"How long has this thing lasted?" asked Ruby

"Oh, couple days, though it's costly all the same"

Cera asked the younger Ramirez "How did such a bloody and short thing like the one you're describing begin? How?"

Ramirez hesitated, a painful event coming into his mind, though he had to mention it. Finally, he replied "The conflict was started by one man: Vladimir Makarov, a Russian Longneck who is… well, it's hard to describe him, though the best I could say is that he is the complete OPPOSITE of all that this Valley stands for. Whereas, the Great Valley and its inhabitants stand for peace, tolerance, and justice, Makarov stands for inhumanity, cruelty, violence, and hatred. He's not above killing those who are too weak to stand up against him, especially newborn hatchlings, who he enjoys killing before they're barely able to enjoy their first few moments of life."

He paused in his story, noticing the horrified looks on his friends' faces, appalled by his vivid depiction of Makarov's cruelty.

"That's awful, it is, it is!"

"Ugh, what a horrible person, good thing he's not a Threehorn!"

"Me no like this Makarov!"

"So, what'd this Makarov guy do to trigger this conflict tearing your home apart?"

Hesitating, Ramirez imagined seeing news of the massacre at Zakhaev International Airport in Moscow, the horrible atrocity committed by Makarov. Finally, he explained "A massacre…" imagining Makarov and his men shooting innocent people at that airport "Makarov and a team of his accomplices performed a massacre, slaughtering many innocent Russians, creatures… of all kinds. They did it to spark a war between the Russians and the Americans, which they accomplished."

"Oh, that's terrible, I can't imagine someone pulling off something so horrible like that!" commented Ruby

Ramirez looked at the Oviraptor in a sad way and sighed, she and the other Dinosaurs were completely oblivious of the violence, hatred, bigotry, and outright evil Mankind is capable of, then again, it is for the best, as Makarov's massacre was committed millions of years after the Dinosaurs died out.

"You wouldn't know the terrible things my kind is capable of Ruby." The Threehorn thought before he finally turned away from the Fast Runner and continued explaining "Anyway, among the dead, they found the lone body of one of Makarov's accomplices; it turned out to be an American. Naturally, enraged by the thought of an American participating in such a brutal action, the Russian people cried for war, and their leaders--"

"—gave them one, by attacking the Americans…" interrupted Littlefoot

Nodding, Ramirez replied "Precisely."

"So, did you participate in this…Conflict?" asked Cera, a look of both concern and interest on her face

Ramirez hesitated, and sighed deeply, before saying "Er, yes, I did, I was in a special unit called… the US Rangers, a small elite force of some of the best fighting men available to America, though they're not as good as the SEALS or the Marines… anyway, I was part of a small group called a squad led by a Longneck named Foley, and a colleague of mine was a Swimmer named Dunn."

"Foley and Dunn, now those are odder names than Ramirez…" commented Ruby

"Dunn? You know, that's kind of a dumb name!" snapped Cera, which caused Ramirez to smile, as he figured if Dunn was here, he wouldn't be very pleased by the Threehorn's insult.

"Anyway, I've been through a lot throughout the conflict, and trust me… you don't wanna know what I've been through."

"Why, what have you been through?" the curious Swimmer asked

Ramirez hesitated before stating "I was forced to do all kinds of suicidal and near-impossible tasks by Dunn and Foley, you don't want to know what they were…"

Littlefoot says "Well, it must be REALLY far away as we've never heard anything from the Far Walkers."

Ramirez nodded and replied "Yeah… it is…"

The Longneck said "Well, tell us more about where you come from, what's it like living there?"

"Well…" Ramirez hesitated before saying "Alright, I'll tell you guys…" and he talked on and on about what the ways of life are at the place he came from, what's it like living there, and so on.

The Dinosaurs were so fascinated by this strange Threehorn and his tales of where he came from, the deadly conflict taking place there, and the appalling atrocities of Makarov.

After talking about his homeland for about two hours, the gang parted ways, Ducky and Spike joining their siblings and parents who were down at the river, Littlefoot going to the Thundering Falls to relax in the cool water, Petrie flew back to his family's nest in the cliff face of the Barrier Rocks, and Ruby decided to walk around the Valley.

When they were alone, Cera turned to Ramirez and asked him "You want to meet my parents?"

Intrigued, the former Army Ranger replied "Yeah!"

"Okay, I'll take you to go see them!"

Smiling, Ramirez said "That sounds good!"

"Great, come on!" and with that, Cera went off in the direction of her family's nest with the Male following close behind. It would be yet another step for Cera to acquire a mate at last…